Contrast

Rajiv Malhotra 's book "AI and the Future of Power" delves into the relationship between aesthetics and pragmatics, showing how social media platforms leverage aesthetically appealing content and interfaces to attract users and gather data, ultimately driving their pragmatic profit-oriented objectives. The intersection of creativity and mathematics is evident on platforms like Instagram and YouTube, they not only serve as creative outlets for content creators but also rely on advanced engineering and AI algorithms to manage content and user engagement.

Similarly, at vHub.ai, we're developing a data and AI-driven platform to foster valuable and relevant collaborations between content creators and businesses. Marketers are interested in both the creative aspects of content and the data-driven insights, such as audience demographics and engagement metrics, that provide a deeper understanding of the content's reach and impact. Recently I signed up for the marketing course by 10Xer Club founded by Harinder Singh Pelia , the cohort kicked off with an amazing session on Applied psychology in Marketing.?

The session explored the interplay of emotion and logic in decision-making. Humans, due to evolutionary reasons, process emotions faster than logic; the amygdala handles emotions, while the prefrontal cortex handles rational thought. Marketing that appeals to emotions is often more effective than purely logical messaging, and people often create rational explanations when pushed to justify gut feelings. It is crucial to identify the "bridged need," which is the combination of rational and emotional needs that a product or service fulfills.

Marketing needs to cater to both emotional and rational requirements, which can sometimes seem conflicting. This principle of contrast is also seen in pricing strategies, where showing a higher price first can make other options seem more reasonable. The pain of losing something is felt more intensely than the pleasure of gaining something of equal value. Marketing utilizes this concept by emphasizing potential losses and presenting information in a way that avoids the perception of risk.

The session further explored Cialdini's persuasion techniques, focusing on the contrast between feelings of indebtedness and the desire for equity in social interactions, which underlies the reciprocation technique, where individuals feel obligated to return favors. The scarcity technique, which creates a sense of urgency and exclusivity by highlighting limited availability, was also discussed. This tactic triggers FOMO (fear of missing out) and drives purchasing behavior. The Times of India's advertising campaign, played during the session, was given as an example of contrast. This campaign contrasted traditional media with digital media and TV broadcast media thus highlighting that contrast is useful for establishing value, and everyone needs a reference point to make decisions.

"The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing" introduces compelling concepts, including the law of duality, which suggests that markets eventually become a two-player competition. The Law of the Opposite advises that aiming for second place means defining your strategy in relation to the market leader, focusing on differentiation rather than superiority. The Law of Attributes further emphasizes this strategy, stating that companies should seek contrasting attributes to those already claimed by competitors. The Law of Candor also uses contrast by using a negative to highlight a positive.

In brand design, contrasting colors and fonts are strategically utilized to create visual impact, differentiation, and enhance readability. By pairing colors that sit opposite each other on the color wheel, such as the blue and orange combination used by vHub, brands can create a complementary and visually appealing design. The cool and calming blue highlights professionalism and data-driven aspects of our platform, while the warm and energetic orange embodies creativity and the essence of content creators. Similarly, the use of contrasting and complementary fonts that differ in style, weight, or size establishes a clear hierarchy and guides the viewer's attention, ensuring that the brand's message is effectively communicated and leaves a lasting impression.

The Pareto Principle highlights that a mere 20% of focused effort generates 80% of outcomes. As an entrepreneur, I'm learning to strike a balance between hustling and deep, focused work, recognizing that the latter is what truly drives lasting impact. At vHub.ai we prioritize asynchronous communication for task updates and reserve meetings for brainstorming and learning, minimizing meeting time overall. While AI-driven social media platforms are designed to capture our attention and shorten our attention spans, technologies like ChatGPT and Gemini allow me to quickly delve into any subject and grasp its fundamental principles, cutting through the noise.

I have been influenced by Nassim Taleb's work "Skin in the Game," where he explores hidden asymmetries in our daily life and argues that balanced risk and reward are essential for fair and stable systems. This means that individuals, professionals, and organizations should experience both the positive and negative consequences of their actions. A lack of "skin in the game" can lead to systemic instability, societal injustice, and due to globalization, global issues. Taleb states that the 2008 financial crisis is a prime example of the dangers of misaligned risk and reward.

In the transformative workshops led by my co-founder Rajesh Jagasia, a key principle emphasized is the complementary nature of opposite values.? The ability to remain unfazed by both setbacks and successes is a valuable skill that fosters mental balance and clarity, enabling us to achieve our goals. The true value of an entrepreneur or business owner lies in their ability to make the right trade-offs and decisions between contrasting options. They must establish policies, structures and systems that not only maximize revenue but also foster the growth, development, and well-being of their team.