Human beings rely more heavily on learning than any other species that has ever existed. Learning (scanning and assimilating) is the way we interpret new information, and this scanning always on. Memory is the way we retain that information over time, categorising information and prioritising activity.
So, if memory is so important, what’s the secret of being remembered?
I contend the most effective way is cogitative disruption by the creation of dissonance.
For example:
– Your neighbor is paying $200 less on phone bills
- Your business will not be tax compliant unless you use etax
These calls to action are compelling because they create a need to seek out more information, because they have created real dissonance.
“Cognitive dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously. “- Wiki.
The reaction to dissonance is to resolve it – the bigger the tension the more the urgency. Therefore the communication battleground is about setting an agenda for what is a problem and not what your brand or -ism will solve.
So you’ve created a significant perceived problem in your target audience – then what?
For the decision maker, generally speaking having a problem means having to develop a deep understanding of the competing choices but there is never enough time to do this optimally – so resolving decisions actually come down to what your competing interests (identified problem areas) will let you do.
So the follow-up communication – must leverage more dissonance to show that the solution in the hand is worth more than the next suitable solution, talk about the receivers range of problems and how your brand or -ism is the most pressing problem, this amplifies the state of dissonance to appear so great – that action must be taken. Personal logic will then post rationalise decision.
Percieved Dissonance is a fight or flight response and can be triggered. Seeding it in interpersonal communication is quite easy (“you look fat”,”you’re running your operation the wrong way”) and is readily employed in the media. Creating an emotional association (unhappy child = overpaying electricity bills) so as to allow the consumer to adopt a state of dissonance (bombing in indonesia = anti-terrorism.) It drives people to look for a solution and settle for what’s available.
Creating (and perpetuating) a problem is the essence of effective communications.
I’m not saying its sincere or leads to long term loyalty, but leading in the identification and amplification of a problem just works more effectively than anything else I’ve seen to obtain attention, consideration and trial in the short term.
Training people to identifying their problems is very one effective weapon. So what does that do when communities live with this type of white noise? JWT researches an Anxiety index – strong media based communities, such as in the developed world are, on average, much more nervous than their developing colleagues, as an example compare China with Australia.
Cui bono? Well the most successful -ism to employ this tactic is the Arms Industry – particularly on the US taxpayer – somewhere between 30%-50% of the US budget goes to Military spending. That’s a phenomenal amount of money, globally the industry is worth more than $1 trillion per year, creating a desperate number of organisations relying on growing and perpetuating spending…
.. in a time when there is relatively less threat to peace ever – it works. “Researchers are discovering the extent to which xenophobia can be easily—even arbitrarily—turned on. In just hours, we can be conditioned to fear or discriminate against those who differ from ourselves by characteristics as superficial as eye color. ” (Psychology Today, 2009.) Dissonance created.
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