A while ago I came across Andrew Bustamante, an ex-CIA spy that was explaining how the CIA operates when it wants to influence people to do certain things.

He talked about the RICE framework which stands for Reward, Ideology, Coercion and Ego.

These are all levers that the CIA uses to persuade. So naturally, I thought about how this reflects in marketing, and how you can use this to your advantage:

1. Ideology

Original thesis: Ideology is the most powerful out of them all. It consists of aligning your desired outcome to match the person's ideology and beliefs. It can be their values, religion or sense of morality.

In marketing: Operating at an ideology level means that you first truly understand who your target audience is, down to their core beliefs. Once you're confident about that, you lay out your brand strategy and adopt their cause as your own, their values as your own and their enemy as your own. You stand for it, no matter what. You remain consistent in your communication and avoid latching on to trends.

2. Ego

Original thesis: Ego comes in second place as the sidekick to Ideology. It talks about how we all care about our image, to ourselves and to those arounds us. We love to feel important and to be the center of attention.

In marketing: Treat your customer like they are the center of the Universe. Make your visual identity so that they're proud to wear it. Write your copy in such a way that it makes the reader feel understood and valued. Service them as if they're never wrong. And when they are, never tell it to them.

As a side note here, if you've ever been to Türkiye, you have felt first hand the culture of Ego-marketing at scale.

3. Rewards

Original thesis: Coming in third place, rewards are the least effective out of the positive motivators, but when combined with the others, they can provide that necessary edge.

In marketing: This is where gamification comes into play. From loyalty points, to vouchers and discounts when a customer signs up for your newsletter, all the way to micro animations that reward the dopamine circuit of our brains.

4. Coercion

Original thesis: The least effective motivator, coercion is using the threat of a possible negative outcome to essentially push the target to do your bidding.

In marketing: These are dark patterns that are best left untouched. Even though they may bring short-term results, they end up hurting your brand in the long game. A few examples we can think of are "only 2 left and 1 in someone else's cart" "order now or you'll miss out" etc. Using any imagery to trigger guilt or shame are also in here.

In conclusion, reflect how these apply to your business. They are best used together and only after you're confident about your understanding of your customers. Oh, and stay away from number 4. The risk far outweighs the reward.