Capturing attention has become a real challenge for businesses. Indeed, consumers are constantly called upon by an incessant flow of information on social networks, in online advertisements, in emails and other notifications. Start-ups, often, have neither the budget nor the notoriety of major brands. Faced with this cognitive overload, how can companies stand out? What are the techniques used to capture and maintain attention? And at what ethical limits should they face in this incessant quest for visibility?
Attention economy: a key concept
The term “attention economy” means an environment in which the attention of individuals has become a rare and therefore precious commodity. According to a 2019 study by Harvard University, each individual was already exposed to nearly 5,000 advertisements per day. In addition, the daily use of smartphones, tablets and computers has enabled companies to obtain unprecedented visibility in the daily life of consumers. Saturated with information, companies must compete in ingenuity to capture their attention and then keep it long enough to create an impact.
Storytelling: capture attention through stories
Storytelling, or the art of telling stories, is one of the most powerful techniques used to capture the attention of consumers. The stories affect emotions, make messages more memorable and allow brands to connect with their audience in an authentic way. This approach humanizes companies, making their actions more significant and more personal.
One of the French start-ups that has taken advantage of the storytelling is Blissa well-being coaching company. Their strategy is based on inspiring stories, shared through testimonies from customers and personal transformation stories. Bliss perfectly understood that his customers were more likely to commit when they found themselves in stories that resounded with their own aspirations or struggles. Each message, each video or article shared by the brand is built around the narration of a lived experience, of an overcome challenge, which humanizes the brand and captures the attention of its subscribers.
In this same logic, French Slipa brand that manufactures underwear made in France, uses stories about crafts, authenticity and local pride to capture attention. Their storytelling is distinguished by a narration that goes beyond the simple product, emphasizing values such as sustainability and local engagement.
According to another study conducted by The Content Marketing Institute In 2020, 92% of consumers prefer the contents of a brand that tell a story rather than those who are content to promote a product.
Personalization: Adapt the message to capture individual attention
Another key technique to capture and maintain attention in the attention economy is personalization. By adapting messages and offers to each individual, companies manage to create a unique and engaging experience. Personalization is based on the exploitation of customer data, and makes it possible to address each consumer in an individualized manner, according to their preferences, their behavior and their interactions with the brand.
One of the French pioneer start-ups in terms of personalization is Doctoliban online medical appointment platform. Thanks to a sophisticated algorithm, Doctolib offers appointments and suggestions from doctors based on the specific needs and preferences of each user. This type of customization not only captures the attention of users, but also to maintain a constant link with them by offering them a fluid and tailor -made experience.
Another relevant example is that of Lemlista start-up specializing in sending personalized marketing emails. Rather than sending generic messages, Lemlist allows companies to personalize emails according to the specific data of each recipient. This type of personalization makes it possible to considerably increase the opening rate of emails, because the message seems to be specially designed for each individual.
The data collected from user behavior allows companies to create hyper-personalized customer journeys.
Commitment: create a continuous relationship with the consumer
Commitment has also become a data scrutinized to maintain their long -term attention. This is not limited to a simple punctual interaction with the consumer; It is a question of establishing a lasting and continuous relationship with him, based on confidence and regular interaction.
French start-ups who succeed in maintaining the attention of consumers are distinguished by their ability to establish authentic and interactive relationships. Cleverclouda start-up that offers cloud solutions, uses regular webinaries and live questions sessions to keep a continuous relationship with its users. These events make it possible to create a community around the brand, to exchange ideas and to respond to the concerns of users, thus strengthening their loyalty.
More and more companies adopt chatbots To promote a constant commitment. Blablacarthe carpooling application, has integrated a chatbot which helps users to find journeys, answer their questions and even solve problems in real time. This form of commitment creates immediate interaction, ensuring that consumer attention does not disperse.
Tiktokthe video sharing platform also embodies a successful commitment model. By offering short, fun and interactive content, it manages to maintain user attention for long periods, while encouraging active participation through challenges or content generated by users.
The ethical limits in the quest for attention
However, this quest for attention is not without consequences. By using increasingly advanced personalization techniques and using an ever larger amount of data, companies sometimes cross ethical borders. The question of privacy is essential: how to guarantee that the exploitation of data does not affect consumer rights?
THE DARK PATTERNa term designating psychological manipulation techniques used to force users to take unwanted actions, is one of the main ethical dangers. Some companies use tactics such as complex forms or “unsubscribe” buttons that are difficult to find to force user engagement.
Another ethical aspect to consider is the impact of hyper-personalization on freedom of choice. The recommendation algorithm of Netflixfor example, strongly guides content choices according to past viewing habits, which could limit the diversity of the options proposed. This phenomenon creates an informational bubble, where users are confined to a universe of content they already know.
Finally, the question of exploitation of the attention of young audiences also raises ethical questions. Start-ups that target adolescents and young adults, as Snapchat And Instagrammust be particularly vigilant about the psychological impact that their attention capture strategies can have, often focused on visual content and instant interactions.
