Marketing + Empathy = The killer combo that will elevate your marketing to a new high!
Everyone's talking! Few are doing! So, it's time to get going!
Welcome to the 9th edition of The Funnel Chemistry.
Hey! Thank you for coming back again and again! I want to let you know that this need not be a one way communication! The reason why I started an email newsletter rather than a blog is to start a two-way conversation and build relationships.
So feel free to connect with me and ask me anything you think I can help you with. All you have to do is, reply to this email with your query. I would be more than happy to help!
That said, let’s get down to the topic of this week! This email has 1380+ words and would take 5.5 Minutes to read.
Background!
One of the worst mistakes in marketing was committed by Burger King (BK) this week. On International Women’s Day, BK tweeted this!
This was the first tweet of a thread that actually says only 20% of the worlds chefs are women. BK wanted to change that. They even had announced a scholarship program for their women employees to support their growth!
But, in a bid to garner Shock Value and attention, BK completely forgot about how women reading this tweet would begin feeling! Without any anchor to get the context right, this tweet quickly became a PR disaster for BK.
I am not going into a detailed analysis of what happened right now, but I was there when it happened and have written a detailed twitter thread about it. You can see that here! I also have converted the whole thread into a PDF and you can download that here!
It is very shocking to me. How did this thread even get approved! BK has done a ton of viral campaigns many of which are not only clever, but also creative. So, I am sure there is a complete process to design and execute a campaign with the usual checks and balances! This can’t be a mistake! Why would BK want to throw away a carefully cultivated Brand Image which is loved by many of their customers!
The answer is, BK suffers from a complete lack of Empathy! The least they could have done is to show this thread to a few female employees and asked how they felt about it! That is the beginning of Empathy in marketing!
Empathy Marketing
Marketing, since long, has been criticized for doing a ton of mischief. Well! No denying that! You just read what BK has done!
As a result, the first battle a marketer has to face and win (consistently) is the negative image of the marketing function in the world of consumers!
The only way marketing can redeem it’s spoilt name is to put the customer first in everything right from design of the product to everything else!
Remember how Sonu Sood became a real-world hero and built his personal brand by helping migrant workers? With this one move, Sonu Sood broke his villain stereo-type! It is only a matter of time that he comes back as a hero in Bollywood! That’s the power of Empathy!
Empathy is the ability to understand another human being's perspective! And this is the pathway to put the customer/consumer first!
Empathy is an integral part of the Design Thinking process! In fact, it is the very first step! Take a look at the image below!
The result of this process is a ‘Human Centric Design’ that puts the interests of the humans at the core of any design! Imagine what it can do if it were the center of Marketing Strategy!
Research is being carried out to explore the relationship between empathy, loyalty and brand equity! Though nothing has been proven yet, researchers are hypothesizing that empathetic marketing communication can evoke warm and favorable feelings towards a brand. This can lead to loyalty and strong brand equity in the long-run!
Here is my sketch note which emphasizes this point!
You can download a PDF version of this here!
A Deep Dive into Empathy Marketing!
Here is a curated list of articles on Empathy Marketing that will deepen the concept! I have included articles that have practical examples and breakdowns of ads and campaigns. Enjoy your learning journey!
8 Genius Examples of Empathetic Content Marketing in Action
In this article from Hubspot, different content types are broken down and analyzed from the point of view of creating empathy! Each example has a How this shows empathy section which clarifies how empathy is embedded in the content type and what effect it might have on the intended audience. If you are in the business of creating content, this is a must read!
Empathy made me a better leader and marketer. Here’s what it could do for your brand
In this ThinkWithGoogle article, Mary Beech, Executive Vice President and CMO of Kate Spade a leading fashion brand says “The best marketing isn’t about the brand; it’s about the customer.” She then goes on to share three lessons learnt from a recent campaign designed based on empathy. You will learn and gain insights into a highly practical and a successful approach to Empathy Marketing!
How marketers are fighting fear, anxiety with empathy & real solutions
We are just getting out of one of the worst ever crises that humanity has ever faced! Uncertainty, anxiety and fear are all around! Marketing and Selling in such times is not just a challenge, but can prove to be a roller coaster ride! In this article from Brand Equity, Indian Marketing leaders explain how they are cooking the new playbooks with the help of lessons learnt from 2020! A great read if you want some insights into the brand’s bounce back plans as well!
Activating Empathy: How to Manage It, Measure It, and Market With It
There is a misconception that Empathetic Marketing is for B2C brands. Nothing can be more misleading. Here is an article that explores the utility of empathetic marketing content in the context of B2B marketing!
No discussion on Empathy Marketing can be complete without talking of the worlds best used tool Empathy Mapping! In this article, the what and how of empathy mapping is decoded for you! To aid you further here is a sketch note on the same from Krisztina Szerovay!
How to use Empathy in marketing?
Here is a step-by-step process to being using Empathy in marketing
Ask yourself do you really understand what customers value? They maybe your customers or the customers of your client! If you don’t know then try to get the pulse by actually asking some of your customers what their pain points are! You would be wise in using the Empathy Mapping process!
Identify the most important pain points the customer wants solved right now! These must be your priority! Sometimes they may not be related to your product/service. But can you somehow connect yourself to those pain points!
How can you help your customers solve those pain points? Do you have to collaborate with another brand to do this? Can you put together a unique solution that your customers can immediately use?
Go out of your way to create solutions that can help your customers! Your efforts must make them feel valued! Remember, they may forget what you said and what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel! That is the key to win this game of Empathy!
Use the language of empathy. Build a list of words that evoke empathy! Use them in your ad copy, blogs, social media posts, product descriptions, websites, headlines and everywhere!
Next Steps
Reading alone will not help you much! The best way to learn is by doing what you have learnt. So, take time and see how you can incorporate Empathy into your marketing. If you want some help, please remember that I am always available. Hit reply and send me your query! I will always be happy to help!
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