Marketing

Brand love is a powerful force that drives customer loyalty and advocacy. It goes beyond customer satisfaction, creating an emotional connection that keeps customers coming back for more. When you cultivate brand love, it will become your company’s most powerful competitive advantage and can future-proof it against unfavorable market conditions. Dr. Aaron Ahuvia, a renowned expert in consumer psychology, has conducted extensive research on cultivating brand love. I had the pleasure of chatting with him on my podcast recently. In this blog post, I’ll summarize some of his key findings that he shared with me and explore actionable strategies you can take to foster brand love. What Is Brand Love? Before we dive into Dr. Ahuvia’s insights, we should first define brand love. In our conversation, he explained that the term ‘brand love’ can be applied to products, services, tourist destinations, or anything you’re trying to sell.  Brand love is characterized by the emotional bond that consumers form with a brand. Customers feel a strong connection that transcends mere product features or functional benefits. Brand love often leads to an elevated level of trust and loyalty, as well as positive word-of-mouth. Dr. Ahuvia said that brand love is very similar to interpersonal love, but with a few key differences. Generally speaking, interpersonal love is more altruistic than brand love. When it comes to brand love, consumers are more judgmental. He explains, “They’re more, ‘what is this thing going to do for me?’ and a little bit less ‘what am I going to do for that?’” However, he notes that plenty of people do feel altruistic about their favorite brands, and cited examples of customers defending their favorite multimillion-dollar brands, like Apple, on social media.  Valuing Versus Loving A Brand As consumers, we all have various products and services that we value highly. Perhaps your vacuum is incredible at removing all of the pet hair from your carpet. But do you love it?  Dr. Aaron Ahuvia explains that we value everything that we love, but we might not love everything that we value. If your product provides instrumental utility but the overall experience of using it is not fun, pleasurable, or interesting, then your customers may never have feelings of love.  He explains, “They can value it quite highly if it’s really doing a good job for them, but they won’t have that emotional connection. They won’t love it the way they love a person, exactly. So you’ve got to get that kind of pleasure thing going.” The 3 Components Of Brand Love What are the steps to cultivating brand love? Dr. Ahuvia outlined the necessary components your brand must have in order to be able to create brand love.  I know what you’re thinking: the first two components seem very straightforward, but what do you mean by treating a product as a person? Through his research, Dr. Ahuvia has concluded that our brains decide if something is a person or an object two different times.  First, we decide consciously and acknowledge that something is either a product or a person. But our brain also decides on a subconscious level. Most of the time, these two decisions are aligned; however, there are times when things get disconnected. “Your conscious mind will know it’s not a person, but your unconscious mind thinks it is a person,” he explains.  Getting the brain to think of your brand as a person is key. “In order to love anything, your unconscious mind has to treat it as if it’s a person. And this is what most brands do not understand, and they keep hammering away at the value… but just making it more instrumental, useful will not get people to love it. You have to get their subconscious mind to start thinking about it the way it thinks about people.”  3 Ways To Get Your Customers To Think Of Your Brand As A Person Now that we understand the importance of getting the brain to treat your brand as a person, how do we achieve this? Dr. Ahuvia shares three different strategies that marketers can use: Case Study: Patagonia When asked about the companies that have successfully cultivated strong brand love, Dr. Ahuvia mentions Patagonia. The outdoor clothing and gear retailer has an army of superfans that strongly identify with the brand and its core values. Founded in 1973 by Yvon Chouinard, the company is known for its commitment to environmental and social responsibility. In addition to supporting over 1,000 grassroots organizations and initiatives focused on conservation and climate action, Patagonia famously installed a self-imposed Earth tax. The Earth tax “provides support to environmental nonprofits working to defend our air, land, and water around the globe.” Patagonia’s high-quality products come at no cost to the environment. The company uses organic, recycled, and ethically sourced materials in its products. It also implements innovative manufacturing techniques to reduce waste, energy consumption, and water usage. Last year, Chouinard announced that Earth is the company’s only shareholder: “Instead of ‘going public,’ you could say we’re ‘going purpose.’ Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth for investors, we’ll use the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source of all wealth.” It’s evident why so many people love Patagonia. The company practices what it preaches and connects its story to every customer’s story. Shoppers are proud to support the retailer because of its values and see it as part of their own identity.  Dr. Aaron Ahuvia’s research provides valuable insights into cultivating brand love, an essential component of long-term customer loyalty and superfandom. If you have a high quality product or service with a pleasurable experience, combined with the emotional connection of a human, you can achieve brand love with your customers.  More On Dr. Aaron Ahuvia Dr. Ahuvia co-authored the publication that popularized the term “brand love” and is the world’s most widely published and cited academic expert on non-interpersonal love. He’s the author of The Things We Love: How Our Passions Connect Us and Make

I can’t help but notice awesome experience design out in the wild. A few months ago, my family spent a week in Florida and I was WOWed by the intentional experience design at LEGOLAND.  If you haven’t been to LEGOLAND resort in Winter Haven, Florida yet, I highly recommend you check it out. Even if you don’t run a theme park or work in entertainment, there are so many incredible lessons you can adopt for your own CX program. What is intentional experience design? Before we dive into my biggest takeaways from LEGOLAND, you should first familiarize yourself with intentional experience design. Intentional experience design means examining every part of a customer’s experience and looking for ways to improve upon it, from the time your category first pops into their mind until they’ve been a loyal customer for decades. Behind every touchpoint should be a purpose. When you design your customer journey with purpose, you’re more likely to solve your customers’ problems. For every touchpoint, ask yourself, “Is there something I can do to elevate this interaction into a memorable experience?”  It doesn’t have to be complicated, or even cost a lot of money. My kids are thrilled when they’re offered a sticker or a lollipop when they accompany me through a check-out lane. Retailers intentionally add this experience to alleviate the stress of parents waiting in long lines with their children.  Intentional experience design is all around you. Why do you think grocery stores always place their giant freezers of ice at the front of the store? They don’t want their customers to have to lug around melting bags of ice during their shopping trips. Instead, they purposefully have the freezers at the front of the store so you can grab it on your way out.  Every member of your team can play a role in intentional experience design. Challenge them to think of on-brand ways to add more net positive experiences to their daily interactions with customers and colleagues and your story will come to life like never before. Taking my kids to LEGOLAND was like attending a master class in intentional experience design. They identify ways to transform ordinary interactions into experiences and infuse their brand story everywhere. Here are my biggest customer experience takeaways from LEGOLAND that you can implement in your business: 1. Be intentional with your first impressions From the moment you drive onto the LEGOLAND property, you are fully immersed in the world of LEGO, almost like a movie set. There are larger-than-life LEGO statues everywhere. As soon as you walk into the lobby, there’s a huge castle and lego station for the kids to play in while the parents check-in.  It doesn’t matter what age you are, there’s no way anyone can drive into this resort and not feel excited. As much as we say we shouldn’t judge books by their cover, we all know people do. That’s precisely why first impressions matter. LEGO nails it.  Whether you’re walking into a restaurant, a salon, or even a business meeting, your first impression can immediately impact your experience with a business before you interact with a single employee.  Not everyone can build a magical structure to welcome their guests. But you can make sure that your store or restaurant is clean and organized. Are your employees present, attentive, and smiling, or are they nowhere to be found?  If you’re a salesperson conducting virtual meetings, are you always on time for your Zoom or Teams meetups, and is your background professional and free of distractions? There are SO many little details within your control that can make or break a customer’s experience with your business before they even interact with you.  2. Find ways to tell your brand story everywhere Every INCH of our hotel was cleverly branded with LEGO bricks. From hallways to shampoo bottles to signs on the wall, LEGO was telling its story everywhere. Would standard shampoo and conditioner bottles be acceptable? Absolutely. But the more a brand can infuse its story in every interaction, the stronger the connection the customer will have. Your brand may not have as many physical opportunities to tell its story, but there are endless ways to infuse more of your uniqueness into your customer journey. Every touchpoint matters. Chewy employees sign their emails with things like “Chow-chow for now!” and “Over and snout!” What are some of the touchpoints you can customize to better show off your uniqueness?  3. Turn a perceived negative into a positive The elevators at the LEGOLAND resort are unlike any I’ve ever seen in my life. Why ride in a dark, boring elevator when you can join a disco dance party? As soon as you press the button for your desired floor, “Dancing Queen” by ABBA or “Stayin’ Alive” by Bee Gees plays over the speaker and strobe lights start spinning.  It wasn’t until my fifth elevator ride that I realized it was probably the slowest elevator ever. With so many young families at LEGOLAND, the transitions can take a while. Only one or two large strollers can fit into one elevator at a time, so you end up waiting for several minutes for people to load in and load out.  However, when your elevator is a party, your kids might not even complain. Plus, it makes leaving any of the activities WAY less dramatic. Normally, my 4-year-old would throw a tantrum that it was time to leave the pool, but the fun elevator rides softened that disappointment just enough. Like LEGOLAND, you can identify the potential pain points for your customers and turn them into a memorable experience. Restaurants provide decks of cards or coloring books for children while they wait to be seated. Airlines use humorous and entertaining pre-flight videos for the emergency instructions to better calm people’s nerves.  You can easily reframe what would be a negative touchpoint into something really special — and even on-brand!  4. Don’t settle for “good enough” The intentional experience design of

Any brand in the digital age knows the importance of being there for your users. One popular term for this is consumer-centric marketing. This is a type of marketing approach that puts your customers first in all decisions. Through data, customer feedback, and your own intuition, you can make sure every customer feels heard and understood.  Not only do you need to learn how to see the world through your customer’s point of view, but you have to take advantage of first-hand experience and feedback. It’s easy to assume you know best. It is your brand, after all. Still, your customers know more than you think, and they should be the guiding force behind all brand changes and decisions.  Building trust and long-term loyalty are no longer secondary. In today’s world, this is what makes and breaks businesses. Your customer journey takes many different forms, and not all user touch points look alike. That’s why you need to pay close attention to these consumer-centric marketing strategies.  Benefits of Consumer-Centric Marketing With 73% of brand executives agreeing that it’s more profitable to rely on existing clients and customers than new leads, you have to put these users first. Your customers already interact with countless different companies each day, many of which slip under the radar completely. When you stand out, you make a positive impression that turns into a real relationship. What’s the key to getting your customers’ attention? It all lies in a customer-centric marketing strategy. To make it even more clear, let’s outline the top benefits of consumer-centric marketing. Improve the customer experience First, the customer experience is the biggest battleground for brands today. It’s no longer enough to offer an average or even a good experience. You have to be amazing, exceeding your customer’s expectations every time.  Whether this means more meaningful brand touchpoints or following up after interactions, improving the overall customer experience is a win for both you and your customers. When customers are excited to work with you, they’re more likely to tell others as well, referring even more leads.  Lower your marketing costs Similarly, when your best customers are superfans, they’re invested in your success. Unlike passive consumers, they really want to see your brand shine. This means they’re more likely to refer you to their own circles, leveraging what’s called word-of-mouth marketing.  While you likely already have a marketing budget for things like social ads and print media, your money might be more effectively spent on consumer-centric marketing.  With 64% of marketers in agreement that word-of-mouth (aka referral) marketing is the most effective of all, this could save you big bucks in the long run.  Surpass the competition Another key benefit of consumer-centric marketing is the ability to pass by your competition. No matter your industry, you’re competing with more brands than ever before. The internet and digital tools make the world a smaller place, and your customers are increasingly educated and empowered to shop around.  While it can be intimidating to have so many competitors, this is also a chance to stand out. When you raise the bar with your own customer service, your users take notice. They’ll begin to expect the same level of care, support, and customization from other brands. If they’re not able to keep up, you’ll earn a customer for life. Better yet, customers are willing to pay up to 10% more if they know they’ll receive a great experience.  Future-proof your business Lastly, customer-centric marketing is one of the best ways to future-proof your business. If there’s one thing brands can learn from the COVID19 pandemic, it’s that you can’t predict the future. Nothing is guaranteed, and things change fast. Those who aren’t afraid to adjust to fit their consumer’s current needs are those who keep up with disruptions.  By prioritizing your customer experience above all else, you’ll continue to exceed your business goals. This is true no matter what the world throws your way. For example, brands who were able to pivot services digitally during the COVID19 pandemic were the ones who truly met customers’ needs, while others fell into the background.  Components of a Consumer-Centric Marketing Strategy Now that you know why a consumer-centric marketing strategy is so valuable, it’s time to put it into action. The good news is that many of these strategies you likely already use for your business. With a bit of adjusting, you can meet your customers where they already are.  1. Take a full-funnel approach to the customer journey We’ve talked a lot on this blog already about the importance of understanding your customer journey, but you need to take a step back. When you approach the journey as a series of repeated cycles, it’s a lot easier to learn more about your customers along the way. While it’s easy to get lost in the details, a full-funnel perspective helps you identify gaps in your overall journey.  How can you appeal to customers throughout their journey with your brand? Are there other chances to ask for feedback that you might be missing? Do you have clear calls to action at every touchpoint? When you locate greater opportunities for engagement, you don’t lose customers along the journey.  2. Have a full understanding of your audience Next, it should go without saying that the right consumer-centric marketing strategy means having a clear understanding of your audience. Not only should you know who your customers are, but you need to push beyond the basic demographics. If you want to craft a marketing experience that appeals to them specifically, you need to understand their needs inside and out.  Not sure how to best understand your audience’s concerns and motives? The answer is simple: ask them yourself. Instead of making assumptions, ask existing customers for information about their experience. Your most engaged customers (aka your superfans) are the best source of information on how to improve.  3. Create value-focused marketing initiatives Similarly, make sure your customers are at the heart of every marketing