The psychology behind brand loyalty [Infographic]

How great would it be if every single one of your first-time customers kept coming back for more?

Wouldn't it be even better if they loved your company so much that they told all of their friends about you?

If a consumer elicits this type of behavior, regardless of convenience or price, you can assume they're brand-loyal.

They've made a connection with who you are as a company and they'll most likely be a customer for life.

But how you do generate a strong customer base that chooses to be faithful to your brand?

If you can get those customers to view you as the trusted or preferred brand of choice, you won't have to worry so much about the competition, the price of your product, or other criteria that comes into play during the decision-making process.

The answer is to build a brand that your prospects and customers love.

By understanding the psychology that goes into branding specifically, you'll be able to attract consumers who will relate to and make a mental connection with your brand's identity.

In the University of Southern California's infographic, you'll learn about how different strategies can enhance image perception of companies, and how popular brands are showing how it can be done.

The psychology of branding

Essentially, there are five core dimensions that play a role in a brand's personality or identity.

To build a strong brand, a company must understand each of them individually and how they want to use them within their marketing or brand image. These include:

• Sincerity
• Excitement
• Competence
• Sophistication
• Ruggedness

It's important for a company to identify the conscious -- and subconscious -- feelings they want a consumer to associate with their brand, and then leverage the core dimension(s) that make the most sense for them to achieve that association.

Along with the core dimensions, there are more intricate ways to apply the power of psychology to your brand's identity.

Use of color

Look around you. Every successful brand has a color palette they leverage within their branding. For example, Taco Bell uses purple, Target focuses on red, and McDonald's is purely yellow.

But why?

Colors are used for more than just making things look pretty; they actually elicit emotion, whether you notice it or not. Orange is seen to make people feel friendly, cheerful, and confident. Blue brings out feelings of trust, dependability, and strength. And green is often seen as peaceful or healthy.

Depending on what feelings you want your consumers to feel when associating with your brand, you may want to choose a specific color scheme that matches what you're trying to achieve.

Words & messaging

Similar to using colors in marketing, the words and messaging you use on your website, your digital content, your print assets, and other platforms can also bring out specific emotions in your consumers.

Some popular messaging types include happiness, comedy, persuasion, fear, and sadness.

Think about the ASPCA commercials we're all familiar with. Every single time I hear Sarah McLachlan singing, and I see the faces of those sad animals asking for help, I can't help but want to donate and adopt about 10 animals from the nearby shelter.

In addition to emotional messaging, word choice, in general, can have a huge effect on how people perceive your brand. It's been proven that consumers tend to go for names that sound more expensive than the competition, and also make judgments based on their perception of sophistication.

By understanding who you're trying to target, knowing the emotions you want them to feel, and understanding how messaging can influence perception of your company, you can properly influence your potential buyers in a way that will resonate with them more than if you were to simply focus on marketing your product's features or benefits.

Take a look at USC's infographic below to learn more facts and tips on how to use psychology in your marketing to build a brand that your consumer-base will love.