05 Mar The Importance of Primary Purpose.

In the digital age, it has almost become expected that brands develop an ‘higher purpose’ engagement strategy that seeks to connect with an audiences at an emotionally extended level.

P&G champion the role of mothers in society.
Dove celebrate femininity coming in all shapes and sizes.
Lynx helps men to ‘find their magic.’

These deeper connections are laudable and certainly play well on Social Channels where everyday acts of consumer heroism can be played out and retweeted ad finitum.

But is the true role of the product in people’s busy lives being increasingly forgotten about?

Washing powder’s primary function is to clean clothes.
Soap is expected to clean and moisturise.
Deodorant is meant to stop you sweating and smelling.

When making choices, aren’t consumers more likely to repeat purchase a product that is good at what it’s meant to be good at, rather than the fact they’ve had the budget to spend on a platoon of planners to create a need state they hadn’t even considered?

Good advertising just makes a bad product fail faster. And no amount of insight or engagement will ever get over this undeniable fact.

So if you’re a brand manager or a creative about to answer a brand manager’s brief, pause to remember the primary purpose of what you are selling – Is it any good and does it says what it does on the tin?