Influx

Brand marketers seem to be clinging to the belief that just by saying they have an emotional connection with the consumer, they really do. It’s a word that’s evolved from the 1950s and 1990s and is now starting to look a little dated and over-used, a little C20th. It’s become a marketing Weasel Word and a crutch to avoid explaining the REAL relationship. It seems like you press a button on standard CMO and the word automatically spews out.

Given the current state of consumer control in media and brands, are we delusional in trying to believe that we can control it?

It seems like an area that really needs some new language and some serious scientific investigation.

What do we even mean by emotion?

Do we even mean emotion?

Do we have an idea of what our brand’s emotional connection with the consumer is?

Do we really believe we can truly deliver and live up to that emotion?

Do we know what type of emotional connection we want them to have?

Do consumers even have emotional connections to brands any more?

If they don’t, what do they have?

Are we kidding ourselves if we believe we can control those connections?

Here are some quotes from yesterday’s Fortune Innovation Forum that got us thinking.

“If your brand has an emotional resonance, not what it does practically. Emotional center – that’s where innovation comes from. Avon is not about a channel, but about selling hopes, dreams and empowerment to women. Beauty inside and out. You have to start with emotional resonance.”

“Taco Bell builds the big brand Taco Bell and connects with consumers in an emotional way about the Taco Bell brand. We are trying to sell branded product while at the same time selling the overall brand. Not just selling product, but also building the brand. Our tagline is “think outside the bun,” which is our differentiation.”

The quotes are from Being Reasonable who has been blogging from the Fortune event.