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Day: February 1, 2024

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2024 Consumer Psychology and Trends

Consumer-related motives can be divided into physiological and psychological. This distinction also shows the relationship between motives and needs. Physiological motives stimulate movements that are linked to the basic functions of the body. Psychological motives, on the other hand, stimulate emotional and mental movements.  Perception is the acquisition of information about the existence of an event or object through the senses. Every person gives meaning to all stimuli in the environment. Consumers perceive information from their environment. However, everyone’s perception is different and personal experiences, beliefs and values influence perception.

Marketers take these factors into account to ensure that consumers perceive their product or brand in a positive way. By drawing inferences from previous shopping experiences, consumers engage in a learning process that influences their future purchasing decisions. These experiences shape consumers’ perceptions of a product or brand, and these perceptions enable marketers to ensure that they are consistently top of mind and strengthen customer loyalty. Moreover, consumers’ memory of the product or brand offers a strategic advantage to improve the effectiveness of marketing efforts, as a memorable brand can create a long-lasting bond between customers.

Especially in the past year, many different marketing and advertising strategies have been tried to better understand consumer psychology. In this process where social media was actively used, more brand collaborations were made with “public faces” on platforms such as Instagram and Tiktok in order for the consumer to experience a sense of belonging.

Brands need to carry out marketing activities in accordance with the profile of the brand’s purpose, especially when promoting the product. For example; if any product is to be promoted in Istanbul, that product must be suitable for historical places. “Maiden’s Tower” is important for the consumer, a lasting effect can be left in the consumer’s brain with a harmonious product match here. However, the suitability of the product, graphic design and many other details must be suitable for advertising. Especially here, the question “what does the brand want to tell?” is of great importance.

It is among the trends of this year that augmented reality-oriented advertisements, especially on street billboards, arouse excitement in the consumer. Again today, everything is about “experience”. Brands associate many of their activities with consumer experience. Consumers have an experience-oriented perspective. With experience, they can actually experience any product or content in their emotional world, which is changing due to the intense use of social media, and establish a bond with it.

Today, with neuromarketing technologies, it is possible to objectively present data on how the suitability of any product, advertisement, advertising content creates emotions in the consumer, the sense of excitement and arousal. With the developing technology in every field, the question marks are decreasing in the information age.

Reference:

Psychologist Merve Altındağ

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The Effect of Light on Human Psychology and Brain

When we are less exposed to light during the winter months, we may face various psychological and physiological difficulties. The human eye perceives visible light at wavelengths between 400 and 700 nanometers. This light emitted from the light source is reflected from objects depending on factors such as color temperature, vibration frequency, color rendering index (CRI), brightness and interaction with various substances. These reflections create different contrasts, reach the eye and affect people’s physical and psychological health.

Vitamin D deficiency can occur, especially when sunlight is not sufficiently utilized. Vitamin D can affect mood as well as general health. People with low vitamin D levels may have an increased risk of depression. The shorter days and longer nights in winter can cause the body to tend to increase the hormone melatonin. This can lead to reduced energy levels and insomnia.

An important fact that has a significant impact on people’s psychology and overall health is the provision of quality and adequate sleep. In this process, the hormone melatonin plays an important role. Melatonin is secreted in response to a decrease in the level of light falling on the retina and promotes the onset of sleep. When light increases, melatonin secretion decreases, which promotes wakefulness. Therefore, a healthy secretion of the hormone melatonin is essential for the regular functioning of the biological clock and to improve sleep quality.

Today, people are exposed to artificial light day or night. Reflected or direct light during the night hours, when we sleep due to the biological clock, can disrupt sleep patterns. Television, computer monitors, cell phone screens, digital clocks, notification lights, vehicle headlights, streetlamps are some examples that can affect our sleep patterns at night.

Some experimental studies have shown a reduction in symptoms of depression in individuals who are more exposed to sunlight. When this effect is combined with antidepressant drugs, it reveals that more effective results can be obtained compared to the use of medication alone.

Another important effect of lighting is that its color and brightness values affect people’s eating habits. Studies have shown that people eat slower and less frequently in dimly lit restaurants. However, in this case, people are less alert and therefore less attentive to food calories. It is also thought that different light environments may affect eating habits through the influence of hormones. For example, it is thought that warm and yellow tones of light may affect the secretion of hormones such as serotonin and melatonin during meals. This in turn can affect the experience and taste of eating. Color and light arrangements can change the atmosphere of a space and the perception of food, which can have an impact on people’s food choices and consumption habits.

Reference:

 Psychologist Merve Altındağ

KÜÇÜK, S. (2023). Aydınlatma ve Işığın İnsan Yaşam ve Sağlığı Üzerindeki Etkileri. Yeni Yüzyıl Journal of Medical Sciences, 4(3), 95-102.

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User Experience & Neuromarketing

Throughout history, human-centered approaches have been adopted to improve efficiency and deliver a better product, service or interface. Developed in 1993 by Donald Norman, this concept involves the interaction of the end user with every aspect of a company, services and products. Starting from the decision to download a mobile app, encountering the app, interacting with the app, using the app components and realizing the purpose of downloading the app are all examples of a user experience process. User experience practice focuses on improving this human experience. To provide a high-quality user experience, the service needs to bring together elements of engineering, marketing, graphics, industrial design and interaction design. User experience encompasses an individual’s interactions with a brand’s product or service.

User-friendliness focuses on the ease of use, accessibility and comprehensibility of a product or service. It evaluates how effectively users can use an interface to achieve their goals. It plans how users will interact with a system. This includes user interface design, navigation layouts, button placements and other interaction elements. They seek to understand user behavior and needs by studying and analyzing users’ interactions with the product. This includes methods such as user testing, eye-tracking studies and feedback collection. It deals with organizing and presenting information to make it easier for users to access information. This includes elements such as categorization, labelling and menu layout. User experience designers conduct user research to understand potential users and develop solutions that fit their needs. This can include demographic analysis, user profiles and market segmentation. It includes colors, typography, graphics and other design elements to make the user experience visually appealing. Visual design deals with brand identity and user interface aesthetics.

By integrating neuroscience research into user experience design, it is possible to better understand the effects of products and services on users. One of the commonalities between neuromarketing and user experience design is neurodesign principles. These principles can be used to make visual communication, user interface design and brand messaging more effective. Neuromarketing is concerned with the methods used to assess and understand emotional responses. Understanding emotional intelligence in user experience design can improve the ability of design to create emotional connections. User feedback, when integrated with neuromarketing data, can assess users’ emotional responses to better understand their impact on the design. Through the collaboration of neuromarketing and user experience, the emotional impact of services and products can be deeply and professionally understood.

Reference:

Psychologist Merve Altındağ

Pak, H., & Aydın, M. A. H. M. U. T. (2021). Kullanıcı Deneyimi.

Ustaahmetoğlu, E. (2015). Nöropazarlama üzerine bir değerlendirme. Business & Management Studies: An International Journal, 3(2), 154-168.

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Personalized Perception

Each individual’s perception may react differently to the same event or situation. For example, even two people who see the same picture may have a different perception due to their personal background, emotional state and previous experiences. Therefore, perception is personal and varies between individuals. Perception is a cognitive ability to capture, process and actively make sense of information received through our senses. Our sensory organs play an important role in helping us perceive stimuli from our environment, enabling us to understand our surroundings. This cognitive process is extremely important for our everyday life. Perception is an ability that can be developed and exercised through cognitive training. This process requires both “bottom-up” and “top-down” processing of information. That is, it is not only passively guided by information from the outside world, but also actively anticipates and controls a particular stimulus. In this way, perception both interacts with information from the outside world and gains meaning by interacting with the individual’s prior knowledge and experiences.

Perception is a complex process that is not reduced to the classical five senses. Among them, spatial perception involves the ability to be aware of environmental relationships and depends on dermal and kinesthetic perception. Shape perception refers to the ability to learn about the boundaries and angles of an entity and is linked to visual and dermal perception. Example;

Time perception refers to the ability to understand changes in stimuli and organize them over time. Kinesthetic perception involves the ability to interpret information about the environment and the movement and speed of the body and is related to visual, spatial, temporal, dermal, proprioceptive, visceral and vestibular perception. Chemosensory perception represents the capacity to interpret the interaction of chemicals in saliva and is linked to taste perception. Perception is an active process in which we need to select, organize and interpret the information transmitted to the brain. This process consists of a series of important steps. First, in the selection stage, the amount of information we encounter in everyday life exceeds our cognitive capacity. Perception therefore has to filter and select. This selection is based on priorities that are unique to us. Next, we need to organize the stimuli into groups in order to make sense of the information we have selected. There is synergy in perception because what is perceived is considered as an overall whole. Finally, in the interpretation stage, we complete the perception process by giving meaning to all the selected and organized stimuli. The interpretation process is shaped by our past experiences and expectations. In this stage, we combine the perceived information with our own unique perspective and evaluations,

There is a strong relationship between perception and neuromarketing. Neuromarketing can study brain activity to understand how attention can be captured. It can develop new methods and strategies by taking into account the individual’s personalized perception. The difference in perception can be turned into positive data.

Reference:

Psychologist Merve Altındağ

Evelyn Shatil, Jaroslava Mikulecká, Francesco Bellotti, Vladimír Burěs – Novel Television-Based Cognitive Training Improves Working Memory and Executive Function – PLoS ONE July 03, 2014. 10.1371/journal.pone.010147

Improves Sleep Quality and Cognitive Function among Older Adults with Insomnia. PLoS ONE 8(4): e61390. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0061390 Thompson HJ, Demiris G, Rue T, Shatil E, Wilamowska K, Zaslavsky O, Reeder B. – Telemedicine Journal and E-health Date and Volume: 2011 Dec;17(10,):794-800. Epub 2011 Oct 19.

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New Year & Emotions

The New Year brings with it a biological and psychological transformation for all living beings on earth. When we look back over the past year, all our experiences have become more concrete and concise. Each of us has walked different life paths in this past year. Some of us have faced an intense workload, others have experienced moments of great excitement. On the other hand, for some of us, it has been an extremely challenging year. However, if we can read these lines here, it means that no matter what life has brought us, we have somehow managed to survive and move forward.

We start each new year with hopes, excitement and wishes. This cycle carries a message of change in the system we are in; in a way, it says, “Now is the time for change” and continues with the same rhythm. Change whispers that it’s time to do a cost-benefit calculation and review vitality and adaptation. However, there are people who do not have time to think these thoughts. For example, those whose expectations for the New Year are simply not to work on a holiday, or those who have lost loved ones in the past year. As these details emerge, the perception is that for each of us, every year is a race, that time seems to be our enemy. But perhaps we need micro-evolutions within ourselves. Perhaps time can only help us move away from the ways of thinking, feeling and behaving that plague our brains or trigger the desire for change. In this respect, each new year is not just a calendar change, but also an opportunity for inner transformation.

Today perhaps represents tomorrow, and tomorrow represents yesterday. The intense meanings we attach to the past and the future can rob us of the only reality we have – the present. It is only when it is time for a new year, when we look at the last week of the year on the calendar, that we face this reality. Despite the fact that we experience it over and over again every year, the lack of rational discussion to deal with the discomfort of not being able to experience certain emotions, situations and behaviors “as they should be” is perhaps the reason why we organize big parties.

How is it that so many people, companies, systems sit down and make a financial calculation of the past year, but not an emotional, spiritual, psychological calculation? Perhaps if we sit down and talk about our sadness, our fears, what we have lost, and maybe start the new year by accepting these things, we will neither blame the past year nor establish a more meaningful connection with a sense of longing for the new year. If we enter the new year by internalizing, accepting, owning, and most importantly not running away from our emotions that we do not marginalize, that we do not constantly compare with logic, to be one with us in the middle, then maybe we will make micro changes in the cycles I mentioned.

Now, as we enter the new year, in these hectic days of final preparations, it is time to sit down and think… In order to make new wishes, we first need to come face to face with last year’s wishes and dreams and decide to say goodbye to some and move on with others. Starting this year with a reviewing our well-being can create positive signals in our bodies. Positive signals can also stimulate our emotions. Taking action is perhaps one of the most important topics for human beings. It is what makes us who we are…

May the new year be a year filled with more moments with your loved ones, joy, acceptance and excitement.

Psychologist Merve Altındağ

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The Importance of Colours in Neuromarketing

The color of the year has been chosen! Pantone Color Institute has determined the color trend for 2024 and announced this year’s main color as “Peach Fuzz”. This color will bring a breath of fresh air to any space, creating a vibrant and modern atmosphere like a fresh peach fuzz.

Color is a communication tool that speaks its own unique language beyond verbal expressions. Considering that each color carries its own language and meaning, we can say that colors have a flexible and variable energy. In the language of colors, it is possible to trace a meaning that changes from one individual to another, from one day’s atmosphere to another. Colors have the power to express a mood, emotional state or atmosphere, so the meaning of colors can change depending on how the energy they carry is perceived and interpreted. The moving and dynamic nature of colors points to the fact that each one can have different meanings in the context of time, space and the individual.

So what is the impact of colors on our psychology and perception?

In general terms, some colors have common meanings and reflections for humanity. For example, the color red is striking and exciting. It is associated with passion, dynamism and energy. Using the color red intensely can trigger respect and aggressive emotions. The color red is also used in products that appeal to youth. 

Again, the color green is associated with feelings of peace, freshness and comfort. It is frequently used in areas such as health and natural product packaging. Black matches with the words power and charisma. It has been found that people have less stomach pain in green environments. Green is also the most preferred color for gum packages and places where vegetables are sold. Colors have been found to deactivate some nerve cells in the eye for a short time. The color green is one of them. Excessive use can also trigger negative emotions in people. Orange is defined by the themes of sincerity, warmth and innovation. It is frequently used by many brands in both advertisements and product lines, especially when entering the summer months.

Consumer buying behavior can change according to the color chosen. It also plays an important role in defining a brand. The color used gives unconscious messages, for example, if the product to be marketed is a food, messages are given to the consumer at the point of naturalness and health suitability.

The color of the year “Peach Fuzz” seems to be used continuously by many brands throughout the year. From product packaging to interior design, from graphic design to fashion, the color of 2024 plays an important role in determining the aesthetic trends of the coming year.

Reference:

Psychologist Merve Altındağ 

Alici, N., & PAKTAŞ, M. G. (2020). İç mekânda renk algısı ve psikolojiye etkileri. Modular Journal, 3(1), 89-105.

DEMİRDÖĞMEZ, Ö. G. D. M. (2021). GİRİŞİMLERİN (İŞLETMELERİN) KULLANDIKLARI RENKLER VE PAZARLAMADA RENK PSİKOLOJİSİ.

ÖZDEMİR, A. G. T. (2005). Tasarimda Renk Seçimini Etkileyen Kriterler. Çukurova Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 14(2), 391-401.

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The Sense of Smell and Memory

The amygdala, known as the source of emotions, and the hippocampus, known as our memory and learning center, are located in the limbic system. The olfactory bulb, stimulated by odor molecules, carries odor-related information to both the limbic system and the olfactory cortex in a straightforward way. Thus, our sense of smell adds a more emotional dimension to our memories than our other senses. The research conducted by neuroscientist Dr. Rachel Herz from Brown University has shown that memories triggered by odors are as accurate, detailed and vivid as those triggered by our senses of sight, hearing or touch. However, memories triggered by odors were found to be more emotional than those triggered by other senses.

So, can odors help us remember what we have learned?

The idea that odors can help us remember is supported by a well-established psychological phenomenon called context-dependent memory. Context-dependent memory is the phenomenon whereby information learned is remembered better when the individual is in the same environment or context in which the information was learned. According to Dr. Rachel Herz’s research on the phenomenon of context-dependent memory, the participants in the study, who were students, were asked to learn sixteen words in a room with an unfamiliar smell, and a week later they were tested to see how many words they remembered. While the first group was not exposed to any stress, the second group was asked to learn the words one hour before their exams, that is, by being exposed to stress. When the recalled words were tested one week later, neither group was exposed to stress. In addition, the same odor given to the environment during the learning phase was used throughout the test. The results showed that participants who were exposed to stress in the presence of an unfamiliar odor while learning words recalled more words than the other group.  To summarize, although odors help us to remember what we have learned and our memories in a more emotional way, learning new information should be accompanied by both an unfamiliar odor and an intense emotion. Only in this way can odors be used as a tool to help us remember.   

In conclusion, unlike our other senses, in the field of neuromarketing, odors, when associated with intense emotions, can help consumers emotionally remember products, brands, experiences and services. However, as mentioned in the previous article, when we experience an odor for the first time, we immediately associate it with the positive or negative emotion we feel in that context through odor-associative learning. This association determines our perception and reaction to this odor in the future. In other words, when using scents in the field of neuromarketing, it should be ensured that the consumer associates a scent that they will experience for the first time in a store with positive intense emotions. In order for this association to create a positive result, attention should be paid to, for example, the behavior of the employees towards consumers, the interior design of the store, the placement of the products and the avoidance of long queues. Thus, each time the consumer visits the store, they will perceive the odor in the environment and feel the positive emotions that they have previously associated with and will shop more frequently from this store. Conversely, if the consumer associates the odor with negative intense emotions when they experience it for the first time, they will remember the negative emotions they felt before every time they visit the store and experience the odor again in the future, and they will avoid shopping at the store. Therefore, if used consciously and carefully, scents are seen as an important strategy to enhance customer loyalty.

References

Nörobilim Uzmanı Yağmur Başak Ören

Herz, Rachel. The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell. Harper Perennial, 2008.

Herz, Rachel S. “Are odors the best cues to memory? A cross‐modal comparison of associative memory stimulia.” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, vol. 855, no. 1, 1998, pp. 670–674, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1998.tb10643.x.

Herz, Rachel S. “Emotion experienced during encoding enhances odor retrieval cue effectiveness.” The American Journal of Psychology, vol. 110, no. 4, 1997, p. 489, https://doi.org/10.2307/1423407.

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The Sense of Smell and Emotions

Our sense of smell is more closely related to our emotions than our other senses, thanks to its direct connection to the limbic system and the amygdala. Compared to our other senses, our olfactory system is the first sense to develop in the womb and completes its development at 12 weeks. In other words, we all start learning about smells even before we are born, in the womb, in the amniotic fluid. Research has shown that what mothers consume during pregnancy affects the baby’s smell and taste preferences. In addition, it is known that the culture we belong to has a great influence on our smell and taste preferences.

Trygg Engen, who is considered to be the father of psychological research on smell, states that when we sense a smell for the first time, it does not actually mean anything to us. However, the context in which we experience this odor (place, situation, person or event) and, most importantly, the emotion that this context creates in us, become associated with the odor we experience. Depending on the odor that we experience and that becomes emotionally important, we form an idea of whether we like or dislike that odor. This theory, which explains how we acquire hedonic responses to odors, is called odor-associative learning. The most important point of the odor-associative learning theory is that how we feel when we experience an odor for the first time determines our hedonic perception of that odor in the future. In other words, the reason why we like an odor is because we had positive emotions when we experienced it for the first time, or because it is associated with something that evokes positive emotions in us. The same is true for odors we dislike; we dislike an odor if we had negative emotions when we first experienced it or if it is associated with something that evokes negative emotions in us. For example, an individual who associates the smell of rose water offered during the funeral of his/her mother with this painful and negative emotions, recalls those negative emotions every time he/she smells rose water throughout his/her life and therefore hates this smell.

To give an example from the field of neuromarketing; you entered a store and encountered a scent you have never experienced before. The products in the store, the layout of the products, the interior design of the store, the price range and the attitude of the employees made you feel valuable and satisfied. You associated these positive feelings with the unfamiliar odor in the environment through odor-associative learning. Thus, every time you visit that store and every time you sense that smell in the environment, you will feel the same positive emotions and you will start to shop at that store more often. Of course, in order for this relationship to continue, positive emotions should be evoked in the consumer continuously as much as possible. If the ambient scent is associated with negative emotions experienced in the store (waiting in long queues, indifferent behavior of employees, etc.), this will cause the consumer to avoid the store altogether and remember the negative experiences and emotions experienced in the store when the same scent is smelled. Therefore, when using scents as a neuromarketing strategy, it is necessary to consider the importance of the association of emotion and scent. If this association is made consciously, long-term customer loyalty can be achieved.

References

Neuroscientist Yağmur Başak Ören

Herz, Rachel. The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell. Harper Perennial, 2008.

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Olfactory Perception and Neuromarketing

According to research conducted by world-renowned neuroscientist Dr. Rachel Herz of Brown University, when participants were asked which of the senses of sight, hearing and smell they would be willing to give up, 84.6 percent of the participants preferred to give up their sense of smell, which is considerably higher than those who preferred their sense of sight and hearing. What exactly is the sense of smell that many people would rather give up than their sense of sight and hearing?

Olfactory perception begins when molecules in the air filter through our nose and encounter olfactory receptors. This encounter involves each molecule fitting into a single receptor like a puzzle piece. As a result, neural signals are sent via olfactory nerves first to the olfactory bulb in the brain and then to the limbic system, which will be discussed in more detail.

Our sense of smell and our emotions are very closely connected. Both are located in the network of neural structures known as the limbic system. Unlike our other senses (sight, hearing, touch and taste), olfactory nerves are directly connected to the limbic system, meaning that our sense of smell reaches the limbic system by following a direct path in the brain. All our senses other than smell are processed in the brain after being filtered by the thalamus in the limbic system. Therefore, our sense of smell can create emotions without needing to be filtered.

The most important structure in the limbic system that interacts with our sense of smell is the amygdala. The amygdala is known as the structure in the brain where emotions are processed and without it, it is not possible for us to process our emotional experiences, express our emotions and learn from our emotions. According to brain imaging studies, the amygdala is activated when we smell ascent. In fact, it has been found that the amygdala displays more intense activation as our emotional reaction to the scentthat we smell increases. In addition, the amygdala also plays a major role in the formation of long-term memory due to its close relationship with the hippocampus, which is located in the limbic system and is known as our memory center. Although all our senses contribute to memory formation, our sense of smell adds a more emotional dimension to our memories compared to our other senses.

In the context of neuromarketing, our sense of smell is slowly gaining ground in this field. In order to enrich the consumer’s product experience, to make their relationship with the product and brand more emotional, and even to change their emotional mood for the better, many companies have started to use the olfactory perception as a marketing strategy. For this reason, companies that provide consultancy on scent branding and design custom scents for companies using artificial intelligence technologyhave emerged.

In conclusion, the use of the sense of smell in the field of neuromarketing is a promising strategy that will enable consumers to establish emotional connections with brands, products, services and experiences in the upcoming future.

References

Neuroscientist Yağmur Başak Ören

Herz, Rachel S., and Martha R. Bajec. “Your money or your sense of smell? A comparative analysis of the sensory and psychological value of olfaction.” Brain Sciences, vol. 12, no. 3, 2022, p. 299, https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12030299.

Herz, Rachel. The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell. Harper Perennial, 2008.

Ozan, Vedat. Kokular Kitabı. Everest, 2016.

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