"How Now?": Five Trends In Sustainable Branding
"How now": Five Trends In Sustainable Branding
By Judit Maireder
In June, I joined 2,000 international brand and business leaders in San Diego for the 2015 Sustainable Brands conference. Subhead “How now?”
My mission was to find out how businesses are responding to the changing social norms around the globe.
Here are a few lessons that stuck with me from the week.
I’ll start with a scary fact – for marketers at least. Recent research by Havas Media suggests that 73% of brands could disappear without anyone caring, 55% of people have boycotted a brand in the last 12 months and only 20% of worldwide brands are seen to have a positive impact. The pressure is on.
So, what do consumers want?
More
and more, they demand business models with integrity –
that don´t merely strive for the greatest profit – and
brands that stand for something. Businesses are adapting and
embracing the idea of having a greater purpose, as this may
well be the most effective way to survive in today´s more
socially-aware world.
We have seen a few first attempts
– from lukewarm marketing campaigns to fully integrated
business models – but it seems that the best way go about
this is still to be found.
“How Now?” was therefore a timely question.
Here are five ideas about reinventing our
businesses:
The purpose must
come from the top
What do
Brazil´s top beauty brand (Natura), America´s second-fastest
growing restaurant chain (Chipotle) and the world´s
third-bestselling car (Toyota Prius) have in common? They are
all successfully merging social responsibility with
profitability. That´s according to Freya Williams,
consultant and author of “Green Giants”. Williams
studied nine businesses which shattered the myth that acting
in a socially-responsible way and building a billion-dollar
company are mutually exclusive.
She identified that the core driver for success with these businesses is a leader who is fuelled by the deep conviction that their business should focus on purpose beyond profit.
It might sound paradoxical, but these companies have proven to be more profitable in the long run. Chipotle, Tesla, Whole Foods, Nike, Ikea, Natura and Unilever are some of the brands that have transformed themselves in recent years and have showed that it is possible to act responsibly and still be highly profitable.
When mission leads, profit follows.
Design from
trust
How is this new
mindset shaping traditional business models, and, even more
importantly, the relationships between customers, employees
and the competition?
“Design from Trust” is the new
credo, according to Jerry Michalski, founder of REX and
evangelist of the Relationship Economy. He argues the path
to any real connection is trust, openness and ultimately,
vulnerability, referring to Brene Brown´s TED Talk, The Power of
Vulnerability.
“Trust is cheaper than control, more
effective, transformative, regenerative, social. Trust
allows us to come together.”
Real innovation is fostered in an environment of inherent trust. This is most obvious in the emergence of the sharing economy: everything from crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter to online marketplaces such as ebay or Airbnb are all reliant on mutual trust. Michalski feels all of this is moving us towards his vision of a relationship economy.
A brave
example shared at the conference was Patagonia´s Footprint Chronicles. The brand
published their entire supply chain, not only revealing it
to their customers, but even encouraging their competition
to follow suit.
Transparency: from zero
to hero?
If trust and
vulnerability are the way forward, then transparency is
fundamental. And some leading brands are already embracing
it. Chobani, the innovative yoghurt company that grew from
nothing to a turnover of $5 billion in just five years,
invites people on ´virtual field trips´ through their
factory and farms.
However, transparency is not
always easy, as the well-known “Our food, your questions” campaign by
McDonalds has showed. Jill Manata, VP of Global Public
Affairs at McDonalds, reported that the task of gathering
42,000 questions from the public was well worth it, as the
social media response campaign increased positive
perceptions of McDonalds by 12%. But, she was also careful
to state that there were a lot of critics, and warned that
sharing in this way might not be right for every brand.
“It can be daunting,” she said. Ultimately, “if
you´re not resonating with your audience, there´s only so
much that transparency will get you.”
Storytelling: from
eco-friendly to
ego-friendly
`Why should
people give a sh**?` is another way to put it – a question
Hank Campher from Edelman posed to open his panel on
storytelling. Despite the shift in social consciousness,
people still care first about themselves, then their world,
and only after that, the world in general.
That is why, “You don´t necessarily want to lead the conversation with your sustainability message. In fact, if you want to reach mainstream consumers, it is probably a bad idea,” he states. Guilt doesn´t sell. Being a better company is only half the story. Be relevant. Keep it simple. And fun.
The rainforest needs you by the Rainbow Alliance is my favourite example of how to tell a story a that is relevant to the consumer, in an entertaining and seriously funny way.
When Michael
Dickstein from Heineken opened his presentation with
“Selling more by telling people to drink less”, more
than one eyebrow was raised in the audience. Heineken´s
take on purpose is to show their younger audience how to ´Drink Less. Dance More´. The new
brand approach promotes moderate drinking – a pretty bold
statement for a brewer – especially as it is a theme that
is equally relevant to their consumers, as it is to the
entire industry.
Being up front about problems in our society that may even be caused by your category might not feel comfortable, but it seems like that´s exactly what people demand of brands today: being straight up and open to participation in discussing solutions.
Be honest. Be open. Embrace the challenge.
After four full days of being inspired by eclectic brand leaders in San Diego, I have no doubt that brands can embrace purpose, if they are only genuine about it.
No, this is not the “next big thing”: it is clear that ‘Green washing’ your company’s image creates more harm than value and a bolt-on brand purpose brought to life through a half-hearted campaign is not credible. Meeting the consumer at eye level means there is no need to keep up the shiny façade: open the doors, embrace transparency and yes, be vulnerable.
Sustainable Brands 2015 showed me clearly that this transformation demands more than a simple shift in marketing budgets or a rewording of your organisation´s corporate social responsibility summary. It is a business challenge that urges managers to re-think the entire model of how and why we do business in the first place.
Judit is a digital
strategist in the advertising and communication industry.
Her consultancy, Y brand Ltd, specializes in how to
create value by connecting brands with
purpose.