Theresa Bertrand, Head of Strategy at Zeno Group, speaks with Doug Simon, CEO of D S Simon Media, about key insights from Zeno Group’s Brand Love + Demand Study. She discusses why brand loyalty is critical to long-term success and explores how different generations connect with brands. She also explains how generative AI can help brands reach a wider audience by increasing visibility and fostering conversation.
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Doug Simon is the Founder & CEO at D S Simon Media. D S Simon Media is a recognized innovator in broadcast public relations and the creator of the industry’s first AI-Powered Broadcast Media Tour™. Since the start of COVID, the firm has scheduled and produced more than 5,000 media segments annually, further establishing itself as a category leader. Clients include top brands in healthcare, technology, travel, financial services, food and beverage, consumer goods, entertainment, retail, and non-profits. Established in 1986, the firm has won more than 100 industry awards.
TRANSCRIPT:
DOUG: We’re talking love and specifically brand love. So, Theresa, what have you got for us on Brand Love?
THERESA: It’s been close to my heart and close to a lot of people’s hearts lately, brand love. We did a study at Zeno Group called Brand Love and Demand, really trying to understand why, especially now when wallets are tightening, choice is endless, and there’s a real fear of getting it wrong, what makes people truly commit to a brand, not just buy them once, but to stay loyal and buy them again and again? And so, we conducted this study with 4,500 people across the US and Canada, all adult age groups, intentionally over-indexed for Black and Hispanic audiences to really understand those emotional drivers as well as the practical drivers as well. And we found some surprising things.
DOUG: What were some of the top things that did surprise you?
THERESA: For me, the most surprising thing is just this contradiction that people are living in right now, where people are more selective than ever with their money, which makes sense. And 75% say they are more selective with the brands that they let into their lives. There are over 500,000 brands in the world right now, so we let very few in, and then even fewer are ones that we consider, ones that we love. And even as we were talking about before, we have so much emotional connection tied to the ones that we love, so people are more selective than ever. But at the same time, once we do let a brand in, we stick with them, even when it’s inconvenient, even when prices go up, even when it’s not as easy to get. You have to wait a long time for shipping times and things like that when there’s more effort. If a brand has already sort of gotten its way into a person’s life, they’ll stick with it even through those hard times, to a point.
DOUG: Yeah. Doing some quick math. You mentioned that there are 25% of the folks who are less selective and they’re just out there, but what are some ways you can get that other 75%, the selective ones, to look closer to your brand, because you can’t have a relationship until you start a relationship.
THERESA: We have to tailor to our audiences, and the same goes for how people look at brands. And it really does fall on generational lines. So, when you think about Gen Z, they want brands to reflect them, to speak their language, to really, you know, show up and reflect their identity. Millennials are there like prove over promises you’d show up. Actions, not words, customer service, and things like that. Those will get a millennial into their good graces. Gen X, they’re the anti-hype generation. So, you know, they’re very much about consistency, quality, reliability, but also shared experiences. It’s why you see so many campaigns today about nostalgia. Gen X is eating those up, and then boomers are really about loyalty back to them. They will be so loyal to brands if they’re shown loyalty back. And that comes in the form of perks, VIP discounts, VIP experiences, things like that. So, I think like a Costco’s gold standard from a boomer standpoint, because they really show long-term loyalty, and they get that love back from their audiences.
DOUG: I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask you about the role AI is playing in all of this, because AI is playing a role in everything, and it’s only getting larger.
THERESA: Word of mouth is still the number one driver of advocacy, which is what leads to more people falling in love with brands, to your question earlier. It can take many forms. It can be, you know, sitting around a table with a friend or a family member. It could be on social media, TikTok, or Discord. That’s word of mouth, but also, AI is word of mouth. People are searching AI for advice, for tips, for brand recommendations, in the same way that they’re asking a friend for it. And so, it’s become its own advocacy and word of mouth channel for people to curate their lives. There’s so much choice out there. We have less time than ever, and convenience overload. So, you know, AI is really helping people, and it’s being seen more and more as a trusted source of information. So, then the interesting question becomes, where is that information coming from?
DOUG: Yeah. And we were talking earlier about our introduction of the AI-Powered Broadcast Media Tour™, sort of the seamless update to the satellite media tour. What were some of your takes about the idea of actually creating your earned media around the specific queries that people are asking when they’re going to these top language model sites?
THERESA: It’s a very human way of using technology. And so, you know, earned media is becoming even more important as the source for these large language models and their pulling content from their own channels, and the tone and the relevance. And so, when we have campaigns and when we’re doing things like a satellite media tour, that are talking about how people are using the products that’s going to match, to then how people are querying for it later. So, it’s become such a symbiotic kind of ecosystem and relationship between technology and humans.
DOUG: Yeah, and I tend to be an opticynic myself. So, I’m optimistic but cynical at the same time. People are weighing in, sort of in a different way, as the PR industry in the world approaches 2026. You’ve been a breath of fresh air so far, and I know that you’re very positive and optimistic about the role of PR, which is fantastic, and I can get on board with that, but what are some of the reasons there should be tremendous optimism about the role of PR in 2026?
THERESA: It’s come full circle. I think now what we’re doing more than ever is putting PR first in a marketing mix, because it’s about the story that you’re telling and who’s telling the story, and where is that story getting told, and importantly, the influence of all of those different factors. So, PR, I think it’s just how we’ve been raised. We, you know, we earn attention. We earn belief. You don’t pay for AI in terms of when you’re querying for it, yet, because that’s coming for that placement. Being able to influence the channels through earned is the strongest way to drive advocacy, full stop.
DOUG: Yeah. And I think having you on this show has been one of the strongest ways to have a great podcast. Thanks so much for appearing. We really appreciate it.
THERESA: I appreciate it and have a great day. Thanks for having me.
