Buy-ology: truth and lies about why we buy

When you smile, people tend to remember your name. Did you know that? As a small business owner, this fact could easily boost your sales!

I don't often think that a business book is compelling and interesting enough to post about. But, this one keeps surprising me. I'm about halfway through, and have aready come up with a bunch of interesting information.

This book is all about the role of psychology in advertising, branding and why people buy. And it's not all based on guesses or thoughts — the author ran experiments and actual CAT-scans to see how peoples' brains really work.

It's full of interesting tidbits like: "... we're not only attracted to people who smile but we also tend to remember their names... 'We are sensitive to positive social signals... we want to remember people who were kind to us, in case we interact with them in the future'"(p. 61). This is regulated in the brain by mirror neurons, which are neurons that fire when an action is being performed and when that same action is being observed.

Expanding on this, if you smile in your business headshot, it may make you more memorable. Interesting, huh?

This book also talks about product placement, subliminal messaging, rituals, faith, selling to the senses, and more. I'm looking forward to the rest of the insight!"