There’s been a shitload of talk about authenticity lately: brands need to be authentic to live, consumers crave authenticity, authenticity is marketing’s great white hope. Well, I’ve got a response to all this hype:

Duh.

Seems to me that this type of thinking is a little bit like when financial services firms use words like trust and integrity as their differentiators. Which is ridiculous, because really, is anyone gonna sign up to put their cash with people they can’t trust? Fucking duh.

Same goes for authenticity: we’d all rather engage with the truth than a lie. In fact, we expect to. Authenticity is a basic requirement for any healthy relationship, but it’s nothing more than that.

That’s why it rubs me so wrong to see decks and brand guidelines that trumpet authenticity as a value: We are authentic, they say. But here’s the thing: authentically what? That’s the real question. That’s what people really need to know. It’s what will make them care.

And once you’ve got that figured out, you won’t have to shout about it. You can just be yourself.