Note: In part 8 of this slightly deeper blog series on new marketing and brain research, I fill in the holes from David Rock‘s SCARF model. Are there areas that Maslow got right and nobody knew about? What could marketers do with this knowledge? Come along and find out…if you’re not too scared!
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (adapted from 'Motivation & Personality' ©1970) Source: Wikipedia Commons, ©2010, used with permission
[We are]…nine meals away from anarchy.
Lord Cameron of Dillington
Last year, I had the opportunity to work in Haiti, conducting research for a multimillion-dollar economic development grant. I saw firsthand many individuals struggling to maintain the most basic necessities of life. Following the recent devastation from the earthquake, the physiological needs of Haitians are even more in the forefront. As Lord Cameron points out, society is fragile, and, when it begins to break down, our focus is channeled to the most basic needs.
Bottom to top: the marketing secrets of Maslow’s hidden levels
What about our most basic needs? Aside from extreme cases, are there implications for marketers to tap into Maslow’s Physiological level?
Take-away: One effective strategy is to use point-of-purchase marketing to target the fulfillment of salient physiological needs.
What about the “highest” levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy? What implications arise from Maslow’s Self-actualization and Self-transcendence categories, introduced in part 2?
Take-away: Target higher-level needs through cause marketing, allowing customers to feel their purchases can change the world. This tactic works best when there is a close fit between 1) the cause, 2) the calling or competency of the organization and 3) values held dear by key customer segments.
I employ a broad definition for cause marketing:
- cause marketing (kôz mär´kit´ing) n. promotion designed to build affinity by supporting social or charitable advancement
What about the aspects of Maslow’s Hierarchy that are rarely published in modern works? Are there implications for marketers to connect with prospects on these “forgotten” levels: The Desire to Know and Understand, which includes curiosity, learning, philosophizing and experimenting; and The Aesthetic Needs?
Take-away: As a nurture marketer, I target the human brain’s desire to learn through thought leadership. As for the aesthetic needs, we don’t often talk about beauty as an inherent need, but research studies show that our minds are more open and that we can even operate technology more effectively when we are presented with attractive interfaces. Meaningful marketing that creates art—metaphorically or literally—draws customers in and is another way to fulfill this need.
Lastly, neither Maslow nor Rock addresses humor or entertainment. Do we need to laugh?…to be amused?…to lose ourselves for a moment in something that leaves us feeling energized and rejuvenated? I believe humans have an inherent need for this lightheartedness. It may belong under Rock’s Relatedness category or Maslow’s Love/Belonging category.
Take-away: Recently, I have been seeing more attempts at “viral” marketing that cross the line of good taste and actually harm the image of a business. Marketers must exercise caution when using humor: viral should never supersede brand considerations.
Be Yourself
Why is it so hard to predict human behavior? Otherwise, it would be too easy for marketers!
The role of individuality means that we are all motivated by different needs, impulses and motivations. What’s more: the level of arousal generated by marketing stimuli and our propensity to buy are also individualistic.
Take-away: Target marketing to groups with similar needs and challenges. Consider psychographics—not just demographics. The more your prospects think like one another, the more likely they are to have similar triggers.
What the pyramid implies
In his book, Marketing with Meaning, Bob Gilbreath presents his meaningful marketing model as a three-tiered pyramid:
- Apex: Achievement—Help me improve myself, my family and my world
- Middle: Connection—Create entertaining experiences that I can share with others
- Base: Solutions—Provide valuable information, incentives and services
When I read the book, I found myself getting hung up on two points:
First, “providing valuable information” is a marketing tactic that I have had great success with—through interactive educational promotion, so it didn’t seem like it belonged at the bottom of the pyramid. As I thought about it more, I think Gilbreath is drawing a distinction between simply providing information and delivering information that improves—either personally or globally. This distinction is worthy of elaboration.
Take-away: Meaningful marketing “does a 180″ on traditional marketing. It focuses on customers’ success (from at least one of many individual definitions).
Second, putting achievement at the top and ordering the content of helping to improve myself, my family and my world, to me, implied that cause marketing was the highest form of marketing with meaning—the ultimate goal that every organization should strive toward. While this may be true from a philosophical point of view, it does not make economic sense for all marketers. For example, many business-to-business marketers may be better served by targeting the direct success of their customers rather than a charitable or social cause.
Take-away: Determine whether cause marketing makes sense for your organization. If so, strategize ways to stand apart from other marketers in the same space; make a long-term, ongoing commitment; and decide if it will be positioned front and center to engage key customer segments or more in the background as part of your organizational culture to motivate employees. (In his book, Gilbreath features a number of meaningful case studies.)
I have enjoyed presenting the marketing implications of new brain research over the last eight posts, and I hope you have a few new ideas—and maybe even a new perspective—for your marketing. In the final two posts, I’ll review the two books that inspired this series.
What marketing secrets do you have to share?
You might also like…
What motivates us: new marketing and brain research (part 1 of 10)
NEW brain research part 2: Setting the record straight on Maslow’s theories
NEW brain research part 3: Become a marketing status symbol
NEW brain research part 4: Nothing’s certain but death, taxes and marketing
NEW brain research part 5: Autonomy and irrational decision-making in marketing
NEW brain research part 6: Can you relate to marketing?
NEW brain research part 7: Life’s not fair for marketers
NEW brain research part 9: Book review: Bob Gilbreath’s Marketing with Meaning
NEW brain research part 10: Book review: David Rock’s Your Brain at Work
Nurture marketing: a strategically superior alternative to drip marketing
The 10 golden rules of marketing white papers
Don’t want to miss part 9 of this series? Register on the End Result Marketing Website for free presentation downloads and email updates, sign up for RSS feeds or email updates of new blog posts or follow us on Twitter. We understand what makes people tick.
