Giving is better than receiving
“Consumers are four to six times more likely to buy from, trust, champion, and defend companies with a strong purpose.”
– FORBES, June 2020 Study
We are building brands in a new era, where purchasing choices are led by values as much as the benefits and quality of a product.
The Pandemic caused a lot of people to examine the fragility of life. It put everything into perspective, including how critical it is to support each other. We have become even more conscious of our actions and the impact of our decisions. As a result, brands who are driving change and supporting the causes consumers believe in are getting even more of our hard-earned money.
In fact, according to a recent study nearly 60 percent of Americans consider themselves “conscious consumers.” That number is even higher when you factor in consumers globally. As we edge closer to the tipping point where the “impact economy” simply becomes THE economy, it is essential for brands to understand how to make meaningful change to connect with this new consumer.
Dove is a great example of how long-term authentic focus on values can drive growth. Since 2004, Dove completely changed how they communicate with their customers. They’re advocating for women and redefining beauty in the 21st century. Really, they don’t even talk about soap. By communicating with their purpose first, their sales jumped from $2.5 billion to $4 billion after the shift.
The power of purpose has intensified even further in recent years and inspired greater brand engagement alongside growth. According to branding agency Brand Z, over a 12-year period, brands recognized for a purpose beyond profit grew more than twice as fast.
The UK, however, has lagged. Last year, British brands were noted as performing behind the growth rate of the Global Top 100. In response, building brands more responsibly was one of the four key areas of focus identified to connect with consumers and drive growth more effectively.
There are both ethical and financial reasons for embedding purpose into brands, but how to embed purpose in a meaningful way can be a challenge. Whether purpose is your raison d’etre or you are retrofitting values into your messaging and activations, it’s critical that it connects with your audience. Purpose should build trust and engagement and drive the right outcomes for the greater good as well as your business. Every case is different, but here are some things to consider:
- Connection – align principles with your brand and category, it should be a fluent purpose that is obviously connected and means something to your audience.
- Transparency – go beyond ‘what’ you are doing with ‘how’ you are doing it. When you show consumers the direct impact of their support you share the humanity behind it, becoming a community conversation around aligned values.
- Culture Over Cause – passion for a brand’s principles creates enthusiasm and loyalty in your team beyond the brand – and it is infectious to your customer. Your team must be engaged in your purpose and express it through behaviors and activations.
There are brands that have spearheaded this movement – built on passionate values, like the original ethos behind the Body Shop, or later, Lush. Even the ingredient transparency activist stance of Paula’s Choice paid back in its $2bn sale to Unilever. That same consumer transparency approach helped value The Ordinary at $2.2bn in its transaction with The Estée Lauder Companies and Beauty Pie recently raised £100m from Balderton Capital to help the brand continue on its disruptive consumer-first journey into accessible luxury. All these are brands on a mission that is tune with today’s consumer mindset.
So, mission-led values will do good for the planet and people whilst building passionate brand advocates, but some give back principles are even more literal. Back in 2006, Toms founder, Blake Mycoskie was inspired to create a for profit business with giving back at its core, creating the One for One model, where every pair of shoes sold would donate a free pair for children in need. The company continues to commit a third of profits to those in need. Warby Parker followed suit with a One for One pair of glasses for every pair sold, and Patagonia has raised $89m for hundreds of grass roots environmental groups. Back to beauty, Tatcha helps to fund girls’ education via their Beautiful Faces Beautiful Future program and their non-profit ‘Rooms to Read.’ This initiative has funded 4.6m school days for girls in Asia and Africa to date. It’s powerful.
On the non-profit side, Beauty Banks was launched in the UK as an industry charity that is all about giving back – powered by the belief that every body is some body, and pledging to end hygiene poverty in the UK. Founded by beauty industry legends Sali Hughes and Jo Jones, Beauty Banks has driven awareness and support by leveraging their audience and connections to donate much needed hygiene products that provide confidence and dignity for people in need.
This year Beauty Banks are wishing you a Happy Cleanmas, offering the chance to pay your gift forward via their Make-A-Wash donations that support the 37% of the UK population who find it challenging to buy toiletries and where 13m live below the poverty line.
So you can spread a little happiness this Christmas by gifting beyond your list this year. There’s extra benefits too, giving is actually scientifically proven to make you happier! Biologically, giving can create a “warm glow,” activating regions in the brain associated with pleasure, connection with other people and trust. According to an article by the Cleveland Clinic, gift giving releases ‘feel good’ chemicals in our brains – such as serotonin (a mood-mediating chemical), dopamine (a feel-good chemical) and oxytocin (a compassion and bonding chemical)…its even shown health benefits, including lower blood pressure and stress levels.
So giving really is better than receiving in so many ways, and with a changing mindset from brands, the consumer and investment funds, we are moving into a world where commerce can power change far beyond revenues.