It made me question my purpose.
Everyone has been talking ‘purpose’ for a while now. In a world of Covid (19) the idea is surely more important than ever.
Over the past 12 years I’ve worked on various projects for M&S (Plan ‘A’), Unilever (All - Sustainable living), RB (Durex) Diageo (Talisker) and NGOs such as Project Everyone, supporting the UN’s Global goals, to help tell their stories and bring their purpose missions to life.
These global companies have seen success from doing the right thing. In 2019 Unilever saw 30% more growth for their brands in their Sustainable Living programme.
It makes sense for the world and sense for the planet. Win, win.
Today, in order to survive and maintain relevance, brands clearly have to have a purpose beyond commerciality.
It stems from a simple principle.
Any brand is fundamentally all about trust.
No longer can brands rely on advertising to tell people what to think. Now they have to earn that trust.
Green-washing, simply doesn’t wash.
Trust is now gained peer to peer.
Bloggers and Vloggers, review sites from ‘Trip Advisor’ to ‘Trust Pilot’ will out the truth.
So, my plea to any brand is straight forward. Please don’t go trying to do good where you’re not necessarily involved. Clear up your own mess and people will love you for it.
Play in places where you have permission to play.
Fast food restaurants, tackle childhood obesity. Car hire companies, plant forests with every hire. Credit card companies educate kids on APR’s and pensions and FMCG’s, clean the oceans of your plastic debris…The list goes on. And on.
As I see it, the best marketing strategy may not be running ads at all but simply doing something relevant that makes the world a better place.
In the words of Bill Bernbech. ‘A principle isn’t a principle until it costs you money’.
In the long run it’ll be money well spent.
