193,000 members and climbing This is the twelfth of 20 daily THOUGHTS examining emotions in marketing. Manchester United has won some 20 titles and is the most successful club in the UK Premier League. Its membership is rapidly approaching 200,000 people. Interestingly, very few of these people regularly attend games. So, why would someone with no intention […]

193,000 members and climbing This is the twelfth of 20 daily THOUGHTS examining emotions in marketing. Manchester United has won some 20 titles and is the most successful club in the UK Premier League. Its membership is rapidly approaching 200,000 people. Interestingly, very few of these people regularly attend games. So, why would someone with no intention of attending a game pay the membership fee? They pay the fee for the same reason others pay to be a member of the Dodgers Baseball Club in the United States, the Collingwood Football Club in Melbourne or the Wildcats Basketball Club in Perth. They pay because they identify with the club and want to feel connected with it. Human beings have a basic, and not so irrational, need to belong. Identification and connection are fundamental to establishing a sense of belonging. Further, this basic need is as common in the purchase of goods and…