Check out these classic insight bangers. Use them in your next project.

Here’s some of our favourite discoveries about how we think. Insight classics you might say. Each one can be applied to what you do. Get in touch if you want to apply these insights to the world around you with the right people to bring them to life.

1. The peak-end rule: Craft unforgettable peak moments and endings.

This insight demonstrates that people tend to judge an experience based on its most intense (peak) moments and its ending, rather than the overall experience, which can inform the design of customer journeys and product experiences.

How it works: It challenges the assumption that people evaluate experiences based on their overall duration or average quality.

Use case: Design advertisements, promotions, or events with memorable peak moments and strong conclusions, as these will leave a more lasting impression on consumers.

2. The pratfall effect: Embrace imperfections for increased likability.

The unexpected finding that displaying vulnerability or making mistakes can make people or brands appear more likable and relatable, influencing advertising and brand communication strategies.

How it works: It contradicts the idea that perfection and flawlessness are the keys to likability.

Use case: Incorporate relatable and humanizing imperfections or mistakes in advertising campaigns to create a more approachable and likable brand image.

3. The Dunning-Kruger effect: Simplify information for overconfident consumers.

The understanding that individuals with limited knowledge or skill in a particular area often overestimate their competence, affecting consumer confidence in decision-making and preferences.

How it works: It goes against the belief that people with less expertise are aware of their limitations.

Use case: Provide clear and concise information in advertising to assist less knowledgeable consumers, who may be more confident in their choices than they should be.

4. THe sleeper effect: Leverage forgotten sources for persuasion.

This insight reveals that over time, people may forget the source of information but remember the message, leading to an increased persuasive impact of advertising from less credible sources.

How it works: It disputes the notion that the credibility of a source is always important for persuasion.

Use case: Strategically release persuasive messages from less credible sources, knowing that over time, the message will gain impact as the source is forgotten.

5. The licensing effect: Promote virtuous products, encourage indulgence.

The unexpected discovery that when people feel they have done something virtuous, they may grant themselves permission to indulge in less virtuous behavior, which can influence consumer choices and marketing strategies.

How it works: It challenges the belief that virtuous actions lead to consistently virtuous behavior.

Use case: Leverage this effect by promoting eco-friendly or socially responsible products that may encourage consumers to indulge in other, less virtuous purchases.

6. The availability heuristic: Utilize vivid storytelling for decision impact.

The understanding that people tend to overestimate the likelihood of events based on their ease of recall, affecting consumer perceptions of risk and decision-making.

How it works: It contradicts the idea that people make decisions based on objective assessments of risk or likelihood.

Use case: Use vivid storytelling and memorable examples in advertising to make certain risks or benefits more easily recalled, thus influencing consumer decision-making.

7. The contrast effect: Highlight desirability through strategic comparisons.

This insight demonstrates that people's perceptions are influenced by the context in which they are presented, affecting consumer preferences and evaluations of products and services.

How it works: It challenges the assumption that evaluations are made independently of context.

Use case: Present products or services alongside less desirable options to make the target offering appear more appealing by comparison.

8. The reciprocity principle: Foster indebtedness with free offerings.

The unexpected finding that people feel a sense of obligation to return favors or gifts, which can be used to enhance customer relationships and encourage repeat purchases.

How it works: It goes against the well intentioned belief that people act purely out of self-interest.

Use case: Offer free samples, gifts, or exclusive content to create a sense of indebtedness in consumers, encouraging them to make a purchase or recommend the brand to others.

9. The Zeigarnik effect: Engage consumers with unfinished tasks.

The understanding that people are more likely to remember unfinished tasks than completed ones, which can inform strategies for creating customer engagement and encouraging follow-up actions.

How it works: It disputes the notion that completion is the primary driver of satisfaction and memory.

Use case: Create serialized content, customer loyalty programs, or multi-step promotions that keep consumers engaged and encourage them to return to complete tasks.

This is linked to threshold utility which we’ll get onto one day…

10. The confirmation bias: Appeal to pre-existing beliefs for acceptance.

This insight reveals that people tend to seek out and favour information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs, affecting consumer decision-making and receptivity to marketing messages.

How it works: It contradicts the belief that people objectively evaluate new information.

Use case: Frame marketing messages in a way that confirms pre-existing beliefs or preferences, making it more likely that consumers will accept and remember the message.

These insights provide a deeper understanding of the unexpected and explanatory aspects of consumer psychology and behaviour, which can be leveraged to create better research, more effective marketing strategies and better customer experiences.

Imagine the impact you could have applying these classic formulas to understanding and impacting your world.

Why do the same old studies when you can leverage exciting thinking that doesn’t need to be invented or justified?