A Unique Customer Loyalty: What is a Love Mark and How to Become one? ITechnical World

Have you ever thought that your elders, grandfather or grandmother had a love mark? Although it is a modern term, love mark, by definition, actually remains valid from yesterday to today. We just had to wait for the book of the same name, published in 2005 by the CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, Kevin Roberts, to understand that, that's all.

What does love mark, also known as "Love Brand" in Turkish, mean and why do brands compete for such a status? What are the requirements for a company, business or brand to become a love mark? Which brands achieved this? I tried to find answers to most of the questions for those who are curious about this subject, which is as fun to read as it is to write.

What is Love Mark?

If we look at what love mark is , which actually gives clues with its translation and even its original name : We call the brands that are indispensable for consumers and customers, with which people establish intense emotional bonds, love marks . As a term, it entered our lives with the book published in 2005, written by Kevin Roberts, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi company. Lovemarks: The Future Beyond BrandsThe book says that brands started to fade away with the millennium and argued that what is needed to get rid of this is love. Love marks, which emerge with the emotional bond formed between the brand and its customers, are called brands that the customer sympathizes with and feels very close to. Thanks to this emotional bond, the relevant customer / consumer does not go to anyone else from that brand and even feels uncomfortable when purchasing from another brand in almost the same industry. Just like people who have to meet with someone they don't enjoy talking to instead of their beloved friend...

At the beginning of the conversation, I mentioned that older generations can also have love marks. For example, let's take a today's grandfather who was born and raised in Istanbul in the 1940s. Let's say your grandfather has a favorite dessert shop in Beyoğlu since he was young, and he doesn't buy sweets from anyone else, and moreover, he has formed an emotional bond with that shop over the years. In fact, although the term entered our lives in 2005, by definition it can also apply to other times. Of course, with digitalization, globalization, e-commerce, the requirements of being a love brand and the customer-brand relationship have changed significantly, but the essence of the job is the same: To have a loyal customer base beyond logic!

About Kevin Roberts, the Inventor of the Term, and his Book

Being a love mark means that a brand has a highly loyal customer profile. Roberts, who coined the term and supported it with his book, pointed to 3 basic elements to create it: Emotion, mystery and sincerity. To briefly list these three elements:

Emotion: It refers to an emotional bond established between the brand and the customer. Establishing this bond largely depends on the impact of the product / service offered by the brand. For this reason, efforts are made to appeal to customers' senses such as taste, appearance and smell.
Gizem: Brands need to be surprising. The products and services they offer need to surprise, create a surprise effect, so that the customer wants more. Let him be curious about the "mystery" that needs to be solved.
Sincerity: It is the part that is intended to reveal emotions such as empathy, commitment, passion, inspiring and exhilarating.

So where did this originate from? According to Roberts, over the years the balance of power has shifted from manufacturers/brands to customers, i.e. people. In fact, Roberts reveals that he is a rooster crowing early with this claim. Today, shaping customers' demands and expectations is indeed the biggest shift for brands. Roberts said it was a different balance of power that emerged with the millennium, and that's where the term love mark was born. In fact, this forward-looking CEO has had an "invention" called the Love / Respect Axis since 2000. This axis, consisting of two arrows up and to the right, helps brands know how successful they are in creating a love mark .I will talk about this axis under the next heading.

What is the Love / Respect Axis?

There is absolutely no quick answer to the question of how to become a love mark . Therefore, it is of great benefit to learn the history of the work and the Love / Respect Axis table created by the inventor of the term. Because the love mark is not an image that can be created in a day. Love / Respect Axis helps measure how much customers respect and love brands. There are 4 different situations according to this measurement tool:

Low respect and low love : The first and lowest stage of the axis. It is used for brands with core products or services. At this stage, the brand in question is only a seller and the consumer does not have much of a connection with the brand.
Low respect and high love : Generally refers to brands that have become fashionable in a certain period of time. When the trend in question wears off, the brand loses its influence.
High respect and low love : It refers to brands with great opportunities and potential.
High respect and high love : This is the point at which a brand reaches love mark status!

Thanks to this measurement table he prepared, Roberts divides the brands into these 4 groups. The love mark stage is located at the top right of the table in question. Behind all of this is the claim that people act with their emotions, not their logic. So, according to some studiesAverage consumers use products from brands they respect 26 days a year. This number is 119 days for love marks! Therefore, for a brand to be included in the love mark group, it must reach high values on both sides - both on the love and respect side. The profitability rates of the brands that achieve this increase significantly. Moreover, Kevin Roberts states that the axis should be focused on love rather than respect. Roberts, who claims that what is missing is love, bases this on the following argument: As times change due to the increasing/fragmented media with the internet, the increase in the demand for personalization, and the difficulties of globalization, it is necessary to stop and think. However, since the times have changed, human nature remains constant, the same and similar, so it is necessary to fix the ways to win love. Because, as I just mentioned, according to this understanding, a human being is a creature that acts not with logic, but with emotions. Therefore, when the emotional side of the matter is captured, you can stand firmly in your place even if times change, affecting even logic.The importance of the love mark is exactly here. Thanks to this status, which will bring you high profits, you will not lose the people you love, even if the times change. Actually, this reminds me a bit of those who still listen to rock music with a big appetite in the seventies. Times have changed, the music industry has changed, the atmosphere has changed, but a large audience never stops listening to the unique songs of that period.

How to Become a Love Mark

Let's talk a little bit about what it takes to be a love mark . First of all, brands need to create an emotion in the customer through the products and services they offer. In order to become a love mark, the love and respect for products and services must increase significantly. Thus, while trust and reputation are gained through respect, loyalty to the brand is ensured thanks to love. We can list the various and common ways of providing them as follows:

According to Kevin Roberts, the inventor of the term, brands should understand what their customers are dreaming of. Thus, it should be determined what, when and how / in what way customers want. In this way, customers should be given a unique experience.
All 3 elements mentioned above highlight love marks. That is emotion, mystery and sincerity. To explain three of them alone: A brand that can appeal to the senses thanks to factors such as taste, appearance and smell should shake the agenda in its products and services and be surprising. With the products and services it offers, it should inspire customers, embellish their dreams and touch their passions.
Another very important point is that businesses need brands to love what they do. Those who love the work they do and the audience they appeal to can raise their brands to love mark status.
At the same time, this state of love is an important opportunity to solve customers' problems and understand their demands.
The brand also needs to succeed in creating a story. Thanks to this created story, being able to connect with customers also helps create a solid foundation. Creating an effective story is more important than many reports, graphs and meetings. Because this is how you can find a place in people's hearts.
Touching the customer, understanding the customer, and accurately reflecting products and services are also very important parts of this process.
“What does our brand smell, taste and look like?” It is also essential to find answers to questions such as. Usually, the best brands in their sectors find answers to these questions. Emotionality is an area that many brands do not attach importance to and overlook, but in order to become a love brand, it is necessary to make breakthroughs especially at this point.
It is also necessary to understand that customers are not “them”, they are a part of “we” who move forward with the brand.

Love Mark Examples of the World

With love mark examples, something will come to life before our eyes and what I mean will be understood in a much better way. One/many of these examples may be on your love mark list, too. So let's get started!

Harley Davidson is definitely one of the best examples of love marks. Harley Davidson, the backbone of motorcycle culture, resembles a motorcycle club more than a company, right? And getting into this club is a big deal for many motorcycle enthusiasts. The brand embraces the "rebel spirit" style, so it is not perceived as a brand that only produces motorcycles that go from point A to point B. Harley Davidson is a symbol of lifestyle in the eyes of consumers.
Of course Apple ! Dominating the industry with the computers, phones and similar products it offers, Apple even drags giant technology companies after it in terms of design. So much so that it is possible to say that Apple determines many trends in the industry.
IKEA , I hear you say. Yes, focusing on design, IKEA manages to differentiate and be special in this aspect.
Of course, Starbucks is for countless people around the world, whether they have a coffee culture or not . So much so that even in a place where the name of the company is not mentioned and only the famous mermaid logo is seen, the majority of people can guess that a barista will brew filter coffee soon.
LEGO, which touches children's imagination with the toys and derivative products it creates, is also a perfect example of a love mark. Founded in 1932, the company's adventure of becoming a love mark with its simple toys made of plastic seems really interesting.
There is probably no love mark content that does not mention Coca-Cola . Coca-Cola, which is also among the love marks of Turkey, is engraved in memories with its packaging design that is remembered by everyone.
Known as the world's largest fast-food restaurant company, McDonald's is among the best examples of love marks by far.

Turkey's Love Mark Examples

In Turkey, we can find many examples of love marks, both among local brands and brands that have expanded to Turkey. So much so that it would not be wrong to say that many of the examples we have listed above are among the love marks in Turkey as well. According to the research conducted by Ipsos for MediaCat in 2019, Turkey's 2019 love marks are as follows: