The emotional health of brands: How to connect in a polarized world

Brands are an essential asset in the creation of value. However, many face a complex reality: saturated markets and emotionally polarized, demanding and volatile consumers. The challenge is no longer just to stand out, but to generate a real bond with an audience that demands empathy, authenticity and transparency.  

Havar's Meaningful Brands study indicates that 75% of brands could disappear without anyone caring. Meanwhile, Accenture's study The human paradox: From customer centricity to life centricity warns of less loyal and more emotionally distrustful consumers. Are brands losing their ability to connect and bond with audiences?  

In this context, Esade associate professor Andrés Cúneo, together with Luciano Castellucci (Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez) and Consuelo Valenzuela (Rubik Deep Thinking Research), discuss at Harvard Deusto how to manage the emotional health of brands and why doing so is so urgent. 

Between noise and disaffection

Consumers are no longer satisfied with good products: they expect clear positioning, coherent values and consistent experiences from brands. Many brands, although visible, have lost emotional relevance. Saturation of stimuli and lack of meaningful differentiation lead to disconnection. Notoriety is no longer enough if meaning is not generated, which is the new differential value that generates affinity and reinforces trust.  

At the same time, social networks have transformed the dynamics of the relationship between brands and consumers. Narratives are no longer only in the hands of brands, which are under constant scrutiny in the digital agora. Many brands navigate between admiration, rejection, criticism or indifference without really knowing how to intervene or where they are positioned emotionally.  

From brand awareness to brand feeling

Until now, the health of a brand has been measured by metrics such as awareness, knowledge or differentiation. But in an emotionally charged environment, these functional metrics are insufficient. A new approach is needed: understanding what emotions the brand arouses and how they influence affinity, identification and, ultimately, the purchase decision.  

Today, "brand love" coexists with its opposite: "brand hate". Boycotts, negative comments or public protests are emotional manifestations that have a direct impact on business. According to the ReviewTrackers , study86% of consumers avoid brands with frequent negative reviews.  

For the authors, the key is to incorporate the emotional dimension into the brand strategy, not as a superficial aspect but as an integrated layer that allows for forging lasting bonds through consistent experiences, coherence in values and an aesthetic identity not only recognizable, but also appreciated.  

The emotional levers of a brand

A brand's emotional connection with its audiences can be analyzed along three key dimensions: 

• Experience: responds to functional performance (quality of the product, its services, fulfillment of promises) and determines appreciation or disappointment. 
• Values: the alignment between consumer beliefs and brand positioning, which generates identification or disconnection. Here, the message, coherence and tone of communications are decisive. 
• Symbolic aesthetics: the projection of the brand and how it is perceived, in terms of visual identity and design, which can provoke attraction or rejection.  

When these three dimensions align positively, the brand generates love. If one or more fail, negative emotions emerge. When contradictory emotions coexist -something that is becoming more and more frequent- emotional ambivalence appears.  

Cases such as Tesla'brand/leadership crisis s recent are a clear example of how the gap between proclaimed values and public perception can seriously erode the emotional bond with consumers.  

The emotional "equalizer"

Emotionally managing a brand requires tools to interpret and act. Cúneo, Castelluci and Valenzuela propose an applicable and useful model: the emotional equalizer, which makes it possible to identify the type of emotions that a brand arouses in each of the three dimensions. In this way, brand managers can detect imbalances, prioritize actions and activate the appropriate levers.  

Each dimension can trigger a positive or negative emotion: appreciation or disappointment (experience), identification or disconnection (values), attraction or rejection (aesthetics). Depending on how these emotions are combined, five scenarios can be identified: 

• Absolute love: positive emotions in all three dimensions. It should be maintained and reinforced. 
• Positive ambivalence: two positive emotions and one negative emotion. Requires focused intervention. 
• Negative ambivalence: negative emotions predominate. Requires deep adjustment. 
• Indifference: the brand does not arouse emotions, it is irrelevant. 
• Absolute hatred: negative emotions in all three dimensions. Rebranding may be the only way out.  

From listening to strategic management

Emotional management requires a correct reading of audiences and a comprehensive strategic approach. In this regard, the authors provide a series of recommendations:  

• Monitor the emotional climate: quantitative metrics are not enough, it is necessary to capture what is said about the brand and from what emotion. 
• Reinforce affection: identify and strengthen the factors that generate positive and solid bonds.  
• Detect frictions: identify where expectations are broken in order to intervene.  
• Use competitive benchmarks: use emotional benchmarks and promote continuous improvement.
• Develop emotional intelligence in teams: to better read the customer, act from empathy and give the right answers. 
• Leverage real feedback: consumers are already talking, we can listen to them and adapt strategies.  

In short, it's not just about emotion, it's about understanding what excites the customer and why.  

The emotional bond as a competitive advantage

An emotionally healthy brand is not just a brand that people like: it is a brand that resonates, connects and builds meaning. A brand that generates trust, affinity and attachment. And in a volatile environment it is precisely that emotional connection that ensures relevance and the ability to survive.  

Emotion is not an accessory; it is key in human relationships, and also today in relationships between people and brands.