If you think "Purpose" is about what you say about your brand, you've missed the point.
It's about action.
The action you take to create positive impact for society.
Brands need to think less about what they say about themselves to be relevant to their target audience - and think more about how they can use their assets and influence to contribute positively to the world we live in. Real action over slick words!
It's also about collaboration rather than communication.
The traditional approach to brand marketing puts the brand at the centre of the action.
Marketing is used to communicate a brand's value. So when it comes to purpose, this often translates to communicating the brand's stand (think Gillette #ToxicMasculinity ad) or its impact (think any ad you've seen promoting a brand's Corporate Social Responsibility efforts - i.e. what they've done to help a cause).
Either way, it's an approach that places the brand as hero of the piece - the saviour if you like. That's fine when you're marketing your product solution, but not the best approach when marketing your purpose.
The most successful purpose-led brands use their brand as a vehicle to empower people - their customers, prospects, employees and partners - to help them to create impact.
These brands aren't thinking about how to communicate their impact to get people to like them.
They're playing a much bigger game.
They want to scale their impact and they invite others to help them achieve that.
Great purpose-led brands make their customers and people the heroes of their stories.
They invite people to join them in creating change. They use their brand as a vehicle for education, facilitation, action, co-creation and storytelling. They place the impact they seek to create at the very heart of their communication.
True purpose is a call to your tribe to join you in creating impact. Ultimately it's about using your business and brand assets to scale your impact in the world.
Action over words. Collaboration over communication.
When your brand is "on purpose", you'll have found the key to capturing people's hearts and minds and energising your business. In playing a bigger game, you'll have created a more meaningful business that people will want to be a part of and will want to support.
Are you playing a bigger game?
Do you want to learn more about how to build authentic purpose - social purpose - into your business and unlock its full potential for impact and business success?
Visit our resources page to download a free chapter from the book "Path To Purpose". You'll also find infographics and more videos there.