Empathy is the ability to perceive events and situations from another's point of view, to put oneself in their place. For brands, empathetic marketing is about seeing the world from the customer's perspective . It helps you place the customer at the center of your marketing strategy and work outwards.
Being empathetic also means being authentic. You cannot create emotional marketing campaigns for the sole purpose of manipulating customers. Empathy is credible when it creates authentic connections between brands and customers. You need to build trust and honesty throughout the customer journey.
Of course, increasing conversion rates is the ultimate goal of any marketing campaign. Still, brands need to pay attention to the mindset and how to convert prospects into customers.
Why is empathy important in marketing?
Emotion and connection are more necessary than ever. Business as usual” a lot of emotions about the future . And these emotions influence how consumers respond to marketing campaigns .
The range of human emotions is very wide, ranging from positive emotions such as joy, interest and astonishment, to more negative emotions such as fear, sadness or anger. Anger, in particular, can be a powerful motivator for showing commitment. Campaigns should aim to evoke and connect with these real emotions .
If brands want to continue selling products and services and generating revenue, the way they move users through the funnel needs to change . And this approach must be done from the bottom up. So, adapt your content marketing, re-examine the customer journey and educate your employees on the benefits of evoking emotions across all marketing channels.
How to use empathy in marketing
Brand marketing has long followed a single trajectory: selling products and amplifying the brand image by highlighting the company's characteristics.
Yet it is this syncretic mindset that makes it difficult to understand the potential of empathy in marketing . But the marketing world has had to adapt before, and we can do it again. Here are the best ways to shift to an empathetic marketing mindset.
1. Understand your audience’s pain points
buyer personas up to date to reflect the new realities your customers are experiencing.
Question your targets
You need to ask yourself two fundamental questions:
- What are customer pain points in the real world?
- What are the customer pain points regarding your business?
The first question is easier to answer. You just need to take into account and analyze the context where the customer is currently located (economy, environment, health, etc.). You then need to identify the difficulties they encounter and try to respond to them. In the case of confinements, for example, you can fill the loneliness of your customers through entertaining content linked to your brand.
When it comes to customer pain points in relation to your brand, you need to dig a little deeper. Analyze your traffic and conversions each week and note the biggest movements, both up and down. This is a great way to discover the aspects of your brand that attract customers.
Use social listening to understand the sentiment around your brand. But don't join in on every conversation, even if you feel defensive. If customers are unhappy with your brand, you should find out why and how to fix it .
Ask yourself about your targets
Of course, nothing beats a direct discussion with your customers. Schedule a call or send a short survey and ask them a few questions:
- Are they satisfied with your brand?
- Which product/service benefited them the most?
- What would they like to see improved?
Don't make promises. Above all, it will be a learning exercise to improve your interactions with your customers . Indeed, once you have gathered this information, you can design a customer traffic report that will help you adapt the direction of your marketing.
Another important thing for brands to keep in mind is to avoid confusion . Clarity is often overlooked when trying a new mindset . To alleviate this, share comprehensive guides that your customers can follow during the user onboarding process. Make the process as visual as possible by sharing screenshots, walkthrough videos, or using a timeline template.
Onboarding guides are a good way to show customers that you care about them and are willing to support them every step of the way. This will help build trust and strengthen connections between customers and brands.
2. Adapt to the needs of the audience
Based on these pain points that you have identified, you need to adjust your business model.
eBay's Up & Running program is a good example of this adaptation. With so many small businesses struggling during the pandemic, eBay has reduced fees, made some services free and offered increased support to sellers.
Brands can learn from this experience for their own campaigns. You may not be able to offer discounts, but how about opening some of your premium features to all audiences?
You can take smaller steps, like adapting the way customer-facing employees treat customers. Help your teams demonstrate empathetic behavior towards customers . It's also helpful to review your current customer service process to ensure your wording and tone are empathetic.
3. Capture the wonders of life around your brand
A key part of using empathy in marketing is capturing the wonders of everyday life . Brands can show empathy by creating content around simple scenarios. It could be the joy of a video call with a loved one, baking a nice pie, etc.
4. Take an educational and visually appealing approach
Your content should be useful to customers to improve their brand experience, so an educational approach may be necessary. Analyze your existing content to find elements that are relevant to your audience. You can also update older items that contain outdated information, but may spark the right emotions .
Marketers can design content around key data to educate their audience. Note that customers want content that is not only engaging , but also allows them to better understand the world around them .
Another way to educate the public is to find the right balance between your company's expertise and what your customers want to learn. When sharing educational content, create visuals that help tell your story .
5. Focus on interactivity through social media
THE interactive marketing has taken off in recent years as rapid advances in technology, particularly social media, have made it more accessible to brands.
According to a recent study on video marketing, YouTube not only attracts billions of monthly users, but it is also the main purchasing driver among the social media channels. So, if you have the resources to create interactive YouTube videos, you can show more empathy in your marketing efforts.
