How Apple and Nike have branded your brain | Your Brain on Money | Big Think

- Coca-Cola is just soda. Tylenol is just acetaminophen. And Levi's are just jeans. However, consumers go to great lengths to select these specific brands over others. - An economist would say: "How is it possible that a rational consumer would be willing to pay more for exactly the same thing?" We love to

think

of ourselves as rational. That's not how it works. A very famous study by colleagues at Duke University showed either the Apple or IBM logo to two random groups of participants. - The study found that after being subliminally exposed to the Apple logo, compared to when they were exposed to the IBM logo, participants performed better on creative tasks. - And the argument is that Apple has been telling you this story over and over again, that Apple is the brand for modern, cool, fun, creative people. - This is the true power of brands.

They can influence our behavior in ways that go far beyond the point of sale. So to what extent can brand influence wreak havoc on our ability to make rational spending decisions? This is

your

brain

on

money

. This is Americus Reed. He studies identity and marketing at the University of Pennsylvania. When he chooses different brands, he chooses to create an identity. When I put on that shirt, when I put on those shoes, those jeans, that hat, someone will form an impression of who I am. So if I choose Nike over Under Armour, I choose a different way to express my affiliation with the sport.

Nike is all about performance. The Under Armor thing is about the underdogs. I

have

to choose which of these different conceptual paths is most consistent with where I am in my life. -And once a consumer makes that decision, their relationship with a brand can deepen to the point of identifying with that brand as if it were family. And once you identify with a brand, it can shape the way you be

have

. - And it is really interesting because also, if someone speaks badly about that product, brand or service, they will be the first to come out and defend it.

Because? Because an attack on the brand is an attack on themselves. - Michael Platt is a professor of neuroscience, marketing and psychology whose research demonstrates how our perception of brands influences our decisions. - There is an idea in marketing, which is that we relate to brands in the same way we relate to people. It's like "I love this brand" or "I hate this brand." Of course, what people say, right, can often be different from what's really going on in their heads. So we thought, "Well, why don't we ask the

brain

directly?" -Michael and his team observed the brains of iPhone and Samsung Galaxy users with an MRI machine while they heard good, bad and neutral news about Apple and Samsung. - Apple customers showed a brain empathy response toward Apple that was exactly what you would see in the way you would respond to someone in

your

own family. - Interestingly, Samsung users did not have positive or negative responses when good or bad news was published about their brand.

The only evidence Samsung users showed was reverse empathy for Apple news. That is, if the Apple headline was negative, his brain reflected a positive response. - You know, it really shows us that Apple has completely defined the market here. Samsung customers, it seems, according to their brain data, only buy Samsung because they hate Apple. - The kicker? Samsung users did not report feeling the results their MRIs showed. What was happening in their brains and what they said they felt towards Apple and Samsung was totally different. - Most people simply don't realize that they subconsciously choose brands because those brands have some kind of self-expressive value. - You can see that there is a lot of power here in terms of shaping consumer decisions.

As we learn more and more about this, we have to

think

much more deeply about the ethical, legal and social implications of doing so. - So, as consumers, what can we do to make informed decisions? Well, the best thing we can do is be aware of the influence that brands have. - I think it's important to always pause and think a little bit: "Okay, why am I buying this product?" - And whether we like it or not, brands are not going anywhere. - I've heard a lot of people respond and say: "I don't like brands." I have a very different opinion.

They are not doing anything different than someone who affiliates with a brand does. They have a brand, it's just an anti-brand. And I think about what I've learned about identity over time. I think a lot of this has to do with the fundamental need we have as human beings to have support systems. Maybe it was the church, it was the community, it was these other institutions that existed. Now, brands have become pillars of our identity. So I'm very motivated to see that from that positive perspective.