Like any useful tool, Brand Empathy has potential downfalls that must be avoided. Before you start restructuring your marketing program to create an empathetic culture, be mindful of these risks:
Companies can put a lot of time and energy into cultivating Brand Empathy, but in the end, it is only your consumers who can grant you that status. Marketers can attempt to guide perception, but a culture of empathy cannot be purchased. It comes only through persistence and consistent demonstration that you care about your customers’ problems. First, you must understand those needs through research and sales force analysis – then, you can show your customers and prospects that your company sincerely cares.
The Harvard Business Review blog recently posted about “gift economies,” situations in which value is not determined by supply and demand, but from the relationship between giver, receiver, and its meaning in the community. This is an excellent point, reminding us that Brand Empathy should never involve a financial transaction. Demonstrating thought leadership and offering it to consumers is a way to build trust, but asking for money in return destroys it.
Marketers should not let their quest for Brand Empathy become Brand Apathy, a disproportionate focus on activities at the early stage of the buying cycle. Today’s B2B Marketers are faced with the challenge of creating compelling content for all stages of the buying cycle – not just the middle, as in the past. While it’s true that new attention and tools are needed to engage buyers before the cycle begins, mid-stage marketing tactics have not lost their value. They are still relevant and necessary.
Marketers who carefully avoid these pitfalls are more likely to enjoy the benefits of Brand Empathy for their company.
In conclusion of this series, we will share our ultimate guide to implementation of Brand Empathy with readers on Wednesday.
Image credit: 401(K) 2013
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