Content Follows Purpose: Some Shortcuts to Uncovering Yours

Luckily purpose is not only the province of unique brands in certain lifestyle categories amp160It arises as the sum of many attributes all of which are readily available to you amp160More on that shortlyFor agencies of all stripes purpose brands by which I mean brands with a clear reason for being that transcends commerce and gives consumers something besides form and function to sign up for and feel a part of are simply easier to serveFurther across the modern marketplace purpose brands offer their stakeholders many attractive advantagesamp160 Among themIn an era of thin margins purpose can justify premium pricingIn a situation of relative parity purpose can serve as the tiebreakerIn a networked world where everyoneamp8217s a potential social media influencer purpose fuels greater advocacy and communityFrom an advertising perspective purpose brands also have another leg up in todayamp8217s media landscape amp160Purpose comprises the bedrock of what we as an industry increasingly and mysteriously have taken to calling content which is really just another name for ads of unpredictable shapes and sizes that people actually want to watchNow itamp8217s trueamp160some brands lend themselves to purpose a touch more readily than others amp160For several years now our agency has worked with outdoor retailerevangelist REI a coop whose reason for being is to get people outside together to live better lives and whose greenvested store associates serve more as lifestyle concierges and gear experts for their customers than as cashiersREIamp8217s legendary amp8220Opt Outsideamp8221 campaign which compelled consumers to spend time outdoors with friends and family on Black Friday enjoying nature rather than retreating indoors with consumer rivals to squabble over discounted bigscreen televisions and blenders was an unqualified hit for the brand driving higher sales and employee engagement all at onceBut what if youamp8217re not REI amp160What if your brandamp8217s beating heart is buried deep inside your corporate corpus and youamp8217re having a hard time even finding itFear not amp160Iamp8217ve yet to meet a brand that didnamp8217t have a pulse in one form or another although I have met many who simply had forgotten where to look amp160Hereamp8217s a handy mapYour Story of OriginWho founded or created your company or brand and why and where amp160Think of Gatoradeamp8217s invention at the University of Florida to rehydrate depleted football players amp160Howard Schultz at Starbucks in Seattle aiming at creating the first new amp8220third placeamp8221 since the office itself amp160These stories of origin shape our relationship with these brands helping us know who weamp8217re dealing with and why amp160Reconnect with yours to unlock the building blocks of compelling contentYour Challenges Mistakesamp160and WisdomAs with any story adversity and conflict are the stuff of engagement the parts of the narrative where we lean in the hardest and learn the most about what the characters are truly made of amp160Kevin Plank cared enough to peddle the first Under Armour compression gear out of his trunk and consumers cared enough to line up underscoring the novel intersection of passion and better functionality amp160The brand was born of adversity driven by purpose amp160How about yoursYour PeopleWho drives your trucks amp160Flies your planes amp160Delivers your packages amp160Answers your customer service calls amp160Uses your products with the most passion amp160What kind of people bring your brand to life amp160Are they former Olympians amp160Erstwhile soldiers amp160PhDs amp160Poets amp160Give consumers a chance to understand the human faces and stories behind your brand amp160Think Starbucks baristasamp160 Southwest Airlines pilots flight attendants and gate agents amp160Discover Card customer service agents amp160Let consumers feel the love your employees and customers have for your brand how they delight in being part of something larger than just a job or a product amp160Ask your best people and customers what inspires them what they love why they get out of bedYour OperationsIn a networked world daytoday operations often become your best evocation of what you stand for not to mention some of your most credible marketing amp160As we all know what consumers are saying about you is today more likely to be accurate and credible than what your website says amp160What are consumers saying about you on Yelp on Amazon reviews on TripAdvisor and Twitter amp160How can you help them know the real youTaco Bell enjoys inviting influencers into its test kitchen giving them exclusive amp8220sneak peeksamp8221 at new menu items amp160How are you opening a window into your operations and amplifying the engaged thereafterYour HeartWho and what do you love amp160KFC loves its employees so they started the KFC Family Fund to help their people in times of crisis amp160Taco Bell loves amp8220the other kidsamp8221 those students who may not qualify for athletic or academic scholarships but whose passion for art or music or philanthropy drives them to do big things so they created the amp8220Live Mamp225s Scholarshipamp8221 program to serve them amp160Nickelodeon loves the kid inside all of us and so they relentlessly amp8220slimeamp8221 the bigtime celebrities and athletes who participate in their awards shows amp160Where does passion live in your business or brand and how does it come to life amp160Show usYour Big Plans and ExperimentsThe best purpose brands are restlessly innovative driven by that purpose to continue reinventing themselves in service of consumers who feel like membersamp160 Think Amazon whose relentless evolution makes it worth visiting not just for shopping but to exploreamp160 Think amp8220concept carsamp8221 but not just those invented by automotive companiesamp160 What about Adidasamp8217 limitededition Yeezy and Human Race shoes amp160How has that changed brand perception amp160Forget about what will deliver volume amp160Instead consider what visionary SKU or event will deliver consumeramp8217s attention and engagement amp160Think Red Bullamp8217s Flugtag and other zany contests amp160Think big amp160Boldamp160 And beautiful amp160Your brand DNA lives in your big plans amp160Make someYour ClubhouseWhere does your tribe congregate amp160When consumers visit your store or headquarters how do you initiate them into the cult of the brand amp160How can you invite consumers in virtually amp160People go to Whole Foods to buy groceries but they also go there to see and connect with likeminded souls amp160Ditto Lululemon and Umami Burger amp160Whereamp8217s ground zero for your consumers to congregate amp160How does it reinforce andor tell the story of youYour Purpose Exists Even If Hiding in Plain SightPurpose is not some intrinsic extra credit available only to certain brands amp160Itamp8217s the stuff of who you already are often hiding in plain sight amp160As you strive to connect with consumers whose media diets are increasingly if not entirely at their own discretion your purpose may be the one thing you have that consumers want to know more aboutAs Norm used to say on the beloved TV sitcom Cheersamp160when he sat down on his familiar barstoolamp160 amp8220Give me a reason for living and keep amp8216em comingamp8221Photo credit Ugne VasyliuteUnsplashClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Content Follows Purpose: Some Shortcuts to Uncovering Yours

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Scott Hess

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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Content Follows Purpose: Some Shortcuts to Uncovering Yours

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Scott Hess

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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