The Psychology of Marketing

Most people do not realize how much psychology plays into effective marketing. Psychology is the study of human behavior, why people do what they do, and the goal of marketing is to influence human behavior, to get people to buy a product or use a service. Abraham Maslow created a hierarchy of needs that every person has and must satisfy to achieve self-actualization. A well marketed business knows what level of the hierarchy most of their customers are at and will use strategies to appeal to that level. The first level in the pyramid is physiological needs these include food, sleep, water, and sex. Businesses that target this level offer basic things like clean water and basic affordable living spaces. The second level is safety. Security systems, self-defense classes, and cars companies marketing how safe their vehicles are targeting customers at this level, appealing to the people’s desire to feel safe and secure. The third level is love and belongingness. Social media, clubs, fitness classes, and businesses with memberships appeal to this group, because people want to feel like they are a part of a group. The fourth level is Esteem. This group of people do things that make them feel better about themselves and show others how well they are doing. Businesses targeting this customer base will market in a way that makes people feel like they are getting the best like luxury cars, mansions, the best name brand clothing, and high-end restaurants. Companies marketing to tier four use methods that make people believe they are getting something exclusive that no one else has. Level five is Self-actualization. Very few people reach this level, but businesses can market to those trying to reach it by appealing to a person’s desire to reach their full potential. Using psychology in a business’s marketing strategies can be advantageous to any company that wishes to influence customers to buy the products or services being offered.