People buy with emotion. Smart brands know how to harness it.

It’s no secret: many new clients come to feeling like they offer a better product, or overall experience than their competitors. Yet somehow, they’re still losing business.

Their first instinct: talk more about what they offer. More features. More benefits.

While those things matter a lot, they’re rarely going to help you stand out in a crowded marketplace. That’s because people make decisions based on what a company offers… and how a company makes them feel.

That’s where branding makes all the difference. A strong brand gives people a reason to choose you over someone else. Long before they compare features, they’re deciding whether they believe in your business.

How do you create that one-of-a-kind brand feeling?

Every brand touchpoint you have with your audience is a chance to set the tone and evoke an emotional response.

To demonstrate this, check out our Waratah work page. Built for the logging industry, the brand purposefully feels authentic, tough and gritty. It’s taken over the top with ultra confident headlines that stake a claim. The whole brand was designed to make the audience feel geared up and ready to tackle tough jobs.

Infusing emotion appropriately and consistently across your brand will help you differentiate yourself in the marketplace, no matter the industry.

Here’s a look at how you can begin infusing emotion into your brand to make sure your creative hits the mark.

Start with your brand foundation.

Creating a strong brand impression begins with some foundational framework. At MindFire, we refer to it as a FireBrand process. Using research, stakeholder and consumer input, it’s an important step to ensure you’re sure what you’re putting into the marketplace is on target, no matter how it’s creatively packaged. Addressing your brand so it strikes the right attitude and tone is key to paving the path to more emotionally engaging content that resonates.

Personify your brand and infuse those traits consistently across campaigns.

People are attracted to brands the same way they are attracted to people – their style, sense of humor, wit and intelligence.

Start with developing your brand’s voice and style – is your brand gritty and confident? Comforting and warm? Bold and inviting?

Once you have determined your brand’s voice, you can start experimenting. Don’t just communicate an offer – challenge yourself to package it in an interesting or smart way. The offer is your worm, but your brand personality and style are your hook.

Get bold with your creative to evoke an emotional response. Then, measure and optimize.

When you’re creating marketing pieces with the goal of conversion, it can be tempting to play it safe. You want to say the right things, appeal to the right audience and avoid anything that feels too risky. On any given project, ask yourself: if I saw this ad in my everyday life, would I read it? If not, why?

The best-performing creative is rarely born from guesswork. It comes from a strong strategic foundation, followed by measurement, learning and optimization. It also comes with experience, knowing where your brand’s voice can go so that you can execute timely or trending assets.

The main point: people buy with emotion and then justify with logic.

Your audience may compare product features, pricing, service lines or capabilities. But before they get there, they often need to feel something first. Their eye needs to be caught by a super cool design layout or an interesting use of photography. Or maybe it’s a headline that got them to chuckle. Whatever that emotion was, it’s usually the front door to more interaction with your brand.

From there, they need to feel that your brand is credible and that you understand their challenge or need. And importantly, that your solution is the right move. That emotional connection is what helps turn awareness into interest, and interest into action.

Need help infusing your brand with the right personality traits? Drop a line and let’s chat.