Why brands need (real) purpose and not just a pretty slogan

There's a curious phenomenon in the corporate world: everyone talks about “purpose”, but very few companies could explain it without looking at a PowerPoint presentation. And the worst part is that your audiences—customers, employees, and partners—notice it.

The question is there, uncomfortable but necessary: does it serve a purpose if it doesn't change behaviors, decisions and experiences?

The reality is that the market no longer tolerates brands that promise one thing and do another. Neither do the teams. The purpose ceased to be an inspirational phrase hanging in the reception and became an operating system that supports how we work, how we innovate and how a company relates to its community. Everything else is fireworks.

When the purpose remains in marketing, it shows

There are clear signs that a brand has a “cosmetic purpose”:

• The claim sounds good, but no one on the team could explain what it involves in their daily lives.
  
• Actions don't go along: campaigns that talk about diversity while the steering committee is quite the opposite; companies that proclaim sustainability but don't review their supply chain.
  
• The experience — events, communication, product — takes a different path than discourse.
  

This mismatch erodes trust. According to recent studies by the Edelman Trust Barometer, consistency between what a brand says and what it does is one of the most determining factors in building credibility. There's no need to invent facts: just look around. Companies that suffer reputational crises don't always make a mistake... often they just fall off their masks.

The real purpose is not a claim: it's a strategic decision

When you work well, purpose doesn't describe what a brand wants to look like, but rather why it exists and what it would be willing to sacrifice to stay true to it. That difference changes everything.

An operational purpose:

• It guides difficult decisions.
  
• Define how projects and resources are prioritized.
  
• It serves as a compass in uncertain contexts.
  
• It marks the company's internal and external experience.
  

Let's think of plausible examples:

— A technology company whose purpose is to “empower small businesses” decides not to develop functionality that automates excessively because it displaces jobs in micro-businesses.

— A food brand committed to “cultivating real well-being” invests rather in reformulating ingredients than in a massive campaign.

— A retail company that claims to “make fashion more accessible” reorganizes its entire event strategy to make them inclusive, not aspirational.

They don't have to be global giants. The difference is in consistency, not size.

Without purpose there is no culture, and without culture there is no team

Purpose is also a brutal tool for attracting and retaining talent. Not because it sounds inspiring, but because it reduces internal friction. When teams know what the company is pursuing beyond immediate benefit, they work with more clarity and less wear and tear.

At corporate events, it's very clear: the experiences with the greatest emotional impact are usually those that connect the team to something bigger than their daily tasks. It's no coincidence that many organizations are redesigning their internal days — kickoffs, value days, welcome programs — to lower the purpose of theory to the tangible.

Not “what we say we are”, but “what it feels like to be a part of this”.

Purpose turns experiences into a consistent message

This is where you can tell who's really working on it. Purpose-aligned brands use experiences—internal or external—as a practical demonstration of their identity. They don't seek to surprise for the sake of surprising, but rather to reinforce what they represent.

Plausible examples:

• A company oriented to well-being designs meetings where energy, rhythms and spaces accompany that philosophy.
  
• A brand obsessed with curiosity builds micro-experiences that invite you to experiment, not to receive passively.
  
• A company focused on local impact prioritizes suppliers, artisans and content that celebrates the community where it operates.
  

In all these cases, the purpose is not counted: it is lived. And that creates a much longer lasting emotional footprint than any campaign.

The biggest risk today is having a purpose that no one believes in

People don't demand perfect brands, they demand honest brands. A weak purpose doesn't just don't help; it hurts. If a company proclaims something and doesn't back it up, it creates cynicism, distrust, and emotional distance.

What really works is working on processes, behaviors and experiences that, together, make the purpose stop being abstract.

Rather than asking “what purpose do we want to communicate?” , the useful question is another:

What are we willing to do, really, to sustain it?

That's where it all starts.