TO THE LIMITS OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE OF THE BRAIN: THE RELEVANCE OF NEUROSCIENCE TOOLS IN MARKETING PRACTICE AND RESEARCH

Considering that the total advertisement expenditure worldwide is forecast around 500 billion dollars annually, the potential of a field that can inform companies about how to target their customers based on their conscious and subconscious needs is inconceivable. Companies are constantly trying to find new sources of competitive advantage and neuromarketing is currently seen as a highly innovative solution with over 300 commercial companies and many academic institutions involved. This paper is intended to provide a comprehensive literature review for marketing professionals and its purpose is to clarify the role of neuromarketing in the current research methods. Important concerns about the use of neuroscience research tools (fMRI, EEG, GSR, Oxytocin levels measurement through blood sampling and one commercial device - Emotiv EPOCH) are discussed in a way that can be understood by the wider public. In conclusion, it is highly improbable that the consumer brain could be well understood without good underlying general models of the human brain, the processes that form and decide human behaviour, advancement of technology, excellent understanding of the measurement methods, and most importantly valid data analysis.