PURPOSE

Purpose is an often overlooked but crucial aspect that shapes the style of a brand and its customer base. Much like a person’s character, a brand’s purpose reflects its sense of responsibility to society.

Why is brand philosophy important?

Recent research indicates that 82% of consumers desire consumer brands to reflect their values. Moreover, three-quarters of shoppers would boycott their beloved brands permanently if there was a dissonance in values, and 24% would break the relationship off for at least a temporary period. (New Research Shows Consumers More Interested in Brands’ Values than Ever, 2022)

Using the Dolce & Gabbana scandal as a case in point, The incident in 2018, which saw the brand release an video and the designer make racist remarks, resulted in the cancellation of fashion shows, consumer boycotts, and store vandalism. In response, “Not Me” posters were placed on the brand’s storefronts to ridicule their handling of the scandal. The company’s yearly financial report decreased by three percent following the disclosures.

Therefore, the value proposition and vision of the brand are closely interconnected, and contemporary consumers, particularly those belonging to Generation Z, desire brands to overtly vocalize their political stances. Moreover, they aspire to impact the brand’s actions through their purchasing decisions. (Curry, 2020)

How do brands communicate their purpose to Gen-Z?

According to research, 98% of Generation Z utilize social media channels (The Future of Consumer Behaviour in the Age of Gen Z, 2023), whilst 24% of Gen Z females specify influencers as their primary source of information for evaluating new products or services they desire to procure (Alyssa, 2022). Influencers are frequently leveraged to emotionally connect with a brand and stimulate consumer purchasing intent among Gen-Z. It is crucial to select the appropriate platform, given that according to Statista’s 2021 survey (Navarro, 2023), TikTok is the third most significant shopping channel for Gen-Z females.

Reaching out to the GEN-Z demographic is a crucial aspect of successful brand promotion, achieved through user involvement in activities to cultivate a sense of engagement. Focusing on this community, Fenty Beauty implemented a TikTok strategy, establishing a bespoke content creation hub and engaging specialist creators to promote the brand. Within three weeks, the #fentybeauty hashtag on TikTok had received more than 93 million views via the #fentybeautyhouse hashtag (the first ever TikTok beauty content house, no date). By encouraging users to create their content based on brand materials, Fenty’s promotional approach capitalizes on user-generated momentum and creates new value for the brand (Janet, 2023).

REFERENCE LIST

Alyssa, H. (2022) Last updated:3 November 2022. Available at:https://blog.hootsuite.com/marketing-to-gen-z/#Marketing_to_Gen_Z_vs_Millennials(Accessed: 26 October 2023).

Curry, L., 2020. How brands can follow through on the values they’re selling. Harvard Business Review.

Janet, B. (Last updated: 21 June 2023) How the Best Brand-Influencer Partnerships Reach Gen Z . Available at:https://hbr.org/2023/06/how-the-best-brand-influencer-partnerships-reach-gen-z?ab=at_art_art_1x4_s02  (Accessed: 26 October 2023).

New Research Shows Consumers More Interested in Brands’ Values than Ever. Last updated :27 April 2022. Available at:https://consumergoods.com/new-research-shows-consumers-more-interested-brands-values-ever(Accessed 25 October 25 2023).

Mitterfellner, O. (2019) Fashion Marketing and Communication : Theory and Practice Across the Fashion Industry, Taylor & Francis Group, Milton.

Statista(2023) Most influential advertising channels when making purchasing decisions among female Generation Z consumers in the United States as of May 2021. US. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1246840/most-influential-advertising-gen-z/(Accessed: 26 October 2023 ).

The Future of Consumer Behaviour in the Age of Gen Z（2023）Last updated:13 June 2023. Available at:https://www.mintel.com/consumer-market-news/the-future-of-consumer-behaviour-in-the-age-of-gen-z/(Accessed: 26 October 2023).

The first ever TikTok beauty content house(no date)Available at: https://shortyawards.com/13th/the-first-ever-tiktok-beauty-content-house(Accessed: 26 October 2023)

Young, A. (no date) . Available at: https://dp6mhagng1yw3.cloudfront.net/entries/13th/5581a7bd-55e3-4e99-b464-20f4c9f0c9e8.jpg (Accessed: 26 October 2023).