These past few days, various holidays have been celebrated around the world. Carnival ended in Brazil, marking the end of summer vacation. Meanwhile, China welcomed the Local New Year with grand celebrations and a holiday commensurate with the importance of the date. And last Saturday, February 14th, millions of people across much of the globe celebrated love and friendship with evident displays of affection for their loved ones.
Although this last holiday has also been heavily criticized as evidence of its profound commercialization, it’s also true that few people want to miss the opportunity to let their loved ones know. Consumers can establish a close relationship with brands or products that have earned their trust, albeit in different ways. For this reason, we’ve listed four signs of affection for certain companies.
Sustained Consumption. A common refrain in restaurant rescue reality shows is that troubled owners often defend themselves by saying their businesses are doing well because no one complains about their products and services. However, the show’s star responds that disgruntled customers simply never return. If your sales are steady and even increase during times of crisis, you’ve done a good job. If you’re unsure about the health of your business, start investigating.
Word-of-mouth advertising. The most valuable brands have one thing in common: people prefer them and recommend them positively. Among these top brands, we find various strategies for reaching their audience. Some brands dedicate huge budgets to communication and advertising campaigns to remain relevant. In Latin America, there are also brands that don’t do the same and rely on the affection of their consumers. Some examples are in the candy and soap categories. Delve deeper into your customers’ loyalty to your company.
Neutral to positive conversation. Before the advent of computer-based technologies, public discourse took place in the real agora; this included the street, the school, and public squares. In these places, people talked about everything that mattered to them. Now, this conversation also takes place in the digital space. When a trend emerges involving a brand, it’s usually for bad reasons; this is due to the way the algorithms for attracting and retaining interactions are designed. We recommend monitoring and controlling the conversation.
Spontaneous defense. If, despite the above, you have to face a reputation or trust crisis, you can take advantage of the situation to assess your brand’s health in terms of the affection your consumers have for it. Brands with the best metrics for customer appreciation tend to be fiercely defended by the public. However, this tactic shouldn’t be overused. Ultimately, each company is responsible for defending itself and making the necessary clarifications in each case. Avoid waiting for the worst to understand the current state of this issue.
In recent times, several voices have emerged pointing to the extremes of some brands’ efforts to cultivate affection or loyalty, attempting to equate companies with a loved one. While this topic is still evolving and arguments for and against can be made, the truth is that consumers can establish genuine connections with brands that offer more than just a simple value proposition. It’s true that close relationships with brands exist when consumers can identify with them.
At Acertiva, we understand this reality, which is why we offer brand satisfaction assessment services. This is crucial, as one cannot be both judge and jury. We put our team of analysts and strategic partners at your disposal to conduct your research on this matter. Take advantage of our free fifteen-minute consultation to get your next market research projects underway. Let’s write your next success story in LATAM together.
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