The Explosive Growth of Brands in 2024… and 2025?

In the digital era of 2024, building a strong brand and boosting brand awareness is essential for businesses. Consumers are overwhelmed with choices and focus their attention on brands that are authentic, trustworthy, and recognizable. For companies, this means investing in brand awareness and brand quality is not just desirable — it is essential for survival and growth.

The Rise of Authentic Brand Communication

Authenticity is the key to winning over consumers’ hearts. In 2024, customers expect brands to communicate honestly and personally. This means your narrative must align with the values and experiences of your target audience. It is no longer sufficient to merely offer products or services; consumers demand a brand that reflects their values and communicates genuinely with them.

In my experience, many brands are now focusing on addressing their target audience through social media and content creators (i.e. influencers) whose values and norms correspond with those of the audience.

The Influence of Content Creators

In today’s digital world, content creators have a considerable influence on consumer behavior. Research shows that 66% of brands report that content from creators yields more returns than traditional digital ads without creators. This underscores the importance of collaboration with influencers and creators to increase brand awareness and build authentic connections with audiences.

One trend is the “old money” aesthetic on Instagram and TikTok, which encourages users to wear clothing without large logos or flashy colors. How have big clothing brands reacted? By investing in reaching their audience through celebrities, influencers, and campaigns that reflect the “old money” image.

This gives the target audience a sense of familiarity and trust when purchasing a product or service from the brand—and trust is a fundamental factor in the purchasing process. As many as 81% of consumers must trust a brand before they consider buying something. This emphasises the importance of a consistent and reliable brand identity.

Case Study: Subaru’s “Meet an Owner” Campaign

A compelling example of an effective brand awareness campaign is Subaru’s “Meet an Owner” initiative. Subaru partnered with 20 influencers from various sectors including fitness and art. Each influencer produced unique content centered around a Subaru car, incorporating their authentic voice into the content.

For example, Zach King (a well-known influencer) made a video in which he tried to impress his date with a Subaru—with over 8 million views. The campaign achieved an engagement rate of 9%, with thousands of comments and millions of likes across 58 sponsored posts. Subaru reported a notable increase in brand awareness following the campaign.

Case Study: Launching the New Porsche Macan

In July 2024, Porsche collaborated with the globally famous singer and influencer Dua Lipa to promote the fully electric Porsche Macan. Dua Lipa not only served as the face of the campaign but also made her directorial debut. This partnership resulted in an authentic, personal approach that resonated with a broad audience.

Earlier, Porsche had already conducted successful collaborations with influential artists such as Berlin DJ Peggy Gou and Dutch DJ/producer Bakermat. These artists created distinctive content focused on the Porsche Macan, blending their personal style with the brand. These campaigns targeted younger demographics (ages 27 to 35) on relevant channels, generating buzz and attention for the new Macan.

These strategic collaborations with influencers contributed to higher brand awareness and a favorable perception of the Porsche Macan among younger consumers.

Conclusion

In 2025, building a high-quality brand with strong brand awareness is no longer optional — it’s a requirement. Consumers search for brands that are authentic, reliable, and visible on the platforms they use. By investing in authentic communication, strategic social media use, and collaboration with content creators, companies can not only survive but thrive in this competitive landscape.

So, if it’s not clear already: now is the time to work on those brand muscles, ensuring your brand not only stands out but sticks. Because, as one wise person said: