how brands build emotional connections with customersCustomers with emotional connections to brands purchase more products, are less price sensitive and readily receive the brand’s messages.  They are 50 percent more valuable than highly satisfied customers, according to some estimates. In short, they are a company’s marketing dream.

A survey of 1,000 people by Customer Thermometer offers insights into how to develop emotional connection with customers. A surprising number of those surveyed, over 65 percent, reported emotional connections with a brand or business. More than 65 percent said being emotionally connected to a brand made them feel like the company or business cared about them.

Many said they felt it wasn’t necessary to have an emotional connection with a brand and ranked the importance of those relationships 4.2 out of 10. Even though most customers maintain that don’t say they need an emotional link with companies or their products, brands that can unlock their positive feelings can gain enormous benefits.

A Range of Emotions Found

They reported a range of emotions. Interest was most commonly felt by over 70 percent. Women felt interest more strongly than men. Trust was the next most common emotion, felt by 57 percent. “Not only is it imperative to pique consumers’ interest, but also it is important to continually build trust with them,” Customer Thermometer advises.

Its report recommends:

  • Seek customer feedback to learn what types of experiences customers value most.
  • Use email newsletters and social media to capitalize on these feelings.
  • Make the day-to-day experience of doing business with your company interesting.
  • Publicize the brand’s good deeds. Over 13 percent of consumers would pay 31 to 50 percent more for products and services from companies that make a positive impact.
  • Beware of issuing politically charged statements. Over 60 percent said they’d consider boycotting a brand that offends them.

The Big Data Solution

Customers often cannot explain what aspects of the customer experience resonate most powerfully with their emotional motivations, say executives writing in the Harvard Business Review. They often misreport key experiences. The solution is to employ big data and sophisticated analysis to scrutinize customer interactions with brands.

Statistical modeling can examine a large number of customers and brands, compare survey results about people’s emotional motivations with purchase behaviors and identify spikes in buying associated with specific motivators. That can reveal which motivators generate the most profitable customer behaviors.

“Although brands may be liked or trusted, most fail to align themselves with the emotions that drive their customers’ most profitable behaviors,” the authors state. “Some brands by nature have an easier time making such connections, but a company doesn’t have to be born with the emotional DNA of Disney or Apple to succeed. Even a cleaning product or a canned food can forge powerful connections.”

Bottom Line: Emotional relationships create ideal customers. Yet customers typically cannot articulate why they feel emotional connections with companies and their products and may not even realize those connections play an instrumental role in their purchase behaviors. These tips on interacting with customers and conducting consumer research can help brands build positive relationships with customers.