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Novel versus familiar brands: An analysis of neurophysiology, response latency, and choice

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Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to analyze neurophysiological activation, response latency, and actual brand choice concerning novel and familiar brands. The results show that (1) the choice of novel brands (compared to the choice of familiar brands) is preceded by increased activation of both the cingulate gyrus and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, as measured by a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study; (2) novel brands are associated with longer choice response latency than familiar brands; and (3) positive mood enhances response latency of choosing novel brands compared to familiar brands.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the editor, Frank Kardes, and two anonymous reviewers as well as Oliver Schilke and Gui Xue, and the session audiences of the 2010 Association for Consumer Research Annual Conference and the 2011 American Marketing Association Summer Conference for valuable comments on earlier versions of this research. This work was supported by a generous grant from the Google & WPP Marketing Research Awards Program, Grant #2009-10.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Brain & Creativity Institute, University of Southern California, 3620 McClintock Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-1061, USA

    Martin Reimann & Antoine Bechara

  2. Department of Marketing, EGADE Business School, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Avenida Fundadores y Rufino Tamayo, Garza García, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, 66269

    Raquel Castaño

  3. Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University, 500 Granville Street, Vancouver, Canada, V6C 1W6

    Judith Zaichkowsky

  4. Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Clinical Research Division, McGill University, 6875 LaSalle Boulevard, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H4H 1R3

    Antoine Bechara

  5. Department of Neurology, UI Hospitals and Clinics, University of Iowa, 200 Hawkins Drive, 2007 RCP, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA

    Antoine Bechara

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  1. Martin Reimann
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  2. Raquel Castaño
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Correspondence to Martin Reimann.

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Reimann, M., Castaño, R., Zaichkowsky, J. et al. Novel versus familiar brands: An analysis of neurophysiology, response latency, and choice. Mark Lett 23, 745–759 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-012-9176-3

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