BUYOLOGY by Martin Lindstrom

Turns out advertising is becoming more and more complex particularly due to the endless TV commercials, magazine ads, banners and Internet pop-ups constantly demanding our attention. We’ve now reached a point where we don’t really register them on a concious level anymore.

However, this is when, what Lindstrom calls, “subliminal messages” come into play and seem to work to great effect to make us, as customers, form emotional connections with brands or products.

When we decide on what to buy and where from, our brain scans incredible amounts of memories, facts, emotions and sensory information which translate into a rapid, spontaeous and therefore unconscious decision.

“The fragrance can make us see, sound can make us smack our lips, and sight can help us imagine sound, taste and touch.”

Also, there’s a lot to be said about the widespread sex and beauty theme in marketing and advertising but thanks to the author, now we know why they don’t necessarly succeed at selling products. No matter how in-your-face or edgy advertising gets, we live in a world where we are so overexposed to images of sex that we have become desensitized to it.

There’s loads of super catchy brand experiments worth knowing about in this book as well as an understanding of what is driving our loyalty, minds and wallets.

“The fewer choices and selections we are confronted with, the easier it is to make a choice, so the more likely we are to buy something.”

“When we brand things, our brains perceive them as more special and valuable than they actually are.”