Create Better Customer Connections Through Emotional Marketing

The term “emotional marketing” does not do justice to the persuasive power that this marketing tactic grants your dealership. 

While it may sound very heartfelt—and it certainly can be, if that’s your goal—emotional marketing pertains to any type of persuasive messaging that’s used to tap into people’s emotions and form a connection.

Over the years, studies have shown that emotional marketing is a highly effective tool to have as part of your strategy because buyers are more impacted by how an ad makes them feel than what’s featured in the actual content. If possible, emotional marketing has become more effective than ever due to the significant changes that took place during 2020. Consumers wanted to see a strong commitment to community from brands, and as a result they paid particular attention to companies’ sensitivity to the social climate. 

Brands that ditched direct sales pitches in favor of unity-oriented educational content not only retained a higher volume of customers but also gained a new market of supporters who appreciated their commitment. 

Even as our society settles back into a routine, many 2020-inspired changes will remain—and the high positive response to emotional marketing is one of them. Of course, 2021 is a new year, and that leaves dealers needing to know, “What is the emotional tone that will resonate with my audience?” As you’re crafting your dealership’s upcoming marketing messaging, consider the following:

Center Your Business Around Your Community

During the tough times, brands promised to be there for communities, and consumers want reassurance that this level of support will not disappear as everything settles down. Your dealership is a part of your community—whether your business is brand-new or has been around for years—and it’s important that your website, ads and social media posts reflect your connection to your customers. Make it clear to your prospects that they are joining your extended family when they contact your dealership.

Connect with Real People 

Your ultimate goal is to sell more inventory, and that’s best done by forming genuine connections with your sales prospects. Real faces are as strong a selling point as new inventory models, and it’s important to balance your unit images with photos of your friendly sales team. With your customers’ permission, you may even consider sharing their stories and experiences with your dealership on your website, social media and even paid ads. 

Leverage Live Action

Video is a powerful tool in and of itself because it immediately grabs audience attention and provides a real-life look at your inventory and how your dealership operates. When you add emotional marketing, videos become a gold mine for engaging your sales prospects because you can form a connection with viewers in just minutes or seconds. Forbes reports that 95% of a video’s message is retained in people’s memory because it inspires specific emotions and reactions. Videos that center around humor, excitement, surprise or happiness are especially effective in motivating prospects to contact your dealership and make a purchase.

Create a Fantastic User Experience

Traditional emotional marketing focuses on words and images, but appealing to your audience goes beyond just grabbing their attention. An optimized user experience sends a subliminal message that you care about your customers, and it increases their confidence and gratitude in your brand. Subtle yet important ways to improve the user experience include responsive and simple web design, online tools that retain user preferences to personalize the next purchase and ensuring your dealership is easy to contact at any stage of the shopping process.

Provide End-to-End Customer Support

The power of human connection is invaluable, and the more outlets you offer for prospects to get in touch with you, the more connections you can form. In fact, creating a multi-channel support system that includes highly requested channels such as email, phone, text, live chat and direct messaging apps is its own form of emotional marketing because it inspires peace of mind in your shoppers that they can reach out to your dealership whenever they need information or assistance.

When we think of emotional marketing, we reflect on the saying “It’s not what you say, but how you make them feel.” With that piece of wisdom in mind, we are excited to see your dealership connect with your community and form long-lasting partnerships with your customers.

To learn more about the power of emotional marketing and how to form a strong connection with your audience, contact Dealer Spike today.