The Technology
Techniques used in neuromarketing today include both brain
imaging and brainwave measurement. Brain imaging techniques,
such as Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and
Magnetoencephalography (MEG), produce wonderfully detailed
3-D images which highlight activity in different areas of the brain as
the subject performs an assigned task. However, the technology is
not particularly convenient to use; it tethers both researcher and
subject to an immobile apparatus which is expensive to operate,
and it requires that the subject's head be positioned inside a large
machine.
A more flexible approach is brainwave measurement, or
Electroencephalography (EEG), which uses electrodes placed on
the scalp to measure the electrical activity of the brain. While the
information it provides is much less precise than that from imaging
techniques, EEG technology has the advantage of being relatively
unobtrusive, and allows research subjects to enjoy some freedom
of movement.
Beyond the buzz – What does it mean?
The various brain measurement techniques show us parts of the
brain "lighting up" in response to stimuli, but what those brain
responses actually mean is subject to interpretation, based on neuroscientists’
understanding of what different brain structures do.
This understanding is not as complete or stable as many believe.
For example, we reviewed the results of the fMRI experiment conducted
by neuroscientist Marco Iacoboni at UCLA in February,
2006. Five volunteers viewed ads which aired during the
U.S. Super Bowl. Iacoboni reported that a scene in one ad,
NEUROMARKETING:
Beyond the
buzz
It is every market
researcher’s dream: an
objective view of consumers’
innermost
thoughts, unobscured
by the confounding
influences of interviewer
and question biases and
respondent post-rationalization.
That is the
promise of "neuromarketing,"
an emerging
discipline which uses
neuroscience techniques
to understand
consumers’ responses
to brands and marketing.
So how does the
reality match up to the
promise?
GRAHAM PAGE
Global Director of Innovations
Millward Brown
graham.page@uk.millwardbrown.com
www.millwardbrown.com
www.mb-blog.com
M I L L W A R D B R O W N ’ S P O V
A p r i l 2 0 0 6
in which a caveman is crushed by a
dinosaur, produced activity in the amygdala,
a midbrain structure which is present in all
animals. The amygdala is involved in emotional
processing, including "fight-or-flight"
responses. Iacoboni interpreted the activity
in this region as an indication that the
respondents perceived the scene as
threatening.
However, the respondents themselves
reported that they found the ad funny.
While Iacoboni highlighted this as a "disconnect
between verbal reports on ads and
brain activity while viewing the ads," we
don't really regard these responses as contradictory.
Part of the amygdala's job is to
respond to sensory input which suggests a
potentially dangerous situation, e.g., "There's
a snake!" But that same sensory input is
subsequently evaluated by other parts of
the brain, which may conclude "No, it's only
a twig." The accompanying release of tension
often manifests itself in a humorous
response to a situation which may have
initially appeared threatening. Thus the
apparent disconnect may simply be a
reflection of the fact that the brain as a
whole is far greater than the sum of its
parts. Relying solely on the brain response
in a particular region, without probing the
subjects’ conscious experience of an event,
may lead to faulty conclusions.
This example also raises the question of
whether neuromarketing really reveals the
"unconscious" mind. Historically, our understanding
of brain function has come from
work with animals as well as people who
have experienced brain damage. Much of
our new learning in this area comes from
studies in which "normal" (i.e., not braindamaged)
individuals verbalize their
reactions to a stimulus, such as a frighten-
Relying solely on the brain
response in a particular region,
without probing the subjects’
conscious experience of an event,
may lead to faulty conclusions.
ing picture, while their brain activity is
simultaneously observed. We are able to
associate areas of the brain with emotions
because people are able to describe the
emotions they are experiencing.
Therefore, when we observe portions of the
brain light up, we are not so much observing
the unconscious as the neural underpinning
of a conscious experience.
Putting science to the test
If neuroscience techniques can provide
meaningful and discriminating results, they
can certainly be useful in consumer
research. But as a practical matter, they
also need to provide additional insights not
already supplied by survey
research if they are to
justify their additional
cost.
To put neuromarketing
to the test,
Millward Brown joined
forces with the U.S. company
Brainwave Science.
We compared the results of our TVLink™
advertising pre-test to those obtained using
Brainwave's patented EEG brain-measurement
technique.
The results were compelling. The scenes in
the test ad which generated the strongest
brain response were the same scenes
which TVLink identified as the most
emotionally powerful. The weak brain
response recorded for scenes featuring the
brand was consistent with the TVLink
finding that the ad was not well-branded.
(For more details on this experiment, see
Admap, September, 2005.)
Clearly the Brainwave Science approach
passed the first test above; it provided
meaningful insights about advertising. Yet
the survey-based research yielded similar
findings, so the incremental value of the
neuromarketing data in this case is
questionable. In fact, the data from
Brainwave Science could not be fully
understood without also referring to the
survey data, which uncovered the nature of
the consumers’ reactions to the copy, e.g.,
did they feel good or bad about what they
were seeing? Did they find the joke funny?
Without answers to questions such as
these, we can't make concrete recommendations
to our clients.
When we observe portions of the
brain light up, we are not so much
observing the unconscious as the
neural underpinning of a conscious
experience.
Implications for the future
Our view? Current neuromarketing
techniques can't yet replace conventional
market research in brand and advertising
applications. The results yielded by brain
studies are too general and open to
interpretation to be useful in isolation, and
the procedures involved are often too cumbersome
and expensive to apply broadly.
This does not mean there is no future
potential for neuroscience techniques to be
applied in market research. They hold the
potential to identify the transient or early
responses to brands and advertising and so
add to our current understanding based on
introspective verbal responses.
Neuroscience remains one of the most
interesting and potentially valuable avenues
open to us as researchers and we will
continue to actively investigate the merits
of different approaches as they evolve.
However, we feel reassured by our work to
date that well designed survey and qualitative
approaches do not miss anything vital.
While consumer responses may be subject
to a variety of influences, they still represent
a robust means for evaluating both brands
and advertising.
Current neuromarketing
techniques can't yet replace
conventional market research
in brand and advertising
applications.
Techniques used in neuromarketing today include both brain
imaging and brainwave measurement. Brain imaging techniques,
such as Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and
Magnetoencephalography (MEG), produce wonderfully detailed
3-D images which highlight activity in different areas of the brain as
the subject performs an assigned task. However, the technology is
not particularly convenient to use; it tethers both researcher and
subject to an immobile apparatus which is expensive to operate,
and it requires that the subject's head be positioned inside a large
machine.
A more flexible approach is brainwave measurement, or
Electroencephalography (EEG), which uses electrodes placed on
the scalp to measure the electrical activity of the brain. While the
information it provides is much less precise than that from imaging
techniques, EEG technology has the advantage of being relatively
unobtrusive, and allows research subjects to enjoy some freedom
of movement.
Beyond the buzz – What does it mean?
The various brain measurement techniques show us parts of the
brain "lighting up" in response to stimuli, but what those brain
responses actually mean is subject to interpretation, based on neuroscientists’
understanding of what different brain structures do.
This understanding is not as complete or stable as many believe.
For example, we reviewed the results of the fMRI experiment conducted
by neuroscientist Marco Iacoboni at UCLA in February,
2006. Five volunteers viewed ads which aired during the
U.S. Super Bowl. Iacoboni reported that a scene in one ad,
NEUROMARKETING:
Beyond the
buzz
It is every market
researcher’s dream: an
objective view of consumers’
innermost
thoughts, unobscured
by the confounding
influences of interviewer
and question biases and
respondent post-rationalization.
That is the
promise of "neuromarketing,"
an emerging
discipline which uses
neuroscience techniques
to understand
consumers’ responses
to brands and marketing.
So how does the
reality match up to the
promise?
GRAHAM PAGE
Global Director of Innovations
Millward Brown
graham.page@uk.millwardbrown.com
www.millwardbrown.com
www.mb-blog.com
M I L L W A R D B R O W N ’ S P O V
A p r i l 2 0 0 6
in which a caveman is crushed by a
dinosaur, produced activity in the amygdala,
a midbrain structure which is present in all
animals. The amygdala is involved in emotional
processing, including "fight-or-flight"
responses. Iacoboni interpreted the activity
in this region as an indication that the
respondents perceived the scene as
threatening.
However, the respondents themselves
reported that they found the ad funny.
While Iacoboni highlighted this as a "disconnect
between verbal reports on ads and
brain activity while viewing the ads," we
don't really regard these responses as contradictory.
Part of the amygdala's job is to
respond to sensory input which suggests a
potentially dangerous situation, e.g., "There's
a snake!" But that same sensory input is
subsequently evaluated by other parts of
the brain, which may conclude "No, it's only
a twig." The accompanying release of tension
often manifests itself in a humorous
response to a situation which may have
initially appeared threatening. Thus the
apparent disconnect may simply be a
reflection of the fact that the brain as a
whole is far greater than the sum of its
parts. Relying solely on the brain response
in a particular region, without probing the
subjects’ conscious experience of an event,
may lead to faulty conclusions.
This example also raises the question of
whether neuromarketing really reveals the
"unconscious" mind. Historically, our understanding
of brain function has come from
work with animals as well as people who
have experienced brain damage. Much of
our new learning in this area comes from
studies in which "normal" (i.e., not braindamaged)
individuals verbalize their
reactions to a stimulus, such as a frighten-
Relying solely on the brain
response in a particular region,
without probing the subjects’
conscious experience of an event,
may lead to faulty conclusions.
ing picture, while their brain activity is
simultaneously observed. We are able to
associate areas of the brain with emotions
because people are able to describe the
emotions they are experiencing.
Therefore, when we observe portions of the
brain light up, we are not so much observing
the unconscious as the neural underpinning
of a conscious experience.
Putting science to the test
If neuroscience techniques can provide
meaningful and discriminating results, they
can certainly be useful in consumer
research. But as a practical matter, they
also need to provide additional insights not
already supplied by survey
research if they are to
justify their additional
cost.
To put neuromarketing
to the test,
Millward Brown joined
forces with the U.S. company
Brainwave Science.
We compared the results of our TVLink™
advertising pre-test to those obtained using
Brainwave's patented EEG brain-measurement
technique.
The results were compelling. The scenes in
the test ad which generated the strongest
brain response were the same scenes
which TVLink identified as the most
emotionally powerful. The weak brain
response recorded for scenes featuring the
brand was consistent with the TVLink
finding that the ad was not well-branded.
(For more details on this experiment, see
Admap, September, 2005.)
Clearly the Brainwave Science approach
passed the first test above; it provided
meaningful insights about advertising. Yet
the survey-based research yielded similar
findings, so the incremental value of the
neuromarketing data in this case is
questionable. In fact, the data from
Brainwave Science could not be fully
understood without also referring to the
survey data, which uncovered the nature of
the consumers’ reactions to the copy, e.g.,
did they feel good or bad about what they
were seeing? Did they find the joke funny?
Without answers to questions such as
these, we can't make concrete recommendations
to our clients.
When we observe portions of the
brain light up, we are not so much
observing the unconscious as the
neural underpinning of a conscious
experience.
Implications for the future
Our view? Current neuromarketing
techniques can't yet replace conventional
market research in brand and advertising
applications. The results yielded by brain
studies are too general and open to
interpretation to be useful in isolation, and
the procedures involved are often too cumbersome
and expensive to apply broadly.
This does not mean there is no future
potential for neuroscience techniques to be
applied in market research. They hold the
potential to identify the transient or early
responses to brands and advertising and so
add to our current understanding based on
introspective verbal responses.
Neuroscience remains one of the most
interesting and potentially valuable avenues
open to us as researchers and we will
continue to actively investigate the merits
of different approaches as they evolve.
However, we feel reassured by our work to
date that well designed survey and qualitative
approaches do not miss anything vital.
While consumer responses may be subject
to a variety of influences, they still represent
a robust means for evaluating both brands
and advertising.
Current neuromarketing
techniques can't yet replace
conventional market research
in brand and advertising
applications.
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