Collective: Brand Love. Does your brand have it?
95% of purchase decision-making happens in the subconscious.
So how do Marketers tap into the subconscious mind? Understanding brand love, how to foster and leverage a consumer’s affinity with a brand can help influence buying decisions.
‘Purchases are much more influenced by perceptions and sensations than by functional attributes’ – Gerald Zaltman, Harvard Professor. When choosing a brand, our subconscious kicks in before we have consciously made a decision. As humans, we draw on our perceptions, past experiences, and emotions when selecting a brand.
It’s easier to love a brand when the brand loves you back.
People connect to certain brands because they represent what they believe, what they value, how they want to express themselves or how the brand makes them feel. Often brands that you choose or connect with, reflect your own personality or who you aspire to be. When consumers identify with a brand, this establishes trust, which makes the purchase decision easy.
Incorporating psychology into your marketing will take your brand to the next level. Here are some key steps in this process:
- Clearly define your brand and business values
- Target a specific audience that aligns with these values
- Understand the buying journey and identify all touchpoints and influences
- Create rich marketing content that highlights your values and brand personality
- Develop and participate in activities that reinforce your brand attributes – ‘’walk the walk’
e.g., if your brand is committed to contributing, make that a crucial part of your brand story, campaign execution, packaging, sponsorship etc
Most importantly, stay authentic and true to your values. To create and grow a real relationship with your audience, integrity is key. If the behaviour is manufactured to simply attract the right people, this will become evident and will have the opposite effect. Consumers are discerning and smarter than you think. Fake or misleading actions will be called out and your brand will pay the price.
Why do customers love brands?
Consumers love brands that act in more human and personal ways. They want an emotional engagement; a relationship consisting of loyalty, authenticity, reliability, and commitment. A brand that truly represents who they are and what they believe.
Good branding understands and generates this feeling. Brand strategy defines the brand voice, narrative and visual execution that will position the brand in the consumer’s mind.
Brand foundations are the ingredients to start a love story between the brand and the consumers who identify with it. But this relationship depends on other ingredients to thrive. Brands that are loved must nurture the relationship with the consumer, so they continue to realise the value of this relationship for their life.
Who Gives a Crap a perfect example of a brand that lives and breathes its brand essence – in every aspect of their behaviour and engagement. They have a very clear and defined message, value proposition and visual expression.
This does not imply that brand love can only be achieved with NFP brands or those that are concerned about the planet. There are many fashion brands and household names that create a connection with their audience for any number of reasons – humour, adventure, or innovation. Either way, people fall in love for various reasons, often they don’t even know why, but intuitive marketing and branding can shape a brand to ‘speak’ loud and clear, create loyalty, brand ambassadors and own a greater share of the market.
If you’re looking for some Brand Love, talk to our brand strategy team.