You make decisions freely? Neuromarketing says think again | Billy Sung | TEDxKingsParkSalon

Summary

This talk delves into the unconscious processes driving consumer decisions, highlighting the gap between what people say they care about (e.g., sustainability) and their actual behavior. Using tools like biometric measurements, neuroscience, and eye-tracking, the speaker shows how subtle environmental changes and unconscious associations influence purchasing decisions. By understanding these hidden factors, businesses can design products and advertisements that resonate more deeply with consumers. The field of consumer biometrics offers insights into improving consumer decision-making, promoting sustainability, and even combating misinformation, ultimately helping consumers make more informed and better choices.

Takeaways

• 😀 People often overestimate their ability to control their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, leading to a disconnect between what they say they care about and their actual actions.
• 😀 Consumer biometrics and neuroscience can reveal the subconscious processes that influence decisions, such as attention, emotional engagement, and stress levels.
• 😀 Even when people claim to care about sustainable products, their actual attention and emotional response to sustainability claims are often minimal.
• 😀 Self-reported data from surveys and questionnaires may not accurately reflect subconscious behaviors or feelings, which can lead to misleading conclusions in social science research.
• 😀 The brain processes most of our decisions subconsciously, such as what we notice in a commercial or how we react to product packaging in a supermarket.
• 😀 Consumer biometrics, including eye tracking, heart rate monitoring, and facial expression analysis, can measure real-time subconscious responses to products, ads, and other stimuli.
• 😀 Simple environmental changes, like displaying a product as scarce (e.g., 'limited edition'), can significantly influence consumer behavior and increase purchase intent.
• 😀 Packaging design that aligns with associations of premium quality (e.g., timber boxes for wine) can increase consumer willingness to pay, even if the product itself is identical to a less expensive version.
• 😀 Humorous advertisements are not always effective unless they are directly related to the product or brand being advertised. The effectiveness of humor depends on context.
• 😀 Moderate difficulty in reading fonts or images can sometimes increase consumer attention and engagement, contradicting the common belief that simplicity is always best.
• 😀 By combining conventional research with biometric data, brands can gain deeper insights into consumer behavior, optimize product designs, and encourage more sustainable or ethical purchasing decisions.

Q & A

What is the main argument of the script?

The main argument of the script is that people often overestimate their ability to know themselves and control their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Much of our decision-making is unconscious, and consumer biometrics and neuroscience can help us understand these subconscious processes.

How does the script explain the disconnect between what people say and what they do?

The script explains this disconnect through an example about sustainability. People claim to care about sustainable products, but biometric data (such as eye tracking and facial expression analysis) shows they don't pay attention to sustainability claims on products, revealing that much of our behavior is influenced subconsciously.

What is the role of consumer biometrics and neuroscience in understanding consumer behavior?

Consumer biometrics and neuroscience help track unconscious physiological responses, such as eye movement, facial expressions, heart rate, and brainwaves. These tools allow us to understand how consumers make decisions without being consciously aware of it.

How does eye tracking work in consumer research?

Eye tracking measures where a person is looking, allowing researchers to study visual attention and engagement. It helps identify which parts of a product or advertisement capture attention, providing insights into consumer preferences and behaviors.

What does pupilometry measure, and how does it relate to decision-making?

Pupilometry measures the size of a person’s pupils, which can indicate how much mental processing power is being dedicated to a task. Larger pupils may indicate increased focus or emotional response, while smaller pupils suggest less engagement or interest.

How does skin conductance response contribute to understanding consumer behavior?

Skin conductance response measures the intensity of a person's emotional reaction to stimuli. Increased sweating, which can occur in emotionally intense situations, helps researchers understand the emotional engagement or stress level of consumers in response to advertisements, products, or other experiences.

Why is the concept of 'scarcity' important in consumer behavior, and how does it affect decisions?

Scarcity triggers a subconscious desire to value and acquire resources that seem limited. In the script, it's shown that people are more likely to buy products from shelves that appear to have lower stock levels, even if the products are similar in nature, because they perceive them as more valuable due to their limited availability.

What impact do visual cues like packaging and product design have on consumer decision-making?

Visual cues such as packaging and design can significantly influence consumer choices. For example, the script highlights how changing a wine bottle’s packaging to a wooden box, which is associated with premium products, can increase its perceived value by up to 30%.

What myths about consumer behavior are debunked in the script?

The script debunks the myth that humor and easy-to-read fonts are always effective in engaging consumers. It shows that sometimes, more complex or harder-to-read fonts and images can capture attention and engagement better, and that humor is only effective if there's a clear link to the product.

How can consumer biometrics be applied to encourage more sustainable or healthier decisions?

Consumer biometrics can identify subconscious biases and decision-making patterns. By understanding these factors, businesses and organizations can design marketing campaigns or product features that nudge consumers toward more sustainable, ethical, or healthier choices, even if these options are more costly.