According to a case study, on behalf of Britain’s Royal Mail , by leading global research agency, Millward Brown, functional Magnetic Resonance Imagery (fMRI) scanning comparing tangible materials (a.k.a., mail) to digital messaging showed that print, (a.k.a., mail):
- Leaves a deeper footprint in the brain – more “real” or relational to the brain
- Involves more emotional processing (important for memory and brand associations)
- Produced more brain responses connected with internal feelings (suggesting greater internalization of the ads/material)
Red = brain activity viewing mail; Blue = brain activity viewing digital
The fMRI scan showed larger multiple areas of recognition in areas of the brain considered to process emotional, memory, and motor functions when holding a physical piece compared to one small focus point area in the when viewing the same message on screen/digital messaging.
Click this link to read the full report,
http://www.gofranklingo.com/pdf/DirectMailNeurology.pdf
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One Comment
Very interesting! I think that this points out that digital messaging creatives must work even harder to increase the “blue” parts of the brain in order to create engagement. It’s so true that when you hold something in your hand, and can touch and feel, you DO feel more connected to what you are seeing (at least I do). The test: how do you create that level of “feeling” with email. Great post and report!