New Methodology For Marketers Seeking Recessionary Solutions Measures Consumers' Subconscious Responses Across Eight Dimensions
BERKELEY, Calif., July 6 /PRNewswire-Asia/ --
As the economy sputters, the brain seeks relief in what the world's leading neuromarketing company has identified as "little moments of luxury." This finding lies at the core of the new Luxury Perceptual Framework that NeuroFocus has developed.
In an interview aired on "ABC World News With Diane Sawyer," NeuroFocus founder and Chief Executive Officer Dr. A. K. Pradeep described these 'little moments' as meaningful markers within the subconscious mind. The company created the Luxury Perceptual Framework (LPF) from research studies that have detected this phenomenon in consumers' precognitive responses to its clients' brands, products, packaging, in-store marketing, advertising, and customer service across numerous categories around the globe.
In announcing the Luxury Perceptual Framework, Dr. Pradeep said, "This phenomenon is universal among human beings, and we see its effects in many business fields as well. The brain values and seeks out even small amounts of pleasure and satisfaction in daily life. In times of economic strife, that subconscious pursuit of luxury becomes harder to satisfy, so our implicit luxury pursuit strategies change. We attach more value to 'little moments of luxury' that enable us to feel as though we've experienced something rewarding amidst our stressful daily lives. The Luxury Perceptual Framework is a truly global phenomenon, functioning across geographies, cultural/ethnic/racial sectors and socio-economic levels."
The eight dimensions of the Framework include:
Dimension 1: MORE - Offering just a little more than what is normally regarded as "necessary or needed" causes the subconscious to make the association with luxury.
Dimension 2: VARIETY - Offering a variety of features or entities to choose from enables the "expression of self." Such variety is perceived by the subconscious as a representation of luxury.
Dimension 3: PURPOSE - Linkage to a socially respectable cause--the connection to an elevated purpose--provides the luxury of a sense of nobility.
Dimension 4: RARE and UNIQUE - Possessing the "one and only," or qualifying as one of a select few to own or experience something-even if it is a low-cost but limited-edition premium from fast food restaurants--causes the subconscious to attribute the concept of luxury to that ownership.
Dimension 5: TIME and LABOR - The prize of "hand-crafted"--the mental notion that someone labored with their bare hands to make something for you, be it beer, furniture, or a Rolls Royce-evokes a subconscious perception of luxury.
Dimension 6: ME - Personal recognition symbolizes luxury in the subconscious. If it is customized to or for you, the brain attaches a luxury valuation to it.
Dimension 7: CARE and DETAILS -Attention to small details triggers a significant response within the subconscious that links directly to luxury. A focus on little but meaningful nuances or extra steps translates as care, and that perception becomes a hallmark of luxury.
Dimension 8: AESTHETICS - Higher aesthetic value is automatically equated with luxury. Exemplary aesthetic qualities that stand out to the subconscious include simple, harmonious, proportional, and clutter-free environments. Less is indeed more for the brain in this context.
Pointing to the power of the LPF in economically distressed times, Dr. Pradeep cited the successful launches of Apple products such as the iPad and iPhone. Demand for Apple products not only reflects Apple's intuitive application of many of the LPF dimensions in its product designs, but also for its store environments, packaging, advertising, and customer service. "The brain has rewarded Apple with some of its greatest gifts: attention, emotional engagement, and memory retention. No wonder then that it has become a world leader in consumer technology," Dr. Pradeep said.
Dr. Pradeep explained that brands that leveraged even some of the LPF Dimensions stimulated consumers to make the linkage between their product, package, or service and the subconscious association with luxury. "Smart marketers who look for ways to fulfill our universal but deeply-submerged yearning for luxury, especially in difficult economic circumstances, are likely to reap rewards in terms of purchase intent and brand loyalty," he said. "We see that in our studies, which capture and measure those subconscious responses and others on a daily basis. The Luxury Perceptual Framework also provides a landmark pathway into understanding how consumers respond to superior service levels, the same way that our Brand Essence Framework captures a brand's core attributes at the subconscious level. The LPF may form a game plan for the battle of the brands--and those brands that tap into our constant search for satisfaction, even through the 'little moments of luxury' that NeuroFocus uncovered, can gain a marketplace advantage."
NeuroFocus is the world leader in EEG-based, full brain measurement of consumers' subconscious responses. Its client list includes several of the world's largest companies, and its normative databases far exceed in size and scope those of any other neuromarketing company.
Dr. Pradeep's book on neuromarketing, "The Buying Brain," will be published this summer. In it, he offers a number of never-before-published frameworks and action plans based on NeuroFocus' groundbreaking research into consumers' subconscious responses. Marketers can follow these guidelines to create brands, products, packaging, in-store marketing materials and environments, and advertising that will appeal most powerfully and effectively to the brain.
About NeuroFocus
The world's leading neuromarketing firm, NeuroFocus ( http://neurofocus.com) brings advanced neuroscience knowledge and expertise to the worlds of branding, product development and packaging, in-store marketing, advertising, and entertainment. NeuroFocus clients include Fortune 100 companies across dozens of categories, including automotive, consumer packaged goods, food and beverage, financial services, Internet, pharmaceutical, retail, and many more sectors. Entertainment category clients include major companies in the broadcast and cable television and motion picture industries.
Headquartered in the U.S. and operating globally through offices and NeuroLabs in the UK and Europe, the Asia/Pacific region, Latin America, and the Middle East, the company leverages Nobel Prize caliber and Doctorate-level credentials in neuroscience and marketing from the University of California at Berkeley, MIT, Harvard, Oxford, Columbia University, and other leading institutions, combined with executive business management and consulting experience. The Nielsen Company is a strategic investor in NeuroFocus.
