Using Culture and Emotion to Understand Customers

Dr Marcus Collins reveals how brands can truly understand customers by delving into their cultural identities, emotions, and decision-making processes.

Are you stuck using outdated demographics to understand your customers? Dr Collins argues that this approach falls short, leaving brands disconnected from the true drivers of human behaviour – culture and emotion. 

In this interview, Dr Marcus Collins, Clinical Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business, unveils a revolutionary perspective on building authentic brand relationships. Learn how to move beyond surface-level data and uncover the deeper meaning your brand holds within specific cultural communities. Get ready to harness the power of storytelling, tap into the “biology of decision-making”, and discover how aligning with individual values can unlock true brand loyalty.

Excerpts from the interview;

How can enterprises move beyond demographics data, and what kind of data will help them better understand how customers self-identify?

Enterprises should avoid relying on demographic data to understand their customers, as it does not accurately portray who people are. While age, race, gender, and even household income might provide some factual insight, to understand people truly, marketers must go beyond these labels and gain a deeper understanding of how people self-identify. With the reams of data now available, it can be easy to mistake information for intimacy; however, to gain a true understanding of consumers, enterprises must get closer in proximity and realise the superficial nature of demographic data.

How can brands move beyond targeting generational cohorts and focus instead on sub-cultures?

Generational cohorts are one form of demographics that involves grouping people based on age, usually in a 20-year range. But age alone doesn’t accurately describe who people are. It is more useful to look at how people self-identify according to the communities they are a part of. This could include religious, geographic, educational, and other affiliations. People ascribe to certain expectations, beliefs, artefacts, behaviours, and language through these affiliations. We call this culture, and these cultural communities have certain expectations of their members. 

For brands to move beyond simply using demographics and start thinking about people according to how they self-identify, there needs to be a greater understanding of the communities they are a part of. This requires a radical level of intimacy.

What do you mean by the biology of decision-making?

So, we think about decisions made in the brain, correct? Right. The brain is responsible for the decisions we make and the actions we take. We know from the biology of the brain that there are three major systems: the old brain, or “reptilian brain,” responsible for fight or flight; the limbic system, associated with memories and emotions such as trust, love, and loyalty; and the neocortex, associated with articulation and rationality.

We have a “Kirk brain” and a “Spock brain”: Kirk’s brain is based on emotions, while Spock’s brain is more rational. However, we are far more driven by our emotions than we think. We often rationalise decisions rather than making them rationally. This is how we are wired and designed to make decisions largely based on our feelings and emotions, which are associated with our behaviours.

How can brands measure what it means in people’s minds? How can brands influence this image?

Brands are identifiable signifiers that evoke thoughts and feelings in people’s minds. They act as vessels of meaning, and so to measure the brand’s meaning in people’s minds, we must ascertain what the brand means to them. The only way to do this is through discourse and ethnographic means. Observing people in their cultural context can better understand how culture informs meaning.

As marketers, our job is to signal the intended meaning of the brand so that it is translated correctly into people’s minds. To do this, we must understand how people view the world and the cultural frames through which they interpret it. By gaining a greater understanding of this, we can communicate with people to ensure our intended message is received.

You talk about how brands should not start with what they do but with why they do it. Tell us more.

“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it,” quoted Simon Sinek. 

This idea comes from an understanding of the biology of decision-making, which states that we act based on our feelings. Companies often focus on value propositions – like a car going faster or a razor being sharper – but this is not emotionally charged. Focusing on why a company does what it does is far more powerful: its conviction and driving belief. This allows people to find congruence between the company’s values and identity, making the company a receipt of their identity. This transcends the value propositions and provides a meaningful way to connect with customers through culture.

How can enterprise leaders move the needle to make marketing more inclusive?

We must understand how people see things and how they translate them. We can move the needle by being more intimate, having great cultural proximity, and understanding who these people are and how they view the world. If their worldview aligns with ours or what they’re trying to achieve is in line with what we’re trying to accomplish, we must find ways to include them and make them feel seen and welcomed.

The brands that do this well become more than just companies that sell things; they become entities that people can relate to and understand. When someone feels understood, the bond is stronger than someone who simply helps them get a better shave.

How can leaders use data to tell stories – that generate social currency?

Data can help us tell stories that generate social currency. At its core, data is information, and if we observe people in their cultural contexts and extract meaningful data, we can tell stories that are windows into their world. This allows people to feel seen and understood; these stories become currency for their communities and networks. They exchange them to say, “I know you, and you know me”, and the person sharing gains social currency from their proximity to the people. Knowing how to curate the right stories for the right people ultimately forms the bonds of friendship, relationships, and family.

What can marketers learn from your book For the Culture?

For the Culture – the premise is clear: culture is the most influential force on human behaviour. Yet, when asked to define culture, many people have trouble finding an answer. To bridge this gap, the book provides a language and lexicon to explain culture, removing abstractions and buzzwords concretely. Additionally, the book outlines mechanisms marketers, leaders, entrepreneurs, politicians, activists, teachers, and community leaders can use to influence people to take action. Culture is a powerful tool to get people to adopt behaviours, and this book provides the means to operationalise this power and get people to take action.

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