People want something to believe in. And the impact for marketers goes further than you might expect
By Alexa Beck, Co-Founder, Quick Study
These days, your identity isn’t just personal, it’s filled with almost limitless options. Cultural identity, political identity, religious identity and more – there are countless iterations, each with their own rules and belief systems. And when those identities overlap, those belief systems get even more complicated or even contradictory.
But just because identities are harder to organize cleanly into narrow categories, that doesn’t mean that the values instilled by their beliefs aren’t holding strong as an underlying force in culture. In fact, belief systems have a huge influence over countless daily decisions including the brands that people support.
In a way, the growing complexity of belief actually creates opportunities that extend beyond each identity category. It’s a signal that belonging and a connection to something bigger than ourselves is a coveted sensation, one that can come from brands or products as well. That’s why brands should make a greater effort to understand the fragmented nature of modern belief systems, in order to better serve consumers’ growing need for more personalized connections.
Belief gets (even more) personal
Like anything in life, identity can shift and change. That’s why actually defining identity, whether cultural or spiritual, is extremely difficult and personal. There’s also a big difference between those who carry the broad values of an identity throughout their daily lives and those who carry the literal verbiage and practice of an identity in their daily lives. In Judaism, for example, the idea of being “culturally Jewish” has been debated for decades.
On top of this, aided by the educational and community-building nature of the internet and social media, we’re seeing more people exercise their ability to have greater control over how they build their identity and corresponding beliefs. The democratization of information has emboldened people to build their own beliefs based on mixing and matching teachings across religion, philosophy, science and more, instead of only looking to one source for guidance.
At Quick Study, this was even reflected in our own research for dating apps JDate and Christian Mingle, which showed that users felt that the platforms weren’t giving them enough options when it came to expressing their personal definition of faith. They wanted the ability to share with potential matches what their relationship with religion looks like on their own terms, not just by checking a box that says “orthodox” or “baptist”. Similarly, in our research for Ingenio, participants said that while prayer and reading the Bible were key parts of their spiritual practice, they also showed a high level of openness to astrology, tarot, and even psychics – all practices that would traditionally be seen as at odds with their church’s teachings.
For brands, this represents an incredibly important inflection point. After all, brands are becoming increasingly comfortable promoting the products and services as if they were belief systems, especially in emerging categories. For instance, look at the transformational messaging in ads for GLP-1s, often presented as nearly magical in what they can do for a person and their lifestyle. Similar manifestos of a brighter, different future can be found in bitcoin ads, and even in the way some brands talk about their AI solutions – how they can help you find understanding and belonging. Countless wellness brands position themselves as a spiritual practice. There are brands like Oura and Peloton that prioritize a connection to self. And sometimes, there are even visuals and narration that showcase brands as cultures with their own values, symbols, rituals and modes of dress.
Whether knowingly or not, these brands are tapping into the power that shared beliefs have in drawing people closer together in the name of something bigger than themselves. But more must follow suit – recognizing that those beliefs will be increasingly personalized and often at odds. This means changing their approach in several ways:
- Focus on the search, not the destination. Brands need to embrace that identity involves searching, and that today’s searches will not necessarily follow traditional routes. There is authenticity in acknowledging that consumers are looking for something and that their search is a deeply personal one. Finding ways to represent and honor that search will make consumers more comfortable with your brand/product and what it offers.
- Speak in flexible terms, not binary ones. There is no one correct answer to identity, and any brand that talks about their offering in black and white terms will be seen as inauthentic to consumers. Consumers want to see how you will fit into their ever-evolving belief system, so give them clear use cases that are realistic and repeatable.
- Under promise and over deliver. Belief is ultimately a personal feeling, one that is not easily swayed by overt messaging. Instead of telling your consumer how they should feel or experience your brand or product, set up the best conditions possible for them to see the reality for themselves, thereby making it about them and not about you.
Each identity used to offer a consistency to its beliefs and practice that was easy to embrace, but more and more people are trading in that consistency for the power to choose what beliefs suit them best. A new kind of multifaceted identity is taking shape and the brands that understand it will find an eager audience ready for a deeper connection.
About the Author
Alexa Beck is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of strategy consultancy Quick Study.
