I was reminded this weekend of how powerful visual context is in influencing our emotions and behaviour. If you’re looking for visual overload try any amusement park, wow, they have it figured out. We decided to take the family to Canada’s Wonderland for a fun – visually stimulating day.

Having two young boys, it was interesting to observe their immediate response to the visual stimulation that was of the greatest emotional appeal. While I gravitated towards the big Starbucks logo, they had found the Race Zone and Haunted House within seconds. Both of their amusements were high on the emotive scale, while mine was high on the ‘sit back and relax’ scale.

Perhaps most interesting was how an immediate response to visual context follows the proven patterns of primitive thinking (the reptilian brain), where deeper insights such as height restrictions, price verse value and mapping move us up to the new brain for a more logical thought process. It is completely irrational to be afraid of rollercoasters that turn you upside down at the speed of sound or drop you from 1000 feet in the air. Irrational because everyone survives, no one gets hurt and the big machines don’t fall apart. However our primitive brain senses danger, moves to emotional fear and creates a barrier to logical thinking.

This is true in advertising. Sex and fear both work equally well when applied within the correct context. Fashion items sell on sex appeal as does beer, whereas sports and movies like Jaws sells on fear. Look at the negative economic impact Jaws had on the Californian coast when the movie was first released. People were terrified that they would be attacked by sharks. Yes, sharks do inhabit Californian waters but you are far more likely to be killed in a car accident driving to California than being attacked by a shark. A purely irrational fear.

So, I propose the next time you’re at Disney and feel fear or are afraid to go on the Body Drop Bungee Ride check what is causing the fear and decide if it is irrational or logical and then go for it! Let me know how it went, I’ll be in the Starbucks.