Neuromarketing: the New Science of Consumer Behaviour

Neuromarketing – which uses neuro- and cognitive science to identify customer needs, desires and preferences – is grabbing the attention of industry. Compared to traditional marketing, which uses surveys to tap the conscious mind, neuromarketing tries to enter the subconscious. How does it work? Which tools and techniques are required to successfully implement it and, crucially, how can its principles be applied in brand strategy? At a recent joint session of the India CEO and CMO Forums in Delhi, Professor Arvind Sahay, who teaches neuroscience, consumer behaviour, brand management and high-tech marketing, among other subjects, at IIM Ahmedabad, decoded these questions.

The Nature of Choice

Part of good brand marketing is understanding and engaging with the unconscious mind. Choice is a combination of factors: conscious, unconscious, rational and emotional. Research proves that, when consumers encounter their preferred brands, there is both a physiological and a biological response – and one over which they have limited control. Whether individual preferences stem from regular use, a fondness for quality or something else, the response a brand evokes drives people to either buy or avoid it. At this point, the part of the brain that deals with emotions is more active than that which deals in reason or logic. Successful marketing is about inducing an unconscious preference for a brand. For this, the marketing team must understand the science behind human behaviour and produce campaigns that sufficiently engage the unconscious mind.

Operating Principles of the Brain

Consumers choose brands that make them feel good. One of the ‘objectives’ of the human brain is to feel happiness, security and other positive emotions. Different neurotransmitters are responsible for each type of emotion – serotonin for security, dopamine for excitement, etc. However, people crave different combinations of emotions and will choose brands that yield this mix. For example, many ads targeted at men use scantily-clad women to subconsciously lift the viewer’s testosterone levels. Testosterone is an important hormone, triggering the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine that encourage people to pay more or take greater risks.

Consumers choose brands that require lower energy consumption, i.e. less thought. At another level, the brain attempts to conserve energy by reducing ‘non-essential’ activities, including deliberate thought. The goal for brands is thus to reduce the extent of conscious thinking a consumer engages in. Surf Excel’s ‘Daag acche hain’ campaign was successful not just because it conveyed the product’s quality but also because, subliminally, it associated Surf with the idea of siblings looking out for each other.

Brands must walk the line between ‘different’ and ‘familiar’ to entice customers without intimidating them. For marketers, it can be a challenge to simultaneously address two of the brain’s key tendencies: pattern-seeking and an attraction to contrasts. The brain sees patterns even where there aren’t any – because familiarity feels secure. At the same time, the brain looks for contrasts and extremes, which provide variety and excitement. Consumers choose brands that fit existing patterns but also pay attention to what is different. For instance, to appeal to young, male motorcycle buyers, an electric-bike company incorporated gears into its machines. Combining an exciting new technology with the familiar hum of gears satisfied the target demographic while also enhancing product performance.

Consumers buy brands that they see others buy. Humans have a mirror-neuron system that makes them imitate the behaviour of others. Indeed, influencer marketing plays into the brain’s natural tendency towards social conformity (or ‘following the herd’). People may choose brands that get directly amplified – such as through conversations generated each time Amul launches a new OOH ad. They also choose brands that get amplified indirectly, through social media, viral marketing etc.

Brand-Building and Memorability

Memorable brands allow consumers to take a mental shortcut but there are instances when consumers choose a weaker brand. The ‘Nirvana’ for brands is to become the obvious go-to choice in everyone’s mind when they think of a product type. It is easier for older, established brands to reach this point, because the brain unconsciously expects a stimulus response to something that is familiar. Thus, brands that are enshrined in one’s long-term memory become an unconscious choice. However, newer brands can use neuroscience, and tools like fMRI, EEG, eye trackers, etc to overcome this bias. They can either seek to achieve ‘brand Nirvana’, or at the very least, solve a mental conflict in consumers that can only be resolved by buying a ‘weaker brand’.

B2B companies must rely on the behaviour of individuals associated with the brand to be memorable. For B2B companies, the company is the brand and sales are really a branding exercise. Here, a key aspect of engagement is to create a sense of transparency and trust between brand and client. Meanwhile, for start-ups, the founders are often a big part of the brand identity. Finally, companies that have both B2B and B2C operations might look to transfer the subconscious impact of branding across the two segments. For example, the sophisticated customer experience associated with Amazon’s consumer business continues to rub off on to AWS’s corporate clients.