AWARENESS AND PERCEPTION OF THE NEUROMARKETING

Abstract

Market research is undertaken on every consumer or potential customer, but the question is whether or not what he or she says can be trusted, and to what degree. Neuromarketing is a relatively new field of study that allows researchers to examine how the body reacts to stimuli in order to identify consumption triggers without being influenced by self-reporting biases. When a customer interacts with a product or service, they may experience a range of emotions, which might have short- or long-term consequences. Emotional reactions ensuing from this encounter with new things may have an impact on consumers' opinions and, as a result, their buying behaviour. Neuromarketing is a relatively new concept. It all began in 2002, owing to Ale Smidts' studies at Rotterdam School of Management as a professor of Marketing Research. It's a branch of neuroeconomics that blends neurology, psychology, and marketing to study how the human brain reacts to a certain location, brand, product, or campaign throughout the shopping experience. The goal is to better marketing methods by going beyond the conscious hemisphere of the brain to capture the customer's unconscious and unspoken wants. What tools does Neuromarketing employ? Electroencephalography (EEG-Biofeedback) and functional electromagnetic-resonance (FMRI, Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) are both necessary for detecting cerebral activity, brain imaging, and emotional-cognitive responses. The EGG monitors the movement of electrical impulses between neurons in the cortex, which is the outermost part of the brain. It allows you to track emotions like fury, excitement, and suffering. However, it is not as precise as the FMRI, which uses a magnet to identify the pleasure centre. These tools, together with EyeTracking (which tracks ocular movement) and the analytical capabilities of Psychology and Behavioural Sociology, allow us to understand how our subconscious behaviour frequently takes precedence over our rational and conscious behaviour. The experiment that took place in 2004 between the multinational beverage industry titans Coca Cola and Pepsi is one of the most well-known case studies involving the use of Neuromarketing methods. The purpose of the experiment was to confront the customer’s perspective and the power of the Brand to discover how the cultural features of the individuals may impact their opinion. The final results have undoubtedly made a substantial contribution to the marketing literature, with noteworthy statements about the impact that brand power has on customer vii perceptions. In the scenario when the beverage was evaluated without identifying the brand, the sample examined revealed a clear preference for Pepsi. On the other hand, if the consumers were informed of the brand they were evaluating, 75% of them would say they preferred Coca-Cola, activating brain regions associated with self-esteem and good feelings. Customer preferences and purchase behaviour were therefore impacted not by the product's real organoleptic features, but by brand experiences and expectations related to the images and ideals that Coca-Cola and Pepsi have built over time through their ads. Essentially, the true playing field for these two behemoths is one of brand awareness, or the perception that they are able to communicate, rather than one of goods. In a similar fashion this study aimed to study the amount of knowledge consumers have about neuromarketing and how they perceive once we disclose the meaning of neuromarketing to them. But the study was conducted in a quantitative way with a descriptive research design.