Author and founder Thomas Kolster recently did an interview with French media La Réclame. Here, he talked about how he has changed his view on brands and sustainability since he published his book Goodvertising in 2012. His next book (which is coming out later this year!) is called “The Hero Trap”. In relation to this title, Thomas Kolster points out how we almost haven’t changed the way we build brands. We always talk about the purposeful brands and brands that claim to make a difference and save the world.
But brands that pretend to be superheroes will fail and fall down like a can of soup! Kolster wants to warn organisations and leaders to stop putting themselves first when it comes to purpose. They need to take action so they don’t fall into the so-called “Hero Trap”. The hero trap as a term is defining that consumers put brands on a pedestal as long as they’re claiming to have sustainable purposes or business goals.
Kolster believes that brands have succeeded when the they allow people to achieve their dreams and enable them to achieve their life goals.