Brands have been told they have to “humanize” their communications to demonstrate a certain authenticity that leads to trust and then to loyalty—but that metric has been rather intangible, without any truly measureable attributes.
Until now—new research from customer engagement platform Braze seeks to identify the top emotional and functional attributes that make a brand feel human to customers. The Braze Brand Humanity Index, based on a commissioned study done by Forrester Consulting, is accompanied by the firm’s Brand Humanity Assessment tool, which provides an interactive resource for companies to measure their brand humanity and tangible business impact.
Where’s the humanity?
According to the study findings, only 60 percent of brand experiences result in human-like connections, and 40 percent aren’t delivering on the human brand promise. Moreover, 57 percent of consumers say that human communication would raise their likelihood of staying loyal to a brand, and 58 percent say human-like communications would raise their likelihood to make a purchase or use a brand’s service.
Consumers are looking for helpful, authoritative, responsive, thoughtful, and supportive communication from brands—and the results are strong connections that in turn create loyal customers. Survey participants ranked the following attributes as the top functional characteristics of brand humanity:
- Speaks like a regular person
- Values my time and business, and
- Communicates in the tone I prefer
“We believe The Brand Humanity Index represents everything Braze stands for as a company—human communication that connects emotionally with your customers drives the engagement, purchase behavior, and loyalty we’re all striving for,” said Myles Kleeger, president and chief customer officer at Braze, in a news release.
Functional drivers of brand humanity:
The evolution of technology allows brands to connect with consumers in a way previously not possible
The study finds that for brands to break through and create meaningful engagement, they need to converse with people in a manner that understands their needs and emotions. Marketers need to invent a new style of communication, that balances technology with a human approach. The Brand Humanity Index guides marketers and businesses to develop strategies that successfully bridge this connection.
The Brand Humanity Assessment tool is an interactive resource that helps brands determine their level of success in connecting with consumers on a human level. The tool measures how brands compare to the research findings in emotional and functional brand qualities to drive customer satisfaction and resulting ROI.
Download the complete study here.
Learn more about the Brand Humanity Assessment tool here.
The study is informed by over 3,000 global consumers and in-depth interviews with leaders at top brands.
