Decoding the Irrational Customer

Of course we want to eat healthy, we say as we munch down on a french fry, ignoring our hypocrisy. You'd think it'd be a no brainer to price something lower to increase sales, but that's not always the case because of the subconscious cues that it sends out. We humans are a strange bunch and Darren Bridger's book "Decoding the Irrational Customer" (published by KoganPage) does a great job of introducing marketers to the psychological and physiological processes, tools, and implementation of neuromarketing.

For those who understand neuromarketing, elements of it might be more of a refresher, while some of it might be new to the reader. Tools he reviews include some I'd consider slightly older standbys (i.e. eyetracking), as well as newer ones that are still very shiny.

Why does neuromarketing matter? Well, you want to know what motivates behaviors. And, it's not always as clear-cut as just asking the decision maker. They often tell you something but it's not really the reason. So, neuromarketing looks at ways to better understand our behaviors and thinking about our actions.

This is no secret or book-ruining spoiler--but most of the time these decisions aren't handled by our conscious and so we really can't answer the questions. As a creative and strategist, I found the content to be interesting with some very fascinating information and a few moments that were a little slow. Some of that might be due to the organization of the book, which in places felt a bit clunky. But overall, it's a worthwhile read if you're looking to understand neuromarketing research better. And if you have clients that believe in research testing ads or campaigns, it's worth your time to read to better understand the processes for the research that will impact your work. It can also help to improve the work you create by increasing general understanding of how people can and cannot be influenced by brand communications.

You can buy this and other marketing books by Darren Bridger from Barnes&Noble.