In October, our Global Marketing Trends Report highlighted seven key trends to watch this year. In our new blog series, we will focus on one trend per month and ask: What’s new? And what’s happening in your industry? 

We polled over 1,000 marketing executives and more than 11,000 consumers to discover which trends are shaping interactions with brands the most this year. As we reach the halfway mark since the report was released, the signature trends we studied continued to evolve.

In this new blog series, we will focus on one trend per post, offering fresh perspectives along with a look on what’s ahead.

Most importantly, we want your insights on what’s new and notable for each trend in your industry.

Be sure to share your insights below. Your perspective could end up informing one of our 2023 trends!

Recapping the trend

Purpose: A beacon for growth

In October, we proposed that you could cut through the noise and resonate with customers by making a holistic commitment to purpose. Here are a few of the key facts driving this trend:

  • High-growth brands are 66% more likely to see purpose as a way to guide employee decision-making and 41% more likely to have purpose drive the corporate social responsibility investment strategy
  • 86% of people expect CEOs to speak out on societal issues
  • One-third of consumers 25 and younger see sustainability as a top criterion for beauty and personal care product purchases
  • 57% indicated that they are more loyal to brands that commit to addressing social inequities

The CMO perspective

Former Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Keds, Emily Culp, notes, it requires “humility and wherewithal to take a step back and take in every single touch point so you’re asking your warehouse employees, if you manufacture service and goods, all the way through reading social media comments [and] call log transcripts” to truly understand how your company is living out its purpose in the eyes of all stakeholders.

What’s new in growth through purpose at Deloitte Digital?

The equity imperative

The Equity Imperative continues to grow across multiple business sectors, with 94% of CEOs reporting diversity, equity, and inclusion are strategic priorities for their organization. Can a focus on equity be an engine for growth? A 300% increase in Black buying power over the last few decades points to huge opportunity on the horizon. Read the Deloitte POV here.

How purpose delivers value

Did you know that 70% of C-suite leaders say their role is highly impacted by their company’s purpose priorities, but only a third have their compensation tied to their performance against those priorities? Explore ways to more closely connect purpose to business outcomes here.  

Affinity banking: A model for purpose-led growth?

Deloitte Digital’s Ethos team recently published research exploring how disruptors in the financial services industry are finding huge growth opportunities by aligning their values with traditionally underrepresented customers. Find out how affinity banks are differentiating themselves through purpose-led design here.
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Looking ahead

In August, we’ll revisit the "Authentically Inclusive" marketing trend, with fresh insights from our team on how to design new technology and marketing initiatives with culturally intelligent insights and best practices in mind.

Read our update on Authentically Inclusive Marketing now.

Need help crafting a purpose-led growth strategy? Connect with our Ethos team.