Evolution of perceptions about neuromarketing until 2020 in Belgium and comparaison with more traditional marketing research methods.

Abstract

Traditionally, market research has been linked to data obtained from respondents' self-reporting using a variety of methods such as questionnaires, focus groups and in-depth interviews. However, the factors that influence decision-making in consumer behaviour are sometimes beyond our consciousness and cannot be detected with more traditional research methods. To do this, a new field of study has emerged halfway between behavioural psychology, economics and consumer behaviour. It is called neuromarketing. The objective of this technique is to capture the brain activity generated by a response to a commercial stimulus using different neuroscientific tools. From this perspective, the aim of this final thesis is firstly to analyse the concept of neuromarketing in order to better understand it, but also to know concretely what it encompasses. The opportunities and threats of this technique will be highlighted, as well as the expectations. Next, it will be interesting to define the influence that neuromarketing has on the methodology used and the relationship it has with more traditional techniques. Is it complementary, dependent or a substitute for them? Finally, the circumstances in which neuromarketing is more effective will be revealed. To reach this result, a review of the scientific literature was first carried out in order to immerse oneself in the theoretical concepts. Then 11 experts in the fields of neuromarketing but also enterprises in the field of fast-moving consumer goofs (FMCG) were interviewed according to a qualitative study with semi-directive interviews. The opinions were compiled and will be critically analysed and compared to the theory in the last part of this work with the software Nvivo. For example, this research has revealed the following. The sample size is generally smaller in neuromarketing and may lead to a failure to validate and result in a non-representative sample. The cost of these studies is currently still very high and the most efficient devices are not easily accessible. But this will be a challenge for the future of neuromarketing, it is hard to democratize and become more accessible, everywhere for everyone, for example by means of smaller embedded software. To conclude, I would say that neuromarketing is inseparable from more traditional research methods. They complement each other and guarantee an overview by bringing different information from different tools. This can therefore represent a contribution if these two entities do not converge in the same direction.