In addition to creating new products and services, the concern with well-being is redesigning the discourse and visual identity of brands. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Itaú, Magazine Luiza and Ambev have gained the trust of Brazilians by adopting a more affective tone of voice. Alice, a health plan for individuals, is bringing a more welcoming language to the category, with the choice of an atypical name and colors, and a more humanized approach. Food brands, from Prestígio to Polenghi, seek to position themselves as ”real food”, embracing naturalness and highlighting the use of few ingredients.

We have never valued small moments of happiness so much, creating unique opportunities for brands to re-signify their role in the lives of their consumers. We are needy of moments that make our lives more meaningful, from the most casuals (The Happy hour on Friday night or the movies on Sunday) to the most symbolic (the wedding party, the graduation ceremony). Therefore, when the pandemic passes, we will seek to reconnect with our daily rituals with much more intensity. In the film For when it’s time, Extra gum imagined scenes of reunions of euphoric people, kissing madly as if there were no tomorrow, inserting the product within a narrative that celebrates life.

However, caution is needed. Helping people in this process is great, but brands need to be careful not to load consumers with a new burden. Paradoxically, the incessant search for self-care can become, in itself, a new source of stress, at a time when we are realizing how fragile and unpredictable our ecosystem is. With so many demands, balance is also essential.

By Carmen Beer, senior strategist, and with the contribution of Ana Cerqueira, Giuliana Sanchez, Thaísa Miyahara, Ana Paula Moreno, Josy Lamenza, Daniela Irrazabal, Rosario Maglione, Renato Storni and Luis Bartolomei.