If I mention, to anyone older than 55, hippies, Star Trek, Bonanza, Sesame Street, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Carol Burnett, Lucille Ball, Ed Sullivan, JFK’s assassination, West Side Story or The Beatles; or if I mention to anyone older than 25 Donny and Marie, Michael Jackson, Will and Grace, the Space Shuttle Challenger or 9/11, you probably have flashbacks– you “remember” and “re-experience” (at least momentarily) the emotions you carried when these things became a significant part of your emotional life experience. Powerful emotions stay with you.
If you’ve ever been to an antique car show and imagined your former childhood self asleep on the back shelf of a 1950’s automobile, you’ve experienced “linking.” It’s powerful. It’s nostalgic. It’s magical. It can be downright eerie…
Copywriters and salespeople often link present-day things with the emotions that most people feel when remembering past cultural/communal experiences. When we do, we’re inviting the “fond bond” sensation. We can usually agree, “I understand how you felt about that. I felt it, too. Still do, now that I think about it again.”
Fads change, the emotions they engender don’t
Beanie babies. Cabbage Patch dolls. Draft card burning. Pet rocks. Slinkies. Hula hoops. Bell Bottoms. Bra burning. CB radios. Super Bowl Champions. Big Hair. Big eyeglasses. Droopy drawers. Shirley Temple. The Wizard of Oz. Elvis. James Dean. Marilyn Monroe. Think of any fad that has captured national or international attention, including yours, and you can immediately attach an emotional response to it.
If your product or service can be linked to a broad-based emotional response, consider doing so. But be very careful. The link must be positive in every regard and the connection must be apparent. Linking 9-11 to why people should buy life insurance (“because you just never know…”) would be unforgivable!
In 1976 our Nation’s Bicentennial was celebrated. The merchandisers who sold the flags, pins, mugs and other paraphernalia had a good run for a few years, but it was the ones who recognized the continuing relevance of the patriotic spirit that remained successful as 1976 came to a close. Fads change, but the underlying emotion that sparks them stays the same.
If you can link something you offer to something that your prospect feels and understands, do it. Bridge the mental gap between the two and you’re good to go.
