By: Nadine Worrell
Success in the agency world comes from staying on top of the newest industry trends and creating work that resonates with your audience. Get your audience talking during 2020 by finding the perfect balance between emotional appeal and facts or data.
AdAge quotes Jalilia Levesque, Head of Group Communications and PR, FF said, “PR strategy must be driven by emotion and have that human element in order to be more meaningful and lead to a growing focus on expert, local and enthusiastic micro-influencers, instead of macro-influencers.” (30, A. A. S. (2019, October 22). With the continuing growth of social media platforms- therefore more competition, it’s important for agencies to keep both their clients and their mission relatable. While the statistical measurability of a campaign is always important, what’s really going to stand out to the audience is the emotional appeal.
Agency’s need to distinguish themselves in the digital world, rather than just be another image people scroll past on Instagram. The world is full of technology, but humans are still human so combining research and facts with an emotional story can transcend a campaign or brand. An article from CommuniquePR stated, “emotional appeal can help start the conversation, but it can only get you so far” (Emotional Intelligence: Why it Matters to PR Pros. (2018, June 26). Agencies can better campaigns by finding ways to reach people from all aspects. Once figuring out the intended target audience and gathering facts, agencies can look for ways to gain emotional appeal from the audience. Knowing your audience should go deeper than demographics, relatability is key.
So how can agencies combine emotions and facts in a successful way? The 2020 Google Super Bowl LIV commercial is a strong example of how powerful utilizing both aspects can be. This commercial highlights how useful Google’s tools are with storing information, photos, notes, etc. and combined it with a beautiful story following an elderly couple’s life together. That emotional spin is a prime example of how utilizing facts and emotions can generate mass amounts of attention. This commercial currently has 61,974,296 views in counting on YouTube (Google. (2020, January 28).
Budweiser also successfully combined brand promotion with emotional advertising in their 2014 commercial, Someone Waits for You at Home, Don’t Drink and Drive campaign. The video focuses on the sentimental bond between a man and his dog and emphasizes that there is someone waiting for you at home, “make a plan to make it home, your friends are counting on you” (Adswithme.com. (2014, September 22). Budweiser was able to promote their brand while also using an emotional story line to make a powerful PSA about drinking and driving.
During 2020 agencies should look at how effective campaigns like these are for future work references. Facts and information don’t have to be delivered in robotic ways just because we live in a world full of technology. Using human connection and realistic stories result in engaging and impactful materials. Add that missing piece to your campaign by introducing emotion and promotion to your brand!
References
Adswithme.com. (2014, September 22). Someone Waits for You at Home, DON’T DRINK & DRIVE | Budweiser Ads. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56b09ZyLaWk
Emotional Intelligence: Why it Matters to PR Pros. (2018, June 26). Retrieved from https://www.communiquepr.com/emotional-intelligence-why-it-matters-to-pr-pros/14847/
Google. (2020, January 28). Loretta | Google Super Bowl Commercial 2020. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xSxXiHwMrg&feature=emb_title
30, A. A. S. (2019, October 22). Amp spotlight: Top PR trends to watch in 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020, from https://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/amp-spotlight-top-pr-trends-watch-2020/2208751
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