Align Copy With Brand Emotionality

Should copy be rational or emotional?

The best copy is aligned with the brand.

An emotional drink converted better with Vitamin C, but its scientific equivalent Ascorbic Acid converted better for a rational drink (Tok et al., 2024).

Scientific rationales can feel weird for emotional products:

• Our rigorous scientific development process ensures that Zoza cookies taste delicious, indulgent, and gooey.

That blurb converted better without the scientific preface (Philipp-Muller et al., 2023).

Perhaps Brooklinen should reword dual-core structure in their pillow copy:

How to Apply

• Reconsider AI Features in Emotional Niches. Do you really need them?
• Explain Why Science is Necessary. A brief disclaimer minimized backlash.
• Use Informal Pronouns for Warm Brands. Address customers with informal pronouns (e.g., tu in Spanish) if your brand is relatable (Leung et al., 2023).
• Write Emotional Copy for Infrequent Buys. Customers rely on feelings for rare purchases (e.g., homes, birthdays, furniture) because they feel justified in deviating from the norm of rational decisions. A rational ad for tea bags converted better with everyday shoppers, while an emotional ad converted better with infrequent shoppers (Cheng et al., 2024).

• Cheng, Y., Zhang, K., & Zhuang, X. (2024). Follow your heart or your mind: The effect of consumption frequency on consumers’ reliance on feelings. Journal of Business Research, 175, 114543.
• Leung, E., Lenoir, A. S. I., Puntoni, S., & Van Osselaer, S. M. (2023). Consumer preference for formal address and informal address from warm brands and competent brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 33(3), 546-560.
• Markowitz, D. M., & Shulman, H. C. (2021). The predictive utility of word familiarity for online engagements and funding. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(18), e2026045118.
• Philipp-Muller, A., Costello, J. P., & Reczek, R. W. (2023). Get Your Science Out of Here: When Does Invoking Science in the Marketing of Consumer Products Backfire?. Journal of Consumer Research, 49(5), 721-740.
• Tok, D., Chen, X., Chang, C. T., & Chu, X. Y. (2024). “Ascorbic Acid” or “Vitamin C?” When and how scientifically or commonly named ingredients enhance product evaluations. Psychology & Marketing, 41(10), 2537-2550.
• Wadhwa, M., & Zhang, K. (2015). This number just feels right: The impact of roundedness of price numbers on product evaluations. Journal of Consumer Research, 41(5), 1172-1185.