Just like the danger of being unremarkable, there’s danger in not attracting the right attention. Just being noticed by customers isn’t enough. Your product or service could be amazing, but if it doesn't attract the right kind of customers, it becomes another headstone in the vast cemetery of businesses that didn’t solve this problem.
While there are some very powerful forces we will discuss, this artistry begins on the same canvas we’ve discussed before: empathy. Yes, there is no section or skill that empathy will not be a primary consideration in your analysis, decision making or content. I keep driving this point home because in regards to attracting attention, you want your customer to feel something. Feelings are far more powerful than thoughts or calculated logic which is why you’re trying to tap into your hero’s feelings.
Big, history making events evolved from a feeling or multiple feelings. These feelings act like forces that drive humanity forward. No matter how unique each of us are, there are several underlying forces that affect all of us. These forces can sometimes work together or be strong enough to encourage action on their own.
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon on July 20, 1969, because of these forces.
America was firmly entrenched in the Cold War with the Soviet Union. America feared the spread of communism and this included gaining influence in space. The U.S.S.R’s space program was ahead of the United States when they launched Sputnik, the first artificial satellite to orbit Earth on October 4, 1957. This heightened Americans' fear of communism.
America wanted to be the first to land on the moon. We didn’t need to land on the moon and, looking back, there were a lot of more important issues across the 1960’s that could’ve used more attention (civil rights, Vietnam war). However, America’s fears of communism and the U.S.S.R becoming the dominant global superpower fueled America's want to plant the stars and stripes on the moon first.
To land on the moon required a lot of invention. These inventions were born from the frustrations that current products and technologies were incapable of performing in space. The world has reaped the benefits of these frustrations as modern conveniences and technologies, like wireless headsets, LED lighting, portable cordless vacuums, freeze-dried foods, memory foam, scratch-resistant eyeglass lenses, were invented to address space-related frustrations.
Lastly, the dream of exploration is hardwired into humanity’s DNA. Since the beginning, our species has always looked to the horizon and wanted to know what was beyond it. Humanity landing on the moon was a huge dream for exploration and instilled even bigger dreams in future generations. President Kennedy declared the dream to put man on the moon in 1961 and eight years later it was accomplished. This dream was audacious, but with the help of the other forces, America’s dream was realized.
How did the U.S. government make this happen? They couldn’t make this happen without the support of the American public. But, the average American couldn’t put all the pieces together. They could see a tree, like fearing communism or dreaming of space, but it was extremely difficult to see the larger, magnificence of the forest. The politicians and spokespeople used the forces to create a narrative that would rally public support and keep everyone engaged in this monumental, virtually impossible at the time, goal of landing on the giant space rock orbiting us.
The feeling of patriotism coupled with the fear of communism drove public support. When looking back into this window of history, beyond employing these forces, the government empathized with the public. The vast majority of the public believed the government understood them and would do whatever they could for them.
Neil Armstron and Buzz Aldrin planted the American flag on the moon before anyone else because the U.S. government empathized with the public for years persuading them to support the bigger mission using these forces.
The Four Forces of Attraction
There are four forces that speak to every person: frustrations, wants, fears, and dreams.
Each force speaks to a different part of us. However, if you’re not trying to address or resolve at least one of these forces, your marketing will likely fail. The marketing could be noticed, but it will fail to invoke the feelings that build your bond with your customers.
Frustrations
We each experience significant frustrations within our daily life. While we try to avoid interacting with this force, it’s very simply a part of life.
Frustration, as a force, is short term pain. There is always an immediacy to frustrations when they arise because it’s an “in the moment” feeling. Yes, frustrations can persist for a while, but in the grand scheme of life, they are usually temporary irritations, but that provides you with a very specific marketing focus.
What frustrations does your service alleviate? If your customer is frustrated, how do you think they want to be approached? When we are frustrated, we don’t always have the clearest of minds, but we are very open to solutions that address our irritation. By showing empathy for their short-term pain, you can produce marketing that is the relief to their pain.
"Learn how to turn frustration into fascination. You will learn more being fascinated by life than you will by being frustrated by it." -- Jim Rohn
Think about all the companies that have found success because they’re an interesting solution to a common frustration. T-Mobile has focused their brand and company strategy on addressing the frustrations of wireless customers. Wireless carriers always appear to put the customer first, but pretty much everyone knows that dealing with wireless carriers falls somewhere between taxes and buying a car on the pain index.
T-Mobile launched their Un-carrier strategy which truly did away with the hidden fees and opaque language so they could alleviate the consumer frustrations with communication. After they launched the Un-carrier campaign and made it the focus of every consumer touchpoint, they added 1.1 million new customers the following quarter, became the fastest growing wireless company in America, increased their market cap by a factor of three, and was named by Fast Company as one of 2014’s most innovative companies.
Your hero appreciates fascinating and innovative ways to relieve their frustrations. Use that motivation in your marketing. Your fascination with your own frustration led you to developing a solution for everyone like you so lean into it.
Wants
This is the yang to the frustration’s yin. We allow “wants” to dominate our mental space. We don’t operate on the hierarchy of needs like our evolutionary ancestors. Sure, we have to take care of food, clothing, water, and shelter, but that’s much easier today than ever before. Now people are inundated with almost infinite choices.
Wants, as a force, are short term pleasure. Society and its use of technology created a world of instant gratification. The burning, insatiable want for instantly feeling better which many people satisfy by buying nice things or employing dopamine-flooding services.
“The first secret of getting what you want is knowing what you want.” – Arthur D. Hlavaty
This marketing lens is regularly used, but remember to consider the paradox of choice. According to Barry Schwartx, author of The Paradox of Choice, “the paradox of choice suggests that an abundance of options actually requires more effort to choose and can leave us feeling unsatisfied with our choice.” So consider how this force could enlist short-term pain (frustration) if they’re unable to find exactly what they want.
Amazon was built on wants. Originally, Amazon was only a bookseller. But now, whatever someone wants, they’re almost guaranteed to have and be able to deliver within hours in some cases. Pair this kind of lightning delivery with the influence of social media feeds to populate with anything you’ve ever shown interest in, and you’ve got the perfect confluence of factors to make any person’s wants a reality.
Even though wants are short-term pleasure, they speak to a deeper level within us which is often why we confuse or blend them with needs. Needs and wants speak to a specific part of our DNA: survival. Sure, we’re not out roaming the plains or living in hunter-gatherer tribes, but our instinct for survival still courses through our veins with every heartbeat.
The strongest survival instinct for wants is community. For instance, do you really need the latest iPhone, Omega watch or Jimmy Choo heels? Of course not! But, these types of wants signal a certain status to others which could provide an increased chance for finding a great partner, stronger community, influential friends or even more success.
A lot of our modern day survival can also be distilled down to two extremely strong wants: saving time and money. Time is especially poignant due to its scarcity and our inability to buy, manufacture or wish for more (unless you believe in magic genies and lamps).
In the immortal words of Benjamin Franklin, “Time is money.” By addressing the ability to save your hero time or money or both, you speak to their 21st survival instinct because in the end, saving time and money creates better conditions for that biological drive for community. Remember at our double helix level, we all want more time to spend with the people in our lives so let your hero know that you’re the solution!
This stronger, deeper survival instinct provides a very strong connection point for you to reach the right audience. Ask yourself, how does my service or product help my hero survive? How do I provide a big dopamine release to satiate their pleasure?
Answering these questions in your marketing will not only bring the right attention, but it’s building two pathways for your hero to return when their short term pleasure and survival sense are heightened again, which will happen as sure as the sun rises.
Fears
This force requires empathy because its influence strikes deeper in your hero’s core.
Fear, for better or worse, is extremely powerful. While Frustrations and Wants speak to a person, we know they’re temporary. A frustration I had in the morning could lose its power by the afternoon. I wanted cake until I walked past a sign for ice cream. They constantly morph based on the environment, influences, and the buyer’s current mental and emotional headspace.
On the other hand, fear is long-term pain. Even when presented evidence contrary to the fear, the fear has the capability to survive. Some fears are part of our ancient biological DNA. Some fears are developed through traumatic experiences we endured or witnessed others endure. Some fear you don’t know how they formed, but know their existence holds great influence.
Fears can seem irrational, but they aren't to the person with that fear. As an entrepreneur I'm sure you have fears. I know from my experience there's a fear of failure, going broke, letting others down. The journey is perilous and can feel lonely. I'm not the only one acquainted with these fears.
This force requires nuance because you are “seeing” a person through a very personal lens. Really, you're not there to sell your product or improve your bottom line. When connecting with fears, your role is reassuring your heroes that they are not alone. Even if they feel alone, you are standing shoulder to shoulder with them ready to support in the way they need.
We've seen this more in recent years. With a world that seems to move from threat to threat, catastrophe to catastrophe, there’s a lot of fear in the world. Some brands choose to acknowledge their heroes' fears while signaling their support, especially regarding social and environmental issues.
Patagonia has always been a progressive brand that championed social and environmental issues from reducing environmental impact in their clothing to on-site childcare for employees to shutting down on Black Friday and encouraging people to get outdoors. They openly communicate their support for their customers' fears. There are a lot of brands in the outdoor/adventure industry, but Patagonia's support for their heroes has clearly kept them from being just another tree in the forest.
Fears can be hard to describe without becoming overly philosophical. In our world of seemingly infinite choice, you don’t have the time to get deep into fears. Luckily we have all descended from the great tradition of storytelling and the easiest way to identify fears, and vanquish them, is for them to become our villains.
What or who is the villain to your hero? Like all good heroes, they probably have more than one. Fears can originate from our evolutionary biology or lived traumatic experiences. As Mary C. Lamia Ph.D. states in The Complexity of Fear, “Although you may intellectually know that you are safe, your brain automatically prepares you for the worst to happen—a situation that it recognizes has happened before—which speaks to the power of emotional memory.”
Think about villains that have, or could be, formed from experience.
If your grandfather died of cancer, you’re afraid of cancer or losing anyone else the same way. If you grew up extremely poor, you fear returning to poverty. You spend a lot of money on advertising with a marketing agency and are afraid to spend more due to lack of results. These are all villains.
As the guide to your heroes, you want their outcome to vanquish their villains, to overcome their fears. It’s impossible to alleviate all their fears, but you can empathize with them and provide advice and tools along the journey to conquering their fears.
Dreams
Are they small? Big? Oddly specific? Have you had this dream for a long time?
Dreams come in all shapes and sizes. They are a continued source of inspiration and potentially a source of frustration when they seem unachievable! The world we live in was designed by visionaries that started with little else than a dream. And in many cases, the dreamers weren't looked upon as visionaries, but were considered foolish or crazy to think their dreams were possible. However, they persevered when others didn’t and we look to them as teachers and inspiration. And let me tell you, there’s ZERO difference between them and you!
What's your dream? Do you dream of having a nationally recognized brand? Do you dream about expanding from a solo operation to a few employees? Is your dream to develop passive income so you can spend your days traveling through Europe?
Dreams are long-term pleasure. Yes, they are equally as powerful as fears and, like fears, your heroes need to feel supported in their dreams. Achieving your dreams doesn't happen overnight. In many cases, dreams require an unwavering dedication and Herculean perseverance to transform them into reality (remember the moon landing). Also, no one achieves their dreams alone. Whether recognized or not, the dreamers, the visionaries, received help along the way.
"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." – African proverb
This is one of my favorite quotes because of the universal truth. Any amazing feat, athletic, engineering, world record, or historical, was achieved by a team. The team doesn't always get credit, even if they should, but when you look back on history they are there.
Your heroes have dreams. Understanding the role you can play in their dream is crucial. A lot of us have very similar dreams, like financial success, love, personal growth, etc. Knowing your hero is trying to realize a long-term pleasure, how are you able to help them?
Airbnb had a brilliant campaign that really established an emotional connection with this force. They had a Bonnie and Clyde campaign where it was a montage of an elderly couple’s photos from their “Baecation.” As I watched this video, I immediately thought about my parents and their love and happiness. Then I pictured myself as an old man smitten with love. This ad struck a chord in me for love and travel. It took me to their site, where I scrolled through their listings in exotic locales, feeding my wanderlust, dreaming of storybook vacations and the memories I’d make.
If they stopped there, I probably would’ve thought of them first when planning future travels, but they took it a step further showing their dedication to my dream. They reassure me that if things go awry, they have my back. Boom! They went from a resource to a teammate. They didn’t just provide a chance for me to realize a travel dream, they wanted to support me achieving my dreams. I’m a digital nomad and Airbnb is the only service I use to this day.
Airbnb stood apart from the multitude of hospitality services because they stayed on customer, empathized, and focused on the long-term pleasure of dreams.
As you interact more with customers and people within your industry (which we will talk about later), you'll find these emotional connections and the forces that shape them.
Dreams, staying on customer, and empathizing, provides a strong avenue for your marketing content to establish a powerful, lasting emotional connection with your heroes.
A Word of Caution
Unfortunately, there’s a dark side to employing these forces. Like most any power, these forces can be used just as much for evil as good. In recent times, we’ve seen the forces of frustration and fear be used in dangerous ways. The populist movements that have spread across the world into countries like the United States, France, and Brazil, have utilized these forces for despicable and dangerous reasons.
Empathy and storytelling are pervasive elements throughout this book and great marketing. There is a very real, very important responsibility attached to it. Yes, we’re not doctors, but I strongly recommend you and your business use this information in an ethical way. Beyond finding success, your hero trusts you. They trust you to act in an ethical manner and within their best interests. You’re beginning a partnership that could last for years or decades. Using these forces for good and not evil will benefit you, your hero, and everyone else.
Beware of Becoming the Gray Man