What does humanizing a brand mean? Brands are made and driven by humans, yet they’re still only seen as, well, brands.
It’s the marketers job to make sure consumers feel like they can have an emotional connection to the brands they purchase. That’s where humanization comes in.
Many times, the most obvious difference that consumers perceive from products when making a purchasing decision is price. However, other strategies exist to reach customers, like humanizing your brand with a singular voice that they can identify with.
It’s not about being seen not as a brand that wants to sell but as personality offering features that turn the shopping experience into something unique that creates engagement.
Why should brands be humanized?
People want to be treated as what they are: people. Brands who hear their issues and understand their emotions generating an atmosphere of trust and credibility.
The best strategy to connect with your consumer and create a stronger bond is humanizing your brand by giving it personality, closeness and familiarity, all of which start from the way a brand communicates. Behind every business idea, there is a following strategy with a propose.
How to achieve a brand with personality?
An excellent way to ensure that your brand has an accurate voice is to assign it a particular personality and style for delivery and interaction.
Imagine that your brand is one specific individual. How would you describe them? Are they a formal person? Someone with a sense of humor? Is a young person?.
Regardless of who’s responsible for your brands interactions on social media, its style and personality should be consistent as a single voice.
7 Ways to humanize your brand
There is no magic potion to humanize your brand, but there are some key points to follow that can help it show a kind and genuine side.
-
Be authentic and transparent to tell your story.
The key to humanizing your brand begins with knowing your identity: your values, your goals and things that matters to you. If the personality of the brand is not authentic, truthful and transparent, it will hardly build a close relationship with the consumers.
-
Create conversations with your followers.
Humanization is about talking, sharing and actively participating with friends-clients.
-
Choose the right tone for your communications.
You must have a defined tone, so when customers see or read some of your contents, they will feel that it’s the same “person” speaking to them.
-
Actively participate in social networks.
They are a space to share and generate closeness with clients. Participate by showing your human side at social activities.
-
Use content generated by users.
Instead of controlling each of your company’s publications, allow your users to express themselves. They will feel valued being part of a community.
-
Create an emotional link.
Emotional brands create relationships in the social environment and lasts longer over time. People want you to make them laugh, make them cry, do something that makes them think differently.
-
Put a face behind the brand.
If you have a meeting with your work team, share a couple of photos through a brainstorming on the board or having fun with a bag of candy or popcorn, this is one of the best ways to humanize your brand.
Great examples of brand humanization
1. Starbucks.
The franchise giant once created a corporate video with a single goal: put a face on the coffee. By showcasing its workers, it made the brand young, relatable and, most important of all: approachable.
2. Netflix.
As a power player in the video streaming and content creation business, Netflix is in a great position to take advantage of user-created content. People love their shows and love showing that love, and Netflix knows how to create valuable posts out of that love.
3. Apple.
Once upon a time, Apple ran a series of now-iconic television ads. Two people in a white background became literal personifications of both generic PC and its Mac line of computers. With this, the company created a visually identifiable personality for its brand.
en Mérida, Yucatán