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comment by speeding_snail
speeding_snail  ·  4615 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: No more dumb old dad: Changing the bumbling father stereotype
People don't like the unknown. Don't like change and like to push everything and everyone in a cubicle (pigeonholing or "hokjesdenken" in Dutch). We like categories. It makes us feel like we have control over our lives and surroundings. Stereotypes are a logical consequence of this way of thinking. We create a stereotype, attach a few persons to that stereotype and we think we know what we can expect.

When applied to marketing, we have to see what the goal of marketeers is. This is to sell a product, right? How do you sell a product? By making it feel familiar. Stereotypes are familiar. We know what kind of person would buy the product. We can relate, because it is a stereotype. We know what we can expect and where the product fits in our lives.

In short, it is all about feeling in control and expectations...





thenewgreen  ·  4615 days ago  ·  link  ·  
    How do you sell a product? By making it feel familiar. Stereotypes are familiar. We know what kind of person would buy the product.
-I agree. We not only know what kind of person would "buy the product", but we know what kind of person we don't want to be associated with. We know that we want to buy a product so we aren't lumped in with the types of people that wouldn't buy that product. It's a sense of belonging. It's the same part of us that longs for titles/clubs/organizations that can define us. "I'm a _____". The ____ can be anything from "Huggies user" to "atheist". Point is, people like to "belong" and stereotypes help with this.