When you think about marketing, what, exactly, do you think about? Is it prospect conversion? Cost effectiveness? Market penetration?
How about: what do you want your intended customers to feel?
Consider this ad from the British Hovis Bakery, which leads the viewer through a whole lot of English history in a way that’s sure to evoke the emotional response and make the final point of the ad:
Or how about this one from The Guardian, which again leads us, but this time as an actual character ages something like seven decades. Emotionally manipulative? You betcha! It pulled you in, maybe even made you mist over, didn’t it?
This is the stuff of which great messages are made. Neither ad places its product front and center (although arguably the Hovis one drops it on our table at the end). Yet both are compelling, even moving. And both are asking us to reflect upon the passage of time, surely a poignant topic regardless of cultural references. This was always the secret in those wonderful old Kodak spots that were so memorable; who today doesn’t remember that “Kodak moment?”
Ultimately, it’s all about feelings. How do your customers feel about you and your product? If the association isn’t made at a visceral level, all the special pricing and eye-popping label design in the world won’t guarantee loyal patronage. You might make a sale based on a one-time deal, but unless customers feel a connection, you may never see them again.
We humans are an emotional bunch. This is something it pays to think about when seeking to shepherd some into your own fold. It’s something the biggest ad agencies in the world know well, and it’s something you can make work for you, too. The next time you’re crafting a campaign, take a step back.
Sure, it looks great… but how does it make you feel?
