Brand Building for Gen Z: What CMOs Keep Missing
Brand building is the long-term process of shaping what a company stands for, how consumers experience it, and why they choose it, consistently, across every department, and not just marketing. For brands targeting Gen Z and the New Majority, that definition is the difference between your brand’s future success or failure.
One of my biggest marketing mishaps, as well as one of my best career learning lessons, was believing that brand building is solely marketing’s responsibility.
I have always been passionate about the artistry involved in branding. It is a process that begins with sculpting a unique mission, the “why” of a brand, and extends to setting the vision that will guide the company toward its North Star. For me, there is an undeniable allure in these early stages, where creative meets strategy.
Of course, steering the ship of a brand’s evolution, whether it involves a mild refresh or a total rebrand, relies heavily on the marketing team and its specific skill sets. Marketing brings deep consumer insight, sharp brand differentiation, and the creative leadership needed to turn strategy into storytelling and imagery.
However, early on in my career I realized that for a brand to resonate deeply, to be unmistakably on-brand and truly distinct, it needs more than marketing expertise. It needs the entire company to embrace the brand’s mission and share a common brand intention. From product design to distribution channels to consumer messaging, every touchpoint has to embody and reinforce the same values. If not, the brand promise falls apart.
That is especially true when brands are trying to reach younger audiences whose expectations around identity, trust, and representation are changing fast, particularly with Gen Zalphas.
Here are some of my takeaways:
What Is Brand Building in Practice? It’s a Collaborative Art, Not a Solo Performance
The big ‘aha!’… for a brand to be a power brand it cannot live in a marketing alone vacuum. Instead it needs to be a collaboration across the company which brings the brand into clear focus. I always use the parable of ‘Blind Men and an Elephant’. In this story, each man touches a part of the elephant and thinks it is a different item. The tail feels like a rope, the leg feels like a tree-trunk, the ear… a fan, etc. They are all correct, but they are also missing the big picture. It’s an elephant! Collaboration allows you to see that bigger picture and align everyone resulting in brand success.
Why Brand Values Drive Gen Z Purchase Decisions: Radical Clarity Is Non-Negotiable
One of the core functions of a brand is to reinforce the values that the company stands for. In order for a brand to be great, there needs to be ‘radical clarity’ on what the brand stands for, as well as what it does not stand for. And values need to be embraced by every employee, department and leader. That is when the brand magic happens!
How Marketing Leads Brand Building: The Orchestra Conductor Model
Successful brands unify departments across the organization. The brand inspires, and almost provides a special secret language that allows for the company to move in the same direction. The role of Marketing in the art of brand building is much like that of an orchestra conductor, bringing it all together.
You can see this clearly in how Gen Z online shopping behavior is forcing brands to align values, experience, and convenience all at once.
Brand Building for the New Majority: Why the Standard Has Changed
The 192 million Americans under 45 who make up the New Majority are now the primary growth engine for virtually every consumer category in the U.S. These consumers, multicultural, Gen Z, Millennial, don’t separate a brand’s values from its products, or its leadership from its advertising. They experience the brand as a whole.
For brands targeting this audience, the brand building discipline described above isn’t a competitive advantage. It’s the price of entry.
Today looking back I am grateful for this mishap and the learning it has given me as one of my hands-down favorite things in working with our clients is the process of building great & meaningful brands that deliver business success.
Frequently Asked Questions About Brand Building
What is brand building?
Brand building is the long-term process of defining what a company stands for, how consumers experience it, and why they choose it consistently across every department, not just marketing.
What is brand building in marketing?
Marketing communicates and expresses the brand, but does not own it. Marketing’s role is to ensure the brand promise is delivered consistently through messaging, creative, and positioning.
What is the difference between marketing and brand building?
Marketing is a function. Brand building is a company-wide discipline. Campaigns can launch without brand building, but lasting brand equity cannot be built by marketing alone.
How does brand building work for Gen Z audiences?
Gen Z evaluates brands holistically, values, hiring, products, and public statements all factor in. Brand building for Gen Z requires alignment across every surface a company shows up on, not just advertising.
What is the fastest-growing consumer group in the U.S.?
The New Majority, multicultural consumers, Gen Z, and Millennials under 45, now make up 56% of the U.S. population and represent the fastest-growing consumer segment across virtually every category.
Related Reading
The Altruistic Advantage: Why Brands Should be Kind
Gen Z Online Shopping Trends: 7 Behaviors Brands Need to Know
Building a brand for Gen Z and the New Majority? Talk to the NMR team: info@majorityready.com
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