Humanising Brands

Humanising Brands We are a human experience consultancy working with retail, hospitality and tech brands across brand strategy, customer experience, design and innovation.

We are creating a better world by making brands more HUMAN.

As the world becomes louder and busier with our brains being increasingly bombarded with more content, the need to disco...
07/01/2025

As the world becomes louder and busier with our brains being increasingly bombarded with more content, the need to disconnect and simply be is rising. Fuelled by mental health and wellbeing focus, consumers are searching for moments of truly meaningful connection with others, but also with their own Selves. 

The ‘Switch off culture’ is entering consumption practices with craft workshops, offline entertainment events and nature walks becoming more common experiential practices. Increasing self-awareness, fostering social connections and improving overall wellbeing are core motivations driving consumer engagement.

To help customers to fully switch off and get engrossed in the moment, certain circumstances need to be created to allow the brain to relax, feel safe and get lost in the moment. This is where the importance of eliminating Meaningless Friction and increasing Meaningful Friction comes in. It is however NOT about making experience frictionless as this is a non-happening for the brain. Experiences that are too smooth are not memorable, not important, and don’t add value to our lives. Whatever is truly meaningful requires friction, challenge, a bit of difficulty. 

Meaningless Friction are all those things that annoy customers, that don’t add value to their experience and relationship with your brand. It’s the extra step in the checkout process, the inability to find contact details, the illogical navigation, the unhelpful sales associate and much more. Reducing these instances help the brain relax and focus all its mental processing power on this moment, allowing customers to truly get lost, to enter a State of Flow. 

Meaningful Friction is the challenges along the customer journey that add value, that create meaning. Gamification, personalisation and co-creation are just some such examples. But even simpler things like choosing your delivery provider in a checkout adds value as it makes customers feel more in control.

How many of you have a unique name for your ChatGPT? Whose kids feel that Alexa is their friend? Who feels a little sepa...
06/01/2025

How many of you have a unique name for your ChatGPT? Whose kids feel that Alexa is their friend? Who feels a little separation anxiety when they can’t use their preferred AI tool for a few hours as your phone has died?

Well, you are not alone. People are increasingly perceiving AI tools, like voice assistants and ChatGPT, as human-like, imbuing them with human thoughts, emotions, attitudes and personality characteristics. This is a concept called anthropomorphism. 

It is not new as we anthropomorphise pets, our planet and even brands, yet it is a new development with AI tools. Fairly recent addition to our lives, but quickly gaining a position of a friend or even a family member. People already talk about their ChatGPT as he or she, give them names like ‘Chatty’ or even use them as a therapist. They say things like ‘he knows me’, ‘he understands me’. It is assigning human-like emotions, attitudes and even cognitive processes to AI which it is actually not capable of. 

This therefore leads to more intimate, deeper and stronger relationships with AI tools, embedding them into our daily routine and identity. When used as part of interactions with brands, they can become impactful tools in creation of more loyal relationships. Like brand mascots, your chatbots can be anthropomorphised in line with your brand personality, values and purpose. Your advertising and marketing campaigns can play on the intimacy we have with AI assistants. 

As we further develop our relationships with AI, the possibilities for brands building stronger connections with customers with the help of these tools will only extend, but…

Because the trust, intimacy and relationship are so strong towards AI tools, if your brand does not fare well on any of these strategic aspects, you might not see the benefits. As consumers get used to the level of personalisation they experience from AI assistants, their expectations towards all brands they interact with will rise. 

The ‘ME Universe’ is only a step away. Customers will demand all their interactions with brands to be fully aligned with their needs, wants and desires, which is also where Subconscious Commerce comes in (Trend 1).

Audits are a great way to identify new opportunities. When was the last time you did an audit of your brand, your retail...
17/01/2024

Audits are a great way to identify new opportunities. 

When was the last time you did an audit of your brand, your retail store or your ecommerce site?

You can’t see what you don’t know. 

Human brain is a complex machine and is affected by millions of stimuli every second, all with a potential of creating higher sales, dwell time, customer satisfaction, engagement, loyalty and more of your most desired KPIs. But you need to know what to look for. 

This is where our Behavioural Audits come in. We identify opportunities everyone else would miss, helping you to truly differentiate your brand and customer experience. 

We have worked with brands like and many category defining start-ups and scale ups. 

Whether you are an investor looking to sense check the brand you’re looking to back, a commercial property developer/manager looking for ways to enhance the experience or a consumer brand looking to really stand out in the market, we’ve got you. You can’t get what we offer anywhere else. Claim your competitive advantage now.

Did you know that certain sounds can make people feel 36% safer in public spaces like high streets, shopping centres, mu...
10/01/2024

Did you know that certain sounds can make people feel 36% safer in public spaces like high streets, shopping centres, museums and increase their willingness to buy by 19%?

This is just one of the incredible effects that understanding psychology can have on architecture, interior and urban design that our founder discussed in her keynote at a conference in Riga last year organised by

A room full of property developers, investors and asset managers were left shocked and inspired in equal measure naming Kate's talk top 3 of the whole conference.

If you're working for a shopping centre, designing your next multi-use property development or struggling with experience on the high street you manage, talk to us and we show you how behavioural design can transform your property or urban area into the destination that everyone talks about.

Many brand leaders think about their strategy at the beginning of every year. Yet, strategy is not the most important gu...
05/01/2024

Many brand leaders think about their strategy at the beginning of every year. Yet, strategy is not the most important guiding force for your brand.

Well, I do love strategy, but there is no good strategy without vision.

Vision is what you want to change in this world for the better and why. Strategy is how you are actually going to do it. There is no journey without the destination.

Considering that 64% of customers are attracted to brands that make the world a better place and 55% would pay more for a brand because of the good they do in the world (Shopify, 2022), starting with your vision and making sure you adapt it for the changing consumer behaviour trends and wider macro socioeconomic changes will allow you to create a winning strategy.

What is your brand vision? Share in the comments.

As we step into a new year, and today marks the joyful spirit of Christmas, we, the Humanising Brands family, along with...
24/12/2023

As we step into a new year, and today marks the joyful spirit of Christmas, we, the Humanising Brands family, along with our founder , would like to extend our wishes for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

By now, you know the importance of personalisation and that it generates 40 percent more revenue for those investing in ...
22/12/2023

By now, you know the importance of personalisation and that it generates 40 percent more revenue for those investing in it (McKinsey) but how to get it right?

Navigating the realm of personalisation becomes clearer by delving into the big five personality types. This enables you to grasp your customers’ psyche and their needs better, empowering you to craft the most effective personalisation strategy.

Here is a quick summary of the 5 dimensions of human personality and what they mean for personalisation.

Extraversion-Introversion:
Extroverts prefer:
✔️Engaging in various social contexts
✔️Visual content with eye contact and interconnections between people.
✔️Tone of voice with more energy, direct language, and increased personal interaction.

Introverts prefer:
✔️Engaging in quiet social contexts.
✔️Visual content with a single actor without direct contact.
✔️ More minimalistic designs (interior and pattern-wise).

Agreeableness:
✔️Low agreeableness may manifest as arrogance and resistance to collaboration.
✔️Highly agreeable individuals are compassionate, good listeners, and value harmony.
✔️ Those high on agreeableness are prone to co-creation and personalisation.

Conscientiousness:
✔️ Very organised, detailed, and process-oriented.
✔️Prefer clean and clear designs.
✔️Those low on conscientiousness may appreciate creative chaos and big conceptual ideas.

Neuroticism:
✔️Prone to anxiety and stress, preferring predictability.
✔️Seek trustworthy brands for emotional stability.
✔️Value quality, dependable and accountable brands.

Openness to Experience:
✔️Crave variety and seek newness.
✔️Tend to be disloyal customers due to boredom.
✔️Those low on openness live their rituals and can be very loyal.

Considering that 71 percent of consumers expect personalisation (McKinsey), maintaining a balance between consistency and innovation, along with understanding these personality traits, will enhance your approach to personalisation and customer engagement.

Download our Personalisation in Retail Report to learn more about how you can boost your personalisation strategy with psychology and build a truly unique brand equity.

Don’t let ‘Black Friday Burnout’ – the stress of shopping the sales in store – get you down. I’m teaming up with EE to t...
24/11/2023

Don’t let ‘Black Friday Burnout’ – the stress of shopping the sales in store – get you down. I’m teaming up with EE to take the stress out of Black Friday and have developed a guide on how to spot and avoid it. Get my tips via the link in bio.

What is the difference between loving a brand and being a brand evangelist? While loyal customers faithfully support the...
24/11/2023

What is the difference between loving a brand and being a brand evangelist? While loyal customers faithfully support the brands they love, brand evangelists take it a step further—they actively preach about your brand, stand by it, and fiercely protect its reputation. Yet, there’s more to it. Navigating a complex brand can be challenging for new customers, and creating positive associations is crucial for building brand loyalty. Brand Evangelists help newer customers navigate your complex brand universe creating desired brand associations.

As our founder always emphasises: the real breakthrough happens when you transform brand advocates into brand evangelists. How to achieve this, you might ask? Through successful brand communities, co-creation, and aligning your brand’s values with its target consumers.

Ready to turn your brand advocates into brand evangelists? Check our complementary Brand Advocacy Report (link in bio) and discover the strategies that will reshape your brand narrative.

67% of customers buy based on their values (Accenture) and as for Gen Alpha, their aim is to make a difference: the majo...
22/11/2023

67% of customers buy based on their values (Accenture) and as for Gen Alpha, their aim is to make a difference: the majority (59%) want to save lives, 51% aim to use technology for impact, and 66% prefer brands with a positive impact.
 
Expressing brand values isn’t just something to write about in the ‘About Us’ section of your website. 
 
It is about living, breathing, smelling, tasting, walking, talking, feeling like your values at all times, across all channels and all brand collateral. Your whole brand universe should be oozing your values so there is absolutely no doubt what your brand stands for at all time, in all weather, unbendable to anyone’s will or any socioeconomic circumstances. 
 
If you were to check your brand’s every channel and all your brand collateral, would it ooze your values?
 
We really like brands like Plus, their packet-based body wash infuse their values into their packaging. It speaks volumes that they took their time, find the right materials, suppliers, thought about design and were willing to pay extra to ensure that their packaging doesn’t harm the planet. 
 
The water-soluble packet, crafted from wood pulp, effortlessly dissolves as it journeys down your drain. And that’s not all – the storage and mailer packaging are environmentally friendly and compostable as well. This eco-friendly, no-waste packaging not only contributes to a greener planet by leaving behind zero trace of existence but also shines a light on a brighter future that Gen Alpha is looking for.
 
Caring for our planet is vital for the present and the future generations ahead. Supporting sustainability benefits us all. Are you a fan of sustainable brands like us? How do you contribute to an eco-friendly lifestyle in your daily routine? Share your insights!
 
Image: theunwash

Ever found yourself caught in the whirlwind of Black Friday shopping? From its intriguing origins tied to an accounting ...
20/11/2023

Ever found yourself caught in the whirlwind of Black Friday shopping? From its intriguing origins tied to an accounting term to the hustle and bustle of long lines and exclusive deals, Black Friday is a shopping phenomenon like no other. Our recent observations shed light on the delicate balance between calm shopping and chaotic rushes.  
 
Now, let’s delve into the core of the Black Friday: What drives these behaviours, and how can retailers leverage this data for a better shopping experience? By understanding the emotional rollercoaster shoppers ride during Black Friday - the joy, anxiety, and irritability - retailers can tailor their strategies. With enhanced crowd management strategies, clear and easy-to-follow store signage, and a staff armed with the knowledge to guide you through the shopping adventure seamlessly.
 
Our founder Kate Nightingale emphasises the importance of understanding customer movement and offering expertise not only for small businesses but in that case to keep an enjoyable experience for everyone on Black Friday. 
 
As we navigate this retail journey, we invite you to share your thoughts on transforming Black Friday into a secure and delightfully enjoyable shopping extravaganza!

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