Advertising Week - On Purpose: The New Face of Cause Marketing.

“Purpose is the new digital.” This is the bold statement that Max Lenderman, Founding Principal at School, used to open his Advertising Week session “On Purpose: The New Face of Cause Marketing.”

20 years ago he says, digital was about banner ads, and people did not yet understand how it would eventually revolutionize our industry and the way consumers interact with brands. While still in its infancy, Lenderman believes that “purpose” today has the same power. Through the session, he shows that responsible brands, products and even advertising campaigns are simply more successful. 

Less than a third of consumers believe companies are doing enough to solve social and environmental issues they care about, and a majority would not care if 70% of brands disappeared in the future. Yet, almost all of them would be ready to switch to a brand of similar price and quality if it supported a good cause. On top of it, consumers are likely to talk about this cause, or boycott a company for going against one. It’s easy to agree with such an assessment given the success of companies like Toms or Warby Parker, along with that of organic, un-processed products. On the other hand, companies opposing LGBT rights or getting caught for inhumane practices in remote countries often suffer a long-lasting blast. In the end, Lenderman believes there is momentum behind people demanding more from brands.

However, purpose is not just good for brand image, it directly impacts the bottom line. Despite higher prices, ranging between 20% to 25% more, brands with “responsible products” benefit from better sales. It even applies to agencies, which run on human capital, talent.. When he launched School, a “purposeful advertising agency”, he conceded that he could not offer six figure salaries or a Cannes Lions submission for every campaign. But he could offer meaning. Speaking of Cannes Lions, Max Lenderman noticed that many of the campaigns that won the top awards had a responsibility and purpose component to them, from “Dumb Ways to Die” for public safety to “Dove”’s woman empowerment efforts. Today, more and more agencies are understanding this, and recent years have seen the creation of purpose-driven companies like Matter, Purpose or Fenton. 


Reaffirming his belief that purpose will bring about the same revolution for brands as digital did, he finishes by stating: “empathy is the next competitive advantage.” 

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