Why Consumers Love Brands with Impact
In today’s world, consumers have become more than just buyers; they have become agents of change. Now, more than ever, people are actively seeking out brands that emphasize having a beneficial influence on society and the environment. Brands leading with purpose and impact have captured the hearts and minds of consumers by creating lasting connections and fostering devotion in their products.
Gen Z and millennial customers thoroughly think about their purchases. They won’t necessarily grab the lowest price on the shelf or the most popular brand seen on ads. They’ll contemplate a lot of intangible factors including the issues, plans, and mission of the business before buying anything. ~ SmartHead
What Makes a Brand Have an Impact:
A brand with impact is a company or organization that goes beyond the traditional goals of profit-making and prioritizes making a positive difference in society and the environment. These brands actively seek to address social, environmental, or humanitarian issues through their business practices, initiatives, and partnerships. A brand with impact can take various forms and focus on different areas depending on their mission and values.
What sets brands with impact apart is their commitment to creating a positive impact beyond their bottom line. They often strive for transparency and authenticity, ensuring that their impact initiatives are genuine and not just greenwashing or cause marketing strategies. These brands actively engage with their stakeholders, listen to their concerns, and work towards addressing them in a responsible and sustainable manner.
Additionally, brands with impact are catalysts for change within their industries and society as a whole. They inspire and influence other businesses to adopt similar practices, creating a ripple effect and driving positive transformation. By aligning their business goals with a greater purpose, these brands not only attract socially conscious consumers but also foster a sense of shared responsibility and collective action towards building a better world.
Shared Values and Beliefs:
Consumers are increasingly looking for brands that share their values and beliefs. Brands with impact have a defined purpose that goes beyond just profit making; they stand for something meaningful. Whether it’s environmental sustainability, social justice, or empowering underserved communities, these brands choose causes that resonate with their target audience. By choosing to support such brands, consumers feel a sense of alignment, knowing that their purchases are in line with their own values.
Making a Difference:
Consumers want to feel like they are making a difference in the world, even in small ways. Impactful brands give customers the chance to make a difference in the world. By purchasing products or services from these brands, consumers actively contribute to bringing about a positive change. Customers are highly motivated by this sense of empowerment and fulfillment because it enables them to match their own actions with their desire for a better world.
Transparency and Authenticity:
In a world where trust in businesses and organizations can often be lacking, brands with impact have an opportunity to stand out. These brands prioritize transparency and authenticity, openly sharing their impact initiatives and progress. By demonstrating a genuine commitment to their chosen causes, they build trust with consumers. This transparency encourages a greater connection and credibility, which are essential elements in building long-lasting relationships with consumers.
Emotional Connection:
Brands that community their purpose have the ability to evoke strong emotions and create deep connections with their audience. These companies appeal to consumers’ hopes, desires, and aspirations by tackling societal concerns and actually changing the world. They inspire and captivate their target audience by telling stories that connect with them personally. This emotional connection forms a sense of loyalty and turns consumers into brand advocates and shares their positive experiences with others.
Differentiation and Innovation:
In a crowded marketplace, brands need to differentiate themselves to stand out. Brands with impact do just that by positioning themselves as a purpose-driven organization. This unique positioning not only attracts socially conscious consumers but also inspires innovation within the industry. These brands often adopt sustainable practices, explore new business models, and challenge conventional norms. This commitment to making a difference sets them apart and positions them as industry leaders.
Creating a Better World:
Consumers have a strong desire to make a positive impact on the world, and brands with impact offer them an avenue to do so. By supporting these brands, consumers feel that they are actively participating in creating positive change. This sense of collective action and shared responsibility builds a sense of community and fosters a collective movement towards a more sustainable and socially conscious society.
Brands we Love:
Gen Z has become more conscious about the sustainability of brands they use and shop at. Some of the most commonly loved sustainable brands among this generation include Veja, Reformation, and Drunk Elephant. Veja is a French footwear and accessories brand that was founded in 2005. They source their materials and produce their products in an environmentally friendly way such as using cotton that is free of pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. Reformation is a sustainable fashion brand that uses eco-friendly materials, local manufacturing, and waste reduction practices. Allbirds announced the first ‘net-zero sneaker’ this past March and is building new solar plants and wind farms around the world to replace coal. Blue Lagoon Skincare is an Iceland-based brand with zero-waste practices. They source all water, electricity, and heat from a local geothermal resource harvested through extraction wells with sustainable methods.
In 2023, and for the foreseeable future, new consumers are looking for more than just goods and services; they look for meaning and purpose. By matching your values with those of their target market, brands with impact can capitalize on this expanding consumer demand. By making a tangible difference in areas such as sustainability brands can also create strong bonds, encourage loyalty, and elicit action. As consumers continue to prioritize impact, brands that embrace these purpose-driven strategies are poised to thrive, leading a lasting legacy of positive change in the world.
Brand Events with Benefits
The Power of Events: Building Connections, Creating Buzz, Driving Growth
In the evolving landscape of marketing strategies, and the post-covid era, events have re-emerged as a powerful tool to connect with audiences, create organic content, and generate awareness.
From pop-up moments with partners to customer-facing events and exclusive VIP gatherings with influencers, each type of event offers unique advantages that contribute to a comprehensive marketing approach. We have laid the benefits of how these types of events can be leveraged effectively to achieve your marketing goals.
1. Consumer-Facing Events:
a. Relationship Building: The online world can be oversaturated and it’s important to create connections with customers offline, offering you an opportunity to understand their needs and preferences. Face-to-face interactions with your customers allow you to establish personal connections with customers, fostering loyalty and long-term relationships.
b. User-Generated Content: Customer-facing events often generate organic content through attendee testimonials, social media posts, and live updates. This user-generated content is highly valuable as it showcases genuine experiences and acts as social proof, boosting brand credibility.
c. Product Education: Events provide a platform to educate customers about product features, benefits, and use cases. By providing hands-on experiences brands can increase customer knowledge, product adoption and once again increase loyalty.
2. VIP Events with Influencers:
VIP events are exclusive gatherings that bring influencers and industry leaders together with your brand to amplify brand messages and reach wider audiences. These strategies are effective for product launches, collaborations and big tent pole moments.
a. Brand Endorsement: By inviting influencers to exclusive events, brands can secure recommendations from influential voices. When these individuals share their positive experiences with their followers, it can result in increased brand exposure and credibility.
b. Social Media Amplification: Influencers are adept at leveraging social media platforms to share event highlights, behind-the-scenes content, and personal endorsements. This amplification drives engagement, expands brand reach, and generates buzz among their followers.
c. Content Creation: VIP events provide opportunities for brands to create high-quality content through collaborations with influencers. This content can take the form of blog posts, videos, or social media campaigns, and can be repurposed across various marketing channels.
3. Pop-Up Partner Events:
For both consumer and VIP events - brands can consider partnering with like-minded brands to collaborate on events, offering an opportunity to pair products and services with complementary businesses to increase brand awareness.
a. Expanded Reach: Partnering with another brand provides access to their audience, enabling both parties to reach a broader customer base. This will help you increase exposure and can lead to acquiring new customers.
b. Cross-Promotion: By combining marketing efforts and resources, both brands can leverage their collective email lists, social following and ambassadors to promote the event. This collaborative approach fosters organic growth and helps you leverage the combined power of co-marketing.
c. Credibility: By aligning with a like-minded brand partner, you have the potential to positively impact brand perception. Consumers tend to view brands favorably when they see them in collaboration resulting in increased trust and credibility.
Events have proven to be a highly effective marketing strategy for creating connections, generating organic content, and driving awareness. Whether it's through pop-up moments with partners, customer-facing events, or VIP gatherings with influencers, each type of event offers unique advantages to brands.
Vol. I: Brand Partnerships We Love
Cut through the noise.
The way you tell your story online can make all the difference. Brand Partnerships are a powerful marketing strategy as brands try to grow their consumer base and target new customers. Our team shares a big passion for executing brand to brand and brand to creator collaborations, and we are always inspired by the storytelling and synergy that transpire.
Check out a few of our favorite collabs:
Athena Caldrone x Crate & Barrel
Jennifer Behr x Jenny Cipoletti*
*JP Inc and Lemon HQ executed.