Empathy, Vulnerability, Investment: The 3 R’s Redefining Brand Marketing
Today, businesses find themselves navigating the corporate world in a time in which scrutiny and missteps are a constant challenge. People are craving empathy – yet brands are failing at serving that. “Radical empathy is more important than any technology, by thinking foremost about human needs, brands have the opportunity to truly innovate,” state Jeff Tan and Brad Alperin of Dentsu International USA. And 63% of consumers want brands to take a stand on social issues, according to Accenture.
Every move from brands can be easily and wide-spread scrutinized now with social media and within the lens of “cancel culture”. Radical Customer Experience (“RCX”), is setting a new standard for customer-centricity. “Our mission is to empower companies to embrace empathy in their business practices to foster a more compassionate, understanding, and healthy world,” states their website.
Founded in 2019 amid a personal journey marked by the challenges of Complex PTSD, RCX was built by Kat Kennan, a visionary marketer, who realized that the missing piece in brand marketing was individual life experiences. As a brand marketer with a diverse career spanning various industries and sizes, Kennan recognized the struggle of scaling empathy and vulnerability in the realm of customer experience. In 2022, after leaving her position as CMO of a global NGO, she developed what would become the foundation ideals for RCX, the 3 R’s framework – Radical Empathy, Radical Vulnerability, and Radical Authentic Investment. In addition, Kennan built a tech platform to marry her insights with hard business data, This Platform, Radical Human Intelligence (“RadicalHI”), anchored by the Cancel Culture Check-Up and Brand Sensitivity Score, represents a paradigm shift in understanding and managing customer sentiment and beyond.
A SaaS subscription model, RadicalHI goes beyond traditional CRM and marketing automation. The platform’s unique ability to predict and showcase brand sensitivity scores equips organizations with the foresight needed to avoid PR crises and navigate potential pitfalls.
Crafting the 3 R’s
The goal of the 3 R’s mindset is to bridge the gap between brand marketers and the intricacies of individual life experiences. Recognizing the limitations of traditional approaches to scaling empathy and vulnerability, RCX introduced a concept that goes beyond the traditional marketing strategies.
At the heart of RCX is a belief that customer-centricity in the corporate world can be revolutionized. With Kennan’s experience with C-PTSD, who experienced heightened sensitivity to marketing messages sparked the realization that the key to authentic customer experiences was all about acknowledging individual life experiences. Brands should not only be attuned to the needs of their customers, but should be actively contributing to their well-being through genuine connection and understanding. “These became the guiding principles in decoding the intricate language of consumer-brand relationships,” states Kennan.
But what are the 3 R’s?
Radical Empathy is about understanding the nuances of language, imagery, and campaigns to ensure that brands resonate with a diverse audience. It seeks to answer the question: Does the customer feel seen and heard by the brand?
Radical Vulnerability is about corporate integrity and honesty. Acknowledging mistakes, apologizing sincerely, and handling customer interactions with transparency are what is included in this pillar. It challenges brands to ask themselves: Will we admit our mistakes, and will our apologies be genuine and believed?
Radical Authentic Investment is a commitment to being an integral part of the community – whether local or global. This urges brands to integrate social causes into their DNA, building a belief system that goes beyond immediate needs and resonates with the evolving values of consumers.
By applying Radical Empathy, brands can tailor their messaging to align with the diverse experiences of their consumers. Radical Vulnerability prompts organizations to be transparent, acknowledging and learning from their mistakes and continuously build trust. Radical Authentic Investment ensures that a brand’s presence in the community is not just a marketing strategy but an authentic reflection of its values.
The Platform
A chance to develop the software helped Kennan decide to pursue building it.
The platform is a robust and dynamic system with specific AI engines tailored to decode the complexities of consumer sentiment. Its mainstay is a survey tool that goes beyond conventional metrics, focusing on the 3 R’s.
“The survey tool delves into Radical Empathy, gauging if customers feel seen and heard. It ventures into Radical Vulnerability, assessing the sincerity of apologies, and scrutinizes Radical Authentic Investment, examining how a company shows up,” says Kennan. “And let’s not forget,” Kennan continues, “employees are internal customers.”
The platform allows features like the Cancel Culture Check-Up and Brand Sensitivity Score. The Cancel Culture Check-Up offers organizations a proactive lens into potential PR Crisis, predicting and mitigating risks by assessing brand sensitivity. Simultaneously, the Brand Sensitivity Score provides a proprietary metric, offering organizations a detailed gauge of their responsiveness to consumer experiences. Moreover, the platform provides guidance to brands on how to better their key metrics, such as revenue, profit, and churn, by increasing their brand sensitivity.
The challenge for brands isn’t just about conveying messages but crafting resonant narratives that align with varied perceptions of a diverse audience. The relationships between brands and consumers are multifaceted, influenced by individual experiences, cultural nuances, and societal shifts. Traditional marketing often falls short in capturing the intricacies of these connections, leading to a gap in understanding. “Starbucks is the cautionary tale of not being vulnerable, and Target, immediately losing around 50% of stock due to mishandling LGBTQ support, underscores the critical importance of brand vulnerability in preserving reputation and lowering risk,” says Kennan.
The platform doesn’t only analyze data; it empowers organizations with cultural intelligence. By understanding and interpreting consumer sentiment through the lens of the 3 R’s, brands can gain a profound awareness of the emotional and cultural landscape they operate within. This helps organizations stay away from unintentional missteps, and lead them towards meaningful interaction with their audience. These strategic pillars for organizations are non longer optional but imperative.
“With a monthly research model, the platform ensures constant adaptation. The ability to analyze content and social insights provides a dynamic understanding of how brands may unintentionally upset or trigger consumers,” relays Kennan.
Research-Driven Brand Safety
RCX unveils statistics that demand attention. An alarming revelation such as 83% of consumers believing that brands rarely address negative customer interactions, and moreover, 77% of consumers feel betrayed, dissatisfied, irritated, or untrusting after such interactions. There is even 50% encountering marketing campaigns exploiting sensitive issues that become crucial indicators of the challenges brands face in maintaining a positive relationship with their audience.
RCX doesn’t stay away from uncomfortable truths. The platform is designed to address negative customer interactions head-on. It acknowledges that how a brand handles mistakes, from product defects to communication missteps, directly influences customer perceptions. By identifying and rectifying negative interactions, RCX provides brands an opportunity to save their relationship and strengthen it through genuine responses.
But where brands tend to fall short is the aftermath of negative interactions, and understanding this is vital. RCX helps analyze consumer sentiments post-negative experiences, unravel the impact on trust, satisfaction, and loyalty. Armed with these insights, brands can take targeted actions to repair relationships, demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement and genuine customer care.
With actionable insights, RCX places the power to shape customer perceptions back in the hands of organizations. The platform’s ability to analyze and interpret data enables brands to craft strategies that resonate authentically with their audience, building positive sentiments and relationships.
Most importantly, a misstep can escalate into a full-blown PR crisis, and with RCX’s research-driven approach serves as a shield for organizations. By providing insights that enable proactive decision-making, RCX empowers brands to navigate potential crises with agility. Through brand sensitivity and consumer insights, RCX contributes to enhancing PR strategies and fortifying brand images. With RCX, brands gain an understanding of consumer sentiments but also can build a map for tangible improvements. This data offers a competitive advantage by enabling brands to stay ahead of the curve, anticipate trends, and proactively address issues before they escalate. “Younger consumers, whether a 40-year millennial, a 24-year old Gen-Z or the emerging 9-year GenAlphademand more than trends. Over 60% assert that companies must stand up for social issues. A PR mistake can cost not just loyalty but the very existence of a brand in a sea of alternatives,” claims Kennan.
By understanding the unique needs and sensitivities of individual consumers, brands can tailor their communications and actions. This personalized approach mitigates negative sentiments and establishes a genuine connection. It’s a catalyst for organizational growth by instilling a culture of continuous improvement.
Conclusion
Kennan finishes by tying things back to the reality we live in — capitalism. “By treating people like human beings, whether they are customers or employees, company’s make more money. Isn’t that they best of both worlds?” In essence, RCX’s impact on brand image is profound. By proactively addressing negative interactions, avoiding sensitive issues, and providing actionable data, RCX becomes a guardian of a brand’s reputation. Its insights don’t serve just for improvement but also offer a competitive advantage, building positive relationships through personalized interactions and establishing a culture of continuous learning and adaptation within organizations.
