Published in 2018, this nonfiction book covers aspects of Psychology, Business, and Neuroscience. It is most helpful to those readers who work in marketing and sales, who are copywriters, or those entrepreneurs who must market or sell their own goods or services. The major themes of the book are the author’s NeuroMap, product positioning and messaging, and using science and emotion to be persuasive.

“You cannot afford to talk as much about your business, your mission statement, your products, and your services at the onset of your presentation or advertisement, because this part of your story is of no interest to the primal brain.”

One can’t help but feel, as they read The Persuasion Code, that we already know these things. We nod, yes, yes, that of course we don’t like too many decisions – so fatiguing! Of course, we must be strategic about triggering the fear response of the primal brain. 

These are all things we as humans instinctively know. But this book makes what we already know about the buyer’s response explicit. And therein lies the reason to read this book and retain it as a resource.

The Persuasion Code explicitly outlines our instinctual knowledge and response when faced with buying decisions.

 Moreover, the book helps us quantify our understanding, giving us a checklist for a safe takeoff and landing, as we seek to reach customers. Morin and Renoise give us tables and diagrams to clearly illustrate concepts such as the six stimuli of the primal brain (Personal, Contrastable, Tangible, Memorable, Visual, and Emotional), the six persuasion elements (grabber, claims, big picture, proof of gains, objection, reframe, and close) and the seven persuasion catalysts (use “you”, show contrast, vary teaching modalities, be credible, trigger emotion, tell stories, and aim for less).

The authors walk the reader through their NeuroMap, including the four steps to ensure message clarity, including:

• Diagnosing the top pains of your customers,
• Differentiating from your competition by identifying unique claims,
• Demonstrating the gain of each claim, and
• “Delivering to their Prime of brain by following the blueprint of a killer presentation, a sticky website, a stunning ad, or a compelling video.”

Moreover, the appendix includes a simplified NeuroScoring tool for their NeuroMap, to help you grade your own efforts. This may be especially helpful for readers who work in an agency environment who may apply this tool to multiple clients.

Morin and Renoise suggest a series of questions to ask your customers when determining what it was that persuaded them to purchase your product or service. To borrow from the authors, then, readers should consider the following while reading the book and determining brand messaging:

1. 1. What were some of the top challenges, hurdles, or risks your customer was facing before they found your solution?
   2. How much money would the customer lose by not using your product?
   3. How does your product help the customer eliminate risk or uncertainty?
   4. Is there a typical situation where a customer might feel they did not have enough control because they did not have your solution (product or service)?
   5. How does your solution make the customer feel better about themselves, their job, or their family?