Just finished reading Switch from Chip and Dan Heath. The book is a very insightful perspective into how to motivate change. A central theme in the book is about the Elephant and the Rider.
“The Elephant is the emotional side of motivation,while the Rider is the logical side. Perched atop the Elephant,the Rider holds the reins and seems to be the leader. But the Rider’s control is precarious because the Rider is small relative to the Elephant. Anytime the six-ton Elephant and the Rider disagree about which direction to go,the Rider is going to lose. He’s completely overmatched.”
The authors examine how these two internal motivations play together (or not). The most obvious examples we most can relate to are sticking to a diet,staying on an exercise program,or quitting smoking. We know it is the right thing to do (Rider) but we have a difficult time sticking to it (Elephant). The Elephant and Rider are the yin and yang of our psyche. The Rider is the planner (getting thin on a diet),while the Elephant is attracted to the short term payoff (enjoying an ice cream cone).
“Changes often fail because the Rider simply can’t keep the Elephant on the road long enough to reach the destination.”
As marketers we advertise to induce change. A change in brand choice. Getting people to rethink their brand selection is about motivating them away from what they do today. Getting them to take a different path —a new path. The question is are we talking to the Elephant or the Rider?
Educating the Elephant
I have a friend who frequently fuels his two cars at Sam’s Club. This fueling behavior requires him to travel 15 miles or about 20 minutes each way from home. Seems illogical to most people. However,in a recent study I completing on fueling behaviors my friend is not alone. About five-percent of people share this fueling behavior. There are different reasons why,but primarily these people spend time to save money. They believe by watching their pennies they will save dollars —thousands of dollars in the end. It is what drives them. It is their elephant.
The elephant drives many marketing decisions,because it is our DNA –it is who we are. It is our natural approach to the world,so why would marketing be any different. Many times the elephant will drive the consumer to choose our product,sometimes the competition. We need to be careful to just talk to the rider. Some marketers believe we can logically change behavior. We love our products,and logically we see reasons why people should choose our product over the competition. These logical “why buys”may appeal to the rider,but may be meaningless to the elephant.
- A car’s high Miles Per Gallon may appeal to the rider,but the elephant likes the roominess of a full-size vehicle.
- Saving the environment may appeal to the rider,but the elephant does not want to pay a premium for green products.
- A quality cup of coffee may appeal to the rider,but the elephant does not want to drive four miles out of the way to get it.
You get the idea.
I am not suggesting we suspend logic. Rather I recommend building campaigns based on our core target’s motivations. In order to get the consumer to change their behavior,we need to understand their internal inertia —the motivation within their current choice. We then need to architect a path —a message —an experience,that will get them to rethink their choice,and redirect their behaviors.
