VISIONS by Future Commerce

Episode 6: Sacraments of Commerce: Have Brands Become Proto-Religions?

Episode Summary

There's been a lot of talk about this place that brands take in our lives that tries to fulfill meaning and purpose and community in all of our lives. And we've given a term to this today. We're talking about The Sacraments of Commerce. A lot of brands today ask us to put some faith in them or to believe in them. And what about the algorithm gods?

Episode Notes

There's been a lot of talk about this place that brands take in our lives that tries to fulfill meaning and purpose and community in all of our lives. And we've given a term to this today. We're talking about The Sacraments of Commerce. A lot of brands today ask us to put some faith in them or to believe in them. And what about the algorithm gods? 

Bigger Than Me

• “You can't have integrity, you can't be building for the long term unless you are sustainable underneath. It's easy as a customer to believe in that because you see it proven true.” - Grace Clarke
• “That feeling of belonging and community that's been disrupted over the past couple of years because of our digital lifestyles, was something that could be infiltrated and addressed directly. Brands scaled to address that.” - Michael Miraflor
• “You need to have the values underpinned and then follow through with the customer experience for it to seem authentic and sincere and lead to that level of fervor and loyalty that verges on religious intent.” - Miya Knights
• A lot of traditions that we all grew up with are deeply rooted in a practice that came from our ancestors, that came from our parents. It's a tradition you hand down. Can we say the same about brands?
• “There's a lot of value in being a very deep part of very frequently repetitive, tactile, human, utilitarian things.” - Mike Lackman
• “Everyone does at this point have a responsibility to be proactive about their own algorithm. And it is something that has been such a net benefit for serendipity and discovery. It's incumbent on humans to have a front foot there and not simply be passengers in the experience that they're having.” - Grace Clarke
• People are becoming brands. Brands are becoming religions. Religions are becoming brands unto themselves. And brands are becoming people. Is this true?
• “There's a greater degree of individual humanity being injected into some of these other entities. I do think there's an opportunity that if we do it right, there's a chance for that to be a way to propagate a greater degree of decency.” - Mike Lackman

Guests

• Miya Knights, author and retail analyst
• Kiri Masters, Head of Retail Marketplace Strategy at Acadia
• Michael Miraflor, Chief Brand Officer
• Grace Clarke, brand and omnichannel strategist
• Mike Lackman, CEO of Trade Coffee

Associated Links:

• The Visions Report is a 100-page report with deep insights, created by Future Commerce.

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