A More Courageous Normal
When conversations turn politically contentious, either in person or on social media, many of us want to duck and cover.
But as brands are increasingly dragged into polarizing and charged political and cultural conversations, the ‘duck and cover’ strategy can have real reputational and financial implications. When brands don’t speak up on issues their customers and stakeholders care about, it opens the door for others to take control of the their narrative for them, often in negative and damaging ways.
On the other hand, we’ve also seen what happens when brands do speak up around hot button issues and end up alienating valuable stakeholders.
This is the ‘new normal’ where culture, politics, and business can no longer be disentangled.
So, what’s a brand to do?
A good place to start is to gain a deeper understanding of the dynamics driving this ‘new normal’ and the changing expectations for how companies and their leaders should operate within it. It’s increasingly clear consumers and employees expect and want business to step in and step up more than ever before. Here are just a few examples from the 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer report:
More than 80% want business to take a stand on issues like the treatment of employees, discrimination, and climate change and believe CEOs are obligated to ensure their community is safe and thriving
Roughly 70% believe a company’s societal impact is a strong expectation or deal breaker when considering a job
More than 60% will buy or advocate for a brand based on their beliefs and values
But how do brands step in and step up successfully, productively, and safely?
Specific answers will be different for every company and every brand, but history shows, regardless of the political climate, that the most successful brands are those that honestly define their core purpose and values, and authentically articulate what and who they stand for.
From that strong foundation they can:
Architect the vision for their future that is rooted in the promises and values their business is willing to, and can credibly, stand on
Create a shared understanding among, and greater alignment between, their internal and partner teams
Better appreciate the core values and world views of their most important constituents and move from speaking to them in platitudes to engaging them with substance and authenticity
Develop a proactive roadmap for taking control of their brand narrative in the media and on social media
Companies, which largely enjoy more trust than other institutions like government and media, have a unique opportunity to proactively transform the ‘new normal’ to a more courageous and hopeful normal for us all. In so doing, they can take real steps to help shrink the trust gap and ultimately turn what feels like risk into a genuine opportunity to lead and succeed in these turbulent times.