Branding and Social Causes, Pt. 1

If you frequent the internet and social media often, chances are you probably read or heard someone use the word woke- not as in someone wake up from a deep sleep, but as an adjective. As in, “woke af”, or “Omg, that guy/ girl’s so woke.” If you have heard the word you probably have a loose idea of its meaning, but on a bigger scale, how much does being  ‘woke’ matters in brands and marketing? To answer this question, we need to dig deeper into the roots of this word. 

 

The word woke is not new, but in the last few years ‘woke’ has elevated from social media activism vocab to common slang and satire memes. The word ‘woke’ is a slang term of African American origin that refers to the state of being aware of current affairs and social injustices.  In 2012, the death of African-American teenager Trayvon Martin at the hands of a neighborhood watch volunteer spurred #BlackLivesMatter movement, which is credited in popularizing ‘being woke’ in its widespread culture. But the first modern use of ‘woke’ was in 2008, with soul singer Erykah Badu in her song ‘”Master Teacher”, long before its wide use in illustrating America’s current political state.

 

To put it simply, being ‘woke’ means being up-to-date on things that are happening around the world. And this is not surprising: with access to mass media news and social media 24/7, people are able to consume and share information better than ever. People are able to learn about the latest news of current happenings in other parts of the world. It is easier to hear about police brutality or racial profiling in any continent, all at the ease of our fingertips. And thanks to the increased presence of social media and technology,  it is easier than ever to discuss and get yourself educated on topics that were once either swept under the rug or not being talked openly in our daily lives.

 

This societal shift doesn’t go unnoticed by the advertising industry. For the last 2 years, one major trend is where companies take a stand on political issue in an attempt to prove to their customers that they can trust them to support the customers’ causes. Called ‘brand activism’, there are some iconic examples that became the talk of the internet. Historically, brands have not actively engaged in political conversations in fear of potentially alienating their customers.

 

 

 

A 2018 survey by Edelman found 64 percent of millennials (between 18-39) across the world are belief-driven buyers, suggesting that a brand’s product and its principles inspire purchases equally. Millennials are passionate and ambitious about changing the world for the better, more so than any generation before them. They care about society — and they demand that the companies they support and work for strive for positive change, as well. Consumers are looking for brands that stand for something, so that they can make a decision for themselves if that represents their identity and values. But brands need to remember about authenticity in their campaigns. Authentic personal or brand identity needs to be followed with the actual work. Brands can buy authenticity, but it doesn’t happen overnight, and funding programs must also be coupled with respect and understanding for the social movements with which they seek to align themselves.

 

An aspect just as important to consider is how to balance the tone for messaging and to recognize the cynicism today’s consumers have towards advertising. A recent study from the Journal of Advertising Research, “How Intensity of Cause-Related Marketing Guilt Appeals Influences Consumers,” found that cause-related marketing that displays intense emotional and guilt levels does not create resonance, as one might expect, but actually results in distrust among viewers. In short, marketers maybe going too broad when trying to be purposeful, ultimately leading to campaigns with negative outcome. This discovery can lead us to believe that these campaigns may evoke feelings of being deceived and manipulated.

 

Pepsi became a laughing stock from their campaign featuring Kendall Jenner, where many people viewed that it appropriates Black Lives Matter movement. In this case, Pepsi’s approaches shows that their company doesn’t took actions. Another campaign, Gillette received a very mixed reaction regarding their #TheBestAManCanBe campaign, which dabbled on toxic masculinity and #MeToo. Meanwhile, Airbnb were applauded for their Open Homes campaign, where they provide temporary housing for refugees affected by Donald Trump’s ‘Muslim ban’.  A case of authenticity is Patagonia (outdoor clothing company) spending decades funding wildlife and environment conservation. Or MAC Cosmetics by boldly supporting LGBT causes in 1994 with Viva Glam campaign, before the other companies became comfortable with the idea.

 

So, that’s a long read. We brought this topic because we believe that we should turn ourselves to be a smart buyer and smart consumers. Many social causes are rising and many brands use them to get our attention. If you stand on something, you can’t let brand dictate your choices to support fake causes. This is part one – Hope this ‘woke’ you up.