Follow the Feeling: Brand Builder
Follow the Feeling is a brand-building podcast produced by Kai D. Wright, Columbia University lecturer and author of Follow the Feeling: Brand Building in a Noisy World. A companion to the award-winning book, the podcast offers expert guidance and proven methods to help individuals build emotionally resonant, community-powered brands. Each episode breaks down the five brand-building moments that matter most—Lexicon, Audio, Visuals, Experience, and Culture—while providing actionable strategies and inspiration to grow with clarity and purpose.
Learn more at FollowTheFeeling.com.
Follow the Feeling: Brand Builder
Follow the Feeling: Brand Building | Chapter 2 | 3 Things to Know, 3 Things to Do, 3 Things to Share
What's the connection between economics and communication? We explore that question, the theme of Chapter 2 in Kai D. Wright's insightful business book "Follow the Feeling: Brand Building in a Noisy World." Learn how Nobel laureates Daniel Kahneman and Gary Becker influenced brand strategy, consumer behavior, and demographics.
Using our 3x3 format, we give you three (3) things to know, three (3) things to do, and three (3) things to share with others.
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Produced by Kai D. Wright. Follow Kai on LinkedIn.
Buy the companion book, "Follow the Feeling: Brand Building in a Noisy World" on Amazon.
Have you ever read a book and thought, wow, someone really gets it? Well, that's what it felt like reading Kai D. Wright's book Follow the Feeling Brand Building in a Noisy World. It's like he's giving you the cheat sheet to really understanding why some brands you know they just stick with you and others kind of fade into the background. And the cool thing is Wright's not just, you know, coming up with theories here. He's been doing this work for years, from teaching at Columbia to advising Fortune 100 companies and startups and advertising PR media, so he really brings that real world experience to the table.
Speaker 2:And what I find really fascinating about his book is that he starts with this really compelling idea that the most powerful element of any brand isn't you know the facts or the features. It's actually how it makes you feel.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And it kind of turns things upside down and says we're more feeling machines that think than thinking machines that feel.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And that tapping into those emotions is the real secret to standing out in today's you know super crowded market Absolutely.
Speaker 1:And the best part is he breaks down this whole emotional branding thing into a system that's, you know, surprisingly simple to grasp.
Speaker 2:So, because we know you're all busy people, we're going to use our three by three recap format to really break down these key insights from the book. That means three essential things to know, three things you can actually do and three points that are totally share worthy. All right, so are you ready to jump into chapter two of Follow the Feeling?
Speaker 1:I'm ready, let's go.
Speaker 2:Okay, cool. So chapter two is titled Going Haywire and it asks this fundamental question what's the relationship between economics and communication?
Speaker 1:Hmm Interesting.
Speaker 2:All right. So let's start with those three key insights from this chapter, shall we?
Speaker 1:Yeah, let's do it.
Speaker 2:Okay, so first up, Wright takes us back to his time studying economics at the University of Chicago. You know that school with all the Nobel Prize winners.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah.
Speaker 2:And he's pretty honest about you. Know what drew him there, Like all those brilliant minds, and let's be real, he got waitlisted at Harvard. So Chicago it was.
Speaker 1:Oh, so he ended up, you know, at the other prestigious school.
Speaker 2:Exactly, and it wasn't just about the name. You know, he really got to engage with some top minds in economics.
Speaker 1:He ended up diving deep into demographics with Professor Gary Becker, who sadly has since passed away.
Speaker 2:Like you're not just looking at economic models, you're actually trying to understand people.
Speaker 1:Exactly, and that leads us perfectly to the second key takeaway of this chapter, which is that economics and communication are actually deeply connected through this idea of influence.
Speaker 2:Oh, how so.
Speaker 1:Well, in economics, you often think about influence in terms of, like incentives and penalties, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Financial push and pull.
Speaker 2:Yeah, makes sense.
Speaker 1:But in communication it's about something a little more subtle. It's about driving action and shaping behavior, interesting Right. Actually, it gives credit to someone named Frank at Columbia for really emphasizing this point that in marketing strategy, communication, brand building, the ultimate goal isn't just awareness, you know, it's getting people to actually do something.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's a huge difference, like it's not enough for people to just recognize your logo or know your name Right. The real magic happens when they actually choose your product, recommend your service or become a loyal advocate for your brand.
Speaker 1:Right, you want them to take action.
Speaker 2:It's about moving beyond informing to actually inspiring a change of behavior.
Speaker 1:Exactly. And the third really crucial point Wright brings up in this chapter is the dual system theory from Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman's work in behavioral economics.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, he's like a legend in the field.
Speaker 1:Total legend and he basically explains that our brains have these two modes of thinking. One is that logical, deliberate system. Two is that intuitive, automatic system. It's like the mental autopilot that's always running in the background.
Speaker 2:So true.
Speaker 1:And what's mind blowing is that Kahneman's research suggests that a whopping 95 percent of our decisions are made in this autopilot mode. Wow, ninety five percent driven by emotions, instincts and all these subconscious cues that we barely even register.
Speaker 2:That's incredible.
Speaker 1:It makes you wonder are brands, you know? Are they spending way too much time trying to appeal to that rational 5% with all those features and benefits?
Speaker 2:When the vast majority of our decisions are based on feeling.
Speaker 1:Exactly right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a fundamental question for anyone in marketing or branding, you know.
Speaker 1:Totally reframes how you think about connecting with people, doesn't it?
Speaker 2:It really does.
Speaker 1:All right, so we've got those three key things to know. Now let's move on to the what to do part, the actionable steps we can take based on these insights. Okay, sounds good. What would you say is the first step people can take?
Speaker 2:Well, I think the first thing is to really rethink those traditional economic rules of behavior that have shaped marketing for so long, the old playbook that assumes we're all perfectly rational and we know exactly what we want.
Speaker 1:Right Like. We make these carefully calculated decisions.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we weigh every option and we act purely out of self-interest. But, as Wright points out, that's not really how people work. You know, drawing on Kahneman's research, he shows that it's way more nuanced than that our rational brain. It mainly kicks in when we're facing something new or risky and we're heavily influenced by this need to belong and fit in. And you know, we need both the desire and the ability to make lasting changes and we really struggle to grasp those long-term consequences. And, believe it or not, we're actually more altruistic than those purely rational models would suggest.
Speaker 1:So it's not just about logic.
Speaker 2:No, not at all.
Speaker 1:It's about understanding the complexity of human behavior.
Speaker 2:Exactly. And that brings us to the second thing you can do, which is to start actively tapping into emotion to drive those behaviors you're looking for. You know you don't always need a bullet point list of logical reasons why someone should choose you. Instead, focus on understanding and triggering those emotional responses.
Speaker 1:Like appealing to their gut feeling.
Speaker 2:Right. It's about finding that sweet spot between familiarity and novelty to connect with people on that, you know, automatic, intuitive level. And this is where Wright introduces his LAVC framework, or LAVEC as he pronounces it.
Speaker 1:I love the LAVEC framework.
Speaker 2:Yeah it stands for Lexicon, audio Cues, visual Stimuli, experience and Culture. And by thoughtfully shaping these five brand elements you can really influence behavior in a powerful way by speaking directly to that intuitive part of the brain.
Speaker 1:Wow. So LEVEC really gives you a tangible way to apply all of this. It really does. And the third actionable point ties in directly with Kahneman's research on loss aversion. Actionable point ties in directly with Kahneman's research on loss aversion and you know how we as humans are wired to feel the pain of a loss much more strongly than the pleasure of an equivalent gain and we tend to zero in on that negative feedback.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like that one negative review can overshadow 100 positive ones.
Speaker 1:Exactly, and so for brands, this means being super proactive about consistently creating those positive feelings around your brand. You know, building that strong emotional connection, it's like building a brand moat that sets you apart.
Speaker 2:And equally important is creating a system for quickly identifying and addressing any negative feedback, because you know those negative experiences, they tend to stick in our minds more and they can really disproportionately impact how we perceive a brand.
Speaker 1:Okay, so we've covered the what to know and the what to do. Now let's move on to those conversation starters, those key insights that are worth sharing with others. Okay, what would you say, is the first one that comes to mind.
Speaker 2:Well, I think Wright's analogy of the crowd wave in a stadium to illustrate how media buys work is really brilliant.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, that's such a good one.
Speaker 2:He points out that not everyone in the stadium needs to start the wave for it to be successful, and everyone who joins in later still gets to enjoy the experience. And he uses this to explain that. You know, in today's crazy, noisy environment, your brand doesn't need to reach absolutely everyone right away.
Speaker 1:What really matters is that the experience you're offering truly resonates with whoever encounters it, whenever they do. I love that. And what's even more interesting is that he mentions the statistic that as few as 15 percent of people can create that tipping point for mass adoption. So the real focus should be on building those positive emotional triggers with that core group.
Speaker 2:That's fascinating.
Speaker 1:OK, so what's another point worth sharing?
Speaker 2:Well, the example of President Obama's 2008 Hope campaign is just so compelling. It shows how this campaign managed to capture a central feeling hope. And then they wove that feeling through every single aspect of the brand. You know the language they used, the visual imagery, the audio, the experience of the rallies, even the underlying campaign ethos it all pointed back to hope.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that consistent emotional resonance was so powerful it brought in millions of new voters.
Speaker 2:Really shows the power of a core emotion when it's authentically and consistently expressed.
Speaker 1:Across all those touch points. Exactly All right. So for our last shareable, nugget, Wright actually gives us a little sneak peek into what's coming next.
Speaker 2:Oh yes, he mentions that he's releasing a workbook companion to follow the feeling this summer, which sounds super useful for putting these principles into practice.
Speaker 1:That's great. I'll definitely be checking that out.
Speaker 2:Me too, and for daily and weekly inspiration. You know he also recommends following the Brand Builder Lab podcast and following Kai on LinkedIn.
Speaker 1:So, as we wrap up our look at Chapter 2 of Follow the Feeling, the key takeaway here is that understanding that dynamic relationship between economics and the emotional drivers of human behavior. It's not just some abstract theory. It's really essential for building a strong and impactful brand in today's world.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it really makes you think about your own brand, right? What is that one core feeling that's at the heart of it, and how intentionally and consistently are you activating that feeling across those five elements of the Levesque framework Lexicon, audio cues, visual stimuli, experience and culture?
Speaker 1:Yeah, are you really connecting with people on that emotional level?
Speaker 2:Exactly Consider how focusing on that emotional connection can lead to deeper relationships with your audience and, ultimately, those meaningful and lasting behavioral outcomes that you're looking for.
Speaker 1:Food for thought. All right, that's it for our three by three recap of chapter two of Follow the Feeling. Stay tuned for more insightful retaps into the world of branding. See you next time.
