Introduction
Little did I know that my weekend shopping spree with friends would evolve into a fascinating exploration of the intricate dynamics between human emotions, marketing strategies, and consumer decision-making. Post our shopping expedition I realized that we ended up buying a lot more than we planned due to the supportive reaction of the other group members to how beautiful a dress looked on someone or how elegant the heels were. This surprising behavior from normally logical individuals reminded me of the words of sales whizz Zig Ziglar:
“People don’t buy for logical reasons. They buy for emotional reasons.”
Suddenly our weekend splurge made complete sense, our purchase decisions were being influenced not by rational but by emotions.
This incident led me to observe the immense influence of emotions on consumer behavior and brand loyalty.
Marketers too realize the pivotal role emotions like joy, sadness, fear, excitement, and nostalgia play in eliciting a reaction from and building a connection with customers, which is why emotional marketing has gained popularity over time.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of emotional marketing let us first answer the question:
What is Emotional Marketing?
Emotional marketing is the exploitation of human emotions to mold consumer perception of a brand. Emotional marketing thus uses the motivational power of emotions to compel consumers to purchase certain products. It works on creating a connection with the audience by influencing how they feel about a brand rather than focusing on rational aspects of purchase-like quality, usefulness, or benefit of the purchase.
The Psychology Behind Emotional Marketing
Emotions have an immense role in the actions and behavior of individuals. Emotions evoke immediate reactions as the part of the human brain responsible for processing emotions reacts 20% faster than the part processing cognitive actions.
From the inbuilt fight or flight response to fear to the following of social media trends to feel a sense of belonging- emotions have always been the primary driving force for action. Emotions impact all human behavioral aspects from their relationships to their decision-making.
It is then not a mere speculation that emotions influence purchase decisions too. Emotional marketing has its roots in this very understanding of human psychology. Emotions impact how a person perceives marketing messages and thus their decision to purchase or not to purchase a product.
Remember this Target ad promoting the sale of Star Wars: The Force Awakens merchandise?
This to me is an excellent example of using emotions to drive sales. I believe this ad campaign was successful because it resonated with the audience on a deep level by evoking feelings of nostalgia.
Advantages of Emotional Marketing
Humans are emotional beings and most of our decisions in life are impacted by our emotions. Purchase decisions too though seemingly logical are usually driven by emotions. The advantage of emotional marketing is as follows:
1. Wider connect:
Emotional marketing helps to get across to a wider audience. It has been seen that content that draws on the emotions of the audience tends to be shared more frequently on social media and is thus more likely to become trending. Marketing through emotional manipulations helps brands connect with a wider audience because emotions can transcend regional, religious, and linguistic barriers.
2. Better response:
Emotional marketing is better at capturing the attention of target consumers. Emotionally charged advertising leads to better customer engagement as customers become a part of the storytelling experience and are compelled to share the experience with others through discussions and social media shares.
3. Retention:
Emotions have a deep impact on the human psyche. You may have noticed you are better at remembering things that drew some emotional response from you. This is because emotions play a significant role in memory retention.
This works for emotional marketing too. Brands that elicit an emotional response from customers are likely to have better recall value.
4. Brand loyalty:
Emotions help form lasting bonds. Brands that can connect with their audience at an emotional level are highly likely to develop a loyal customer base. Emotional marketing helps create a lasting emotional impression on the minds of customers which is crucial in developing commitment not only towards the purchase of the products being produced by the brand but also to the core values of the brand itself.
The Pitfalls of Overusing Emotions in Marketing
American columnist and author William E. Vaughan once said:
“Life is about balance, too much excess is chaos.”
This statement holds true for emotional marketing too. While tapping on emotions can be a powerful tool for attaining consumer attention, overuse or misuse of the same can have the opposite impact on the business. Emotional marketing can turn out to be a dud if:
- It is unable to convey what the brand stands for. Just playing on emotions without explaining your brand’s core values will not have the desired impact on the consumers.
- There is a gap between what your emotional marketing campaigns promise and what the brand delivers.
- The brand has a preachy emotional marketing strategy that tells customers how to feel rather than letting them decide how they interpret the emotions
Excessive use of emotions or the triggering of wrong emotions can make the brand seem insincere which, in turn, makes customers distrustful of the brand.
The Kendell Jenner Pepsi ad is a brilliant example of a failed emotional marketing strategy.
The ad received severe backlash from consumers as it trivialized the social justice protests and activism undertaken under the Black Lives Matter movement. Pepsi’s apparent cultural insensitivity became a topic of debate, and the now infamous ad was seen as an exploitative move to attain commercial gains from a social issue.
The ad that showed Kendall Jenner diffusing a tense situation with a can of Pepsi became a symbol of ignorance about the movement and was openly ridiculed across social media platforms for downplaying the dangers the protesters were facing. The company’s tone-deaf strategy was mocked for its assumption of the importance the brand held in the lives of its consumers.
Finding a Balance
Emotions can be a tricky thing. While emotions can drive up sales and build brand loyalty, the overuse or misuse of emotions can be catastrophic for a brand. Having a balanced approach to emotional marketing is key to building customer loyalty.
When considering emotional marketing gimmicks a business must analyze its brand identity, core brand values, and target audience. Understanding the audience can help predict their likely response to the proposed emotional marketing campaign and help marketers align the brand’s values and audience expectations.
In conclusion
It would not be wrong to say that emotional marketing is a double-edged sword that can either propel marketing success or topple a business. A business has much to gain from understanding the psychology behind emotional marketing and avoiding its misuse. Using the power of emotional marketing businesses can make long-term connections with their audience, which, in the long run, can help foster brand loyalty.
So, try your hand at the emotional marketing game, and let me know it worked out for you.
I would love to know your experiences with emotional marketing in the comments section below. To know more about marketing and sales consider reading our other reviews.
