I often judge books by their covers, which is why I picked up Martin Lindstrom’s Buyology: Truth and Lies About What We Buy. It’s kind of funny because the book claims to teach us why we buy the things we buy. Naturally, I was interested to see why I had picked up the book, what attracted me to it, and ultimately, what made me purchase it. Even after reading it, I’m not entirely sure why I did, because that’s just it, we don’t always know why we buy what we buy.

Lindstrom introduces the reader to something called neuromarketing: analyzing brain patterns to determine how successful a brand is. He uses neuromarketing to conduct a study with some doctors using fMRI and SST scans to measure what goes on in our heads when we see commercials, logos, radio spots and similar advertising. Throughout the book he constantly reminds us that this is the largest study of it’s kind ever. After all, it took three years and attracted seven investors to pay for it all. He must really think it’s important, and I agree, it is.

His first order of business is answering his question: Why do we buy the things we buy? A big part of it, he argues, is because of something called mirror neurons – things in our brain that stimulate in the same way as when we perform action as when we observe that action. As Lindstrom puts it, “In short, it’s as though seeing and doing are one and the same.” Think about how when someone yawns, you yawn too. It’s a lot like that, but with products, celebrity endorsements, commercials and more. It’s essentially an explanation of trends. People mimic others, whether they know it or not. Don’t believe me? You shouldn’t, and that’s something else Lindstrom talks about: it’s often the case that people don’t say what they mean, even to themselves. In other words, even if you truly believe something is the cause of one reason, there is probably some other hidden reason that your brain can tell us, that even you didn’t know about. Where does that make of market research – all of those surveys, online polls, and questionnaires that companies rely on for the truth? Well, as Lindstrom argues, these practices are becoming outdated and are not all that useful anymore. In that sense, advertising is a real gamble.

He goes on to contend traditional practices such as the concentrated use of logos, product placement, subliminal messages, and the idea that sex sells. He argues that a logo, generally seen as the most important component of a brand, is trumped by what he calls (and has even trademarked), “sensory branding” – using smells, tastes, and feels to sell a product, rather than a visual icon. One example is that new car smell we all know and love. It turns out that it comes from an aerosol can (like many other commercial aromas). How about that cold wash of breeze you receive when you enter WalMart or any other super centre? You guessed it. There’s a reason for that too – so that you feel cool, refreshed and comfortable enough to buy things you probably don’t need.

In regards to selling sex, Lindstrom concludes that sex only sells sex and not the product being associated with it. That is a very compelling argument but according to his study using his brain scans, it’s true. Related to this is his study on smoking. In Canada, packages of cigarettes have images of cancerous body parts, which are meant to deter people from smoking. Again, according to the brain scans, these images actually do the opposite. They stimulate the part of our brain that encourages a craving. Consider those millions of dollars spent on anti-smoking campaigns all over the world, and all of it could potentially be boosting the tobacco industry’s market share.

Have you ever considered the amount of advertising done by the tobacco industry? Lindstrom talks of how Marlboro pays clubs and venues to furnish and design the space in their favour. They make the walls red, the couches cylinder shaped, and so on, and before you know it, you’re sitting in a club thinking “wow, I could use a smoke… a Marlboro.” Scary? Perhaps, but we have to admire their ingenuity.

He also talks of the parallels between religion and branding, such as marketing the idea of mystery. Do you know what a Sony Trinitron is? No, and neither does Sony. It’s a mystery but it sounds technical and we like that.

Similarly, he talks about how advertising incorporates rituals and superstitions. For instance, the practice of putting a lime in a Corona or waiting those precious seconds for a full pint of Guinness to set. These things happened naturally. Some bartender once put a lime in a Corona and it caught on, and thus, the company capitalized on the idea. People used to hate waiting for a Guinness to be poured. It was too slow. As clever as they are, Guinness used their fault and flipped it upside down. They marketed the slow pour as something that made Guinness special with slogans like “Good things come to those who wait.”

Anything else and I’d spoil the fun of reading the book for yourself.

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