THE mammalian brain

Most brands chase the wrong thing. They spend millions on awareness campaigns and wonder why sales stay flat. Then, they pivot to relevance. “We need to be more relevant to Gen Z!” Still, nothing moves.

Here’s what they miss: Awareness and relevance are Level 1-2 games. Ownership is Level 3-4. And your mammalian brain (the part that actually buys things) doesn’t speak English. It only understands ownership.

The Three Levels of Brand Existence

Awareness: “I’ve heard of you.”

Awareness means people know you exist. That’s it.

Jaguar has awareness. Everyone knows the leaping cat. The British luxury. The heritage. Yet they sold 3,073 cars in the US last year. That’s 0.04% market share.

Awareness is binary. You’re either known or unknown. It’s also cheap to buy. Run enough ads, get enough impressions, and boom: awareness.

Problem: The human brain processes 11 million bits of information per second but can only consciously handle 60. Everything else gets pattern-matched and ignored. Your awareness campaign? Filed under “another car company” and forgotten.

Chase Hughes refers to this as the mammalian brain at work. It doesn’t care about your tagline. It cares about survival. And knowing you exist doesn’t help it survive.

Relevance: “You matter to me right now”

Relevance means you solve a current problem. You fit today’s context.

Gap tried this. They brought back the hoodie. Made it “relevant” to nostalgia trends. Sales barely moved because relevance without ownership is just temporary alignment.

Harley-Davidson faces this daily. They’re relevant to their aging base. But to younger riders? Harley means “dad’s bike.” They’ve lost ownership of “freedom” and can’t figure out how relevance alone might save them.

Here’s the neuroscience: When your brain evaluates “relevant” options, it uses the neocortex (the rational, analytical part). But 95% of purchase decisions happen in the limbic system — the emotional, non-verbal part.

Relevance engages the wrong brain.

Ownership: “You ARE something in my mind”

Ownership means you occupy specific mental territory. Not just when I need you. Always.

Volvo = Safety
Costco = Value
Tesla = Future
Amazon = Convenience

This isn’t messaging. It’s identity. And it shows up in brain scans.

When people see Coca-Cola (which owns “happiness”), their dorsolateral prefrontal cortex lights up. Memory, emotion, and cultural associations fire together. When they see Pepsi (aware and relevant, but owns nothing), only the taste preference areas are activated. Coke owns neural real estate. Pepsi rents attention.

The 4-Level Positioning Framework

My framework shows why most brands fail:

Level 1 – Surface Position: “Saying It”

Taglines, slogans, campaigns
Changes with every CMO
Copied overnight
Cost: $10K-$100K

Example: “Just Do It” is Level 1. Any brand could say it tomorrow.

Level 2 – Evidence Position: “Proving It”

Testimonials, case studies, and awards
Takes time to build
Somewhat defensible
Cost: $100K-$1M

Example: “9 out of 10 dentists recommend…” Level 2. Better, but still copyable.

Level 3 – Action Position: “Living It”

Costly decisions that prove positioning
Strategic sacrifices
Hard to copy without similar sacrifice
Cost: $1M-$10M+

Example: Costco’s $1.50 hot dog. Hasn’t changed price since 1985. Loses money on every sale. Proves their “value” position through costly action.

Level 4 – System Position: “Being It”

Entire business model serves one concept
Company IS the positioning
Nearly impossible to copy
Cost: The entire business

Example: Amazon’s convenience. Every decision (from AWS to Alexa to same-day delivery) serves convenience. To copy it, you’d have to rebuild Amazon.

Why Your Brain Only Buys Ownership

The mammalian brain evolved 200 million years ago. It doesn’t understand language. It understands:

Territory (what’s mine vs. theirs)
Hierarchy (who’s in charge)
Survival (what keeps me safe)
Belonging (who’s my tribe)

Awareness? That’s just noise.
Relevance? That’s a temporary utility.
Ownership? That’s identity.

FMRI research proves this. Owned brands activate the medial prefrontal cortex. The same region that fires when you think about yourself. You don’t just know Nike. Part of you IS Nike.

This happens in milliseconds. Before conscious thought. Before rational evaluation. Your mammalian brain has already decided based on owned territory.

Your Position

Look at your brand honestly:

If you’re at Level 1-2: You’re playing with words while competitors own concepts. You fear copycats because everything you do is copyable. You’re one budget cut from irrelevance.

If you’re at Level 3: You’re making real sacrifices. Doing things that cost money but prove your position. Competitors hesitate to follow because it hurts.

If you’re at Level 4: Your business model is your positioning. Competitors can’t copy without rebuilding their entire company. You own mental territory.

Most brands live at Level 1-2. They confuse awareness campaigns with strategy. They mistake relevance for resonance. They optimize metrics that don’t matter to the mammalian brain.

Examples of Ownership in Action

Costco: Level 4 Ownership of “Value”

Business model: 75% of profits from memberships, not products
Costly signals: $1.50 hot dog, $4.99 rotisserie chicken (both lose money)
Result: 92% member renewal rate
To copy: Rebuild the entire business model around membership

Patagonia: Level 3-4 Ownership of “Environmental Activism”

Costly signals: “Don’t Buy This Jacket” campaign, 1% revenue to the environment
Business impact: Promotes repair over replacement (reduces sales)
Result: 30% revenue growth after anti-consumption campaign
To copy: Actually care about the environment more than profits

Tesla: Level 4 Ownership of “Future”

Costly signals: Built Roadster first (not profitable compact car)
Infrastructure: Billions in Supercharger network
Result: Highest automotive brand value at $42.61 billion
To copy: Reinvent entire automotive industry

Supreme: Level 3 Ownership of “Streetwear Culture”

Costly signals: Artificial scarcity, limited drops
Business model: Less revenue for more cultural capital
Result: Billion-dollar valuation on t-shirts
To copy: Give up volume for authenticity

The Path from Awareness to Ownership

Stop thinking in campaigns. Start thinking in decades.

Pick one noun to own. Not an adjective. Not a benefit. A concept.
Make Level 3 decisions. What would you sacrifice to prove this position? What costly signal separates you from pretenders?
Align your business model. How can your entire operation serve this one concept? What would you stop doing?
Let ownership drive awareness. When you own something, awareness follows. When you chase awareness, you own nothing.
Measure neural territory, not impressions. Can people complete “You ARE ____” about your brand? That’s ownership.

Questions That Reveal Your Level

What’s your $1.50 hot dog? (The decision that proves your position)
If competitors copied your marketing with $50K, would they succeed?
What mental territory do you own that existed before your company?
Would your business break if you changed your position?
Do customers use your brand name as a verb or noun, not just a choice?

If you struggled with these questions, you’re playing at Level 1-2.

The Choice

You can keep chasing awareness. Running campaigns. Tweaking relevance. Playing Level 1-2 games while wondering why sales stay flat.

Or you can own something.

Not when people need you. Always.
Not in their consideration set. In their identity.
Not relevant to their lives. Part of their brain.

The mammalian brain that makes 95% of purchase decisions doesn’t care about your awareness metrics. It only responds to ownership.

What will you own?

Most brands live at Level 1-2 because Level 3-4 requires sacrifice. It means choosing what you won’t be. It means costly decisions that prove your position. It means building a business model around one concept. That’s why most brands chase awareness and relevance. And that’s why they fail.

Platonic