As complex as the brain is, it all boils down to this: people take action to either gain pleasure or ward off uncomfortableness.

Strip the rest away, and it is that simple. Carrot or the stick, risk or reward, trick or treat.

But if push came to shove in a do-or-die marketing scenario, which one would you decide upon?

Dr. John Cacioppo’s research at Ohio State University can help us answer that question. According to ‘Psychology Today’, Cacioppo led a study in which respondents were shown three sets of pictures. The first set of photographs were connected to pleasurable feelings (e.g, fancy sports sedans), the second set of images were neutral (hair dryers and the like), and the final set were decidedly aversive (disfigured bodies, dead animals, etc.). Cacioppo then measured the cerebral cortex activity these photographs excited.

The results? When it comes to blazing brain waves, dead cats beat red Ferraris.

While pictures of sports cars & other nice photographs got the brain racing, negative photographs caused the most cerebral activity. The research team concluded that our brains have a “negative bias”- - we react most strongly to stimuli that we consider worrying or problematic.

Let’s think about the implications of these consumer insights.

Pain is more significant than pleasure. Faced with a problem, our brains are driven to search consciously or subconsciously for solutions. As we try to make people want to choose our products, services, and concepts, we can do well when we point out all the positive things- - the solutions, features, & benefits- - that come with our offering.

But to be even more impactful, we first should be certain that our target market is acutely tuned in to the challenges we are solving.

“Problems get our attention better than anything else”, confirms Sean D’Souza in ‘The Brain Audit. ‘ “We’re not making up problems to scare customers into buying. .[the] customer is not a fool. All we’re really doing is highlighting the issues that already exist.”

When we present a challenge unflinchingly and follow it up with a really meaningful, differentiated solution, we will win the dash for the minds of our target audience.

With this in mind, let’s embrace each side of the story- - the bad and the good- - as we roar ahead to the finish line.

Since 2000, Atlanta marketing consultant Marie Elwood has helped top branding companies leverage consumer insights for more profitable sales and marketing results.

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