When it comes to marketing, we’ve gone too far with psychology. It’s time to hit the brakes and return to philosophy.
Did you know that 150 years ago, psychology split from philosophy?
In 1879, Wilhelm Wundt opened the first experimental psychology lab in Leipzig. Until then, psychology lived within philosophy.
Psychology became about behavior and triggers, while philosophy remained about truth-seeking.
To be clear, I’m not anti-psychology in marketing.
For example, psychology has helped us better understand how to build websites so people can more easily find what they’re looking for.
But it’s gone too far.
Psychology became about using the scientific method to study behavior. Then marketers discovered they could use these insights to influence purchasing decisions.
They continued to dive deeper into the human psyche, seeking new ways to influence purchasing decisions. As a result, today’s marketing advice is dominated by “psychology hacking.”
It uses cognitive biases, scarcity tactics, and dopamine spikes to coerce people into buying, and it does so under the veneer of benefiting the customer.
Just the other day, while scrolling through Instagram, I saw this ad: “15 psychological triggers to make customers buy.”
You’ve no doubt seen these ads, blog posts, and books, too.
Psychology hacking asks: “Does this work?”
When you follow philosophy, you build arguments.
Argument builders ask: ‘Would I want this done to me?”
Most professionals I work with are natural argument builders who’ve been taught psychology hacker tactics.
Heck, I’m one of them. But over the past few years, I’ve seen the light.
Not only is philosophy more ethical, but it also works better in building your business.
Nobody else is talking about this distinction, and it could change how we go about marketing. The results from our clients over the past few years prove it, not only in terms of business success, but also in how they feel about doing marketing.
Can’t beat that.
