About this episode

Will Leach discusses the hidden psychology behind consumer purchasing decisions and how brands can connect emotionally with customers.

Why do customers really buy? In this episode of The Unified Brand Podcast , Chris sits down with Will Leach , behavioural scientist, founder of Mindstate Group, and bestselling author of Marketing to Mind States . Drawing on over 25 years of research, leadership at PepsiCo, and experience helping global brands understand consumer behaviour, Will reveals why most purchasing decisions happen subconsciously—and how brands can build deeper emotional connections by understanding what truly motivates people. The conversation explores the psychology behind buying decisions, why traditional market research often gets it wrong, how iconic brands create identity rather than simply sell products, and the behavioural science principles any business can apply to improve marketing, branding and customer engagement. They also discuss: Why emotions drive purchasing decisions Functional vs emotional vs aspirational branding The psychology behind Harley-Davidson, Nike and Disney Why customers rarely tell you the real reason they buy Behavioural biases that increase conversions Packaging psychology and visual persuasion The future of AI-powered customer personas How behavioural science is…

People in this episode

Host: Chris

Guest: Will Leach

Topics covered

• consumer behavior
• purchasing decisions
• emotional branding
• behavioral science
• marketing strategies
• customer engagement

Keywords

• buying psychology
• emotional connections
• market research
• behavioral biases
• AI customer personas

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Mindstate Group, PepsiCo, Harley-Davidson, Nike, Disney

Books & works: Marketing to Mind States

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