THE BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
A COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION OF HOW TO CREATE,
SUSTAIN AND MEASURE ULTIMATE BRAND RELATIONSHIPS
P.1
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.3
IN SEARCH
OF A NEW
PARADIGM
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.5
08
MARKET DYNAMICS
A REAL POWER SHIFT
14
DEFINING BRAND INTIMACY
INSIGHTS REVEAL A NEW MARKETING ORIENTATION
This study explores the changing world around us and
the need to understand a marketplace that evolves and
26
BUILDING BRAND INTIMACY
FUELING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEOPLE AND BRANDS
adapts quickly. The way we choose products, access
information and make decisions has rendered a new
landscape before us that requires a different perspective
34
BRAND INTIMACY ARCHETYPES
IDENTIFYING THE MARKERS
and new tools to effectively navigate.
48
BRAND INTIMACY GAP
BENCHMARKING MARKETING EXECUTIVES
56
SCIENCE OF INTIMACY
SHAPING OUR CONTEXT AND APPROACH
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.7
Brand, technology and the science of decision making
are at the core of an emerging power shift. Few
marketers today would argue against the idea that
MARKET
DYNAMICS
the world of marketing has been profoundly altered.
Technology has transformed the way brands thrive,
resulting in pervasive, information-rich and on-demand
experiences. Brands are also increasingly defined
and shaped by their users. How a brand interfaces,
influences and stays relevant nowadays requires an
altogether new approach and a different makeup. And
advancements in neuroscience and psychology have
fundamentally changed our understanding of how
human beings interpret, judge and make decisions.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.9
BRAND
TODAY
TECHNOLOGY
TOMORROW
BRANDS HAVE CHANGED DRASTICALLY. THE RULES OF THE PAST — THE
ONE-WAY PUSH APPROACH FROM PRODUCT TO USER AND THE ROLE OF A
CATCHY NAME, LOGO OR TAGLINE — DEFINE ONLY PART OF THE CHALLENGE
FOR MARKETERS TODAY.
IN OUR INTERCONNECTED AND INCREASINGLY GLOBALIZED LIVES,
EXPECTATIONS HAVE BECOME ELEVATED, DEMANDING AND IMMEDIATE.
Users play an increasing role in establishing the makeup,
priorities and behavior of brands. At an ever-accelerating pace,
the feedback loop between what a company promises and how
a brand performs is shortening, and both the collective and
individual voices of the consumer are clearly resonating.
A prime example is the device inside our pockets that provides
access to our entire ecosystem. Personalized and localized features
filter our preferences for how we interface with information,
entertainment, work, family and friends. We consume differently,
more frequently and more broadly, and we know that we are
influenced in new and meaningful ways.
3,500 MARKETING MESSAGES A DAY ARE
WHAT AN AVERAGE PERSON RECEIVES 1
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
70% OF CONSUMERS TRUST
RECOMMENDATIONS FROM FRIENDS BUT
ONLY 10% TRUST ADVERTISING 2
#1 BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR CMOS
IS DATA EXPLOSION 3
CONNECTED MOBILE DEVICES WILL
EXCEED THE WORLD’S POPULATION B
Y
4
THE END OF 2013
P.11
BRAIN
NOW
WE KNOW MORE ABOUT HOW WE THINK AND PROCESS
INFORMATION THAN EVER BEFORE.
Science is revealing more details about how the brain functions
and, specifically, about how we make decisions. In “Thinking,
Fast and Slow,” Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman described
how most human decisions are made emotionally, and the role of
reason is primarily to justify those decisions after the fact.
Market dynamics have created a new reality, yet many
marketers use the same constructs and approaches
developed decades ago. With the seismic shifts in
brand, technology and neuroscience under way, we
need to find better, smarter ways to respond to our
evolving world.
70,000 — NUMBER OF THOUGHTS
THE HUMAN BRAIN PRODUCES O
N AN
5
AVERAGE DAY
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
UP TO 90% OF THE DECISIONS W
E MAKE
ARE BASED ON EMOTION 6
P.13
Market dynamics are occurring at a dizzying pace and
DEFINING
BRAND
INTIMACY
can be quite disorienting and overwhelming to keep
pace with. Luckily, however, some things remain exactly
the same. A fundamental truth is that our relationships
continue to define us and we desire to create enduring
tangible and intangible connections. We seek intimacy
— that feeling of being in a close, personal association
and belonging together. It is an essential, familiar and
affective connection with others that results in a bond
formed through knowledge and experience of the other.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.15
Detailing brand intimacy requires a broad investigation of theories,
approaches, models and doctrines from psychologists, scientists
and marketers who have published on topics related to intimacy,
decision making and brand engagement. From psychologists Erik
Erikson and Kahneman to Kevin Roberts and his Lovemarks, all
were crucial to our understanding before we could venture further
with our study.
BRAND INTIMACY:
WHEN A PERSON AND A BRAND
WHO
ACHIEVE A FUSED IDENTITY,
WHAT
CREATING FULFILLMENT, DRIVING
WHY
PERFORMANCE AND LASTING VALUE.
WHY
WHY
This explanation was heavily influenced by the understanding that
“intimacy is the ability to fuse your identity with someone else’s
without the fear that you’re going to lose something yourself.” 7
Erikson’s articulation of intimacy is significant because it
identifies the two elements that are essential to understanding
brand intimacy.
SENSE OF SECURITY
This describes the lack of fear — the sense of security
people develop in a relationship through experiences over
time that enables them to let down their guard and be more
open to sharing.
SENSE OF FULFILLMENT
The idea of fused identities describes a relationship in
which there is a close personal connection and a feeling
of belonging together.
The ability to fuse — with another person or with a brand — is a
potent goal that offers potentially substantial rewards. This is a
profound end state for brands to strive for.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.17
1.
BRAND INTIMACY PARALLELS HUMAN INTIMACY
A key insight revealed in our research is that intimate brand relationships appear to closely
mirror intimate human relationships. This suggests that people have a standard way they
develop significant relationships, be it with another person or a brand, and that people form
real and deep attachments to brands the way they do with people.
2.
There are specific and distinct stages one must progress through when forming brand
intimacy. While the amount of time it takes to reach brand intimacy may vary, the stages are
the same regardless of brand, culture or geography. Similar to human relationships, there is
risk at every stage that the relationship could end; however, the deeper the relationship and
the higher the stage it progresses to, the greater the potential for forgiveness.
KEY RESEARCH
FINDINGS
The real core of MBLM’s insights comes from more than
250 global consumers participating in both moderated and
unmoderated forums for 10 weeks. Approximately 750 hours of
discussion and direct involvement creating more than 20,000
stories helped us form the foundation of brand intimacy.
Primary research revealed five essential findings that have helped
shape our understanding of brand intimacy:
BRAND INTIMACY HAPPENS IN STAGES
3.
FIVE MAIN ARCHETYPES DELIVER BRAND INTIMACY
We have discovered five common archetypes that manifest or best dimension brand
intimacy: indulgence, nostalgia, image, enhancement and ritual. These archetypes are
based on the way or ways a brand best meets important human needs/wants. Interestingly,
a brand can be intimate across more than one archetype, and global brands can be
associated with different archetypes in different countries.
4.
BRAND INTIMACY IS RARE
Today, brand intimacy appears to occur among a minority of consumers. Brand intimacy,
although attainable, is rarified. During our screening process to find appropriate research
respondents, nearly 4,000 consumers were considered. Among them, approximately 24%
of people demonstrated the potential of having brand-intimate relationships.
5.
TECHNOLOGY ENABLES BUT ALSO CAN DIMINISH BRAND INTIMACY
Technology facilitates brand intimacy but can also help harm or end the relationship. Most
consumers seem to take it for granted that brands use technology to reach them. However,
technology can also be depersonalizing or misused to overcommunicate or diminish trust.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.19
BRAND INTIMACY
PERFORMANCE
Next, we wanted to understand whether brand intimacy results in
better, more profitable returns. After reviewing our research, we
selected the most exemplary intimate brands. We then calculated
the profitability of these brands over a three-year period, 20102012, as the percentage of net income over net sales. And we did
the same for the S&P 500, the Fortune 500 and Interbrand’s Top
100 Brands. Over the past three years, the most intimate brands
exceeded the profitability of the Interbrand Top 100 Brands by
7%,8 the S&P 500 by 17% 9 and the Fortune 500 by 71%.10
We are planning to further dimension and track brand intimacy
with an annual global quantitative survey. The survey will cover
additional countries to provide a projectable global sample, while
also enabling us to more deeply explore the impact of different
national cultures on the ways people form relationships with
brands. At a base level, the research will identify how common
brand intimacy is, detailing both its incidence and the average
number of intimate brand relationships people have. Our goal is
to quantify the business impact of brand intimacy, substantiate
the stages of brand intimacy development, determine the
prevalence and impact of the brand intimacy archetypes, identify
the world’s most intimate brands, and distinguish the key drivers
of each brand’s intimate relationships.
3-YEAR PROFITABILITY
BRAND INTIMACY INDEX PERFORMANCE ADVANTAGE
0
4
7
11
BRAND INTIMACY INDEX
INTERBRAND TOP 100
BRANDS (VALUE)
+7%
S&P 500
+17%
FORTUNE 500
+71%
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.21
CONSUMER
PERCEPTIONS ON
BRAND INTIMACY
“SOUTHWEST HAS EARNED MY TRUST, EARNED MY LOYALTY AND
IS DESERVING OF BOTH. EVEN WITH A NEGATIVE EXPERIENCE THAT
HAPPENED LAST YEAR, I FEEL NO QUALMS ABOUT CONTINUING TO
DO BUSINESS WITH THEM. THE SITUATION WAS HANDLED IN
A MANNER THAT, EVEN THOUGH I DID NOT LIKE THE OUTCOME, WAS
EXPLAINED IN A WAY THAT I UNDERSTOOD WHY THEY WERE TAKING
THE STANCE THEY DID. THEY CONTINUED TO ASK FOR MY BUSINESS
EVEN DURING THAT TIME, AND I FEEL THAT THEY HAVE MORE THAN
EARNED IT. THERE IS REALLY NOTHING THEY CAN DO THAT WOULD
MAKE ME FEEL MORE LOYAL TO THEM THAN I ALREADY AM, SHORT
OF DOING RIDICULOUS THINGS LIKE FREE FLIGHTS FOR NO REASON.”
- U.S. CONSUMER
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.23
“I LOVE THE NABISCO BRAND FULLY, AND NABISCO LOVES ME BACK BY
MAKING ME FEEL GOOD WITH EACH BITE I TAKE! IT RETURNS ITS LOVE
TO ME THROUGH GOODNESS OF TASTE.”
- U.S. CONSUMER
“I’M A FAN OF BORUSSIA MÖNCHENGLADBACH (A SOCCER TEAM IN
THE GERMAN FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION), AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES
OFFER ME COMPLETELY NEW AND BETTER WAYS TO KEEP IN
CONTACT WITH THE CLUB TO LET ME KNOW TO ORDER TICKETS, ETC.”
- GERMAN CONSUMER
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.25
BUILDING
BRAND
INTIMACY
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
Brand relationships, like human relationships, are never
static. They are in a constant state of flux, moving closer
together or further apart based on every experience.
Yet, most existing models and frameworks focus on the
opportunities and benefits of progress and achieving
a heightened or improved state. Few, if any, marketing
constructs effectively define the drivers of growth and
the risks of decline with equal attention and balance.
P.27
THE i2i MODEL
The i2i Model is a simplified depiction of the mature stages of
development in a relationship between a person and a brand.
Intimacy (fusing of identities and lack of fear) and indifference
(irrelevance and total disinterest) operate as conditions that
act on the relationship. They create a polarity in the model:
positive experiences pull the relationship closer toward
intimacy, while negative experiences push the relationship
down toward indifference. The model builds on the fact that
anyone who reaches the stage of sharing has already passed
through a series of earlier stages, including awareness,
consideration, preference and purchase.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
INTIMACY
FUSING
BONDING
SHARING
INDIFFERENCE
P.29
FUSING
Fusing is when a person and a brand are inexorably linked
and CO-IDENTIFIED. In this stage, the identities of the person
and the brand begin to merge and become a form of mutual
FULFILLMENT and expression. This is the stage where brand
intimacy is achieved.
STAGES
While a person and a brand can advance or decline through the
stages, we believe the deeper the relationship and the higher the
stage of progression, the greater the potential for forgiveness.
BONDING
Bonding is when an attachment is created and the relationship
between a person and a brand becomes more significant and
COMMITTED. This is a stage of acceptance and the establishment
of TRUST. Should this stage advance, it would move to fusing.
SHARING
Sharing is when the person and the brand engage and interact.
There is a knowledge being shared and the person is INFORMED
about what the brand is all about, and vice versa. At this stage,
attraction occurs through reciprocity and ASSURANCE.
Should the relationship advance, it would evolve to bonding.
Should it decline, it would likely cause disengagement fueled
by indifference.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.31
A CONDITION
Brand intimacy isn’t something you automatically arrive at; it’s
a condition that is fostered and nurtured. Each of our stages
is based on the way people form intimate attachments and is
designed to further someone up the journey toward intimacy.
However, even when one arrives at intimacy, it can continue to be
deepened and made more meaningful throughout the entirety of
the relationship. At the same time, we acknowledge at any step
along the process, a person can become indifferent.
ADVANTAGES
Brand intimacy offers many advantages as a new paradigm. In
addition to addressing changing market needs and considering
the way people make decisions today, it is also created to
integrate with existing marketing approaches and provide a new
platform for understanding the relationship between people and
brands on a deeper level. Other core factors related to brand
intimacy include:
NICHE
The i2i Model focuses on three stages where we feel we are
most able to impact the creation of brand intimacy. The first
stage, sharing, already assumes a relationship with the brand.
This allows for the traditional measures of brand performance
and value that offer a range of essential and specific diagnostics.
These can remain part of a marketer’s arsenal for assessing
and planning.
ELEVATED
The goal of brand intimacy is higher order. It is fusing and
becoming co-identified. It results in a meaningful and reciprocal
relationship. This is a more advanced, holistic ambition than most
other branding approaches that foster loyalty or some form of
preferred usage. It elevates the marketing conversation beyond
behaviors to root causes.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.33
BRAND
INTIMACY
ARCHETYPES
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
As we investigated brand intimacy more deeply, we
wanted to find consistencies that were underlying
or contributing toward creating it. Our research
revealed an interesting finding: five markers were
consistently present and realized among brands that
achieved intimacy with consumers most often. We call
these archetypes, and they may be key to effectively
strengthening a brand’s ability to deliver intimacy.
P.35
ARCHETYPES:
INDULGENCE
NOSTALGIA
IMAGE
ENHANCEMENT
RITUAL
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
The archetypes appear to link at the most essential
level with individual psyches and to foster patterns and
connections that can lead to intimacy. As we continued
to explore their role and better understand the range
of archetypes, we discovered that the brands most
successful at delivering intimate relationships with
consumers mastered at least one, and sometimes all,
of these archetypes. For that reason alone, they merit
further understanding.
We explored brands that were most effective at
establishing intimacy and focused on what consumers
described in detail.
P.37
INDULGENCE
Indulgence creates a close relationship centered around pampering
and gratification. Indulgence can be occasional or frequent and is
based on the physical and emotional forms of intimacy.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
“WHEN I’M AT HOME, MY BOSE HEADPHONES ARE OFTEN RIGHT NEXT
TO MY PC. WHEN I WANT TO HEAR MY MUSIC, I WILL CONNECT MY
HEADPHONES TO MY PERSONAL COMPUTER. IT IS A DELIGHT FOR
MY EARS.”
- JAPANESE CONSUMER
P.39
NOSTALGIA
Nostalgia builds on the emotional and cognitive forms of intimacy
in order to establish a bond between the person and the brand
that is focused on memories of the past and the warm, poignant
feelings associated with them. These are often brands a person
has grown up with.
“MY FATHER WAS MY IDOL, AND I ALWAYS WANTED TO DO EVERYTHING
JUST LIKE HIM. IT WAS HIS CHOICE WAY BACK WHEN TO GET A
4RUNNER, SO I LOVED THE CAR EVEN MORE. BUT WHEN I GOT OLDER
AND IT WAS STILL RUNNING, IT WAS A NO-BRAINER THAT A TOYOTA
WOULD BE MY FIRST CAR. THEN, WHEN I WAS OLD ENOUGH TO BUY
MY OWN CAR, IT WAS AGAIN WITHOUT A THOUGHT THAT TOYOTA WAS
THE ONLY WAY TO GO. WHEN I MET MY HUSBAND, HE WAS DRIVING
A TOYOTA. WHEN I GOT PREGNANT AND NEEDED A BIGGER CAR,
TOYOTA WAS THE ONLY THOUGHT IN OUR MINDS. WHEN WE NEEDED A
COMMUTER CAR FOR MY HUSBAND BECAUSE OF GAS PRICES, TOYOTA.”
- JAPANESE CONSUMER
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.41
IMAGE
Image builds on the emotional and experiential forms of intimacy
in order to create a relationship where the person uses the brand
to project a specific lifestyle aspiration.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
“MANY COMPANIES BUILD EXCELLENT TIMEPIECES, BUT I HAPPEN
TO LOVE ROLEX WATCHES THE BEST … ROLEX IS THE EPITOME OF A
LUXURY WATCH AROUND THE WORLD — WHETHER IN DUBAI, NEW
YORK OR BADEN-BADEN.”
- GERMAN CONSUMER
P.43
ENHANCEMENT
Enhancement enables improvement and makes life easier and
more convenient. People become better through use of the brand
— smarter, more attractive, more effective, etc. This is primarily
a cognitive form of intimacy but can also involve physical and
emotional considerations.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
“I LOVE JIMMY CHOO SHOES; THEY REPRESENT A BIT OF AN
ACHIEVEMENT TO ME. I ALWAYS DREAMED OF HAVING REALLY GREAT
HIGH-END DESIGNER SHOES, BUT I COULD NEVER AFFORD THEM.
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS I FINALLY GOT TO A POINT WHERE I
COULD, AND I BOUGHT A FEW PAIRS OF JIMMY CHOOS THAT MAKE
ME FEEL GREAT WHEN I WEAR THEM. THEY’RE GOOD-LOOKING, FEEL
GOOD AND MAKE ME FEEL LIKE I DID WELL BY BUYING THEM.”
- U.S. CONSUMER
P.45
RITUAL
Ritual is when a person ingrains a brand into his or her daily
actions. This form of intimate relationship is more than just
habitual behavior — ritualization is when the person mindfully
and purposefully makes brand use a vitally important part of his
or her daily existence. It aligns to the experiential and emotional
types of intimacy.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
“I AM AN IPHONE ADDICT. MY IPHONE IS A DAILY PART OF MY LIFE.
I USE IT FOR EVERYTHING — FROM MAPS TO PRICE-CHECKING TO
EMAIL AND TEXT MESSAGING. I USE IT FOR BOTH BUSINESS AND
PERSONAL REASONS. I DON’T HAVE INTERNET SERVICE AT MY HOUSE,
SO I EVEN USE IT AS A WI-FI HOTSPOT WHEN I WANT TO USE MY
LAPTOP. THIS IS MY THIRD IPHONE, AND I WILL ALMOST SURELY GET
ONE FOR MY NEXT SMARTPHONE AS WELL.”
- U.S. CONSUMER
P.47
BRAND
INTIMACY
GAP
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
We surveyed more than 75 senior marketing executives
(CMOs, SVPs and VPs of marketing) representing a
range of mostly large and midsize companies — both
B2B- and B2C-focused — in order to get their opinions
regarding the importance of brand intimacy.
Few marketing executives feel they are effectively
leveraging brand intimacy.
P.49
MARKETERS SEE INTIMACY AS
IMPORTANT BUT DIFFICULT
THERE ARE MULTIPLE CHALLENGES
IN ESTABLISHING INTIMACY
Building intimate relationships with customers is extremely
important, but most marketers don’t think they are doing a
good job at creating them.
Although considered important, brand intimacy presents many
challenges today for marketers.
“WE HAVE A HORRIBLE TRACK RECORD AT CREATING INTIMACY. WE
NEED TO IMPROVE IN ALL ASPECTS IN THE COMING YEARS.”
“KEY CHALLENGES ARE RESOURCES NEEDED TO CUSTOMIZE
CONTENT AND MANAGE INDIVIDUAL COMMUNICATIONS/
INTERACTIONS.”
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
BIGGEST CHALLENGES FOR CREATING INTIMACY
87
%
FEEL THAT CUSTOMER INTIMACY IS
EITHER VERY IMPORTANT OR EXTREMELY
IMPORTANT.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
18
%
FEEL THEY ARE DOING A VERY GOOD JOB
AT CREATING BRAND INTIMACY.
RESOURCES
35%
KNOW-HOW
11%
DELIVERY
11%
CUSTOMER
RESISTANCE
10%
P.51
COMMUNICATIONS
PROFESSIONALS BELIEVE
DIGITAL IS KEY
Within marketing, digital tactics are seen as the most effective at
building intimacy with customers.
“THE NEW GROWTH IS IN SOCIAL MEDIA.”
IN THE FUTURE, CREATING
INTIMACY WILL BE DIFFERENT
There is widespread belief that the ways in which companies create
intimacy in the future will change, with more than half seeing
technology playing an increasingly important role.
“WITHOUT A CRYSTAL BALL, UNDERSTANDING OUR FUTURE RELATIONSHIPS IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE.
AT THIS POINT, WE BELIEVE THIS WILL CONTINUE TO GROW THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA AND OTHER DIGITAL
PLATFORMS, BUT WHAT THESE WILL BE IS ANYONE’S GUESS.”
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
TECHNOLOGY IS CONTINUALLY EVOLVING
IN NEW WAYS TO HELP MARKETING
EXECUTIVES BUILD AND MAINTAIN
INTIMATE RELATIONSHIPS WITHOUT
THE FUNDING REQUIRED TO SUPPORT
PERSONAL ENGAGEMENT. AMONG
THE MARKETING TACTICS AVAILABLE,
DIGITAL TOOLS SUCH AS SOCIAL MEDIA,
WEBSITES AND DIGITAL ADVERTISING
ARE SEEN AS THE MOST EFFECTIVE AT
BUILDING CUSTOMER INTIMACY.
THE ONE ASPECT OF TECHNOLOGY MOST
EFFECTIVE IN BUILDING CUSTOMER INTIMACY
38%
SOCIAL MEDIA
20%
WEBSITES
13%
EMAIL/DIGITAL NEWSLETTERS
83
%
MOST BELIEVE THAT THE WAYS
INTIMACY IS CREATED WILL CHANGE
IN THE FUTURE.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
46
%
ALMOST HALF OF THOSE BELIEVE THAT
ANALYTICS AND SOCIAL MEDIA WILL BE
THE PRIMARY WAYS IT WILL CHANGE.
P.53
MEASURING SUCCESS
REMAINS THE SAME
MARKETERS ARE MISSING
A KEY OPPORTUNITY
Most marketing executives believe that traditional metrics provide
the best way to measure intimacy, which may be because they don’t
have alternate tools or solutions.
The vast majority of marketers today don’t see the direct
or immediate business impact of intimacy. This may be
due to conventional wisdom as initial brand performance
results demonstrate the strength of brand intimacy in
impacting profitability.
“WE WILL USE SATISFACTION AND NET PROMOTER SCORES.”
“I ASSOCIATE INTIMACY MORE WITH LOYALTY THAN ROI.”
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
- SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
76
%
92
%
WOULD USE THE SAME MEASURES TO
DON’T SEE THE DIRECT OR IMMEDIATE BUSINESS
DETERMINE THEIR EFFECTIVENESS IN BUILDING
IMPACT OF INTIMACY.
CUSTOMER INTIMACY.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.55
SCIENCE OF
INTIMACY
This section provides further details on materials we
reviewed to help shape our understanding and
development of brand intimacy. It includes the four
key manifestations of intimacy as well as a variety of
features and articles and MBLM’s detailed methodology.
The Science of Intimacy provides more specifics and
specialized insights.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.57
COGNITIVE
DESCRIPTION
An exchange of ideas and exploration of
similarities or differences in them
BRAND INTIMACY MANIFESTATION
Stimulating passionate agreement and
dedication to a distinctive and compelling
idea, sense of purpose or ethos
FOUR TYPES
OF INTIMACY
Our research with consumers shows that they do not initially
recognize or think about the relationships they have with brands as
being intimate. However, once they begin to talk about the brands
they love, the parallels become apparent. In fact, brand intimacy
closely mirrors human intimacy.
Intimate brand relationships mirror intimate human relationships
in that both have four basic forms: cognitive, emotional, physical
and experiential.11 These represent aspects of intimate brand
relationships. To a marketer, these forms can also be used as levers
to bring people progressively closer to the brand.
EMOTIONAL
DESCRIPTION
The mutual sharing of innermost feelings
BRAND INTIMACY MANIFESTATION
Eliciting feelings of being understood
and accepted as an individual through
personalized engagement
PHYSICAL
DESCRIPTION
A sensual or sexual connection
BRAND INTIMACY MANIFESTATION
Sensual stimulation that provides pleasurable
and gratifying feelings
EXPERIENTIAL
DESCRIPTION
Involvement in an activity that produces shared
experiences
BRAND INTIMACY MANIFESTATION
Engaging people socially, including them
in an exclusive group to create feelings of
togetherness, camaraderie and belonging
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
P.59
METHODOLOGY
CITATIONS
To gain an in-depth understanding of intimacy and its relevance to
brands, we undertook multiple investigations and research. We worked
with Brain Juicer and conducted in-depth qualitative research through
online “insight communities” in Germany, Japan and the United States.
These communities were composed of 252 consumers in total (which
qualifies as a quantitative sample, with a +/-8.8% margin of error at the
95% confidence level). The interactive community discussions lasted
two months, were fielded during the fourth quarter of 2012 and allowed
us to explore the underlying psychology of how and why brand
intimacy manifests.
1
“2012 Norton Study: Consumer Cybercrime Estimated at $110 Billion Annually,” Press Release,
September 5, 2012, Web: October 12, 2012, http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.
jsp?prid=20120905_02
2
Report: “70% of Consumers Trust Brand Recommendations from Friends,” March 21, 2013, http://
mashable.com/2013/03/21/70-percent-brand-recommendations-friends/
3
IBM Institute for Business Value, “CMOS and CIOS,” 2011, http://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/
en/gbe03513usen/GBE03513USEN.PDF
4
Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2002-2017, February 6, 2013,
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/solutions/collateral/ns341/ns525/ns537/ns705/ns827/white_paper_
c11-520862.html
5
The average human experiences about 70,000 thoughts a day, http://www.information-facts.com/
health/the-average-human-experiences-about-70000-thoughts-a-day
6
Carnegie, D., “The Rule of Balance – Logical Mind vs. Emotional Heart,” Westside Toastmasters, http://
westsidetoastmasters.com/resources/laws_persuasion/chap14.html
7
Evans, Richard I., “Dialogue with Erik Erikson,” p. 48, Harper & Row, New York, 1967.
8
“Best Global Brands,” Interbrand, 2013, http://www.interbrand.com/it/best-global-brands/2012/BestGlobal-Brands-2012-Brand-View.aspx
9
“Financial Statement Analysis — S&P 500 Index,” Bloomberg, April 18, 2013.
10
“Fortune 500,” CNN Money, 2013, http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2012/
companies/
11
Golden, Beverly, “The Four Faces of Intimacy,” Healthy Living, Relationships, February 8, 2012, http://
intentblog.com/the-four-faces-of-intimacy/
In addition to our insight communities, content analysis was conducted
through automated mass web ethnography in order to build a detailed
picture of the brand-intimate consumer. Specifically, a web search robot
was programmed to conduct search queries for 110 keywords, identified
in the “insight communities,” across three contexts: personal, social and
environmental. The search robot collected a vast pool of relevant stories,
features, tweets, articles and blogs in order to create a composite profile.
Analysis was then performed to identify key patterns and enable us to
draw conclusions about how people are relating to, using and talking
about the brands with which they have intimate relationships.
We developed an online quantitative survey of marketing executives from
around the world. Conducted during the first quarter of 2013, this research
was designed to better understand the client-side perspective on brand
intimacy and complement learning from our consumer research. The
sample included 78 senior marketing executives from both B2B and
B2C companies.
MBLM audited top-performing brands from a marketing and financial
performance perspective across Standard and Poor’s S&P 500 and the
Fortune 500. We researched the works of leading psychologists in order
to better understand human intimacy and the stages of psychosocial
development. We also read works from Professors Antonio Damasio and
Daniel Kahneman in order to integrate the latest thinking about decision
making and emotions into our analysis.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
PHOTOS
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“Interior of commercial airliner” by Derrick Coetzee. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under
a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.
en
p.24
“Oreo.” by Maria Fernanda Sosa. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a Creative
Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.25
“IMG_8027” by funky1opti. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a Creative Commons
Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.39
“Bose headphones on a piano” by Niki Odolphie. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.41
“My Toyota ready for Nevada” by brewbooks. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.43
“Rolex Milgauss” by Manuel Rebic. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a Creative
Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.45
“Jimmy Choo” by Yuya Saito. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a Creative Commons
Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
p.47
“iPhone 5 camera and flash” by Simon Yeo. Retrieved from Flickr, September 26, 2013, used under a
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
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ABOUT MBLM
WE CREATE GREATER INTIMACY BETWEEN PEOPLE,
BRANDS AND TECHNOLOGY.
MBLM (pronounced emblem) is an international, multidisciplinary
agency that is focused on brand building and activation, software
solutions, thought leadership and content. For more information,
visit mblm.com.
BRAND INTIMACY STUDY
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BRAND INTIMACY STUDY