Value of Business EQ and Signs of a Brand Lacking It
Martha Marchesi
It’s clearly evident that not all brands commit to and practice compassionate business with their prospects and customers.
What they might not know or care about is that when a company lacks a demonstrative Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ) there is a higher risk of it being negatively impacted in the marketplace, if not immediately and significantly, then certainly over time.
It’s a troublesome area about which Martha Marchesi is passionate.
Marchesi is the CEO at JK Design — a branding authority with a client roster that includes notable companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Philips, Priceline, Prudential, ADP and Tiffany & Co.
“Emotional intelligence, a.k.a. emotional quotient or EQ means creating positive customer experiences,” she says, “and that starts with creating positive feelings through their communications.”
She elaborates on what this means in practice.
“Brands with high EQ understand the critical need for emotional storytelling and how to do it well. This allows them to connect with customers on a much deeper level than companies that rely on salesy marketing language or dry business-speak.”
When this is occurring, certain characteristics that are revealed.
“They know what they stand for and can effectively communicate the why behind what they do for their customers,” Marchesi says. “They act with integrity and communicate authentically. They are human brands (in that) they understand and communicate with their customers on a human level. That means not only infusing their messaging with emotion, but also listening to their customers and responding to their concerns.”
Leaders like this first invest the time, money and collaborative brain power to learn the roadmap their organizations likely should follow.
“They've done the research to understand what’s most important to their customers on both rational and emotional levels,” Marchesi says, because she adds, “That enables them to successfully connect with the hearts and minds of their target audiences and not just their wallets.”
Executive leadership coming to see the importance and value of EQ to a business’ financial wellbeing can often be a challenge. It may not, for many decision makers, be considered a core business principle and driver of revenue and profits. That however doesn’t necessarily align with studies.
“First, high EQ is actually correlated with high growth,” Marchesi explains. “One recent study — Brand EQ Report 2022 Edition by Carat — found that brands that ranked highest for EQ consistently outperform the market in their stock valuations.”
Companies know that relationship quality is important to their brands even if they don’t always conduct business in a way that values and respects it.
Understanding the human beings behind the paying customers or prospective customers is vitally important.
“By showing that they understand their target audiences’ values, desires and frustrations, brands that use emotional storytelling inspire the kind of loyalty that sustains customer relationships for a lifetime,” Marchesi asserts, adding, “And they continue to attract and convert new prospects in the same way.”
In short, “EQ can drive big wins at both ends of the sales funnel,” she argues.
Company leaders that don’t quite embrace EQ as a foundational principle and commitment may do so for different reasons.
“The most typical reason is a reluctance to change,” Marchesi says, elaborating on why this is so, “Creating compelling, emotionally driven messaging requires a significant effort and it’s easier to continue using the same bland brochures and sell sheets. And some companies simply don’t think it's important. They believe that emotional storytelling is marketing fluff that’s not worth investing time or resources in.”
This type of thinking and rigid mindset, she says, is more prevalent in the certain area.
“We hear this most often from companies in the B2B space,” Marchesi says. “There is a common misconception that emotion has no place there. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, a global LinkedIn survey showed that 69% of B2B marketers see B2B purchasing decisions as emotionally driven as B2C decisions.”
The reason is logical.
“After all, B2B customers are people first and businesspeople second. And just like everyone else, they make decisions based not only on products and prices but also on how they feel about a brand,” Marchesi says.
There are signs, she has found, that prove a brand lacks EQ, leading to a price being paid for that shortcoming.
“Lack of empathy in messaging. Brands that fail to show that they understand the emotions, concerns and needs of their customers in their messaging may come across as cold, indifferent or out of touch,” Marchesi says, explaining that, “This can lead to a weakened brand image and outright customer dissatisfaction, which can result in bad publicity that spreads quickly across social media.”
Deciding that social awareness and concern matter is smarter business.
“Companies can demonstrate empathy in their messaging by addressing customer pain points and using storytelling to highlight relatable customer experiences. This can create stronger bonds with their audiences and generate positive buzz online,” Marchesi says.
A second sign of lacking business EQ is “an overemphasis on features, not benefits,” because customers care more about the benefits of a product or service — the ‘what’s in it for me’ factor — than its nuts-and-bolts features,” she says. “So brands that focus too much on product attributes and technical specifications should shift to communicating how those features will improve customers' lives.”
Compassionately caring about how customers feel isn’t optional if a company’s mission is to build trust, strong relationships and reputation.
“Disregard for customer feedback,” is another sign of lacking EQ, Marchesi says. “Brands that dismiss or outright ignore customer feedback are brands that lack EQ and they often struggle to develop a loyal following.”
