Login | November 05, 2024
New AI program helps companies improve advertising/marketing campaigns
In May, 40 individuals were brought to The University of Akron to test the effectiveness of the marketing materials utilized by NeuroSocial Labs client Troy, Michigan-based Robotic Precision Therapy Clinic. The clinic uses the RX2600 therapeutic robot to administer gentle pressure in intervals to a specific area of a muscle to relax and lengthen the muscle fibers, which can decrease pain and increase mobility. (Photo courtesy of Robotic Precision Therapy Clinic).
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: November 5, 2024
Each year business owners allocate a portion of their budgets for advertising and marketing on social, digital and traditional media to grow their companies and increase profits, but how do they know if their campaigns are getting attention in the noisy social media space or having the impact they want beyond looking at their bottom lines?
In the spring of 2024, Akron area native Shon Christy, founder and president of Shon Christy Social Media, partnered with researchers at The University of Akron College of Business to test a new artificial intelligence (AI) program that allows companies to measure consumers’ individual reactions to what they are seeing and hearing and use the data to make their marketing efforts more effective.
Christy came up with the idea for NeuroSocial Labs, as it’s called, about a year ago.
“I was on a hike and listening to an Andrew Huberman podcast that was talking about how the brain receives messages and it got me thinking about how I could gather and use information to improve upon the social media campaigns that I do for my clients,” said Christy, founder of NeuroSocial Labs.
“With the emerging role that artificial intelligence is playing in content creation, it seems critically important that we have a better understanding of the effectiveness of the messaging that humans are creating for human consumption.”
Employing technologies from the university’s Gary L. and Karen S. Taylor Institute for Direct Marketing, the Fisher Institute for Professional Selling and the Benjamin and Nancy Suarez Applied Marketing Research Laboratories, Professor of Practice Vanja Djuric-Zoric and a group of undergraduate and graduate business and psychology students are testing various components of campaigns used by both new and established businesses to attract customers.
“Our cutting-edge lab combines eye-tracking technology with advanced emotion analysis, giving us a powerful window into consumer behavior,” said Djuric-Zoric.
She said researchers are able to see exactly what captures a consumer’s attention on a company’s website, how long the person focuses on certain areas and whether the individual revisits key sections, analyzing the emotional responses in real time.
“This dual approach helps businesses understand both where their customers are looking and how they feel, providing deep insights that can optimize engagement and improve user experience," said Djuric-Zoric, chair of the Department of Marketing at UA’s College of Business.
There is also an advanced infrared camera that monitors body temperature and a camera that tracks facial expressions, allowing moments of stress or discomfort during conversations, negotiations or interviews to be detected.
“This technology provides valuable insights into physical and emotional responses, helping businesses and professionals understand how individuals react under pressure and how they manage these interactions,” said Djuric-Zoric.
“We can recruit specific target audiences for businesses and test their reactions to determine whether a campaign is having the intended effect,” said Djuric-Zoric.
Executives at Walmart Inc. have already utilized the approach to test their grocery store app on mothers.
“Prior to partnering with Shon, we brought in over 30 moms to see if they would prefer using the app or the website to do their regular shopping,” said Djuric-Zoric.
“One of the biggest benefits of this project from the university’s perspective is the training it can provide to our students,” she said. “Currently, we have a graduate student working on the program, supported by a dedicated staff of undergraduate students.
“We plan to expand our team in the future by recruiting additional students from both our master’s and undergraduate business and psychology programs.
“The hands-on experience will be invaluable to them when seeking employment,” Djuric-Zoric said.
In May, 40 individuals were brought to the university to test the effectiveness of the marketing materials utilized by NeuroSocial Labs client Troy, Michigan-based Robotic Precision Therapy Clinic.
The clinic uses the RX2600 therapeutic robot to administer gentle pressure in intervals to a specific area of a muscle to relax and lengthen the muscle fibers, which can decrease pain and increase mobility.
“When we opened in 2009, we had one robot,” said Director of Operations Arin Rentz. “Now we have six robots and robotic therapy is our primary form of therapy.
“We have grown quite a bit, but we are looking to expand further,” said Rentz. “We know that 75% of our business comes from client referrals, which is great.
“However, we want to expand upon how we get the word out about our services,” said Rentz. “We were doing some basic marketing but before we put the money into launching a major campaign we wanted to know if our messaging was hitting home.”
So Rentz reached out to Christy, who she had met through a business connection about two years earlier, requesting that various aspects of their materials be tested.
“We assembled samples of our banner ads and social media campaigns for the subjects,” said Rentz. “Our director of marketing Briana Gustafson and I drove to The University of Akron to watch the first subjects test the samples as well as our website.
“We had people from all walks of life and different socio-economic backgrounds,” she said. “We had them fill out a follow-up survey and we were able to chat with them afterward.”
While not all of the results are in yet, Rentz said the data they have received prompted the company to make some adjustments to its website.
“The video is now the very first thing that people visiting will see,” she said. “It starts playing the moment someone lands on the site. It used to be further down but based on the feedback we now believe potential clients should be able to understand what we do right from the start.”
She said they also made some changes to their social messaging and banner ads after speaking to the testers on the first day.
“One unexpected but positive takeaway was on where our office should be located,” Rentz said. “In addition to learning key marketing strategies, we also gained valuable insights into logistics and selected an office space that maximizes accessibility to serve the highest number of people.”
Christy said he plans to use the success of the pilot to launch mobile labs to scale the program nationally.
“We believe this is the new way for businesses to help ensure the success of their social media marketing campaigns,” said Christy.