The lines between art and science are becoming increasingly blurred as they merge to become almost one and the same. In the world of human needs and desires and the motivations behind our decision-making, having an insight into someone’s brain can be the ultimate recipe for brand success. Enter neuromarketing, the holy grail that marketers have been chasing. But is it the ultimate tool for tipping consumers over the edge with a customer experience that is second to none?
It does sound a bit like science fiction, but neuromarketing is not necessarily as ominous nor nefarious as it may initially seem. It is however increasingly becoming a key ingredient for drafting an effective brand strategy and guiding product development, despite it being early days for many brands who are still only dipping their toes. Essentially, neuromarketing is about understanding the psychological drivers and triggers that make people respond in a certain way. And with this understanding, marketers are able to design products and position them to be irresistible. Well, that’s the marketer’s ideal, at least.
The truth is that humans and consumers are far more complex. Our uniqueness and the different life circumstances we find ourselves in still mean that there is no single cookie-cutter approach to grabbing consumer attention. But neuromarketing is certainly providing important insights on what generally draws consumers in, and what pushes them away. This leads us to ask, which marketing stimuli are people most responsive to?
By using EEG’s and /or functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to measure changes in brain activity on a cohort of volunteers, scientists are able to measure the subconscious response to certain marketing elements, be they colours, text, images, sounds, smells, textures and the like. By targeting the limbic system and the pre-frontal cortex of the brain – our emotion, memory and pleasure centres – it’s possible to see when a positive response has been elicited. Eye-tracking, facial response and biometrics (heart rate monitoring as an example) all add to the neuromarketing discipline.
So, who is already using the science to designs the best product or brand experiences for consumers?
PayPal used neuromarketing research to refine their brand message and quadruple their click-through rates. Frito-Lay used insights to change their chip packaging from a shiny to matt finish, which provided more consumer appeal. McDonald’s uses colour in their logo to reflect happiness, as well as the link to French fries, while tequila producer Patrón uses “hippocampal headlines” to draw attention and interest with their slogan ‘Practice makes Patrón.’
Join the next episode of the Future of Media webinar series, where a panel of experts will share how Neuromarketing bridges the gap between cognitive psychology and behavioural economics, allowing brands to understand the decision-making process of the human brain and measure emotion and attention – ultimately to optimise successful communications. They’ll explore the subconscious and uncover how neuromarketing can (and should) be incorporated into your 2021 marketing strategies to speak to the motivations deep within the mind.
Panelists in the discussion, moderated by Siya Sangweni include:
- Thom Nobel – Chief Strategy Officer, Cloud Army
- Mark Drummond – Co-Founder, Neural Sense
- Dr. David Rosenstein – Co-Founder, Neural Sense
Date: Wednesday, June 24
Time: 10am