If you want action, make them feel something

NOVEMBER 19, 2025

RICH EVENHOUSE
CO-FOUNDER

Our team has been thinking a lot about this lately. And over the last few months, we’ve noticed a shift. Clients across categories and business types are asking for work that feels more human. Work that moves people.

They might not all use the word “emotion,” but that’s what they’re getting at. They’re looking for connection. Campaigns that hit a nerve. Ideas that sound and feel like something real.

And we get it. This is where our team thrives.

But it’s also worth asking… Why is this what brands want right now? 

The short answer? Maybe AI.

There’s an undeniable wave of efficiency happening in marketing. It’s not going away (and shouldn’t). But it’s created a creative vacuum. It’s easier than ever to generate “content.” Yet harder than ever to make something that actually resonates.

You can prompt AI to write a brand story. You can train it to match tone. But it can’t feel the way we feel. Or intuit. Or fight for that one line that unlocks the whole thing. Emotive work takes something else.

It takes tension. It takes real collaboration—getting clear on what “approachable” actually means to your brand. It takes understanding everyday life, how people talk, how they scroll, how they decide.

It’s not formulaic. And that’s exactly why it works. 

The truth is—even for us—this work is hard. There’s no checklist for “human.” No guaranteed way to bottle emotion.

We’ve read all the storytelling frameworks too. And while they help, they’re not a shortcut to connection.

Because connection isn’t built in a three- or five-step process. It’s built in the little choices… music, art direction, writing, rhythm, tone. And built by people who care enough to push past “fine” and stay with the work until it feels true. 

And when it works, it sticks. It pulls people in. It makes them care. Most brands don’t get there. But the ones that do? They give their audiences all the feels.