Consumers Want Brands to Pick a Side (Alt Headline: Get Political or Die Trying)

Remember when advertisers and corporations avoided political, social, and environmental issues like the plague? Yeah, that’s not a thing anymore. According to a recent AdWeek story, companies that “sit on the fence and steer clear of controversy” are now feeling serious pressure from consumers to take a stand.

Why? The story says it’s all because of Generation Z, who, despite not being of drinking age, still “wield $44 billion in annual purchasing power” and are a group that’s taken a far more inquisitive approach in developing their purchasing habits.

Nearly 90 percent of Gen Z, the story notes, “say they’re only loyal to brands that share their values,” which means that, in order to foster loyalty with what’s becoming the nation’s biggest age demographic, brands actually have to picks sides.

“Nearly [every brand is] feeling the pressure to take stronger social, environmental and political stances,” the story says. “How nimbly brands navigate that minefield is crucial to their future survival.”

“Traditional brands can no longer sit on their hands and allow well-scripted corporate statements to shape who they are,” Tripp Donnelly, CEO of digital reputation management firm REQ, told AdWeek. “They have to be dynamic and understand they’re talking to multiple generations of people.”

But because this is all new territory for advertisers, there are risks (hey again, Pepsi). Brands that stay too close to the middle might miss a key issue, and “conversely, brands that stray too far from their comfort zones, or attempt to shamelessly appropriate social or cultural movements, tend to pay the price.”

Regardless, it’s great to see more customers are actively voting with their dollars.

You can read more about it at AdWeek.

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