February 2008

Behavioral economics and neuroeconomics are closely related fields, rather in the same way that psychology and neuroscience are related. It seems that Democrat presidential hopeful Barack Obama has a behavioral economist on his staff. The…

Since the early days of advertising, it's been axiomatic that pictures of babies grab the attention of readers more effectively than any other kind of image. This has led to baby pictures being used in ads for just about any kind of…

Is Scratch 'n Sniff Starbucks in our future? No industry focuses as much on olfactory marketing as the coffee business. Starbucks recently dumped its breakfast eggs because their smell didn't pair well with the coffee aroma. Nestle…

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama is saddled with an unfortunate middle name, “Hussein.” Not only is it the name of one of the most brutal and belligerent dictators in the last century, it also has connotations that might suggest…

The basic concept of facial coding is that a trained observer can detect fleeting facial movements that indicate the true emotions that the subject is experiencing, even if the subject is trying to conceal those emotions. I've written…

Evidence continues to pile up demonstrating that our brains process information without our conscious awareness, and that our behavior can be affected by these stimuli. Last month, a study sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse…

Last year, Absolut abandoned its classic "bottle" ad campaign. That long-running series of ads featured the shape of an Absolut bottle cleverly concealed in an illustration, and was largely responsible for establishing Absolut vodka as…

Researchers at the University of Florida have published the results of their first advertising study using fMRI, a project intended to try to relate brain scan data to specific emotions being experienced by the subjects while viewing ads.…

One of the most annoying series of commercials is for HeadOn, an analgesic which one rubs on one's forehead to (supposedly) cure headaches. Does HeadOn work? I have no idea, but it seems doubtful. Their commercials must work very well,…

OK, he sent you roses on Valentine's Day, but does he really care about you? If you are a subscriber of South Korean cell phone company KTF, it will cost you just a buck and a half per month to discern the emotional state of the people you…