We’re all creatures of habit. Behavioural psychology has established just how much it takes to jolt us enough to change how we do things, and often rational arguments just aren’t enough. People in marketing know this: it’s the inestimable creativity of brands that inspires the buying public to change their buying behaviour.

But I wonder if the marketing industry needs a bit of a jolt itself. Because really it has failed to change how it goes about its work. At a time of arguably the biggest need facing consumerism, and the biggest opportunity proffered by consumers, marketing is still behaving in the same old way. Using the same old approaches, myopic insights and limited parameters, and failing to clinch – or even realise? – what is being made possible (let alone necessary).

Well here’s a rational jolt: A European study just carried out by our insight division (10 markets, over 1000 brands and 20,000 consumers) establishes that the single-most influential determinant of consumer preference is social equity. On average social equity correlates over 45% with brand preference, and so has a massive influence on which brands European consumers say they want to buy.

So whilst marketing continues to spend 98% of its time fine-tuning the four Ps, there’s a big white space out there waiting to be explored. The space is called social equity, and it’s more intricate, dynamic and potentially differentiating than any other dimension currently – and perhaps ever previously – available to brands.

In case that doesn’t work, here’s an emotional stimulus: That same inestimable creativity of brands will ensure that this space is occupied, this possibility realised. Brands that ‘get’ social equity will succeed because of it – but only those that know how. Does yours?