As marketers we have the unique ability to change human behavior; individually and across society. We shape current and future generations through the messages, symbols, and stories we create with brands and people as they connect through the products and services we promote.

A great opportunity, and responsibility, if we can understand and access it correctly by adding value to people at opportune moments.  I am grateful to Ismael Obregon of Oishii Creative who taught this to me in our time working together.  Since our time together, I have embraced them with my own style and application.  These are my thoughts and experiences in wielding these tools and tips about how to apply them in your journey.

To start with, let’s understand these critical moments:

TRIGGERS: the deficiencies or challenges in our lives that cause pain or desire that we want to avoid or pursue respectively.  These are the the things that evoke our emotions – I am thirsty, lonely, excited, hungry.

ROUTINES: the actions we take to remedy our triggers in search of our rewards.  I get water when I am thirsty, talk to friends and family when I am lonely, share things on my socials when I am excited, open Postmates when I hungry.

REWARDS: what we are looking for as a human / consumer / user – this is typically some form of happiness as manifested through improved ability, status, perception, condition, or mood.  Ultimately all my routines are in search of transforming my Triggers into the happiness / reward I am looking for and making decisions away from fear / pain and towards reward / opportunity.

So what to do with, about them…

We introduce Triggers through socially relevant queues that tie to basic human needs (hunger, desire, ability etc.) through copy and content.  The choices of copy and content are guided by the audiences we seek to connect to and topics / products / services we look to discuss / introduce / activate.  This is the place for desire, opportunity, frustration, envy, and fear etc. as we look to capture attention and align our conversation with our intended audience.  While it is possible to introduce a new trigger into society / the human psyche, it is extremely expensive and protracted, often best left to heads of state or other monolithic institutions.

Routines are the only things we reliably affect as marketers!  Rather humbling, but very real, this is our zone to operate in, send our message (ultimately using us will turn your trigger into your reward), show the actions needed, and guide people to an interaction.  This is the most important part of the marketing message as it shows the path from desire to success most simply made through our products and services.

Finally, Rewards, are socially and contextually relevant pair to the Triggers previously introduced.  Similar to Triggers, Rewards are driven by societal, social, and individual preferences.  These rewards are grounded in human behaviors as discussed in frameworks like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs etc.  While not all frameworks define the exact same set of rewards / needs, it is well established that these are intrinsic to the human condition and practically impossible to create new ones as marketers.  Similar to Triggers, efforts must be made for relevance in peoples lives.

<<<UPDATE IN PROGRESS>>>

Overview 1: Live Earth

Overview 2: Adoption Network

Overview 3: California Science Center

PS – my reward is that you read more about me and my work, I sincerely hope this was a triggering experience for you in that regards 😉