Branding - relationship

The relationship between the brand and the user stretches from the digital world all the way across to real-life interactions. The array of touch points, which are any possible contact points the user will have with the brand such as the website or the store where the product can be bought, all contribute to the overall customer experience (CX) and invoke an emotional connection and build a loyal relationship. In the next chapter, we'll look at building emotional connections with users in more detail. A brand's behavior in the digital world includes interactions with users through the website, email communication, or social media. The way the website communicates information through imagery, brand guidelines, and UI animations to the personalization of emails, tone of email copy, and the frequency of emails being sent all add to the relationship dynamic between the brand and the user. Behavior on social media is a very powerful channel for building brand-user relationships. Not only is it public, but the user can directly interact with the brand on a more person level, the same way the user interacts with family and friends. The brands behavior in real life has to support the brand's personality online and its core values throughout every possible contact point the user will have with the brand.

Apple is by far one of the best examples of a brand that strongly pursues customer experience and takes building a relationship with the user very seriously. Apple understands that the smallest detail can contribute to a memorable customer experience and leaving the user with a willingness to go through that customer experience, again and again. Let's look at the cycle of buying an Apple product and the little details that promote the "Apple experience":

1. The Apple iStore naturally draws attention. The interior is light, futuristic, and if you look closely, the color palette used consists mainly of neutral colors such as white and silver, White is known to symbolize perfection and purity, subconsciously a person is drawn to it. A small percentage of the palette consists of blue, known to have a relaxing effect on the human psyche, or purple, that is known to be a luxurious color. Blue and purple are usually seen on the wallpapers of devices. It is an enjoyable user experience being in the iStore.
2. Other than the brick and mortar presence of Apple, the iStore staff are friendly and helpful. The staff don't have to convince the customers to buy an Apple product, the product already has an exceptional reputation, the staff are merely there to assist in the user experience.
3. After the purchase, you take the experience home. The package design of an Apple product is not just aesthetically pleasing, but also absolutely practical. Every cable, connector, or instruction manual is neatly packaged with a custom-wrapper. The experience of opening the product is delightful.

1. When you interact with the actual product, the quality is tangible. The casing is beautiful to look at, the material is durable, and the touch of the product almost feels like velvet. The experience of handling the product is pleasurable.
2. Lastly, the functionality of the product easy to use. When you start your new MacBook for the first time, the wizard seamlessly takes you through all the steps. There are no additional installations and the full process takes you less than 15 minutes to get up and running. The experience of interacting with the operating system is effortless.

It's clear that every touch point contributes to the overall experience and relationship of the brand, but, within a highly competitive digital and e-commerce space, the brand will need to differentiate itself from its competitors in a more in-depth way than just products. This is where UX gives a brand the edge to really stand out against competitors. The way a user feels and experiences the brand is more valuable than just having a great product. From the high-level touch points we've touched on during the cycle of buying an Apple product, it's clear that each point focuses on enticing a specific sense or emotion to reinforce the user's experience with the brand. Thus, good UX (the user's experience during interaction with the product) promotes great CX (the customer's experience with all the touch points while purchasing a product) and collaboratively manifests a solid brand experience (BX) that can push a brand to new heights and great profits.

Although in this book we'll only focus on digital products, specifically UX for Web, it's important to never lose sight that UX is in everything you do for a user.