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- đ§ Psychology Sunday: How to Make Your Brand as Addicting as a Casino
đ§ Psychology Sunday: How to Make Your Brand as Addicting as a Casino
Hey there,
Welcome back to the 28th edition of Brandish,
Your guide to crafting an iconic brand.
I spent longer than I should thinking about what I wanted to write about this week.
I wanted this one to be fun for you, interesting,
And a little controversial.
So without further ado,
Kick back,
Grab your Brez,
And get ready to learn how you can âethicallyâ make your brand as addicting as a casino.
The Art of Casino Design: A Blueprint for Engagement
If youâve ever been inside a casino, youâll know EXACTLY what Iâm talking about.
The flashy setups,
Intricate designs,
And captivating atmosphere,
Itâs all done on purpose.
Casinos are some of the BEST in history at capturing someoneâs attention,
And once they have their hooks in youâŚ
You know the rest.
Now Iâm not saying you should copy everything they do,
A lot of it is borderline unethical.
But they have literally laid the blueprint for engagement,
And you should be taking notes.
Winning Hearts, Minds, And Money
Casinos excel in building emotional connections.
They can turn every visit into a rollercoaster of an experience that their customers never want to stop riding,
Strategically using psychological triggers to ever so subtly influence customer behavior.
If you werenât aware of their tactics, you would never even notice.
Doing this effectively takes a deep understanding of your audience,
Their instincts,
And their deepest desires.
Itâs not easy to replicate, but it is very possible.
Let me break down how:
Gamify EVERYTHING
A large part of their success is because everything is gamified.
And I mean EVERYTHING.
So to an extent, you need to be doing the same thing.
Why not move that theme over to your branding?
Think of your website as a casino,
If you walked in and the walls were gray, there wasnât any music, and the dealer looked sadâŚ
Youâd take yourself (and your wallet) right on out of there.
So do the opposite.
Make your branding FUN.
Your personality should be addicting,
And shopping with you should feel like a game where your customer wins every single time.
Take your rewards program.
By adding a certain level of gamification youâd be instilling a similar amount of adrenaline and emotional response as gambling.
(Ethically, of course.)
Starbucks: The Pioneer In Gamification
Love them or hate them, Starbucks was one of the true pioneers of gamifying their rewards programs,
And now it makes up nearly 40-50% of their revenue.
Absolutely wild.
Their loyalty app is where the real magic is.
It does the usual stuff (Each purchase earns points for discounts, blah blah, blah)
BUT
Theyâve personalized their promotions to each customer,
Setting challenges to complete, time-sensitive offers, literal double XP weekends,
The whole shebang.
See much of a difference?
I donât.
They didnât âcopyâ the casinoâs strategies,
Theyâre just replicating what works to grab ahold of your customers' emotions, actions, and wallets,
In the most âethicalâ way possible.
Look at the similarities in design:
Smooth and simple
Highlights rewards, countdowns, etc.
Easy to navigate and PERSONALIZED
Again, Iâm not advocating that you emotionally manipulate your customers into giving you the deed to their house,
BUT
There are plenty of things that casinos do right that you can start to implement into your branding,
Like your rewards system.
Start there and work your way up,
Turn your brand into a fun, emotionally mesmerizing experience,
And your customers will basically throw their money at you.
Thatâs a Wrap
Thatâs all I had for this week.
I hope you enjoyed learning about a little âethicalâ emotional manipulation!
Just kidding
Weâre not monsters.
Anyways,
I hope you learned something new this week, and I hope you take what youâve learned and apply it to your branding!
See you next time,
Ankit