Empathy is the ability to perceive events and situations from another person's point of view, to put yourself in their shoes. For brands, empathetic marketing means seeing the world from the customer's perspective . It helps you place the customer at the heart of your marketing strategy and work outward.
Being empathetic also means being authentic. You can't create emotional marketing campaigns solely to manipulate customers. Empathy is credible when it builds genuine connections between brands and customers. You must establish trust and honesty throughout the entire customer journey.
Of course, increasing conversion rates is the ultimate goal of any marketing campaign. However, brands must pay attention to the mindset and methods used to convert prospects into customers.
Why is empathy important in marketing?
Emotion and connection are more necessary than ever. “Business as usual” is a thing of the past, because the future is driven by strong emotions . And these emotions influence how consumers respond to marketing campaigns .
The spectrum of human emotions is vast, ranging from positive feelings like joy, interest, and wonder, to more negative ones like fear, sadness, and anger. Anger, in particular, can be a powerful motivator for demonstrating engagement. 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 needs to start from the ground up. So, adapt your content marketing , re-examine the customer journey, and educate your employees about 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 brand image by highlighting the company's characteristics.
Yet it's this syncretic mindset that makes it difficult to grasp 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 .
1. Understand your audience's pain points
It is important to keep your buyer personas to reflect the new realities your customers are experiencing.
Interview your target audience
You need to ask yourself two fundamental questions:
- What are the real-world customer pain points?
- What are the customer pain points regarding your business?
The first question is easier to answer. You simply need to consider and analyze the context in which the customer currently finds themselves (economy, environment, health, etc.). Then you need to identify the difficulties they are facing and try to address them. In the case of lockdowns, for example, you can alleviate your customers' loneliness through entertaining content related to your brand.
When it comes to customers' pain points with your brand, you need to dig a little deeper. Analyze your traffic and conversions weekly and note any major fluctuations, both increases and decreases. This is a great way to uncover the aspects of your brand that resonate with customers.
Use social listening to understand the sentiment surrounding your brand. But don't participate in every conversation, even if you feel defensive. If customers are dissatisfied with your brand, you should investigate why and how to address the issue .
Ask yourself about your target audience
Of course, nothing beats a direct conversation with your customers. Schedule a call or send out 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 any promises. This is primarily a learning exercise to improve your interactions with your customers . Once you've gathered this information, you can create a customer traffic report that will help you tailor your marketing strategy.
Another important element that brands must keep in mind is avoiding confusion . Clarity is often overlooked when trying out a new mindset . To address this, share comprehensive guides that your customers can follow during the user onboarding process. Make the process as visual as possible by sharing screenshots, demo videos, or using a timeline template.
Onboarding guides are a great way to show customers that you care about them and are ready to support them every step of the way. This will help build trust and strengthen the relationship between customers and brands.
2. Adapt to the needs of the public
Based on these pain points you have identified, you need to adjust your business model.
eBay's Up & Running program is a good example of this adaptation. Faced with the large number of small businesses struggling during the pandemic, eBay reduced fees, made certain 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 up some of your premium features to everyone?
You can take smaller steps, such as adapting how employees who interact directly with customers treat them. Help your teams demonstrate empathetic behavior toward 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 element of using empathy in marketing is capturing the wonders of everyday life . Brands can demonstrate their empathy by creating content around simple scenarios. This could be the joy of a video call with a loved one, baking a delicious pie, and so on.
4. Adopt 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 relevant to your audience. You can also update older pieces that contain outdated information but can still evoke 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 helps them better understand the world around them .
Another way to educate your audience 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 you tell your story .
5. Focus on interactivity through social media
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's also the leading driver of purchases among social media channels . Therefore, if you have the resources to create interactive YouTube videos, you can demonstrate greater empathy in your marketing efforts .
