Does your strategy build loyalty and emotional connections between your brand and your customers? Businesses that understand how customer relationships are like personal relationships are the ones who are often seen to succeed. In our era, after all, a good product alone is no longer good enough.
Most modern brands build relationships with customers via high-quality, highly relevant, personalised content. As such, a vague understanding of an audience is not enough. Marketing teams need data-driven insights—like detailed customer personas—in order to build stronger emotional connections, empathy, and brand loyalty. For the most effective businesses, it’s part of their culture; their authenticity is key to their success.
A brand that does this well is one on my client list, Molton Brown. They have proven time and time again that they are genuine, taking the time and effort to nurture relationships across multiple touch points. Here’s how.
Caring for staff
Back in October, I received an email from Molton Brown’s Digital Marketing Manager asking if DAC could update their hours to closed for Tuesday 19 October for all their Google Business Profile (GBP) listings across the UK. The reason? Molton Brown was having a “Wellness Day” for all staff.
I was stunned that a business would shut all its stores and miss a whole day of revenue—not because their staff didn’t deserve it, but because, let’s face it, most businesses would encourage employees to use personal time off instead. I was also impressed that customers were going to be informed via multiple touch points. Of course, one would expect the usual update on socials and emails (though we notice that many businesses miss this completely), but only a minority of brands update their local listings, either because it doesn’t occur to them, or they assume it will take too much time. DAC’s award-winning approach to local—comprising dedicated teams, bespoke strategies, and proprietary platforms—make that process almost effortless.
This gesture from Molton Brown exhibited its respect for all current and potential customers. More importantly, it showed staff—and the wider world—that Molton Brown value their people and not only revenue. It suddenly becomes more than a brand. It’s a story, an experience, a feeling—and studies have shown how emotions can influence people’s decisions. Harvard Business School professor Gerald Zaltman, for instance, showed that emotion drives brand loyalty in his book “How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market”.
Caring for co-workers
Just before Christmas, my colleague and I each received an email from Molton Brown that expressed their gratitude for DAC’s work over the year, wished us a happy Christmas, and included a thank-you gift for the holidays (yes, of course it was a Molton Brown gift!).
Small gestures like this can make a big difference. It was evident again how appreciation and kindness are instilled in Molton Brown’s culture and manifest in all their relationships. People respond well to brands who do this in a genuine manner.
Caring for customers
Not too long ago, I received an automated email from Molton Brown asking if I wanted to opt out from Mother’s Day reminders this year. They explained how they know Mother’s Day can be a sensitive occasion for some. If there was one brand I’d expect this to come from, it would be Molton Brown.
This message shows how this brand is serious about connecting with its customers on a deeper level. It demonstrated genuine sensitivity towards the topic as opposed to using contact lists solely for sales promotions. This is brand empathy in all its glory: It’s genuine, it’s authentic, and it’s reflected across multiple timelines, through different touch points, in different ways, across different people.
It gets better. This sincere, well-planned tactic also planted the seed for people considering the brand for Mother’s Day purchases—and prevented a potential surge of people unsubscribing if Mother’s Day proved to be an upsetting topic.
The stats behind the sentiment
Molton Brown’s omnichannel strategy is based on high-quality customer experiences that remain consistent across various channels. It’s a strategy that’s paying dividends. In fact, our recent local listings initiative for Valentine’s Day drove a +673% increase in requests for directions to stores and a +67% increase in direct traffic YoY. That included +10% growth in non-branded “Discovery” searches, representing the brand’s best opportunity to generate incremental revenue. Numbers like these show higher brand awareness and increased intent. The Molton Brown brand, in other words, is getting stronger.
If you’re struggling to devise, design, and distribute high-quality content that will help you stand out—or if you simply need to optimise your Google Business Profile listings—it’s time to get in touch with us. Our multi-talented team knows how to combine diverse disciplines into one cohesive approach to drive transformative growth. Let’s talk!
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