Authenticity is something that belongs to the soul of a brand, person, sporting team…. you name it. It also vindicates why we follow sporting teams like The Roar, Broncos, go to The Gabba to watch the cricket or see a band that has been around since your childhood. It also validates the brands that we wear to those occasions, what we eat and drink, our (excitement) activities before and after the show, and the merchandise that we purchase to re-affirm our loyalty.
Last night I saw Duran Duran at The Brisbane Entertainment Centre. They had nothing to hide, infact they showed true qualities of amazing (and stunningly gorgeous), men who had aged as well as a good red. Simon Le Bon had throat surgery late in 2011 but you wouldn’t have heard any different. While these guys have aged tremendously well, they showed their authenticity by being transparent. There were no extra kilos around their waists and they put on a show as good as any 20 year old somethings. They connected with their fans by telling stories, going out into the audience and playing all of their old hits. They used Twitter thanking fans after the concert. Transparency is something that a brand needs to show if they want to humanise the experience.
People, like brands are authentic, if they want to be. They show us what they want. They tease us, they pretend. They hide their weaknesses. May the Duran Duran boys keep taking us to Rio within our wonderful Planet Earth for another 30 years with their authenticity!
A little bit of luck 