Read any number of 'thought pieces' on brand loyalty and you will find authors extolling the benefits of building relationships with customers. The social media revolution, as they see it, has created an opportunity to interact directly with your customers like a close friend does.

Take off your marketer hat for a moment, and think about the number of relationships you have in your personal life. A few close friends and family, a larger number that you wish you had more time for. It would make you laugh to think you had the time, let alone the desire, to build a "relationship" with a bunch of brands.

Attempts by brands to do it are often uncomfortable, commonly received as disingenuous and can feel a bit creepy. One brand on Twitter recently started talking like a mid-twenties crypto tech bro by tweeting "WAGMI" and singlehandedly made the phrase a little less cool.

The popular cryptocurrency forum phrase, which stands for "we are all going to make it", comes across as a desperate attempt to join a subculture where it is not welcome. Brands are brands, and customers aren't easily tricked into thinking they are anything but.

Brands work subconsciously

A strong brand is one that makes consumer choice less cognitively challenging. A trip to the supermarket results in a shopper making tens or even hundreds of complicated purchase decisions in a short space of time.

The challenge for brands is to hardwire a bias towards their products. This is done through advertising that successfully associates the brand with a problem or a need. It's a transactional relationship which is made stronger by mutual benefit, not by adding another "friend" to the customer's life.

Solving a problem

"It's hard to find tasty vegan meals", "I don't have time for a healthy breakfast in the morning", "I have dry skin". Customer problems should be addressed and solutions provided to add value.

Ad creatives should try and entertain the viewer and provide a situational subconscious memory of the brand's solution. Focusing on this simple goal will shift marketers from thinking about their brand to thinking about their customers.

Build memories, not relationships.

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