The Culture Code: An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around the World Live and Buy as They Do
Clotaire Rapaille
Our choices are dictated by subtle but powerful cultural codes.
"They kept listening to what people said. This is always a mistake."
Jeep Wrangler: The American cultural code for Jeep is HORSE, and associate it with the open range, whereas the European code for it is LIBERATOR, from the WWII experience. Understanding these codes allowed Chrysler to successfully market the Jeep differently in America and Europe.
Ritz Carlton: Toilet = INDEPENDENCE, from the achievement of potty training.
In a classic study, a woman is hypnotized, handed an umbrella, and asked to open it. When she is broken from her trance and asked why she has an umbrella, she can only offer "because it was raining". This shows our strong need for consistency and to explain even nonsensical situations. This illustrates why only listening to what people say can mislead you.