“Just do it”

“I’m lovin’ it”

“Have a break. Have a Kit-Kat.”

These are a few of the taglines you would’ve heard. Businesses such as Nike, McDonald’s, Nestlé have created a unique brand image, bringing themselves into limelight through the powerful means of advertising. However, doing so isn’t a walk in the park. Bringing an advertisement campaign to life requires months of market research and analysis in order to be effective in creating awareness about a product and persuading the target audience to buy it.

Consequently, successful campaigns can cost the company as much as S$160,000 a year. Amongst the various factors to be considered while designing and carrying out a campaign or creating a business logo, we often neglect a crucial factor- human psychology. Consumer psychologists around the world have developed strategies to make a product appealing to buyers, making it a very high paying job, with an average salary of S$125,000 a year. 

“Charm pricing” better known as “Bata pricing” named after the company that pioneered its use, is one such strategy based on human psychology. This psychological phenomenon is driven by the fact that humans generally read from left to right. For instance, you must’ve seen goods priced as “$4.99” instead of $5 in order to “trick” the human brain, as our first instinct perceives the product to be priced closer to $4 than $5.

Another common tactic you may have seen in supermarkets, where an artificial time constraint is placed on a discounted price for a good or service. These restrictions act as catalysts for potential customers to spend, as people are often afraid of missing out on what is perceived as a special deal. This fear pushes them to make their purchase immediately and take advantage of the bargain. These types of special offers are typically brought out on a regular basis, giving customers a constant and repeated urge to spend on different products.

Companies also consciously use certain colours, logos, and products in their advertisement campaigns to suit the target audience. Research shows that about 42% of businesses use the colours red and yellow in their advertising campaigns and logos. The colour red is known to stimulate the pituitary gland, making it very attention-grabbing, evoking proactiveness. Furthermore, it’s also known to enhance metabolism by encouraging appetite, making it a good option for food and beverage companies to use in their logos and ads.

Similarly, yellow is the first colour detected by the human eye, making it capable of attracting attention. It is also linked with enhancing mental activity and muscle energy, inducing joy and optimism. Its brightness in contrast to another colour makes it very attractive to the customer.

The colours used depends significantly on the nature of the product, as well as the target audience. For example, achromatic colours such as black are often linked with being elegant, professional and sophisticated; making it an apt choice for products designed for men. Women tend to prefer a lighter tint of blue, lavender, or white, which is often associated with purity, reliability, and trust.

Companies consider all these factors whilst developing their product, logo or ad campaign. Pricing strategies are adopted by many; however, the use of colours is extremely effective too, yet also one that most consumers overlook.

Bibliography:

https://blog.marketo.com/2012/06/true-colors-what-your-brand-colors-say-about-your-business.html

-Devam Jain