Insights

After years of crisis messaging, value signaling, and emotional labor, consumers are tired—not of purpose itself, but of the pressure to care about everything all the time. In 2026, brands will need to shift from moral storytelling to practical, meaningful action.  The Cultural Signal  After years of cultural crisis, economic uncertainty, climate anxiety, and political burnout, consumers are tapping out. People aren’t less empathetic—they’re exhausted. And the constant “we ca

When news broke that Target would cut somewhere around 1,800 corporate jobs (or roughly 8% of its workforce), it wasn’t just another corporate restructuring headline amidst the AI revolution. It was the punctuation mark at the end of a year that’s tested what (and who) companies truly stand for.   For Target, the layoffs arrive less than a year after its rollback of key DEI programs : its REACH initiative for Black employees, supplier diversity efforts, and participation in

Co-authored by Susan Bowman Altruism is supposed to be about selflessness—helping others without expecting anything in return. Yet, in a world where generosity is often posted online, referred to as "challenges", and shared via links and stories, it's worth asking: How much of giving is about making a difference, and how much is about being seen doing it?  As audiences become savvier and more skeptical about performative philanthropy and cause-marketing, it's important for br

When we look for trends to watch in any given year, it helps to think of them in the context of mega-trends – long-term cultural questions that don't resolve one way or the other. These are topics like whether brands should take stands on cultural or political issues, how increasing consumer savviness conflicts with motivated ignorance, or how the ability to target increasingly fine-tuned groups of people exists in a world where any statement or campaign is accessible to the