THE MYTH OF THE RATIONAL BUYER

How Too Much Thinking Can Hurt Your Brand by Mark Dziersk (published on Fast Company May 26, 2009)

What if something you thought you knew to be true, turned out to be exactly the opposite? What if an approach you imagined was working for you, was actually working against you?

Imagine if it were true, for example, that almost nobody buys a product or service anymore simply because they need it, or because its price is the right price? That, even in an economic downturn, they have to want it as much as need it before they buy? It's a difficult concept to grasp because, at the end of the day, it's not about rational thought. That notion is a wake-up call for products and brands who have built their businesses on pure reason. Ask Gerald Zaltman, a Harvard scholar who suggests in his seminal book How Customers Think that only 5% of consumer purchasing behavior is based on rational thought processes, suggesting that 95% is due to subconscious motivation. I know it's a hard statistic to swallow, but consider this: what if he's only even half right? The truth is, most corporations spend 95% of their time obsessing about the five percent. How big should we make the logo? What messages are we missing? What is the brand saying? Let's add (pick one, or several): "New!" "Improved!" "Step right up!" "Bargains galore!" (The classic parody of this approach, of course, is the YouTube video of what iPod packaging would look like if Microsoft had designed it.) Rational purchasing behavior isn't the only widely-held marketing myth. What about that old chestnut "sex sells?" According to neuroscience expert Martin Lindstrom, the only thing sex sells well, is well...sex. In fact, it actually gets in the way of consumers remembering what the product or brand is all about. In addition, Lindstrom suggests that too much messaging on a product's packaging can actually prevent a sale. Logos and words can engage the rational mind, causing people to actually think harder about making a purchase. It's a counter-intuitive notion, but then think about the effectiveness of the quiet logos on a bottle of POM Wonderful pomegranate juice, or a Method product, or the entire Apple product line up. In 1957, the average grocery store had 4,000 sku's (units) on its shelves. Today it's 47,000. A typical hypermarket has more than 167,000. There are now simply too many products on shelves, they tend to over-promise, and people are fed up. Especially in these tough times, people want simplicity and authenticity. That's the exact thing most great designs provide naturally, and the distinction that helps brands earn a place in consumers' hearts. Recent studies have suggested that, even in times of economic downturn, people continue buying really differentiated products, products that make them feel good. Some of these are authentic "heritage" brands, those you remember from when you were a kid (think of the recent commercials for Post Shredded Wheat, the cereal that put the "no" in innovation or Dove soap). They are reliable; they convey indulgence but only as the result of real quality. Some are value brands shaded by an umbrella of trust. Sometimes people will spend a lot of money for one exceptional thing that really makes their life better and they know it will last for a while. They can't really explain why...they just will. Mark Dziersk is VP Design at Brandimage - Desgrippes & Laga in Chicago
contact Mark


Read more of Mark Dziersk's Design Finds You blog on Fast Companywww.fastcompany.com/tag/design-finds-you

Design's Boom-and-Bust Cycle: Ten Years In, Ten to Go
by Mark DzierskThe topic of design has generated a lot of buzz lately--so much, in fact, that some suggest that the renewed interest in all things creative is a passing fad. Not exactly. If we let history be our guide, we'll see that there's a ..

Ten Things to Demand From Design Thinkers
by Mark DzierskDesign thinking is currently an "It" concept, the topic of countless books and blogs and conference panels. While it can mean a lot of different things to different people, for me, design thinking is a methodology, a tool, ..
www.fastcompany.com