Aldo Quevedo of Richards/Lerma: Brands in 2020 Will Take a Stand On Social Issues

The year 2020 in the advertising industry will be marked by greater importance being given to brand purpose, marketing diversity and a relaxation of political correctness, according to Aldo Quevedo, Principal, Creative Director at Richards/Lerma. “We’re going to see a lot of political correctness this year regarding humor and messages, and I feel that brands are going to have to take a stand on that,” he said, while warning that “not taking a stand is taking a stand, so to speak. The truth is that people are already reaching the limit of what can or cannot be said.” As for brand purpose, he believes that advertisers must be transparent regarding the positions they take: “I think a commercial that simply displays a product’s competitive advantage is no longer enough for people – they want to know what side the company is on: plastic, environmentalism, etc. Brands having a point of view on social issues will be seen as a trend.” A window that will exhibit the progress of this trend is the Super Bowl. However, “we’ll see many commercials that are very light, because people need to laugh a little,” Quevedo said.