Next Stop – Emotional Marketing 2.0

Do a Google search for “emotional marketing” and you’ll find a whole bunch of views on what it is and how to tap into it.

One of the best examples I’ve seen recently was the one put forward by Nick Desbarats at this weekend’s TEDx Ottawa event. Nick is one of the brains behind ChoiceBot and has some great ideas about how we make decisions, and how marketers can tap into that.

There’s no doubt that tapping into the heart and minds of customers is the Holy Grail for any marketer, and platforms like Nick’s are making it more of an exact science.

But imagine for a minute if we didn’t even need to make physical decisions – it was all captured subconsciously. This is where I feel what I call emotional marketing 2.0 has the ability to step in.

Emotion Isn’t a Choice

While there’s no doubt that the choices we make when presented with options gives marketers a clearer picture of what we want, it’s still semi-forced. By giving a limited amount of options, we’re saying to consumers they have to choose something from the path we’re placing them on.

The problem is, emotion isn’t a choice; instead, what we choose to do is based on emotion without limits and there’s a big difference.

The way we react to sounds; to images; to melodies; to voices; to stimulation – these are the emotional pre-actions that define where our actual emotions will take us next on the decision path. Not just choices to be ticked off, or eliminated by “Strongly Agree” to “Strongly Disagree” scales.

And this is where true emotional marketing 2.0 comes in.

Technology and Emotional Marketing 2.0

Consumer electronics giant Toshiba has released a series of laptops that work on face recognition software. Fellow Japanese company OKI has technology that allows increased cell phone security thanks to eye scanning software.

Imagine the possibilities if you combined the two.

Imagine browsing the web and adverts or pages open automatically because your eyes sparkle when you smile, and your eye and face scanning-enabled laptop has recognized the change in the emotional picture of your face. Once the page is opened, it continues to open other sub-pages automatically depending on where your eyes are focused and the reaction from the iris.

Without doing anything but look at the items that attract you, your emotional profile is building your marketing profile.

• Non-profits and charitable organizations can see whether you take action and donate from hard-hitting adverts or softer calls to action.
• Car manufacturers can see if you’re a speed freak or family guy.
• Food companies can see what foods make your mouth and eyes water and what ones make you grimace.

And these are just the basic ideas. Suddenly, every single advert and promotional web flyer is tailored to you and your needs. All from the simple knowledge of what makes you tick emotionally.

Is emotional marketing 2.0 a future pipe dream? Perhaps. But the basis of the technology is already there – all that’s missing is the emotion. And that’s where you come in.

Ready to let your emotions do the talking?

photo credit: movimente

**********************************************************************
Buy Danny's Book!
In his book Influence Marketing: How to Create, Manage and Measure Brand Influencers in Social Media Marketing, Danny Brown goes beyond social influence scoring and gives you a start-to-finish blueprint for making influence marketing work in your organization.

Co-authored with Sam Fiorella and featuring case studies, empirical evidence, digital workshops and much, much more, this book will redefine how you look at influence marketing.

Buy your copy of Influence Marketing: How to Create, Manage and Measure Brand Influencers in Social Media Marketing today. You can also buy from Barnes & Noble.

**********************************************************************