UPDATE: Jeep has pulled the Springsteen ad following a report by TMZ that Springsteen was arrested in New Jersey for a DWI in November. Bruce Springsteen (and Jeep) give us a powerful…
Category: Brand Activism
After watching the MAGA insurrection on live television, Corporate America is rethinking its political donations. Let’s be blunt about it: businesses have to decide if they support democracy or not.…
Coca-Cola is in trouble. And the way out is not advertising. Does Coke really think the consumer will drink their way back to a “new normal”? #opentobetter, a UK-based campaign,…
How can companies amplify the impact of brand activism activities? We’ve been exploring this question since we wrote Brand Activism: From Purpose to Action and the solution seems obvious: cross-brand…
What happens when our government fails to establish a standard for the Common Good? In the case of COVID-19 and the topic of mask wearing, we see corporate citizens step…
Last night, the President of the United States hid in a bunker and turned off the lights at the White House. Not since the murder of MLK has the USA…
As Congress considers various paths to recovery from the health and economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, it should strive to build back better, by planning for a more…
B2B brands are in for a rude awakening. By lagging behind their B2C counterparts, they are inadvertently creating a rift between their future customers and their future business. What do…
Henry Mintzberg is the John Cleghorn Professor of Management Studies (Strategy & Organization) and Faculty Director (International Masters for Health Leadership) at the Desautels Faculty of Management of McGill University…
With today’s brand activism, we see many companies deciding to take a stand for a better world. For example, since signing Colin Kaepernick to an endorsement deal, Nike has added…
Purpose is not a luxury. It is a must have. Companies interested in the ROI of Purpose should look at the official results from a company like Unilever. Earlier this…
We live in apocalyptic times. Everywhere we turn, we see a growing number of interlinked challenges – from rising inequality to environmental collapse – that will require collaboration between unlikely…
A number of certified B corporations including Ben and Jerry’s, Patagonia, Natura, and Danone, North America have turned up the pressure on the the signatories of the Business Roundtable’s statement…
Secret, the Procter and Gamble brand sponsor of the winning US Women’s World Cup team, has committed $529,000 ($23k for each of the 23 players) to address the pay gap…
Elsie Maio has guided leaders in the Fortune 100 for over 25 years to achieve specific business goals by managing their brands strategically. She is an alumna of McKinsey &…
Does your business support the Green New Deal? The American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) does: As responsible business leaders and investors in industries across America, we support the Green New Deal. By…
Jonathan Knowles recent article in The Marketing Journal – Do Not Risk Your Brand To Build Your Reputation: A Lesson Learned From Gillette – is a cautionary tale for brands…
Has Procter & Gamble joined the Brand Activism bandwagon? Gillette’s latest ad campaign is turning heads with its “woke” message: What we see here is an appeal to the “better…
Sprite’s #iloveyouhater campaign breaks new ground for a soft-drink commercial: According to Adage, Sprite is now just one of a string of brands to have addressed online “haters” and social media…
In December of 2018 Patagonia updated its raison d’être: Is this feasible? Can Patagonia really “use business to protect nature”? What concrete actions is Patagonia taking to prove this isn’t…
Maria Hengeveld‘s article in the Nation, Big Business Has a New Scam: The ‘Purpose Paradigm,’ raises a critical point: “Contrary to its purported aim, the point of purpose isn’t to drive change.…
Speaking up doesn’t always make life easier. But easy never changed anything. @sterling7 pic.twitter.com/sFZHeMo5s4 — Nike Football (@nikefootball) December 15, 2018 When Raheem Sterling spoke up about racism at a…
Mark Miller is the chief strategy officer at Team One, Publicis Groupe’s advertising agency for premium and luxury brands, and the founder of The Legacy Lab, a research and consulting practice that explores how…
Less than 24 hours ago, the world read about Chinyere Ezie‘s shocking encounter with Prada’s extreme insensitivity outright racism in the storefront of their Soho outlet. Here’s her Facebook post:…
Musician David Hinds is the founder and front-man for Steel Pulse, the world’s leading reggae band. In 1978, race relations in Britain were in crisis. The National Front was gathering power and immigrants…
According to We Are Social‘s Mobbie Nazir all brands should have anti-hate policies visible on all their channels. Here’s her insight: Almost all brands choose to silence hate on social media by…
Airbnb has announced that it will no longer feature homes rented out in the Israeli settlements in the West Bank. According to Reuters, the decision by Airbnb was made the day…
Blake Mycoskie, the founder of Toms, the shoe company with the famous one-for-one program, announced a $5 million donation campaign to end gun violence. Here’s Mycoskie making an emotional statement…
“Being a responsible company means paying your taxes in proportion to your success and supporting your state and federal governments, which in turn contribute to the health and well-being of…
Eight-out-of-10 corporate leaders believe companies now have an obligation to speak out on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, according to new research on brand advocacy conducted by GlobeScan and…
Our job as citizens is to tell them what to do. Watch: see also >> David Attenborough and others on climate change: ‘The world will be transformed’
The Trump administration is considering restricting the definition of gender to be based on a person’s genitalia at birth. This has led to fifty six companies uniting to sign a letter condemning the…
Marketing today means brands must stand for something– even if it means sacrificing a segment of their customers in order to be cool with the segment they are consciously targeting.…
“…when riches and virtue are placed together in the scales of the balance, the one always rises as the other falls” – Plato’s Republic, Book VIII A recent online survey asks…
What happens when employees decide their company should not pursue a customer or a project? Do they have the right to be conscientious objectors? At Google, that’s exactly what happened. This…
The Reputation Institute publishes an annual study of corporate reputation in America, and now, in 2018, the US RepTrak 100 reveals an average three-point decline in company reputation. This is the…
On Valentine’s Day 2018, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School lost 17 students to a mass shooting. The students stood up in revolt against our politicians – asking them to do…
A Call to Action Larry Fink’s recent letter to CEOs is titled “A Sense of Purpose,” and in it he makes the case for the CEO leadership for societal good.…
Where are we going? When it comes to Brand America, the United States stands at an inflection point. It can be argued that what makes America great is our values.…
Our economic system of Capitalism is both praiseworthy and blameworthy at the same time. We need to acknowledge that worldwide Capitalism has lifted many out of extreme poverty. But almost…
Historically, most brands have been marketed on their performance characteristics. “Our toothpaste is better than yours.” We’re better at “whitening teeth,” “preventing cavities,” or giving you “fresh breath.” Positioning was the name…