There has never been a greater call for a hero against the enemies of our damsel in distress – Planet Earth. To win against foe’s of sustainability and charity, we need people willing to fight The Good Fight; and those people need a leader. This is where your brand comes in.
So what is The Good Fight? Aristotle wrote about the “three proofs“ or the 3 appeals: Ethos, Pathos and Logos as a means to convert people to join your good fight. The three proofs were to be used by people to make good of their personal life, but what if brands applied these laws to themselves?
Ethos puts characteristic at the start of any journey: what do you want your brand to be? What do you want your brand to stand for? In Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics he mentions the idea of eudaimonia – the idea that you aren’t just good, but rather you become good/flourish into a good being. Objectives and actions are what results in a good, memorable brand. Whatever market you’re in, you must first figure out what that market and the brand contributes to the things that could damage our world physically and mentally.
Pathos – like any great ad that has spoken to you emotionally, they need to connect to your life whether by directly appealing to everyday things we all go through or (the game changer) by showing world problems we are distant from as they were happening on our exact streets e.g. the Save The Children “Most shocking second a day” video. By brands relating themselves to a cause, they take the mantle for the fights that others can’t fight. Another example is Iceland’s stance on palm oil. This is important because even though someone may not relate to that exact ad, everyone can relate to a time they needed the big guys to fight their corner – and that is the sweet spot brands need to hit.
Lastly, Logos is the appeal to logic, making it difficult for people to argue against your cause. For example, Immanuel Kant’s Contradiction in Will says; for a maxim such as ‘no one should help one another to exist’, it must violate itself as you would need help to bring said maxim into fruition.
When all three proofs are dialled in at the right frequency you get a brand beloved, credited with and the embodiment of The Good Fight.
