Hungry House Enhances Brand Appeal Through Emotional

Resonance and Cognitive Optimization

Zhimin Wang

School of Drama, Film, Television and Media, Dalian Art College, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China

Keywords: Process Tracing Method, Less Case Comparison Method, Emotional Resonance, Brand Attraction.

Abstract: Economic development has driven consumption upgrading, and users' demand for takeout is no longer limited

to the basic function of satiety, but pays more attention to the quality of meals and consumption experience.

The theme of the study is how Hungry Mou enhances brand appeal through emotional resonance and cognitive

optimization. The combination of the process tracing method and the less-case comparison method is used to

provide a more precise analytical framework for the study, thus enhancing the persuasive and explanatory

power of the findings. The research on emotion and cognition of single brands has achieved certain results,

but the mechanism of cross-border cooperation as a key path to enhance brand attractiveness has not been

fully explored. Future research should deeply analyze the specific strategies of inter-brand resource

integration, value co-creation and consumer experience optimization, and explore their practical role in brand

value enhancement. The study concludes that emotional resonance and cognitive optimization significantly

strengthen brand appeal by aligning user expectations with high-quality experiences, while cross-border

cooperation emerges as a promising yet underexplored strategy for further brand value enhancement.

1 INTRODUCTION

With the development of the economy, the user's

demand for takeout is no longer just to be full, but to

pay more attention to the quality of the meal and the

consumption experience; HungryMall has keenly

captured this consumer trend, and through the

creation of the 'quality of life' brand image, the

positioning of the platform from a single takeout

service to the lifestyle provider, and at the same time,

launched a series of 'warm takeout' marketing

activities, the use of holiday themed packaging,

personalized customized service The marketing

campaign also launched the 'Warm Heart Takeaway'

series of marketing activities, using holiday-themed

packaging, personalized customized services, warm

story marketing and other strategies to reach users'

emotional demands in greater depth on the basis of

satisfying their taste buds, establishing an emotional

bond between the brand and users, and realizing the

leap from functional consumption to emotional

consumption. As pointed out by Yao Huili and Sun

Qingting (2024) in their study, story marketing can

significantly enhance consumers' purchase intention

https://orcid.org/ 0009-0002-3980-4367

through emotional resonance and creative content.

Hungry's warm story marketing strategy is based on

this theory, and enhances users' brand loyalty through

emotional connection. The proliferation of

information in the Internet environment leads to user

distraction, HungryMall has effectively reduced the

cognitive burden of users on the platform by

redesigning the interface layout, simplifying the

ordering process, and using big data algorithms to

make personalized recommendations, which makes

the whole ordering process more smooth and natural,

thus significantly improving the user's operational

experience and satisfaction. This strategy matches the

findings of Dessart (2018), who concluded that by

optimizing the user experience and reducing the

cognitive burden, brands are able to significantly

increase user satisfaction and engagement.

Emotional resonance, as a psychological bond

between brands and consumers, can stimulate

consumers' intrinsic emotional needs and make them

deeply connected in the brand experience; the

formation of brand identity not only relies on the

functional characteristics of the product, but also

stems from consumers' recognition and

Wang, Z.

Hungry House Enhances Brand Appeal Through Emotional Resonance and Cognitive Optimization.

DOI: 10.5220/0013860000004719

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on E-commerce and Modern Logistics (ICEML 2025), pages 745-750

ISBN: 978-989-758-775-7

745

internalization of the brand's culture and values, and

this sense of identity will motivate consumers to

generate sustained purchasing behaviors; and

cognitive optimization, by simplifying the

information processing process, will Reduce the

decision-making cost of consumers, so that the brand

stands out among the many choices and becomes the

first choice of consumers. Combining the principles

of psychology with brand marketing not only deepens

the understanding of consumer behavior, but also

provides more operational practical guidance for

brand management and promotes the theoretical

development of brand attractiveness research.

The problem of this study is to analyze how

Hungry House uses emotional resonance strategy in

brand communication Enhancing consumers' brand

identity and cognitive optimization plays in shaping

Hungry House's brand attractiveness a role Based on

the principles of psychology, the study analyzes how

Hungry House's future marketing strategy can be

further optimized to enhance its brand attractiveness.

The combination of the process tracing method and

the less-case comparison method can deeply analyze

the characteristics of the case, reveal the complex

causal relationship between the variables, and provide

a more precise analytical framework for the study,

thus enhancing the persuasive and explanatory power

of the research conclusions. The process tracking

method analyzes HungryMall's brand communication

strategy in depth, and through the dual path of

emotional resonance and cognitive optimization,

combined with the careful design, precise

implementation and real-time feedback of marketing

activities, a comprehensive brand communication

system is constructed, which effectively enhances the

brand influence and user stickiness. Hungry Mall has

successfully built a deep connection between the

brand and consumers through its precise emotional

marketing strategy and user perception optimization

mechanism, and its unique operation mode and user

insight ability have provided replicable practical

experience for other brands, especially in enhancing

user stickiness and brand loyalty, which has shown

remarkable results. Emotional resonance establishes

a deep connection between the brand and personal

experience by awakening consumers' emotional

memories, while cognitive optimization applies

information processing theory to transform complex

brand information into an easy-to-understand

cognitive framework, and the synergy between the

two makes brand communication break through

superficial cognition to form a long-lasting and

positive brand association in consumers' minds.

2 INTRODUCING HUNGRY

CHINESE NEW YEAR AS AN

EXAMPL

During the Spring Festival of 2023, HungryMall

launched the "No Closing Time in Spring Festival"

marketing campaign, which focused on emotional

resonance and significantly enhanced the brand's

attractiveness by optimizing user perceptions.

HungryMall enhanced user stickiness and brand

competitiveness through emotional advertisement

design, exclusive holiday offer strategy, and 24/7

service commitment. As Liu Shuo (2024) pointed out

in his study of emotional marketing strategies based

on the 4I theory, emotional marketing can

significantly enhance the attractiveness and influence

of a brand by triggering and cultivating consumers'

emotions, and HungryMall's Chinese New Year

marketing campaign was successful in bringing the

brand closer to its users through the strategy of

emotional resonance.

2.1 Emotional Empathy Strategy

Hungry Mou platform launched a series of short

videos to truly record the delivery scenes of takeaway

riders shuttling through the streets and alleys in sub-

zero temperatures during the Spring Festival, with the

camera capturing their frozen red hands, frosty

eyelashes, and hurried footsteps. The clip of a rider

wrestling in the snow and wind and still insisting on

delivering the last order triggered a strong reaction,

and users left warm words such as "hard work" and

"thank Wang for your efforts" in the comment

section, and some users also sent extra tips through

the platform's reward function. These short videos

spread rapidly on social platforms such as Jittery

Voice and Weibo, and the related topic "Spring

Festival takeaway riders" has a cumulative reading

volume of more than 1 billion times, with more than

5 million likes, making it one of the warmest social

topics during the Spring Festival. This strategy is in

line with the "interaction principle" mentioned by Liu

Shuo (2024). Through deep interaction and emotional

resonance, HungryMall successfully combines users'

emotions with the brand and enhances users'

emotional identity. Hungry Mou platform launched

the "warm heart red packet" function, allowing users

to send thank you red packets to riders through the

application, this innovative initiative not only

enhances the interaction between users and riders, but

also significantly improves the job satisfaction of

riders, data show that more than 5 million users

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actively participate in the cumulative total amount of

red packets sent exceeded 20 million yuan, reflecting

users' appreciation of the riders. The data shows that

more than 5 million users actively participated in the

red packets, and the total amount of red packets sent

exceeded 20 million yuan, which reflects the users'

recognition and support of the riders' hard work. This

initiative echoes the "principle of interest" in the 4I

theory, Liu Shuo (2024) points out that enterprises

should always put consumers at the center of

emotional marketing to meet the interests of

consumers, HungryMall, through the "warm heart red

packet" function, not only enhances the emotional

loyalty of users, but also increases their satisfaction

with the work of riders. HungryMall, through the

"warm heart red packet" function, not only enhances

the emotional loyalty of users, but also further

strengthens the brand's sense of social responsibility

and credibility.

2.2 Cognitive Optimization Strategies

During the Spring Festival, Hungry Mou's platform

significantly improved user experience and brand

favorability through cognitive optimization

strategies. HungryMall made targeted optimization of

the user interface, especially highlighting the "Spring

Festival does not close" merchants, and added the

"one-click order" function in a prominent position on

the home page. This improvement significantly

simplifies the decision-making process for users,

helping them to order quickly and save valuable time

during the holiday rush. As mentioned by Yang

Chaozai (2022) in the advantages of brand

storytelling communication, brand storytelling

communication can reduce the cost of memory and

deepen the impression of the brand. HungryMall has

successfully reduced the cost of memory and

improved the impression of the brand in the mind of

the users through the optimization of the interface and

the simplification of the functions.

In addition, HungryMall's platform achieved

normal delivery service in more than 90% of cities

nationwide. By optimizing the rider dispatching

system, establishing an emergency response

mechanism, and strengthening collaboration with

merchants, it ensured that users could still enjoy an

efficient delivery experience during the holiday

season, highlighting its core competitiveness in the

field of instant delivery. This efficient delivery

service not only meets the immediate needs of users,

but finally, the HungryMall platform achieved a 20%

increase in daily orders during the campaign, a 10%

increase in user retention, and a significant increase

in brand favorability, as evidenced by an increase in

the proportion of positive feedback in user

evaluations, and a continued upward trend in the rate

of repurchase by new users. This result reaffirms that

Yang Chaozai's (2022) brand storytelling

communication can enhance brand awareness and

loyalty. Through a series of optimization measures

during the Chinese New Year, HungryMall not only

enhances the economic benefits of the brand, but also

takes into account the social benefits, enriches the

emotional experience of users, and achieves the dual

purpose of brand communication.

To sum up, HungryMall's successful operation

strategy during the Spring Festival not only reflects

the brand's core competitiveness in the field of instant

delivery, but also significantly enhances users'

goodwill and loyalty to the brand through emotional

resonance and brand storytelling communication.

3 HUNGRY HOUSE CASE STUDY

3.1 Psychological Mechanisms of

Emotional Empathy Strategies

Hungry Mou skillfully uses warm narrative

techniques to combine the daily stories of delivery

boys with the user's life scenes in depth, and with the

help of real and touching delivery experiences to

arouse the emotional resonance of users, the brand

image is transformed from a simple delivery platform

to a warm life partner. Lin Jing (2022) mentioned

"Study on the Emotional Marketing Strategy of

VLOG Advertising in the Social Media Era",

"Emotional resonance is the key to the success of

storytelling communication, Hungry Mou

successfully touches the emotions of users through

the strategy of emotional resonance, and strengthens

the emotional connection between the brand and

users. This emotional bond effectively enhances

users' emotional dependence and loyalty to the

platform, making the brand stand out in the highly

competitive takeaway market. In addition, the "warm

heart red packet" function launched by HungryMall

not only provides riders with an additional source of

income, but also builds an emotional bridge between

users and riders. Users express their gratitude by

sending red packets, and riders feel recognized and

respected. This two-way interaction not only

enhances the user's consumption experience, but also

satisfies the user's need for a sense of belonging. Lin

Jing (2022) mentioned that emotional marketing can

satisfy the psychological needs of consumers and

produce emotional resonance, and HungryMall has

Hungry House Enhances Brand Appeal Through Emotional Resonance and Cognitive Optimization

747

further strengthened the emotional connection

between the brand and the users through this

emotional interaction, creating a warmer

consumption environment for the platform.

3.2 Psychological Mechanisms of

Cognitive Optimization Strategies

HungryMall reconstructed the user interface by

reducing the menu hierarchy, highlighting the core

functions, optimizing the visual guidance, etc., and

combined with the analysis of users' historical data

and preferences, it designed the "one-click order"

function, which effectively shortened the user's

decision-making time and reduced the anxiety of

choice. Li Xue and Yuan Limin's (2021) study reveals

how emotional marketing can accurately grasp the

emotional demands of consumers, so that consumers

can deeply identify with the brand values, which often

go beyond the product function itself, forming a more

lasting brand loyalty. The implementation of

emotional marketing strategy is an important way and

method to form the concept of brand identity hunger

through this based on "optimization strategy the

theory of choice overload", not only to improve the

operational efficiency, but also to enhance the user

stickiness and platform activity. By simplifying the

user decision-making process, this strategy reduces

the cognitive burden on users, which in turn improves

the user experience and enhances the user's sense of

dependence on the platform. In addition,

HungryMall's service coverage during the Spring

Festival was as high as 95%, covering more than

2,000 cities across the country, with a 30% year-on-

year increase in the number of orders. This data not

only demonstrates its strong delivery network, but

also establishes a deep sense of trust in users' hearts

through the "anchoring effect" in psychology. Li Xue

and Yuan Limin (2021) suggest that emotional

marketing is based on consumer psychology and

personality preferences to create an emotional

environment, and enhance consumers' understanding

of the brand's spirit in a subtle way. Hungry Mansion

has successfully established brand credibility and

reliance in the minds of users through the presentation

of specific data. Consumers are able to make quick

decisions based on these specific data when faced

with many choices, which strengthens Hungry Mou's

core advantage in market competition.

3.3 Psychological Mechanisms and

Data for Emotional Empathy

Strategies

The HungryMall platform utilizes delicate and warm

narrative techniques to skillfully integrate the daily

work stories of takeaway delivery workers with users'

life scenarios, and successfully triggers users'

emotional resonance through the depiction of real and

touching details, such as the persistence in delivering

food late at night and the perseverance in inclement

weather. Chen Guanjie (2021) mentioned that

through public welfare marketing and experiential

marketing, HungryMall successfully delivered

positive energy and enhanced users' emotional

experience. This brand communication strategy based

on psychological empathy mechanism not only

strengthens users' emotional attachment to the brand,

but also enhances users' stickiness and loyalty in a

subtle way, and establishes a solid emotional

connection for the brand.

In addition, the "Warm Heart Red Packet"

function has attracted the participation of more than 5

million users since its launch, with the cumulative

total amount of red packets issued exceeding 20

million yuan, a significant increase in the user

retention rate of 10%, and a 15% year-on-year

increase in the platform activity, which fully

demonstrates its practical effect in enhancing user

stickiness and promoting platform interaction. Chen

Guanjie (2021) mentions that HungryMall

encourages users to share and interact with each other

through social marketing and H5 marketing, which

enhances user activity and loyalty. This instant

feedback mechanism allows users to feel the

influence of their own behavior and satisfies their

need for a sense of belonging in the platform, while

the improvement of service quality after riders

receive additional incentives further optimizes the

user experience, forming a virtuous cycle. Through

the long-term operation of this function, the platform

has gradually deepened the users' emotional

recognition of the brand, transforming the simple

transaction relationship into a more viscous

emotional connection.

3.4 Psychological Mechanisms and

Data for Cognitive Optimization

Strategies

The time for users to place an order was significantly

shortened to 1 minute, and the usage rate of the one-

click ordering function reached 60%, an improvement

that not only enhanced operational efficiency, but

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also steadily increased the overall user satisfaction

score from 4.2 to 4.6, further optimizing the user

experience. By introducing the 'one-click ordering'

function, the HungryMall platform significantly

reduces the number of steps users have to take during

the ordering process, and this design not only reduces

the cognitive load on users, but also simplifies the

decision-making process, thus effectively increasing

user satisfaction and purchase intention, and further

optimizing the overall user experience. Scholar Sun

Gebing (2010) pointed out in his research that

through the application of symbolic marketing

models and communication psychology principles,

brands can more effectively attract consumers'

attention and satisfy their multiple needs. During the

Spring Festival, service coverage exceeded 90%,

delivery satisfaction reached 95%, daily order volume

increased by 20% year-on-year, and user repurchase

rate increased by 12%, showing the extensive

coverage and efficient delivery capability of the

service network during the holiday peak period, as

well as the users' high degree of acceptance and

continued trust in the service. HungryMall's service

coverage rate during the Chinese New Year was as

high as 95%, a figure that not only demonstrates its

efficient layout in the urban delivery network, but

also successfully strengthens users' recognition and

loyalty to the brand through 'anchoring effect'

strategies, such as pushing accurate holiday offers

and personalized recommendations, giving it a

significant advantage.

3.5 Empirical Analysis

Hungry Mou platform clever use of user stories, the

details of delivery workers rain or shine delivery

vividly presented, through the display of the delivery

process of real scenes and warm moments, so that

consumers feel the hard work of the delivery workers,

this emotional resonance not only draws the distance

between the brand and the user, but also in the subtle

establishment of a deep level of brand identity, so that

consumers have a sense of trust in the platform and a

sense of cordiality, and effectively enhance the brand

image. The brand image has been effectively

enhanced. As pointed out by Mou Mengsha and Qiao

Lijuan (2019) in their study of the emotional

marketing strategy of NetEase Yunmusic, the core of

emotional marketing is to enhance the connection

between the brand and the consumer through

emotional resonance and user experience, and

HungryMall successfully triggered the emotional

resonance of the users by displaying the real stories

of the delivery workers, further enhancing the

emotional value of the brand. HungryMall's "Just-in-

Time" service frees users from the cumbersome

decision-making process and reduces the burden of

information processing through accurate delivery

time prediction and instant feedback mechanism. Its

intuitive interface design and intelligent algorithm

optimization not only enhance the user experience,

but also strengthen the brand recognition, which

enables consumers to establish trust and reliance on

the platform in a subtle way. Its intuitive interface

design and intelligent algorithm optimization not only

enhance the user experience, but also strengthen

brand recognition, enabling consumers to build trust

and reliance on the platform in a subtle way. NetEase

Cloud Music enhances the user's emotional

experience through accurate song recommendations,

while HungryMall optimizes the user's operational

experience through intelligent delivery services, both

of which enhance the user's emotional loyalty and

brand identity through technical means.

3.6 Empirical Results

In the case of HungryMall, emotional resonance

triggers users' emotional identification with the brand

through accurate user profiling and scenario-based

marketing strategies, such as the takeout rider care

program and holiday exclusive activities, which

strengthens the emotional connection between the

brand and the users; cognitive optimization is

reflected in the simplicity of the platform's interface

design and the precision of the intelligent

recommendation algorithm, which reduces the

decision-making cost of users' choices and enhances

the efficiency of placing an order, as pointed out by

Wang Shuai (2024) in the study of online marketing

strategies for A restaurant company. As pointed out

by Wang Shuai (2024) in his study on the online

marketing strategy of A catering company, emotional

marketing and user experience optimization are the

keys to enhancing brand attractiveness, and

HungryMall has successfully enhanced users' loyalty

and satisfaction to the brand through the dual

strategies of emotional resonance and cognitive

optimization. As a representative brand in the

takeaway industry, the analysis of HungryMall's

brand attraction mechanism reveals the limitations of

single-brand research, and there may be significant

differences in brand attraction mechanisms in

different cultures and industries. Future research

should be extended to multiple industries and cultural

contexts to validate the universality of the theory of

brand attraction and to explore the similarities and

differences of brand attraction mechanisms in

Hungry House Enhances Brand Appeal Through Emotional Resonance and Cognitive Optimization

749

different contexts, so as to provide brand

management practices with this will provide more

targeted theoretical guidance for brand management

practice.

Research on short-term brand attractiveness

enhancement fails to analyze in-depth the dynamic

changes of brand equity in long-term development,

especially in the continuous role of consumer

emotional resonance and brand cognition

optimization, future research should focus on

exploring how these factors work together to build a

brand's long-lasting value system, providing more

forward-looking theoretical support for brand

management.

4 CONCLUSIONS

Emotional resonance profoundly affects brand

identity through three dimensions: empathy enables

consumers to understand the story and values behind

the brand, sense of belonging allows consumers to

feel closely connected to the brand and its user

groups, and sense of participation enhances

consumers' loyalty to the brand through interaction

and experience, which not only enhances the

emotional value of the brand, but also provides new

perspectives and strategies for branding. This multi-

level emotional interaction not only enhances the

emotional value of the brand, but also provides new

perspectives and strategies, fills the research gap of

the relationship between emotional resonance and

brand identity, and lays a solid theoretical foundation

for the use of emotional strategies to enhance

consumer identity.

Cognitive optimization effectively reduces the

cognitive load of consumers by simplifying the

information processing process and highlighting the

core strengths of the brand, making the brand more

attractive in the competitive market, providing a solid

theoretical foundation for brands to optimize the

consumer decision-making experience by using

advanced technologies and strategies, and

demonstrating significant application value in

practice.

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