Customers today are quick to spot the difference between a brand that’s selling and one that’s truly standing for something. Purpose-driven branding gives people a reason to care, not just to buy. It creates communities, not just audiences.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to discover why your company exists and translate it into actions, messaging, and experiences that fuel influence, loyalty, and sustainable business growth in the digital world.
What is a Purpose-Driven Brand?
A purpose-driven brand is a branding approach that prioritizes its societal impact and exhibits a deep commitment to making a positive and real difference in the world. Such brands often focus on their core values, vision, and mission to create a positive social or environmental impact. They operate with a higher purpose beyond profit generation and consciously align their business operations with their values.
Purpose-driven brands aim to inspire and create strong emotional connections with consumers by showcasing their values, beliefs, and actions through corporate social responsibility initiatives. These initiatives highlight the brand's contributions toward addressing society's pressing issues and concerns, such as environmental sustainability, poverty, and social justice.
Research has shown that not only do purpose-driven brands create a more loyal and engaged consumer base, but they also have better financial performance as compared to other companies. Essentially, a brand uses its influence and resources for society's betterment and seeks to impact the world positively.
Why is a Purpose-Driven Brand Important?
A brand shouldn't be driven purely by selling a product or service; it represents the company's values, beliefs, and commitment to positively impacting society.
Branding experts take note of this approach as customer-brand relationships are often just transactional. The customer wants the product, buys the product, and thereafter doesn’t think about the brand; it already serves its purpose. The idea of brand with a purpose seeks to develop that relationship into something more profound, so that the connection between customer and brand is with the things they believe in.
Studies have shown that purpose-driven brands are more likely to attract and retain customers than typical brands. Consumers in 2023 and beyond are not just looking to purchase a product but want to support purpose-driven companies that align with their values and beliefs.
Purpose-driven brands also have the power to build brand loyalty and increase customer lifetime value. Driven by advocacy, conversation about the brand expands to more than just what their services or products have, making your brand relevant.
In addition, purpose-driven companies can attract top talent by creating a serious environment and strong company culture based on shared brand values and beliefs. Employees who feel aligned with their company's purpose are more engaged and motivated, resulting in higher productivity and better performance.
Great Examples of a Purpose-Driven Brand
Social mission varies from things like climate change to social justice. Here are some great examples of brands that are making waves in the industry and society:
Patagonia
Patagonia is a clothing and outdoor gear brand committed to sustainability, ethical production, and environmental activism. They donate 1% of sales to environmental organizations and are known for their supply chain and production process transparency.
Ben and Jerry's
Ben and Jerry's is a beloved ice cream brand that sticks to its social justice and sustainability values. They source fair trade ingredients, prioritize sourcing from non-GMO sources, and support various social issues, community engagement, and environmental causes.
IKEA
IKEA is a furniture giant that is focused on sustainability and affordability. They use renewable materials and are committed to using 100% renewable energy in their production process. They also offer sustainable options for customers.
Adidas
Adidas is a sports brand committed to sustainability and ethical production. They have set goals to use more recycled materials and eliminate virgin plastic by 2024. They also prioritize fair labor practices in their supply chain.
Guidelines for Designing Your Purpose-Driven Brand
With the right guidance, target market research, and strategy, you can completely control the creation of your professional business identity. Get ready to take notes on how you can craft the perfect design elements that align with YOU!
You must have a Clear Purpose
Before you begin designing your brand, defining a clear purpose and mission statement is essential.
You can use these questions as guidelines for communicating your brand purpose:
- What can my company do to better society?
- What facet/s of society can I represent and focus on?
- What purpose do other brands follow?
- If my brand is a person, how do they treat others?
This will provide an overarching guide for the rest of your decisions and provide direction when creating content or interacting with your clients or customers.
You Still Have Business to Run
While designing with purpose, remember that your primary goal is still to run a successful business. Branding experts look for the perfect balance between the cold nature of making money (KPIs, ROI metrics, profit margin, etc) and the humanity that exists in creating a purpose-driven community that is a company.
One way to approach this is to set measurable statistics in your advocacy (e.g., number of trees planted, amount of funds given to charitable organizations). This way, there is quantifiable information that your audience knows that proves your commitment as a purpose-driven brand.
Be Creative in Your Story
When it comes to purpose-driven design, your story is often more important than what’s on the page. The sense of narrative you’ve built with your brand is something that your audience must feel emotionally invested in. These are some ideas for creating a brand story:
- Interviews with the employees on what they say about your brand purpose.
- Customer testimonials that highlight the social impact of your brand not just as a business, but as a social mission.
- A website tracker that shows what the company does or gives to support their advocacy.
Commit to your Purpose with a Passion
Ultimately, successful purpose-driven brands are those that have a solid commitment to their values and beliefs. The purpose must be integrated into designing other aspects of building a brand, for example:
- Brand personality
- Brand voice
- Brand image
- Brand Messaging
Your purpose must also resonate throughout all aspects of your business and marketing strategy. This means the internal decision-making process, like choosing your suppliers, influencers, and employees.
Share your Impact Consistently
It’s essential to make sure your purpose-driven message is always heard. Share stories of customer success or impactful initiatives that you have undertaken. Showcase the positive change your brand is making in people’s lives and how they are benefiting from it.
However, post your message carefully. The audience can be opinionated and skeptical, especially with the modern trend of distrust against corporations. Brand experts know the proper marketing language without it appearing to be virtue signaling.
Which is why…
Action Speaks Louder than Words
You can’t show support if your actions don’t align with the purpose you’ve committed to as a brand. As mentioned, this doesn’t just apply to the message of your post, but also to how you run your company. Employees are entitled to give reviews, customers can look for company details, and people can always check if you truly support your brand purpose - all on the internet. Earn their trust and be consistent with your decisions as a company.
FAQs
What is an example of a brand purpose?
Patagonia’s purpose is "We're in business to save our home planet." This drives all actions, from donating profits to environmental causes to creating durable products that reduce consumption.
What is a purpose-driven marketing plan?
It is a strategy where marketing efforts are aligned with a core mission beyond profit. This means campaigns highlight the brand's positive societal or environmental impact to authentically connect with conscious consumers.
What is an example of a purpose-driven goal?
A coffee company's purpose-driven goal could be "to achieve 100% ethically sourced and fair-trade beans within five years," ensuring farmers' well-being and sustainable practices are central to its operations.
What is a purpose-driven business model?
It is a framework where a company's core mission is the foundation of its operations and revenue. Profit is a result of fulfilling this purpose, not the sole objective, integrating social good into its products and practices.
Find your Brand Purpose
With the increase in the importance of building a purpose-driven brand comes the challenge in doing so, not to mention the cost it entails. However, you can save time, effort, and even money by delegating this campaign to Evolv, which has worked with a purpose-driven organization like Stolen Youth, a group that advocates against child trafficking.
Our team of experienced professionals has proven experience helping businesses create powerful brands that leave a lasting impression and expect brands to follow you. You can also read our blogs for more insights into creating a powerful brand.
So why not get in touch with us today? Let Evolv show you how much of an impact developing a purpose-driven brand can have on your business!
