The Mere Exposure Effect
the more people are exposed to a stimulus, the more our brains tend to like it.
For better or for worse, people prefer things they're familiar with.
For example, sushi is always served with a spicy smelly green condiment.
But if you like Japanese food, I have bad news for you.
Contrary to what you think, that spicy smelly green condiment Japanese restaurants have been serving you...erhm...isn’t wasabi.
The truth is, 99% of all wasabi sold in America is fake. And about 95% of wasabi sold in Japan is fake.
What this means is you’ve probably never eaten real wasabi. Because what most Japanese restaurants serve isn't wasabi, it's a cheap imitation. It's a mix of horseradish, mustard flour, cornstarch and green food coloring.
The real wasabi comes from grating the root Wasabia Japonica.
It loses its flavor in only 15 minutes. And it costs around $250 per kilo.
The fact is, you're used to the taste of fake wasabi. Because that's what most restaurants have been serving us our entire lives.
So if most Japanese restaurants suddenly start serving real wasabi, most people won't like it.
They'll prefer the fake cheap version of wasabi.In Psychology this is called The Mere Exposure Effect.
And it proves that the more people are exposed to a stimulus, the more our brains tend to like it.
You see, humans hate change. Because the familiar feels better than the unknown.
The familiar always feels safer. Which is why the real job of any good copywriter isn't about changing people's beliefs. It's about confirming THEIR beliefs.
If you’re selling something new, make it feel familiar.
Takeaways for your business:
Once upon a time in 2015, Visit Britain (the UK's national tourism agency) wanted to attract more Chinese tourists.
Unfortunately Chinese tourists seemed to prefer visiting America and Continental Europe.
So Visit Britain asks ad agency Ogilvy Beijing to help them promote the UK in a more welcoming way to Chinese people.
In China it is popular to give descriptive names to celebrities, places and foods.
So team Ogilvy Beijing decides to tap into this cultural truth in an unexpected way. To encourage Chinese people to visit the UK, Visit Britain told them they could give popular British landmarks a Chinese name.
So Visit Britain launches a campaign website where they invite the Chinese to rename 101 British landmarks. And promotes it via their Weibo and WeChat social media channels in China.
Soon the campaign became a topic of conversation in China and all over the World.
In ten weeks Chinese people suggested 13,000 new names.
And then Visit Britain selected the most memorable Chinese names for 101 different British tourist attractions.
So this was how The Gherkin (London's most famous skyscraper) became Xiao Huang Gua (Which in Chinese means "The Pickled Little Cucumber".)
Big Ben became Da Ben Zhong ("Big stupid clock.").
Stonehenge became Ju Shi Zhen ("Huge stone clusters").
Now hold your breath for the real world results of the "Great Chinese Names for Great Britain" campaign.
The campaign generated a 27% year-on-year increase in UK visits from Chinese tourists and a £22 million boost to the British economy.
2. Repetition builds reputation and keeps a brand in people's minds.
Amen Dave Trott.
3. Hunt for revelations about what your audience needs, but communicate what they want in a way that resonates. It’s much more lucrative..
4. Your headline is a BIG promise. Make it rhyme, people will trust you BIG time.
You see, rhyming makes your copy more fluid, easier to understand and more familiar. And familiarity drives trust. And trust leads to winning people's brains, hearts and wallets — which means more Cha-Ching $$$.
Graza’s website does this beautifully.
