0:02 Brands can profoundly shape our actions
0:06 and even our physiology this is Tylenol
0:08 and this is generic store brand medicine
0:10 they have the exact same ingredients so
0:12 they should work the same but they don't
0:14 if one of the pills costs more it'll be
0:16 more effective even the color of a pill
0:18 and its packaging can dictate how
0:20 effective it is it's all in The Branding
0:23 and design and this extends far beyond
0:25 Tylenol wine tastes better when poured
0:27 from a heavier bottle food tastes better
0:28 when it's plated beautifully just the
0:31 mere presence of a MasterCard logo can
0:34 trigger customers to spend 30% more than
0:36 they normally would companies understand
0:38 that brands are like placebos they use
0:40 all sorts of Mind Tricks to get us to
0:41 see what they want it's gotten to a
0:43 point where Brands aren't just selling
0:45 you a product they're selling you a
0:47 tribal group identity that they want you
0:49 to be a part of they reel you in with
0:52 clever branding and beautiful design so
0:53 how do they do it and is this a good
0:55 thing or is company branding and
0:57 designed all just a bunch of
0:59 manipulative BS I've spent over a decade
1:00 thinking about this throughout my design
1:03 career and I've read a lot of books to
1:06 try to answer this and because the
1:08 answer is so nuanced I've created a BS
1:10 intensity Spectrum which is based on the
1:12 Saffire Simpson hurricane scale on one
1:14 end is a little drizzle of creative
1:16 Liberty still grounded in reality but
1:19 the other end is a category 5 feal
1:21 Tempest of deception where companies
1:23 toss truth to the wind just to drive
1:25 sales creating a huge gap between
1:27 marketing claims and actual reality on
1:29 this quest to unravel branding insights
1:31 you'll will get a deep understanding of
1:33 human psychology and how design hooks
1:36 into our Primal instincts and desires so
1:38 let's work our way up the continum the
1:40 most basic form of branding is simply
1:41 labeling your product which has been
1:44 around since at least 2000 BC Craftsmen
1:46 would imprint symbols onto their goods
1:48 to show where they came from this may
1:49 not seem like a big deal but it's
1:51 actually a very important way to protect
1:53 customers the Soviet Union learned this
1:55 the hard way brand names were seen as
1:57 anti-communist so bread was just labeled
1:59 bread no matter what company made the
2:01 bread the packaging labels were all the
2:03 same if you bit into some bread that was
2:05 stale or moldy you had no way of knowing
2:07 which company to avoid producers weren't
2:09 held accountable so the quality of many
2:11 products were truly terrible this wasn't
2:13 only about bread it went as deep as
2:14 rivets those tiny little things holding
2:16 ships together factories turned out
2:18 unbranded rivets that got jumbled up
2:21 into one Central facility no one knew
2:23 where each rivet came from so once again
2:25 there was no incentive for companies to
2:28 make good rivets so why does this matter
2:31 well it starts to matter a lot when
2:33 ships start springing leaks and sinking
2:35 to the bottom of the ocean the Soviets
2:36 did finally end up having factories
2:38 stamp their brand names onto their
2:40 products and quality went up producers
2:41 were held accountable and customers knew
2:49 trust sometimes nothing brings people
2:51 together like a nice hot pizza from
2:52 Pizza Hut branding helped solve a
2:55 problem called information asymmetry
2:56 this is when sellers know everything
2:58 about what they're selling and buyers
2:59 know almost nothing about what they're
3:01 buying buying if you're buying from a
3:02 well-established brand there's a lot of
3:05 information and inherent trust built
3:07 into that transaction so branding isn't
3:09 always about manipulating into buying
3:11 things you don't need without Brands
3:12 there's an increased incentive for
3:14 companies to create a cheaper lower
3:16 quality product because they make a
3:18 greater profit while suffering no
3:21 reputational consequences now that's one
3:22 good reason for Branding but as
3:24 designers and marketers know branding is
3:26 really about influencing people
3:28 emotionally this can be used for good or
3:30 evil for example we don't brush our
3:32 teeth primarily for health reasons I
3:33 mean sure that's definitely a big part
3:36 of it but for most people that's not the
3:38 main reason if it was we'd brush after
3:40 every meal but take a moment and think
3:42 when do you usually brush probably
3:44 before an important meeting or a date
3:46 usually before we eat nobody's
3:48 vigorously brushing after secretly
3:49 annihilating that chocolate bar while
3:51 binge watching Netflix brushing your
3:53 teeth is about being confident and
3:55 removing stains or bad breath and that's
3:57 also why toothpaste is usually mint
3:59 flavored it makes your mouth feel fresh
4:01 the mint does doesn't give any practical
4:03 health benefits we might think we do
4:05 things for logical reasons but emotions
4:07 often drive us many people believe
4:09 emotions are unreliable but they're
4:11 actually crucial evolutionary shortcuts
4:13 that help us for example our strong
4:16 dislike for dirty or rotting things
4:18 isn't based on a logical understanding
4:21 of germs our caveman ancestors that
4:22 stayed away from rotting things lived
4:24 longer so we developed a negative
4:26 emotional response to it thousands or
4:28 even millions of years ago way before we
4:31 ever knew about germs terms emotions tap
4:33 into a biological and intuitive need
4:35 without all the processing and good
4:37 designers know this emotional Alchemy
4:38 like the back of their hands it's like
4:40 buying a Tesla the buyer might insist
4:42 that it's because they want to take care
4:44 of the environment but it's more likely
4:46 that it's just fun to drive and show off
4:47 as a status symbol otherwise they just
4:49 drive a Nissan Leaf or something so
4:51 anyway look these branding examples are
4:53 all pretty harmless but things will get
4:55 worse with the rising tide of the BS
4:57 Continuum the next level of the
4:59 Continuum is about visual shorthand so
5:01 here's a simple example toothpaste
5:04 stripes and yes this is the last mention
5:06 of toothpaste I'll make in the video but
5:07 why have stripes once you start brushing
5:09 it all mixes together anyway the stripes
5:12 don't serve any logical purpose but they
5:13 do look cool and they show you that the
5:16 toothpaste does more than one thing in a
5:18 visual way like fighting cavities and
5:21 freshening breath people love any visual
5:23 visible effort that goes into a product
5:25 if you just say that it's an improved
5:27 toothpaste formula but it looks exactly
5:28 the same as before it's not as
5:30 convincing if you add something visual
5:33 like Stripes it's a lot more believable
5:34 adding visuals to highlight real
5:36 benefits seems reasonable enough but we
5:38 steer into murkier Waters when designers
5:41 add elements that don't honestly convey
5:43 the product's benefits car companies
5:44 sometimes add fake vents to their car
5:46 designs for example lots of car
5:48 enthusiasts complain about this because
5:50 it makes the car look more powerful than
5:52 it really is it feels a little dishonest
5:54 and this is maybe a hot take but I
5:56 ranked this example pretty low cars are
5:58 sculpted to exude power and Agility and
6:00 designers do all sorts of visual tricks
6:02 to convey that why draw the line at fake
6:04 vents what about the flashy styling
6:06 lines or fancy rims they're mostly
6:08 visual shorthand just like the vents and
6:10 no one complains about that imagine if
6:12 we got rid of any visual element of a
6:13 car that was not primarily functional a
6:15 Lamborghini would start to look more
6:17 like a 1996 Cameron if we think back to
6:19 the Tylenol example from the beginning
6:21 of the video looks can genuinely affect
6:22 how we perceive things and even how
6:24 effective products are maybe those fake
6:27 vents or cool rims are a placebo that
6:29 helps us drive better at the very least
6:31 it keeps things interesting to be clear
6:33 I think visual shorthand does become a
6:34 problem when brands use it to highlight
6:36 an element that is completely fake for
6:38 example there are some speakers that
6:40 have two drivers in them but only one of
6:41 them is real when you get speakers with
6:43 fake drivers it's messing with the main
6:46 reason you bought them for the sound
6:47 quality you probably paid more thinking
6:49 that the extra driver is real on the
6:51 other hand fake vents don't
6:53 significantly change how well the car
6:55 runs we don't have time to meticulously
6:58 analyze every single detail when buying
6:59 something for most purchases you just
7:01 make a snap judgment based on a few
7:02 indicators imagine analyzing and
7:04 comparing price specs materials and
7:06 quality for every single item on your
7:09 grocery list you just go insane that's
7:10 why visual shorthand is valuable
7:12 branding and design helps to convey
7:13 what's good about a product without
7:15 making us do all the work there are
7:17 situations where we make more calculated
7:19 decisions when there's a lot at stake
7:21 but most buying decisions just aren't
7:22 that important most of the time you're
7:24 right sometimes you're wrong it only
7:26 becomes a problem when companies
7:28 actively try to deceive us this type of
7:30 visual signaling extends Way Beyond the
7:31 design of the product itself we don't
7:33 just buy the thing we buy based on the
7:36 trustworthiness and reputation of the
7:38 person selling the thing nice packaging
7:40 and storefronts are signals that they're
7:42 trustworthy businesses counting on
7:44 repeat customers a company that spends
7:46 time after you have bought and paid for
7:47 a product to make sure you're not
7:49 disappointed is more likely to be
7:51 trustworthy especially when contrasted
7:53 with a company that just runs away right
7:55 after youve bought something that's why
7:56 Sephora gives you nice little bags with
7:58 the little rope handles it's an extra
8:00 expense for them but it signals that
8:02 they're trustworthy and care about your
8:04 long-term experience also the more a
8:05 seller has to lose in terms of their
8:07 reputation the more confident you can be
8:09 in their quality control it's why you
8:11 buy sandwiches from sandwich shops with
8:12 a storefront and employees rather than
8:14 some guy selling $5 Foot Longs out of
8:16 his van down by the river the sandwich
8:18 shop stands to lose a lot if the food
8:20 gets you sick they have an entire
8:22 business and infrastructure and they
8:24 could get sued if something goes wrong
8:25 the guy in the van down by the river
8:27 will probably be gone the next day and
8:29 once again we don't just buy the thing
8:31 we buy based on the trustworthiness and
8:33 reputation of the person selling the
8:34 thing you might think this stuff doesn't
8:36 work on you but you'd be surprised
8:38 during a project where I was designing
8:40 food packaging I noticed that when the
8:42 packaging designs made the food appear
8:44 more appetizing people almost
8:45 universally reported that the food
8:47 tasted a lot better too these things
8:49 really do influence our perception
8:51 that's why good brands don't focus on
8:53 what people say but instead focus on
8:56 what they feel and what they do now
8:57 here's the thing scam companies know
9:00 that real or honest comp companies use
9:01 these kinds of signaling devices too so
9:03 they try to emulate their behavior in
9:05 order to rip you off and I'll talk more
9:06 about this later in the video but
9:08 generally speaking if you're doing a
9:11 quick scam it doesn't pay off to incur
9:13 too many expenses with high quality
9:14 branding and design these strategies can
9:17 be abused but they're pretty reliable
9:19 overall as we venture deeper into the
9:21 storm though things go from slightly
9:24 questionable to full-on dumpster
9:26 fire there was a study conducted where a
9:28 company was trying to raise donations
9:30 for a charity for ironically enough
9:32 Hurricane Relief these envelopes were
9:34 mailed out to millions of people some of
9:35 the envelopes were different from the
9:37 others tell me if you can guess which
9:39 ones raised the most money 100,000 were
9:41 hand delivered by volunteers 100,000
9:43 were delivered in an envelope that
9:45 opened in portrait format 100,000 were
9:48 in higher quality envelopes and 100,000
9:50 encouraged people to complete a form
9:53 which gave them a 25% tax rebate logic
9:55 would tell you the 25% tax rebate is the
9:57 one that raised the most money if you
9:59 donate a dollar you get 25 cents back
10:01 none of the other things matter right I
10:02 mean who cares about a fancy envelope
10:04 why does it matter if it's hand
10:06 delivered but as you've probably already
10:07 learned from this video logic doesn't
10:09 always matter when it comes to human
10:12 decision-making the 25% tax rebate
10:14 actually performed the worst out of all
10:16 of the above options in fact they got
10:19 30% fewer donations the other options
10:22 increased donations by over 10% the
10:23 higher quality paper also tended to
10:25 encourage people to give big donations
10:27 of more than $100 so what's going on
10:28 here I mean a lot of it has to do with
10:30 visual signaling which we explained
10:32 earlier but another possible reason for
10:34 the success of the nicer envelopes is
10:36 the rule of reciprocation we feel the
10:38 need to return favors when someone goes
10:40 out of their way to hand deliver an
10:42 envelope to you you feel indebted to
10:44 them we hate the feeling of being
10:46 indebted or beholding to someone else so
10:49 we often do outsid things to get rid of
10:51 that feeling of obligation companies
10:52 also exploit this when they offer free
10:54 samples knowing customers will feel
10:56 compelled to buy in one study at a
10:59 California candy shop customers were 42%
11:01 more likely to make a purchase when they
11:03 were given free samples you'd think this
11:05 happened because the customers liked the
11:07 product but that wasn't the case here
11:09 they usually bought other types of
11:11 candies not the ones that they got free
11:13 samples of and lastly we equate effort
11:15 with quality when we see a higher level
11:17 of effort put into something we assume
11:19 that it's worthwhile if I tell you that
11:21 I wrote this video in one day you might
11:22 not think much of it but if I tell you I
11:24 researched it for months and have 100
11:26 pages of extra notes you probably feel a
11:28 lot more confident that what I'm saying
11:30 is true when companies put in a bit of
11:32 extra effort we appreciate it and feel
11:33 more inclined to support them by the way
11:35 if you want to access the full script
11:37 with like 80 pages of extra notes and
11:38 want to support the channel check out my
11:40 patreon link down below so the rule of
11:42 reciprocation can get a little bit
11:43 manipulative but now we're really
11:50 Spectrum in Robert cini's book influence
11:52 he describes a beij Jing restaurant
11:53 chain that wanted to boost profits
11:56 without any extra effort or cost they
11:57 didn't want to Source better ingredients
11:59 or improve their recipes or spend any
12:00 any money on Advertising this sounds
12:02 impossible right they tried labeling
12:04 menu items Chef special or house
12:07 recommendation with limited success but
12:09 labeling menu items with two magical
12:12 words made all the difference most
12:15 popular sales went up by 13 to 20%
12:18 without changing anything else that is
12:20 social proof social proof is relying on
12:22 others opinions to make choices
12:23 especially when we don't have enough
12:26 information to make an informed decision
12:28 that's why marketers focus on what is
12:30 highest rated or best selling they don't
12:31 need to convince you that a product is
12:33 good they just need to convince you that
12:35 other people think it's good if you've
12:37 read Amazon reviews or chosen a popular
12:40 on Netflix show You' use social proof
12:41 speaking of social proof you should
12:43 subscribe to my Channel or don't do
12:44 whatever the heck you want I don't even
12:46 know why it's still say this but anyway
12:48 social proof is Category 2 on the BS
12:50 Continuum so let's talk about the way it
12:52 can be manipulative or unethical first
12:54 of all it's extremely easy for companies
12:56 to fake this fake online reviews are
12:57 pretty common same thing with fake
13:00 testimonials Plus you're relying on
13:02 someone else to do the research for you
13:04 which can be extremely dangerous I mean
13:05 check out Tom Brady here one of the
13:07 greatest football players of all time
13:09 endorsing FTX a cryptocurrency exchange
13:11 that ended up being a huge fraud at
13:13 least allegedly I don't know if it's
13:14 proven yet where many investors lost
13:16 everything involving Brady is a classic
13:18 form of social proof but look at the
13:21 tactics here y I'm in yeah sounds good
13:24 I'm in I'm in Hey Arthur I quit even if
13:26 Tom Brady doesn't convince you you've
13:28 got all these other people saying I'm in
13:30 you've got line cook surgeons plumbers
13:32 women men all of various ethnicities and
13:34 backgrounds this is very intentional
13:36 social proof is even more effective on
13:38 us when the people endorsing the product
13:40 are similar to us if we see people
13:42 similar to us doing something it doesn't
13:44 just mean that it's a good idea it also
13:46 means that it's possible for us to do it
13:49 it seems more achievable it's similar to
13:51 when Roger banister ran a mile in under
13:54 4 minutes banister trained for years to
13:56 achieve that goal but once he did it
13:57 other Runners followed suit just a few
13:59 weeks later social proof manipulation
14:01 happens in way more subtle ways as well
14:03 like this ad with Selena Gomez and her
14:05 makeup line notice the setting this is a
14:07 massive brand that brings in like $60
14:09 million a year and Selena Gomez is an
14:11 A-list celebrity you're telling me she
14:13 can't afford a good microphone and some
14:15 good lights I mean look at this one you
14:16 think they accidentally just left the
14:19 ruffled blanket on the couch by accident
14:20 this is all by Design they're leveraging
14:22 her star power and influence but they
14:24 want to make her seem more relatable to
14:26 you once again social proof is more
14:28 effective when the people promoting the
14:30 product seem like our peers this is why
14:32 you need to be very skeptical about
14:34 unrehearsed testimonials ads and
14:36 tutorials like this so yeah social proof
14:38 can be really manipulative but it isn't
14:40 always bad online reviews and
14:42 testimonials as long as they're verified
14:44 can be incredibly useful and if a
14:46 respected celebrity endorses a product
14:48 their reputation is at stake Selena
14:50 Gomez probably does really believe in
14:51 her products and as a person with a
14:53 following you live and die by your
14:55 reputation for example when I'm picking
14:57 a sponsor for my videos it's common for
14:58 me to ask my friends what they think of
15:00 it I teach product design at a
15:02 university and at the beginning of every
15:04 semester I ask my students to bring in
15:06 their favorite products one of my best
15:07 students actually happened to bring in
15:09 this wallet by exra he said that he's
15:10 owned this wallet for 3 years and it's
15:12 still good as new so a few months later
15:14 when exra approached me to sponsor this
15:16 video I knew that I could endorse their
15:18 product and good conscience build
15:20 quality feels really solid and the cards
15:21 are held securely in place the really
15:23 cool thing about this wallet is the way
15:25 that the cards fan out with the push of
15:27 a button the slim profile is also really
15:29 nice too I mean look at this giant wall
15:30 in my pocket then compare that to the
15:32 extra if you need more than five or six
15:34 cards you can also add this super slim
15:36 clip to the wallet everything is clean
15:38 secure and organized to get your own
15:39 extra wallet go check out the link in
15:41 the description below and use code
15:44 design at checkout for a 25% discount so
15:46 anyway I put this tactic in Category 2
15:49 it definitely can be abused or it can be
15:50 a good shortcut but there are bigger
15:53 storms lubing Over the Horizon as we
15:55 delve deeper into the BS Continuum
15:57 here's where things get
16:00 real designers and brand managers
16:02 leverage the influence of authority in
16:04 their messaging all the time in both
16:06 explicit and subtle ways back in the'80s
16:08 there was a really successful cough
16:10 medicine ad confident man tells you
16:12 Vic's Formula 44 will cure your cough
16:14 the man is Dr Rick Weber a character
16:16 from the hit TV show General Hospital
16:18 the actor mentions he's not a doctor but
16:21 he plays one on TV but that doesn't
16:23 really matter with his tailored suit a
16:25 confident demeanor and an authoritative
16:28 voice he plays a very convincing doctor
16:29 and Robert SE his book influence he
16:31 shines a spotlight on this ad as an
16:33 intriguing example of authority in
16:35 advertising once again the actor wasn't
16:38 a medical expert but that's why it's so
16:40 crazy because viewers Associated him
16:43 with his TV Doctor character the ad hit
16:44 gold and it was a massive hit that ran
16:47 for years this shows you how powerful
16:48 Authority is in shaping our decisions
16:50 you don't need to be a real Authority
16:52 all you need is the aura of authority
16:54 and people will follow you now using
16:56 fake authority figures to shill cough
16:58 medicine is pretty bad but it gets a lot worse
16:59 worse
17:00 medical experts started to make the
17:02 connection between lung cancer and
17:04 smoking by the 1930s in order to combat
17:06 this sentiment Camel cigarettes created
17:09 an ad in 1946 that featured doctors they
17:11 created the tagline that would make
17:13 modern-day fact Checkers heads explode
17:16 more doctors smoke camels I mean can you
17:17 imagine they don't just say the Bold
17:19 claim they use every trick in the book
17:21 to make doctors look like trustworthy
17:22 authority figures there's a sea of white
17:25 coats stethoscopes everywhere an
17:27 Entourage of scholarly looking doctors
17:28 puffing away and this is where the
17:30 harmless facade of authority turns into
17:32 a blatant cover up blurring the lines
17:34 between reality and fiction now don't
17:36 get me wrong I love a little creative
17:37 Liberty remember the fake vents from
17:39 earlier in the video but when it
17:41 completely is misaligned with reality
17:43 that's a problem especially when lives
17:44 are at stake these are more explicit
17:46 forms of showing Authority but a lot of
17:48 the times it's even more subtle in the
17:51 animal kingdom Size Matters it's common
17:52 for animals to Puff themselves up to
17:55 avoid combat mammals bristle their fur
17:57 fish expand their fins and puff up birds
17:59 flaunt their feathers the the goal is to
18:01 appear larger and more dominant instead
18:03 of risking it all in battle many animals
18:05 turn to optical illusions to puff up
18:07 their size and flex their Authority our
18:08 human instincts aren't that different
18:10 we're all hardwired to associate size
18:12 with status and Authority ever been
18:14 wowed by an apple launch event or gone
18:16 to a store to see merchandise enshrined
18:18 in glass cases brands are doing their
18:19 own version of puffing up their feathers
18:21 here these elements can craft illusions
18:23 of grandeur and strength but it's
18:25 important to look past that facade as
18:27 seini says in his book just like fur
18:29 fins and feathers these surface level
18:31 elements masterfully project an air of
18:33 substance and gravitas that may not
18:35 actually be real bottom line next time
18:37 you see a company flexing its Authority
18:39 take a second look is there substance or
18:41 is it just fluff now of course not all
18:43 expert opinions or authority figures are
18:45 bad sometimes all you need to do is ask
18:47 yourself two questions number one is the
18:49 person actually an authority figure in
18:52 this space and number two what does this
18:54 person gain by convincing us of this
18:56 information now it's getting more
18:59 serious category 4
19:01 and a bunch of hurricanes and
19:04 this is a damaso panta it was
19:08 bought for $2,500 in 1976 but just 2
19:10 years later the car's value skyrocketed
19:12 to an astonishing
19:14 $300,000 but why it was a terribly
19:16 unreliable car suffered a lot of wear
19:18 and tear and most intriguing of all were
19:20 the bullet holes that pierced the
19:22 steering wheel how does a used car with
19:24 bullet holes in it sell for more than a
19:27 100 times its original price it all
19:30 comes down to scarcity Elvis Presley the
19:32 king of rock and roll was in a heated
19:33 argument with his girlfriend Linda
19:36 Thompson when Linda left Elvis stormed
19:38 off and jumped into the car probably
19:40 hoping to dramatically peel out of the
19:42 parking lot but instead the car wouldn't
19:45 start so in a moment of fiery passion he
19:47 took his Colt 45 and shot at the
19:49 steering wheel yes those bullet holes
19:51 are the very Echoes of Elvis's Fiery
19:53 Soul and this is where the scarcity
19:55 principal takes Center Stage those
19:57 bullet holes serve as an autograph
19:59 they're a symbol of el is raw and
20:02 Untamed Spirit captured forever in steel
20:04 there's never going to be another Elvis
20:06 so this panta isn't just a regular car
20:09 anymore it's a canvas that captured a
20:11 moment in the King's life this is a
20:13 testament to how scarcity turns the
20:15 ordinary into the extraordinary shout
20:16 out to my buddy rafie for telling me
20:18 about this story this is common with
20:20 collectible items like coins limited
20:22 edition Pokémon cards and even rare
20:24 stamps but design and branding teams use
20:25 the same principle of scarcity to sell
20:28 you all kinds of things when booking.com
20:29 first start Ed showing a limited number
20:32 of hotel rooms at a given price people
20:34 started snatching up rooms so fast that
20:36 customer service thought it was a
20:38 systems error but the increase in sales
20:40 came from showing a limited Supply
20:42 Shoppers who would normally be sort of
20:44 on the fence about booking a room
20:46 quickly turned into buyers things can
20:48 get so competitive that people could
20:50 often wait days to get a new pair of
20:53 Nikes or the next iPhone it's no secret
20:54 that we want what we can't have not only
20:56 do we want the same item more when it's
20:58 scarce but we want it more when we're in
21:00 competition for it this is classic fear
21:02 of missing out there's nothing wrong
21:05 with actual scarcity If an item is not
21:06 available because of supply chain or
21:08 manufacturing issues that's
21:10 understandable but in most cases there's
21:11 no reason why Apple can't make more
21:13 phones or fashion brands can't make more
21:16 clothes in anticipation of a launch they
21:17 intentionally create an extremely
21:19 limited supply of shoes in order to
21:21 create what is known as artificial
21:23 scarcity artificial scarcity brings out
21:26 some of our worst Tendencies logic flies
21:28 out the window and everything is reduced
21:41 greed in the same way that big
21:43 authoritative branding flexes are like
21:45 an animal instinctually puffing up their
21:47 feathers artificial scarcity puts us
21:49 into a primal Feeding Frenzy mindset
21:51 we're operating on a very simple premise
21:53 that is true most of the time things
21:54 that are hard to get are often better
21:55 than things that are easy to get this is
21:57 a very general rule that holds true and
22:00 that's why scar tactics are so effective
22:02 it's also one reason why a lot of retail
22:04 stores bring only a couple items out to
22:06 the storefront at a time not being able
22:08 to see all the items in stock gives you
22:10 no indication of whether or not there
22:12 are any left plus you might feel the
22:14 need to reciprocate with the store clerk
22:15 after they went through the trouble of
22:17 finding the item for you it's so easy to
22:19 get swept up into the frenzy of course
22:21 the best way to combat this is to think
22:23 to yourself do I actually want this
22:25 thing because it's rare or do I just
22:26 want it because I need it for its
22:28 functional utility if it's the ladder
22:30 you can calm down if it's the former try
22:32 to assess it more calmly the bottom line
22:34 is that scarcity and loss aversion are
22:36 some of the most effective design and
22:37 marketing tactics there are purely
22:39 because of how emotionally triggering
22:41 they are but it's nothing compared to
22:43 the next level in the Continuum this
22:45 isn't just any normal hurricane it's a
22:53 Tempest let's talk about the great Nike
22:56 barbecue of 2018 a roaring blaze of
22:58 sneakers and corporate moral High Ground
22:59 Nike he wanted to partner with Colin
23:01 Kaepernick for an ad campaign Kaepernick
23:03 was a very skilled American football
23:05 player but he's probably most famous for
23:06 taking a knee during the national anthem
23:08 in order to bring attention to racial
23:10 Injustice and police brutality Nike
23:12 decided to make Kaepernick their
23:14 spokesperson and created the tagline
23:16 believe in
23:19 something even if it means sacrificing
23:21 everything after these incidents it
23:24 isn't clear whether the NFL blacklisted
23:26 him or if he quit on his own accord but
23:28 one thing for certain is that he was a a
23:30 very controversial figure so why would
23:32 Nike sponsor such a controversial
23:34 athlete potentially alienating a huge
23:36 chunk of Their audience Nike was trying
23:38 to build a sense of unity with a segment
23:40 of its audience who agreed with the
23:42 Kaepernick ad campaign this might not
23:43 sound like much but I assure you it's a
23:46 very very powerful technique in unified
23:48 tribal groups there's a blurring between
23:50 the self and others in your tribe
23:52 neuroscientists have an answer to this
23:54 phenomenon it turns out if you're asked
23:56 to imagine yourself and someone from
23:58 your tribe the same brain circuitry
24:01 lights up so thoughts of self and tribe
24:03 members blend together and suddenly your
24:05 identities are interwoven like a
24:07 tapestry inside your mind this doesn't
24:09 happen with people who aren't tribe
24:11 members unified tribal groups tend to
24:13 act in solidarity with each other we
24:14 like each other more we trust each other
24:16 more and we're more likely to help each
24:18 other out Brands know that if you view
24:20 them as part of your tribe you'll be far
24:22 more likely to buy their products so
24:24 with Nike it's really not about the
24:26 shoes or the clothes the swoosh is just
24:27 a banner under which the tribe for
24:29 racial equality and social justice
24:31 gathers they made themselves part of the
24:32 tribe's Fabric and suddenly everyone
24:34 wears Nike as if it's the uniform of
24:36 social change the purchase of a product
24:38 is like a ticket into a club when you
24:40 buy a product for Better or For Worse
24:42 you're making a statement to yourself
24:44 and to the outer World about what you
24:46 believe in it's a social signaling
24:48 device even the choice to actively avoid
24:50 it and not participate in it is its own
24:52 kind of signaling device for example
24:54 driving a Tesla is basically a signaling
24:56 device that you're part of the in group
24:58 of young ambitious wealthy Tech workers
25:00 Patagonia is another similar signal of
25:02 environmental Consciousness even my
25:04 leather jacket did I ever tell you that
25:06 this here jacket represents a symbol of
25:07 my individuality and my belief in
25:09 personal freedom it's all social
25:11 signaling so what about the people who
25:13 disagreed with the ad campaign well
25:14 remember how I called this the Nike
25:17 barbecue of 2018 lots of people hated
25:19 this ad and they decided to post about
25:21 it on Twitter a domain where rationality
25:23 takes a back seat and outrage has its
25:25 foot firmly planted on the gas pedal
25:27 people were boycotting Nike by burning
25:29 shoes they've already paid for in the
25:31 end this outrage was just a bunch of
25:33 free publicity for Nike Plus the people
25:34 who agreed with Nike's views doubled
25:36 down and unified with their tribal group
25:38 if you know about the unity principle
25:39 this makes perfect sense an attack on
25:41 the brand is a personal attack on the
25:43 individuals who support the brand all
25:46 said and done this resulted in $ billion
25:49 in profits for Nike That's The Power of
25:51 unity and tribalism but when companies
25:52 jump into social causes it's worth
25:54 pondering how genuine it is because at
25:56 the end of the day companies exist to
25:58 make profits you could make an argument
26:00 that they're trying to build awareness
26:02 For A Cause but I'm very skeptical Nike
26:04 doesn't exactly have the greatest track
26:06 record when it comes to working
26:08 conditions and if it wasn't profitable
26:10 to sponsor Kaepernick Nike would find a
26:12 way to drop him Nike is certainly not
26:13 the only company to use the unity
26:15 principle either you've got Chick-fil-A
26:18 Gillette Jeremy's chocolate Pepsi Black
26:20 Rifle Coffee Company Dove soap Patriot
26:22 mobile all on varying ends of the
26:23 political Spectrum if we take
26:25 Chick-fil-A as an example the fast food
26:26 chain has been known for its stance on
26:29 lgbtq issues and support for
26:31 organizations that oppose same-sex
26:33 marriage but in 2019 they announced that
26:35 they would no longer donate to these
26:37 organizations mostly because of public
26:38 pressure companies are only going to
26:40 Champion a cause for as long as it's
26:41 profitable other companies have been
26:43 following suit with varying levels of
26:45 success Nike's ad was relatively
26:47 tasteful whereas other ads have faced
26:49 considerable backlash and a huge plummet
26:51 in sales things get dangerous for a
26:53 brand when they inject themselves into a
26:55 cultural political or environmental
26:57 issue outside of their expertise and
26:59 understanding when companies take this
27:00 route they have to be really tactful in
27:02 the way they approach it because it can
27:04 easily be exposed for what it is an
27:06 advertisement meant to sell you a
27:08 product but most of the time companies
27:09 that use the unity principle are a lot
27:11 more subtle about it in fact most of the
27:13 time it has nothing to do with politics
27:15 at all I mean let's look at the Selena
27:17 Gomez makeup ad again this isn't just
27:19 social proof it's a calculated move to
27:21 evoke the unity principle forging a
27:23 connection that makes you feel as if you
27:25 and Selena are in the same tribe watch
27:28 the intro Papa
27:31 you're in my video I pranked you it's
27:33 almost like she's casually spending a
27:34 day with her family and she's in a homey
27:36 setting that mirrors the everyday life
27:38 of her target audience a bit later she
27:41 says this I wanted to create a line
27:44 where it was a for people like me it
27:45 doesn't get more obvious than that I
27:46 mean Selena wants you to think to
27:49 yourself she's one of us it's a lot more
27:51 subtle than the politically charged ads
27:53 but when you feel that Bond you're more
27:55 likely to trust and support each other
27:56 Selena's marketing team is banking on
27:59 that now look I'm going open-minded guy
28:00 if finding purpose in your preferred
28:02 brand or makeup or shoes or cars makes
28:04 you happy that's great but let's
28:06 remember that brands are not benevolent
28:08 Protectors of values they're in it for
28:09 the money purchases have meaning but
28:11 nowhere to draw the line if you find
28:13 yourself setting fire to your favorite
28:14 shoes because you don't like the
28:17 company's new ad you're probably taking
28:18 it way too far same thing if you feel
28:20 the need to defend a multi-billion
28:22 dollar corporation on social media trust
28:24 me they'll be fine without you no
28:25 Brand's attempt at Unity is important
28:27 enough to get worked up about that's
28:28 exactly what they they want you to do
28:30 anyway and that's why I find these
28:31 techniques especially harmful
28:34 essentially Unity tactics are used to
28:36 build a cult with their Brand's values
28:37 at the centerpiece of your world but
28:39 brands are not a standin for real
28:40 spiritual meaning or a sense of real
28:43 Community now what if a brand told you
28:44 they were manipulating you is this
28:47 better or
28:49 worse there's some companies that don't
28:50 even hide the fact that they're
28:52 basically building a cult it's as if
28:53 these brands are playing 4D chess with
28:55 our brains and while part ofy wants to
28:57 give them Applause for their sheer
28:59 audacity another part wonders if these
29:00 companies are just laughing at us for
29:02 being so gullible let's dive into the
29:04 deep end with liquid death a name that
29:06 suggests some sort of horrifically cheap
29:08 liquor or maybe just poison but no
29:11 liquid death is just plain water encased
29:13 in a can that looks like it was ripped
29:14 straight out of an 80s metal bands
29:16 merchandise store as a commodity this is
29:19 as basic as it gets water covers 71% of
29:21 the earth and somehow we found a way to
29:22 Brand It liquid death branding is an
29:24 exercise and absurdity that's so over
29:26 the top you can't help but laugh at it
29:28 they engages some seriously dark hum and
29:30 the water is super fun to drink because
29:31 the packaging looks like a beer can and
29:33 yes I know how stupid that sounds but
29:34 it's true it's really fun to drink
29:36 they're not even trying to be subtle
29:37 with manipulating you either their
29:39 marketing VP is called the VP of cult
29:41 indoctrination it's like they're saying
29:42 yeah we're brainwashing you here's your
29:50 card the real kicker is that it kind of
29:52 works but is this brutal honesty in
29:54 marketing genuine or just another layer
29:56 of manipulation it's like they're
29:57 Whispering we're in on the joke together
30:00 but are we it's hard to say I do want to
30:02 acknowledge that liquid death is
30:04 actually pretty good water their claims
30:05 are in line with reality which makes it
30:07 feel a lot more authentic and they also
30:09 take a portion of profits and donate it
30:11 to cleaning up Plastics in the ocean I
30:12 have to say liquid death's brand of
30:14 honesty is both ridiculous and kind of
30:15 brilliant it's like they've harnessed
30:18 the raw energy of 100 internet trolls to
30:20 sell us water my only critique is that
30:21 their claims about their environmental
30:23 friendliness are a little bit dubious
30:25 yes aluminum is very recyclable and
30:27 plastic bottles are worse for the
30:29 environment but I wouldn't say aluminum
30:31 cans are good for the environment
30:32 drinking tap water is generally going to
30:34 be a better option than any packaged
30:36 water I wanted to bring this up because
30:37 I think that in order for a brand to be
30:39 low on the BS Spectrum its claims need
30:42 to be as in line with reality as
30:43 possible but besides that liquid death
30:45 is actually pretty low on the BS
30:47 Spectrum in despite of being completely
30:49 over the top they mostly do back up just
30:51 about everything they say but remember
30:53 it's still just water in a fancy can
30:54 some companies take it a step further
30:56 not only by making it clear that they're
30:57 trying to manipulate you and build a
30:59 cult falling but also making fun of you
31:01 for it dbrand has a Manifesto book where
31:03 they openly admit that it's just a giant
31:05 piece of propaganda and they're
31:07 practically patting you on the back for
31:10 being stupid enough to buy it I mostly
31:12 bought it for this video
31:14 though at least that's what I tell
31:16 myself as if that wasn't enough they
31:18 even have an extortion portal where you
31:20 can just send them money and get nothing
31:21 back in return I could tell you what
31:23 dbrand sells but honestly does it really
31:25 even matter and as if that wasn't crazy
31:27 enough cars Against Humanity sold over
31:31 30,000 boxes of actual BS like actual
31:34 poop from a bull mailed it to customers
31:35 and made over
31:37 $180,000 from it it was meant to be a
31:39 commentary on unnecessary spending in
31:41 our consumer culture but it's not hard
31:44 to see the irony here so why does this
31:45 work well here's the thing the best
31:47 companies understand that branding and
31:49 design is about creating meaning
31:52 remember we don't value things we value
31:54 what they mean to us check out this
31:57 lowly $1 bill there's a way to make this
32:00 $1 bill worth more than $1 if you
32:02 somehow manage to Corner Bill Gates and
32:04 Warren Buffett in an elevator and ask
32:05 them to scribble their names on this
32:08 thing the value of this is Multiplied
32:10 significantly we attach meaning to
32:11 things through symbolism and
32:12 storytelling this is what company
32:15 branding capitalizes on a brand is like
32:17 an autographed dollar it adds value
32:19 through the stories and symbols
32:21 associated with it people don't just buy
32:24 the product they buy into the story the
32:26 product represents all of the objects
32:28 and things in our lives are like
32:30 repositories of meaning good brands
32:32 understand this and sometimes all it
32:34 takes is one descriptive word to change
32:36 everything it's why liquid death doesn't
32:38 just say that their product is water
32:41 it's Mountain water from the Austrian
32:43 Alps the Austrian Alps has an entire
32:45 Legacy and Vivid History attached to it
32:47 a description or a label directs a
32:48 person's attention towards certain
32:50 features in a product and helps bring
32:52 out a certain Concept in our mind the
32:54 nature of our attention affects the
32:56 nature of our experience this goes Way
32:58 Beyond just names it can encaps at an
33:00 entire Brand's ethos at the end of the
33:02 day is Apple selling metal electronic
33:04 rectangles or are they selling tools
33:05 that allow you to express yourself
33:07 creatively is Nike just selling foot
33:09 protection or are they allowing you to
33:11 reach your full athletic potential each
33:13 version of these stories are true to
33:15 varying degrees but some companies take
33:18 it way too far for my personal taste I
33:20 mean apparently this Pepsi logo is based
33:22 on Earth's magnetic fields and
33:24 gravitational pull and if that's true
33:26 great I'm all for expressing ideas in a
33:29 subtle way using visual hand but after a
33:30 certain point it just comes off as
33:33 psychotic overanalyzing so is there a
33:35 problem here I mean it depends adding
33:37 meaning to things isn't necessarily A
33:39 Bad Thing and our mental shortcuts exist
33:42 for a reason they're insanely effective
33:43 a person in the modern era has to make
33:46 35,000 decisions in a day Meanwhile
33:48 we're so overwhelmed that we're like
33:50 cats in a laser pointer disco
33:52 frantically chasing everything while
33:54 catching nothing when we're stressed
33:56 tired or distracted we just don't have
33:58 the time to analyze every little detail
34:00 so we tap into the mental shortcuts like
34:03 Authority scarcity etc etc to help us
34:05 make decisions this is why good
34:07 photography matters it's why having
34:09 three stripes on a toothpaste matters
34:11 it's why good packaging and good design
34:13 and good branding matters when these
34:15 mental shortcuts are based on reliable
34:17 information it's great but as you've
34:20 seen designers and brand managers try to
34:21 exploit these shortcuts for their own
34:23 gain they'll use counterfeit evidence or
34:25 Shady tactics to make us buy their
34:28 products under false pretenses so why
34:30 does this even happen I mean it's easy
34:32 to say that the employees and owners of
34:34 these companies are evil Psychopaths and
34:36 maybe that's true some of the time but I
34:38 think it's a gross oversimplification
34:39 most of the individuals inside the
34:41 companies that I've worked with were
34:43 genuinely good people and they cared
34:45 about doing the right thing a few things
34:46 you're likely to hear anytime employees
34:48 are having an argument inside of a
34:50 boardroom are questions like what's best
34:51 for the customer what's best for the
34:53 local community or even what's best for
34:55 the planet these are all Noble causes
34:56 but teams often can't come to an
34:58 agreement on these goals it's not
35:00 uncommon for teams within companies to
35:02 have conflicting or even opposing goals
35:04 the one common ground is that they both
35:06 work at the company and they want it to
35:08 be successful so they turn to a question
35:10 that's much more straightforward much
35:13 easier to measure and far more Sinister
35:16 what's best for the company as soon as
35:17 we ask that question it's all over
35:19 because the answer is always whatever is
35:20 going to make the company the most money
35:22 a company is just a machine existing as
35:25 its own independent abstract entity they
35:27 optimize profits at all costs sometimes
35:28 at the expense of their employees the
35:30 planet and the End customer companies
35:33 demand constant scale and growth even in
35:34 Humane mission-driven companies when
35:36 push comes to shove we need to be able
35:38 to support our family we want to buy a
35:40 house we want stability in our lives if
35:42 the decision is between feeding your
35:43 family versus stretching the truth a
35:45 little bit most people are going to
35:47 choose the latter like many issues that
35:49 I see in companies the problem is rooted
35:51 in fear this is a tough problem to solve
35:53 but one thing I found is that if you
35:55 don't live in fear you can act more
35:58 authentically sometimes as a designer it
35:59 can be hard for me to figure out whether
36:01 I'm being manipulative with my design
36:03 work or not one thing that helped me was
36:05 to define manipulation more clearly
36:08 within this context manipulating is
36:11 influencing someone for your benefit
36:13 without their consent contrast this with
36:16 educating someone educating someone is
36:18 influencing someone for their benefit
36:21 with their consent you want to educate
36:23 not manipulate I first heard this from
36:25 my friend Anan and I think it's a good
36:27 guideline for checking my own behavior
36:29 I'm from perfect but as a designer I
36:31 think this is a good question to ask
36:32 yourself every once in a while Commerce
36:35 is an inescapable reality but we can
36:36 still try to leave a legacy behind
36:39 that's not only prosperous but also kind
36:42 compassionate and wise branding and
36:45 design can definitely stretch the truth
36:47 but it's like a magic show there's a lot
36:49 of smoke and mirrors it's okay if the
36:51 audience is in on the joke and suspends
36:52 their disbelief in order to enjoy the
36:55 show it's only a problem when companies
36:56 try to trick you into thinking it's real
37:00 magic so I've saved the best for last
37:18 brandeston and satire the Pinnacle of
37:20 human achievement the shirt to end all
37:23 shirts the shirt t-shirt it's like
37:25 branding took a long look in the mirror
37:27 and had an existential crisis in a world
37:29 The Branding Illusions this t-shirt is
37:31 the mirror that says look at you buying
37:34 that shirt and you splendidly self-aware
37:38 retort yes indeed I am but there's more
37:41 with the curing off by just a bit this
37:43 shirt will make designers flee in fear
37:46 this is not just clothing it's designer
37:47 repellent want to clear the room at a
37:49 hipster design Gathering faster than
37:51 setting a rooma loose with a chainsaw
37:53 tape to it this is the shirt for you if
37:55 you want the full experience of a shirt
37:57 with proper letter spacing you can get
38:00 the correctly cerned t-shirt for just $2
38:03 more that is a bargain for good design
38:05 now for those of you who are serious
38:07 about good design I offer you the fancy
38:09 font shirt like many other designer
38:12 Brands the mere presence of a fancy logo
38:14 increases the value considerably for
38:18 $500 wait 500 hold on for $50 the fancy
38:21 font shirt has a font so Exquisite it
38:23 might as well be forged from the tears
38:26 of Georgio Armani himself sometimes
38:27 that's all it takes to elevate the value
38:30 of a commodity slap a designer logo and
38:31 boom you need a mortgage for your
38:33 T-shirt and the Crown Jewel of the
38:36 entire shirt t-shirt line I present to
38:38 you the design Theory Galactic glyphs
38:41 t-shirt it says shirt but it's in a
38:43 madeup alien language that's right I
38:46 created an entire alien language just
38:48 for this t-shirt line this shirt doesn't
38:51 just say shirt on it if you look closely
38:53 there's a message underneath this font
38:55 is so fancy you can't even read it
38:57 without a special decoder that is only
38:58 deci aable by the design Theory
39:00 fanatical tribe I'm only selling 20 of
39:03 these and at $100 I promise you'll be
39:05 rewarded for your trust in the design
39:07 Theory cult I mean brand in the design
39:09 Theory brand maybe there's a cryptic
39:11 message that will reward you for your
39:13 efforts what will you find wisdom
39:15 Fortune perhaps after you buy this shirt
39:17 which you will not regret believe me
39:19 just DM me your order number on
39:21 Instagram for the decoder and become
39:24 part of the unified design Theory tribe
39:26 now here's the deal for all the shirts
39:28 I'm only selling them for the next 40
39:30 days once they're gone they're gone I
39:32 don't have time to manage sales for
39:34 longer than that I'm only one person and
39:36 I need to focus on my other design work
39:38 that isn't completely insane if you like
39:39 these videos the purchase helps me to
39:41 continue to make more of them go click
39:43 the link in the description or head to
39:45 design theory. store Adorn yourselves in
39:47 the fabric of irony and rebellious
39:50 kerning as always you're free to do as
39:51 you wish I'll still appreciate you no
39:53 matter what and on the note of
39:55 appreciation big shout out to my patrons
39:56 and Discord for helping me with this
39:58 video If if you want to support the
39:59 channel another way besides buying
40:01 t-shirts that are completely insane
40:03 check out my patreon you get access to
40:05 over 80 pages of my research from this
40:07 video research notes from past videos
40:09 special updates and you'll eventually
40:12 enable me to create more Niche content
40:14 that's tailored to exactly what you and
40:15 I want to talk about rather than what's
40:18 going to get the most views the link for
40:20 the patreon is in the description have a
40:21 great day everyone [Music]
