The Rise (and Fall) of Brand Purpose
At the dawn of the 21st century, humanity had a revelation. No longer were we humble beings going about our lives; suddenly, we were the centre of the universe. It then became our moral duty to save the world, fix everything, and, of course, ensure that we looked good doing it. Life was not about survival anymore; it became a cosmic competition to find a grand purpose, as if the universe was rating us on a scorecard.
This existential angst did not stop with individuals. It spilled into business too. Enter “brand purpose”. The idea was that every company needed to be about more than profit. Soon, companies were stumbling over each other to proclaim how they were here to solve humanity’s biggest problems.
After all, why settle for making a great product when they could also save the environment, promote world peace and eradicate poverty? Because the world would be lost without sustainably sourced snack bars or ethically made sneakers.
Somewhere along the way, businesses looked back at history and started rewriting their stories. Suddenly, past inventions like the internal combustion engine were not just about improving transportation; they were about ‘saving lives’ and ‘pushing humanity forward’. Never mind that these inventions were born out of the desire for efficiency, profit, or sometimes, pure luck.
Today, we are pretending that these innovations were all part of a noble mission to better the world. Sure. And so it seems that today every brand is desperately trying to retroactively slap purpose onto their narrative. We are suddenly expected to believe that companies, which for decades have focused on selling cookies or cleaning products, have secretly been driven by a higher calling all along. Really?
We are to believe that a biscuit company, fuelled purely by profit for most of its existence, has always been about empowering the underserved. Sure, because nothing says ‘end inequality’ quite like a delicious chocolate chip cookie, right?
Here is a dose of reality. If purpose was not part of your DNA from day one, you cannot just tack it on now and expect everyone to applaud. Purpose is not something you sprinkle on top of a marketing campaign like a garnish. Consumers are not stupid (okay, most of them are not). You cannot sell snacks for 30 years and then suddenly claim you have been on a mission to save the rainforest since 1989. People will see through that kind of hollow virtue signalling, and it is not going to win you any favours.
Let’s take a moment to acknowledge something. Brands today are under immense pressure to perform. If you are not saving the world or making a social statement every five minutes, you risk being called out on social media or, worse, cancelled. Everyone is watching, waiting for you to slip up. And let’s be honest, a lot of brands are not ready to genuinely incorporate purpose into their DNA. But they try.
Oh, how they try.
The constant pressure to virtue signal has led to some pretty spectacular flops. Take Pepsi’s 2017 ad featuring Kendall Jenner. The commercial tried to co-opt the imagery of social justice movements and position Pepsi as a unifying force in society. Spoiler alert: it failed miserably. The ad was accused of trivialising real issues, and Pepsi quickly pulled it from circulation. Why?
Because it was a textbook case of retrofitting purpose for the sake of a marketing ploy. There was no history of activism or social justice woven into Pepsi’s DNA. It was an opportunistic (and painfully transparent) grab at a trending social issue.
On the other hand, look at Patagonia. From the beginning, Patagonia made environmentalism part of its core mission. The company’s commitment to sustainability feels authentic because it has been there from day one. Patagonia did not wake up one morning and decide to start caring about the planet because it looked good in a commercial. This purpose is built into their very fabric (pun intended). They walk the talk, and their customers know it.
One of the biggest myths out there is that every consumer cares deeply about brand purpose. The truth is more nuanced. Sure, there are vocal groups online that demand companies stand for something, and those voices are amplified in our social media echo chambers. But let’s not forget that most consumers are still driven by price, quality, and convenience. They are not necessarily expecting their soap to double as a solution for climate change.
Brands often overestimate how much the average customer cares about whether a product is socially or environmentally aligned. Yes, some people care deeply, and for those consumers, purpose-driven brands resonate. But for the vast majority? They just want something that works at a fair price. You can talk all day about saving the ocean, but if your product is garbage, none of that matters. Brands would do well to remember that not every consumer is judging them by how many carbon credits they have purchased this year.
So here’s the deal. Purpose is great if you have it. If it is part of your DNA, wear it proudly and weave it into everything you do. But if your brand is more about profit (and let’s be honest, most brands are), don’t feel the need to concoct some elaborate mission statement to make your shareholders feel warm and fuzzy inside.
The future of branding is not about pretending you are saving the world. It is about delivering real value with transparency and a healthy dose of honesty. Profit is not a dirty word. In fact, it is the engine that keeps businesses running and economies growing.Trying to retrofit purpose into a business model that has been profit-driven for decades is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. It won’t hold.
Ultimately, consumers are the ones driving change, not brands.
Here’s the hard truth: Brands do not lead revolutions. They follow.
They respond to real needs. If your customers want sustainability, give it to them, but only if it makes sense for your business. If they want a great product at a fair price, focus on that. Purpose may come and go, but trust and transparency? Those are forever.
So, if you are in marketing, here is your real job: make something that matters, whether it is through purpose or just good old-fashioned value. Leave the world-saving to non-profits and NGOs, and focus on delivering what you promised. Your customers will thank you, even if your mission statement doesn’t trend on X (formerly Twitter).
Ad Mad Dude runs the eponymous Facebook page. admaddude@gmail.com
Pepsi patagonia Ad Mad Dude brands and strategy Higher Purpose Branding social and environmental repsonsibility brand purpose
Email
Somewhere along the way, businesses looked back at history and started rewriting their stories. Suddenly, past inventions like the internal combustion engine were not just about improving transportation; they were about ‘saving lives’ and ‘pushing humanity forward’. Never mind that these inventions were born out of the desire for efficiency, profit, or sometimes, pure luck.
Today, we are pretending that these innovations were all part of a noble mission to better the world. Sure. And so it seems that today every brand is desperately trying to retroactively slap purpose onto their narrative. We are suddenly expected to believe that companies, which for decades have focused on selling cookies or cleaning products, have secretly been driven by a higher calling all along. Really?
We are to believe that a biscuit company, fuelled purely by profit for most of its existence, has always been about empowering the underserved. Sure, because nothing says ‘end inequality’ quite like a delicious chocolate chip cookie, right?
Here is a dose of reality. If purpose was not part of your DNA from day one, you cannot just tack it on now and expect everyone to applaud. Purpose is not something you sprinkle on top of a marketing campaign like a garnish. Consumers are not stupid (okay, most of them are not). You cannot sell snacks for 30 years and then suddenly claim you have been on a mission to save the rainforest since 1989. People will see through that kind of hollow virtue signalling, and it is not going to win you any favours.
Let’s take a moment to acknowledge something. Brands today are under immense pressure to perform. If you are not saving the world or making a social statement every five minutes, you risk being called out on social media or, worse, cancelled. Everyone is watching, waiting for you to slip up. And let’s be honest, a lot of brands are not ready to genuinely incorporate purpose into their DNA. But they try.
Oh, how they try.
The constant pressure to virtue signal has led to some pretty spectacular flops. Take Pepsi’s 2017 ad featuring Kendall Jenner. The commercial tried to co-opt the imagery of social justice movements and position Pepsi as a unifying force in society. Spoiler alert: it failed miserably. The ad was accused of trivialising real issues, and Pepsi quickly pulled it from circulation. Why?
Because it was a textbook case of retrofitting purpose for the sake of a marketing ploy. There was no history of activism or social justice woven into Pepsi’s DNA. It was an opportunistic (and painfully transparent) grab at a trending social issue.
On the other hand, look at Patagonia. From the beginning, Patagonia made environmentalism part of its core mission. The company’s commitment to sustainability feels authentic because it has been there from day one. Patagonia did not wake up one morning and decide to start caring about the planet because it looked good in a commercial. This purpose is built into their very fabric (pun intended). They walk the talk, and their customers know it.
One of the biggest myths out there is that every consumer cares deeply about brand purpose. The truth is more nuanced. Sure, there are vocal groups online that demand companies stand for something, and those voices are amplified in our social media echo chambers. But let’s not forget that most consumers are still driven by price, quality, and convenience. They are not necessarily expecting their soap to double as a solution for climate change.
Brands often overestimate how much the average customer cares about whether a product is socially or environmentally aligned. Yes, some people care deeply, and for those consumers, purpose-driven brands resonate. But for the vast majority? They just want something that works at a fair price. You can talk all day about saving the ocean, but if your product is garbage, none of that matters. Brands would do well to remember that not every consumer is judging them by how many carbon credits they have purchased this year.
So here’s the deal. Purpose is great if you have it. If it is part of your DNA, wear it proudly and weave it into everything you do. But if your brand is more about profit (and let’s be honest, most brands are), don’t feel the need to concoct some elaborate mission statement to make your shareholders feel warm and fuzzy inside.
The future of branding is not about pretending you are saving the world. It is about delivering real value with transparency and a healthy dose of honesty. Profit is not a dirty word. In fact, it is the engine that keeps businesses running and economies growing.Trying to retrofit purpose into a business model that has been profit-driven for decades is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. It won’t hold.
Ultimately, consumers are the ones driving change, not brands.
Here’s the hard truth: Brands do not lead revolutions. They follow.
They respond to real needs. If your customers want sustainability, give it to them, but only if it makes sense for your business. If they want a great product at a fair price, focus on that. Purpose may come and go, but trust and transparency? Those are forever.
So, if you are in marketing, here is your real job: make something that matters, whether it is through purpose or just good old-fashioned value. Leave the world-saving to non-profits and NGOs, and focus on delivering what you promised. Your customers will thank you, even if your mission statement doesn’t trend on X (formerly Twitter).
Ad Mad Dude runs the eponymous Facebook page. admaddude@gmail.com
Pepsi patagonia Ad Mad Dude brands and strategy Higher Purpose Branding social and environmental repsonsibility brand purpose
Email
Here is a dose of reality. If purpose was not part of your DNA from day one, you cannot just tack it on now and expect everyone to applaud. Purpose is not something you sprinkle on top of a marketing campaign like a garnish. Consumers are not stupid (okay, most of them are not). You cannot sell snacks for 30 years and then suddenly claim you have been on a mission to save the rainforest since 1989. People will see through that kind of hollow virtue signalling, and it is not going to win you any favours.
Let’s take a moment to acknowledge something. Brands today are under immense pressure to perform. If you are not saving the world or making a social statement every five minutes, you risk being called out on social media or, worse, cancelled. Everyone is watching, waiting for you to slip up. And let’s be honest, a lot of brands are not ready to genuinely incorporate purpose into their DNA. But they try.
Oh, how they try.
The constant pressure to virtue signal has led to some pretty spectacular flops. Take Pepsi’s 2017 ad featuring Kendall Jenner. The commercial tried to co-opt the imagery of social justice movements and position Pepsi as a unifying force in society. Spoiler alert: it failed miserably. The ad was accused of trivialising real issues, and Pepsi quickly pulled it from circulation. Why?
Because it was a textbook case of retrofitting purpose for the sake of a marketing ploy. There was no history of activism or social justice woven into Pepsi’s DNA. It was an opportunistic (and painfully transparent) grab at a trending social issue.
On the other hand, look at Patagonia. From the beginning, Patagonia made environmentalism part of its core mission. The company’s commitment to sustainability feels authentic because it has been there from day one. Patagonia did not wake up one morning and decide to start caring about the planet because it looked good in a commercial. This purpose is built into their very fabric (pun intended). They walk the talk, and their customers know it.
One of the biggest myths out there is that every consumer cares deeply about brand purpose. The truth is more nuanced. Sure, there are vocal groups online that demand companies stand for something, and those voices are amplified in our social media echo chambers. But let’s not forget that most consumers are still driven by price, quality, and convenience. They are not necessarily expecting their soap to double as a solution for climate change.
Brands often overestimate how much the average customer cares about whether a product is socially or environmentally aligned. Yes, some people care deeply, and for those consumers, purpose-driven brands resonate. But for the vast majority? They just want something that works at a fair price. You can talk all day about saving the ocean, but if your product is garbage, none of that matters. Brands would do well to remember that not every consumer is judging them by how many carbon credits they have purchased this year.
So here’s the deal. Purpose is great if you have it. If it is part of your DNA, wear it proudly and weave it into everything you do. But if your brand is more about profit (and let’s be honest, most brands are), don’t feel the need to concoct some elaborate mission statement to make your shareholders feel warm and fuzzy inside.
The future of branding is not about pretending you are saving the world. It is about delivering real value with transparency and a healthy dose of honesty. Profit is not a dirty word. In fact, it is the engine that keeps businesses running and economies growing.Trying to retrofit purpose into a business model that has been profit-driven for decades is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. It won’t hold.
Ultimately, consumers are the ones driving change, not brands.
Here’s the hard truth: Brands do not lead revolutions. They follow.
They respond to real needs. If your customers want sustainability, give it to them, but only if it makes sense for your business. If they want a great product at a fair price, focus on that. Purpose may come and go, but trust and transparency? Those are forever.
So, if you are in marketing, here is your real job: make something that matters, whether it is through purpose or just good old-fashioned value. Leave the world-saving to non-profits and NGOs, and focus on delivering what you promised. Your customers will thank you, even if your mission statement doesn’t trend on X (formerly Twitter).
Ad Mad Dude runs the eponymous Facebook page. admaddude@gmail.com
Pepsi patagonia Ad Mad Dude brands and strategy Higher Purpose Branding social and environmental repsonsibility brand purpose
Email
On the other hand, look at Patagonia. From the beginning, Patagonia made environmentalism part of its core mission. The company’s commitment to sustainability feels authentic because it has been there from day one. Patagonia did not wake up one morning and decide to start caring about the planet because it looked good in a commercial. This purpose is built into their very fabric (pun intended). They walk the talk, and their customers know it.
One of the biggest myths out there is that every consumer cares deeply about brand purpose. The truth is more nuanced. Sure, there are vocal groups online that demand companies stand for something, and those voices are amplified in our social media echo chambers. But let’s not forget that most consumers are still driven by price, quality, and convenience. They are not necessarily expecting their soap to double as a solution for climate change.
Brands often overestimate how much the average customer cares about whether a product is socially or environmentally aligned. Yes, some people care deeply, and for those consumers, purpose-driven brands resonate. But for the vast majority? They just want something that works at a fair price. You can talk all day about saving the ocean, but if your product is garbage, none of that matters. Brands would do well to remember that not every consumer is judging them by how many carbon credits they have purchased this year.
So here’s the deal. Purpose is great if you have it. If it is part of your DNA, wear it proudly and weave it into everything you do. But if your brand is more about profit (and let’s be honest, most brands are), don’t feel the need to concoct some elaborate mission statement to make your shareholders feel warm and fuzzy inside.
The future of branding is not about pretending you are saving the world. It is about delivering real value with transparency and a healthy dose of honesty. Profit is not a dirty word. In fact, it is the engine that keeps businesses running and economies growing.Trying to retrofit purpose into a business model that has been profit-driven for decades is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. It won’t hold.
Ultimately, consumers are the ones driving change, not brands.
Here’s the hard truth: Brands do not lead revolutions. They follow.
They respond to real needs. If your customers want sustainability, give it to them, but only if it makes sense for your business. If they want a great product at a fair price, focus on that. Purpose may come and go, but trust and transparency? Those are forever.
So, if you are in marketing, here is your real job: make something that matters, whether it is through purpose or just good old-fashioned value. Leave the world-saving to non-profits and NGOs, and focus on delivering what you promised. Your customers will thank you, even if your mission statement doesn’t trend on X (formerly Twitter).
Ad Mad Dude runs the eponymous Facebook page. admaddude@gmail.com
Pepsi patagonia Ad Mad Dude brands and strategy Higher Purpose Branding social and environmental repsonsibility brand purpose
Email
They respond to real needs. If your customers want sustainability, give it to them, but only if it makes sense for your business. If they want a great product at a fair price, focus on that. Purpose may come and go, but trust and transparency? Those are forever.
So, if you are in marketing, here is your real job: make something that matters, whether it is through purpose or just good old-fashioned value. Leave the world-saving to non-profits and NGOs, and focus on delivering what you promised. Your customers will thank you, even if your mission statement doesn’t trend on X (formerly Twitter).
Ad Mad Dude runs the eponymous Facebook page. admaddude@gmail.com
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