Mass Desire—How AI Helps You Harness What Your Market Already Craves
Discover why understanding existing desires is the key to every successful ad and how AI tools can uncover and amplify them.
This is the second article in a series exploring how to apply Eugene Schwartz's Breakthrough Advertising principles with the power of AI. In the first article, "Introduction: Unlocking the Secrets of Breakthrough Advertising with AI," we laid the groundwork for understanding this powerful marketing framework. You can read it here: [Link to first article]
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The biggest mistake most marketers make? Trying to create desire.
Eugene Schwartz famously said, “Advertising does not create desire. It only channels existing desires.” This is the core of mass desire. Rather than inventing desires, focus on tapping into the deep-seated wants and needs they already have.
Think about fundamental human desires: health, wealth, love, security, belonging, recognition. These are the powerful forces that drive human behavior, and successful marketing aligns with them.
What is Mass Desire?
Mass desire isn’t just a fleeting trend or a superficial want. It’s a deep-seated, widely shared craving that motivates a large group of people. It’s the underlying emotional driver behind purchasing decisions. It’s the “why” behind the “what.”
Examples of Mass Desires:
The desire for a better future for your children (education, security).
The desire for financial freedom and independence.
The desire for improved health and well-being.
The desire for social connection and belonging.
The desire for recognition and status.
Why is Understanding Mass Desire Crucial?
If you try to create a desire that doesn’t exist, you’ll be fighting an uphill battle. Conversely, if you tap into a pre-existing mass desire, you’re essentially riding a wave of momentum.
For example, consider how fitness brands capitalize on the widespread desire for health and well-being. Instead of convincing people they need to exercise, they align their products with the existing motivation to lead a healthier lifestyle, making their marketing efforts significantly more effective.
Your marketing becomes much more effective because you’re aligning with a powerful force that’s already at play.
Benefits of Understanding Mass Desire:
Enhanced messaging: You can craft messages that resonate deeply with your target audience.
Increased conversion rates: By aligning with existing desires, you boost the likelihood of people taking action.
Stronger brand connection: Connecting with deep desires builds a stronger emotional bond with your audience.
Reduced marketing spend: You don’t have to waste resources trying to create demand; you’re simply channeling existing demand.
How AI Helps Uncover Mass Desires:
This is where AI becomes incredibly powerful. While Schwartz relied on observation, intuition, and market research, AI allows us to analyze massive datasets and uncover hidden patterns and insights that would be impossible for humans to find on their own.
AI Tools and Techniques:
Social listening: AI tools can analyze social media conversations, forums, and online reviews to identify trending topics, sentiment, and unmet needs.
Sentiment analysis: AI can analyze text and speech to determine the emotional tone and identify the underlying emotions driving conversations.
Search trend analysis: AI can analyze search data to identify what people are searching for, revealing their interests and concerns.
Market research analysis: AI can analyze large datasets of market research data to identify patterns and insights.
Examples of AI in Action:
Example 1 (Health): AI analysis of social media conversations reveals a growing concern about stress and anxiety. A company selling meditation apps can use this insight to craft messaging that focuses on stress relief and mental well-being.
Example 2 (Finance): AI analysis of search trends shows a surge in searches for “passive income.” A company offering online courses on investing can use this insight to create content and ads that focus on generating passive income.
Introducing the Breakthrough Marketing GPT
Your personal assistant for applying Eugene Schwartz’s legendary frameworks.
What It Does:
Uncover Mass Desires: Use AI to map your audience’s core cravings and align your product with what they already want.
Assess Market Sophistication: Find out how familiar your audience is with your product or category and craft messaging that fits their awareness level.
Generate Headlines: Generate headlines that increase click-through rates by up to X% by tapping into proven psychological triggers.
Refine Messaging: Get AI-driven insights to optimize your copy for clarity, emotional impact, and resonance.
How to Use It:
Input Your Details: Describe your product, audience, and goals.
Choose a Focus Area: Whether it’s mass desires, sophistication, or headlines, the GPT tailors its output to your needs.
Get Actionable Insights: Receive instantly actionable ideas, messaging, and content to refine your campaigns.
Using the Breakthrough Marketing GPT for Mass Desire:
The Breakthrough Marketing GPT helps you identify the core desires your target audience already possesses, allowing you to craft messaging that resonates deeply. Here’s how:
Describe Your Product/Service: Provide a concise description of what you offer.
Describe Your Target Audience (Optional): Include details about their demographics, needs, and aspirations.
Select “Mass Desire” as the Focus: This directs the GPT to concentrate on uncovering relevant desires.
Example Prompts and Outputs:
Let’s use the example of a course teaching people how to write compelling sales copy.
Prompt 1 (General): “I sell an online course that teaches people how to write better sales copy.”
Possible GPT Output:
Desire for Increased Income/Financial Security: Improved copywriting skills can lead to higher sales and therefore greater income.
Desire for Career Advancement/Professional Recognition: Mastering copywriting can open up new career opportunities and enhance professional standing.
Desire for Influence/Persuasion: Effective copywriters have the power to influence and persuade others.
Desire for Self-Improvement/Mastery of a Skill: Many people have a natural desire to improve their skills and become masters of their craft.
Prompt 2 (Specific Target Audience): “I sell an online copywriting course for freelance writers who want to attract higher-paying clients.”
Possible GPT Output:
Desire for Financial Independence/Autonomy: Freelancers often value the freedom and control that comes with being their own boss, and higher-paying clients enhance this independence.
Desire for Status/Recognition within their Industry: Attracting high-profile clients can boost a freelancer’s reputation and status.
Desire for Less Stress/More Control over their Workload: Higher-paying clients often mean fewer clients overall, leading to a less stressful and more manageable workload.
Prompt 3 (Focusing on a specific benefit): “I sell an online copywriting course that teaches people how to write copy that converts at a high rate.”
Possible GPT Output:
Desire for Efficiency/Maximizing Results: People want to get the most out of their efforts and achieve the best possible results with their copy.
Desire for Recognition/Validation of their Skills: High conversion rates provide external validation of a copywriter’s skill and expertise.
Desire for Business Growth/Success: High-converting copy directly contributes to business growth and overall success.
Experimenting with different prompts can yield varied and insightful results. Additionally, leveraging the GPT’s output serves as a valuable starting point for brainstorming and refining your messaging, ensuring your campaigns are both creative and strategically aligned with your audience’s desires.
Wrapping It Up:
Understanding mass desire is the foundation of effective marketing. By experimenting with different prompts, you can uncover a wide range of insights, and using the GPT’s output as a springboard allows you to brainstorm and refine your messaging with precision.
Use the Breakthrough Marketing GPT to uncover the mass desires driving your market. [Link to GPT]
-Max
P.S. This is the second article in the series. To read the first, go here.