The Hidden Marketing Lessons Of Valentine's Day Pageantry

NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 11: A woman shops for Valentines Day cards at a Hallmark store on the Upper ... [+] West Side February 10, 2005 in New York City. According to retail projections, people will spend an average of $77 this year up from $64 in 2004. (Photo by Stephen Chernin/Getty Images)

It's Valentine's Day, and love is in the air. This is the time of year when indulgent love songs reach peak rotation on radio and Spotify playlists, professing the promise of undying adoration and dedication. In this season of desired affection, I can't help but notice a resemblance between our beloved ballads and brand advertising.

Brands, like love songs, make big promises in their marketing communications in hopes off wooing the gaze of current and potential customers alike. These messages range from explicit pleas ("Baby, baby, please!") to implicit signals that use catchy language, music mnemonics, and featured performers (i.e., celebrity endorsers) to drive connections that lead to action: Buy. Share. Click. Search. Sample.

But much like true love, it's not enough to say it; brands must also prove it. Savvy marketers understand this distinction and the importance of moving beyond just brand communications (saying it) to focus on brand kinetics (behaving it).

As we celebrate Valentine's Day, it's a good reminder for brands to do a little less declaring and a lot more demonstrating. As Madonna once sang, "Get into the groove, boy, you have to prove your love to me!"

On that note, here are a few things to consider:

(1) “You can’t hurry love, you just have to wait”

Love takes time. If a couple says "I love you" after the first date, we immediately become skeptical of its merits. However, marketers are constantly looking for love to bloom within a quarter because that's when their performance numbers are due. Intuitively, it doesn't make sense, but brands are showing up in more places and more frequently—thanks to programmatic buying and retargeting—to develop a relationship quickly. Some may see this as persistence, but in many instances, this level of stalking would turn someone off. Brands must be willing to put in the time it takes to build a meaningful relationship in ways that abide by the social norms of daily living.

(2) “Try not to hide what you feel deep inside/if you care, you must dare to be free as the air”

As Earth, Wind, & Fire proclaimed, brands must let their feelings show. When a brand's beliefs are reflected in its behaviors, it signals that the brand is "about it." REI's decision to close its stores during Black Friday is an excellent example of this because, beyond PR value, it was a demonstrative representation of its core beliefs. REI believes the outdoors are meant to be explored, so it encouraged consumers to spend their day off exploring, not shopping. Though the decision might have cost REI potential revenue on an essential day for retail, it was far more critical for them to represent their truth. And isn't that what we expect of any overture of love?

Illuminated facade at dusk with logo and sign at the Recreational Equipment Inc (REI) sports and ... [+] outdoors equipment store in Dublin, California, March 12, 2018. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

(3) “Because I need somebody who will stand by me”

When it comes to love, it's the hard times that prove the "real" vs the "fake." A perfect example of this is Tristan Walker's Bevel. The company founded a core shaving system product for men of color. It was meant to be an alternative to the Gillettes of the world and other mainstream shaving products that did not meet the unique sensitivities of Black male shavers. Walker launched Bevel as a subscription-based service to remedy these pain points with a product "for us, by us." After three successful years, Walker reportedly received offers to acquire Bevel from the companies that previously ignored Bevel's target consumer, considering it too small. And even after a P&G acquisition, Bevel continues to serve its constituency and all its pain points to let them know that this is truly the real thing.

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - FEBRUARY 25: Tristan Walker of Bevel attends Icon Mann's 2nd Annual Power 50 ... [+] Pre-Oscar dinner at Peninsula Hotel on February 25, 2014 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/WireImage)

(4) “No chocolate covered candy hearts to give away”

According to Stevie Wonder, our motives for showing love have to be more than just a holiday. Brands must remember that true love should be demonstrated all year round, not just at designated moments. It's too convenient for marketers to show moms appreciation on Mother's Day or in support of a new product launch, but those who show their love throughout the year stand to build strong, authentic relationships.

Perhaps the 90s band Extreme was really onto something with their classic ballad, "More Than Words." The lyrics read, "More than words/is all you have to do to make it real/then you wouldn't have to say that you love me/cause I'd already know." In the world of marketing, truer words have never been spoken. Suppose brands are to cut through the clutter and truly establish relationships with would-be and current consumers. In that case, these marketers have to move beyond communications and focus on kinetics because actions speak louder than words.