The best of stand up brands. How are brands taking a stand for causes and their core values to win over the next generation of consumers? A deep dive into consumers’ changing expectations of brands, and how some are already making a stand and bringing social consciousness into their communication strategies.

1. snapshot
brands,
take a stand
The best of stand up brands. How are brands taking a stand for causes and their
core values to win over the next generation of consumers?
A deep dive into consumers’ changing expectations of brands, and how some are
already making a stand and bringing social consciousness into their
communication strategies.
SIGNMESH.COMSNAPSHOTJANUARY2018

2. content
1
consumers want
meaningful brands
2
how brands are
standing up
3
what’s the
takeout?
CONTENT

3. introduction
This report explores the consumer’s
growing expectations that brands should be
more socially conscious and responsible.
It’s no longer enough to simply state brand
values, but to actively demonstrate them.
It’s time for brands to act.
INTRODUCTION
As transparency and corporate responsibility makes
its way towards becoming a brand expectation,
brands are no longer protected from consumers’
sights by their four walls. Today, even their internal
culture should be open, fair and reflect their values.
We explore the key consumer insights powering this
trend, how brands are responding and what it means
for others across three chapters:
— Consumers want meaningful brands
How are consumers’ expectations of brands
changing? How much impact does a meaningful
brand make?
— How brands are standing up
Selection of signmesh cases around brands
standing up for a cause or value.
— What’s the takeout?
What can we learn?

4. 1. consumers want
meaningful brands
Expectations of brands by younger consumers are changing.
They expect them to show more social responsibly, and to
not just talk the talk, but walk the walk.
INTRODUCTION

5. A meaningful brand is one that consumers feel
connected to as a result of the brand having a
positive impact on them, their community and /
or the natural world.
- Yale Center for Business and the Environment
Source: YCBE
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS

6. 62% support brands
that take a stand on
issues they believe in
(e.g. human rights,
race, sexual
orientation)
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS
62%
Gen Z and
bold brands
Source: Millennial Marketing

7. Brands should make a difference to us
STATISTICS
75% 40%
think brands do this right now.
but only
of consumers expect brands to
make a contribution to our
wellbeing and quality of life…
Source: Havas’ Meaningful Brands 2017 global report
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS

8. Brands considered “meaningful” outperform
the stock market by 206% over a 10-year time
frame
- 2017 Meaningful Brands®, a unique global study from Havas Group
Source: Havas’ Meaningful Brands 2017 global report
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS

9. 43% of millennials rank
authenticity over content
- Forbes Contributor, Dan Schawbel’s survey of over 1300 Millennials
Source: The Millennials Consumer Study 2015
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS

10. 67% will buy a
brand for the first
time based solely
on the brand’s
position on a
controversial topic
CONSUMERSWANTMEANINGFULBRANDS
67%
first time
buyers
Source: 2017 Edelman Earned Brand study

11. 2. how brands are
standing up
Aside from building revenue, brands often have a key goal they want
to reach with their cause marketing. Here’s a selection of key goals
from brands who recently took action and stood up for a cause.
SNAPSHOT

12. drive awareness
How are brands driving awareness to their
chosen causes and core purposes?

13. DRIVEAWARENESS
Ben & Jerry’s Global
Climate Change
Campaign
The company’s campaign shared videos
around climate change marches, with facts
and figures around climate change. The
campaign helped spread the message and
its’ brand across the potential customer
base, and spark more public action.
Source: signme.sh/B3RUMm4NK

14. DRIVEAWARENESS
Gucci Goes Fur Free
Gucci CEO Marco Bizzari announced that
the brand will be fur-free from now on
starting with their Spring-Summer 2018
collection, which will go on sale next year.
Remaining fur items will be sold in a charity
auction. The brand wants to raise awareness,
inspire and change the luxury fashion
industry.
Source: signme.sh/IkvPygdqs

15. DRIVEAWARENESS
Mattel Promotes Girl
Power
A new Barbie commercial called “Imagine
The Possibilities” encourages girls to imagine
they can be anything. Unscripted and using a
hidden camera, the girls play act a
profession of their choice in a real-life setting
including a role of an academic, vet, a
businesswoman, professor, men’s soccer
coach and museum tour guide.
Source: signme.sh/_Aw4e-xzA

16. bring donations
Whether it’s donating money or time, how
are brands taking a stand through donating
to causes?

17. BRINGDONATIONS
Lush Supporting LGBT
Charities Around The
World
With its #GayIsOk campaign Lush
collected £ 275.955 for its Love Fund through
selling in total 107.479 special soaps. They
money was raised o support LGBT charity
organizations around the world. The
campaign reached millions, particularly after
the US Supreme Court ruling on marriage
equality came down 24 hours after the
campaign’s launch.
Source: signme.sh/OoPlgptfz

18. BRINGDONATIONS
Cards Against Humanity
Game Takes A Stance
Against Trump
"Cards Against Humanity" bought a piece of
land to prevent the building of the planned
wall at the border between Mexico and the
US. This initiative is funded through people
paying $15, and in return receiving new cards
for their game, a map from the piece of land
and a certificate promising to prevent the
building of the wall and six surprises. The
initiative is promoted also with an
accompanying video.
Source: signme.sh/ECZ_vnPMm

19. BRINGDONATIONS
IBM Frees Staff To
Solve Health
Challenges
IBM is setting their workforce free to utilize
their time, knowledge, skills and expertise to
do some good. IBM Health Corps is the
company’s pro bono program that enables
employees to tackle health disparities. Any
employee that has been with IBM for more
than 2 years can apply for the paid leave to
join the Health Corps.
Source: signme.sh/95_pLIzFI

20. redefine a stereotype
How are brands taking action to change
the status quo and alter perceptions to
make a positive impact?

21. REDEFINEASTEREOTYPE
Axe’s “Find Your Magic”
Abandons Masculinity
Stereotypes
With their “Find Your Magic” campaign Axe
stepped away from the stereotypical
approach to advertisement they had before.
The campaign for their new line of products
is about embracing the many different ways
of how to be a man, and celebrates
individual quirks and passions, no matter
how “masculine” they are.
Source: signme.sh/O3PsMzWPQ

22. REDEFINEASTEREOTYPE
Sephora’s #NeverStop
Campaign Embraces
Beauty Of All Kinds
For the #NeverStop campaign, Sephora
wanted to show that beauty is not
generalizable. They created five short films
featuring five different women with different
beauty stories. For example, a transgender
woman who likes natural looking make-up
and another woman who has learned to love
her greying hair.
Source: signme.sh/NwA8jAvu_

23. REDEFINEASTEREOTYPE
Vetements’ Real
People Runway Show
For one of its Paris runway shows, the
clothing brand used real people from the
streets as models. The show was titled
“Stereotypes", and designer Demna Gvasalia
street-cast the models. As a result he had
real tourists, punks or old ladies run for
him. “We really got into the details of their
lives, […] how they wear things”.
Source: signme.sh/H9BrtvumC

24. drive action
How are brands encouraging action from
their audience, for them to change their
behavior in some way to contribute to a
greater cause?

25. DRIVEACTION
Supermarket Starts
Urban Farming
Initiative
To show their commitment to locally-grown
food, Delhaize, the leading retailer in
Belgium has launched a vegetable garden
and greenhouse on the rooftop on one of its
stores. All harvested produce will be sold in-
store. Next to just selling the produce, the
urban garden will also function as an
educational space, offering workshops to
schools in 2018.
Source: signme.sh/7gA3F3HoS

26. DRIVEACTION
Philip Morris Quit
Cigarettes
Philip Morris is the world’s largest tobacco
corporation and announced that their 2018
New Year’s resolution is to quit smoking.
They have positioned themselves with a new
manifesto which is “designing a smoke-free
future” and begun selling smoke-free
products such as e-cigarettes and heated
tobacco.
Source: signme.sh/yuC3bttLF

27. DRIVEACTION
REI Reject Black Friday
REI keeps their doors closed on Black Friday
for the third year running. Based on a moral
decision by CEO Jerry Stritzke, the outdoors
retailer REI will be closed on one of the
biggest shopping days of the year for the
third year in a row. Their #optoutside
initiative encourages people not to engage in
“rampant consumerism” and instead spend
the day outside.
Source: signme.sh/Hxr4Pt4Xc

28. 3. what’s the
takeout?
What can we learn?
THETAKEOUT

29. What can we learn?
IMPLICATIONS
find out what’s
important to your
audience
take caution when
capitalizing on societal-
level shifts & trends
do it right
or don’t do it at all
implications
Staying culturally relevant along with
cause-related campaigns is great for
brands, but can come with its pitfalls
when the brand doesn’t spend some time
using insight to root their product or
purpose in the issue. A lack of real
understanding around a topic can
become immediately apparent in ads.
A brand’s biggest fans are likely to be
fans because of a feeling of having
shared values. If the brand then chooses
a cause or value to champion that aligns
with core beliefs, it’s likely to resonate
with their audience, but it’s always
worth doing the research to discover
what’s important to them at the time.
Unless brands can confidently say that
when it comes to their chosen cause they
are relevant, required, resilient (in that
the brand is committed to the cause
long-term) and building revenue, then
they shouldn’t pursue it. Failing would
bring much more backlash and negative
press, especially in this social media era.

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