Brand purpose: getting past theory and putting it into practice
There is no shortage of articles about the importance of embracing a brand purpose in today's world.
According to some reports, organizations that embrace a purpose outperform the market. Other studies point to the effect a purpose has on everything from attracting and retaining the best recruits to creating advocates and evangelists for the brand.
It seems most articles either talk about the importance of purpose for an organization or highlight a company that is seeing the benefits of being purpose-driven (like Patagonia or Unilever brand Dove).
While these are useful for us to understand the power of purpose, they give us very little guidance on how to actually go about the business of clarifying our purpose, expressing it, and building adoption for it. This is why I wrote Big Audacious Meaning – Unleashing Your Purpose-Driven Story. It walks you through the process from understanding what a purpose is (and is not) to bringing that purpose to life in our brand story.
Start by knowing where you are
To begin the process of clarifying and championing your purpose, you must have an understanding of the readiness of your organization. Through my work with organizations, I have identified three stages. Here is a description of those three stages from the book Big Audacious Meaning – Unleashing Your Purpose-Driven Story:
Stage 1 - Discover
Organizations at this stage are just beginning to understand what a Big Audacious Meaning can do for them. They are looking to define it, establish how it could come to life throughout the organization, and spread out into the world. A thoughtful discovery can provide the foundation. It can reveal the drivers of purpose and help provide the guiding principles that will inform the collaborations where the Big Audacious Meaning will emerge.
Stage 2 - Clarify
Some organizations have a sense of purpose, but have either never clarified it or need to redefine it. In some instances, they may be trying to use their mission statement as a way to express it (a mission statement simply cannot capture what a purpose or Big Audacious Meaning delivers.) It’s critical to go through a process of clarifying the Big Audacious Meaning in order to arrive at a focused and well-articulated purpose. Additionally, there may be some confusion around what an organization believes, what it is currently doing (corporate social responsibility, volunteering, etc.) and how it brings it all together to make all the efforts more powerful. This calls for an investigation process to identify where there may be a disconnect or to uncover opportunity. The investigation is a vital part of the process within both Stages 2 & 3.
Stage 3 - Confirm
Organizations at this stage have identified a purpose and may have even begun to introduce it throughout the organization. Sparked by a sense that there is potential left untapped, leaders at this stage will ask, “Are we doing everything we can to take full advantage of our purpose?” At this point, it’s important to go through a process of confirming the Big Audacious Meaning to ensure there is a unifying definition that is accepted universally through the organization. This should be coupled with an investigation (as described at Stage 2) to determine where there are opportunities for the purpose to elevate the business.
We can’t assume that everyone we hope to serve knows our Big Audacious Meaning. Vagueness saps its power. Uncertainty will leave awesome opportunities unexplored. We need to find the clarity. And we need to be measured in our efforts to bring it to all our stakeholders. Because when our Big Audacious Meaning is clear, so is our future.
Embracing a brand purpose is one of the most exciting opportunities available to an organization today. Having a proven process and battle-tested best practices is the way to make sure you can take full advantage of the opportunity. With that in mind, in my next post, we'll look at a practical checklist for putting your brand purpose into practice.