{"id":9493,"date":"2025-08-19T13:38:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T11:38:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/homepage.rs\/uncategorized\/kako-da-ne-nanesete-stetu-brendu\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T13:41:56","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T11:41:56","slug":"how-to-not-harm-your-brand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/homepage.rs\/en\/blog-en\/how-to-not-harm-your-brand\/","title":{"rendered":"How to (Not) Harm Your Brand"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Back-to-school, Black Friday, Valentine\u2019s Day, and similar dates are excellent opportunities to strengthen your brand, but also to unintentionally harm it. Today\u2019s audience is adept at recognizing brand intentions and unforgiving, while the impact of brand perception on business has never been greater.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sales goals and the desire to maximize every opportunity can push marketing over the edge. By that, I mean the edge of ethics and responsibility toward consumers.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>When Marketing Cuts the Branch the Brand Sits On<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The purpose of marketing is to serve business goals. When the goal is sales growth, marketing campaigns should deliver exactly that. Experienced and responsible marketers know how to do this without damaging the brand. Those lacking responsibility or experience often and persistently cut the very branch their brand sits on, the same branch they spent years strengthening.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do you really want short-term results to cause long-term harm? I\u2019m sure the answer is no. Yet, under sales pressure, when success is measured by revenue (which is not wrong in itself), situations arise that (especially big) brands should never allow.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, Back-to-school is a good sales opportunity for those offering products tied to children\u2019s school needs and their parents. What we often see, however, are brands forcing themselves into this context at all costs. Chances are slim that such forced links will bring results. The only consequence: a wasted campaign budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But there are examples with far more serious consequences, such as a back-to-school campaign promoting expensive mobile phones. In a country where we know the living standard and the struggles of the education system, the brand sends the message that a new school year requires a new, costly phone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Is this an example of:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">targeting a vulnerable group &#8211; children<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">creating a false need &#8211; because a phone is not a book or backpack<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ignoring reality &#8211; since most families cannot afford a new phone<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">undermining societal values &#8211; by prioritizing superficiality over education?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I won\u2019t answer, decide for yourself. Think: what do you feel about such a brand?<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>What Could That Brand Do Instead?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It could:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">donate equipment to schools<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reward outstanding students with the phones they genuinely want<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fund scholarships or school activities<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">support educational programs in the community<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This way, the brand would send a clear message: we care about education, we care about the community.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Does Confidence Come From the Head or Somewhere Else?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Judging by another marketing trend, women\u2019s confidence has nothing to do with mental state. The \u201csolution\u201d apparently lies lower in the gluteus \ud83c\udf51<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ads show girls who lacked confidence because of a flat butt until they bought push-up leggings or a \u201cglute\u201d program from a trendy trainer. Suddenly, their confidence exploded\u2026 just like my brain when I see such content \ud83e\udd2f<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s be real: this content will sell. But at what cost? What does it say about the brand?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Is this an example of:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reducing a woman\u2019s worth to her looks<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tying confidence to physical appearance<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fueling insecurity among young girls<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">promoting unrealistic beauty standards<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sending the message that women who don\u2019t meet these standards aren\u2019t worthy enough?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I won\u2019t answer; decide for yourself. Again, ask what you think and feel about such a brand.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>The Harder but Only Right Path<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are countless examples of how things could, should, and must have been done differently. Is that path harder? For marketers, often yes. But it\u2019s also the only path that is right, profitable long-term, and worth every effort.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since this text has zero sales ambition, its purpose is only to \u201cpoke\u201d those who need it and provoke thought; the CTA at the end is simple:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When creating campaigns and content, consult both your conscience and artificial intelligence. Check whether what you are doing will have a positive impact and bring value to your brand and, more importantly, to your audience.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Back-to-school, Black Friday, Valentine\u2019s Day, and similar dates are excellent opportunities to strengthen your brand, but also to unintentionally harm it. Today\u2019s audience is adept at recognizing brand intentions and unforgiving, while the impact of brand perception on business has never been greater. Sales goals and the desire to maximize every opportunity can push marketing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":9506,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9493","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to (Not) Harm Your Brand - Homepage<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Campaigns can drive sales but also cause lasting brand damage. 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