Why Your Customers Need to Feel Something

Crystal Vilkaitis: Hey, before we dive into After the Show today, I actually just filmed After the Show and I was like, wait, I want to share something with my listeners. When after the show airs, it’s going to be, I think September 24th. And that means I’m married. I got married on September 21st. And so if you follow along online, you know that I’m currently filming this in July, so I’m not married yet but we’re starting to lead up.

And if you’re listening to this, I got married. I’m a wifey now, and I’ve been with Dustin for a long time, 14 years. So I’m happy that we are officially making it official. And I just wanted to give that little personal plug that your host here. She’s a married lady now. All right, let’s get into After the Show.

Well, hello, hello, and welcome to After the Show. I’m your host, Crystal Vilkaitis. And today we’re talking about After the Show with Hollei Anne with Hollei Anne Designs Co., and I hope that you got the chance to listen to that episode. We talked about so many great tactics. If you’re developing your own product, if you want to go into product design, what helps products stand out on shelves.

Even if you’re not wanting to develop your own product, how to help make your products stand out in your stores. There’s just a lot of great tips. And a big takeaway for me in this episode, Hollei said a couple of times. Emotional connection, emotional connection. And it’s funny because I’m actually filming this episode of After the Show, right after Hollei and I just interviewed because just yesterday, it’s all very timely.

And so I’m wanting to film it now. Cause usually I’ll film After the Shows, like as it gets closer to airing day. But timing wise yesterday, I was on a call. I’m in this like networking group for women content creators and women in media and Natalie Morales, who was on The Today Show for like 20 years.

I think she’s now with CBS, but she was one of our speakers. It was me and Natalie Morales and like 10 women. It was a very small Zoom call and I didn’t know she was going to be on the call. So I sign in and like, Holy cow, Natalie Morales is here. Like, what is she doing here? So it was really cool.

I was so starstruck. Like I actually grew up watching The Today Show. I loved The Today Show. But I bring this up because it was a conversation with one of the executives at Marie Shriver’s media company and Natalie was interviewing her and they were talking about content today.

No matter what kind of content, if it’s a news segment, if it’s a podcast, if it’s an article, a blog, whatever it may be, you have to make somebody feel something.

Like the content, the stories, those that make people feel something is what’s going to get the ratings, is what’s going to get the views. Whether they’re angry, mad, frustrated, sad, devastated. Or happy, excited, inspired, motivated. And I wrote this down, like I know this, but this I wrote it down here: make people FEEL things. And I had feel and all caps and underline three times.

Because I am a podcaster. I am a creator, a content creator. I want people to feel things from my content, whether it’s on my social media or what I’m writing. As some of you know, I’m an aspiring bestselling author or what the content creating here on Rooted in Retail. I want people to feel things. I want them to feel that inspiration, the empowerment, the motivation, the connection to me. To our group, our Facebook group, to each other, other retailers, to the guests that come on the show.

I want people to feel something because it’s meaningful to me. I mean, that’s what we’re doing all this for, right? To connect. And so Hollei said it a couple times in this week’s episode about emotional connection, how your products are emotionally connecting to your customer, whether you’re designing them or you’re selling them on through your store.

How are we emotionally connecting? How are we making them feel something? How are we making them feel something? And you can do that with the products. You can do that with your brand. You can do that with the in store experience and you should be, you need to have people feel something when they are working with you.

Even if they’re shopping online or if they’re in the store, right? Like when I have shopped on sites where you feel like, “Ooh, I feel like I could look really amazing.” And now, “Oh, that makes it, I see me out on date night.” “This is such an incredible outfit” or, “Ooh, I see that being a part of my home.” “I would love to give this gift to my grandma. I think she would love it.”

Feeling. Those things can come from those product descriptions. Because online’s going to be a little harder to create a feeling, right? But product descriptions and photography are going to be so critical. I also really love as a consumer, I love seeing how the other people that bought that item, how they’re using it and pictures from them. You know, that curated content from the actual user, the user generated content, that tends to sell better than your manufacturer shots.

The photography you’re taking because we’re seeing it from somebody like us, because it’s relatable. And we trust that. Those are ways that you can get people to feel something is through that photography, through the words that you’re using on your site, how you’re describing, how you’re sharing, what they would use it, the story you’re telling.

You know, Hollei talked a lot about stories in this episode, the importance of stories and products, having stories in your brand, having a story. And so if you look through that lens of emotional connection and having your customers feel something. Through your social media, through your website, through the second they walk in your store.

How do they feel walking up to your store? How can we really make them feel something in all ways that they’re engaging with your brand? Is there an opportunity for you to go further and is there an opportunity? Like one way that we really feel things is through stories. And I’m going to tell you, a lot of podcasts that I listened to and how I personally feel is very similar in the sense that what we’re going to see more of as it relates to building brands, building businesses.

And stable businesses that have passionate fans that are staying in business and growing their business. It’s going to be storytelling. You have to be a good storyteller and you have to make people feel things. And so I want you to look at your website copy, your in store signage, your in store pictures, your website pictures, your social media content.

If I were to go through and scroll past the past 10 posts that you have, would the customer feel anything? Would I feel anything from you? Create that feeling in your messaging, in your creative, in the pictures, in the videos. And I say this a lot, being vulnerable, being authentic, going on video, that is a good way to share.

That emotional connection and create feelings. So that could be one of those ways that you’re creating that feeling. Sharing customer stories. They came in, they bought this. It was so moving. It was so emotional. the nonprofits or charities or organizations that are really close to your heart.

Talk about that stuff because it’s a part of who you are and you are the brand make people feel things. It’s about feeling, it’s about emotional connection. Connection. And that was my big takeaway this week for After the Show. I would love to know what your big takeaway was. Share with me in our very active Facebook group, go to Facebook and search for Rooted in Retail.

Join the group. If you’re not there yet, introduce yourself with a picture of your store and tell me what was your big takeaway from Hollei’s episode this week. All right. Remember I’m rooting for your success. Have a great rest of the week, bye.