A parallel reality, let's promote positivism and empathy

Faced with this challenge and being faced with a “pure” marketing publication, I am not going to digress with the latest events that occurred in our country with the camps in favor of a real democracy, but they do serve as an argument for reflection for a conspiracy theory based in trying to breathe optimism into a society that unfortunately lacks it, always speaking from brands and organizations.

As John Locke said, “Men always forget that human happiness is a disposition of the mind and not a condition of circumstances.”

Every day we experience close situations of companies that close and leave family and friends without jobs, unemployment figures that rise, mortgage evictions, loans that cannot be paid, delayed payrolls, family dramas that move us and make us ask, do I can it happen to me? Will I be the next affected?

The loss of past well-being or the fear of future loss paralyzes us and defines the phases of any grief: first, denial with a clear and resounding “this cannot be happening to me,” then the phase of sadness and deep restlessness where aggressive reactions of anger and discontent occur, to later enter a phase of silent resignation of sadness and apathy that can lead to depression if you do not have sufficient emotional anchors to survive and finally the phase of acceptance and adaptation to a new reality, internalizing that things will never be the same as before.

When in another article Sebastián Fernández de Lara talked about humanizing brands, several reflections came to mind about how we could undertake this optimism from a point of view of their strategic direction.

There are some elements to reflect on when building an empathetic brand that breathes a halo of vitality and optimism into a depressed society in a loop of bad news after bad news.

It all starts with an organizational structure that promotes “empathic employer branding”, which generates attraction value for the best profiles but also provides the organization with a corporate identity that makes both employees and employers feel proud of belonging to the organization. itself, transmitting the idea of the best place to work.

We continue with the construction of the “empathic dialogue” between consumer and brand, fundamental in achieving the objective, since interaction (“let us remember that touch makes love”) is essential so that the brand is not seen as a dominant position but as a close element that in the end facilitates our vital transit.

We must build a story, Sidney Levy already said that “the greatest activity of marketing is providing and consuming stories. Stories of adversity, rejections, vital renewals and triumphs”, therefore, our brand must tell a vital story, whether of optimism or improvement that generates enough energy and gives a sense of purchase to the brand or service. Adidas' “Impossible is nothing” campaign was a clear example.

Define the “user or consumption experience” in each of the points of contact of the brand with the consumer, whether from the communication itself, from customer service or from the impact of “social media”.

Understanding that we are talking about “empathic innovations”, one of Apple's maximum beliefs is “putting technology at the service of the user and not vice versa”, the product must be useful from the practicality that the instruction confers, it helps me to become the easiest life. An interesting example is the Marcilla capsules for “old-fashioned” coffee makers, which represent an innovation.

Analyzing all the resources involved in Corporate Social Responsibility with a specific plan that fundamentally includes respect for human rights and the environment both internally and externally to the organization.

It is just an outline of some applications that can be generated from organizations and brands that help generate greater well-being for individuals and together we achieve a more optimistic movement that breathes a stream of vitality into a society like ours. .