When was the last time you really touched someone?

In fact if you read more than a couple of pages of this website you will see that we use the term ’engage on an emotional level’ rather a lot. This is because it has never been more important to touch people and make them respond to you emotionally rather than from a cold analytical perspective.

By emotion we’re not talking about making people tear up or get ‘goosebumps’ when they think of you (though this could be a very good thing). This is more about ensuring any communication breaks through the mental barriers of even the most cynical person and is believed. Which of course leads to trust, and in any relationship there’s nothing as important as trust.

But it’s getting harder and harder to reach potential customers because the truth is they don’t really need advertising anymore, and let’s face it when was the last time you picked up or even seen a Yellow Pages?

It’s hard to believe that YouTube is only 12 years old and Google has only been around since 1998. Before then advertising was how your customers got to know about your product or service. Brands were responsible for educating and informing potential customers about their products and the consumer had to rely on this information to help them make a buying decision. But that is ancient history, a search on Google will give them all the information they could ever need on your brand and your competitors. In the past all we had to worry about was the TV remote control. Today the consumer can turn to blogs, review websites and social media to find out about your product or service. Now that the consumer has the power and can even check out a product on their smart phone at the point of purchase, you have to rethink the role of your advertising.

Your advertising has to appeal to the emotions because the left side of the brain (the rational/logical faculty) can be satisfied by search engines, so your advertising has to inspire people, to make them feel different about you and your brand.

This needs more than just a clever or a slick advertising campaign, this has to be about communicating what you stand for as a brand, and what you believe in.

This requires that you create an authentic brand story and tell this story consistently. You also have to be transparent, completely honest about your strengths and weaknesses. After all there’s hardly a risk to this as the consumer will find you out if you attempt to hide anything.

For many people in the ‘communications’ industry this is all a step too far.
Understanding your customers on an emotional level and defining who you are and why your customers should believe in you is very hard work.

Old fashioned brands will continue talking at their customers, while those that understand the new rules of engagement will listen more, understand the needs, fears and desires of their customers and then deliver a product or
service that creates raving fans.

If you want to create a brand story that differentiates you and gives you the greatest chance of success within your category, why not talk to us about our collaborative approach and how we can help you explore and discover insights about your customers, your brand and how you can differentiate yourself by engaging the consumer on an emotional level.