Five Ways To Apply Emotional Intelligence To Your Marketing To Deepen Consumer Connection
Ros Weadman (lead image) is author of Enhance Your Reputation – how to build a brand people want to work for, buy from and invest in and a brand communication and reputation specialist. In this guest post, Weadman offers five top tips to ensure your marketing message has deeper emotional IQ…
If you’re not connecting with your target market on a deep emotional level you’re most likely wasting your time, effort and resources. While communicating the tangible / rational elements of a brand or product, such as quality, capability, price and service support are an important part of marketing, connecting on a deep level with target markets requires communicating the intangible / emotional elements, such as brand purpose and values, and how someone will feel when their life is better or their problem is solved as result of using or experiencing your product/service.
Here’s five ways to inject emotional intelligence into your marketing program to achieve a deeper connection with target markets.
- Define your ‘why’
You can connect emotionally with people by highlighting company purpose to answer the ‘why’ question – why you do what you do and why it matters. According to PwC, Millennials are 5.3 times more likely to stay with an employer when they have a strong connection to their employer’s purpose and non-Millennials are 2.3 times more likely to stay.
Some of the most powerful brand narratives have compelling ‘why’ statements about the cause they believe in. For example, electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla believes ‘the faster the world stops relying on fossil fuels and moves towards a zero-emission future, the better’. This belief drives its mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy. A brand that evokes emotion through a strong sense of purpose becomes a beacon to prospective employees and customers who believe what you believe.
- Understand what business you’re in
How you think and talk about what you do for business can have a profound impact on the stickability of your marketing message. As business owners, we need to think and speak through the lens of the customer (brand promise) rather than the lens of the business (brand profit). Your marketing messages will have more stickability when they tap into how people want to look, feel and live better because of buying your thing. Charles Revlon, former owner of Revlon International Corporation, said it perfectly when he stated, ‘In the factory we make cosmetics. In the department store we sell hope’. Mr Revlon knew what business he was ‘really’ in and it wasn’t cosmetics.
- Satisfy core needs
There are several human needs models that help us to understand the emotional triggers that drive people to seek out particular products/experiences in order to evoke specific feelings. Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, for example, suggests that people are motivated to satisfy particular needs, starting with basic physiological needs such as the need for food, shelter and water, and progressing to satisfy more complex psychological needs such as safety, love/belonging, self-esteem and self-actualisation. Similarly, world-renowned coach Tony Robbins believes that humans have six core needs that drive behaviour – certainty, variety, belonging, significance, growth and contribution.
A useful way of identifying which core need your target market is seeking to satisfy is to ask, ‘what does my target market want to feel as result of using/experiencing my product/service?’. For example, a need for uncertainty/variety (to feel excitement, drama, exhilarated) could translate to ‘I want to feel adventurous’. Or a need for significance (to feel important, valued, wanted) could translate to ‘I want to feel worthy’.
Once you understand the core need/s your target market is seeking to satisfy, you can craft powerful marketing messages that will resonate on a much deeper level. For instance, an adventure tourism company could appeal to a person’s need for variety/uncertainty and desire to feel excitement or exhilaration. Or a prestige watch maker could appeal to a person’s need for significance and desire to feel important or worthy.
- Tap into the five senses
We experience the world through our senses – visual (seeing); auditory (hearing); kinaesthetic (touching/feeling); gustatory (tasting) and olfactory (smelling) – which is why using sensory language and creating sensory experiences are common marketing tactics. In tourism brochures for example, it’s common to read statements referring to the sights, sounds and feelings of the holiday destination to create desire and spark action. Similarly, sensory stimulation is often used to elicit the emotions of potential buyers such as the smell of freshly-baked bread wafting through the rooms of a house open for inspection or the burning of scented candles in a gift shop.
- Speak the language of your brand
Successful brands communicate with words and tonality aligned with their beliefs and values. Mercedes-Benz, for example, as a prestige brand, speaks the language of excellence and distinction with a confident tonality, consistent with a culture that values status and significance. When you use words and tonality aligned with your brand’s beliefs and values, you build brand trust and credibility from the consistency of voice across marketing channels and customer touch points.
When you focus on the emotional intangibles in your marketing – the things that connect humans to a brand, such as purpose, beliefs, values and feelings – you’ll not only make your brand more relatable, the logical tangibles of business, such as sales, productivity and retention, will better take care of themselves.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Ros WeadmanLatest News
The Mars Agency Announces Latest Findings Of Retail Media Report Card
The Mars Agency has developed a scorecard that assesses the capabilities of leading platforms across key criteria required to optimally plan, execute, and measure effective retail media programs. The scorecard aims To help brands efficiently evaluate their spending options across retail media networks in Australia (and New Zealand). With spending on retail media advertising in […]
‘It’s The Lesser Of Two Evils’ – NRL Eyes US Betting Market As Aussie Regulators Circle
US betting firms will be delighted by the circa 50,000 Americans who could soon watch the NRL on their favourite app.
A-League In Deep Discussions With New Partner To Keep Games On TV After Production Company Enters Administration
The A-League's insatiable appetite for scoring own goals continues.
TV Ratings (27/03/2024): Jungle Members At War Over Concealed Lipstick
A heated argument between two jungle members did the numbers for Ten last night, with I’m A Celeb obtaining a total national reach of 1,282,000. Fans were delighted as Candice Warner and influencer Skye Wheatley got into it over a stick of lipstick, leading Warner to dub the Instagram star “selfish.” Wheatley, best known for […]
Is The Australian Music Industry In Trouble? Inquiry Launched Following Splendour Cancellation
Earlier this week, an inquiry was launched into the challenges and opportunities currently facing the Australian live music industry in the wake of multiple festival cancellations. On 25 March 2024, the Minister for the Arts, the Hon. Tony Burke MP, asked the Committee on Communications and the Arts to inquire into and report on the […]
Liana Dubois, Leandro Perez, Aimee Buchanan & More Gather For Inaugural Compadres Leadership Event
Didn't get the invite? Perhaps you're not as important as you thought.
Cathay Captures The Unforgettable Thrill Of Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Via Publicis
Nobody does rugby like Hong Kong, apparently. Certainly nobody does it as badly as Australia.
Cocogun Nabs Christine Watts, Kirsty Reynolds & Shev Tan Bolstering Management & Creative Teams
Cocogun bolsters its team with new hires. Committed to purchasing a bigger sofa, too.
The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley & Sam Cousins Take The Plunge With Pro-Bono Work For Cure Cancer
B&T chats with The Media Store bosses about their great pro-bono work and sponsored swim.
Hawke’s Brewing Co. Taps Rocket Comms For PR Agency Following Competitive Pitch
We're expecting Rocket Comms productivity to crash in spectacular fashion following this win.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Patties Serves Up A Taste Of Home For Olympians & South Sydney Rabbitohs Recommit To Gambling Reform
While the Rabbitohs commits to gambling reform, B&T reckons the team should commit to a decent auto sponsor.
Google: “Inevitable” That Bad Actors Will Abuse Ads Platform As Advertiser Account Suspensions Double
Google maintains it's simply impossible for it to entirely stop bad people placing & paying for ads using its service.
Quantcast Expands APAC Sales Team With Appointment Of News Corp Account Manager
No pressure at all when you are appointed as a client success manager.
Publicis Sapient Tests Microsoft-Powered Gen AI Search Tool With Homes & Villas By Marriott Bonvoy
Given Gen AI's record for mangling stuff, B&T cannot see the problem with letting it decide your next holiday digs.
Volkswagen & DDB Group’s “Roo Badge” To Reduce Kangaroo Related Road Collisions
Watch out for RooBadge as Cannes Lions' most debated campaign this year.
Twilio Launches Unified Profiles & Agent Copilot Features To Boost Productivity & Engagement
Agent Copilot sounds like James Bond's less interesting cousin.
Reebok & Honda Among New Clients For onetwo agency
OneTwo finally lives up to its name with this double billing.
Ogilvy Report: Throw Out The Social Strategy Rule Book, The Rules Of The Past No Longer Apply
B&T was puzzled that all 'influencers' aren't, effectively, 'virtual', but here we are.
WhiteGREY & AKQA Merge In Australia, Lee Simpson Departs
Fortunately, the combined agencies aren't opting for a trite portmanteau for the new name.
Splendour In The Grass 2024 Music Festival Cancelled!
Music fans all over the country reportedly relieved they can pack away their rain coats and gumboots for another year.
TV Ratings (26/03/2024): “Fairy Bread, F***ing Disgusting”: Gordon Ramsay Slams Aussie Food In Food Stars Launch
Ramsay not one for mincing his words, even when it comes to minced meat pies.
Paramount+ International Boss Doubles Down On Aussie Content, Says Ad-Tier will Grow Audiences And Revenue
Good news as Paramount will not be binning I’m A Celebrity for re-runs of Frasier.
Brent Smart: Telstra Pushing For 50-50 Brand-Performance Split But Warns Numbers ‘Won’t Look Great’ Initially
The old brand vs performance debate continues. But here, Brent is firmly sitting on the fence.
Crowded House, Tones And I & Dom Dolla Win Big At The Shure Rolling Stone Music Awards
B&T staffer reports back with humdinger of a hangover & feeling seriously uncool after mixing with music types.
Opinion: Dyslexia “A Hidden Gem” For Brands & Agencies
Dyslexics offer underappreciated benefits in the corporate field, according to this op-ed.
David Jones Taps Criteo To Power Online Retail Media Arm
Want to see ads for things you probably can't afford? David Jones has got you covered with new retail media play.
oOh!media Sets Up Team To Target Business Audiences Across Airports & Offices
oOh! wants brands to harass you every minute of your next business trip.
QMS Launches Australian First DOOH & TV Partnership With Samba TV
Samba TV, of course, is not a channel dedicated to dancing. Much to our dismany.
Slew Of New Hires At Amplify
Four new faces join the Amplify offices. Team say desk scarcity becoming "acute".
Adobe Announces Content Authenticity Initiative Expansions To Counter Deep Fakes
Try as they might to enlighten them, we suspect Trump supporters will continue to watch and believe Fox News.
The PR Group Appoints TechCrunch Senior Reporter Catherine Shu As Director Of Content & Media
Catherine Shu makes the bold leap from journalism to PR. Says inevitable pay bump was "unrelated".
HERO Nabs Ebony Santin From AMPR
Rumours Santin cleared out the stationery cupboard before departing are as yet unconfirmed.
Karena Noble Checks Out Of EVT Hotels & Resorts To Launch Comms Consultancy
Noble still managed to squeezed in a continental breakfast before departing.
Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity To Bring Professional Design Tools To Every Organisation
Canva & Adobe face off continues. We're not picking sides but keenly aware that Canva's office is next door to ours.
“Lean On Our Team To Help You Find An Audience”: Why Understanding Audience Engagement Is Essential In Journalism
Engaging the audience is critical to journos, apparently. We'd thought self-loathing & alcoholism were key.
Adobe Summit: Major Gen AI Developments, Data Concessions & Partnerships
What happens in Vegas stays there. Unless it's the Adobe Summit and then you get to read about in B&T.