The holy grail of marketing is to get in your customers “Ingroup”.

I had this epiphany while walking with good friend, Elizabeth Pillsworth, Ph.D, who is a professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at Cal State Fullerton.

We were talking about how cultural divisions form. Why people tend to seek out others that are like them. And just how “like them” gets defined. Maybe I missed a calling in the psychology field because understanding what makes people tick – why they make certain choices over others – has always been fascinating to me.

You see, as humans, we are all pre-programmed with implicit bias.

As Sahar Andrade, MB. BCh describes it, “We all have an unconscious bias because as humans we are wired to see patterns.” Our brains instinctively categorize whatever we come in contact with in our daily lives as a survival tool. And surprisingly, the brain can only digest about four to five pieces of information at a time.

What does that mean for marketers? Well, it means that we have mere moments to connect with prospects because they are categorizing our business, our product, our service within milliseconds.

Yes. MILLISECONDS.

The “Ingroup”

Implicit biases often predict how we’ll behave more accurately than our conscious values. And while the most common biases are based on characteristics such as age, race, social group or appearance, there are those that focus more on our own experiences and associations. In fact, some experts say there are more than 150 various biases out there.

And, unconsciously, we tend to hold biases that favor our own Ingroup.

What is an Ingroup?

As Elizabeth explained it in our walk that morning, Ingroups are how humans innately categorize themselves and others. In the most simplistic terms, Ingroups establish “Us” vs. “Them.”  

In Ingroup Favoritism and Prejudice, Dr. Rajiv Jhangiani and Dr. Hammond Tarry describe, “Ingroup favoritism is a fundamental and evolutionarily functional aspect of human perception, and it occurs even in groups that are not particularly meaningful.”  Being part of what we consider a valued group, provides us a positive experience in social identity.

Because our ancestors lived in small social groups that were frequently in conflict with other groups, it was evolutionarily functional for them to view members of other groups as different and potentially dangerous (Brewer & Caporael, 2006; Navarrete, Kurzban, Fessler, & Kirkpatrick, 2004). 

 

Differentiating between “us” and “them” probably helped keep us safe and free from disease, and as a result, the human brain became very efficient in making these distinctions (Mahajan et al., 2011; Phelps et al., 2000; Van Vugt & Schaller, 2008; Zaraté, Stoever, MacLin, & Arms-Chavez, 2008). 

 

The problem is that these naturally occurring tendencies may lead us to prefer people who are like us, and in some cases even to unfairly reject people from outgroups.

Consumer “Ingroups”

Yankees vs. Red Sox.

Coke vs. Pepsi.

Apple vs. Android.

Humans are tribal. We innately categorize our social world, socially constructing our Ingroups based on personal taste or arbitrary factors. When we join a club or association they become “our” group. We tend to identify with those that live for CrossFit like us or only eat organic or who have kids the same age as ours.

And when we walk into a store, land on a website or pick up a brochure, we either connect with a Brand. Or we don’t.

Creating emotional connections with customers isn’t new. But as the concept of implicit bias moves to the forefront, we have an opportunity to more deeply understand how that connection is formed. To understand the psychology behind consumer purchasing decisions.

It’s one of the reasons we’re seeing a rise in corporations taking stands on political and social issues.

Because Brands want customers to view them as one of their own… as part of their group.

Creating Your Customer “Ingroup”

So as marketers and business owners, how do we tap into the power of the Ingroup?

We connect with them.

We demonstrate how we are alike, how we understand, how we are similar.

We let them know through everything we do – from website design to office to décor to how customers are greeted when they walk through the door – that we are part of the same tribe.

1) Find Your Tribe:

Your tribe is more than your company’s key target groups. Your target buys goods and services from you. Your tribe believes in you.

They follow you on social media and join your newsletter. They stand in line for hours to buy your latest product. They give you their business – even if it’s a little more than the competition – because you understand them. Because you’ve connected with them.

Your tribe is your core. They are your ambassadors. They will champion your Brand and promote it among their peers.

2) Believe in Something:

As I discussed in The 5th “P” of Marketing, customers are shifting their criteria for loyalty to values. Evaluating whether, or not, a Brand’s values align with their own.

While some companies have chosen to take a stand on political issues, it isn’t necessary for you to go down that road. But you do have to believe in something beyond your product or service.

Your Brand has to stand for something.

• CHOBANI funds its own healthy-living food incubator and gives a portion of its profits to charity, focusing on access to food for underserved communities.
• REI “walks the walk” of enjoying the outdoors by closing their doors on Black Friday to give, as CEO Jerry Stritzke states, “… our employees time to do what they love with the people they love during the holidays.”
• WEWORK is a co-working office space whose mission is to build community. So they created their Summer Camps as a way for WeWork members and employees from around the globe to connect and learn. And through their Refugee Initiative, they work to connect refugees and employers across the globe.

Don’t worry. You don’t have to be a Fortune 500 company for your business to stand for something. Your values can be about your integrity, about giving back, or an issue you care about. But it has to be real. And it has to be true.

• If you provide products or services geared towards women, then champion the rights of women.
• If you are a brick-and-mortar business, get involved in the local community by sponsoring the local Little League team.
• If you are a veteran-owned business, plan an employee volunteer day with an organization that provides housing for homeless vets.

3) Demonstrate How You are Alike:

Remember. Our prospects are categorizing our business, our product, our service within milliseconds. We have a mere blink of an eye to connect with them.

If we want them to categorize us as part of their Ingroup, they need to instantly identify with our Brand.

• Whether it’s how we look (a brochure, website or office space)
• Whether it’s what we say (our story, the specific language we use)
• Whether it’s what we value (do we believe in something beyond our product or service)

One of the things I see businesses get most wrong is thinking it is enough to have a branded website and be done. Or that outdated brochures and business cards don’t matter. Or that the receptionist snapping gum when you’re checking in for an appointment doesn’t reflect on the business.

It all matters. It all goes into the subconscious evaluations we make when we’re deciding: “are they like me?”, “do I fit in here?”

As Mark Schaefer so aptly stated in his recent post The Compelling Business Case for Belonging, “Hyper-empowered consumers show little brand loyalty except when they feel they belong to something. Down the road, will ‘belonging’ be the only marketing strategy we have left?”

It’s too soon to speculate if it will be the only strategy for marketers. But one thing is for sure. Understanding that need for belonging – our anthropologic pre-disposition to form Ingroups – is something worthy of marketers’ attention.

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Jacqui Genow

Brand & Business Strategist

J. Genow Marketing

Jacqui Genow is the founder and principal of J. Genow Marketing. She works with clients in aligning their brand message, building their marketing roadmap, and helping them stay on track to move their business forward. As a Brand and Business Strategist, her focus goes beyond marketing; making the connections between how marketing decisions made today can impact a client’s business in the future. You can find Jacqui on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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