Brands and the Emotions they Evoke

Brands can evoke strong emotions ranging from excitement, anticipation and happiness to anxiety, trepidation and revulsion. 

For instance, if your spouse surprised you with a Maserati Quattroporte S for your birthday, how would you feel? If you won an all expense paid vacation in Branson, MO, how would you feel? If you won the same for Paris, France, how would you feel? If Donald Trump was elected president of the United States, how would you feel? If Hillary Clinton was elected president of the United States, how would you feel?

If you were told that your spouse was serving Spam for dinner, how would you feel? If dessert was Ben & Jerry's ice cream, how would that make you feel? If instead, you were going to The Capital Grille for dinner, what emotions would that evoke in you?

If you were required to watch South Park on television, how would that make you feel? If you were required to watch Downton Abbey instead, how would that make you feel? How about if you were required to watch FOX News? MSNBC? 

When I say Harley-Davidson, how does that make you feel?

How would receiving a Blackberry smartphone make you feel? How about an Apple iPhone?

What if I gave you a free carton of Marlboro Lights? How would that make you feel?

I hope I have made my point that strong brands evoke strong emotions. Do you know what emotions your brand evokes? Are these the right emotions to stimulate purchase and to reinforce loyalty? Or do they work against the brand in some way? Do the emotions the brand evokes vary by consumer segment? (The answer to this is usually "yes.")

I encourage you to determine the emotions your brand evokes for its different customer segments and then to amplify the emotions that have the most positive impact on the brand.