By prioritizing bold business imperatives and meeting deep human needs, brands can transform themselves into the leaders of a new, regenerative economy. But these initiatives cannot thrive in a closed system of communication.
As more and more people tune into headlines related to the climate crisis,
mainstream narratives are influencing their underlying feelings of either
optimism or
doubt.
While grappling with the uncertainty, many are left wondering why there aren’t
better solutions and find themselves looking for ways to create a healthier
future. Meanwhile, sustainability initiatives are well underway among many of
today’s leading brands — creating opportunities for them to foster deeper
connections with consumers to drive real-world impact through better product
innovation
and inspirational
storytelling.
Global data from BBMG’s 2022 Leading Regenerative Brands study shows that 64
percent of adults over the age of 30 feel guilty about their negative impact on
the environment; and in the US, Gen Z is five times more likely to strongly
agree that they feel this guilt, compared to the Boomer generation. Through
SB’s Socio-Cultural Trends
research, we know that the number-two barrier to making more sustainable choices
is simply not knowing where to
start.
This is where brands have the power to influence a culture of sustainable living
while simultaneously deepening brand loyalty. This brand-led culture change can
be achieved by meeting consumers where they are and providing them with
authentic, impactful storytelling on product differentiation that supports their
sustainability-focused ambitions, resulting in a positive impact for all.
During SB's 2022 Brand-Led Culture
Change
conference, a session led by BBMG’s Raphael
Bemporad detailed
Regenerative Leadership: Five Paradigm Shifts for Today’s
Brands.
In his opening remarks, he stated:
“Brand-led culture change is so profound in that brands are the unique entities in all of civilization, as far as I'm aware, that unites systems and stories. Brands are the manifestation of systems design — our business models, our supply chains, our stakeholder and shareholder networks. Brands are the vehicles for our sense of identity, for our sense of values, our aspirations, our sense of belonging, community and behavior — so, we're in the space in between an old way (that is increasingly showing its limits) and a new opportunity to rethink, to reimagine and to create ideas in this new context.”
What he is describing is a cultural system where brands step into their role as
leaders of society to co-create a more sustainable era alongside their
customers. BBMG’s research proposes five paradigm shifts that brands can make to
create a more regenerative future:
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Defying Online Algorithms with Authentic, Impactful Storytelling
Join us as representatives from BarkleyOKRP lead a thought-provoking discussion with two brands that care deeply about their workers' rights and wellbeing, Tony's Chocolonely and Driscoll's, about how to successfully involve consumers in social-justice issues with authentic storytelling that defies online algorithms — Friday, May 10, at Brand-Led Culture Change.
Power: Giving voice, choice and ownership to those with the most at
stake.
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Space: Closing the distance between the people and places that make,
sell and use brands.
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Time: Slowing down, moving with intention, and becoming good ancestors.
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Leadership: Welcoming vulnerability; embracing ‘not knowing’ and turning
challenges into quests.
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Relationship: Widening the circle of connection to thrive together with
all of life.
The session went on to highlight the ways in which Ben & Jerry's Dave
Rapaport and IKEA’s
Malin
Pettersson-Beckeman
have implemented these paradigm shifts in their own brands to reset the
relationship with consumers and lead on redesigning their systems and stories.
IKEA, for example, has created five areas for consumers to focus on — energy,
water, air, waste and food — and tailors its products and services to enable
consumers to reduce their environmental footprint at home. With Ben & Jerry’s
ambition to create regenerative ice
cream,
within the Power-shift paradigm it has implemented a program called Milk with
Dignity — the
first worker-created and -led set of labor standards in the dairy industry where
the farmers are paid a premium and better working conditions are realized.
By prioritizing bold business imperatives and meeting deep human needs, brands
can transform themselves into the leaders of a new, regenerative economy. But
these initiatives cannot thrive in a closed system of communication: Brands must
examine the landscape of consumer behavior as it relates to sustainable
lifestyles, unlock
tools
that successfully move the needle toward sustainable consumer behavior, and tap
into the education and inspiration needed to reach consumers and shift their
aspirations and behaviors towards a flourishing future. Brand sustainability and
marketing teams must align on best practices to bring sustainability-focused
ambitions to life to create market transformation and sustainable culture
change.
Dive further into this conversation while discovering more insights on how
today’s brands can build a better tomorrow by attending SB’s Brand-Led Culture
Change 2023
conference — May 22-24 in Minneapolis. Unpack the latest consumer trends;
understand strategies and tactics that drive behavior change; and craft better
communications through live sessions, workshops and industry forums presented by
leading brand marketers and experts from around the world.
Published Feb 1, 2023 7am EST / 4am PST / 12pm GMT / 1pm CET