How important is connecting emotionally with your customers is? For the first time in history, Disney has topped the Brand Intimacy study in 2019, beating Apple which lives the year in the number 2 position.
The study, the largest of its kind from MBLM, uses brand intimacy – the emotional science that measures the bonds we form with brands – to identify the top brands in terms of emotional connection to their customers.
The 2019 top 10 U.S. rankings
Looking at the top brands of 2019 shows an increasing saturation of media and entertainment brands with 40% of the top 10 related to the industry.
1. Disney
2. Apple
3. Amazon
4. Chevrolet
5. Netflix
6. Harley Davidson
7. PlayStation
8. YouTube
9. Ford
10. Chick-fil-A
However, it’s not the industries at hand which may be the most important observation in the rankings, but rather the profitability and scale of those at the top of the pile. With some of the largest corporations in the world outranking Fortune-500 companies in terms of profit over a 10-year window, there must be something to be said for brand intimacy.
The brand intimacy model
With nearly a decade of research from MBLM, a brand intimacy model comprising of 5 independent areas has been created to assist with the building of brand relationships.
Ultimately, the model builds towards brand intimacy quotient, a final score that each brand receives – indicating the performance from the studies created.
1. User
The user is the most important part of any consumer based product, so it makes perfect sense to start with them in mind.
A brand cannot be intimate with a user if they have not engaged or at least tried numerous times. Similar to human relationships, if there is no extension to contact and some involvement with the other person, there can not be any intimacy shared.
2. Strong emotional connection
Following from this, a strong emotional connection comes second and forms the foundation of intimacy. If there is a strong emotional connection between a brand and a user, intimacy is more likely to be witnessed.
The stronger the emotional connection, the more powerful the relationship and the more intimate it can be.
The connection is heavily determined by the degree of positive feelings and emotions that a user portrays towards a brand and the degree of which the brands key believes and attributes are shared.
3. Archetypes
Six patterns appear consistently within the most intimate brands, identifying the character and the nature of the brand relationship to help diagnose the strength which they possess:
- Fulfilment – Exceeds expectations of the user and delivers superior service, quality and efficacy
- Identity – The brand reflects an aspirational image or shares admired values and beliefs that resonate with and impact the user
- Enhancement – Users are positively affected and become better through the use of the brand’s products e.g. smarter, more capable, more connected etc.
- Ritual – The brand’s product becomes a ritual, it becomes ingrained into their daily actions and can be extended to a vitally important part of daily existence.
- Nostalgia – The focal point of the past and positive feelings and memories associated with them.
- Indulgence – A close relationship based on moments of instant gratification and pampering be it frequent or infrequent.
4. Stages
Three stages are used to measure the depth and degree of the intensity of an intimate brand relationship:
- Sharing – When a user and brand have engagement and interaction. There is a knowledge exchange of who the are brand and who the customer is where attraction occurs through reciprocity and assurance. If there is a progression in the relationship, this will form bonding, if the opposite is true, disengagement is expected with indifference used as the motivator.
- Bonding – When the attachment between user and brand becomes significant and commitment is decided upon. Acceptance and trust are both implied and if progression occurs once more, fusing is reached.
- Fusing – A user and brand are inexorably linked and co-identified. When fusing is reached, the user and brand identities often merge and become mutual expression and realisation.
5. Brand intimacy quotient
Finally, a score is assigned to each brand (1-100) with the prevalence, intensity and character all used to determine the intimacy.
The score is a shorthand method of demonstrating how a brand is performing with reference to the ability to create the ultimate brand relationships, enabling comparison to other brands in the same industry and more specifically, same category.
What are small brands doing?
Two Chicago based companies that are taking onboard the brand intimacy model are Kool8 and Tiesta, both of which work to create empathetic business models with a focus on giving back to the community.
Kool8
Kool8 is a water bottle company with a difference.
The stainless steel water bottles created are not only great for the environment, but the company comes with compassion. Every time a bottle is bought, 20% of the profit goes towards delivering clean water to underprivileged regions in the world, and the people there that need it most.
This not only builds the brand intimacy for those at home with a positive image and message from the company but with those in underprivileged too. A great technique by a great company.
Tiesta Tea
Another company working to give back to communities that struggle is Tiesta Tea, a tea company with another purpose.
The foundation created to focus on providing assistance to those facing economic hardship, increasing acceptance and awareness of those with special needs or disabilities. The company goes on to provide clean, safe drinking water to villages of developing countries meaning it’s a real all-rounder.
The ethical standpoint of the brand is something that locals really get into the spirit of and strive to be a part of. Showing a great use of an emotional connection to not only boost sales but help communities and groups in need.
This post was contributed by Nancy Huynh @ Digital Authority Partners
Pinstripe Magazine Staff
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