Purpose-Led Marketing 101

In today’s competitive business landscape, standing out from the crowd requires more than just a great product or service. People are increasingly seeking brands that align with their values and have a net-positive impact on the world around them. That’s where purpose-led marketing comes into play.

But, what exactly do people mean by ‘purpose’, and how can it transform your marketing strategy for the better?

Let’s delve into the world of purpose-led marketing and explore its benefits.

Before we do: a quick hello! I’m Duncan; a UK-based purpose-led business coach and marketing consultant, working with brands of all sizes, to embed purpose at the heart of business and marketing strategy.

What is Purpose-Led Marketing?

Purpose is the foundation that drives a brand’s mission, for and beyond profit. It goes beyond the bottom line, emcompassing a deeper sense of meaning and impact. It’s about defining the reason why your brand exists and how it can make a meaningful difference in lives of employees, customers, and society.

Hence, purpose-led marketing is not about jumping onto the latest social cause bandwagon, but about sincerely championing causes that align with your brand’s ethos. It’s about weaving your purpose into every aspect of your business, from your internal culture to your product development processes, and communicating this consistently in your marketing efforts.

The Rise of Purposeful Marketing

To succeed long-term, it is no longer enough for companies to focus solely on revenue and profitability; they must also demonstrate their commitment to social and environmental issues. Why you ask? In addition to an ever-tightening regulatory and legal environment, it can make great business sense, is ethically and morally in check, and leads to a more rewarding existance for all. More in the benefits section below.

Despite its recent prominance, purpose-led marketing has been around for some time.

Socially conscious marketing first emerged amidst increasing desire for brands to be more personable and resonate with people on a deeper level. Though, until the late 1980s and ’90s, most purpose-driven advertising campaigns were driven by non-profit organisations, with a focus on social causes.

As brands sought to capitalise on increased demand to balance the negative impacts of business, known as market externalities, (e.g. emissions, health, deforestation), many began to invest in creating and sustaining a more positive reputation through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Though, CSR’s lack of accountability has been brought into question by ‘greenwashing’ legislation, which aims to put an end to purpose-led messaging without substance.

That’s where ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) comes in.

ESG builds on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), bringing a greater level of accountability for delivering real-world impact.

The shift from merely advertising products or services to building a social purpose brand ecosystem has been instrumental in the rise of purpose-led brands.

Differentiating Purpose from Profit

Each business needs to find its unique purpose, one that resonates with its target audience and is authentic to its brand. This requires deep introspection and an understanding of your brand’s DNA. It also calls for courageous leadership, willing to make tough decisions in line with the company’s purpose, even when they may not be popular or immediately profitable.

While profit is essential for business success, purpose-led marketing objectives reach beyond pure financial gain, recognising that almost every business carries a societal cost, which can be balanced via equal or greater societal good. Furthermore, profit in itself is seldom the end goal.

The key question is, what does profit afford…not in the realm of jets, boats, and cars, but in human sentiment. Our ultimate purpose might be happiness, security, or pride. When stripped back, profit may be essential, but is a weaker metric for all that truly matters to our overall sense of wellbeing.

Unlike traditional profit-focussed narratives, purposeful marketing aligns the values of brands, with those of customers’ and employees’, to create a shared sense of fulfilment, aligned to a deeper and more collective level of beliefs and needs. This cohesion inspires stronger connections with your audiences that extend beyond transactional relationships.

Whilst there may be deemed a short-term cost to purpose-led marketing, it frequently pays dividends in brand trust and loyalty over the mid to long term. And so, for leaders embracing purpose-led marketing, it is not just about driving growth, but about creating a lasting legacy for your brand.

The Benefits of Purpose-Led Marketing

  1. Enhanced Brand Reputation: Purpose-led marketing can elevate your brand’s reputation, positioning it as a force for positive change and social impact.
  2. Increased Customer Loyalty: When customers resonate with your brand’s purpose, they are more likely to become loyal advocates, fostering long-term relationships and repeat business.
  3. Differentiation in a Crowded Market: Purpose-led marketing helps your brand stand out in a crowded marketplace by showcasing its unique values and commitment to making a difference.
  4. Improved Employee Engagement: Purpose-driven organisations attract and retain top talent who are passionate about contributing to a meaningful cause.
  5. Increased Supply Chain Resiliance: The impact of global heating is becoming ever more present, amidst an increasingly uncertain geopolitical climate, Recent wars, and poor harvests have highlighted the impact of scarcity on costs and standards of living. Novel means of supply chain resilience are already a key source of competitive advantage, and will soon become a determining factor in business success or failure.
  6. Positive Impact on Society and the Environment: Purpose-led marketing allows brands to address important societal and environmental issues, making a tangible impact beyond business success.

5 Examples of Purpose-Led Marketing in Action

  1. Haleon: Haleon, a consumer healthcare joint venture between GSK and Pfizer, launched a purpose-driven brand strategy called ‘Brands with Humanity’. The initiative aims to bridge the gap between business and health as experienced by humans, with products and marketing strategy that get to the heart of human and societal needs, demonstrating their commitment to a purpose beyond profit.
  2. The National Lottery: Recognised for their inclusive marketing campaigns, especially those capturing the highs and lows of the LGBTQ+ experience.
  3. Beam Suntory: Known for its brands like Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark bourbon, Beam Suntory has incorporated inclusive marketing into their strategies.
  4. 4dcopy: A UK-based ESG Agency, focussing on strategy, leadership, and copywriting for purpose-led businesses. They aim to help startups, B2B, and professional services to meaningfully connect with their audiences.
  5. Deloitte: Through their ‘2030 Purpose: Good business and a better future’ initiative, Deloitte encourages businesses to make an authentic commitment towards sustainability and societal wellbeing. They believe purpose can help businesses outperform the market by better engaging and inspiring customers.

Integrating Purpose into Your Marketing Strategy

To integrate purpose into your marketing strategy:

  1. Start by defining your brand’s core values and identify the social or environmental causes that align with them. Take time to understand the values of your team / employees, and align with them also.
  2. Devise strategy that is beyond mere communication alone; one that extends into the way you live the brand day in, day out.
  3. Then, craft compelling storytelling and authentic messaging that highlights your purpose and resonates with your target audience. Support your purpose-led initiatives with actions and partnerships that demonstrate your commitment to making a positive impact.
  4. Ensure you stay impact-driven, with a measured approach to ESG, ensuring you’re setting and living up to achieveable expectations.
  5. Finally, constantly test and review. Given that ESG Marketing is a rapidly evolving and complex area, always adopt an adaptable and analytical mindset, and be ready to optimise your approach over time, checking in with your key audiences to guage their perceptions of whether you’re on track.

Impact matters; intent…less so

The first significant risk when failing to deliver on purpose-led marketing is a substantial blow to customer loyalty. Today’s consumers are not just buying products or services; they are investing in brands that align with their values and principles. If your brand promises to stand for certain causes but fails to deliver, it can be perceived as insincere or worse, as greenwashing. This can lead to mistrust, causing customers to turn to competitor brands that are more consistent and transparent in their purpose-led initiatives.

Secondly, such inconsistencies between your brand’s actions and its stated purpose can erode your brand equity. Brand equity is built over time through positive experiences and associations with your brand. However, if customers feel deceived by empty promises, the negative impact can be far-reaching and long-lasting. It takes much longer to rebuild trust and restore a brand’s reputation once it has been damaged. In the worst cases, companies caught greenwashing have faced legal repercussions, further tarnishing their image and causing a significant drop in their market value.

Lastly, failing to deliver meaningful impact in purpose-led marketing can have serious implications for your organisational culture. Employees want to be part of an organisation that stands for something more than just profits. Should employees feel their company’s purpose is merely a marketing gimmick, it can lead to decreased morale, productivity and even talent retention. As employees are your brand’s most potent advocates, their belief in your company’s purpose can significantly influence how your brand is perceived externally.

Therefore, ensuring authenticity and integrity in your purpose-led marketing is not only crucial for maintaining a positive external brand image but also for fostering a strong and engaged organisational culture.

Where Next for Purposeful Marketing?

In the next decade, purpose-led marketing will likely become even more personalised and targeted. With advancements in data analytics and artificial intelligence, businesses will be able to understand their customers and societal impact on a deeper level. This extends beyond what customers want, to what they care about on a more fundamental level, enabling marketing campaigns that speak directly customers’ values and passions, and creating a deeper emotional connection, which fosters brand loyalty.

Moreover, as people become more aware and informed, they will continue to demand greater transparency from businesses, given the scale of societal change, and looming threat of the climate crisis.

In response, I expect to see an increase in the use of technologies like blockchain to provide verifiable proof of a company’s claims. Whether it’s showing that a product is sustainably sourced or that a portion of profits goes to a particular cause, businesses will need to provide concrete evidence to back up their purpose-led marketing claims.

Finally, the rise of social media and influencer marketing will likely play a significant role in shaping the future of purpose-led marketing. These platforms offer an opportunity for businesses to engage with their audience in a more authentic and direct way. However, this also means that any missteps or inconsistencies between a company’s claimed purpose and its actions will be quickly noticed and called out.

Therefore, businesses will need to ensure that their purpose is thoroughly integrated into all aspects of their operations, from their supply chain to their customer service. This level of authenticity will become a non-negotiable, not just for ‘purpose-led marketing’, but for business in general.

Conclusion

In conclusion, purpose-led marketing goes beyond profit and focuses on creating deeper and more meaningful connections with your audience and stakeholders. By aligning your brand’s values with purpose beyond profit, you can differentiate, build customer loyalty, profit, and contribute to a better society in tandem. I’d love to aid your own purpose-led marketing journey and help you make lasting impact.

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