Why a Purpose-Driven Marketing Strategy Matters More Than Ever
The business landscape has evolved dramatically, largely driven by a shift in consumer behaviour. Today’s customers want more than transactions—they crave connection, values, and long-term relationships with the brands they choose to support.
This shift in expectation has handed greater power to consumers. They’re not just influencing what companies sell, but how they operate—and this transformation is reshaping modern brand marketing strategies from the inside out.
In this blog, we will uncover 5 reasons why you should be adopting a purpose-driven marketing strategy at the core of your business. But before we dive right in, let’s first touch on the definition of purpose and how it plays a fundamental role in branding & marketing.
So what is Purpose-Driven Branding?
Let’s take it one step back and define ‘purpose’
pur pose /ˈp rp s /
Noun: “The reason why something exists.” The Oxford English Dictionary.
In the business world, purpose forms the foundation of brand experience. It’s the guiding belief system that makes a brand necessary, meaningful, and future-focused.
Purpose-driven branding means building your business around a clearly defined mission and set of values. These values should shape your internal culture, decision-making, marketing, and long-term strategy—not just your about page. When purpose becomes part of your company DNA, it creates alignment, authenticity, and impact.
A company that adopts this approach not only earns stronger customer loyalty—it also strengthens internal culture and long-term brand equity.
Quick stat: According to the Porter Novelli Purpose Premium Index, 13% of a brand’s reputation is driven by its purpose—compared to 65% by product quality and 18% by company vision.
You could be doing your business a disservice by ignoring the importance of incorporating purpose into its daily activities.
Here Are 5 Powerful Reasons to Make Purpose Core to Your Brand Strategy
1. A purpose-driven business inspires its employees to thrive in their job
2. Purpose-driven marketing strategies help businesses form long-term relationships with their customers
3. Consumers want more than your product, they want honesty & transparency
4. Purpose-driven brands have a more emotive, meaningful story to tell and this can be part of your marketing efforts
5. Purpose helps you stand out from your competition and media clutter
There are more reasons why one should adopt purpose into their business; however, let’s focus on these five. We will touch on more reasons in a blog post later on in 2022.
A purpose-driven business inspires its employees to thrive in their job
Birds of a feather flock together - this methodology applies to your business culture. By creating a clearly defined purpose in your marketing strategy, over time your company vibe will attract your tribe. As your business's reputation grows, more people who believe in the same values as you will have a tendency to want to work for your company (and support your brand).
Photo Credit - Cover: Winter swell at Rincon Point, 1973. Photo: Steve Bissell. Book photo: Tim Davis
Take outdoor powerhouse brand Patagonia for example - their talent acquisition team reads their candidates' resumes from the bottom up. They take on a compatibility strategy - reviewing the candidate's interests and hobbies first and foremost. “We’re not looking for culture fit, we’re looking for culture add.” Dean Carter VP of HR & Finance of Patagonia.
Attracting the right people to your business is a benefit for the business culture, reputation & purpose. When the leadership and employees all work towards one common goal a synergy develops.
Patagonia most certainly does business differently, unconventional in fact - from reading CVs differently to allowing flexible workdays. Their employee handbook is titled “Let My People Go Surfing” (which is also the title of the book that the founder of Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard published), and it embraces a company culture that allows their staff to go take off work when the waves are on.
This employee perk, an internal feature of the business structure spread like wildfire in public, immediately increasing not only their brand awareness but also their brand equity. All of a sudden many surfers in California wanted a job in Patagonia. They were able to attract the best talent of the surf world by adding a benefit that not many other companies had even begun to think of yet.
image credit: patagonia
This culture translated to a ‘just get the work done’ mentality - you can surf when the waves are on, as long as you perform in your job - a healthy work-life was created and a better quality of life was available if you worked at the company. Patagonia also prides itself in quality - from making high-quality goods to providing a good quality of life for its employees.
The value of their company began inward and translated outward - a fundamental reason why their marketing strategy has worked so well due to their unique brand architecture.
Another perk of working at Patagonia is their 4 day work week every second week. Employees can choose to work a 9-hour shift every day and get a 3-day weekend twice a month. This again provides a better quality of life, it attracts better talent and it also allows their staff to live a more ‘outdoorsy’ lifestyle. The purpose of the company is omnipresent - high-quality outdoor gear made by people that live a high-quality outdoor lifestyle, genius.
*Quick stat - Patagonia has a 4% employee turnover each year (crazy right) and roughly 9,000 job applicants each year.
2. A purpose-driven strategy helps a business form long-term relationships with their customers
A positive attribute of a business is the relationship that they have built with its customers. A good indication of a strong customer-business relationship is longevity. It’s not rocket science that fostering long-term relationships with customers leads to business growth.
Did you know that the average, loyal customer spends 67% more in their 31st to 36th month with a brand than in their first six months of the relationship? Another stat that we loved to learn about and felt worth sharing was that existing customers are also 31% more likely to increase their spending on their average order value with your brand as compared to when they buy a product from a brand that they have less of a relationship with. It all comes down to trust, and trust is earned over time.
credit: discovery.co,za
Discovery Health, a well-known medical aid, insurance, and bank service provider that operates in South Africa offers an attractive rewards program named Vitality. This rewards program gives perks to its customers who reach certain milestones. One such perk is discounts on participating restaurants. The Vitality app allows the Vitality member to keep track of their progress in aspects such as fitness - the more you visit a Virgin Active gym, go for a run, or do other fitness-related exercises the more points you are rewarded with. The more points to tally up, the more money you save by benefiting from the discounts.
The rewards-based system opens up the opportunity for Discovery to make health and fitness more attractive. They support a healthy lifestyle and also make it more rewarding by creating a spillover effect of other leading brands such as Virgin Active participating and benefiting from it. Discovery attracts a healthier, more active customer base which will ultimately save them money in the long term - the healthier the customer is, the less likely they are to get sick and claim from Discovery Insurance.
Discovery builds a healthier customer base, saving money and also retaining them for a longer period of time, whilst strengthening its brand image and positioning. This example of a purpose-driven marketing strategy shows multiple payoffs for both the brand and the customer.
3. Consumers want more than your product, they want honesty & transparency
Developing a brand architecture that is fundamentally rooted in a purpose-driven marketing strategy helps immensely to define the brand’s personality and the manner in which it can develop an emotional and psychological bond with their target audience. Marketing and psychology are often overlapping, and to understand your customer from a psychological standpoint will allow you to understand their needs and wants.
The world has changed & so has the way brands perform business. This is due to increasing demands of company transparency & ESG (environmental, societal & governance) responsibility that has been largely influenced by the public in recent years.
The consumer has more power than ever with social media at their fingertips; communication is easier and so is spreading a message to millions of people.
The consumer power shift that has been exacerbated in recent times forces businesses to act with integrity and transparency - customers want to know where the materials of the product that they are interested in buying has come from, how it was made and what impact it had on the environment.
Swedish furniture giant IKEA—already a leader in environmental sustainability— recently broadened its ESG impact by committing to employ refugees at production centers in Jordan through the IKEA Foundation. This commendable effort is part of the company’s long-term goal to employ some 200,000 disadvantaged people around the world.
4. Purpose-driven brands have a more emotive, meaningful story to tell and this can be part of your marketing efforts
Nowadays, with so much attention placed on content marketing, including your purpose as a content pillar would allow you to spread more awareness of your brand purpose and how this adoption is making a difference in society. Storytelling is one of the most successful marketing strategies and incorporating purpose into it adds variety to a company’s messaging.
One of the most successful purpose-driven marketing strategies was the Colin Kaepernick x Nike 2018 campaign. Football star Colin Kaepernick got down on his knees during the US national anthem at a football match in 2016 and this sent shockwaves around the sporting community. Nike hired the NFL quarterback for their 2018 ‘Just Do It’ campaign, integrating their slogan with a purpose-led message. The result: a multinational sporting company was addressing racism, supporting Colin and others who have experienced racism in the industry. Not only did the Nike brand image grow and diversify but its share price hit a record high.
5. Purpose helps you stand out from your competition and media clutter
Utilizing purpose as a differentiation technique to stand out from your competition is one of the benefits of adopting this style of marketing. Uber, although a market leader in car-ride sharing apps, managed to deepen its reputation and differentiate itself from its competition by partnering with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). This campaign was held in the US and ran over a period where drinking and driving was an issue - the 4th of July. Each time a driver redeemed a ride, Uber gave USD$1 to the initiative, promoting people to abstain from drinking and driving whilst simultaneously supporting an initiative that has been created due to drinking and driving.
image credit: anheuser-busch.com
From employee engagement to brand equity, customer trust to content strategy, these 5 purpose-driven marketing strategies showcase the compounding value of a purpose-driven approach.
Defining a company’s purpose is the first step to adopting a purpose-driven strategy. It’s the foundational building block of your brand architecture and will shape everything from messaging and identity to growth and loyalty.
At Legs Brands™, we build purpose-driven brands that make the world a better place. If you enjoyed this article then hit the button below to read our white paper.
FAQs Answered for 2025
1. What is the difference between brand purpose and brand mission?
Brand purpose is the why behind your brand—it defines your core belief and the impact you want to make in the world.
Brand mission is the what—the practical actions your business takes to fulfill that purpose. In a purpose-driven marketing strategy, both elements work together to guide your messaging, campaigns, and customer experience.
2. Is a purpose-driven marketing strategy only for large or lifestyle brands?
No. A purpose-driven marketing strategy is highly effective for small businesses, B2B companies, and emerging startups. Regardless of size, brands that embed purpose into their strategy can build stronger emotional connections, increase trust, and stand out in crowded markets.
3. How can I tell if my audience understands my brand’s purpose?
One sign of an effective purpose-driven marketing strategy is alignment between your messaging and how your audience perceives you. Check customer reviews, feedback, surveys, and social sentiment. If your audience can clearly articulate what your brand stands for, your purpose is being communicated well.
4. What is the ROI of a purpose-driven marketing strategy?
Purpose-driven marketing strategies lead to higher customer loyalty, improved retention, stronger brand advocacy, and increased employee engagement. Over time, this translates into measurable business growth. Consumers are more likely to support brands that reflect their values—and that emotional alignment drives long-term revenue.
5. How do I start implementing a purpose-driven marketing strategy?
Begin with a brand audit or discovery session to define your purpose and align your team around it. From there, integrate it into your messaging, content, visual identity, and customer touchpoints. Working with a strategic partner like Legs Brands can help build a purpose-driven marketing strategy that’s clear, consistent, and effective across all channels.
