The true power of marketing: what and how to communicate to achieve results

This is the story of our brain. A story of how we work and how marketing takes advantage of it. And it is that we make decisions emotionally that then we try to justify rationally. That decision is activated thanks to our beloved old brain, a brain that does not understand words.

Such reptilian brain (old brain) responds mainly to six stimuli:

• Self-centeredness.
• Contrasts (hot/cold, white/black).
• Tangibility.
• The beginning and the end of something.
• Visual stimuli.
• The emotion.

And how to get from marketing to this primitive brain? Through four steps:

• Diagnosing pain. Not just what you want, desire or need.
• Differentiating our claims from the competence.
• Showing our gains, our strengths or advantages: customer opinions, success stories, number of followers, roi...
• Send messages to the reptilian brain to make the purchase decision and transfer that need (that pain) to the user. Reinforce why we are better, what we cover, what we solve...

The 6 selling to the old brain

1. Attention hoarder.
2. Large images (playing with contrasts, sometimes with two images, before / after…, for example). It helps to quickly visualize the benefits of our solution. First pain, then gain.
3. Claims (repeat).
4. Gaining tests (obvious benefits or solutions).
5. Handling objections (with a story or a metaphor).
6. The closing (we ask for a positive feedback).

What might we write and / or communicate to achieve something?

Short and direct messages

It is very important that the messages are short, simple and easy to remember. For example:

• Save money (financial advantage).
• Save time (personal advantage).
• Get this car (strategic advantage).

The most important thing when building the message (claim), is to start by going directly to the consumer, to the "you":

• Not recommended: "With this innovative system you will save 50% in energy".
• Recommended: "You will save 50% of energy thanks to this system."

In this way, we will be making friends with our beloved old-brain.

Credibility

Other points to work on in the construction of the claim is credibility, which should be based on:

• Creativity: (images, colors, different fonts, bold…).
• Audacity: Do your best and then do not worry about the immediate outcome”.
• Passion (enthusiasm is contagious).
• Integrity: Sometimes not everything is bought with money. Don't tell lies, be honest and learn to say "no" or "I don't know" when necessary.
• Empathy with our audience.
• Expressiveness: Be very careful with the impact of the message: 7% are the words, 38% the voice and 55% our body language. Logically, this is more applicable when we speak in public, speeches or presentations. In the case of the written message, we must be very clear about two things: the words that we want to communicate and on which we seek a greater impact, and minimize the text (you know: the good, if brief, twice as good).

Contrast

Contrast is also very important. The reason? Our primitive brain interprets something with contrast better and thus makes it easier for it to make a decision more quickly. With some creativity, through a small contrast we can go from "pain" - "claim" - "gain", with almost a single image.

Emotion

We can remember things that have affected us emotionally and forget very quickly those that have not, hence the importance of working on emotion. In this sense, a good way to convince our old brain is through the heart, not the head. "No emotion, no decision."

Customer knowledge

We must also pay attention to the consumption style of customers. That is, before making a decision or creating a specific action, you should meditate on certain aspects. There will be people who like to find out before deciding on a purchase, others who prefer images, others who seek information and experiences before deciding, etc.

Less is more

Focus on what is strictly necessary. Filter and leave only what add value, excluding the irrelevant.

Stories

At the end, it is about creating a story. Our animal brain cannot differentiate between reality and a well-told story. (Wink, wink; Instagram).

Bonus when communicating

What NOT to do

• Use words that our audience may not understand.
• Use expressions such as: “I believe, I think, hope so, let's try…”.
• Use complex sentences (the simpler everything is, the better).
• Use words that are too abstract and not very tangible for the reader.

What to do

• Use pauses (especially in speeches / oral language).
• Be simple and accurate.
• Use simple words and phrases that are not too long.
• Use appropriate words according to our target.

Extra bonus when communicating

These are the 12 most persuasive words according to Yale University:

1. You
2. Money
3. Save
4. New
5. Results
6. Easy
7. Health
8. Safety
9. Love
10. Discovery
11. Proven
12. Guarantee

Summary of the seven action enhancers

1. Using the word "you" frequently.
2. Maximize credibility with creativity, audacity, passion, integrity, accessibility, and expressiveness.
3. Use contrast where possible.
4. Generate emotion.
5. Know the different learning states of users and how they act according to their intrinsic nature to reach all of them.
6. Tell good stories.
7. Less is more. Lifelong.