The Rise of Brand Empathy in a Polarised World

  

 Yesterday’s boxes can’t hold the future. Those railing for a return to conspicuous consumption, endless motoring, the roll-out of urban sprawl and the long-term security of home ownership in bucolic suburbia may have missed a few pointers.

Life’s Signals do not Confirm the Mainstream Story

There is a disconnect between what we are told and what we know through experience. The disconnect may be strongest only at the fringes of what we see, but a growing schism in truth remains. Our lived experience is contrasted with increasingly binary dialogue. There are only two available sides to every story, every issue, every event. Our beliefs are driven to polarity. You are either for it or against it. Left or Right. Diversity, gender fluidity, Critical Race Theory, vaccination, universal basic income, sustainability, global warming, fats, meat, free education, free trade, quantitative easing, modern monetary theory, crypto, colonialism, the socialisation of debt, the meaning of work and even the pursuit of happiness, are all more polarising than prone to constructive adult debate.

 

Our Online Experience Drives our Disassociation

Many argue that our online experience and communication is a factor driving this change. Social media has been criticised for furthering a loss of empathy, alienation, and even anger. Empathy loss is attributed to a lack of visual contact, a lack of nuanced exchanges, the aggregation of complex emotions in simple emojis and the asynchronicity of exchanges on social media. There is no consequence for “incivility” as Christopher Penn calls it. This is the “disinhibition” effect of social media described by Dr Suler¹ - dissociative, anonymous, invisible.

 

The Internet is an Echo-Chamber

Online communications create an echo-chamber of attitudes, beliefs and feelings. Social media and online algorithms encourage feedback loops that reinforce who we are through limited exposure to thinking outside our immediate group of friends and colleagues. It is known as “out-group” exposure with “in-group” referring to those close to us. Our ability to see and understand differences in people around us is reduced to binary stereotypes. In fact, it has been shown² that persistent exclusive “in-group” proclivity is not only factionising but also economically constrictive. In-group exchanges are risk-averse and preclude exposure to outsized pay-off possibilities. The global growth in populist politics and protectionist economic policies bears witness to growing in-group myopia. This phenomenon “divides populations into belligerent groups with rigidly opposed beliefs and identities that inhibit co-operation and undermine the pursuit of the common good”². With the absence of a common good and the polarisation on issues and politics we witness trust as a casualty.

 

Our Binary Dialogue Mirrors an Erosion in Trust

Loss of trust has reached an epidemic scale. The global Edelman Trust Barometer tells us that trust in government, institutions, business leaders and media is lower than ever, in part exacerbated by the Covid pandemic. Three years ago, the 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer recognized the ‘Battle for Truth’, in which people selected media that reinforced their views. They now observe a further degradation of the communications infrastructure, resulting in a lack of quality information to enable the public to make fact-based decisions. The Edelman 2020 Barometer says: “As a result of this daily diet of distortions and counter-factual narrative, we no longer believe our leaders. Fifty-seven percent of respondents say government and business leaders purposefully try to mislead us.”

 

“Gated Institutional Narratives” are Unassailable

Professor Freyd goes further in raising the uncomfortable spectre of Institutional Betrayal. Using Trauma Theory she links the failures of institutions to deliver as promised, to anxiety and depression³. This she calls a “betrayal of trust”. (Viz police brutality enforcing covid lockdowns).

A new phenomenon of Gated Institutional Narratives (GIN) is emerging. First coined by Eric Weinstein, head of Thiel Capital, the GIN articulates the outcome of often heavily generalised institutional narratives as presented by the media and other commentators. Without access to “in-group” approval we have little ability to counter the GIN even with valid proven information. Much of the Covid vaccination programme roll-out has been advanced with this type of uncontestable sector narrative.

 

How do we Make Sense of Our World?

The world is not like it used to be. A genie has escaped the bottle and we cannot push it back. More and more, we know this.

Our challenge is sense-making. The institutional narratives, governmental failure and absence of leadership feed a myriad of issues and questions we grapple with daily. Staccato social media bursts, asymmetrical media “information” and the aggressive censoring of any voice outside the gated narrative exhausts us.

We try to decode the world on a daily basis as we re-think our role in the productive fabric of society. It is in this world too that each brand’s narrative is summoned to resonate as aptly as it did a short while back. Many brands realise this. Many do not.

 

A New Brand Leadership is Needed

Brands need to add to sense-making by building assurance and security while acknowledging the uncertainty of our times. Naive positivity falls short in this environment and is seen for what it is – insincere, even fatuous. The tone of voice brands need now is rooted in authenticity and inclusivity. The message essence, wrapped with a little humility.

Advertising has evolved through several phases and styles. We have seen the use of feature-benefit messages, to solution-based advertising, and most recently the emergence of the Challenger brand that seeks to change a mindset. It is in the Challenger typology that the next brand construct will likely emerge. The idea of challenging a mindset (or any known opponent) will morph into a stronger need for customer allegiance and partnership in world where we face uncertain outcomes. Building a brand in the future will be more about an acceptance of unknowns than a conviction that we need to change something.

 

Brand Authenticity in Action

Brand authenticity starts at a foundational level in the brand narrative or construct. It will manifest in visible communication. A good example is the Allan Gray campaign claiming that you should “Throw Time at Your Money”. The profound truth in this message is that all the expertise of money managers is less powerful than time itself. The essence is humility that speaks volumes to audience intelligence. Contrast this, as an example, with the countless other growth promises from financial managers who know, as do we (and Magnus Heystek), that South Africa is trapped in a low growth environment.

 

The Brand as a Confidant

The successful brand as a challenger will morph into the brand as a coach or compatriot or confidant. Empathetic brand leadership will rise. The promise of brochure style benefits that fit the boxes of the past are set to ring hollow. Brands embracing adult-style discourse will recognise the need for flexibility, accessibility, and responsivity in their core narratives. Promises of a product-feature laden tomorrow will ring less true than assurances that, even though we face uncertainty, we do so together.

 

References

1. Psychology of the Digital Age: Cambridge University Press. Suler. 2016.

2. Polarization under rising inequality and economic decline: Alexander J. Stewart, Nolan McCarty, and Joanna J. Bryson.  Published Dec 2020.

3. Institutional Betrayal: American Psychologist. Smith, C.P. & Freyd, J.J. 2014.

 

Sources

https://dynamic.uoregon.edu/jjf/institutionalbetrayal/

https://www.edelman.com/trust/2021-trust-barometer

https://brandgenetics.com/human-thinking/empathy-statistics-for-business/

https://theportal.wiki/wiki/Gated_Institutional_Narrative_(GIN)

https://www.edelman.com/trust/2021-trust-barometer/insights/declaring-information-bankruptcy

https://www.christopherspenn.com/2016/09/subduing-incivility-online/

https://www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/2021/07/trust-public-institutions/

https://truecenterpublishing.com/psycyber/disinhibit.html

Changes in Dispositional Empathy in American College Students Over Time: A Meta-Analysis. Michigan U

Effective Leadership in Your Domain of Influence - The Antidote to Civil Passivity

A sure way for Business School’s to make money is to tap into the thirst for insight and knowledge around the topic of leadership. The subject has spawned a consultancy industry worth billions. Airport bookstores are crammed with titles that offer, sometimes, enlightening  stories behind the apparent success. Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Margaret Thatcher, Mandela, the Amazon man, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, the South African born enfant terrible of Tesla, Desmond Tutu, Willem de Klerk, Richard Branson...all have something written about them. They are the subject of genuine fascination, the sources of inspiration, emulation and even denigration. Two descriptors, often interchangeable seem to apply to them. They are influencers and by extension, leaders.

The association with “big names” communicates an exclusivity.  Leadership is often regarded as the domain of the few - a specialism practiced in big picture circumstances buttressed by the media and in the public gaze.  Leadership is understood to be “out there”, somewhat esoteric and associated with mass recognition. The single citizen only has value and influence when in aggregation - a viewpoint that leads to passivity and disengagement.

There is however another narrative. It starts with a readiness to  exercise influence over that which we can rightly call our domain of authority - no matter how apparently insignificant. Leadership is personal, immediate and active. This domain can be territorial (such as my local street and the self-appointed car guards) and certainly my home, relational (those who I manage at work), my area of expertise and more.

Often times one’s context defines the authority. Recently I witnessed an example of sexual harassment between two staff members in our local up-market food store. I could have ignored it - but it happened directly in my physical space - where I had temporary authority as a paying customer - and so I engaged. This action was highly localized and generated, I hope, a realm of safety into the working environment of this store. I pick up the litter as I walk my neighbourhood streets in the morning and support the local Resident’s Association which removes graffiti immediately.

A US commentator, Bill Johnson has defined the purpose of leadership as twofold: “The purpose of leaders is to create a realm of safety and a realm of prosperity”.

Effective leadership creates a realm of emotional well being which translates into engagement, a measurable commodity defined by the amount of discretionary effort given by a person in the completion of any task. “Engagement” is the polar opposite to passivity. Here are 8 leadership features that will guarantee engagement.

1. The first “sound” of leadership is silence. You have two ears and one mouth. Actively listen for context, emotion and assumptions. Open your mouth only to elicit more insight.

2. Leaders “ call out” the invisible into experience - using pictures, symbols and words. Work to have a compelling vision or idea of what is desired. Be relentless in reducing your abstract ideas into visually appealing formats that culturally align with those who you lead.

3. Leaders go first into the unseen without a roadmap. You cannot expect others to go with you until you have been there first. Courage and a readiness to path find with all the attendant risks is non-negotiable.

4. Leaders transform as they transact. As you engage with others or a given situation, look for ways to bring value that releases the “other” into a different, deeper and greater sense of significance. Find out the other’s story. Break any system rule that is futile and senseless. Renew old ways, abolish that which traps and frustrates.

5. Leaders create emotional pathways so people can embrace a new reality with respect and pride. There are few rational decisions ever - even when dressed up as such. Assume that most decisions are rooted in emotion. The language of emotion is acknowledgement. Get comfortable with your own emotion and ensure that the emotional content of a situation is adequately managed. 

        

6. Leaders create a “commonwealth” - which is value shared. Prosperity is more than money - it is a state of “being” where all is well - the environment is good,   there is presence of predictability and accountability.  It creates an environment that attracts people.  

7. Leaders work to call out the identity of “the other” and, in so doing ignite extraordinary engagement. Personal security is required before one can recognize others and their value. Profound leaders know  how to see the potential in others, celebrate it and ensure that it is experienced. The flow through into the use of discretionary effort is well documented.

8. Leaders know when to let go. Obvious really - but it requires self-knowledge and genuine humility to remove yourself when you can  no longer add value.

Simon Middleton

Partner at Noted Thinking

www.noted.co.za