We make many decisions based on emotion. Even when we try to keep emotion out of the equation, it still plays a subconscious role. With this in mind, it's possible to use emotion to connect with customers, employees, and your audience to help build trust or convey the importance of your product or service offering. Where can you use emotion in your business? You can use it in your recruiting as well as your marketing. We've seen firsthand the impact of emotion and connection through businesses who have allowed their teams to share unique stories (specifically in video format) even when those stories are a little more personal.
Using Emotion to Connect in Recruiting
Being vulnerable doesn't mean lacking professionalism. And when you're vulnerable in your recruiting, you'll attract better fitting team members that align with your vision, mission, and values. Using emotion in your recruiting doesn't have to be directly related to recruitment. Your business doesn't have to be the star of the story. You may have a team member who has overcome adversity outside of the workplace and your business played a small role in helping him or her. Or maybe your team was a part of an emotional story like giving back to a local charity. The goal in using emotion in your recruitment is to tell the story first and connect your business to the story later.
Example of emotional storytelling for recruitment:
Using Emotion to Connect in Marketing
Emotion isn't just for recruiting. It can be used to help connect your product, service, or brand in marketing, as well. Have you ever shared an ad online that made you smile or made you shed an internal (or external) tear? Some might argue that advertisements that pull at heartstrings perform better than informational sales ads. For your business or organization, using emotion in marketing can be accomplished simply through testimonials or relatable stories on how your product or service changed the life of a customer. It's similar to the "present a problem, our business is the solution, your life is changed" equation that television commercials and other advertising has used for years except you are leaning more into the story and the emotion behind it. From using a strong script or soundbites from an interview to having the correct music track that evokes emotion, there are many techniques to increase your emotional appeal in your marketing. In video, you can use a combination of scripting, music, and visuals to really give an audience that "wow, I think I might cry" factor.
The Key is Being Real
Whether you are looking to use emotion to improve your recruiting or your marketing, the key is to be real. Customers can smell a phony from a mile away. You can script videos and ads, but they need to be portrayed in a realistic manner. To accomplish this, do your research. Confirm that this story can really happen. Then utilize great on-camera or voiceover talent to bring the emotional story to life. Or you can use real people and showcase real stories. Overall, we as consumers love a good story. We love to feel like we are a part of that story. And we like to make decisions based on emotion. From a heartfelt employment ad to a tear-jerking marketing spot, audiences want to play a role by joining the company or purchasing a product. Ready to start connecting your business to your audience through emotional storytelling?
