We Buy Passion & Fear, Not Needs & Wants

Sell them feelings, not features.

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Here’s the unvarnished truth: Our shopping lists are less about needs and wants and more about chasing shadows of pleasure and dodging specters of fear.

It’s the emotional highs and lows we’re really after, not the tangible “thing” itself.

Let me paint you a picture.

I’ve got my eye on a sleek black Burberry trench, the kind that whispers power and mystery as I bike through London’s streets. It’s not just a coat; it’s an aura I want to cloak myself in. Standing there, collar up, vape in hand, I’m not just a guy in a trench. I’m the embodiment of cool, the epitome of ‘got it together,’ a walking, talking beacon of allure.

But peel back the layers, and it’s not the trench that’s calling my name. It’s the rush, the raw, unscripted emotion of feeling invincible, untouchable. It’s about channeling that rockstar vibe, radiating confidence, commanding respect without uttering a single word.

We’re all addicts, hooked on feelings.

The trench is just a vessel, a stand-in for the adrenaline of being “that guy”. And when the novelty fades, the hunger for that high comes back, gnawing at us.