Essay: The Right Sensory Mix, by Diana Derval (EXEC PROG 03 & EXEC MBA 05)

Why do some people drink black coffee and others stick to tea? Why do some people prefer competitors’ products? Why do we sell less in this country? 

Many companies fail to acknowledge and analyze disparities observed among customers and simply put them down to culture or emotion. 

“However new neuroendocrinological research proves that people are rational: they just have a different biological perception of the same stimulus! Their preferences, behavior, and decisions are strongly influenced by the hundreds of millions of sensors monitoring their body and brain. People with more taste buds are for example sensitive to bitterness and are more likely to drink their coffee with sugar or milk, or to drink tea.”

This book helps executives to decode people’s behavior and preferences, design the right sensory mix accordingly (in terms of color, shape, depth, taste, smell, texture, sound, and more), shape attractive products and services for every local market, devise immersive experiences for each persona, and increase the innovation adoption rate. 

The author holds a PhD and an EMBA, and is the chair of DervalResearch. Harvard Business Review contributor, award-winning author, patented inventor, and social entrepreneur, she turns neuroscientific breakthroughs into powerful predictive tools and helped Fortune 500 firms including L'Oréal and Philips accelerate their development.

The Right Sensory Mix: Decoding Customers’ Behavior and Preferences
By Diana Derval (EXEC PROG 03 & EXEC MBA 05)
Springer
322 pages
€73,84

By the same author: Designing Luxury Brands

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