What Is Brand Activism?

In 2018, Philip Kotler & Christian Sarkar established brand activism as a marketing and business management concept for use in various industries. Specifically, they defined it as “a phenomenon defined as a company’s attempt to solve global challenges that its future customers and employees care about.” A company’s or brand’s commitment to a community is demonstrated by its or its products’ vision, beliefs, goals, communication, and behaviour toward that community.

Due to the proliferation of knowledge and globalization, Generation Z and Millennials are more informed and conscious customers. They want to read reviews before making purchases, from something as insignificant as a toothbrush to something as significant as a new car. As a result, establishing a position in the minds of highly dynamic and knowledgeable consumers is not a simple task. When customers regularly scrutinize brands for their positions on global and local issues, this is called brand monitoring. Additionally, brand activism provides a competitive advantage and an edge over conventional products, pricing, and emotional promotions and increases the perceived worth of the brand by the consumer.

Since Millennials and Generation Z account for most decision-makers and actual consumers, it is critical for brands to connect their vision and values with those of their target demographic.

One factor is the rise of social media and digital marketing, which have contributed to the trend. When a brand message is sent to a consumer indirectly through a friend or acquaintance, it has an exponentially more significant impact. With its ability to share information and apparent intimacy, social media provides the ideal venue for putting this strategy into action. In addition, presenting a campaign as a reaction to a significant social issue is the quickest and most cost-effective approach to ensure that it becomes viral and is voluntarily shared by customers.

Vocabulary:

concept – an idea, theory, or principle, “She explained the new concept of recycling old plastic bottles into durable shoes.”

phenomenon – an interesting fact, event, or situation that can be seen and studied, especially something unusual, “A total solar eclipse is a beautiful natural phenomenon.”

commitment – a strong promise, plan, or decision to do or support something, “The company showed its commitment to safety by buying new helmets for everyone.”

proliferation – a very rapid, large increase in the number or amount of something, “The proliferation of local coffee shops made it incredibly easy to find a warm drink.”

globalization – the process by which businesses, cultures, and technologies spread and connect all over the entire world, “Globalization allows people in Canada to buy fresh fruit grown in South America.”

conscious – awake, aware, or paying very close attention to what is happening around you, “He made a conscious effort to spend less money on fast food this month.”

insignificant – small, unimportant, or not worth noticing, “Missing one single day of practice is insignificant, but missing a whole month is bad.”

dynamic – full of energy, highly active, or constantly changing and developing, “The internet is a dynamic place where new websites and trends appear every day.”

scrutinize – to examine, look at, or check something very closely and carefully, “The teacher had to scrutinize the student’s messy handwriting to grade the final test.”

conventional – traditional, ordinary, or following the usual and expected way of doing things, “Instead of using a conventional oven, she cooked the chicken in a modern air fryer.”

perceived – noticed, understood, or thought of in a specific way by someone, “The heavy gold box was perceived as very expensive, even though it was actually empty.”

demographic – a specific group of people chosen by age, gender, income, or habits, “The toy company creates advertisements specifically for the young child demographic.”

indirectly – not in a straight, immediate, or direct way; happening through someone or something else, “I heard about the heavy traffic indirectly through a quick message from my brother.”

acquaintance – a person you know slightly or have met before, but who is not a close friend, “He smiled and waved at an acquaintance he met at the local library.”

exponentially – growing, moving, or increasing at a faster and faster rate over time, “The number of people using the new smartphone app grew exponentially over the summer.”

intimacy – a feeling of being very close, familiar, warm, or friendly with another person, “Telling old family stories by a campfire creates a strong feeling of intimacy.”

venue – a specific place where an event, concert, sports game, or meeting happens, “The local park is a wonderful venue for a summer music festival.”

viral – spreading exceptionally fast from person to person over the internet or social media networks, “The funny video of the dancing cat went viral and got millions of views in one hour.”

voluntarily – doing something willingly, by choice, and without being forced or paid to do it, “She voluntarily stayed after class to help the teacher clean up the art room.”