NeuroFocus Reveals Groundbreaking Role That 'Little Moments of Luxury' Play in Economically Distressed Times, Introduces Luxury Perceptual Framework

New Methodology For Marketers Seeking Recessionary Solutions Measures Consumers' Subconscious Responses Across Eight Dimensions to Brands, Products, Packaging, In-Store Displays, Advertising, and Customer Service

BERKELEY, California, July 6, 2010 - As the economy sputters, the brain seeks relief in what the world's
leading neuromarketing company has identified as "little moments of luxury."
This finding lies at the core of the new Luxury Perceptual Framework that
NeuroFocus has developed.

In an interview aired on "ABC World News With Diane Sawyer", NeuroFocus
founder and Chief Executive Officer Dr. A. K. Pradeep described these 'little
moments' as meaningful markers within the subconscious mind. The company
created the Luxury Perceptual Framework (LPF) from research studies that have
detected this phenomenon in consumers' precognitive responses to its clients'
brands, products, packaging, in-store marketing, advertising, and customer
service across numerous categories around the globe.

In announcing the introduction of the Luxury Perceptual Framework, Dr.
Pradeep said, "This phenomenon is universal among human beings, and we see
its effects in many business fields as well. The brain values and therefore
seeks out even small amounts of pleasure and satisfaction in daily life. In
times of economic strife, that subconscious pursuit of luxury becomes harder
to satisfy, so our implicit luxury pursuit strategies change. We adjust to
and attach more value to 'little moments of luxury' that enable us to feel as
though we've experienced something rewarding amidst our stressful daily
lives. The Luxury Perceptual Framework appears to function across
geographies, cultural/ethnic/racial sectors and socio-economic levels. The
LPF is a truly global phenomenon."

Dr. Pradeep added that, "This finding has deep implications for brand
development, product design, packaging, elements of in-store marketing, and
offers guidelines for creating the most effective advertising, especially for
marketers who want to stand out among the messaging clutter today."

The eight dimensions of the Framework include:

Dimension 1: MORE - Be it volume, size, or quantity, offering just a
little more than what is normally regarded as "necessary or needed" causes
the subconscious to make the association with luxury. This response applies
to McMansions, king size beds, a value pack with a super sized meal,
gigahertz on a computer, megapixels on a camera, horsepower in a car, or
diamonds in a watch bezel.

Dimension 2: VARIETY - The actuality or illusion of choice–offering a
variety of features or entities to choose from–enables the "expression of
self". Such variety is perceived by the subconscious mind as a representation
of luxury. Color or fabric choices, aroma or herb choices, toppings and menu
choices, ram/storage/processor choices, dvd/nav/leather/color choices, and
day/date choices are examples of the stimuli that can evoke this response and
perception. Dr. Pradeep explained that "the ultimate in personal luxury is
personal expression, and luxury is the freedom to express who we really are."

Dimension 3: PURPOSE - Linkage to a socially respectable cause–the
connection to an elevated purpose–provides the luxury of a sense of
nobility. Linking soap and cars to environmental stewardship, linking cameras
and computers to recycling and waste prevention manifests a sense of
purposeful living, where our everyday lives seem to have broader and deeper
meaning in an otherwise occasionally confusing, contradictory, and often
stress-filled existence.

Dimension 4: RARE and UNIQUE - The luxury of possessing the "one and
only", or qualifying as one of a select few to own or experience
something–from collectible toys to antique cameras, one of a kind
automobiles, the Hope Diamond, or limited edition premiums from fast food
restaurants-causes the subconscious to respond in similar fashion. The brain
aspires to possess what is perceived as the unique, rare,
unavailable–brought to the forefront in "Avatar", when the pursuit was for
'Unobtainium'.

Dimension 5: TIME and LABOR - The prize of "hand-crafted"–the mental
notion that someone labored with their bare hands to make something for you,
be it beer, furniture, or a Rolls Royce-evokes a subconscious perception of
luxury. The combination of time plus labor in crafting something 'special'
equates in the precognitive mind to luxury. This can be defined as a sort of
sweat equity value that the subconscious assigns.

Dimension 6: ME - Personalization. A monogrammed set of cuffs, a
personalized set of license plates, or a burger with your name etched in
mustard - if it is customized to you, and is therefore intimately connected
to you, the brain attaches a luxury valuation to it. The personal recognition
can be as simple as answering a caller with their name, and knowing their
likes and dislikes (pioneered in the hospitality industry). Personal
recognition symbolizes luxury in the subconscious.

Dimension 7: CARE and DETAILS - This is where flourishes come in. The
tying of the bow on a package, the insight that a cup of coffee may need a
cardboard holder…the attention to small details triggers a significant
response within the subconscious that links directly to luxury. A focus on
little but meaningful nuances or extra steps translates as care, and that
perception becomes a hallmark of luxury.

Dimension 8: AESTHETICS - Beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder,
and when that stimulus is transferred from the occipital lobe to the
prefrontal cortex where it is assessed, the brain assigns higher value to it.
Higher aesthetic value is automatically equated with luxury. Exemplary
aesthetic qualities that stand out to the subconscious include simple,
harmonious, proportional, and clutter-free environments. Less is indeed more
for the brain in this context. Aesthetic values may be subjective in some
respects, but for the subconscious, they are meaningful markers of luxury.

Dr. Pradeep explained that brands that leveraged some or all of these LPF
Dimensions stimulated consumers to make the linkage between their product,
package, or service and the subconscious association with luxury. He added
that, "Enabling that consumer impression to attach to products and services
creates additional levels of brand value that consumers also voluntarily
assign, and that in turn helps gain long-term marketplace success against the
competition."

Among the most recent evidence of the power of the LPF in economically
distressed times, he cited the repeatedly successful launches of Apple
products such as the iPad and iPhone. Long lines outside Apple stores not
only reflect Apple's intuitive application of many of the LPF dimensions for
its products, but also for its store designs, packaging, advertising, and
customer service. "The brain has rewarded Apple with some of its greatest
gifts: attention, emotional engagement, and memory retention. No wonder then
that it has become a world leader in consumer technology," Dr. Pradeep said.

"Smart marketers who look for ways to fulfill our universal but
deeply-submerged yearning for luxury, especially in difficult economic times,
are likely to reap rewards in terms of purchase intent and brand loyalty,"
Dr. Pradeep added. "We know that because we see it in our studies, which
capture and measure those subconscious responses and others on a daily basis.
The Luxury Perceptual Framework also provides a landmark pathway into
understanding how consumers respond to superior service levels, the same way
that our Brand Essence Framework captures a brand's core attributes at the
subconscious level. It may be that the LPF forms a fundamental game plan for
the battle of the brands–and those brands that tap into our ever-present
search for satisfaction, even through the 'little moments of luxury' that
NeuroFocus uncovered, can gain an outsize marketplace advantage."

NeuroFocus is the world leader in EEG-based, full brain measurement of
consumers' subconscious responses. Its client list includes several of the
world's largest companies, and its normative databases far exceed in size and
scope those of any other neuromarketing company.

Dr. Pradeep's book on neuromarketing, "The Buying Brain", will be
published this summer. In it, he offers a number of never-before-published
frameworks and action plans based on NeuroFocus' groundbreaking research into
consumers' subconscious responses. Marketers can follow these guidelines to
create brands, products, packaging, in-store marketing materials and
environments, and advertising that will appeal most powerfully and
effectively to the brain.

About NeuroFocus

The world's leading neuromarketing firm, NeuroFocus
(neurofocus.com) brings advanced neuroscience knowledge and expertise
to the worlds of branding, product development and packaging, advertising,
in-store marketing, and entertainment. NeuroFocus clients include Fortune 100
companies across dozens of categories, including automotive, consumer
packaged goods, food and beverage, financial services, Internet,
pharmaceutical, retail, and many more sectors. Entertainment category clients
include major companies in the broadcast and cable television and motion
picture industries.

Headquartered in the U.S. and operating globally through offices and
NeuroLabs in the UK and Europe, the Asia/Pacific region, Latin America, and
the Middle East, the company leverages Nobel Prize caliber and
Doctorate-level credentials in neuroscience and marketing from the University
of California at Berkeley, MIT, Harvard, Oxford, Columbia University, and
other leading institutions, combined with executive business management and
consulting experience. The Nielsen Company is a strategic investor in
NeuroFocus.

Tom Robbins, +1-510-526-9882, or cell, +1-510-367-1920, tom.robbins at neurofocus.com