The billion dollar marketing question: How do you make people fall in love with your brand? First step is that it requires you to understand your customer not as a “target” but as a real human being, with values, aspirations, and a life story. While data-driven insights are important, we need to move beyond traditional focus groups. My guest today, Sandy Thompson, shares her successful career in building connections between brands and customers by taking an innovative approach to research. Take a listen as Sandy shares some delicious stories about how her unique eXploring insights have led to brand and positioning breakthroughs for her clients, and she offers advice on what works and what doesn’t when it comes to “customer insights.” I guarantee any marketer or CEO listening will not look at their brand strategy the same way again!
Key Takeaways:
- You cannot connect with a person and bring a brand into their life if you don’t have empathy for them, what they’re about, and who they are.
- Stop talking, stop asking questions, and start listening to the tone of voice, physical reaction, and what your client is saying beyond their words.
- Be honest with your clients. Trying to keep everything in the shadows will now allow empathy and trust to be cultivated and get honest answers.
“Everybody talks about insights, but at the end of the day, there’s only one or two truths that really resonate with people. It’s about finding those things that make people really sit up and take notice.” — Sandy Thompson
About Sandy Thompson:
Sandy Thompson, Founder, eXploring
Sandy began eXploring in 1997 when she was living in Asia. Being a young strategist in an unfamiliar part of the world and not speaking the local language, she needed to find a way to connect with her client’s consumers. She was knowledgeable enough, but was lacking the empathy and understanding it would take to help her clients grow their business.
eXploringwill take you from a state of knowledge to a place of understanding. It is a collaborative methodology that enables Marketers to hear the truth and fully commit to a conversation with their consumers. By removing the one way viewing mirror Brands and Consumers come face to face to discuss how they can drive growth. By eliminating the traditional discussion guide, Consumers can naturally lead the conversation to a place that is meaningful and motivating to them.
eXploringenables senior Marketers to engage with their consumers in a comfortable and social environment, facilitated by an open and collaborative business-building executive. We guide the conversation but we don’t control it, giving consumers the opportunity to speak the truth using language that makes sense to them.
Connect with Sandy:
Website: https://www.exploringbiz.com
Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy
Connect with Maria:
Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com
Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com
Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross
LinkedIn: Maria Ross
Instagram: @redslicemaria
Twitter: @redslice
Facebook: Red Slice
