"The Fly's Effect" .. Crafting a Directed Reality through Input Control
Jaafar Hamza
MBA & MOAR from SBS, DBA student. Award Winning in Creativity. Brand Strategist. Writer and Lecturer in Branding and Creativity
In the midst of tribes heavily reliant on livestock husbandry for sustenance and resources, there exists a unique anomaly. These people are deprived of livestock, rendering them unable to maintain or benefit from them. Their existence is limited to their current surroundings, a consequence of the "fly" – not just any ordinary fly, but the infamous “Tsetse" fly, known for inducing sleep and death among cattle. This extraordinary fly's prevalence forced them onto a divergent path, compelling them to resort to hunting for survival. However, this transition came at a cost.
Hunting implies the men's absence from the tribe for days, anchoring children more closely to their mothers from birth to around age ten. This attachment fosters gentler behavior in children, a characteristic not sought by the men. The tribe's continuity relies on capable hunters, necessitating rigorous training for children to master hunting skills. Consequently, at the age of ten, children are separated from their mothers and undergo a training camp-like experience, emerging stronger with hunting expertise.
Monogamy alone doesn't suffice for population growth within the tribe; men can marry multiple wives, provided each wife has her own dwelling. This behavioral transformation, from hunting to extended child-mother periods, culminating in the necessity of training camps and polygamy, is all attributed to the presence of the "Tse Tse" fly. Such is the impact of sensitive inputs on behavior shaping, resulting in decision shifts and the construction of a new reality based on initial input, whether small or singular.
This phenomenon resonates across various aspects of life – politics, business, religion, culture, and economics. It may manifest as a concrete input, such as the Tse Tse fly's effect on an African tribe, or a placebo-like influence, akin to the Placebo Effect. Although grounded in medical contexts, the symbolic use of the placebo effect extends to shaping mental perceptions and tangible outcomes. Employing these variables positively or negatively requires understanding, discernment, and awareness of the elements composing the "fly's effect" to chart the desired path of change.
Adapting inputs may become necessary due to evolving outcomes' nature, strength, and sustainability. The "fly's effect" analogy translates to the relationship between a brand and its target audience, fostering new behaviors beneficial to both parties.
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Consider the example of the musical staircase versus an escalator. Observing higher usage of the musical staircase over the conventional one, a company aimed to redirect behavior. By introducing a novel incentive – musical notes triggered with each step – into the conventional staircase, an interactive experience was created. People increasingly chose the conventional staircase to enjoy the music, impacting their well-being and steering them away from the automated escalator. This falls under the realm of Behavioral Engineering – studying, designing, analyzing, and influencing behavior in humans and beyond.
Although initially aimed at understanding human behavior, this engineering can be harnessed to guide and develop new behaviors. Recognizing these dynamics and learning their constructive application is crucial to avoid becoming entrapped directly or indirectly. Employing them positively enhances the symbiotic producer-consumer relationship.
The brand-consumer relationship is intricate, non-linear, and mutually dependent, shaped by numerous inputs culminating in the formation of mental images that drive specific behaviors. Sustainability is contingent on the brand's ongoing presence and profits, while consumers satisfy their needs, belonging, values, and added value.
The "fly's effect" calls for genuine comprehension of human behavior, its manipulation, and simultaneous control of brand presence and influence on the target audience. These capabilities, even in the smallest endeavors, should focus on manufacturing change through products and services, heightening awareness, cementing positive perceptions, and nurturing commendable behaviors, all aimed at improvement.?
Brands overlooking this improvement-driven objective in their products, services, and impact inevitably fade into obscurity.