Podcast Summary: Brain Driven Brands

Episode: The Invisible Enemy Strategy: Why Systems Marketing Will Dominate 2026
Host: Sarah Levinger
Date: November 27, 2025

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode dissects the advanced neuromarketing strategies employed by massive brands and unveils the “invisible enemy” approach—an evolved form of systems-based marketing. By studying historical and current examples (like True Classic, Spotify, and even Borax), Sarah Levinger and her guest reveal how brands can leverage psychological villains and fit their products into broader lifestyle systems to supercharge sales, reduce costs, and capture audience loyalty in 2026 and beyond.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Historical Case Studies Matter

• Cutting Through Modern Noise:
  Sarah champions the use of early 20th-century marketing case studies, arguing they're more instructive than current platform-focused trends because they hone in on timeless marketing principles.
  • Quote (02:17):

    “It cuts away all the platform BS that we’re all wrapped up in today and just goes to core principles.” — Sarah

2. The Borax Case Study: Origins of the Invisible Enemy

• Background:
  Early 1900s, Pacific Coast Borax Company—had a product (Borax) but no real market advantage against ubiquitous soap.
• The Shift:
  With emerging science focusing on “invisible” germs, Borax's marketers reframed the conversation—selling fear of what soap couldn’t clean (germs/minerals you can’t see).
• Psychological Villain:
  They didn’t attack soap; they attacked “the invisible enemy”—microbes, mineral deposits, unseen dangers.
  • Quote (04:15):

    “They went after invisible dirt as their psychological villain. And I love this because we talk about enemies so much.” — Sarah

3. Picking the Right Enemy in Marketing

• Don’t Attack Competitors Directly:
  Target psychological problems the whole industry can agree are worth solving, not just rival brands.

  • Quote (06:54):

    “Don’t attack a competitor. Go after something that’s much more psychologically focused that everybody has an experience with.” — Sarah

• Memorable Example:
  The guest relates a watch brand campaign:

  • Rather than “anti-Rolex,” they ran ads like “against boring, soulless watches.”
  • Going too hard on a direct competitor sometimes alienates potential customers (08:11).
  • Consistently targeting broader psychological pain points created more lasting success.

4. System-Based Marketing: Selling More Than a Product

• From Product Catalog to Lifestyle Manual:
  Borax ran household manuals—not product catalogs—educating customers about modern cleaning science and only subtly positioning their product inside the system.

  • Quote (10:45):

    “Don’t sell the freaking product. Sell them a system that the product fits into.” — Sarah

• Application to Modern Brands:
  Health brands should fit supplements into the user’s existing lifestyle system (“exercise, diet, sleep—this completes it!”).

  • Quote (12:35):

    “You’ve already got exercise, diet, sleep... This fits into it. This makes it better. This completes the system.” — Guest

• Defining a System:
  Quote (12:14):

  “A system is just a set of connected things or parts that work together as a complex whole to achieve a specific common purpose or function.” — Sarah

5. Practical Brand Takeaways & Modern Parallels

• Fit Your Product Into a Larger Connection:
  Position your offer as the missing link in a greater, value-driving whole (blue-collar identity, wellness, creative workflow).

• Borax’s Results:
  Their “system” approach led to a sixfold sales increase and national staple status (15:10).

• Applying to Tether OS & E-commerce:
  The guest gives a live example for creative strategy SaaS—moving from hit-or-miss ad-making to a system that loops in continuous customer feedback, thus turning creative output from singles to triples/home runs (16:22).

  • Quote (16:22):

    “Now we don’t go 1 for 10 on ads. We go 7 for 10... that’s what it is for you.” — Guest

• Action Steps for Listeners:

  • Find an “incomplete” in your category and position your brand/product as the critical missing puzzle piece.
  • Avoid targeting rivals, attack systemic, psychologically relevant pain points instead.
  • Sell the system, not just the product.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Enemies in Marketing (06:54):

  “Don’t attack a competitor. Go after something that’s much more psychologically focused that everybody has an experience with.” — Sarah

• On the Power of Systems (10:45):

  “Don’t sell the freaking product. Sell them a system that the product fits into.” — Sarah

• Direct Application to Modern Brands (12:35):

  “You’ve already got the exercise, you’ve already got the diet, you’ve already got sleep. This fits into it. This makes it better. This completes the system. This is how you get to the next step without really having to try harder. Like, it fits into what you’re doing already.” — Guest

• On Results (15:10):

  “Their profits crossed 1 million, which was enormous...and they became national staple brand just by telling people they were not getting all of it.” — Sarah

• Actionable Encouragement (17:00):

  “What do you complete that’s currently incomplete that you can go attack as a brand? Go find that enemy, find that villain. Stick your product right in the middle of what people are already looking at.” — Sarah

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Historical Marketing Case Study Begins — 01:26
• Borax as the Original "Invisible Enemy" Campaign — 02:30
• How to Pick the Right Enemy — 06:39
• System vs. Product Selling — 10:45
• Lifestyle Systems & Brand Identity — 11:25
• Modern Application & Defining a “System” — 12:14
• Borax’s Massive Growth & Takeaways — 14:58
• Applying the System Thinking to Modern Martech — 16:05
• Final Action Steps for Marketers — 17:00

Tone & Style

The episode is energetic, wry, and actionable. Sarah’s passion for marketing history and practical psychology shines throughout, keeping the conversation lively and stuffed with quotable, counterintuitive insights. Both speakers are direct, eager to riff on real-world brand examples, and focused on giving marketers immediately useful frameworks for campaign transformations.

Conclusion

The Invisible Enemy Strategy is all about shifting from product marketing to “systems marketing”—identifying incomplete systems in your category, constructing psychological villains (often invisible, like Borax’s germs), and positioning your solution as the final, essential piece. Brands that master this won’t just survive platform changes in 2026—they’ll dominate.

Perfect for: e-commerce founders, creative strategists, and any marketer seeking fresh, psychology-driven ways to stand out in crowded, ever-evolving markets.