Common Interest, a new agency group, emerges with a bold mission in the marketing industry: prioritizing cultural authenticity over appropriation. This approach seeks to address a notable gap where many marketing efforts fall short of genuinely reflecting cultural nuances, despite occasional standout successes like the Barbie movie campaign.
For every successful cultural reflection, numerous failures highlight the difficulty brands face in truly resonating with the cultural zeitgeist.
Founded by Anthony Freedman, a former Havas regional chair, Common Interest aims to support CMOs in championing culturally relevant brands within their organizations. The agency challenges the prevailing trend of efficiency-driven marketing strategies that often neglect deep cultural understanding. Instead, it proposes a model focused on building, supporting, and measuring strategies rooted in cultural relevance.
Common Interest
To achieve its goals, Common Interest has strategically acquired several businesses:
wentyFirstCenturyBrand, a brand consultancy; Otherway, a creative studio; and CultureLab, a cultural intelligence platform. These acquisitions bolster the agency’s capability to offer CMOs insights and tools for creating content that earns organic engagement rather than relying solely on paid media.
Looking ahead, Common Interest plans further expansions, aiming to add several more businesses to its portfolio by the end of the year. Freedman envisions a cohesive network of companies that intersect at the nexus of brand management, entertainment, technology, and modern media. This strategic direction aligns with a growing trend where brands increasingly integrate into entertainment and develop original content to engage audiences beyond traditional advertising formats.
The agency’s approach contrasts with mainstream marketing paradigms focused on quantifiable metrics and paid performance. While acknowledging the importance of amplification through paid media, Common Interest emphasizes creativity and originality as core to enduring brand impact amidst today’s digital and AI-driven landscape.
Common Interest’s positioning reflects a broader industry shift towards recognizing cultural relevance as a critical competitive advantage in marketing. It appeals particularly to CMOs who understand the strategic value of building strong brands that resonate deeply with consumers, especially in navigating economic challenges like inflation. This strategic focus marks Common Interest as a niche player catering to marketers seeking innovative approaches to brand building in a rapidly evolving media environment.
In essence, Common Interest emerges not just as a marketing services conglomerate, but as a catalyst for brands to authentically engage with culture and entertainment, forging new paths in brand management and content creation.
