Try to become a tool for them to understand their target audience with real facts and studies. This will make the final product authentic, practical and functional for the consumer. If you don’t have the opportunity to do this in the first launch, express your interest in doing so for the next iteration. Create a space for yourself in the process.
If a company wants to appear to be, for example, sustainable, look for areas or programs where they might tell a story about how they are sustainable. I had a client from a foreign country who needed to create a brand identity in the US to establish a relationship with their US clients. They wanted to appear sustainable by using the color green in their color palette. As a trained designer, I knew that was a bad idea and greenwashing would lead to a bad reputation. I went through their content and noticed solar panels on their roof top. I needed clarification and asked them if that was what I was seeing. They confirmed that they were running their manufacturing facility entirely on renewable energy. I remember saying, “you don’t have to act sustainable, you ARE sustainable.” I get chills just from talking about it. Don’t assume that clients’ know what sustainability means.
Victor Papanek (1923 –1998) left an indelible mark on the world of design and education. He was an Austrian-born American designer who passionately championed the cause of socially and ecologically responsible design for products, tools, and community infrastructures. His work and advocacy continue to inspire designers worldwide to prioritize moral and social responsibility in their creative endeavors.
In 1971, Victor Papenek released a legendary book called Design for the Real World. In it he wrote, “In this age of mass production when everything must be planned and designed, design has become the most powerful tool with which man shapes his tools and his environments (and, by extension, society and himself). This demands high moral and social responsibility from the designer.”
Again, this was in 1971.
Also, a 2020 global study by the Zeno group found that when people think that a brand is a responsible brand, caring about society as much as it does about profits, people are four times more likely to purchase the brand and recommend the company. They are also six times more likely to protect the brand if there is public criticism of it.
With that said, your role can contribute to socially responsible solutions as opposed to being a part of the problem.
The digital age has enabled customers to access an immense library of information.Social media platforms, web forums, and online messaging systems have allowed previously marginal communities to become influential, trend-setting groups, transforming the landscape of marketing and making it necessary to orient marketing around shared values and beliefs in order to acquire loyal, enthusiastic customers.
On that note, there’s been a trend and belief that GPT-3 will be taking over marketing jobs. Not even close. People can see right through that and machines can’t comprehend the way we speak, just the words we say.
For example, they can’t distinguish the difference between, “Oh, we’re going there again!”(excited) and “Oh, we’re going there again!” (upset).
Grasp an understanding of the successes and failures of the industry’s past. What were the trends regarding advertisers’ attitudes toward our environment? What are the most notable eco-friendly campaigns in years past? Which ones effectively promoted sustainability, and which ones tried and failed?
Just remember to be mindful about the way you frame your product and bring a positive light to your consumers.
Read the full interview here.
