Giving the Product an Identity
Over the years many advertising firms have had to come up with new and interesting concepts to keep consumers interested in their products. Advertisements have always needed to catch the attention of their target market so that the product being advertised gets sold. If the product’s advertisement does not get the attention it needs then the product could be a bust. It seems like it is either hit or miss when it comes to advertising a product.
Concepts and theories in advertising is what makes advertising work. Without having a plan of action to try to sell a good or service the product fails. One of the best marketing concepts that has ever been used is the concept of connecting the product to an emotion. When products like laundry soap and potato chips can be connected to feelings that consumers can bond with then the product is a success. Emotions could possibly range from love and desire, to freedom and respect as well as limitless others.
Once these bonds are made with a product using advertising then most of the time a consumer that feels the bond will become lifelong users of the product. Focusing on emotion is a way of “Neuromarketing” with means that the marketing and advertising strategies are focused on the emotional and basic instincts of the human desires to sell products.
Neuromarketing.com, a website devoted to where brain science and marketing meet, explains that using emotion in advertising verses rational thinking can improve the success of an advertisement by 15%. This can make a big difference for companies trying to sell their products. Neuromarketing.com also goes on to say that bigger brands normally have more success with the emotional advertisements then smaller brands because they have more recognizable names to consumers.
Gerald Zaltman, a Harvard Professor, wrote a book that said that 95% of buying decisions are made on a subconscious level which means that advertisers have a better chance gaining a large target market when they appeal to the consumer’s emotions. By using ads that show emotions and connecting with the consumer on a deeper level then just here is a need and there is a solution the consumer feels a deeper connection with the product. When these connections are made most customers become loyal to a brand and are willing to pick it over other competitor products even if the product costs more.
This brand loyalty can be seen prominently in the division between Mac and PC owners. These computers are advertised in very similar ways. They start by telling you that the computer is not just a technology to be used, but it is a loyal friend that will always be there for you and never let you down. I know from my experience with advertising that I have chosen a PC by HP because of the high quality and connection I feel to the company. HP has offered me many warranties and virus protection software that made me feel comforted and secure in my decision. I had an emotional connection with the computer because I felt there was trust and not just because the computer filled my online and typing needs.
Other advertising industries, like jewelry stores, use the emotion that you feel when you love someone to sell their products. Kay Jewelers Company normally uses the feeling of love in almost every commercial to make the product seem like it will provide the customers with love. They tell you that if you love someone you will buy them a piece of jewelry and then you both will share that love that you feel. Advertisers know that there is no real love for their product but if they can connect their product to an event or feeling that everyone desires then they will be able to sell more. If advertisers just say our jewelry is pretty and sparkly so buy it then the company would never make a profit.
The basic marketing feeling that emotional advertisements need to achieve is to make the customer feel like they don’t just need or want the product, but they desire the product. Car commercials are great examples of communicating the feeling of desire. They normally consist of the car being driven on country roads or going really fast down a freeway. They also hint that by buying the car it will make you more attractive to people or make you seem more respected. Many American made cars like to focus on their vehicles providing freedom for whoever drives them, the most famous of these ads being the Dodge Challenger Freedom commercial. So because of those emotions you desire the car being shown and are willing to consider buy that car or remembering it when you decide to buy a new vehicle. Today’s advertisements make the product desirable, which is the key to selling products.
Advertisers achieve this emotional marketing by doing large amounts of research to find out how consumers feel when they use the product and study old ways of advertising products using emotion to help to create a campaign for the product. Once this campaign is start even more money goes into trying to find ways to make it better. Product campaigns can be made over many times and be in productions for months before it is seen by the public.
However, many advertising companies have tried connecting their products to a feeling and have not seen the fruits of their labor. Normally a company becomes too symbolic with their ads as they try to make a connection that consumers do not understand. Song Airlines a branch of Delta Airlines focused all of its advertising strategy on connecting with the consumer on a deeper level than just advertising the airline. Song tried to make its commercials totally emotion based and what happened was no one knew what the commercials were for. Song Airlines is a great example of a small company starting out and putting too much emotion into advertising. That is why Neuromarketing.com says that smaller businesses and unknown businesses have a harder time using emotional ads because they have no foundation or brand recognition.
When it comes to today’s advertisements using emotion is the new strategy and when executed right can be extremely profitable for its company.
“Emotion-based ads may be more difficult to create, but the stats say it’s worth the effort.” (Neuromarketing.com)
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References
"Emotional Ads Work Best | Neuromarketing." Neuroscience Marketing - Brain, Behavior, and Neuromarketing. 27 July 2009. Web. 30 Sept. 2011. <http://www.neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/articles/emotional-ads-work-best.htm>.
Pisacane, Nick. "Research Oriented Creatives." Emotional Advertising. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://emotionaladvertising.com/ResearchOriented.htm>.
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