The death of the hipster: It’s time to stop spruiking your brand’s ‘authenticity’
Edge’s Richard Parker explores a world where striving for authenticity is now seen as the most inauthentic thing a brand could do.
Everywhere I look, people are banging on about “authenticity”. The marketing press is full of it.
According to Mumbrella, via Jenna Orme from FleishmanHillard back in January: “In 2018, there’s no room for anything other than authenticity”.
B&T, via Publicis Media’s head of content for ANZ, Patrick Whitnall, is interested in how authenticity and influencers combine: “From perfection-obsessed to authenticity-driven: how brands can thrive via influencer marketing”.
Authenticity is one of the biggest tools in any brands arsenal. If you can’t make promises that your customers believe to be true (and stand by them because it’s at the heart of your beliefs) then you will have troubles building a meaningful connection with your customers. Authenticity will also help you provide a consistent brand experience across all touch points and not just marketing either, letting people know who you are and what you stand for.
Perhaps we would be better off trying to stamp out ‘contrived’ authenticity, or people trying to tell a brand what they should stand for.
It’s interesting that certain official GUCCI sweaters (USD 1000+) feature a big GUCCY logo, almost as if they were bad fakes. Smells like post-authenticity.