Every day, we’re being sold something.

I just asked ChatGPT, and it told me we see between 4,000 and 10,000 ads a day.
I don’t know why AI would lie, so let’s go with it.

• We’re being sold products.

• Beliefs.

• Worldviews.

And the most powerful sales tool on earth (the one every social guru is starting to sniff out) is storytelling.

But not just any story.

Great brands—whether they sell socks, software, or smoothies—leverage something deeper: human psychology.

The way our brains are wired to say yes.

And the same brain triggers that get people to buy a $6 coffee also explain why some stories stick and others don’t.

As Christian writers, the better we understand these 9 neuromarketing principles, the better we can craft our writing, our copy, and our messages to help people engage, decide, and care.

So buckle up because here. we. go.

1. Framing Effect

I’m a sucker for fries. But I’ve got a budding dad-bod, so I’m trying to be more mindful of what I eat.

Did you know McDonald’s fries are “99% fat-free”? I don’t even know what that means, but it sounds healthier than “1% fat fries,” so… I’m in.

Same reality. Different framing. And it instantly changes how I feel about it.

That’s the Framing Effect.

Our brains are wired to respond more positively to gain than to loss, even if the facts are identical.

As storytellers, the angle matters.

A redemption story,

• framed through shame, feels heavy.

• framed through hope, feels holy.

2. The Affordable Illusion

The Affordability Illusion is about shrinking big numbers into smaller, bite-sized ones.

Right now, my wife is sitting next to me booking plane tickets for our family of four to Austria (Christmas markets, here we come).

We’re using credit card points—which makes everything feel cheaper. More manageable. More broken down.

That’s why a gym doesn’t say $350/year. It says “less than $1 a day.”

(Which I should probably use, given the fries from Section 1.)

The same goes for transformation: Don’t ask readers to overhaul their lives. Instead, ask them to take one small step.

3. The Goldilocks Rule

Want someone to say yes? Give them three options.

It’s called The Rule of 3.

Starbucks doesn’t offer two-cup sizes—it offers three. Nobody wants to feel cheap, but few go for the biggest. The middle always feels just right.

Thanks, Goldilocks.

Same is true in writing.

There is power in 3, and you can leverage the magic number in your writing.

4. The IKEA Effect

Let’s talk about something closer to home: The IKEA Effect.

I hate IKEA. When I buy furniture, I don’t want to spend the next four hours assembling it, yet IKEA leverages this feature.

Why?

Because if someone builds it—even sloppily—they value it more.

Stories work the same way.

Tuck away puzzles. Let plots or storylines reveal themselves.

Let your audience use their imagination a bit.

5. Power of FREE

Which sounds better?

“Get $5 off”

or

“Get a FREE gift with your first purchase”?

Free isn’t logical. Free is emotional.

It lights up the reward center in the brain, even if we don’t need the thing being offered.

Just like grace.

Not earned. Not discounted.

Just… free.

6. This OR That?

How do you sell a $2,000 watch?

Easy.

You put it next to a $10,000 watch.

Suddenly, $2,000 doesn’t feel so bad.

That’s why the Contrast Effect is used extensively in high-end stories. It’s why they display the most expensive thing in the window.

In a story, contrast gives meaning.

Darkness makes light feel powerful. Sin makes redemption feel profound.

Don’t be afraid to raise the stakes so that resolution feels worth holding.

7. Analysis Paralysis

My father-in-law is great. But playing board games with him is exhausting.

I remind him: start planning your next turn while we play.

He never does.

Then, when it’s his move… he freezes.

The game freezes. My ice cream melts.

That’s the Paradox of Choice. 

Too many options = decision paralysis.

Writers, simplify. Cut clutter so readers can focus on what matters.

8. Anchoring Bias

You are considering buying a used car, and you visit a car dealership.

The dealer walks you around, showing you all the higher-priced cars, and you start worrying that you can’t afford a car after all.

Next, the car dealer walks you toward the back of the lot, where you see more affordable cars.

Having seen all the expensive options, you think these cars seem like a good bargain. In reality, all the cars are overpriced. By showing you all the expensive cars first, the dealer has set an anchor, influencing your perception of the value of a used car.

In story, you anchor with stakes.

If you start with the highest tension and greatest risk—then resolve it—your reader will walk away feeling like something significant just happened.

9. An Endowment Policy

A few weeks ago, I upgraded my laptop.

I’d had the old one for years. Wrote sermons on it. Drafted book chapters. Built half my business on that thing. It still worked great, so I figured I’d list it for $900. After all, I paid over $1,000 for it when it was new.

Seemed like a fair deal to me.

But the internet disagreed.

I got a few messages—every one of them lowballing me. $600. $400. One guy even told me he could get something “better” for less.

At first, I was frustrated. Didn’t they see the value? Didn’t they know what this machine had been through?

And then it hit me: they didn’t.

To them, it was just another used laptop.

That’s the Endowment Effect.

Because it was mine, I felt like it was worth more than it actually was.

Stories work the same way.

If you want your reader to care about something, they have to feel some ownership.

So why does all of this matter for Christian writers?

Because these aren’t manipulative tactics.

They are just how people work, how we’ve been wired.

God made our brains.

These principles work not because they’re clever but because they tap into something real.

So use them with integrity.

Use them to write with clarity.

Use them to tell stories that lead people toward truth, hope, and transformation.

Because when your story lands—
When it connects in the heart and not just the head—
That’s when real change begins.

Let me know if you want a printable version of this (or if you’d like me to expand on one in next week’s send).

Until then, write on 🤙

Payton