Right Between the Ears

Why do some advertising campaigns become iconic while others vanish without a trace? Sandeep Dayal argues that the answer lies in the brain. Strong brands, he says, are built by design, using psychological triggers that open up hidden areas of the mind.

The book draws on recent advances in psychology, behavioural economics, social anthropology and cognitive neuroscience, and brings these fields together into one way of looking at a brand. Marketers have built remarkable brands for decades, but until now brain science could not fully explain their successes and failures. This approach offers a new lens for doing so.

Dayal illustrates his ideas with stories of long-established names such as De Beers, Mastercard, Allstate and Guinness, and newer ones including Madison Reed, Allbirds and Warby Parker. The title comes from a saying among psychologists that everything about sex happens between the ears, and the author makes the same claim for brands. The book sets out what a reader needs to know to build a brand of their own.