Introduction of SandBox Co., Ltd.

First of all, Mr. Kikuchi, CEO of SandBox Co., Ltd., who was on stage as a guest this time, introduced the company overview.

Mr. Kikuchi was originally a professional e-sports player, and it seems that he entered the path of biometric information because he wanted to improve his own performance.

Among them, I felt great industrial potential in the field of "brain tech" that handles brain information, and launched SandBox Co., Ltd. with engineers from Japan and overseas. Since its launch, it has been supporting various manufacturers and advertising agencies.

Sandbox's sentiment analysis service is carried out in a flow in which a subject, who serves as a monitor, performs various tasks while wearing a device called an electroencephalograph, which measures the human brain.

It is said that there are about 1,000 types of human emotions, and there are various indicators of emotions that can be obtained within the service, such as favorable impression, interest, stress, and boredom. It is easy to understand if you think of the five senses, and in particular, we are focusing on four areas other than the sense of touch.

For example, in the field of vision, we support product development around design such as packaging and commercials.

Braintech utilization in marketing

From here, we will introduce the main content of this webinar, how to use neuromarketing with case studies.


-Case study of SandBox-

A big advantage of using Braintech in marketing is that we can make the product even more valuable by verifying whether the hypothesized results are being achieved at the product development stage. .

Mr. Kikuchi talked about how this method called "neuromarketing" is actually verified in the flow of product development and design, with specific examples.

The first thing you talked about was the case of a project that the Company conducted jointly with a certain food manufacturer.

At the development stage of products related to sleep, this food manufacturer had a problem that there was a time lag before the relaxing effects of the ingredients contained in the food were exhibited.

As a solution to this problem, we thought that adding flavorings to food would give them a relaxing effect, and we started a project to verify the effect.

Since the credibility of the results would remain questionable if we simply took questionnaires as in the past, we first prepared multiple candidate scents and started verifying them using the Company neuromarketing service.

In the verification, a non-invasive device called EEG was used to measure the brain waves of about 20 monitors while smelling the perfume.

As a result, it was verified that four of the five candidate fragrances had no particular relaxing effect, but rather had an awakening effect.

The waveforms of brain waves during sleep and relaxation have been studied for a long time. could be used for analysis.

With the results of this verification, it was decided that this food would move toward actual commercialization, so it was one of the examples of utilizing neuromarketing in product development.

Considering the time and effort of EEG measurement, it seems that the hurdle is a little high to have 100 to 200 monitors verify it, but it is very easy to get started with verification by about 20 people. hey. (Kusunoki)

The following is an example of a project we conducted with a certain electrical manufacturer.

This electronics manufacturer is developing a new type of lighting that is different from conventional lighting, and has been developing products assuming use cases where business people and students can demonstrate their concentration in offices and studies. .

They used the Company sensory analysis service to verify whether they were able to improve their concentration when they actually used the lights.

In the verification, we measured the brain waves of the monitor while working with this lighting. As a result, it was verified that there was a strong relaxation effect rather than a concentration effect.

Customers who saw this result evaluated that they were able to verify whether the initial hypothesis was really correct at the product development stage. By changing the use case for the space, we were able to proactively switch our sales strategy.

This was an example of how we were able to meet the needs of not only the customers who use the product, but also the needs of the developers.

At first, we were developing a product with the effect of increasing concentration, but if the product was released to the world without knowing that it actually had the opposite effect of relaxation, the product would have a different concept. It seems that the ability to know the true effect in advance by verification using brain waves will have a considerable impact on future product development. (Kusunoki)

In this way, by verifying whether the results will come out according to our hypotheses before the product is sold, we can make the product truly valuable. It's one of the big benefits.

The last case that you introduced is a joint project with a certain pharmaceutical manufacturer, and it is a verification for toothpaste.

This product has a strong, peculiar taste compared to other toothpastes, and people who have used it for the first time have reported feeling disgusted by it or not liking it very much.

However, after subjects continued to use the product for one to two weeks, brain wave analysis revealed that the product's unique features actually changed their perception of the taste, leading to an addictive feeling.

From the results of this testing, they were able to obtain information that can be used for future development, such as whether the addictiveness was due to differences in gender or the toothpaste that had been used in the past.

When verifying sentiment analysis, emotional indicators such as likability and affinity are among the indicators that show fairly clear results and their characteristics are well established, but emotions such as joy, anger, sadness, and happiness are indicators that vary greatly from person to person, so it is important to set the goal of the task and create an appropriate experimental plan. (Kikuchi)


Macnica Case Study--
Next, as an example of Macnica, we introduced a joint project we conducted with Plus Corporation and BLUE and GREEEN Corporation.

In this project, we attached pictures of specific scenes and sounds that evoked emotions based on those scenes to stationery targeted at high school students, and then measured their brain waves when they heard the sounds to see how the target students responded.

It was the first time for the high school students who participated as monitors to experience EEG measurement, so they seemed nervous at first as they carried out the test.

However, by being able to see their own emotions through objective data, their tension gradually eased, and the EEG measurement progressed smoothly, allowing us to learn the monitors' true impressions and determine the exact effects of the treatment.

As a result of utilizing neuromarketing in product development, we were able to contribute to our customers' sales, making this an experiment that gives us a glimpse of future potential.

During testing, it is important to communicate in advance to obtain accurate data, and at SandBox, we prepare by having participants objectively observe the brainwave waveforms when they actually blink, allowing them to see a realistic reaction on the monitor and relax. We also provide a soundproof room and chairs with headrests to create an environment where participants can relax while testing. (Kikuchi)


At Macnica, we also prepare by measuring the brainwaves of each monitor before conducting the EEG measurement, and then have them perform the actual task, in order to obtain accurate EEG data. Also, if the monitor sweats, it will cause noise in the EEG measurement, so we also thoroughly manage the temperature in the room. (Murata)

In this way, it is said that relaxing the monitor before EEG measurement and preparing the room and seating environment in advance are important points for obtaining accurate data.

Future Prospects Using Neuromarketing

Finally, we asked three people to talk about the future prospects of business using neuromarketing.

As a current technological trend, devices are becoming smaller and more compact, and recently, earphone-type devices have also been developed. It is said that it can be taken.

If it is an earphone type, it can be put on relatively easily, and since the device is in the ear, it seems to have the advantage that it does not slip even if it moves.

In addition, SandBox emphasizes data transparency and delivery speed, and has the characteristic of disclosing the processing process of the acquired EEG data to the customer, and having them understand the flow allows them to proceed to the next step. .

By building a program that automatically removes unnecessary noise data such as muscle movement without much human intervention, speedy delivery is realized.

In this way, by combining the development of hardware with the accumulation of analysis know-how, the AI field has made remarkable progress. (Kusunoki)

In addition, one of the reasons why neuromarketing has been attracting attention in recent years is that companies want to develop better products by knowing what people feel and how they feel at the product development stage. It is said that there is a growing need for

For example, if you are a customer of an automobile manufacturer, by knowing the emotions of the driver in real time, you will not only be able to change the mood while driving, but also evaluate the impression and comfort when using the product. , changes in concentration, etc. can be known in advance.

With the development of such technology, the number of customers who want to create more efficient products for users is increasing year by year.

I believe that the business model of getting to know the people first and then improving the products to create products that exactly match the market and increase sales will continue to spread in the future. (Murata)

It's people who actually make the products, and people who buy them, of course. Braintech, which can satisfy both, looks like it's going to create an interesting future. (Kusunoki)

Summary

At Nagaku Brain Tech, which was held this time, we were able to hear about ``neuromarketing,'' which is the application of Brain Tech to marketing, including examples from the past.

With the development of devices and the further accumulation of analytical know-how, the business applications of Braintech are expected to further expand in the future.

Since specialized knowledge and experience are required to advance the social implementation of Brain Tech, Macnica would be happy to support our customers in this area.

After reading this article, I see! I would be happy if you could deepen your understanding of Brain Tech even just a little bit.

We will continue to deliver content that will help you solve your problems in the next Nagaku Brain Tech, so please continue to check back.

Related information

Measuring brain waves and digitizing the "senses" of people, making AI learn the judgments of craftsmen and "emotions" ~ AI / Artificial Intelligence EXPO Spring 2022 Lecture Report ~

What is neuromarketing?-Next-generation marketing that directly reads thoughts and emotions from the brain-

What is the fusion of Braintech and AI?

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Would you like to actually measure brain waves?
What is the "skill transfer of experts" based on brain waves? What is AI that learns human consciousness and judgment?

I think there are a lot of unknown things, so why not try measuring your brain waves first and experience what it's like?
After the actual measurement, we will provide support from proposals to implementation and operation so that we can use AI using EEG at the customer's site while including examples of AI utilization in our activities so far. increase.

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