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This is Scientific American’s 60-Second Science, I’m Karen Hopkin. This will just take a minute.

Some people pay big bucks¹ for a designer handbag or a luxury car—and the distinctive² logo that goes along with them. Now scientists have learned that other people pay even more to leave the logo behind. The findings appear in the Journal of Marketing³.

High-end goods are often ostentatiously labeled. After all, if you spend all that money on a status symbol, you want to make sure that other folks recognize your good taste, even at a distance. But researchers surveying California consumers found that people who are seriously well-off are willing to pay a premium⁴ for items whose branding is more discreet⁵. These patricians⁶ don’t need gaudy⁷ symbols to advertise their wealth.

Status seekers, on the other hand, are drawn⁸ to more obvious logos. These designer items let the less affluent⁹ know that they’ve been outclassed. The irony¹⁰ is that the logos mostly serve to alert the patricians that the owner is not one of them. And then there are the posers who buy flashy counterfeit¹¹ items that for the most part don’t fool anyone.

The lesson for marketers: when it comes to branding, less may be more. And you can charge a higher price for it, too.

Thanks for the minute for Scientific American’s 60-Second Science, I’m Karen Hopkin