Is 'Brand Love' Still Worth Chasing in 2026?
Updated: 1 day ago
'Brand love' is back under scrutiny in 2026: a debate reignited by senior marketers questioning whether emotional affection actually drives commercial results — and the honest answer is that love without availability and distinctiveness rarely pays the bills.
The uncomfortable question marketers keep avoiding
Few phrases are as cherished in marketing as 'brand love', and few are as rarely interrogated. A recent round of industry debate — prompted by senior marketers openly questioning whether consumers really 'love' brands at all — has put the idea back in the spotlight. The uncomfortable truth is that most people feel very little about most of the brands they buy, and buy them anyway.
That does not make emotion worthless. It means emotion is a means, not an end. The goal was never affection for its own sake; it was memory, preference and a willingness to choose you at the moment of decision.
What emotion actually buys
Decades of effectiveness research point the same way: emotional advertising builds the long-term memory structures that make a brand come to mind quickly and feel like the easy, safe choice. That is valuable. But it only converts into sales when two unglamorous things are also true — the brand is easy to buy (availability) and easy to recognise (distinctive assets).
In other words, love is the amplifier, not the engine. Pour emotion into a brand that is hard to find or hard to recognise, and you are warming up demand your business cannot capture.
A simple test for your own brand
Ask three questions before you chase affection. Are we mentally available — do people think of us at the moment of need? Are we physically available — can they buy us without friction? And are we distinctive — would our ad still be ours with the logo removed? If any answer is weak, fix it before you spend on love.
The 2026 reframing is healthy. Stop asking whether customers love you and start asking whether they'll remember you, find you and pick you. Get those right and 'brand love' tends to look after itself.
Quick FAQ
Does brand love actually drive sales?
Only indirectly. Emotion builds memory and preference, but it converts to sales only when the brand is also easy to find and easy to recognise. Love amplifies demand; it does not replace availability.
Should marketers stop pursuing emotional branding?
No - emotional advertising builds valuable long-term memory. The fix is to pair it with mental and physical availability and distinctive brand assets, rather than treating affection as the end goal.
'Brand love' is one of the most comforting ideas in marketing and one of the least examined. The honest version is that people rarely love brands - they remember, find and choose the ones made easy to buy. Treat emotion as the amplifier, not the engine, and you'll spend far more wisely. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
Stop asking whether customers love you; ask whether they'll remember you, find you and pick you.
Would your advertising still be recognisably yours with the logo removed?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Marketing Week.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
