The world’s largest companies have started to test consumer neuroscience as a tool to help them make more informed decisions and provide additional value to their customers. These organisations include diverse businesses such as Google, Amazon, Procter & Gamble, Tesco, Expedia, GlaxoSmithKline, Diageo and Ford.

Despite this adoption, there is some confusion about how consumer neuroscience can be applied to help marketers better understand their customers and improve their strategies. In particular, there is a lack of understanding of how this can be beneficial for digital marketing execution.

This report explains how consumer neuroscience and consumer psychology can benefit digital marketers for strategy and implementation. This includes examining consumer neuroscience as a market research discipline, as well as exploring cognitive concepts that can be directly applied by digital marketers. It delves into the history and tools of consumer neuroscience, benefits and limitations, and provides best practice recommendations from experts on how marketers can use neuroscience to improve the effectiveness of their activity.

Econsultancy would like to thank the following interviewees who contributed to this report:

  • Heather Andrew, CEO, Neuro-Insight
  • Vassilis Bakopoulos, SVP and Head of Research and Insights, Mobile Marketing Association
  • Joseph Devlin, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience and Vice Dean at the Faculty of Brain Sciences at University College London
  • Manuel Garcia-Garcia, Global Lead of Neuroscience, Ipsos and Adjunct Associate Professor at NYU Stern School of Business
  • David Lewis-Hodgson, Chairman, Mindlab International
  • Carl Marci, Chief Neuroscientist, Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience
  • Elissa Moses, CEO, BrainGroup Global
  • Kai-Markus Mueller, CEO, The Neuromarketing Labs and Professor of Consumer Behaviour at Hochschule Furtwangen University
  • Pooja Nerurkar, UK Country Manager at Mobi Lab and Digital Marketing Lecturer at the London College of Communication
  • Anastasia Volokhova, Neuromarketing Consultant and Partner, The Black Soil
  • Gerald Zaltman, Professor Emeritus at Harvard Business School and Partner at Olson Zaltman
  • Thomas Zoëga Ramsøy, Founder and CEO of Neurons Inc and Adjunct Faculty Member at Singularity University