The Gist
- Emotions in marketing. Emotional elements in marketing resonate deeply with consumers.
- Emotions in marketing strategy. Emotion-driven anticipation in marketing can boost engagement.
- Looking back. Nostalgia as a powerful tool in emotional marketing strategies.
The holidays are here, so let’s take a trip down my own personal memory lane and take a look at emotions in marketing.
One of the most exciting times of my life was when I was 9 years old.
It was 1996, and I had just turned 9. This era of my life was primarily spent outside, playing and kicking up dirt. We didn’t have smart phones and TikTok in the 90s, we just had plain ol’ sunshine and summer nights.
The allure of spending the day outdoors, coupled with the mystery of what it might bring, struck me each weekend morning with an intoxicating effect, like the scent of freshly brewed coffee under my nose.
One day my father and I were out for a drive, and we drove past a local outdoor vehicle dealership that had go-karts out front. As we passed, eyes and gaze locked, I knew this go-kart was meant for me. A few days later my father asked as fathers do, “What do you want for Christmas this year?” I barley let him finish his question before I replied, forthrightness and gumption oozing out of my mouth: “I want a 50cc, gas powered go-kart with a roll cage, bucketed seats and knobby dirt tires!”
Immediately he could sense I had been thinking of this every second of every day. My Red Ryder BB gun moment was hard to not smile over — short of my father saying, “you’ll shoot your eye out,” he grinned and said, “Well, that’s quite a Christmas gift — I guess we will have to wait and see…”
This go-kart obsession heightened as Christmas was in sight. There’s nothing more exciting than being a kid, asking your parents for something crazy for Christmas — and the palatable yearning to see if it would be under the tree when you wake up on that most special morning.
As it happens each year, Christmas morning came. I awoke from by slumber, popped out of bed and ran into the living room. I don’t know why, but I actually thought there would be a massive gas powered go-kart under the tree — and to my unfortunate surprise, there wasn’t.
I opened my presents and proceeded on, attempting to purge the disappointment out of my consciousness — but right as I finished, my father said, “So, did you get everything you wanted?” I paused momentarily and said, “Yeah, I did.” He then smiled knowingly and said, “Well good, before you play with your toys — I need your help for a second out back.”
With disappointment planted all over my face, I agreed and walked with him to his tool shed. As we approached he said, “Here, it’s time you learn how to use the padlock and open the shed.” I followed his instructions and unlocked the door — grabbed both sides and flung the doors open and as I did, I could not believe my eyes — there parked in the shed — A 50cc, GAS POWERED GO KART WITH A ROLL CAGE, BUCKETED SEATS AND KNOBBY DIRT TIRES!
This story is always special to me, and I think of it often around the holiday season as we typically do when nostalgic memories are tied to special holidays like Christmas — but this story holds a deeper meaning that applies to the world of digital commerce and the anticipatory nature of buying online.
Here’s why. The same feeling and emotions I had around anticipating this gift occurs on a daily basis when we as consumers shop through digitally enabled commerce experiences. After we place our order, we wait — anxious with anticipation for updates around simple things like the label being printed, the order being shipped and it being on a truck for delivery. For consumers, this is our own adult version of Christmas morning.
Though mostly subconscious, brands have a unique opportunity to help consumers feel these emotions. If done correctly, the brand can evoke the inner child of all of us in a way that inspire lifetime value and affinity.
Here are three ways brands should leverage the art of anticipation:
1. Emotions in Marketing: Product Placement
Like the example of me driving past the go-kart store, brands need to enable and embrace placement of their products in a way that inspires excitement. Every product means something different to each consumer. The idea is to understand these differences and curate content, media and placement that’s in the channel that your customer is most active on. Anticipation can’t be built without awareness and knowledge of what makes your product so special to the consumers that desire it.
Related Article: The Emotional Drivers of Customer Experience
2. Emotions in Marketing: Emotion-Driven Anticipation
Part two of this formula requires all the mechanics to inspire anticipation amongst your consumer. After an order is placed, it’s critical to leverage messaging and content that reminds the consumer about what led to their conscious decision to purchase in the first place.
Let’s say you’re a retailer that sells skis — if a consumer orders these through your digital store front, you could look at sending them emails and content with messaging like “It’s almost time to ride!” or “Your ski adventure starts tomorrow — be on the lookout for your delivery.” These small, but important, moments and messages evoke anticipation and excitement with your consumers which allows them to fully embrace and attach their emotions to your brand.
Related Article: The Importance of Positive Emotional Connections With Customers
3. Emotions in Marketing: Walking Down Memory Lane
The final step requires your brand to walk your customer down memory lane from time to time. Sure, you may not be ready to buy skis again anytime soon, but the feeling, the emotion, the anticipation you felt when you first purchased can be repurposed into other cross sell items like ski goggles, boots or even content showing the skis you purchased being used by a professional. Walking your customer down memory lane reminds them why they made the conscious decision to buy from you — and allows your brand opportunities to continue to dialogue and converse.
Ultimately, this should lead to increased brand affinity, loyalty and the likelihood that your customer will come back and buy again, and again.
Creating a customer for life isn’t done through promotional activities or pricing strategies. It’s done by activating and evoking emotions in marketing. A loyal customer yearns for interaction, connection and engagement with your brand and your products. They want to feel the anticipation they felt as a kid when they told their parents what they wanted for Christmas — if you’re able to replicate this emotion through curated buying experiences, you’ll be well on your way to creating customers for life.
So go ahead, what are you waiting for? I dare you, in fact — I triple-dog-dare-ya!
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