April 11, 2012

Developing Line of Inquiry - Refreshed

After reading through different books, articles, blog entries and talking to friends, colleagues and to Paula I feel like a stonemasons which has to shape a rock into a fine sculpture. At first I have to decide which sculpture I do want to create, afterwards I have to cast the gross form out of the rock. And I hope to be able to build out the fine lines of the sculpture

Actually I am trying to prepare the stone (topic) for the final destination. A few weeks ago I started out from this question: 

'Which consequences do the application of advertising psychology criteria to graphic design have?'

During my recherche over the weeks for the topic one issue did emerge all time and at nearly every current article that I read when I put the keyword "psyhology" and "advertising" into the google search engine: 
Neuromarketing 
Neuromarketing is a new field of marketing that studies consumers' sensorimotorcognitive, and affective response to marketing stimuli. Researchers use technologies such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure changes in activity in parts of the brain, electroencephalography (EEG) and Steady state topography (SST) to measure activity in specific regional spectra of the brain response, and/or sensors to measure changes in one's physiological state (heart rate, respiratory rate, galvanic skin response) to learn why consumers make the decisions they do, and what part of the brain is telling them to do it. 
From the point of neuromarketing "advertising psychology" seems to me a little bit outdated. During the last years many new insights into costumers purchasing behavior have emerged and some have replaced the insights of advertising psychology. I would like to investigate this new knowledge related to my work as a graphic designer. What happens in our brain is essential for me as an graphic designer, because I want to communicate with pictures and symbols. All parts of a design initiate a response for the recipient. Colors, pictures, symbols and the combination of all of that can change the content of the news which the designer wants to transport to the recipient. I have to encrypt the message and the recipient has to be able to decoding this information. If we don't speak the same "language" it will be hard to "communicate". My aim with this inquiry is to analyze how I can optimize my work results as an graphic designer for the target group of a brand/product. 

Main Question
'Which effects does the application of neuropsychology discoveries to graphic design have?'







4 comments:

  1. Hello Katharina
    This is an incredibly interesting topic, 'the psychology of marketing'. I know next to nothing about this type of psychology
    It sounds as if once you tap into the 'secret' of psychology, as you mentioned, the colours, shapes etc. that attract us, you are on the road to success. It would be very interesting to find out how humans react when they see a certain shape or colour.. What colours make our heart rate increase or what shapes excite us to the point that we must buy the product?etc. Quite fascinating..
    Where will you find the data?
    Will most of this data come from test laboratories?

    I look forward to your inquiry results.
    Best wishes.

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    2. Thank you Corinda. Yes, it is a very interesting and fascinating topic. "Neuromarketing" assumes that it is possible to divide a brand or product into 3 types. It depends on the brand or product in what category the people put them. So, if you are more the "type of adventure" you will probably prefer a special kind of brand or products. But I suppose that many people are mixed-types. Furthermore this isn't a tool for manipulation, because every person have to have a need before somebody a product can attract them. So, Neuromarketing don't state that advertising can wake up a need like the advertising psychology believes. We are free willing human, a product or brand can only fulfill needs that we already have and not artificially create them.

      I will take data and information from discoveries. From psychology about the effects of colors and experience which agencies have made with neuromarketing. I have already found a lot of information, which I have to bring together to my own design. I hope to find enough information to work with.

      Neuromarketing assumes that every human has learned "codes" from his/her family and the surrounded culture. E.g. the smell of fresh coffee reminds german people of family, because we have learned that our mother makes a lot of coffee when the family is going to come. Is it the same in the UK?

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