Led by: Patti Williams Ira A. Lipman Associate Professor of Marketing and the Vice Dean of Executive Education at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania

Recently, many brands have invested resources toward their “brand purpose.” Studies have identified a correlation between brand purpose and long-term financial performance. In response to high-profile calls to action, and the apparent demand from consumers, brands in a wide variety of categories have sought to define, articulate, and communicate their purpose. These efforts have placed purpose at the heart of a brand’s meaning structure and business strategy. But what is purpose, as it applies to brands? In what ways is brand purpose similar to, and how is it different from human purpose? This session will examine brand purpose, explore its relationship to human purpose, and discuss how engagement with purposeful brands may contribute to consumers’ own sense of life purpose.

April 24, 2024