Whose hungry? I travel a lot for speaking and training and no matter the hour at the airport, Chick-Fil-A has a line. Six restaurants surround the Chick-Fil-A in the Atlanta airport with a minimal line, but Chick-Fil-A will always be 15-25 people deep. The car line is usually full at our local one in Stuart, Florida, and people had meltdowns when they had to temporarily close for renovations last summer. So is the food that good there or is there something else? My money is on a little of both.
Kendra Cherry, author of ‘Everything Psychology’ writes that “there is some compelling evidence that shows consumers use emotions rather than information to evaluate brands. Emotions also create deeper and more visceral impressions that have impact on long-term memory.” I would also add that we allow companies we emotionally-associate with more grace than others. If they mess up, we can forgive and still return there later. In order for a company or brand to gain your emotional support that takes time and a lot of trust.
Readers can associate this post with any number of brands and even schools/organizations. If parents feel an emotional attachment to a school or district, they may be more willing to invest their time in volunteering, donations, and spreading positive messages about the school. However, schools and brands have to communicate to their audiences to gain this attachment. This starts with everything from the hiring process to the product to the culture of the establishment. Everyone has to buy-in to the mission and be willing participants in a positive culture. If people are spending their time and money at a place, they want to feel taken care of, heard, and catered to. We have so much choice now with retail, restaurants, and even schools (with charter and private schools appearing more) that brands need to be communicating more than ever to gain an emotional attachment.
You’ll see smiles, hear the words ‘my pleasure’ and be given $5 gift cards if your food is a tad bit late coming to your table at Chick-Fil-A. They have a mission to be good stewards to the community and are rewarded with unbelievable loyalty to their brand. A definite recipe for long-term success.
