"I have learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Maya AngelouMarketing is a business of feelings and emotions because people are driven by emotions and feelings.
To be successful, a marketer must connect with the customer on an emotional level. Actually, to be successful, a business must connect with the customer on an emotional level; it is, however, typically the job of the marketers to establish that connection.
All of our decisions are driven by emotions. You buy the same soap as you have for years because it is a safe decision and no one at home will complain about it. You covet a sports car because it will make you look successful, or sexy, or at least not quite so middle-aged. You hire an assistant because you like him, he reminds us of yourself when you were his age, or he will bring skills to the team that will cover your backside.
Emotions can swing both ways. I won't go into a certain store because the person behind the counter was rude to me. I don't stop at Dairy Queen because my wife will chide me for not sticking to my diet. I found a different mechanic because the technicians were not honest with me the last time I asked questions about my car repair. I won't hire that accountant because I heard my neighbor got ripped off by him.
This is one of the reasons it is so important to address bad customer experiences as quickly and completely as possible. When people have a bad experience, and it isn't addressed quickly and sincerely, the tell people. When people hear bad things about a product or service, they tend to take it seriously. Fearing a bad experience themselves, they stay away or at least think twice before making a purchase.
The bottom line is that when you connect with a customer's emotions, you connect with them. Good or bad. Make them laugh. Make them cry. Make them feel something. But do it deliberately and with a strategy.
Otherwise, you may be the one crying.
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