Neuromarketing: Will it Revolutionise Business?

Neuromarketing, the latest form of marketing study and practice, is the study of the brain’s responses to advertising and all the messages and images that they are associated with by using the functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI). It assumes that the human brain has discrete functional areas and that consumer behaviour is largely driven by the subconscious. NM has been regularly used for about five years now by major corporations across a wide spectrum of categories and has received much attention from popular press. It has also elicited severe opposition from consumer groups which argue the dangers of mind control. However, NM’s fundamental premises are weak, it lacks empirical proof and is also used to further economic and political interest. The authors are thus sceptical about NM’s true effectiveness and believe that it is more hype than substance.