Business & Strategy
Section 1
Core Idea
Desire is the want that precedes action — the pull toward an outcome, identity, or experience. In business, you don’t create desire from nothing; you connect your offer to desires that already exist. Understanding what people want (status, belonging, certainty, growth, etc.) lets you position and message so the product feels like the answer. Desire drives willingness to pay and to act.
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Section 2
How to See It
Product
You're seeing Desire when positioning and onboarding are framed around what the user wants to become or achieve (“look like this,” “feel in control”) rather than feature lists, and conversion or retention improves.
Marketing
You're seeing Desire when campaigns and content tap into an existing desire (e.g. belonging, mastery, scarcity) and the offer is presented as the path to satisfying it, and response rates or engagement rise.
Sales
You're seeing Desire when discovery focuses on “what would you want to be true?” or “what would make this a no-brainer?” and the pitch is tailored to that desire instead of generic benefits.
Section 3
How to Use It
Identify the desire your product serves: what do they want to feel, achieve, or avoid? Name it in their words. Then align positioning, messaging, and experience to that desire so the offer feels like the obvious way to get there. Don’t invent desires; tap into existing ones and make your solution the clearest path.
Decision filter
"What do they already want that we can satisfy? If we’re selling to a desire we can’t name, we’re guessing."
As a founder
Use desire in positioning: lead with the outcome or identity they want, not the mechanism. In marketing: tie copy and creative to core human drives. In sales: uncover the desire first, then show how the product fulfills it.
Section 5
Founders & Leaders
David OgilvyFounder, Ogilvy & Mather; advertising pioneer
Ogilvy built campaigns around desire: research the customer’s wants and fears, then speak to them. “The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife.” He believed ads that tapped into real desire — for respect, for results, for belonging — outperformed clever or feature-led copy. Founders can apply this by researching what their customer wants to achieve or become and making that desire the center of the story.
Section 7
Connected Models
Reinforces
Jobs to Be Done
Jobs to Be Done is the “job” the customer hires the product for. Desire is the emotional pull toward that job. Understand the job to frame the desire; satisfy the desire to win the job.
Reinforces
Core Human Drives
Core human drives (status, belonging, certainty, etc.) are the engine of desire. Map your offer to one or two drives and you make the desire explicit and actionable.
Tension
Perceived Value
Perceived value is what they think they’re getting. Desire shapes perceived value: when the offer aligns with a strong desire, perceived value rises. The tension: don’t overclaim or desire and value get misaligned.
Section 8
One Key Quote
— David Ogilvy, Ogilvy on Advertising"The consumer doesn't buy products. They buy the expectation of benefit — the desire for a better outcome."
Section 11
Summary & Further Reading
Desire is the want that drives action. Connect your offer to existing desires, name them in the customer’s words, and align positioning and experience so your product feels like the path to satisfying them.
01
Book
Classic advertising; research and speak to the customer’s desires and self-image.
02
Book
Product design and habit-forming products; internal triggers and desire.
03
Book
Motivation research; desire and symbolism in consumer behavior.