Economic theory predicts that people’s spending activities do not vary with environmental conditions, such as seasons and weather-related factors. As neuromarketers, we know better than that. It’s hardly surprising we all pay more for ice cream during the summer and the sales of ice cold beers skyrocket when there’s more sunlight. The price dynamics of these nondurable goods make economic sense in the light of increasing demand. However, you wouldn’t expect to find such patterns in durable goods like art, but that’s not what science discovered…

Imagine you’re buying something at the vegetable market, organic carrots for instance. The price tag says it’s $2.00 for the carrots, which is twice the price you would pay for in the supermarket. You decide it’s too much and want to walk away. And then the owner of the market stand comes up to you and says: “Hold on, for you, the price is only $1.00!” How would you feel in this case?

We’ve all heard it before: “buy this car and have the luxury life you always wanted”. Usually, advertising sketches a utopia; an idealistic world. This form of marketing, where a certain product offers the key to the life you always wanted, is known as aspirational marketing.

This form of advertising builds on the principle of cognitive consistency theory, which claims that a fit between one’s self-concept and an identity-enhancing brand or product category leads to greater attraction.

Let’s start with a simple question: how many people do you know that actually enjoy the commercials that interrupt their favorite TV-show? Exactly, me neither.

For years, online marketers have been investigating what consumers will tolerate and how ads can deliver a strong message. One of the most desirable effects of an ad is brand recognition – this means whether customers recognize your brand and correctly associate it with the right product. 

It’s one of the most intriguing questions in neuromarketing today: how can we predict people’s choices by having a peek into their brain activity?

Our brains are made up of many clusters of neurons, each devoted to specific – but often yet weakly understood – functions and processes. Scientists and marketers unite in pursuit of so-called ‘buying buttons’. These specific brain areas are particularly responsive towards alluring products, commercials or otherwise money-spinning marketing stimuli.