Consumers’ and brands’ quest for meaning
A global pandemic, dislocated democracies, rising distrust in media, a cost of living crisis and the tangible consequences of global warming have led consumers to navigate the world with increased anxiety while questioning their place in this world – their essence, as such – and the meaning of life.
‘We are more aware of our own mortality because of Covid and our limited resources because of climate change,’ says Tim Jones of London-based branding agency venturethree, whose clients have included Just Eat, NOW, Penguin Random House, Sky, Sports Direct and Trustpilot. ‘Consumers are re-evaluating their relationships with everything: parents, work, religion, government and institutions.’
Younger consumers have even turned to quiet unfollowing to express their opposition to shallow and surface-level media. Both Millennials and Gen Z are now actively analysing who adds value to their lives and who doesn’t. In February 2023, the de-influencing trend, characterised by content-creators dissuading followers from buying products, expressed a growing wariness of brand reliability and influencers’ credibility. As of July 2023, #deinfluencing had garnered 735m views on TikTok.
According to Jones, brands have a significant responsibility to soothe consumers who are hungry for both mindful and meaningful consumption. ‘A fully realised brand is the most powerful force in business, if not the world,’ he says, ‘because it mixes commerce, culture and customer.’
With a decreasing dependence on conventional forms of community such as religion and nuclear families, the brand strategist argues that businesses have the power – and the duty – to organise and guide society. ‘A sense of purpose, efficiency, meaning and operating principles are everything that a brand was designed to serve.’
