Let’s talk about FEELINGS…
If you look at today’s marketing and business headlines there is a lot of chatter about BIG data – it’s everywhere. This compelled me to recently tweet the following “It’s all about BIG data these days but we must never forget the human touch points of business – that’s what consumers remember about your brand.”
This tweet prompted a great discussion – the follow up included these questions – how does your brand reach and touch people? how do you communicate your brand’s promise to your customers? what are the expectations of your products and services? Surprisingly many did not have the answer…… and the answers to these questions are really the key to your brand.
What exactly is your brand?
Your brand is NOT – big data, your mission statement, the clever tweet or FB message, your product, website or even an ad on TV – it is much more than that.
Your brand IS about the feelings that your brand elicits in consumers.
Your brand identity is derived from a combination of how you want your brand to be perceived and how it actually is perceived. Your brand equity equals the emotions and attachments your target market feels about your brand.
Simply put, one of the most important keys to success in branding is if/when your consumer has an emotional connection with your brand If these feelings are positive, this will increase your customer engagement and ultimately sales.
As a business owner being able to generate this kind of emotional connection is priceless. Delivering on this emotion will create long lasting relationships. Since it costs less to grow an existing customers business than acquiring a new client building emotional connections is good for the overall bottom line.
Cultivating Feelings In Business
Yes, it is about feelings, something we don’t discuss enough in business.
Take for example the iconic Goya company, a trusted and beloved American brand. Why has it been so successful in the U.S. Hispanic and general market? Because at the heart of the brand is it’s credo “If it’s Goya, it has to be good”. If you purchase Goya products – from canned beans to frozen sweet plantains, the consumer is assured that they are purchasing good taste and consistent quality and this creates a good feeling that comes from safety and assurance.
For many U.S. Hispanics – it reminds them of home, memories of shared meals, tastes, smells etc…..and those strong and indelible connections are invaluable to the brand. And what does this strong connection offer – not just repeat purchases but the holy grail of all brands – loyalty and advocacy for your brand.
If you still don’t believe that feelings are important to your business, how about this – over 50% of an experience is based on emotions, and emotions shape the attitudes that drive purchasing decisions and behaviors. Add to this the importance of “collaborative buying” amongst Millennials and the U.S. Hispanic market, and you can see where we are going with this.
