Our brains are wired to favor unexpected pleasure. Research suggests that exceeding expectations brings increased pleasure and shapes behavior. Consumers often have naive beliefs about what will make them happy, leading to a continuous pursuit of the next thing in the consumer world. The hedonic treadmill concept reveals that happiness peaks just before acquiring something, then diminishes. Product release cycles and unpredictability in design, like in social media, are used to keep consumers engaged due to the anticipation of the unknown.
Would you be able to tell the difference between a bargain bin red and a top drop? Or how about what separates a duck paté … from one made of dog food?
Perception is everything when it comes to marketing, and decades of neuroscience and psychology research have given businesses ever greater insights into how we can make decisions and how they can subtly shape our expectations so that yes – even dog food paté can become appealing.
But the ramifications of this power may be pushing companies into unethical territory.
First broadcast on 22 August 2021.