Transformative communication and storytelling

Communication, branding and marketing are often in the spotlight when we talk about sustainability and creating better impacts. Greenwashing, socialwashing... There are many types of "greenwashing" and deception to which communication has contributed. And yet, communication, properly used, is an essential activity for the transition towards more sustainable economic and social models. And, undoubtedly, it is an activity that goes far beyond "selling".

Communication in the current economic model tends to pursue a single objective: to sell. Both when this objective is very clear and when it is more subtle, it seems that selling is the only purpose of organizational communication. In other words, it seems that people can only be consumers (or voters, which, for all intents and purposes, is similar).

Within all this communication activity, we find branding and marketing. We could say that branding is the construction and management of a brand. In other words, branding is about brand identity, its values, its essence, the story it tells and the relationships it builds and maintains.

There is nothing wrong with this. Branding is a necessary activity to give meaning to what an organization is and what it does (whether it is a private company, a public entity, an NGO...). The problem with the current model is that branding is focused solely on positioning brands for sale. It does not work on real values, it does not build honest relationships. It even often focuses too much on the visual and verbal aspects, neglecting the strategy and the complete vision.

Marketing, on the other hand, is the action of capturing and creating value, in a situation of exchange. In other words, marketing is about the strategies and actions we carry out to meet the brand's objectives. User research can be a part of marketing: capturing the (real) needs that exist in society, and then creating a product or service that satisfies them. Also 'community management': creating, coordinating, maintaining and leading communities of people has great power. Advertising is another of the activities that can be included in marketing: getting our messages across to our audiences.

In her thesis on "Marketing for the Common Good", Elena Rodríguez Benito explains that traditional marketing has placed great emphasis on advertising, because it is very profitable. And it has focused on efficiency, with a short-term vision. Thus, other aspects related to the identification of real needs and the creation of value to satisfy them have been neglected.

Communicate' comes from the Latin 'comunicare', to put in common. To create bonds, to understand the other, to converse with the other in order to understand each other together. Thus, communication, as an essential human activity, should not pursue the sole objective of selling, and should not be unidirectional. It should be used for the great diversity of human facets: to create bonds and support networks, to educate and disseminate, to learn or simply to enjoy the community. And yes, also to sell, when it is the case.

In fact, communication is a very important aspect of innovation. It allows us to create and share meanings, giving meaning to our existence and to what we do, thanks to:

• Create the appropriate philosophy and concepts to understand and explain what we do and what we want to do.
• Connecting with others, empathizing and understanding, cultivating relationships through which we can collaborate and innovate.
• To tell and divulge what we are and what we do, putting it in common.

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With respect to branding, there is already talk of its role in the creation of a network of stakeholders capable of driving the transition to sustainability. Andersen, Åberg, and Bujac (2023) speak of its importance in increasing the community's commitment to sustainability and mobilizing it to bring about change. Golob et al. (2022) argue that brands are a vehicle of meanings, capable of guiding the expectations and actions of their stakeholders.

This gives us to introduce the importance of internal branding: the people who are part of the brand, from the inside, are also key stakeholders. Employees, close collaborators, brand owners... all of them must be taken into account when branding.

A previous story on Positive Impact Branding discussed these issues.

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With respect to marketing, Rodriguez Benito is already advancing a model of Marketing for the Common Good. A model that goes beyond the short-term vision and the focus on pure sales. It treats people as what we are, in our complexity, beyond consumers. That avoids stereotypes and avoids creating harmful narratives.

In short, a new communication model should take into account Kate Raworth's Doughnut Economy model. And thus, consider both the social base (people) and the ecological ceiling (limits of the planet):

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Valuing and empowering people.

Firstly, understanding and valuing people in their multiple dimensions, not only as consumers or customers. And, of course, consider other stakeholders, not only those who will use or buy our products and services.

To empower people, communication with them must be done from a pedagogical point of view: no demagogy, avoid deception and "washing". Communicate with transparency and honesty, which implies sharing information in a way that is useful for those who receive it.

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More than human - Life-Centered.

We must understand and address the impacts that our communication activity has on the planet and all other living things. What kind of narratives and cultures are we promoting, and how do they affect our impact on life? What direct impacts do our communication actions have on the planet?

In innovation, the Client-Centered or User-Centered Design approach has been discussed at length. However, we have seen the negative effects of focusing our design process only on the users who use our product or service. In communication, this has contributed to that look we have been talking about, which views people only as consumers. The new Human-Centered Design approach has not been satisfactory either, as it has left other living beings and the planet out of the equation. That is why, today, we speak of Life-Centered Design.

The Life-Centered Design approach helps us to think about our communication from the macro to the micro level. That is, from the global impact of the narratives and stories we tell, to the impact of each specific communication action we develop. Including every product and content we design, whether digital (a website, an app...) or physical (a flyer or packaging, for example).

You can learn more about this approach in our story on Life-Centered Design, and use the resources we offer with our Creative Regeneration methodology. We invite you to think and design your communication with this approach.

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Some references of interest:

Andersen, Poul Houman & Åberg, Susanne & Bujac, Andreea (2023). Corporate sustainable brand identity work and network embeddedness: Learnings from Better Place (2007-2013). Industrial Marketing Management. 

Freire, Paulo (1971). Pedagogy of the oppressed.

Golob, Ursa & Burghausen, Mario & Kernstock, Joachim & Davies, Mark (2022). Brand management and sustainability: exploring potential for the transformative power of brands. Journal of Brand Management. 

Rodriguez Benito, María Elena (2020). A new Marketing for a new society. Proposal of a Marketing Model based on the concept of the Common Good.