Imagine having customers or clients who advocate for your brand.
That is precisely what today’s consumers are becoming. Today’s organizations are being held responsible for more than quality of products or services. They are being held to task when it comes to exacting progressive change in the world.
The 2018 Edelman Earned Brand study revealed that 64 percent of global consumers “buy on belief” which has become the majority across all age groups and income brackets.
Aside from being able to affect positive change, taking a stand that makes the world a better place will likely repel ultra conservatives while also attracting a more desirable customer base – all on an authentic level.
In a world where politics are questionable and everything is becoming more polarized, taking a stand is becoming increasingly essential for successful marketing campaigns.
BRANDS THAT TOOK A STAND
Nike made a risky decision to make Colin Kaepernick one of the faces of their 30-year anniversary of their “Just Do It” campaign. Risky because Colin Kaepernick became famous for his silent protest against racial inequality and police brutality during an August preseason NFL game by refusing to stand for the national anthem.
Although some of Nike’s customer base actually burned their products, their “Believe in something, even if it means losing everything” message resonated with most of their target consumers and, consequently, their stock ended up skyrocketing, resulting in a $6 billion increase in the company’s value.
In another powerful example of thought leadership, Airbnb responded to President Donald Trump’s order to close all U.S. borders with a touching message that clearly showed where they stood on the issue.
With their “#WeAccept” advert which aired during the 2017 Super Bowl, this peer-to-peer tech marketplace demonstrated clearly where they stood on immigration: “Acceptance starts with all of us.”
However, their quiet stand against Trump’s political maneuvers didn’t end there. CEO Brian Chesky not only vowed to contribute $4 million to the International Rescue Committee but also to provide short-term housing for 100,000 displaced people in the next five years.
Other tech giants like Microsoft, Apple, and Uber also took a stand against Trump’s travel restrictions.
One more example is Gillette. In January of this year, they launched a campaign in support of the #MeToo movement which challenged men to be the best they could be. Their “The Best Men Can Be” – a spin-off of their “The Best A Man Can Get” slogan – clearly tackled a sensitive but timely topic. Their parent company – Procter & Gamble exposed support of the statement by commenting, “The greater good is in the details. It’s simple.We want to lead the charge in doing the right thing.”
Indeed, Procter & Gamble’s mission statment includes improving “the lives of the world’s consumers, now and for generations to come” which is in perfect alignment with Gillette’s campaign.
Gillette’s example includes a challenge to other brands to take a stand in influencing culture and society.
BOYCOTT or BUYCOTT
A 2017 study done in America showed that Corporate Social Responsibility has become more important than ever in history.
Specifically, 63 percent of Americans hope businesses will drive social and environmental changes; 78 percent want companies to address important social issues; and an astonishing 87 percent said they would buy a product because the company advocated for an issue that mattered to them. Conversely, 76 percent would boycott a company’s products/services if it supported an issue that did not align with theirs.
In the UK, Brexit has nearly split the EU in half and with many of today’s politically slanted, privately-owned news agencies, it has become difficult for consumers to know what is really happening.
These things provide brands across the world an invaluable opportunity to gain the coveted trust of their customers as well as prospective customers.
While it may seem counterintuitive to make your ideals a part of your marketing strategy, there is no denying that consumes are paying close attention to the “politics behind the products.”
The strongest brands will be those who choose to participate in taking actionable steps towards global changes.
Political Scientists have coined the term political consumerism as “actions by people who make choices amongst producers and products with the goal of changing objectionable institutional or market [practices]…” That is, how your brand is viewed by consumers is directly related to how well your organization will do.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
The idea of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is that today’s organizations have more responsibility to society than to just those who own, work for, or invest in them. The responsibility of today’s companies extends to influencing policies that make the world a better place and this sentiment is growing.
However, CSR is a slippery slope for today’s companies so it’s important to understand how to leverage social responsibility to keep consumers happy.
In the US and Britain, more than half of consumers believe that companies should have and share a point of view on social issues but only 12 percent of Americans and 10 percent of Brits place importance on it.
A recent survey of Generation Z (those born after 1995) showed that by next year, will make up 40 percent of all consumers and the five most important things to them are:
- Open-mindedness
- Social Impact
- Inclusion
- Authenticity
- Value
This means that a well-placed, authentic, and genuine point of view on specific social issues can be a catapult for today’s companies, as long as there is a clear understanding of where consumers beliefs lie. The trickiest part of cause marketing (also known as brand activism) is to choose the right cause at the right time and the most important part of taking a stand on social issues is to be authentic.
PREPARING TO TAKE A STAND
Before a brand takes a side on an important social or political issue, there are things to consider because doing so carries both risks and rewards.
Identify the Why
Today’s consumers are more conscious about what they buy from whom, and they can do their research so if you’re contributing to, objecting to, or supporting a cause that is not in alignment with their own values, you stand the risk of alienating that customer base.
However, any time a brand takes a stand, they are going to alienate someone so the first question to ask is: Why?
If the cause you choose to identify with is not in collaboration with your products, your customer base will most likely see this as an ingenuine, opportunistic move.
Consider the passions, concerns, or outrage(s) of your preferred customers and then examine your own brand’s position on the topic. Once you establish that your brand has consistently held the same position (or, at least, not the opposite position), you can harness that to take a stand on their behalf.
It is imperative, however, that your brand remain consistent because, although consumers want to see more CSR, they are also far more sensitive to inauthenticity and one minor slip can have huge repercussions.
Identify Your Brand’s Values
While every organization seeks to increase profits, it has become increasingly less important in today’s global economy than a bigger picture view. Every organization has a mission statement so what kinds of values are in yours? Identifying the things that your brand stands for is the first step towards identifying the most ideal stands to take.
Research Your Organization’s Philanthropy
This can be a vital way to establish your authenticity once the decision is made to take a stand on an issue. Maybe your organization has made donations to animal welfare causes or refugees in foreign countries, but these contributions are by nature, quiet and subdued, intended to be non-offensive to anyone.
However, when taking a social or political stand, it’s important to be able to highlight corresponding contributions, actions, and attitudes that support your initiative as well as determine any that might undermine it. When you take a stand, your company is sure to be picked apart by consumers, competitors, and the media alike so finding and leveraging the things that reinforce your stance will help you to prepare for this inevitable scrutiny.
Determine What Makes You Qualified
When Pepsi did a commercial depicting a protest with a mostly white crowd during a time when the #BlackLivesMatter movement was at it’s height, the backlash was an expected one. After all, how many black protests have included smiling white police officers and happy mobs cheering, dancing, and singing together?
While their message may have been well-intended, it came across as ill-informed and inauthentic.
Your stand should naturally align with the products and/or services you are offering or you run the risk of the same avoidable kind of backlash.
WHO IS THE BEST SPOKESPERSON FOR YOUR MESSAGE?
A clear understanding of the people, places, and things that matter most to your customer base can help you identify who you need to have on your side. Just as how Nike’s campaign alienated one segment, it ignited and encouraged a larger one.
Taking a stance is sure to offend some but these risks – pulled off strategically with thought leadership – are worth the gains.
TALK ABOUT THE MOVE INTERNALLY
Consistency is essential to establishing and maintaining your brand’s authenticity. That’s why it is crucial to discuss your plans with everyone from C-suite executives to receptionists and janitors.
Questions will be asked and – as a part of being authentic – your entire company needs to know how to not only answer them, but how to answer them truthfully.
Of course, there may be employees who disagree with your position but once you have everyone on the same page, it creates a unified campaign that is organized. Your internal dialogue can also help you prepare for many of the questions that may arise from your brand activism.
WEIGH THE RISKS
Being politically, socially, or environmentally proactive can result in great rewards but it does not come without risks. This is why it is critical for companies to evaluate what risks are concerned with taking a stand on any issue before launching their campaigns.
Consider any scenarios that may come up so even in worst-case scenarios, you are already prepared with a response. Knee-jerk reactions to negative media or exposure can be detrimental to your cause and your company. Take time to plan ahead for these possibilities.
PLAN THE LAUNCH
Effective brand activism is not short-lived. Rather, it’s something that establishes a conversation and keeps it going. Consumers will be watching to see how consistent and committed you are when you tackle an issue so being prepared to carry on the conversation in a meaningful way will be achieving the goals you have set.
Simply making a statement will come off as a fad that will quickly diminish without fortifying it in different ways. With today’s technological consumers, there are many ways that today’s brands can reach their intended audience with purpose, authenticity, and spirit.
Ultimately, in an interview with The Marketing Journal, Unilever Europe’s president Hanneke Faber offered three tips for brands to take on social responsibility.
- Be really clear on what your purpose is in life.
- Link that purpose to a local, timely, relevant issue.
- Talk about it.
Lars Rebein Sorensen, CEO of Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk – ranked number one by HBR amongst the best-performing CEO’s in the world – says that “Corporate social responsibility is nothing but [maximizing] the value of your company over a long period. In the long term, social and environmental issues become financial issues.”
There is no shortage of social issues ranging from gun control to environment to animal cruelty. The key is to stay within the values and mission of your organization and be willing to follow through for the long-term.
Formulating a sense of value and purpose that can help you become more socially active and impactful will help transform the world with thought leadership and, thus, improve not only profits but the ways in which we all live our lives.
At Imagine If, we are committed to helping our clients reach their goals as well as to making the world a better place. We are avid advocates of the humanistic approach and invite you to contact us today to discuss ways your organization can take a stand.