Brands with a purpose are more successful, and will continue to be more successful, than brands without a purpose.
This month the Reno AMA (American Marketing Association) organized a marketing workshop held at the Innevation Center here in Reno. The keynote speaker was Stan Phelps, author of the Purple Goldfish. He talked about his new book, the Red Goldfish and what the color red represents. In this case, red represented having a purpose. He discussed the different versions and stages that companies have gone through in terms of differentiation.
At first, companies catered to their shareholders. Next, they catered to their customers and pushed a customer-centric approach. Next, they pushed how well they treated their employees. Now? the key to differentiation is having a purpose.
Many of the brands we identify with the most have some kind of a purpose that we can identify with. For me, a brand that I identify with for this reason is Jeep. Jeep is about the outdoors, about freedom, and about creating your own path. Part of their purpose is to provide people with vehicles that can overcome any obstacle and make any path, a road. This purpose permeates in everything they do. One example, is their partnership with Access Fund. Access Fund is an organization that works to protect our beautiful landscapes and climbing areas in the United States. They reinforce their purpose as a brand by partnering with organizations with a shared purpose.
Another great example that Stan highlighted is Panera. This is one of my favorite food chains (#BringPaneraToReno) and they have a very clear purpose: To serve food to their communities that is good and good for you. One way they highlight their purpose is through Panera Cares. This is a concept where all of the food is technically free, but each item has a "suggested donation" and relies on people wanting to help others in their community. Some people pay only when they can afford it, others pay more than the suggested donation. Although they received quite a bit of cynicism, the program worked. The flagship Panera Cares Cafe generates enough money to pay expenses and serve their community. They have reinforced their purpose by inventing a new way of giving good food to their community.
To quote Stan, it is no longer non-profit or for-profit, it is for a purpose or not for a purpose. Not only do customers want to align themselves with brands that have a purpose they believe in, but people want to work for those same companies. Millennials and Gen Z, more than any other generation want their work to have meaning. We want to work for companies we believe in, who are doing things we align our beliefs with.
The moral of the story is, if you want to attract more loyal customers and passionate talent, you should be marketing your purpose!
What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!