There are legions out there who see brands being their ‘authentic selves’ as nothing more than the latest in a long line of bulls**t marketing tricks. It’s certainly come of age as a serious piece of sales schtick. So we should assume there are also legions out there buying it. Brands are now encouraged to get ‘real’ about life, to tell more honest and relatable stories, and take earnest positions on weighty real-world issues. However, there is a seriously delicate balance to be struck with this kind of thing. Overdoing it, or doing it badly, can present a major threat to any brand’s hard won rep. Here are just two of the thorny pitfalls a brand can fall face first into if they get a little too ‘authentic’ for their own good.

First, take the soda company that decides to take on a heavy social justice issue. Yes, a soda company. And you’d be right on the money if you predicted a buzzsaw of confusion and scorn for said brand, amplified 10000x across the social web. Yep. That happened. And the brand’s name need not even be mentioned, such is the length of the shadow its shame continues to cast.

When brands try to engage with real-world issues, they’ve got to tread very carefully to avoid coming over as either tone deaf or horribly exploitative. And it should go without saying that trying to ‘get real’ by addressing serious social issues with laughably superficial solutions is a recipe for ridicule. So it’s vital that brands approach weighty issues with a cautious, studied sincerity, before they go charging in, however noble their intentions. Ok so that happened to the $2 soda brand. What about those brands on the other end of the spending spectrum?

Countless high-priced brands profit handsomely from a seductive escapism they’ve mastered like a science and practice like an art. Luxury brands offer up a rarified world of easy elegance and carefree possibility; a world so many of us are powerless to resist, even if we can’t either afford, or justify, the price of entry. If this is what you trade on as a brand, then opening the hatch to let the real world in is rarely (if ever) wise. Luxury branding is a boo to real life, and a yah to more of that life. And very few of us want to see our gilded baubles burst by the monotony and occasional brutality of life as it’s too often really lived.

Sure, there are some high end brands that have flirted with reality. But it’s almost always a grittily choreographed facsimile of the real world. Close enough to relate to it. But far enough to escape from it. The lesson; keep real life at a long arm’s length if you’re in the luxury branding business. So while keeping it real can yield some brands a stash of enviable currency, it’s very far from risk-free. It demands you keep a close eye on your core promise, be honest with yourself about the kind of issues your brand can credibly embrace, question the compatibility of fantasy and reality, and stay forever mindful of going too true for too many.