Lab

How neuromarketing ad research works

EEG, eye tracker, skin response, heart rate, pupil, facial expressions and breathing are captured in a single recording, while a real purchase and a memory survey 2–3 days later verify the reaction with action. Explore the report on demo data, select a scene in the brain recording, calculate the sample and prepare your materials.

Sample report EEG dashboard Brain map Sample size calculator Prices Preparing materials Metrics glossary
Interactive report

Study results — as the brand sees them

This is the same calculation as in the client dashboard: mixed models, multiple comparison corrections, audience synchronization. The data is synthetic.

Demo data · not a real brand

EEG dashboard: try it yourself

8 channels in the 10–20 system, 32 seconds of video viewing. Select a segment of the recording with your mouse or finger — or tap a scene. A breakdown will appear below: engagement, interest, memory, load and an activity map.

Channels:
Drag across the recording to select a segment · tap to pick a scene
Rhythms relative to baseline
Activity map
below baselineabove baseline
Brand comparison · full video
How the metrics are calculated
  • Engagement — the β / (α + θ) index over F3, F4, Cz, Pz (Pope, Bogart, Bartolome, 1995).
  • Interest (FAA) — frontal asymmetry ln α(F4) − ln α(F3): above zero indicates approach motivation (Davidson, 1992).
  • Memory — increase in frontal θ relative to baseline (Klimesch, 1999).
  • Cognitive load — the ratio θ(F3, F4) / α(Pz).
  • Visual attention — α suppression in occipital leads O1, O2.
  • All metrics are calculated relative to baseline: a 20-second resting recording. Rhythm power uses Welch’s method with a 1 s Hann window. Scale 0–100: 50 equals baseline.

Brands A–E are demo recordings simulated from known EEG patterns (engagement, frontal asymmetry, frontal theta, blinks). This is not data from real companies. For actual studies, the lab uses devices with up to 32 channels and fully cleans the signal of artifacts.

Brain map

Brain map: what each area does

16 areas that matter for ad perception, across both hemispheres. Click an area — or open “Combinations” to see what simultaneous activity in several areas means.

The buyer's brain

16 zones · 11 scenarios
Drag — rotate · Ctrl + wheel — zoom · ⤢ — full screen

Schematic model: deep structures (amygdala, hippocampus, nucleus accumbens, cingulate cortex) are projected onto the surface. Each dot is a neuron, each color a brain system.

All 16 areas and 11 scenarios — as text
  1. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (right) (right hemisphere · frontal lobe). Control and rational evaluation: restrains impulses, weighs arguments and risks. The right side is more linked to caution and avoidance. In advertising: If its activity drops during an ad, the decision is made emotionally, “on autopilot.”
  2. Orbitofrontal / ventromedial prefrontal cortex (underside of the frontal lobe). Subjective value: “how much do I like this.” Integrates taste, price and brand. In advertising: A well-known brand and a high price boost its activity — which is why “branded” feels tastier and more valuable.
  3. Insular cortex (insula) (hidden beneath the lateral sulcus). Body sensations, disgust, unpleasant stimuli — including the “pain of paying.” In advertising: A spike at the sight of the price predicts a rejected purchase. Installments, a focus on benefits and an “anchor” price reduce it.
  4. Nucleus accumbens (reward system) (deep, projected onto the surface). Anticipation of reward and pleasure. In advertising: Activity at the sight of a product predicts purchase better than survey answers.
  5. Amygdala (deep in the temporal lobe). Emotional salience, arousal, sense of threat. In advertising: Scarcity, timers and “today only” (FOMO) activate it and speed up impulsive decisions.
  6. Hippocampus (inner part of the temporal lobe). Forms long-term memory. In advertising: Working with the amygdala, it locks in emotional ads — they are recalled at the moment of purchase.
  7. Primary visual cortex (V1) (occipital lobe). Early processing of contrast, color and motion. In advertising: The first ~100 ms decide whether the eye notices a creative in the feed at all.
  8. Fusiform gyrus (face recognition area) (underside of the temporo-occipital region, stronger on the right). Specialized in recognizing faces. In advertising: A face in the frame automatically draws the eye; a character's gaze directs the viewer's attention.
  9. Motor and premotor cortex (in front of the central sulcus). Planning and “mental rehearsal” of actions. In advertising: Engages when viewers imagine picking up the product or pressing a button. Shots of hands and action amplify the effect.
  10. Parietal cortex (intraparietal sulcus) (upper rear part of the hemisphere). Spatial allocation of attention and number processing. In advertising: Determines how the eye scans a layout and takes part in comparing prices and numeric benefits.
  11. Temporoparietal junction (TPJ) (where the temporal and parietal lobes meet). Understanding other people's intentions and feelings. In advertising: Reviews, influencers, hero stories: the viewer “tries on” another person's experience.
  12. Auditory cortex (superior temporal gyrus). Processing sound, music and voice. In advertising: Jingles, a voice-over and music strengthen emotional response and recognition.
  13. Anterior cingulate cortex (medial surface, deep between the hemispheres). Monitors conflict between options, errors and uncertainty. In advertising: Too many options or a contradictory message → doubt and a postponed purchase.
  14. Left prefrontal cortex (left hemisphere · frontal lobe). Approach motivation and positive emotions. In advertising: If the left side is more active than the right (FAA > 0), the person is interested and “leans in” toward the brand.
  15. Broca's area (left inferior frontal gyrus) (left hemisphere). Producing and processing speech, grammar. In advertising: Processes the slogan and copy; complex phrases raise load and reduce recall.
  16. Wernicke's area (left superior temporal gyrus) (left hemisphere). Understanding the meaning of speech. In advertising: Shows whether the message is clear the first time.
  • Will buy — areas 4 ↑, 2 ↑, 3 ↓. The product is desired, value is high, the price doesn't “hurt” — high purchase probability. What to do: Show the price after the product has sparked desire.
  • Impulse purchase (FOMO) — areas 5 ↑, 4 ↑, 1 ↓. Emotion and reward anticipation override control — the decision is made “here and now.” What to do: Works for low-cost products; for expensive ones it causes buyer's remorse — use it ethically.
  • Too expensive — areas 3 ↑, 4 ↓, 2 ↓. The “pain of paying” outweighs desire — rejection. What to do: Installments, price per day, comparison with a pricier option, focus on benefits.
  • Will remember the brand — areas 5 ↑, 6 ↑, 7 ↑. Strong emotion + memory at work + vivid visuals — the moment will stick. What to do: Place the logo next to the emotional climax of the video.
  • Brand power — areas 2 ↑, 6 ↑, 1 ↑. Knowing the brand changes how the product itself is perceived: a familiar brand seems tastier and more valuable. What to do: Show the brand early if it is strong; hide it if it is weak.
  • Noticed but not interested — areas 7 ↑, 10 ↑, 4 ↓, 14 ↓. The creative catches the eye but doesn't spark desire. What to do: You need a stronger offer or an emotional hook, not more brightness.
  • Trust in faces and reviews — areas 8 ↑, 11 ↑, 2 ↑. Faces and social proof increase trust and perceived value. What to do: Real faces, eye contact with the camera, short reviews.
  • Brand interest (FAA > 0) — areas 14 ↑, 1 ↓. The left frontal lobe is more active than the right — approach motivation: they want to learn more. What to do: A good moment for a call to visit the website or subscribe.
  • Message understood — areas 15 ↑, 16 ↑, 12 ↑. Text and voice were processed without extra effort — the meaning got through. What to do: A short slogan, one idea per shot, voice repeating the text.
  • Doubt, choice overload — areas 13 ↑, 1 ↑, 4 ↓. Conflict between options and heightened control with weak desire — the purchase is postponed. What to do: Cut the number of options and highlight one recommended choice.
  • Ready to act — areas 9 ↑, 4 ↑, 2 ↑. The viewer mentally “presses the button” — desire and action plan align. What to do: This is exactly where the call to action (CTA) belongs.
Sources for areas and combinations
  1. Knutson B., Rick S., Wimmer G. E., Prelec D., Loewenstein G. Neural predictors of purchases // Neuron. 2007. Vol. 53, № 1. P. 147–156.
  2. McClure S. M. et al. Neural correlates of behavioral preference for culturally familiar drinks // Neuron. 2004. Vol. 44, № 2. P. 379–387.
  3. Plassmann H., O’Doherty J., Shiv B., Rangel A. Marketing actions can modulate neural representations of experienced pleasantness // PNAS. 2008. Vol. 105, № 3. P. 1050–1054.
  4. Davidson R. J. Anterior cerebral asymmetry and the nature of emotion // Brain and Cognition. 1992. Vol. 20, № 1. P. 125–151.
  5. Kanwisher N., McDermott J., Chun M. M. The fusiform face area // Journal of Neuroscience. 1997. Vol. 17, № 11. P. 4302–4311.
  6. Hamann S. Cognitive and neural mechanisms of emotional memory // Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2001. Vol. 5, № 9. P. 394–400.
  7. Botvinick M. M. et al. Conflict monitoring and cognitive control // Psychological Review. 2001. Vol. 108, № 3. P. 624–652.
  8. Negmatov N. N. The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) Effect in Advertising and Its Neuropsychological Impact on Impulse Buying // Green Economy and Development. 2026. Vol. 4, № 2. P. 7–11.
Sample size calculator

How many participants your study needs

The smaller the difference you need to detect, the more people you need. The calculation is for within-subject comparison (each participant sees all variants), 80% power, 5% significance level corrected for the number of comparisons.

Need to record
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Discuss a study
Preparation

What to prepare for the study

The more precise the materials, the more precise the answer. This list also helps with the brief.

Videos

  • Final cut or animatic in MP4, 1080p, with sound.
  • Storyboard with scene timecodes — so the report shows each scene separately.
  • Up to 3–4 videos per session: beyond that, participants' attention tires.
  • Competitor videos, if you need a market comparison.

Banners, packaging, prices

  • Images in original quality (PNG/JPG, 1920 px or more).
  • All variants in the same format — otherwise the brain reacts to the format difference, not the idea.
  • For prices — variants of numbers and presentation: discount, installments, “from.”

Taste, smell, texture

  • Samples in identical neutral packaging for a blind test.
  • Enough for 1.5× the participants, plus storage conditions.
  • A separate branded version, if the brand's effect on taste matters.

Price and memory

  • Products for a real purchase and a budget per participant: everyone can actually buy the product at the drawn price.
  • Shelf price for each product — we compare it with what people are willing to pay.
  • List of category brands (yours and 3–6 competitors) and 2–4 frames from the video — for a memory survey 2–3 days later.

Brief

  • What decision you will make based on the results — pick a video, reshoot a scene, change the price.
  • Target audience: gender, age, city, experience with the category.
  • Campaign launch timeline — so we can plan participant recruitment.
Glossary

How to read the metrics in the report

Baseline
The participant's resting state before the screening. All metrics are calculated relative to it.
α, alpha
8–13 Hz. The resting rhythm: drops when the brain is busy. A drop in occipital alpha means visual attention.
θ, theta
4–8 Hz. An increase over the forehead means memory encoding and mental effort.
β, beta
13–30 Hz. Active processing, evaluation, comparison.
FAA
Frontal asymmetry. Above zero — drawn to the stimulus; below — pushed away.
β/α, arousal
Emotional intensity. The ratio of beta to alpha over the forehead: a rise means the stimulus strikes a chord. Together with FAA it gives the emotion map.
ISC
Audience synchronization. How similarly different viewers react; above the chance threshold, the video is guiding attention.
5 axes
Attention, emotional intensity, attitude, memory, value — 0–100, where 50 is the resting state. Each is built from several signals.
GSR
Galvanic skin response. Skin conductance rises 1–3 s after an event — a direct measure of emotional intensity.
Heart rate
Slowing after an event means attention is captured; speeding up over a scene means tension or arousal.
P300
Peak at 0.3–0.4 s. “This matters to me”: the higher it is, the more strongly the stimulus captured attention.
N170
Face response at 0.17 s. Shows whether the person in the frame was noticed.
LPP
Long wave at 0.4–1 s. Emotional salience and sustained attention.
95% CI
Confidence interval. If it doesn't cross zero, the effect isn't random.
p, q
Probability of a chance result. q is corrected for multiple comparisons; significant when q < 0.05.
Recognition
Post-exposure test. The share of participants who recognized a scene frame; false recognitions are measured on frames that weren't shown.
n
Number of participants whose recordings were included after quality control.
Pupil
Dilation means arousal and mental effort; we subtract the response to frame brightness.
Facial expressions
Smiling minus frowning from facial EMG: above zero — liked, below — disliked.
BDM
Willingness to pay with a real purchase. The price is drawn at random; whoever named a price no lower buys. That's why people name an honest price.
Memory days later
Unaided and aided brand recall, and frame recognition among decoys — what will remain by the moment of purchase.
Ad perception basics — in brief

F-pattern scanning

The eye sweeps a wide band across the top, a shorter one below, and then down the left edge. Put the key content in the top-left area. Nielsen Norman Group

Faces capture the eye

The eye fixates on faces before other elements, even before conscious perception — in EEG this shows up as the N170.

Contrast drives attention

High-contrast and saturated elements automatically win the competition for attention — so the product must be the most noticeable thing in the frame.

Emotion strengthens memory

Emotionally charged content is remembered more firmly than neutral content — in the report this shows up as a rise in frontal theta and the LPP wave.

Prices

How much a study costs

We price a neuro study based on the brief: the cost depends on the number of participants, materials and set of signals. A quick AI analysis of a creative has a fixed price.

Neuro studies in the lab

AI creative analysis without participants

Prices in UZS, excluding VAT. All packages, services and prices are editable in the admin panel.

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