My Valentine Discovery

Ever wonder why your loved one doesn't seem to feel your love?
Or, maybe nothing your loved ones do or say seem to be enough to show how much they love you?
Maybe you're speaking a different Love Language than they do...?

Here's what I mean:
There are those who feel loved through the gifts you give them. In that case, don't think a simple "Happy Valentine's Day" greeting would suffice. Be sure to get him/her a thoughtful gift! According to the Gary Chapman, creator of the "5 Love Languages," these types of people thrive on the love, thoughtfulness, and effort behind the gift. If that person speaks this language, the perfect gift or gesture shows that he/she is known, cared for, and prized above whatever was sacrificed to bring the gift to that person. A missed birthday, anniversary, or a hasty, thoughtless gift would be disastrous—so would the absence of everyday gestures.

My husband and I had to figure out our Love Languages before we got married. Maybe you and/or your loved one should take the 5 Love Languages test by Gary Chapman? Take it here! 

What language(s) do you understand best?
 The "5 Love Languages" are:

• Words of Affirmation
• Quality Time
• Receiving Gifts
• Acts of Service
• Physical Touch

What I find interesting is that with a little bit of tweaking, these love languages can also apply to the relationship between a consumer and a brand!

The "Inggrid Yonata-Fu" version would be:

• Words of Affirmation: The relationship relies on positive feedback and suggestions from the brand to improve customers' utility and value of the brand. Social media is the name of the game.

• Quality Time: The brand and its representative is always on-hand to troubleshoot any customer issues--a worry-free relationship (outsourcing to India or using automated representatives is NOT a good idea).

• Receiving gifts: "Congrats on your ______ (insert special occasions/milestone of customer) day! Here's a gift from us to you. Enjoy!"

• Acts of Service: Prime example is Zappos, Inc., Nordstrom... companies that go out of their way to please the customer. Brands loved by these types of customers live by "Customer is King" motto.

• Physical Touch: Actual interaction, be it in the form of a nice, firm handshake or a product demonstration that requires physical involvement. Jeep does a great job at making customers feel their brand by setting up a Jeep ride/test drive at the annual Auto Show.

Whether you are a company or just someone trying to get a special someone's attention, if you don't understand your target's primary language, you could end up wasting a lot of time and resources to make very little gain.