Addressed 320 attendees at the Eco-Business event, Nourishing Wellbeing: Building Sustainable Brands.
A few key points:
- It’s time for brands take a stand. The recent McCann Truth about Sustainability report shows that 77% of people globally believe brands have more power to make a positive impact than the government. There’s enormous potential and frankly, responsibility for brands in this space.
- While we put the WHO at the center of product design, we must put the WHY at the center of our brand purpose. I spoke about #thespareroombook, which is all about a leader’s social legacy. After all, how can we lead socially responsible business if we aren’t socially purposeful leaders? This social legacy serves as our North Star, because if we’re trying to appease or appeal to a variety of people groups, our compass will swing wildly.
- Brands should find ways to work with NGO’s. Brands authentically stand behind their purpose and benefit from the affiliation, while NGO’s benefit from the brand partnership. I shared a bit about our award-winning work, helping Tencent partner with an NGO to create the “Composer in the Clouds” campaign.