What makes one move beyond merely preferring a brand to forming an emotional connection to it? It boils down to the brand’s values.

When companies prove they share the same principles as their customers, they can build relationships that move beyond brand loyalty and into brand affinity.

What brand affinity means for customers

People who believe that certain brands share their values tend to have an affinity toward them. In turn, businesses use this positive association to increase devotion to the brand and retain customers over the long term.

But don’t confuse brand affinity with brand loyalty.

Customer loyalty doesn’t always mean having a personal connection to the brand. They can buy a specific type of detergent not because they feel an emotional tie to the brand. These customers purchase it because they like that company’s products do an excellent job of getting stains out.

On the flip side, if a consumer had an affinity for this same detergent brand, they would have more affection for it. Maybe the detergent is the first one they bought after having their first child. They remember rocking their child to sleep, wrapped in a freshly cleaned blanket. This consumer knows that the detergent brand incorporates ethical practices in its supply chain and eco-friendly materials into its products.

All of these things are important to them and align with their values. Because of this, they have a personal connection to this brand. And this association will play a prominent role in them buying from this company in the future.

Brand affinity through word of mouth

A customer’s dedication to the brand makes it more likely for them to spend money on its products. And word of mouth is a significant factor in how consumers feel about the brand and how they promote it to others.

When someone with a strong affinity towards a brand presents it positively to another individual with an equally solid connection, that person is likelier to purchase even more of the product. They’re also less susceptible to switching to another brand because someone else says something negative about it.

As Scott Cook, co-founder of Intuit, pointed out,

“A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is – it is what consumers tell each other it is.”

People place a higher value on the opinions of their family, friends, and peers regarding the products and services they use. This is why marketers place their messages on multiple channels to get the broadest reach.

It gives potential shoppers more exposure to the brand. Eventually, they’ll become customers and, hopefully, loyal to the brand’s products before finally forming an emotional association with them.

Creating authentic connections

You probably find yourself attracted to certain people whose personality pairs well with your own. The same can be said about the brands you choose to buy from. A brand’s personality contributes to why people feel an affinity for one company over another.

And like a conversation with a friend, when brands get feedback from—and listen to—their customers using surveys and interviews, they can understand why people prefer them over the competition. But more importantly, how the brand can heighten their experiences.

Now more than ever, businesses have to work harder to keep customers happy, especially as many of them have changed their buying habits since 2020. These consumers are steadily moving towards companies whose values align with their own, which is where authenticity comes in.

Authentic messaging and business practices help maintain positive connections to the brand. It’s about showing rather than telling for customers who want to buy from brands that present themselves as genuine. For companies to keep their customers, they have to show empathy, care, and consistency throughout their marketing.

Stronger connections built on values

Brand affinity is more than liking the way a company looks or sounds. It’s a form of self-expression. Businesses that build a genuine relationship with consumers can create a stronger link between themselves and how those very same customers choose to use the brand to represent themselves.

But to get there and create this vital connection, brands must be responsible for how customers perceive them. Building on brand affinity means listening to audiences and using what they hear to show their most authentic selves.

The people involved in the design of a marketing piece have different priorities. Marketers want the message to stand out clearly. Sales teams want the message to be as big as possible. And also, yes, stand out.

And your customers?

They don’t have the time or patience to sift through chaotic designs that force them to think too hard. This is why it’s essential to understand how the human eye reads a page.

Once you know how people take in information, you can organize it to guide them as they read and move them toward action.

How does the eye read a page?

Language significantly affects a design’s layout and how people read online and offline. For instance, Middle Eastern readers read from right to left. Meanwhile, readers of English, Spanish, and other Western languages consume content from left to right.

But regardless of the language your audience reads in, there’s one thing they’re looking for—a pattern.

When presented with a new page to look at, your readers’ eyes are constantly looking for familiar elements like shapes, colors, and a clear hierarchy as they skim. And when presented with more complex information, the urge to classify it grows larger.

What does this mean for you? It means adapting your layouts to align with the most common reading types: Z- and F-pattern.

Z-pattern
For the Z-pattern, people begin to read from the top left side of a page before moving to the right. As they move down the page, their eyes drift diagonally toward the bottom left as they repeat the process.

It’s not uncommon to break out the content into smaller chunks of information combined with directive imagery to accommodate this reading pattern. This type of layout structure helps to naturally lead readers through websites or sales documents where you have a short window to catch someone’s attention.

F-Pattern
Some readers use the F-pattern to work through larger blocks of information. The F-pattern begins similarly to the Z-pattern, with the reader scanning from the top left to the top right.

But instead of zig-zagging through the page, the eye continues moving down the left side until it reaches a visual cue. Once the reader finds it, they continue reading from left to right in short bursts, repeating the pattern throughout the page.

Using eye-tracking technology, researchers found that when people scan content, especially online, using the F-pattern, some people are more systematic, while others are faster. However, the quicker a reader scans, the less information they take in because they’re skipping large parts of the text.

How do you create a good visual hierarchy?

Part of a web or print designer’s job is to ensure that your key messages are easy to find and understand. So when this information isn’t crystal clear, it affects the success of your marketing piece.

So, where do you start when you want to create a clear visual hierarchy?

Organize your content for priority
Here’s a secret. Your most important content and offers don’t necessarily have to be slapped at the top of the page. But every word and image has to work together to lead toward your end goal.

Headings and subheads
As readers scan, headlines and subheads give them the gist of each section. And each one needs special attention. Again, most readers skim, especially online. Your marketing headlines and subheads must be written based on the specific value proposition you’re selling to the reader.

Use visuals wisely
Visual hierarchy is about building logic into the layout, so the information people see is usable and easily understood. Grouping images together with your messages and using callouts and bullets can help lead people as they move along the path to clicking, calling, or signing up.

Designs that resonate

Remember those old things called newspapers? The front page grabbed people’s attention for a reason. Newspaper layouts use a big headline paired with a massive image at the top of the page. Based on the information in this “breaking news” section, the reader’s curiosity is piqued, and they’re encouraged to move further into the rest of the page.

Your layout has to do the same thing. Grab people’s attention. But whereas newspapers purposely give people lots of information to read through, business marketing forces you to condense a lot of information into a digestible format.

Now, design for print and web has to be skimmable and enable readers to get what they need quickly. Your design layout has to organize everything in a way people understand and visually guide them so they ultimately act.

Professional printing costs can vary for several reasons. Special finishes and die cuts can increase production time. While matching to a Pantone PMS swatch involves more effort and test prints. But one thing is sure for both. They cost more.

So how can businesses save money on printing without cutting corners? Here are a few ways to do it.

The basics of estimating print jobs

It can be overwhelming for those who don’t know much about commercial printing. And it’s even more challenging when trying to estimate your printing costs. First, start with your exact specifications.

On a basic level, your specifications need to contain:

• – The dimensions of your document
• – The number of printed pieces (100? 200? More?)
• – Page count (how many pages will be within your document, including the cover)
• – Ink specifications (4-color process, spot colors, black and white)
• – Paper type (lighter vs. heavier paper weight)

From there, you can figure out with your designer and printer what’s realistic based on your budget.

How to reduce printing costs and save money?

When working with clients, we always try to do as much planning as possible to ensure there are no surprises once the final design goes to the printer. And when advising clients about how they can stay within their print budget, we offer the following recommendations:

Cut back on the number of spreads
Shaving down your content to decrease the number of spreads is one of the quickest ways to reduce costs. Remember that these are even. If you have a design that spans an odd number of pages, you can consolidate the information to reduce the spreads printed in your document.

Higher quantities lead to saving more
Whether you’re printing one flyer or a 64-page booklet, the number of copies you order matters. The more you print, the better the deal you’ll get. For example, 50 brochures will be more expensive than 1,000 per piece. Print setup costs are baked in that don’t really change when ordering larger quantities.

Anything less than 500 prints usually provides minimal savings unless you run a digital print with a smaller vendor or pay by the page. (e.g., FedEx office)

Even though the savings are significant with larger quantities, you don’t want to overbuy. Think about the longevity of your campaign. If you order 10,000 copies of a time-sensitive brochure, it may become obsolete before you fully distribute it to your audience.

Don’t go crazy with special finishes and bindings
Spot varnishes that highlight parts of a design involve more setup during the prepress and printing process. The same goes for any binding, including saddle stitching or manual work like inserting flyers or individual sheets into multi-page documents.

These also take more time to produce. Anything that requires effort on the printer’s side will cost more. If you want to decrease this expense, choose simple folds and limit, or completely remove, any special finishes.

Opt for process ink over color matching
Nowadays, choosing black and white over color doesn’t save much money. This is mainly because digital printing has drastically lowered the setup and manual costs associated with it. Going with digital CMYK or process ink over Pantone (PMS) color will be cheaper.

But if your goal is to match a specific color for your brand, you can work with your printer to get as close as possible with CMYK. Luckily, most small- to mid-sized businesses don’t require this level of detail. You’ll typically see this with larger companies like Coca-Cola or Home Depot, where color matching is vital to their brand continuity.

Choose a paper thickness for your end goals
Paper comes in a variety of weights and types. Choosing a lighter weight like 20# will lower your cost, but it’ll affect the durability of your final piece. If longevity isn’t important for your campaign, it might make sense to go with lighter paper.

Remember, though, that these papers will work better for communications that are often disposable, think flyers or one-sheeters. A heavier stock of paper often provides a more tactile, sturdy feel, but it may not be ideal for every application.

Simple, standard house stock will always be cheaper than coated papers like metallics, linen, or specialty papers when you want to lower your costs.

Plan for an extended timeline
Rush fees obliterate budgets. Allow ample time to produce your printed piece once your designer or internal team hands it to the printer. While rushing the project immediately puts you at the top of the queue, it also limits any last-minute changes. Plus, by their very nature, expedited jobs cause costs to go up exponentially.

Consider all of your transportation options
Transport costs factor into your final total. If you can pick up your order, you’ve immediately cut out one of the priciest fees—shipping.

Print shipments can be very expensive, depending on the project. Larger orders naturally weigh more, which leads to increased fuel and carrier costs. If you have more time, using FedEx or UPS ground instead of a local courier is another option. Couriers, on average, tend to be 3-4x more than larger shipping services.

Save your print budget

The quality you get from commercial printers surpasses what you’ll find at your local office supply store. But what you spend on printing provides a level of expertise and service that ensures your final piece impresses your audience.

Using the tips above, you can reduce costs while still achieving the results you’re looking for without skimping on quality.

Planning ahead can mitigate any issues that could force your budget to explode. Working with your designer and printer also ensures transparency throughout the process, which prevents any unwelcome surprises.