Original submission details
Original title: 🌍🏡💚🤝✨ Should a Brand Champion a Cause?
View original KEATS context ↗ (university access required).
3.3 Should a brand be a champion of a cause_
Should a brand be a champion of a cause? Does this attract your attention and/or interest? What are the brand management issues to consider?
Course task reproduced as context. The response below is Fiona’s independent academic work. KEATS source ↗ (university access required).
Explore writing on this question ↗I believe brands should champion a cause, but only when that cause grows naturally from who they are. If purpose is added simply because it’s fashionable, customers usually spot it very quickly.
A personal example for me is the work I’m doing with my friend Michelle Ogundehin. Many people know Michelle from her years as Editor-in-Chief of ELLE Decoration UK and as the presenter of BBC Two’s Interior Design Masters. However, what I find most inspiring is how she has evolved her brand beyond beautiful interiors.
Everything she creates today, from her writing to her workshops and community, is centred around living more intentionally. Rather than encouraging people to constantly buy more, she challenges us to think more carefully about how our homes affect our wellbeing, relationships and everyday lives. In my opinion, that feels authentic because it grows naturally from her experience and expertise rather than being attached to the brand afterwards.
As marketers, we often talk about emotional benefits, and I think this is a perfect example. Michelle isn’t simply talking about furniture or colour palettes. She’s encouraging people to create homes that help them feel calmer, happier and more connected. The product becomes secondary. The feeling becomes the brand.
What also strikes me is how delicate this balance is.
The larger your personal or corporate brand becomes, the greater the responsibility. Brands like Michelle’s, or organisations such as the BBC and ELLE Decoration, spend years building trust. That trust can disappear surprisingly quickly if they become associated with a cause that later proves controversial or inconsistent with their values.
We have all seen examples of brands rushing to support popular social movements, only to be criticised because their own business practices didn’t reflect the message they were promoting. That is where brand authenticity becomes essential. Vredenburg et al. (2020) describe this as woke washing: supporting a cause publicly without making meaningful changes internally. In today’s world, consumers don’t just listen to what brands say. They watch what they do.
For me, the question is not whether brands should champion causes.
It is whether they are prepared to make the difficult decisions that prove they genuinely believe in those causes when the cameras are off.
If the answer is yes, purpose becomes part of the brand.
If the answer is no, it simply becomes another campaign.
If you’d like to see what I mean, I’d genuinely recommend exploring Michelle’s work. Her website is a lovely example of a brand where the purpose, tone and experience all feel consistent.
🌿 https://michelleogundehin.com
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References.
- Kapferer, J. N. (2012). The new strategic brand management: Advanced insights and strategic thinking (5th ed.). Kogan Page.
- Vredenburg, J., Kapitan, S., Spry, A., Kemper, J., & Beckham, T. (2020). Brands taking a stand: Authentic brand activism or woke washing? Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39(4), 444-460. Discussion question: Do you think consumers are becoming better at recognising the difference between a brand with a genuine purpose and one that simply has good marketing?