How do you make them feel?
The poet Maya Angelou perhaps said it best: “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Effective marketing has always been about storytelling, but for the longest time the stories we told appealed to the intellect and were of the “factual” variety: this detergent has 25% more cleansing power; three out of four dentists prefer this brand of toothpaste; this brand of peanut butter is free of hydrogenated oils, etc. As marketers, we were trying to plant “thoughts” about a brand or product into a prospect’s mind.
Today, the role of marketing storytelling has evolved to include feelings about brands. It is going beyond logic to enabling emotional connections that have less and less to do with the actual function of the product itself.
The strongest brands have always evoked strong emotions from its users. Kleenex. Campbell’s Soup. Jeep. Nike. Feelings build loyalty and the feeling of community.
Since the emergence of Social Media, we now have endless opportunities to learn about our customers and enrich their brand experiences.
So as part of your marketing or creative brief, why not ask simply, “How do we want our customers to feel when considering or using our product”? The answer to that simple question should open up a lot of possibilities for you. Instead of relying totally on “reason” to win a customer, you’ll think more in terms of the entire brand experience.
Some marketing gurus refer to this as “360-degree marketing,” but really, it’s an acknowledgment that in today’s world of marketing, feelings trump thoughts every time.
Posted by Mickey
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