Pub. 2 2019-2020 |Issue 1

8 By Katie Mares Do you remember the first time you fell in love? I remember the first time I fell in love. I was 15 years old andwas head over heels for my hockey player boyfriend. Right before I would meet him, I could feel the butterflies in my stomach, my sweaty palms and the goosebumps on my arms, even before he walked around the corner of our high school hallway. Do you remember similar feelings of falling in love for the first time? Because if you do, then you understand the way your customers feel when they fall in love with your brand! The chemical reactions that happen inside you when falling in love are the same chemical reactions women have while shopping. It’s simple; it’s science! Let me lead you through the journey to falling in love. As a women-centric business, you want women to fall in love with your brand and emotionally attach themselves to it. Three chemicals are released inside a woman’s body when she is shopping: • Dopamine • Serotonin • Oxytocin Well, for those who don’t know, these are the same chemicals released when you fall for someone! 1. Dopamine According to Harvard University , dopamine is a chemical produced by our brain that plays a starring role inmotivating behavior. It gets releasedwhen we take a bite of delicious food, when we have sex, after we exercise, and, importantly, when we have successful social interactions. In an evolutionary context, it rewards us for beneficial behaviors and motivates us to repeat them. When your experience focuses on the interaction a female consumer has with you, dopamine is released. This chemical release leads to her desire to repeat these repetitive interactions with your brand. Shopping is, indeed, addictive! 2. Serotonin Serotonin is also known as the “happiness chemical,” which plays a role in how a person feels about things. Creating an experience that stimulates happy feelings will, in turn, stimulate the release of seratonin. The goal here is to send a woman on a journey filled with positive stimuli. This way she feels happy throughout her experience with your brand. 3. Oxytocin Oxytocin (the bonding hormone) is released the same way while shopping as it is when falling in love. This hormone affects women more rigorously. Women want to connect with your brand, andwhen you take the experience is the Influencer Experiential Branding Matters Because I am going to let you in on a little secret; it’s not about the product she buys. What matters is the journey she takes when she interacts with your brand. It is the chase she enjoys!