Your Brain Says, "Buy This!" What Is Neuromarketing?

Have you heard of the concept of neuromarketing?

Well, have you ever watched the AMC television show Mad Men, which follows the lives of 1960s Madison Avenue advertising executives? In one of the episodes, the lead character, Don Draper, says “Advertising is based on one thing: happiness.” He goes on to tell us that “Happiness is the smell of a new car. It’s freedom from fear. It’s a billboard on the side of a road that screams that whatever you’re doing is okay. You are okay.”

If Don Draper lived now, instead of the 1960s, he would love neuromarketing.

Everybody buys stuff. Sometimes it’s necessary stuff, like razor blades or a new pair of sneakers. Sometimes it’s not, like a 6 speed remote controlled back massager from one of those high-tech gadget catalogs. Sometimes we buy on impulse, such as when go to the supermarket while hungry. Sometimes we buy only after much thought, as when purchasing a new car. 

But why do we want a particular brand of sneakers or a particular make of car? And why would anyone want--let alone think they need--a remote controlled back massager? 

The answer lies in advertising--and its more sophisticated partner--marketing. What’s the difference? 

Advertising is simpler. A Coca-Cola sign on a building is advertising. It reminds you of the product but it doesn’t tell you why you should drink Coke instead of “that other cola beverage”. The “Pepsi Challenge”, on the other hand, is marketing. The goal is to convince you that, since most other people seem to prefer Pepsi, so should you. 

Notice the emphasis on the word “you”. The word “you” is one of the most powerful words in the English language--or any other language--because it activates the deep emotional centers in the brain. If someone says, “Oh, that’s a beautiful sunset!”, you may or may not agree. But if someone says, “Oh, you are so beautiful!”, whether or not you agree, your nucleus accumbens and other regions of your brain’s pleasure centers will be activated and “blush” with excitement at receiving the compliment.

That is something that we now know as a result of brain imaging experiments and this new understanding of how the brain works has given rise to a whole new approach to advertising known as “neuromarketing”. When I first heard the term, I thought it was just more “neurohype”. After all, we hear about all sorts of “neuro” things now, like neuroeconomics, neurolaw, and neuropolitics. But the more I’ve learned about neuromarketing, the more I’m convinced that it’s real and that we can all learn some useful things about ourselves by better understanding how we respond to the constant stream of marketing messages that bombard us every day.

For example, I use a computer in my daily work, not because I want to, but because I need to. That’s just how the practice of medicine has evolved. My patients’ medical records are electronic, so I can access them even if I’m not in the office. All of their prescriptions are sent electronically, right to their pharmacy. I could use a Dell or a Compaq or any other computer, but I use a Macbook Pro, not because I need to, but because I want to.

I use Apple products because of their high quality and ease of use. But I love Apple products because of their elegant design and cutting edge qualities. I don’t want to be the nerd in those “Hi, I’m a Mac-Hi, I’m a PC” commercials. I want to be the cool guy in the black turtleneck who’s super hip and so up-to-date. Even the packaging of Apple products is so cool--like some sort of origami puzzle--that I still have the box from my original iPhone.

But I do not have an iPad, at least not yet. I tell myself that it would make some things easier and it would certainly be lighter to travel with than my Macbook Pro. But do I really need one? I can’t decide. When I do decide, I hope it will be because of a rational decision, not because Apple says “You need an iPad”.

Everybody buys stuff. We should at least know why we’re buying. 

I don’t know if Apple is purposefully using neuromarketing techniques. What I do know is that their marketing is so successful that they cannot keep up with demand. Even if I ordered an iPad 2 online right now, it would take 4-5 weeks to get it. I might as well wait for the iPad 3. That’s how fast personal computers are evolving. And that’s how fast our iBrains are evolving. 

Have you heard of the concept of “iBrain”? Well, I’ll tell you about it in my next blog post.