Plastic waste and sustainable living top social issue: APAC brand purpose study with Distillery

Brand purpose and its implications for marketers has become a hot-button theme, and one that is being studied from various facets and in different markets. Each market has consumers who interpret brand purpose with their unique lens, and it can be quite a challenge for marketers to wrap their heads around.

As per a recent APAC market study conducted by Distillery, a creative content studio based in Singapore, consumer expectations concerning brand purpose have shown that while the demand for brands to stand up and act is becoming more prevalent, it is showing differing themes in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The research, commissioned in partnership with research platform Milieu Insight, seeks to assess how important it is for brands to make a positive impact on their communities and the region if they want to win the hearts of their customers.

Key insights from this study:

- Consumers want brands to stand up for a cause they believe in. Of the 63% of consumers across the three SEA markets who are demanding brands to stand up for a cause, the highest percentage came from Indonesia (71%), followed by Malaysia (66%), and in metropolitan Singapore, one in two people surveyed felt the same.

- Concerning brands’ stances on social and environmental challenges impacting decision making, 66% of Indonesians and 55% of Malaysians said this will impact their choices, with just one-third of Singaporeans taking this into consideration.

- 53% of consumers across the three markets would tell their friends to avoid buying from certain brands if they disagreed with their moral values, and 66% would choose not to work for a brand that didn’t align with their values.

Read the full story on The Drum.