How to Evoke Emotions That Make Customers Come Back for More

Episode Summary:

Are you evoking the right emotions in your customers, or are you unknowingly driving them away? In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton dive deep into the fascinating (and often overlooked) world of customer emotions. Emotions are at the heart of every customer experience—from frustration and neglect to trust and happiness, and they’re driving your bottom line.

Colin shares a story about his wife Lorraine’s coat-return drama and unpacks the emotional disaster it caused (hint: she’s not buying from that brand again). Meanwhile, Ryan explains why emotions are “squishy,” why there’s no universal list of emotions, and how organizations can still harness this powerful driver to build loyalty, advocacy, and revenue.

You’ll learn why emotions are always in play, how to identify the ones that drive value, and how to stop evoking the ones that destroy it. Colin and Ryan share practical tips, real-life examples, and the secret to aligning your team around the emotions that matter most.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone serious about improving their customer experience—and their bottom line.

Best Quote from the Episode:

"If I went to the CEO of a company and said, ‘Here’s the emotion your customers are feeling: frustration,’ do you think they’d say, ‘Yes, that’s exactly what we were going for’? Of course not! But if you’re not managing emotions, you’re leaving them to chance—and that’s costing you loyalty and revenue." — Colin Shaw.

Key Takeaways:

1. Emotions Drive Customer Loyalty and Spending
   Emotions aren’t just fluffy extras—they’re the bedrock of customer decision-making. Positive emotions like trust, care, and value build loyalty, while negative ones like frustration and neglect destroy it.
2. Most Companies Don’t Know What Emotions They’re Evoking
   If you ask your leadership team what emotions they’re trying to evoke, you’ll likely get different answers—or blank stares. That lack of alignment is a significant problem.
3. Triggers Are Key to Managing Emotions
   Emotions don’t happen by accident. They’re triggered by specific actions, processes, or interactions. Identify the triggers in your customer journey and intentionally design them to evoke positive emotions.
4. Practical Exercise: Emotion Safaris
   Take your team on a safari to experience your customer journey—or a competitor’s—firsthand. Then debrief: What emotions did they feel? What triggered them? Were those the right emotions?
5. The ROI of Emotions
   Customers who feel trust and care spend more and are more loyal. Customers who feel neglected cost you money. Managing emotions isn’t just good for customers; it’s good for your bottom line.
   
   

Why You Should Listen:
This episode isn’t just about theory—it’s about practical steps you can take to evoke the right emotions in your customers and improve your business results. Colin and Ryan’s insights are backed by decades of research, real-world experience, and a healthy dose of humor.

If you’re ready to stop leaving customer emotions to chance and start managing them with intention, this episode is for you.

 

Resources Mentioned

Emotional Research: https://beyondphilosophy.com/consulting/emotional-signature/

The DNA of Customer Experience: How emotions drive value book: https://beyondphilosophy.com/books/

About the Hosts:

Colin Shaw is a LinkedIn 'Top Voice' with a massive 284,000 followers and 86,000 subscribers to his 'Why Customers Buy' newsletter. Shaw is named one of the world's 'Top 150 Business Influencers' by LinkedIn. His company, Beyond Philosophy LLC, has been selected four times by the Financial Times as a top management consultancy. Shaw is co-host of the top 1.5% podcast 'The Intuitive Customer'—with over 600,000 downloads—and author of eight best-sellers on customer experience, Shaw is a sought-after keynote speaker. Follow Colin on LinkedIn.

Ryan Hamilton is a Professor of Marketing at Emory University's Goizueta Business School and co-author of 'The Intuitive Customer' book. An award-winning teacher and researcher in consumer psychology, he has been named one of Poets & Quants' "World’s Best 40 B-School Profs Under 40." His research focuses on how brands, prices, and choice architecture influence shopper decision-making, and his findings have been published in top academic journals and covered by major media outlets like The New York Times and CNN. His work highlights how psychology can help firms better understand and serve their customers. Ryan has a new book launch in June 2025 called “The Growth Dilemma: Managing Your Brand When Different Customers Want Different Things” Harvard Business Press Follow Ryan on LinkedIn.

Subscribe & Follow

🎙️ Tune in now to The Intuitive Customer Podcast on your favorite platform!

Apple Podcasts

Spotify