Let’s be brutally real…
Nobody wakes up in the morning and thanks a brand for saving their life.
Nobody cares that much. But people do wake up with hope. Hope for a better day, a better job, a better body, a better future. And belief is what fuels that hope.
The tension between hope and belief is where brands actually earn their place. People hope for change, but they’ll only believe in the ones who show them it’s possible. That’s not about pumping out another shiny campaign – it’s about credibility, action, and consistency.
Look at Nike. Nobody believes a shoe will magically make them a world champion, but people believe in what the swoosh represents i.e. the mindset, the grit, the possibility. That belief gives their hope fuel. Patagonia is another. They don’t just sell jackets; they give people permission to believe their purchase can align with their values. And then there’s Apple. You don’t buy an iPhone because you hope for a better screen. You believe in the bigger promise of creativity, connection, and status.
This is the real job of marketing: to bridge that gap.
To make hope feel less like a distant wish and more like a tangible step someone can take today. It’s not about brands playing saviour. It’s about brands being a vessel people can believe in long enough to turn their own hope into something real.
So here’s the challenge for us as marketers and strategists:
Stop selling the dream, start fuelling the belief.
Because without belief, hope fizzles out. And if you want people to give a fuck about your brand, you’d better be the one they trust to carry their hope just far enough to matter.
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💀 🖤
Cheers,
DANIEL JACOBS
http://www.thecreativestrategist.com.au
https://www.linkedin.com/in/denialjacobs/
Melbourne, Australia
THE CREATIVE STRATEGIST 