Dubai National School - Al Barsha

Why Is Minimalism the New Best Marketing Strategy Today?

Haya Hussein Otish Rizk Abu Hassoun

11D

Miss Mona Morshedy

English

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

Introduction:

Besides getting or buying our necessities, we always seem to search for our wants based

on the level of appeal of things, whether it be the super stylish blue bag somebody saw in a mall

the other day or the book cover that just completely grabbed someone’s attention because of how

colorful it looked, so it must be interesting, right? Throughout many decades, plenty of

companies have relied on the art of maximalism, which included the aesthetic of excess in their

marketing strategy in order to create the appeal needed to attract customers; in other words, more

was more. But today in our present world, the use of minimalism has begun gaining popularity

among advertisers and brands alike. There is no doubt that minimalism has made a mark on the

world, and its popularity continues to grow with major companies such as Apple. The question

is, though, what made minimalism spark so big in our modern world? And why in marketing

specifically? The aim of this research paper is to look at the significance of minimalism through

the lens of both the brands and the customers and see why it’s one of the most efficient

marketing strategies in our world today.

Literature Review:

In marketing, minimalism is a philosophy that emphasizes fewer things. This philosophy

seeks to reduce the number of items, features, and functions in order to create an immediate

understanding of the experience. It's important for minimalist philosophies to consider the

customer's need to feel like they're getting value for their money. There are countless

opportunities worth much more than material accumulation, and money is only as valuable as

what customers choose to spend it on (Becker 8). In many cases, minimalism holds a great

importance in marketing from many different aspects. This includes the use of fewer words that
is crucial to minimalism's ability to be understood across cultures. A photographer working for

FedEx, for example, took pictures of people passing packages through windows for FedEx.

There are murals of continents painted on the walls outside each set of windows, creating a

visual of packages being passed between countries. Despite the lack of words, these ads can be

understood by many people, but this can possibly act as a disadvantage for those who don’t

receive the message that is intended to be sent by companies.

Minimalism also incorporates the idea of less, but higher-quality products. As a result of

good campaigns and good products, the brand itself carries a great deal of weight. For many

people who prefer fewer options with higher-quality products, minimalist lifestyles are

important. In addition to creating a premium image for a product, limiting choices can also

increase sales. It is said that the greater the number of options being considered and the more

attractive the rejected options are, the lower the satisfaction is derived from the chosen option

(Schwartz 132). An experiment conducted at Dartmouth College invited students to rank pens

and be given the opportunity to buy them. Different groups of pens were used for this

experiment, ranging in size from two to twenty. According to the study, students were more

likely to purchase a pen if they had more options, but this temptation peaked around ten options,

and students were less likely to purchase a pen from the set of twenty as they were from the set

of two. In this case, it could be argued that it is important to have options, but if there are too

many, people will become overwhelmed (Schmidt). This is where the minimalist strategy can

come into place, and if used correctly, can be effective; however, this contradicts the statement

that having less opportunities or choices can sometimes lead to not buying any of the products at

all. According to a study, it was found that choice deprivation was more common than choice
overload in customers from across the globe. Among customers, 51% feel deprived of options,

while 14% feel overloaded with options; only 35% feel they have enough choices (School).

Rationale:

To reach a definitive conclusion over why minimalism is one of the most prevalent and

effective marketing strategies in our today’s world, this research will tackle the following three

questions:

● How do the laws of minimalist marketing increase its effectiveness on the world?

● Why do minimalist companies tend to have more expensive products than those that

aren’t minimalist?

● Why are most brands heading towards minimalism today?

Method:

In order to determine why a company is minimalist in the first place, customers must be

taken into account, and that is because most companies heavily depend on its customers’ needs

in order for it to become successful. Thus, I'll be conducting a survey targeted at these customers

for the sake of understanding why and how minimalist marketing has been effective in our world

recently, hopefully answering all three questions above.

Procedure:

Regarding the survey involved in this research, I will be collecting the data by first

formulating close-ended questions concerning the participant’s interest toward minimalist

companies and how they feel with regard to it. Then, I will place those questions in a survey

form where participants will be able to access it directly and easily. Lastly, I will collect the data,

analyze it, and communicate my findings.

Expected Results:

I predict that the data collected from the survey will provide accurate enough information

and percentages regarding people’s interest toward minimalist companies and why the

minimalist marketing approach is very effective in a sense that it provides nourishment,

fulfillment as well as value to customers all around the world; however, there are disadvantages

to conducting this survey that need to be taken into account.

The limitations of this study may include the participant not understanding the question

well enough to answer it based on their form of rationality and common sense. Even though the

questions will be in its simplest form, one can’t argue that the participant won’t assimilate it in

the way that I want them to; therefore, this could increase the chances of getting some inaccurate

data. Another limitation includes the participant lying, which with anonymity, will most likely be

avoided in case the participant prefers their privacy, but this won't completely prevent lying, as a

participant can lie regarding other reasons.

Conclusion:

Essentially, minimalist marketing has gained a lot of significance over the past decade

because it is extremely effective towards customers and sales for the company; therefore, both

parties benefit from it, as it provides customers with fulfillment and value as well as success for

companies that utilize this still-emerging, yet effective marketing technique. If used correctly,

minimalism can serve as a powerful marketing tool. In addition to its simplicity, it is also very

creative, making it appealing to people worldwide.

References:

● Becker, Joshua. “Becoming Minimalist.” The More of Less, WaterBrook Press, 2016, pp.

8–16.

● Kumar, et al. “Minimalistic Marketing: The Perfect Blend of Creativity and Simplicity

-Changing Marketers and Consumer Perception towards Products and Services

Concurrently.” Academia.edu, 20 May 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2022, from

<http://bitly.ws/wq6U>

● Roth, Henrik. “Minimalism & Its Meaning in Marketing & Branding.” Neuroflash, 19

Jan. 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2022, from <http://bitly.ws/wq6N>

● Schmidt, R. “Minimalism strategy in Global Marketing.” Brand2Global, 28 May, 2020.

Retrieved November 8, 2022, from <http://bitly.ws/wqab>

● School, IESE Business. “Do Global Consumers Have Too Many Choices or Not

Enough?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 25 May 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2022, from

<http://bitly.ws/wqaZ>

● Schwartz, Barry. “Trade-offs: Emotional Unpleasantness Makes for Bad Decisions.” The

Paradox of Choice, HarperCollins e-books, 2004, p. 132.