Speaking with One Heart: The Power of Emotional Communication in IMC
——A Case Study of Jellycat's Marketing Strategy
The essence of integrated marketing communications (IMC) is to speak with one voice, build a strong brand image and deepen the relationship with customers through various tools and strategies. And emotional communication is one of the most effective methods in IMC, which can touch customers' emotions, strengthen the connection between brand and customer, and thus promote customers’ loyalty and the brand’s market influence. In recent years, the plush toy brand Jellycat has successfully captured the hearts of consumers and created a brand-new consuming experience by using emotional marketing methods to integrate emotional communication into every aspect of brand marketing. It has gained worldwide market recognition and emotional resonance with consumers.
The concept of Jellycat's product design is deeply rooted in the principle of emotionalization. The brand touches the hearts of consumers by transforming everyday images into cute, attractive plush dolls. Besides giving the dolls vivid expressions, writing their own stories for them is the most important step in "anthropomorphism”. All dolls have different personalized story content, including birthplace, age, personality and even MBTI attributes. Even those dolls that are no longer sold will not be labeled simply as “sold out” but will be “retired”. Creating such alive dolls differentiates the brand from other plush toy brands and strengthens the emotional connection between consumers and products.
In addition, Jellycat provides consumers with an immersive shopping experience by creating experiential interactive consumption scenarios. For example, the "Jellycat Diner" creates a fast-food restaurant scene, where the store staff simulate the role of waiters to package and make "food" (actually dolls in the shape of food) for consumers, which increases the fun of shopping and deepens consumers' emotional identification with the brand. Jellycat brings consumers a pretend play that seems to return to childhood in this way. Jellycat gives consumers real emotional satisfaction. This kind of interaction not only increases the visibility of the brand and the fun of shopping, but also allows consumers to feel the warmth and care conveyed by the brand while purchasing.
In the digital age, social media platforms have become an important channel for brands to interact with consumers. The brand used the celebrity effect to attract consumers’ attention and emotional investment. The purchase of Jellycat by many celebrities and KOLs has affected consumers' attitudes towards the brand and stimulated their purchasing motivations. Jellycat also makes full use of these platforms to interact and communicate with consumers.
Through topic marketing on platforms such as Xiaohongshu, Weibo, and Douban, the brand encourages users to share their stories and experiences with Jellycat dolls, thus forming a strong UGC and word-of-mouth effect. The Value Proposition of Jellycat lies in providing a platform where users can share and explore every kind of lifestyle, while also offering brands an innovative marketing channel. This content-first sharing model not only increases user loyalty but also creates an active community atmosphere of the platform. Whether it is reverse marketing such as Douban's "Jellycat Withdrawal Mutual Aid Group" or marketing methods that take advantage of the situation to create memes, they all increase the visibility of the brand. Encouraging users to actively participate in secondary content creation makes consumers feel that they are part of the brand story, attracting more consumers to spontaneously promote the brand.
Under this marketing idea, Jellycat's dolls have largely broken away from the use attributes of objects and created more emotional value. Therefore, in the past few years when the "kidulting" culture has flourished and the plush toy market has risen, it has stood out and become the choice of many users.
Jellycat's product design concept centered on emotionalization is truly remarkable. By transforming everyday images into adorable plush dolls, it has opened up a new path in the plush toy market.
ReplyDeleteThe "anthropomorphism" approach is the highlight. Giving dolls vivid expressions and personalized stories, including details like birthplace, age, personality, and MBTI attributes, breathes life into these inanimate objects. This not only makes them unique compared to other plush toys but also deeply connects with consumers on an emotional level. For instance, the idea of "retiring" dolls instead of simply marking them as "sold out" shows respect for the products and further enhances the emotional bond.
This kind of product design doesn't just create toys; it builds companions for consumers. It allows people to form a special relationship with the dolls, as if they are real friends with their own lives and stories. It has successfully turned the simple act of buying a plush toy into an emotional investment. This unique design strategy is the cornerstone of Jellycat's success in creating a strong brand image and winning the hearts of consumers, making it stand out in the highly competitive toy industry. However, as mentioned, Jellycat should also be cautious about over - emphasizing certain cultural elements to avoid alienating some potential customers.
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DeleteFirst of all, as a keen lover of Jellycat, this essay's exploration of the brand's IMC strategy is particularly resonant. It captures how Jellycat's emotional communication tactics, from the anthropomorphization of their toys with detailed backstories to the creation of immersive shopping experiences like the "Jellycat Diner," not only differentiate the brand but also resonate deeply with consumers like me.
ReplyDeleteAs for Jellycat's social media strategies which leverage celebrity endorsements, it reminds me of its partnership with the Olympic gold medalist Fan Zhendong. Fan Zhendong's competitive spirit and youthful energy are a perfect match for Jellycat's playful brand image. The collaboration also taps into the emotional connection between fans and their sports heroes, turning a simple purchase into a meaningful experience of supporting their favorite athletes. This strategy had a huge impact on sales, with a significant surge in sales of endorsed products, expanding the original brand market to sports enthusiasts.
Looking ahead, in my opinion, Jellycat could consider diversifying its product line and opening different types of offline stores to strike a balance between its unique "kidulting" culture and a broader range of consumers in order to address market challenges as well as chart a path for future growth.