Relevance and Resonance: How Brands Absorb and Amplify Change

In a constantly changing world, people today are seeking orientation and security more than ever before. As a result, the relevance of a brand quickly becomes the hard currency in the battle for acceptance and market share—and, beyond that, addresses its very justification for existence in the future. The consequence: brands must now adapt more than ever to changing environmental conditions and consumer needs in order to ensure their relevance and thus their future viability. After all, no brand today is “too big to fail.” This requires continuous reflection on one’s own values and goals, as well as the ability to manage brands holistically—that is, beyond a purely economic context—and thus to assume ecological and social responsibility as well. The imperative in modern brand management is therefore: “Action speaks louder than words.” To secure their future relevance, brands today must become “resonance spaces” for societal discourse. Only in this way can value-based, emotional relationships be established between brands and people, which in turn ensure identification and long-term brand loyalty.