Magnet Marketing or Mirror Marketing: Which Approach is Best For Your Brand?

Photo: Lidija Jakovljevic/Unsplash

Conveniently nestled in the prestigious city of Beverly Hills, California, you’ll find a street that for fanatics of luxury fashion—is the closest thing to heaven on earth. Stretching two-miles, with over 100 stores and luxury boutiques, Rodeo Drive is a place quite like no other. 

As someone who has been fortunate to have seen Rodeo Drive in person, I can tell you that any superlatives you may have heard about the area are accurate.

From its pristine sidewalks and streets, to the abundance of luxury vehicles adjoining them, and especially the plethora of high-end brands whose stores you’ll find from corner to corner—Rodeo Drive is sort of like an oasis for just about anyone raised outside of Beverly Hills.

Besides the aesthetic aspect, the primary factor that makes Rodeo Drive such an awe-inspiring place—is what the host of luxury brands that occupy it represent to shoppers who visit the world-renowned street. With each brand projecting a reflection of its own world; millions of consumers pay premium prices just for the privilege of becoming a part of those worlds.

At the impetus of every successful brand, not just on Rodeo Drive, but also in the global marketplace; one binary decision was made by those who manage them—consisting of whether to take the magnet or mirror marketing approach with their respective brands. 

What is Magnet Marketing? 

Some of the best examples of the art of branding could be found by analyzing some of your favorite artists. Now, before you accuse me of being totally bonkers and off my rocker for making such a comparison, think of any artist…actually, for the sake of argument, let’s take the current Queen of Pop herself, Taylor Swift, for example. 

Ask anyone who has ever attended a Taylor Swift concert what the experience was like, and they’d describe it as almost if they had an outer world experience. 

Akin to listening to one of her albums, fans who attend her concerts feel as though—if only for a few hours—they were granted the privilege of stepping into Taylor’s world. A world that is so cool, so fresh, and so exciting—that it was well worth the high cost of the concert ticket to enter. 

As a brand, Taylor Swift is an excellent example of magnet marketing. 

Magnet marketing is a branding approach used by brands with the intent to draw their target audience to devoting their attention and emotions towards their brand’s distinct worldview. 

Balenciaga, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Prada, and Rolls-Royce are just a handful of the brands that practice the magnet marketing method. As each respective brand has their own unique worldview. A worldview that is so aspirational to their customers—they’re willing to pay almost any retail price to prove to their peers that they are a associated with it and belong. 

What is Mirror Marketing? 

Psychology research shows that there are two highly-effective ways to get people to like you. One of those ways is by being perceived as a person that your target aspires to become one day (which falls along the lines of magnet marketing).

The other way is through a neurobehavioral phenomenon known as isopraxism. 

Isopraxism, also known as mirroring, is a behavior humans exhibit that involves copying someone with the intent of either comforting them or signaling to them that you’re on the same page as them. 

Things like replicating the actions, conversational language, or even the gestures of your target audience makes isopraxism extremely effective as it relates to subconsciously persuading someone to like you. 

Mirror marketing is a characteristic of isopraxism. Brands that utilize mirror marketing aim to be a direct reflection of the veritable day-to-day lives that their ideal customers are living at the moment. 

If you’ve ever seen an ad by clothing and accessory retailer The GAP, you likely noticed the ad was a direct portrayal of how the brand believes their target audience saw themselves at that particular time. 

Whether it’s the age groups featured in the ad, the way those in the ad look, or even the way the people starring in their commercials speak—every facet of an ad from The GAP is designed to mirror how their ideal customers currently see themselves. Which is the ultimate objective of the mirror marketing method. 

Which approach works best for your brand? 

While building a truly strong brand that connects most with consumers does require that your target audience sees a piece of themselves represented within your brand, most people (especially younger consumers) are more enamored with the optimal version of their future selves. 

Simply put, people are more drawn to brands that represent who they aspire to become when they're at their best—rather than who they may be at the moment.

A big reason why millions of consumers around the world who may not necessarily be able to afford to purchase a Christian Louboutin product today—still hold the brand in the highest regard, is because not only do they aspire to live the “Christian Louboutin lifestyle” someday—they expect to do so. 

The same could be said for one of the world’s biggest brands—Nike. Although fans of the brand may not be a superb athlete today, in their minds, they see the best version of themselves represented in Nike ads by the premier athletes that endorse the brand.

For those very reasons—magnet marketing is the absolute best approach to take as it pertains to your brand’s marketing. 

What’s key is to focus every iteration of your brand’s marketing on ensuring that your brand is culturally relevant. Which means that your brand must be a reflection of a world that your ideal audience would love to live in. So much so—they'd be willing to pay almost any price of admission by way of its products—in order to enter it.

Connecting via culture is key to your brand’s success

At Decryption, we specialize in helping brands like yours connect with their target customers via contemporary culture-focused brand marketing strategies. 

Contact us today to schedule a complimentary client consultation and let’s begin the process of creating a brand that your ideal audience will be drawn to so much—they’ll be willing to pay a premium price to become a part of it.