You Break It, You Buy It: Why Trust Matters Most When It Comes to Consumer Data
A $60 billion plunge in market value in less than 48 hours. A $6 billion drop in Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth. Massive user disengagement and a surge in app deletions. In the aftermath of 2018’s Cambridge Analytica data breach, Facebook had ample evidence that it was facing a major crisis. Yet, perhaps the most telling figure related to the […]
Your Brand is More Than Your Logo
In 2010, psychologists T. Bettina Cornwall and Anna McAlister published research entitled “Children’s Brand Symbolism Understanding” in the journal Psychology and Marketing. In the months that followed, public outcry would obscure many of their study’s most interesting outcomes. The experiment assessed 38 Australian children between the ages of 3 and 5, asking them if they […]
The Rise of the Social Brand: What Instagram Reveals About Connecting with Customers
The baby-blue bears were first sighted in 2016. They appeared in Instagram posts from no fewer than three Kardashian sisters. Soon, Vanessa Hudgens, Emily Ratajkowski, and a host of other celebrities supplied their own Instagram endorsements. In the months that followed, SugarBear Hair vitamins would become the “bestselling hair vitamin online,” – a distinction the […]
5 Ways Social and Behavioral Sciences Can Transform Your Marketing
Richard Thaler has news for you: Your brand probably isn’t selling to Spock. A founding father of behavioral economics, Thaler has dedicated his career to documenting the irrational quirks of human psychology (to which the sensible Vulcan hero would be immune). For too long, he argues, economists and executives alike have ignored the impact of […]
What Neuromarketing Can Tell You About Customers
The tumor appeared near the front of Elliot’s brain, crowding a region called the ventromedial frontal lobe. When doctors removed it, his life fell to pieces. Following his surgery, Elliot’s once-successful career plummeted, jeopardized by inexplicable errors of judgment. He eventually lost his job and was unable to find another. His happy marriage disintegrated, as […]
5 Common Mistakes in Building Brand Trust
In July of 2016, Wells Fargo was the envy of many financial institutions. Relatively untarnished by the post-Recession ire directed at many of its peers, the company’s stock had surged 26% since the depths of financial crisis. Merely 15 percent of consumers felt negative sentiments towards the brand, while 60 percent viewed the brand positively. […]
Achieving Trust Through Action: How to Build Brand Trust in 7 Steps
It was just days before the wedding, and Jay was poised to attend shoeless. To make matters worse, he was the best man. He’d ordered the shoes the groom had selected from Zappos, but they were routed to the wrong location in a cruel postal error. When he called UPS, begging them to reverse their […]
Successful Brands Begin with Strong Values
There is a heightened focus today on how to align touch points in every channel to create a powerful and seamless brand experience. However, despite all the talk about marketing and IT converging, Big Data and the like, there is one inescapable fact that must be considered in order to create a truly meaningful omni-channel […]
The Psychology of Trust
It All Starts At Home Erik Erikson’s work is taught in nearly every introductory psychology course. His stages of psychosocial development call out trust as the earliest psychosocial crisis. As infants, we must learn to either trust the world around us or to distrust it. This trust or distrust is learned through the environment in […]
Higher-Purpose Branding
IBM is an example of a company with integrity and authenticity, and as the best business leaders know, these are the two words that most draw any of us to a great brand. IBM’s mission is to show us how technology can improve the world. British retailer Marks & Spencer promotes more than the goods […]
Nikestrong: Brand Opportunity for Nike Post-Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong’s conniving selfishness left Livestrong—his cancer-fighting charity and only redeeming legacy—in an uphill struggle for survival. We don’t expect everyone to be perfect — stuff happens. But we expect people — particularly heroes and leaders — to be authentic and honest. It’s fundamental to human social interaction. Our very survival hinges on trust in others.
Long Sleep the King
When Burger King dethroned their creepy plastic-headed mascot last summer, nary a tear was shed throughout the realm. Females cheered, moms rejoiced and marketers wondered, “What took them so long?”
