We are born to say "f--- you" to other groups of people

Our brains are hardwired to make us want to belong to a certain group, which means that brands who give people a social identity will be more likely to succeed.

I assume it´s all about people craving to be loved, and by being similar to other people, they feel “normal” and accepted, and since people like those who has a resemblence to themselves, we automatically get more likings if we look and act as a big group of others. And by almost bullying those who are not us, we strengthen the bond within the group further, defining the frame.

40 years ago, psychologist Henri Tajfel found that he could easily create artificial loyalties to a group, who would then discriminate against those not in that group. He created a group feeling based on meaningless things, but still created strong bonds.

Apple is a brand that uses the theory of social identity with success. In commercials focus is on the people who use the product, not on the product itself. Cafés, bars and shops use this psychological tool as well.

Other brands, like Marlboro, also uses people´s need of belonging to a certain type of people, to sell. Men identify themselves with the Marlboro man and feel they are a part of the group who does the same.

The modern way of presenting these ideas come from Seth Godin, who speaks about “tribes”. “What people really want is the ability to connect to each other, not to companies. So the permission is used to build a tribe, to build people who want to hear from the company because it helps them connect, it helps them find each other, it gives them a story to tell and something to talk about. People form tribes with or without us. The challenge is to work for the tribe and make it something even better.”

A brand who knows what group the customer want to belong to can create a vibe that attracts that person. Talk about your product, but by using subtle signals in colours, pictures, music and media mix, you send a message to consumers. Also figure out who your target group does NOT want to be, and use just as subtle ways to connect.

Seth Godin on Tribes, TED talk:

This blog post is inspired by one of my absolute favourite blogs: http://www.neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/ Highly recommended!!