Brand purpose is knowing why you exist, not helping others exist or saving the world.
According to its definition, purpose is why something exists. With this in mind, ask yourself, does your brand exist to make people feel good about themselves? Or do you exist to create competition in society? Either way, it doesn’t have to be about doing good.
When you have a brand purpose and you want to do something good in the world, your brand purpose will tell you what that good thing should be.
To me, M&M’s isn’t just about selling chocolate, instead it’s about selling an emotion and to make people like me, smile.
When you have a purpose, it makes everyone’s job fun and easy because they know what they are supposed to do. The moment you lean into a brand’s purpose, you never want to do marketing without it.
A big part of amplifying this voice means reflecting it on the inside.
A once ‘vanilla and dull’ office environment can undergo a complete makeover when the organisation is led by purpose.
You see, brands are like people. If every time you meet someone they feel different or weird or their values have changed, that person makes me uncomfortable.
It’s the same with brands. If a brand is trying to be all things to all people, you tend to back away.
So, knowing why you exist allows you to do things in a much braver way. Remember this, knowing who you are will matter to somebody. But why you do what you do, will allow those people to come.