How brands should choose a social issue to stand behind – Abdulla Saeed Almarri

Some consumers don’t care if brands align with a cause. Others do, and they tend to be Gen Z and Millennials, the biggest demographic of social media users. For brands targeting these coveted groups, they cannot afford not to take a stand on issues important to these potential customers.

Abdulla Saeed Almarri knows that more than 50% of Gen Z (the age group between Gen X and Millennials) consider themselves socially conscious. Whether or not a brand supports a cause and which cause(s) they support influences purchasing decisions. This is a circumstance in which not taking a sociopolitical stance can be riskier than supporting one. The key is for businesses to create a strategy that aligns with their product(s) and customers.

This comes down to identifying your brand, values, and target audience. Once you have accomplished this critical step, Abdulla Saeed Almarri advises companies to take notes from successful social campaigns. When doing this, the most vital elements to look for are authenticity, engagement, innovation, and being community-minded.

It’s no surprise that Abdulla Saeed Almarri has a shortlist of what he/she considers textbook socially conscious marketing campaigns. The first is a very new launch between a massively popular skincare influencer and one of their favored brands. The products are based on the influencer’s values and causes that are frequently mentioned in his content. He also donates purchase proceeds to charities affiliated with climate change, deforestation, and clean drinking water for people in undeveloped countries.

A personal-care brand showcased healthcare workers during the pandemic, calling the lines and marks left by masks a beautiful display of courage. This also further propels the company’s efforts to push beauty brands to adopt more realistic standards, another socially conscious campaign in itself. A well-known sportswear brand focuses on sustainability and reducing its carbon footprint to battle climate change and its destructive effects on the environment.

While some of these campaigns do cross political lines, the campaigns supporting courageous and realistic beauty are as neutral as they are effective. Abdulla Saeed Almarri feels that there is a way to be socially conscious but not in a divisive sense. Just model your strategy after those which are tried and true, then make it your own.