CAPITALIZING ON AN EMOTIONAL CONNECTION WITH FOOD

At Merlot Marketing, one of the categories we serve is the agriculture/food sector, an industry that is stirring lots of conversation right now across the nation.  From organic to gluten-free, paleo, farm-to-fork and so on…there are many food movements brewing. As a whole, consumers care again about where their food comes from and we are capitalizing on this for our clients.

According to a 2012 study by Edelman/StrategyOne, 70 percent of consumers responded that they are willing to change their consumption habits if it can make tomorrow’s world a better place to live.  50 percent of respondents say the foods they eat make a statement about their personal values.

We know as marketers that tapping into one’s values is golden. When people buy products it is largely tied to an emotional decision. According to Psychology Today, advertising research reveals that emotional response to an ad has far greater influence on a consumer’s reported intent to buy a product than does the ad’s content – by a factor of 3-to-1 for television commercials and 2-to-1 for print ads.  Antonio Damasio, professor of neuroscience at the University of Southern California, also argues that emotion is a necessary ingredient to almost all decisions. When we are confronted with a decision, emotions from previous, related experiences affix values to the options we are considering.

So, how can you tie an emotional experience to your brand, product or service? All brands when properly uncovered have some emotional connection that can be made. How have you used emotion in marketing? I would love to hear from you.