Since the need for reality in social media has been heightened during those months we were all locked up inside, the demand for filtered adverts of perfect people with perfect lives simply doesn't exist anymore. Now, we find ourselves charmed by Morrison's take on 'farmer Christmas' and the Maltesers adverts about mental health in new mothers because we see ourselves in them and they're relatable or trigger an emotive response. Humanising your marketing is essentially this. Bringing the human in your brand into your social media, so we can relate to you more and ultimately invest in you for the long run.
Image credit: @maltesersuk/ Instagram
With most brands looking to user generated content to normalise their brand, getting your community to speak is the first hurdle. This, of course, requires attention to the way you come across to your community.
People trust real people with real experiences
It is becoming more and more apparent that brands don't work if they are too formal and more traditional in their approach to social media marketing. Consumers tend to believe and trust what other real people are saying about the brand. Because of this, a social media post stating how good a product is, with nothing to back this claim up, makes it less trustworthy to the reader. Replace it with a real person talking about their actual experience with the brand, and you find that the audience trusts the brand and believes in them. Now we've got the idea of what it is to humanise your marketing, here are a few techniques in order to achieve this
Using humans
Although this subtitle sounds a little odd, the concept is far from it. Using real people to advertise your brand is one of the best ways to humanise your marketing. What is more, the best humans to look to for this are right in front of you- your employees. Yes, that's right, using the people who are in your internal community can help sell the brand to potential customers. And it couldn't be easier. What is a better way to show the brand's success by advertising that your employees use the product? To find out more about how you can implement this into your business and the widespread benefits of doing so, check out our blog on employee based content.
Stitcht have done this in every thread campaign we have run, ensuring each brand we work with start their threads with a video introduction by their own employees. In doing this, the audience can see who works behind the scene and that there are real people who believe in and work for the company.
In contrast, a well-known brand who've made their brand more human-centred is Airbnb. When you think of them, you instantly think of the pictures of teepees and buses and glorious landscapes you can stay in. On their social pages are these places showcased by the people who have stayed in them, using their customers to sell the brand further.
Image credit: @airbnb/ Instagram
The actual locations have never been the selling point of their brand. The customers sell it, yes, but also note how once you click on a site you are met with a description written by the hosts, and a little picture of them which makes the whole thing seem more personal. Instantly, it is like you are interacting with a real person, or a real couple, with genuine intentions. With social media being notorious for its falsity, airbnb have really honed in on intimate, individualised interaction.
Finding the right balance in how you come across to your audience can help with the brand's overall image, so the brand can be viewed as consistent and consumers gather a sense of trust. After all, trust is a huge thing when it comes to customers sticking by a brand for the long run. 73% of consumers claim the customer experience is the biggest deciding factor in their purchase decisions and brand loyalties. So this is of course important when thinking about how you come across to your readers.
The final word
Ultimately, you should be using your social channels to make friends with your community. This way, it will open up a two-way interaction, which you want in order to sell your service or product and build brand loyalty. You want your community to feel as though they are being heard and listened to, as well as represented. Then, and only then, can you begin to humanise your brand.