The complex-dynamic environment is causing major challenges for many companies. The ability to adapt to changing conditions is more important than ever. The multitude of alternative options (competitors) and the vast amount of information available to us as consumers lead to dense and highly fragmented demand markets. To survive in this environment, a high degree of dynamic robustness is required: companies must be able to respond to surprises in a timely and appropriate manner.
Change is the only constant.
One such surprise that many professional service providers are still overwhelmed by is the fact that marketing must become a core competence in order to reliably attract the right customers despite intense competition and resulting innovation pressure. Only those companies that succeed in making the value of their offerings visible and easily accessible to the right people have a realistic chance of being considered as an option. The times when high-quality products marketed themselves in most markets are over.
Even entrepreneurs from sales-driven industries, who have been successful with little or no marketing effort until now, increasingly realize that without their own marketing function it becomes more and more difficult to reliably acquire new customers and remain memorable to existing ones.
The best of the best have long recognized that the greatest leverage for business success lies in marketing.
The competition and the resulting volume of communicated (alternative) offers are simply too great to neglect visibility, discoverability, and recognizability. Existing “word of mouth” must no longer serve as an excuse for unprofessional or half-hearted marketing. Instead, more attention should be given to the challenges and potentials of (digital) transformation in order to gain decisive insights into the transformation needs of one’s own company. Business owners are called upon to find answers to the question of what role marketing plays in their specific context and how it must be designed in order to reliably attract the right customers at manageable costs.
“Business has only two basic functions – marketing and innovation.”
— Peter F. Drucker
Studies suggest that between 10,000 and 13,000 advertising messages hit us every single day. We consciously perceive only a fraction of them, and even fewer end up in our memory. Digitalization fundamentally changes how we communicate and interact—and therefore how we make purchasing decisions. Only very few entrepreneurs are truly aware of these dynamics.
The complex-dynamic environment makes it necessary to take a closer look at how human purchasing and decision-making processes work. Anyone who wants to break through to their target and demand groups must develop a deep understanding of human needs and behaviors. Based on well-founded theories, companies can reach their audiences despite the noise and intense competition. Only when purchasing behavior and the associated needs of customers are understood can marketing positively influence the buying decision process.
And only then does marketing fulfill its function: the right people are reached with the right content through the right channels and inspired to make a purchase decision.
What is really at stake in a purchase decision?
When we ask ourselves whether we should buy something or not, we basically weigh:
- the benefit we expect from the product or service on the one hand and
- the risk of making a decision that we might later regret (due to the price paid) on the other hand.
If the expected benefit exceeds the price to be paid and the associated costs, a purchase decision is made.
Is it really that simple?
No. Our decision-making is subject to a number of cognitive biases and is always dependent on our emotional evaluations. Every single decision is significantly influenced by the prevailing emotional needs we strive to satisfy in order to survive. This makes decisions prone to irrationality.
Regret aversion: “Better to do nothing than to lose.”
When weighing benefits and costs, fear of making the wrong decision can quickly dominate. Out of fear of regretting a decision later, we prefer not to decide at all. This regularly leads us to legitimize previously made decisions with further irrational decisions in order to avoid feelings of regret. The same can apply when deciding whether to invest in brand development. Making an investment requires an active decision, whereas not investing requires none. Changing a brand image always involves risks and therefore often prevents necessary changes from being tackled.
Tip: Become aware not only of the consequences and costs of making a decision, but also of what it costs you not to decide.
Loss aversion: “Better not to win than to lose.”
It is not the gain or reward we might achieve through a purchase that stands in the foreground, but the risk of losing something or making a mistake. The idea of a potential loss hurts more than the prospect of a gain brings joy. Loss aversion leads to missed opportunities and irrational decisions.
Tip: For important decisions, create a pros and cons list that makes the arguments visible. This comparison helps you reassess the weight of your arguments more rationally.
Money illusion: “Money is money!”
Money illusion makes us believe that money retains its value. However, most currencies are subject to inflationary tendencies, meaning purchasing power steadily declines. We underestimate this loss and assume the value of money remains constant.
Tip: Be aware of inflation and its effects by regularly reminding yourself of the loss of value you are exposed to. Consider this background when deciding when to make which investments.
Emotions as the driving force behind our purchase decisions
These biases make one thing clear: the process of weighing benefits and risks happens largely unconsciously and is mainly determined by the emotional interpretation of perceived information. Irrationality is part of our nature. We rationalize our decisions after we have already unconsciously decided based on emotional needs.
The decision-making process in the brain can be simplified into two systems: the limbic system and the cortical system.
Implicit decisions: The autopilot
The autopilot handles the majority of the work during a flight. The pilot (the explicit system) relies on the autopilot (the implicit system) and takes care of more complex tasks such as takeoff and landing.
The limbic system regulates our affective and instinctive behavior and acts as the “decision-maker” (System 1, “fast thinking”). It evaluates environmental stimuli, anticipates rewarding or punishing outcomes, and regulates approach and avoidance behavior. It serves as the primary emotional filter and has the first and last word in most decisions.
Explicit decisions: The pilot
The pilot supports us in critical and survival-relevant matters. He analyzes, explains, and connects observations.
The cortical system forms the biological basis of memory and acts as the “advisor” responsible for storing and processing information as well as goal-oriented action and the development of feelings (System 2, “slow thinking”). It integrates emotional impulses into conscious reasoning.
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Everything under control – The illusion of rational action
Most people are still convinced they make conscious and rational decisions. However, extensive research shows that our decisions mainly arise from emotional and unconscious processes in System 1. The limbic system always has the “first and last word.”
The decisions we make are predominantly unconscious and emotionally driven.
Very few entrepreneurs are aware of these fundamental relationships. Even fewer companies manage to consistently apply these insights. Marketing efforts often reflect how companies believe products should be sold—not how people actually make purchasing decisions and how the digital world influences these processes.
This limited view is rooted in the outdated image of the “homo oeconomicus.”
The consequences of insufficient customer centricity
This misunderstanding leads to recurring practical problems:
- Companies do not offer personalized solutions tailored to individual needs.
- Advertising focuses primarily on the company and the product, not the customer.
- Marketing addresses “rational humans” with information.
- Channels are chosen based on trends rather than on where customers can actually be reached.
- No publicly accessible answers to critical questions.
- Communication fails to create emotional resonance.
- No clear brand positioning.
- No consistent brand image.
- Insufficient social media presence and interaction.
- No effective customer retention strategy.
All these points have one thing in common: the emotional connection to the customer is missing.
Only when we succeed in creating resonance can we effectively influence purchase decisions.
Effective marketing is based on psychological and neuroscientific insights
Marketing does not have to be magic. Those who use available insights and are willing to understand their complexity have a promising future.
Those who see themselves and others as primarily rational decision-makers will struggle to build trust and connection.
In the digital space especially, where loud voices and charlatans often dominate, intuitive human understanding combined with psychological and neuroscientific knowledge becomes a decisive advantage.
Becoming aware of the importance of emotions opens new challenges and potentials for brand and business development.
For professional service providers, two functions move into focus:
1. Branding: a connecting identity leads to strategic positioning
Focus: System 1
Purpose: Create the story!
To create resonance externally, a connecting identity internally is required. This shared identity enables consistent communication and quality across all touchpoints.
Consistency increases the probability of being perceived and remembered. But consistency alone is not enough. Emotional relevance, contextual alignment, and personalization are key.
Brand positioning is the foundation of your business success.
Three aspects are particularly important:
- Brand design: Distinctive, brain-friendly brand codes that ensure recognizability across multiple senses.
- Brand management: An identity system that ensures consistency and coherence in behavior and communication.
- Brand innovation: Creativity and diversity to navigate complexity and generate meaningful innovation.
“Only variety can absorb variety.”
— W. Ross Ashby
2. (Content) Marketing: Awaken demand, answer questions, and support decision-making
Focus: System 2
Purpose: Tell the story!
Most companies address only the rational mind and therefore encounter emotionally closed audiences.
If genuine resonance has been created, attention can be gained. Only then can relevant information be provided to rationally support the already emotionally influenced evaluation.
Sequence matters: first emotional relevance, then rational justification.
The goal is not aggressive self-promotion, but value-based, brand-compliant marketing that:
- Reaches those who can benefit most.
- Makes the value of the offering visible.
- Provides easy access.
- Ensures memorability as the best option.
This requires addressing fears, concerns, and doubts openly and answering critical questions early to build transparency and trust.
New challenges and potentials: From professional service provider to unique brand
Outstanding service companies meet customers where they are mentally, awaken demand, and support them through decision-making.
The winners will be those who deliver value even before the first contact—offering real substance and uniqueness.
The integration of branding and marketing is therefore crucial.
The first step is awareness: recognizing challenges and discovering new potentials for business and brand. New perspectives on market dynamics, customer needs, and digital possibilities are essential to remain adaptable.
Only then can long-term resilience and future viability be secured in an increasingly complex and dynamic world.
