Branding that moves people

The rise of smartphones has dramatically transformed the business landscape. In the past, companies primarily relied on one-way communication — pushing messages through advertisements to attract consumers.

Today, however, the widespread adoption of social media has empowered consumers to become voices themselves, exponentially increasing the volume of available information. As individuals gain easier access to the content they seek, purchasing behavior has evolved accordingly. In recent years, high-quality products and cutting-edge technology alone are no longer sufficient to stand out. Competing on ""functional value"" has become increasingly difficult. What matters now is how brands build awareness and craft compelling stories that connect with consumers. Social media plays a pivotal role in this shift — it serves as a highly accessible, visually rich communication tool that allows users to gather information instantly.

We now live in an era where brands and individual consumers can connect directly. Anyone can share their voice and take center stage. Word-of-mouth, consumer experiences, and peer reviews carry more influence than ever. With social media handing consumers a stronger voice, brands are no longer solely shaped by companies — they are co-created by every stakeholder involved.

Against this backdrop, it's become increasingly important to multiply touchpoints through social media that invite people to ""experience"" the brand, then translate that experience into brand value. Sustaining and enhancing that value drives purchases, builds repeat customers, and earns trust. As social media has become a platform for self-expression, users increasingly ask: ""Is this Instagram-worthy?"" or ""Would my followers find this interesting?"" Many people choose what to buy or where to go based on these instincts. This means companies must move beyond ""selling"" products and services — they need to think all the way through to ""advocacy"": how to get people to recommend them.

I see branding as the practice of creating intangible value through a variety of means — building emotional support and embedding trust (value) into people's perception (the kind of association where a product is instantly linked to a brand name). Product design, logos, and taglines all play a role, of course, as does managing Instagram and other social media platforms. But at the heart of it, I believe people are moved by the experiences and stories they encounter when they purchase or use a product or service.

More and more companies and brands are now running social media accounts, engaging in a wide range of branding activities. When we think about brands using social media, product announcements might come to mind first — but the real branding impact comes from communicating the brand's personality in a way that feels close and authentic to users. Among the many influential platforms, Instagram in particular stands out. The benefits for companies and brands running an Instagram account include:

There's also the added benefit of credibility: influencers and everyday consumers who have no direct affiliation with the company share content organically, which increases trustworthiness. Research suggests that people retain visual information more readily than text — making Instagram, with its continuous stream of visual content, an ideal platform not just for advertising, but for deeply embedding a brand's unique value in users' minds.

Japanese lifestyle brand with no direct English equivalent — described by concept -->Hokuoh Kurashi no Dougu-ten is a Japanese e-commerce site selling Scandinavian tableware, furniture, and lifestyle goods. Widely recognized as a success story in integrating owned media with e-commerce, the account boasts over 1.07 million followers. The key to their success, I believe, lies not in selling products directly, but in conveying the brand's beautiful worldview — a lifestyle surrounded by Scandinavian dishware and furniture. Posting multiple articles a day, their steady, consistent effort gradually wins over the hearts of devoted fans.

Häagen-Dazs Japan's Instagram account has amassed approximately 251,000 followers. What sets their approach apart is not just information sharing, but skillfully crafting campaigns that inspire users to create and share their own content. One particularly impactful initiative was the "Happiness Häagen-Heart Hunt" campaign — encouraging fans to photograph and share heart-shaped craters that sometimes appear on the surface of their ice cream cups when opened. Fans had already been spontaneously posting these discoveries with captions like "My ice cream lid had a heart!" This organic behavior inspired the official "Häagen-Heart" campaign.

<p>Blue Bottle Coffee Japan's Instagram account has around 151,000 followers. The brand is instantly recognizable for its clean, minimal logo in light blue and white. When they first opened in Japan, they built anticipation by sharing behind-the-scenes content of store preparations on Instagram — and lines formed almost immediately after opening. Authentic user-generated posts have also played a key role in drawing visitors. Beyond product features, their feed includes glimpses of the interior before opening, smiling staff, and training sessions. Sharing this kind of rarely-seen backstage content creates a sense of warmth and reassurance in users. It communicates Blue Bottle's core philosophy of "hospitality" and, in doing so, earns trust and grows a loyal fan base.</p>

Tasty Japanは、アメリカ発のWebメディア『BuzzFeed』が運営する「見て幸せ、作って楽しい」をコンセプトとしている、料理動画メディア『Tasty』の日本版です。フォロワー数はなんと670万人以上で、国内のすべての企業アカウントで、フォロワー数第1位となっているアカウントです。その理由として、2〜3分程の見やすい料理動画コンテンツで、つい「食べたい！作ってみたい！」と思ってしまうような動画がユーザーの心を鷲づかみにしています。
ちなみに、アカウントのトップページには「料理を作ったら #tastyjapan をつけて投稿してくださいね」と記載し、ユーザーの行動を誘導しています。そうすることで、料理を作ったユーザーが、「#tastyjapan」のハッシュタグを付けて投稿するので、情報の拡散が可能です。また、アカウントのトップページのハイライトに、ユーザーに向けて企画のアイディアも募集していたりと、ユーザーとのコミュニケーションをきちんと行っているところが、Tasty Japanが多くのユーザーに親しまれている要因なのだと思います。

Tasty Japan

出典：https://www.instagram.com/tastyjapan/?hl=ja

このように企業やブランドが、ユーザーとコミュニケーションをとったり、実生活で活かせるような悩みを解決してくれる「有益コンテンツ」の投稿がファンを増やしているのだと考えています。投稿を持続的に発信することは、ブランドを認知させ、ブランドイメージの向上や、ブランドに対する信用の定着にも繋がります。

企業はモノが売れなくなると、原価やクオリティを下げたりと、ブランディングの価値を低くしがちです。ところが、物を売ろうとすればするほど、物は売れなくなります。重要なのは、モノではなくその先にある体験や感動を提供し、ストーリーを作っていくことなのだと思います。

企業やブランドは、ユーザーが自社の製品と関わりを持つことによって感じられる価値を、どうデザインしていくのかが重要で、「使いやすい、嬉しい、楽しい」というような体験・感動を提供し、ユーザーに満足してもらうことで売り上げの向上に繋がり、製品やサービスへの共感や信頼も生まれ、繰り返し購入してくれるようになるのではないでしょうか。自社にしかない体験を提供すれば、他社にはない大きな強みとなります。そして、そこでしかできない体験、価値があるからこそ、それを求めてお客さんがやってくるのです。

Every company and brand has a purpose and a vision. As consumer behavior shifts and differentiation through functional value becomes increasingly difficult, moving people's hearts requires clarity: Who does your company or brand exist for? What does it exist to do? And what kind of world does it aspire to create? Getting clear on these questions is more important than ever.

I see branding as the practice of building awareness, constructing a story between the brand and its consumers, differentiating, and making that connection stick. When you differentiate and establish a brand firmly in people's minds, you escape the negative spiral of price competition — and the strong emotional resonance with end users becomes a genuine driver of purchase decisions.<br>Take Instagram's hashtag feature as an example: when users post with a branded hashtag, the company or brand might feature their post, creating a moment of recognition. And by responding to user comments and posts, brands can co-create content alongside their communities.

In an age where social media is simply part of life, what matters is conveying and sharing your brand's beliefs — and walking alongside your consumers. When you do, the bond between brand and consumer deepens, and trust naturally follows. Staying attuned to the emotional currents of consumers and "growing the brand together with them" is what it's all about.<br>Through platforms like Instagram, activating two-way communication allows brands to move beyond the traditional company-vs-consumer dynamic and build the brand collaboratively. When "co-creation" becomes the theme and hearts truly connect, consumers don't just buy — they become co-creators who share your message alongside you. It's through this kind of connection that people are moved, and ultimately, that's how you build genuine fans.