Brand Stories that work: Toms Shoes

Brand Story: According to the website, which includes The Toms Story, founder Blake Mycoskie “witnessed the hardships faced by children growing up without shoes” while traveling in Argentina in 2006. “Wanting to help, he created Toms Shoes, a company that would match every pair of shoes purchased with a new pair of shoes for a child in need,” the site says.

In a Nutshell: One for One.

Measure of Success: To date, Toms says it has given more than 50 million pairs of shoes to children in need, has helped restore sight to over 360,000 people, and has helped provide over 250,000 weeks of safe water in six countries. In addition, Toms launched its Bag Collection in 2015. With each bag purchased, the brand says it will help provide a safe birth for a mother and baby in need.

Why it Works: In an era of unprecedented competition and an abundance of comparison data, Stephen Golub, vice president of digital marketing agency DXagency, notes a new consideration point has become increasingly important: Do people like you?

“With social media, brands are now more than their price points, they are living, breathing entities with personalities, goals and values,” Golub said. “Consumers want to feel not only like they are getting a good product, but that they are getting it from a good brand. For example, Toms was able to enter an extremely competitive industry with products very similar in price, quality and style to that of its established competitors. They were able to do so by combining their product offering with a robust brand story that consumers could get behind and feel good about being a part of.”

Also: It solves a problem, has a visible founder and does good.