Nine out of 10 consumers want brands to show empathy through their behavior, while 82% of CEOs believe empathy contributes to a company’s financial performance — but nearly half of all employees and 63% of CEOs struggle with empathy. According to Ignite 360’s Rob Volpe, a self-proclaimed Empathy Activist, this deficit likely stems from a belief that emotional understanding is a weakness.
During his keynote session at the 2024 B2B Marketing Exchange East event, he noted there are two types of empathy:
- Emotional, which includes feeling someone else’s feelings; and
- Cognitive, which includes taking on someone’s perspective or point of view to understand where they’re coming from.
For his session, Volpe focused solely on cognitive empathy, as “it’s what we need to use most in the workplace.
“The more you can infuse empathy and help customers realize that you understand them and their pain points, they’re going to feel connected,” he explained. “Think about what’s motivating them beyond doing their job. Every buyer wants to get a good deal, but they also want to be the hero of their team or organization by showing off their win. If you can identify with buyers and empower them, they will be more loyal than you.
With that in mind, Volpe noted that there are five steps to building empathy:
1. Dismantle Your Judgement
Volpe admitted that the first step is the hardest and gets in everybody’s way, as the judgments people unknowingly hold can sneak up and block them. He continued that this isn’t about making decisions or reasoned judgments; it’s about those spontaneous moments where self-doubt arises about someone’s appearance, how they sound or something they’ve done in the past.
“That kind of judgment creates a brick wall that prevents connection and empathy,” said Volpe. “The solution lies in self-awareness, curiosity and grace. We’re all human, and grace starts with ourselves. It’s about recognizing when we’ve fallen short, committing to doing better and following through next time. When interacting with your customers, leave judgment at the door. Even if a customer has been difficult, try empathizing with their perspective.”
2. Ask Good Questions
Step two is about asking good questions — specifically, open-ended, exploratory ones. According to Volpe, marketers must avoid yes-or-no questions and leading questions designed to affirm their perspective. For example, instead of asking, “Is hitting your sales number the top way to be successful on the job?” — a yes-or-no, leading question — he suggested trying something broader like, “What does success on the job mean to you?” With that in mind, Volpe noted that a helpful exercise is for marketers to remove “why” from their vocabulary.
“While it’s natural to want to ask ‘why,’ it often puts people on the defensive and limits the quality of their answers,” said Volpe. “Instead, reframe your questions with words like who, what, where, when, how or prompts like, ‘Tell me more about that.’
3. Actively Listen
Volpe succinctly summed up the third step by explaining that it’s all about being fully focused and present in the conversation.
“While everyone listens, choosing to pay attention and follow the other person’s lead truly can make a world of difference,” he continued. “When we listen deeply and long enough, we gain understanding and develop empathy. It all starts with you — you are responsible and can make that connection. It just takes small moments of courage to truly listen and engage meaningfully.”
4. Integrate Into Understanding
Integrating empathy into your understanding means making room in your mind for new perspectives. Volpe noted that some people think that having empathy means giving up their own viewpoint, but that’s not true—instead, it’s simply adding another data point.
“It’s about being curious and open to the idea that there are different ways of seeing the world,” Volpe explained. “For example, Hershey’s sales team wanted to better understand end users, like people who shop in dollar stores or visit truck stops. To do this, they participated in ‘be the consumer’ exercises, where they literally went through their customers’ day-by-day activities. With this understanding, Hershey collaborated more effectively with their clients and buyers, offering products that better meet their customers’ needs. These experiences were incredibly eye-opening and helped build empathy by providing firsthand insight into what those consumers experience.”
5. Use Solution Imagination
Volpe explained that this fifth step unifies the first four steps, continuing that practitioners must use what they’ve learned to further the conversation and show people that they understand where they’re coming from.
“Ultimately, the formula here is simply being able to say, ‘I see you,’” said Volpe. “I see you the human; I see you in the context of whatever is going on; I see you with your needs and within your day. It would help if you found the right words to convey empathy authentically. It needs to come in true and right language for you, so find the words and language that works for you and start applying that.”
To learn more about empathy’s place in B2B marketing, tune into the latest B2B Marketing Exchange Podcast episode to unlock Volpe’s entire session and an exclusive interview with him.
