"Wisdom is the reading of time." Milton Lavor
Those who work in marketing and communication didn't get here by chance. They have a passion for creation, behavior and strategy. They like to see impact happen. But this intensity has a pitfall: we start to attach too much importance to the wrong questions.
Like: "Will AI replace our work?", "Will brands that ride the hype last longer?". These discussions heat up the feed, but they seem like old formulas trying to decipher a future that has already become something else.
Today, brands that appear in the "love brands" rankings are worth more than the GDP of many countries. Their CEOs are involved in geopolitical decisions, shaping culture, behavior and consumption. So why are they still guided by metrics created when the world was still analog?
The other day, a friend who joined Netflix's diversity department said to me: "Mari, the challenge is no longer achieving diversity. It's what comes after that." That never left my head. Because the truth is that most brands have no idea what to do once they've achieved their goals. They continue to respond to 1995 rankings as if they were the definitive measure of relevance.
Meanwhile, Toyota is building a city, Woven City, in Japan, to test the future of mobility, AI and robotics in practice. This is not a marketing stunt. It's a framework. A long-term vision with real impact. And why are they doing this? Because they can! They've understood that a big brand can't live on small activations.
Then comes the classic argument: "Oh, but is that the role of the government or the brands?"
For me, it's the role of those who can do it. If a company has capital, influence, technology, global relevance, what more does it need to start delivering something that lasts? What more authorization is needed?
Want a comparison? Coca-Cola was created in 1886. One of the best-known brands on the planet, yes. But still younger than the University of Bologna, founded in 1088. The oldest university in the world has been in operation for over 900 years. That's saying a lot. Because there are buildings that, by the nature of what they deliver, are more enduring than any campaign or brand book. And while brands are just trying to "be remembered forever", perhaps they need to deliver something that deserves to last.
So I ask you: Which brand will create the next top university? Or a health system? Or a support network integrated with the basic needs of the population?
Giant brands shouldn't fit into small metrics.
Building something that lasts requires more than a good narrative: it requires vision, courage and a certain responsibility to the world. Because while some brands are still deciding what their next slogan will be, others are literally designing what comes next. And there's no campaign that can compete with that.
So perhaps the right question is not "Where will your brand be in a decade's time?", but rather: "What is it putting in place now that really changes the game?"
Because if we don't start asking better questions, we'll keep answering right, but for the wrong game.
