When businesses think of marketing, it’s mostly for bolstering the bottom line. However, when customers think of it, marketing can be annoyingly exhausting.

Myriad marketing channels have created an atmosphere of constant bombardment. You have most likely received 10 spam emails in the last hour and every single website you go to has ads covering it.

Videos, music, games, social media, apps and websites are inundated with advertisements and sponsorships.

While it is natural for businesses to want their brand and campaigns to shine, there is a lot of data out there that says people are sick and tired of ads.

However, there is a solution! It’s called empathy-based marketing. This is a tried and proven method of creating actually engaging and helpful content, not just another clickable banner.

Content marketing is on the rise, and you can do even better with some empathy. Here are some ways for you to generate better content around your products or services:

Invest in some more sensitivity and emotional intelligence

These days especially, there is a lot to think concerning politics, social structure, and inclusion. You want to double check everything you post, create or advertise.

This isn’t being “politically correct,” it’s being empathetic. In fact, for millennials and Gen Z, social responsibility marketing is more important than ever.

Think about your audience first

Trust me, I know this is difficult. You are trying to increase your sales and profit, not trying to hold someone’s hand through their trying times. But this is proven to work.

When you think of the audience first, your employees next, then your own profit last, it actually helps you out in the long run! So, next time you create an ad or social media post, think about who you are posting for, and what they can gain from it, like when J Crew used their advertising platform to help people dress for the job they want.

Truth over clickbait

Speaking of gaining from social media, let’s talk about clickbait. Sure, you want people to click on a headline or product, but at what cost?

Do research and make sure that what you are posting is factual and accurate. Consumers absolutely hate when they click on something and it’s not what they thought it was.

Follow the golden rule

This one’s simple. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you!

Do you absolutely hate ads that make noise before you can click on them? We all do. So don’t do it! Don’t send out a newsletter every single day if you wouldn’t want to receive them yourself.

Hire better people

This is the key to empathetic, diverse and creative marketing. Hire people from different backgrounds than you, and create a team of smart, nicer people to help you out! If you believe that your copywriter is a morally sound person, you’ll be better off. Hire people that you and others relate well to so that they can help generate more relatable content.

These are just a few of the many ways you can start to really think about your advertising and marketing from an empathy-based perspective.