Home BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT How to Implement Empathy in Your Marketing Strategy for Better Results

How to Implement Empathy in Your Marketing Strategy for Better Results

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Oluwaseun Sanni
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Showing empathy to a sad customer

The place of empathy in marketing is not talked about enough. This is probably because the entire human race is becoming less empathetic. We only see the reflection of that in marketing.

In its most basic form, empathy is the ability to “put yourself in other’s shoes”. In other words, it’s the ability to understand and share the feelings of others.

From a marketing point of view, empathy is the ability to understand and share your customers’ feelings.

Maybe your marketing has not been working because you refuse to make room for empathy in your campaigns. Let’s attempt to fix that as we explore the place of empathy in marketing and how you can use it to get better results.

In this article

Examples of brands that have successfully done this

Spar Nigeria: Post-EndSars Protest

The EndSars protest had been infiltrated by hoodlums leading to looting and violence in some parts of Lagos. The hoodlums targetted businesses for looting, one of them being the supermarket chain, Spar.

One of their stores was attacked and goods carted away, leaving properties damaged. However, Spar’s reaction to the incident on Twitter is the epitome of empathy. And you can tell from the replies under the tweet.

Hotels.com: Captain Obvious, Social Distancing

We all know how the travel and hospitality industry was among the worst hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Most countries banned travels, so the industry was almost non-existent at the climax of the pandemic.

For most businesses, it was time to think of ways to manage the limited resources they have and see if there are other ways to make money still. But Hotels.com approached this differently.

Instead, they did a campaign to encourage people to stay at home. They literally did a campaign to discourage people from patronising them. That’s not something you see all the time, but then that’s how empathetic brands think.

At the time of doing this, the company’s revenue will feel the adverse effect. However, in the long run, people will remember them as the brand that places their customers’ health and safety above money.

Nike: Inspirational and motivational video

Empathy is about connecting with your customers on an emotional level. Nike is one of those brands that consistently demonstrate this. 

In 2017, Nike released a 1hour documentary on a man who attempted breaking the two-hour marathon barrier.

This is not a profit-driven campaign but one that seeks to motivate and inspire its customers.

Twitter: Work from home for staff

The coronavirus pandemic made some companies adjust their business processes in varieties of ways. For Tech giant Twitter, it was an opportunity to show empathy to their employees by announcing a permanent work from home. Oh, yeah, employees deserve empathy, too and empathy towards employees also influence how customers see the brand.

How to Implement Empathy in your Marketing

Help, don’t sell

Most marketers always think of one thing – sales. 

Well, we get it. It’s totally fine that you want the best ROAS (return on ad spend) on all your campaign, and that can make you focus on sales only.

However, if you want a good result from marketing, you have to focus more on helping rather than selling. You now have to approach marketing with the understanding that your customers need help and that you have just the solution they desire.

Consistently deliver contents that seek to help your customers, not the regular “come and buy”. This is why content marketing is always going to be crucial.

Connect with their feelings

As humans, emotions influence most of our decisions, including buying.

Findings have shown that humans feel first before thinking. So, the fastest way to get us to do anything is through emotions.

In a 2016 study, Tempkin Group discovered that when people have a positive emotional connection with a brand, they are 8.4 times more likely to trust the company, 7.1 times more likely to buy more and 6.6 times more likely to forgive such a company’s mistake.

When you create empathetic stories, you’re building a kind of emotional bond between you and whoever reads it. Similarly, when you develop narratives around situations and challenges, the customers tend to see themselves in your story.

And to successfully do this, you must know your customers through and through. Who they are, what they do, their interests etc. The buyer persona is going to play an important role.

Think like your customers do when they need to solve a problem

This is like the whole essence of empathy. That is, your ability to put yourself in your customer’s shoes.

Take a moment to imagine yourself as your customer facing a problem that your business seeks to solve. What steps did you take in finding a solution? Where did you go? What platforms did you use?

This will help you understand your customers, but it will also help you understand their buyer’s journey. And with this new knowledge, you can strategically position your brand at different stages of the journey.

Focus on making someone’s life better

Every product serves a need, solves a problem or helps somebody. Hence, benefits over features.

For instance, nobody cares about how your smartphone has 4GB ram, 48mp camera and 128GB space. Instead, tell them about how all of these features will benefit them. Tell them their phones will work faster (with 4GB ram), they can take more quality pictures of their products to share on social media (with 48mp camera). They have more space for all the files and documents that matter to them (with 128GB ram).

Make your customers see themself as unstoppable when they use your product. Seek to position your product as a lifesaver.

Deliver clarity, not confusion

Almost everyone has seen a confusing ad. But let’s not mention names; we are not here to ruin any brand’s reputation (further).

Sometimes you as a product owner, you know exactly what your product does. Still, the product may be so complex that it becomes difficult for your customers to get it.

Take a moment to imagine what Apple had to go through to market iPods when it was first released in 2001. Yes, it’s a groundbreaking innovative product, but how do you explain to people at the time that some tiny piece of technology can hold thousands of songs? People were only familiar with walkman then.

This was what Apple did. Here, take a look at what the first iPod commercial looked like.

The ad is so straightforward and easy to understand. Noticed how Apple used the known to introduce the unknown?

Apparently, there were laptops then, and people knew they could play music from their laptops. So, the ad guy started playing the music on his laptop but moved to his iPod when he needed to go out.

Another thing the ad portrayed is the portability of the iPod. The guy could dance and move with the iPod sitting pretty in his chest pocket. That was not something you could do with Walkman (as the name suggests, you could only walk with it)

Also, not a single word was said till the end of the ad. No words, yet we all got the message. Sometimes, less is more.

The “iPod, a thousand songs in your pocket” at the end of the ad summarised the point above – benefit over features.

And finally, the emotion-laced Apple slogan, Think Different, coming at the end of the ad is the icing on the cake.

This Apple ad may just be a classic example of a simple, clear and effective advertisement. 

Listen to customers and evolve

See, this is probably the most important aspect of empathy. To empathise with people, you have to know them and to know them; you have to listen to them. That’s the way it should be.

There is so much you can learn from your customers. After all, your business exists for them.

So, take the time to hear what they have to say from time to time.

The happy, satisfied customers and the dissatisfied, unhappy ones – listen to everyone.

In Conclusion

Empathy boils down to the golden rule – treat others how you want to be treated. Treat your customers like they are humans with needs feelings, and they would respond with trust and loyalty.

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Quick Summary

Prefer the short version? Here is a concise recap of the key ideas in this article.

In this articleExamples of brands that have successfully done thisSpar Nigeria: Post-EndSars ProtestHotels.com: Captain Obvious, Social DistancingNike: Inspirational and motivational videoTwitter: Work from home for staffHow to Implement Empathy in your MarketingHelp, don’t sellConnect with their feelingsThink like your customers do when they need to solve a problemFocus on making someone’s life betterDeliver clarity, not confusionListen to customers and evolveIn Conclusion Examples of brands that have successfully done this Spar Nigeria: Post-EndSars Protest The EndSars protest had been infiltrated by hoodlums leading to looting and violence in some parts of Lagos. Oh, yeah, employees deserve empathy, too and empathy towards.

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