There are only 10 marketing "stories"

This is a great article I came across today, Ten Stories That Can Sell Anything. Simply put, there are basically 10 angles you can take to market your product or services. And they are all related to Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Any marketing or psychology class will all tell you about Maslow's hierarchy of needs. However, this article puts the marketing and psychology together in a simple, straightforward package. Here's a summary:

Physical Needs - "Dude With a Problem" for marketing drinks, food -- solutions to one of life's most basic needs.

Safety Needs - "Monster In The House" for selling insurance, tires, health care, alarms and things that meet our need to be safe and secure.

Social Needs - "Buddy Love" & "Rights-of-Passage" for anything that meets our social needs. You see this in the beer and wine commercials, dating services, restaurants, etc. And things like clearing up acne tell the rights of passage story.

Self-esteem Needs - "Fool Triumphant" & "Superhero" tells the story that no matter what your short-comings you to can be a winner. Use this for exercise equipment, self-help and motivational products/services, etc. (I was just thinking of those male enhancement commercials, where this guy has a big, stupid smile on his face because he used this product and now all these good things are happening to him.)

Cognitive Needs - "Institution" about dealing with bureaucracy, incompetence, red tape, etc. Private schools, self-help programs, and some non-profit organizations.

Aesthetic Needs - "Out Of A Bottle" this is the story for selling any fixes that come out of a bottle: beauty and health products, weight loss, etc.

Self-actualization - "Golden Fleece" & "WhyDunit" products and services that deal with personal salvation and metaphysical concerns; religious and charitable organizations.

(The article was written by Jerry Bader of SitePro News. I get articles from SitePro News by email every day. I don't have time to read them all, but when I do, SPN is one of my top sources.)