News from the Tasty Air

Today we bring you a bit of science. The latest research by Mindshare UK called "Layered" for 2019 has brought really interesting insights from the world of augmented reality and we will analyze them in detail today.

In recent months, Neuro-Insight has worked with Mindshare UK and Zappar on an interesting Augmented reality test. This is the first study of its kind on the consumer, neurological and brand-wise impact of augmented reality on the human brain.

No such research has been done so far. At least not one that understands the neurological effects of augmented reality (AR) and how the brain responds to various tasks. The plan was to reveal the real value of AR - as a marketing and communication channel, but also a daily work tool that has the potential to transform the world around us to be richer, more meaningful and engaging.

Neuroscience and study of the effects of augmented reality on the brain

To obtain sufficient information, 151 smartphone users in the UK aged between 18 and 65 were enrolled. They were further divided into two groups according to their personal characteristics.

Topography (SST) technology was used to measure how the brain reacted to different types of stimuli. SST measures electrical activity in the brain to report on a number of cognitive functions, including attention, personal relevance, emotional response, and memory coding. 

In order to capture changes in brain response, the company created AR and non-AR tasks for participants to measure how the brain responds to differences in perception of tasks.

The selected tasks were as follows:

1.Google Translate: AR online web page with text input

2. Product packaging presentations: Zappar's AR applications versus traditional non-AR applications

3. Stacks (game): Play AR vs. standard version

4. IKEA AR: Placing Virtual Furniture in a room vs. browsing Ikea's website

5. Specsavers: AR application vs classic web browsing

6. Web BBC Civilizations: AR Experience vs. standard web experience

Upon arrival, respondents were informed of each of the six tasks they would perform during the study. Half of the sample completed six tasks in the AR and the other half completed the version without AR.

Participants were asked to perform tasks on the tablet as they would normally do at home, with the order of tasks changing. Respondents were individually filmed while performing tasks, allowing us to adapt their activities per second to their neuro data.

It was really fascinating to see how the brain reacted for the first time to augmented reality.

The brain is affected by three factors of augmented reality

1. AR induces a high level of visual attention in the brain 

2. Augmented reality evokes a “surprising” response in the brain

3. There is a 70% higher probability that what is stored or coded in memory will stay there

Let's dive a little deeper into these three basic teachings to understand what is going on in the brain when we talk about attention, surprise and knowledge preservation.

1. Attention

Attention is an essential guide to any brain reaction. E.g. if people do not register a brand report in the ad they see, this may have no effect on the sales of the claimed business. Whether the information is online, on TV, on a billboard, or in our case represented by augmented reality, attracting attention is something that takes a lot of time and money for successful brands and businesses.

One of the incredible findings of the “AR-test” was the ability of AR to generate a high level of visual attention and engagement compared to non-AR tasks. In fact, after completing our research, we found that AR raised a higher level of attention than almost any other medium we studied.

As shown in the figure above, we see a much higher level of cognitive activity when the brain is exposed to the role of AR compared to a non-AR role.

If we break it down further, we can see an increased level of emotional intensity and visual attention in the brain compared to watching TV or online. It happens here that the brain works much more than we would expect. In particular, we have seen an incredibly strong level of visual attention among younger smartphone users. If we look specifically at the levels of attention induced by AR vs. TV, we see that AR brings 45% more attention. 

2. The so-called "surprising" answer

The second view from the AR-test was based on AR's ability to surprise the end user. What we saw in the studio was a lower "rejection" rate.

The reaction to the new technology may indicate a number of different emotional experiences. We have noticed the notion of 'step back', which was a strong indication of the surprise feeling that occurs in the brain when smartphone users start with AR. In essence, what we see here is something that people do not expect and are a little trapped. This is followed by the first reaction, and this is to retreat until I understand what they see.

It is interesting to note that there was a stronger “step back” response among men than among women, suggesting that in this case they were more quickly acquainted with the unknown.

What does this mean for the future of AR? The ability of AR to deliver surprising and emotionally strong experiences means that it will last in the foreseeable future. And as the software used to create AR experiences is constantly improving, it enables creative companies to create more compelling and immersive AR experiences.

3. 70% higher likelihood of preserving experience

From a neurological point of view, for any type of brand or communication to be effective, it must be stored in long-term memory - otherwise it will have no impact on any of our future actions.

Let's see for yourself. How many ads do you remember from yesterday? Even if you've probably seen hundreds of ads on mobile devices, online banners or outdoor billboards, you probably won't be able to remember more than a few. (ability to remember the number of ads = little since yesterday).

The “AR-TEST” research found that the ability to remember was 70% higher for tasks with AR compared to tasks that were not AR. This means that AR can be a particularly effective way to deliver information to the brain, which is then stored. Despite the higher visual attention of younger people and a stronger approach for men, the response to creating memories was equally high for all groups of respondents.

What does it mean for commercial brands and business? Simply put, the future of AR looks promising. If advertisers are able to achieve 70% higher levels of memory encoding, AR becomes a very interesting means for a broader, more engaged marketing budget.

How the future sees neuroscience for augmented reality

As with most new media, the news factor associated with AR is likely to decrease over time. We are sure that we all remember the excitement of broadband (or dial-up) Internet access and the seemingly endless possibilities that this brought.

We assume that AR will turn into an everyday tool that, like the Internet, becomes an integral part of our daily lives. At this point, the novelty translates into strategy and narration, and content becomes a much more interesting part of providing the experiences of the future. The ability to tell compelling and engaging stories will become increasingly important.

Final recommendation on new technology

So what does this mean for brand names and how can they start using AR as a more effective way to create product awareness in terms of attention, emotion and memory?

These findings have a huge impact on how companies should think about their long-term business strategies. As Neuro-Insight's research suggests, AR experience is much more impressive and unforgettable than non-AR experience, which is a great opportunity for companies to find the way to use this technology.

For example, what will this mean for L&D (learning and development) professionals who know that AR can increase more attention and engagement, but also allow employees to remember more of their training? They will then be able to say “I know what I would do”.

New opportunities will emerge to “excel” with our packaging on supermarket shelves while educating and entertaining our customers during the process. Now is the time to start thinking about your long-term AR strategy and we at TASTY AIR can help you do that.

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