“Just be authentic.” It’s the most common piece of advice in modern marketing, delivered with the confidence of someone sharing a profound insight. “Be real. Be genuine. Be yourself.” As if authenticity were as simple as flipping a switch.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: authenticity in brand communication isn’t straightforward. It’s not just about telling the truth or showing behind-the-scenes content. It’s a complex dance between genuine expression and strategic communication, between being relatable and maintaining brand integrity, between transparency and smart business practice.
In an era where consumers can smell performative authenticity from a distance away, brands are caught in a paradox. The more desperately they try to appear authentic, the less authentic they become. The harder they work to seem “real,” the more calculated they appear.
So what does authentic brand communication actually look like? And why is being real so much more complex than it seems?
The Authenticity Paradox
The moment you set out to be authentic, you’re performing authenticity. It’s the marketing equivalent of being told to “act natural” – suddenly, natural becomes the hardest thing to be.
This paradox plays out across brand communications every day. Brands craft carefully curated “candid” moments. They script “spontaneous” responses. They design “authentic” experiences that have been focus-grouped and approved by legal teams. The result? Communications that feel authentic on the surface but ring hollow underneath.
The real challenge isn’t being authentic, it’s being authentically strategic. How do you maintain genuine brand expression while still meeting business objectives? How do you be real without being reckless?
What Authenticity Isn’t
Before we explore what authentic brand communication looks like, let’s clear up some common misconceptions:
- Authenticity isn’t oversharing: Telling your audience about your company’s internal struggles, financial difficulties, or personal drama isn’t authentic. Authenticity doesn’t mean having no boundaries or professional standards.
- Authenticity isn’t being unfiltered: Real people filter their communication based on context, audience, and appropriateness. Brands should too. The person you are with your best friend isn’t the same person you are in a job interview, and both versions are authentically you.
- Authenticity isn’t rejecting all strategy: The most authentic people you know still think before they speak in important situations. Authentic brand communication can and should be strategic, it just needs to be strategy in service of genuine expression.
The Spectrum of Authentic Expression
Authentic brand communication exists on a spectrum, and different approaches work for different brands, audiences, and contexts:
- Vulnerable Authenticity: Brands that openly discuss challenges, failures, and learning moments. This works when the vulnerability serves a genuine purpose and feels appropriate to the brand’s relationship with its audience.
- Confident Authenticity: Brands that own their strengths without false modesty while acknowledging areas where they’re still growing. This approach maintains credibility without undermining brand authority.
- Playful Authenticity: Brands that don’t take themselves too seriously and can laugh at their own quirks and industry conventions. This works when humour feels natural to the brand personality, not forced.
- Purposeful Authenticity: Brands that communicate their values and mission in ways that feel genuinely connected to their actions and business model. This goes beyond stating values to demonstrating them consistently.
To see this spectrum in action, let’s look at how three South African brands have navigated authenticity in very different ways.
Bathu
Bathu Sneakers’ story is rooted in local pride: from humble beginnings in Alexandra township to a nationwide brand. Its authenticity doesn’t come from slick marketing, but from how it embodies aspiration, inclusion, and cultural relevance.
Their authenticity holds up because:
- It’s backed by action: Bathu creates jobs, invests in communities, and donates school shoes, the social impact isn’t an afterthought.
- It’s consistent over time: The messaging of “walk your journey” and township pride has been consistent since launch.
- It reflects genuine philosophy: Founder Theo Baloyi openly frames Bathu as a brand built for and by South Africans.
- It serves business and cultural objectives: By making sneakers aspirational yet rooted in local culture, Bathu built loyalty and trust.
Bathu shows that authenticity doesn’t mean rejecting strategy, it means aligning business growth with social purpose.
MaXhosa Africa
Founded by Laduma Ngxokolo, MaXhosa Africa integrates traditional Xhosa bead work and beautiful aesthetics into contemporary knitwear. This is cultural storytelling positioned as global luxury.
Their authenticity resonates because:
- It’s backed by craftsmanship: The designs are rooted in real cultural practices and traditions, not surface-level references.
- It’s consistent with identity: Every collection leans into Xhosa heritage while adapting to luxury fashion standards.
- It accepts business consequences: Some pieces are priced beyond the local market, a trade-off to position African heritage in the global luxury space.
- It reflects genuine purpose: Ngxokolo has consistently spoken about elevating African culture on the world stage, and the brand’s growth mirrors this mission.
MaXhosa proves authenticity can coexist with exclusivity when it’s anchored in genuine heritage and vision.
Savanna Cider
Savanna Cider has built its brand around a playful, unapologetic South African identity. Its authenticity comes not from flashy campaigns but from staying true to its roots and its audience.
The brand demonstrates strategic authenticity in several ways:
- It’s consistent with brand personality: Savanna’s cheeky, fun, and relaxed persona shows up across advertising, social media, and packaging.
- It’s backed by action: Sponsorship of local music festivals, events, and cultural initiatives reinforces its connection to South African lifestyle and youth culture.
- It serves business objectives: By consistently reflecting local tastes, humour, and style, Savanna drives strong brand loyalty and engagement.
- It has clear boundaries: While playful and irreverent, campaigns avoid offensive or polarising messaging, keeping authenticity aligned with social norms.
Savanna shows that authenticity doesn’t require complexity, consistency, social relevance, and a clear, well-executed brand voice can create a deeply resonant and trusted brand identity.
The Future of Authentic Communication
As consumers become more sophisticated at detecting performative authenticity, the bar continues to rise. The brands that will succeed aren’t those that perfect the performance of authenticity, but those that genuinely embody it.
This means moving beyond authenticity as a marketing tactic to authenticity as a business philosophy. It means alignment between internal culture and external communication. It means accepting that being genuinely authentic might be less immediately appealing than being strategically authentic, but it’s more sustainable in the long term.
The future belongs to brands that understand authenticity in full colour, not as a simple directive to “be real,” but as a complex, nuanced approach to building genuine relationships with audiences who are tired of being marketed to and ready to be genuinely connected with.
Authenticity isn’t about being perfect, raw, or trendy, it’s about being consistently true to your values in ways that resonate with your audience. That’s harder than ‘just be real,’ but it’s what real brand trust requires.