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Rise of a mighty heart

Where does consumer ethics leave your company - and does it create any opportunities for a new way to differentiate your brand?

Convergence trails the speedboat of the 21st century's interconnectivity like a tangible wake. No industry is an island, and no definition is sacred. Food and vitamins, pharmaceuticals and spiritual sanctuaries are hammering out a new health and wellness category. The previously disparate worlds of running shoes and music players have paired up to take road running to a different level. The great technology companies are in a race to release the first great personal convergence device - a phone/camera/iPod/electronic wallet/internet portal. In ten years' time we may well ask ourselves how we got by when our bedside lamps didn't dispense coffee, or emit sleep-enhancing essential oil vapours, or keep track of where we were in our book when we fell asleep (not a bad idea, huh?).

But much more important - and perhaps more interesting - than the blurring of lines between categories within the private sector, is the fact that convergence is also doing away with the boundaries between public, private and civil society sectors. Politics is becoming less ideology-driven and more focussed on service delivery, while businesses and the free market have become key regulatory bodies, with enormous potential and resources to impact on people's lives as much as governments and states do.

Consumer activitism is at an all-time high and brings increasing pressure to bear on companies to put this influence to good use and become more humanist, more socially-minded, more compassionate. This transfer of expectations across categories means that people are no longer willing to accept that companies make things and money, that governments try to distribute resources ethically and that civil society organisations champion social causes. They expect all three groups to perform all three functions. Furthermore, technology has enabled consumers to insist that such expectations are met. Karl Marx famously declared that capitalism alienates us from ourselves, from each other and from nature, but the internet has connected us all up again - it allows us to spread the word on worthy initiatives or reveal irresponsible corporate practices, donate and participate in causes or build a sense of global community.

As the distinction between economic, personal and political spaces dissolves, it has given rise to a global altruism and possibly even a shift in human consciousness. According to the Spiral Dynamics development model, we are moving towards a world in which “the self is both distinct and a blended part of a larger compassionate whole.” In the Turquoise Holistic Meme, everything connects to everything else and cooperative actions are given increased value.

So what does this mean for business? It means that giving back to society, taking care of the environment and conducting business practices in a responsible and ethical manner is no longer optional. A global move towards triple-bottom-line accountability has brought about regulation that forces companies to be transparent. (There is pending legislation in the UK, for example, that will require every publicly listed company to disclose ethical, social, and environmental risks in its annual report1). The rise of ethical consumerism means that businesses that do not meet consumers expectations will fall out of favour. More than ever before, information and an increased focus on corporate governance means that people can - and do - vote with their feet. Consider for a moment the implications that a single sweat-shop or child labour allegation can have on consumer confidence in a brand.

But for those who seize it, the rise of ethical consumerism presents a fantastic opportunity. It means that brands operating in cluttered or undifferentiated categories now have a whole new set of possible differentiators. It allows brands that were previously unable to play in the ‘warm and fuzzy' space of inspiration, hope and humanism to now do so. And how better to build trust and loyalty than to inspire, to give hope, to show a human consciousness? Such actions make for fulfilled employees and brand-loyal customers.

But they must be carried out wisely:

  • Learn from unrelated categories. Be creative and innovate. There is huge potential for creativity in finding quirky ways to solve society's problems. Just think about how Earth Hour concert organisers used stationary bike cyclists at the Cape Town Waterfront to generate power for their event.
  • Form alliances and partnerships. What is the running shoe to your ipod? One of the most important debates nowadays centres on how best to structure partnerships between the state, business, mass charity, and wealthy individuals in such a way to make the best use of each of their respective strengths.2
  • Empower your customers, consumers and employees to give. Google employees earn points for saving the planet if they use emission-free transport (such as bicycles, walking, pogo sticks etc) to get to work, and these points translate into donations that Google makes on their behalf to a charity of their choice. You could allow your consumers to transfer loyalty card points to a struggling friend, or to exchange a free product promotion for a school lunch for an underprivileged child. Help them volunteer for their favourite charity, offer prizes linked to cause. Be interactive and personalised - let them vote for a cause and get ideas from their blogs.
  • Be strategic. Are you going to brand a cause and manage it as part of your portfolio or just be known for your kindness and giving back? Support causes that enhance your brand. Leverage and celebrate it. If you are genuinely making a difference then there is nothing cynical about getting publicity from it - philanthropic track record will become one of the leading brand differentiators in future.
  • Adapt the marketing mix. We've already seen communication move from the above-the-line ‘two senses' approach of sight and sound to ‘five senses' experiential marketing. How are you going to communicate to all five of a consumer's senses and the heart or spirit to engage your target market and create emotional loyalty?

At the end of the day, it doesn't matter whether you save the polar bear from extinction, assist a struggling artist community, empower grassroots entrepreneurs or champion the cause of corporate transparency. Be guided by your what's important to your target market, and what's relevant in the world at large. But do not underestimate the importance of the attitudinal shift that is required in order to be successful in the converged world - competition now comes from every category and there are new sets of purchasing decision influencers. The days of selling things purely to make money are over; the future is about integrated, responsive corporations that offer a generous service to humanity and the planet.

So that essential-oil releasing, coffee dispensing, book-tracking bedside lamp is great; but there is only so much it can do for me. I know that when there are two on the market I'm going to be buying the one that helps someone else sleep easy too.

1Harvard Business Review
2Philanthrocapitalism

1 Jul 2009 12:12

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About the author

Al Mackay, Yellowwood Future Architects.





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