Learn how to hack the human brain and drive potential customers to take action.
Last Updated: September 2025
You might think that the essence of marketing is simply making people aware of your business. The more people who know about your business, the better, right? While that may be a good start, it’s not quite enough. First and foremost, marketing is about influencing people to engage with your business. That means you don’t just need to reach people, you need to convince them to take action.
Businesses will often invest a lot of time and effort into crafting their perfect target audience (as all businesses should). However, these same businesses will then put minimal thought into the actual message they want to get across. The result? A lot of missed opportunities! Reaching your target audience is all well and good, but without the right message, you won’t influence them to do anything.
How To Hack the Human Brain
While every person is unique, there is a sense in which we are all the same. That’s all thanks to two words: human nature. The human brain is essentially a machine, and like any other machine, we can understand how it works. We can understand which psychological triggers motivate people to act.
From a marketing perspective, we can implement these triggers into our messaging, whether that be on our website or in our ad campaigns. By crafting messaging that really resonates, it’s possible to crank up the sales without needing to crank up the budget! Here are twelve simple techniques you can use in your marketing to hack the human brain and drive more engagement.
1. Loss Aversion
The human brain finds potential loss to be a much stronger motivator than a potential gain. Therefore, where possible, you should tell people what they could lose if they don’t act. Think about a situation the customer would be wanting to avoid, that your product or service could prevent. Lean into things like risk, urgency, limited availability, or any other negative outcome that could result from not acting.
Examples
Instead of: “Book your ticket and get ready for an amazing event!”
Try saying: “Book your ticket today to avoid missing out on a spot!”
Instead of: “Enjoy hassle-free driving with our extended car warranty.”
Try saying: “Avoid costly repairs down the road, protect your car with an extended warranty.”
Instead of: “Keep your home safe and secure with a state of the art security system.”
Try saying: “Don’t leave your home vulnerable to a break in, install our security system now!”
2. Social Proof
Humans like to go with the crowd. They will be much more likely to act if they can see other people doing the same thing. This often involves demonstrating that a large number of people similar to your target audience have benefitted from using your business. You could add a ‘Most Popular’ badge to your most popular product, to make people feel more at ease about buying it. You could also highlight particular clients that are recognisable or well-respected within the industry.
Examples
Instead of: “Choose us for reliable financial advice.”
Try saying: “Join hundreds of kiwis who trust us for reliable financial advice.”
Instead of: “Experience one of the best dining experiences in town.”
Try saying: “Rated 5 stars by over 1,000 diners, find out why our restaurant is one of the best in town!”
Instead of: “Make your business more efficient with our new software.”
Try saying: “Used by top New Zealand businesses, try our new software to boost your productivity.”
3. Anchoring
Anchoring helps you show value through comparison and contextualisation. The first numbers people see set a psychological standard. This standard then helps guide people toward the choice you want them to make. For example, the price of a product can be perceived as better value when shown alongside other prices or products.
Studies have also shown that adding something like “Limit of 12 products per customer” can lead to customers purchasing more products than they otherwise would have. The upper limit adds context that you expect people to buy larger quantities.
Examples
Instead of: “Get your phone from $1,500”
Try saying: “128GB for $1,500, or 256GB for $1,650”
Instead of: “Drinks are $4 small or $6 large.”
Try saying: “Drinks are $4 small, $6 medium, or $6.50 large.”
Instead of: “Today’s price $89.”
Try saying: “Normally $129, today just $89.”
4. Because
This hack is summed up by just one simple word: Because. When people are given a clear reason to do something, they are much more likely to do it. It doesn’t even need to be a particularly groundbreaking reason! The mere presence of the word ‘because’ makes people much more inclined to take action, as it lends more credibility to your request.
Examples
Instead of: “Join our gym today and start improving your health.”
Try saying: “Join our gym today, because your health is worth the investment.”
Instead of: “Get insured today for your peace of mind.”
Try saying: “Get insured today, because peace of mind is priceless.”
Instead of: “Book your next getaway to relax and unwind.”
Try saying: “It’s time for a getaway, because nobody wants a life full of stress.”
5. Ownership
People will feel more inclined to act if they already feel a sense of ownership. If you frame something as already belonging to someone, at least partially, they will feel like they own it in their mind. This will make it much easier for them to take steps towards actually making it theirs.
Examples
Instead of: “Pack your bags and book your next holiday with us!”
Try saying: “Your dream holiday is waiting here for you. All you need to do it pack your bags!”
Instead of: “Buy online now and get a 20% discount.”
Try saying: “Claim your 20% discount online now!”
Instead of: “Come in and grab one of our delicious donuts.”
Try saying: “There’s a donut here with your name on it!”
6. Emotional Connection
As we’ve already seen with the Social Proof hack, showing that a large number of customers are happy with your product or service builds credibility. On the flipside however, personal stories are useful for building emotional connection. It is much easier to connect with one person than a nameless mass of people. So, while Social Proof is important, it can also be helpful to tell stories about individuals that potential customers will relate to or resonate with.
Examples
Instead of: “Our supplements can help you get over those frustrating aches and pains.”
Try saying: “After using our supplements, Jane got back to running marathons again.”
Instead of: “Upgrade your home insulation and start saving on energy costs!”
Try saying: “With a simple insulation upgrade, John reduced his annual energy bills by 10%.”
Instead of: “With our handy app, you can learn a new language in a matter of months.”
Try saying: “Here’s how Joey learned a new language in just a few months, after years of trying.”
7. Scarcity
When something feels limited, people are more likely to take action. Scarcity helps customers to perceive products or services as more valuable, encouraging quicker decisions.
Examples
Instead of: “Book your massage appointment this week.”
Try saying: “Only 7 massage appointments left this week, book now!”
Instead of: “Get your handmade candles now.”
Try saying: “Only 25 handmade candles left in stock.”
Instead of: “Tickets are available now.”
Try saying: “Early bird tickets close at midnight, secure your spot today.”
8. Commitment
People like to stay consistent with their actions. Once they’ve committed to something small, they’re more likely to keep making progress, complete certain actions, or even commit to future actions. If the user clicks a button that says “I’m Ready For My Free Quote” they will be more likely to fill out the quote form because they’ve already committed to it in some small way.
Examples
Instead of: “Book a full strategy session.”
Try saying: “Sign up to our Marketing Club for free marketing tips in your inbox every week.”
Instead of: “Join our gym for 12 months.”
Try saying: “Try our $10 trial week – no strings attached!”
Instead of: “Book your getaway now.”
Try saying: “Start planning today and check our availability for your preferred dates.”
9. Reciprocity
Reciprocity is giving something to get something. When you give people something of value upfront, they’re more inclined to return the favour, whether that’s making a purchase, signing up, or booking.
Examples
Instead of: “Contact us for SEO help.”
Try saying: “Download our free ‘Top 10 SEO Tips’ guide.”
Instead of: “Buy our new chocolate.”
Try saying: “Enjoy a free sample of our new chocolate.”
Instead of: “Book a consultation with us.”
Try saying: “Claim your free digital marketing consultation with tailored advice.”
10. Simplification
Too many options can make people feel paralysed, and sometimes not even choose anything at all. Simplifying choices helps customers feel more confident about their decision.
Examples
Instead of: “Choose from our 10 different phone plans.”
Try saying: “Choose a Basic, Standard, or Premium phone plan.”
Instead of: “We have seven different tour packages available to choose from.”
Try saying: “Our most popular tours are the Full Day Tour and the Family Tour.”
Instead of: “We offer a wide range of services spanning all areas of digital marketing.”
Try saying: “We provide services to help with SEO, Social Media, and Websites.”
11. Benefits
The way you present information changes how people respond to it. While could highlight the features or functions of your products and services, it’s much more effective to highlight how their life will change as a result. After all, the benefits of your products and services are the main reasons your customers want them.
Examples
Instead of: “Life insurance for just under $2 a day.”
Try saying: “Protect your family for less than $2 a day.”
Instead of: “Home insulation from $1,500.”
Try saying: “Stop wasting hundreds of dollars a year on power bills.”
Instead of: “Join our 12-week fitness programme.”
Try saying: “Get fitter and stronger in just 12 weeks.”
12. Focusing
People rarely remember a long list of features or benefits. Instead, they tend to focus on the one or maybe two things that stand out most. That’s why it’s important to identify your strongest selling point and put the spotlight on it, rather than treating every feature as equal. A clear tagline can reinforce this focus too, giving customers a simple takeaway message that sticks.
Examples
Instead of: “Our website design service includes custom layouts, mobile optimisation, SEO, hosting, and ongoing support.”
Try saying: “Beautiful websites that bring you more customers.”
Instead of: “Our accounting firm provides bookkeeping, payroll, GST returns, business strategy, and tax compliance.”
Try saying: “Making taxes easy for kiwi businesses.”
Instead of: “This car has leather seats, Bluetooth, advanced safety features, and great fuel efficiency.”
Try saying: “One of the safest cars you’ll ever buy.”
Take Your Messaging To The Next Level
With these simple techniques, you can use your marketing messaging to hack the human brain. Whether you’re running ads on social media, improving your website, or anything else, these tips should help you drive more action among your potential customers.
