Our Next Frontier: Emotion A&D


	March 2008
	Our Next Frontier: Emotion

This editorial website includes personal
observations by Masa Eto on an array of topics,
from world affairs to business. Mr. Eto is the
managing executive officer of the International Division at A&D Company Ltd.

"I love it. Women would choose this", she said in a high-pitched voice. "It is very CUTE" was the answer to our "why" from Margaret Basyrova, a senior product manager at A&D Russia Ms. Basyrova was visiting A&D Headquarters to discuss new product planning. As a product planning manager, Ms. Basyrova is involved in very sophisticated operations, from the fine-tuning of new product specifications to packaging designs. It was a surprise to hear such a simple yet straightforward comment and see her eyes jump when we showed her our new Women's Blood Pressure Monitor.

Since marketing professionals are very accustomed to mentioning buzzwords such as product positioning, design concept, bench marking, innovations and catch copies, we tend to make statements with somewhat sophisticated or even philosophical orientation to justify concepts we advocate. But this time, Ms. Basyrova’s simple verbal and physical reaction was enough. Actually, it was more than enough to make me appreciate the excitement behind recent buzzwords that post-modern marketers have begun referencing .

Ms. Rudy Kazuko, renowned lecturer and consultant in Consumer Marketing and the author of a provocative book called “Can Marketing Win Consumers?” explains that marketing fails because marketing researches oftentimes do not uncover consumer’s true intensions. In short, a consumer tells a lie with or without knowing it, and the marketing researcher is powerless to identify the consumer’s true behavior. Ms. Rudy explains that neuroscience, with the help of neuro-imaging techniques, has revealed that people often do not tell the truth when asked questions. She argues that scientific findings have revealed that the psychology of consumers is full of complexities and surprises, a revelation that has forced marketing to shift from the traditional research methods of questionnaires and focus groups, to ethnography and observation.

I recall an experience when we used a focus group to create a new package in the United States . The package looked extremely convincing, especially backed by focus group studies to justifying the huge amount of money we spent. Yet our sales did not increase as anticipated. Buyers were bombarding us to lower prices or to offer more dollar incentives. They seem to have been saying, “the new package is OK, but it is unappealing unless the price is lower.”

Ms. Rudy further explains that manufacturers listen only to what they are looking for when they conduct marketing research. The manufacturer tends to follow business logic common sense, which dictates, “More is better.” Engineers cannot resist the temptation to add more functions because they believe feature-rich products appeal to the universal market.

In her conclusion, Ms. Rudy argues that neuroscience has made us realize the importance of “experience” and “emotion” or “dance of emotion and reason,” reinforcing the three utilities of a product: functional utility, emotional utility and social utility. Emotional utility can be a powerful tool to differentiate our products from the competition.

Last year we created a chart indicating the history of our innovations. This chart assists us in articulating our philosophy, when we launch new products, and accomplishments, which in many ways show that we have played a leadership role in the development of technologies and innovations, and in setting market trends. We have been very careful not to manufacture or design units with useless functions, and I am proud to point out that we have pioneered the best products by pursuing and materializing ease of use (http://www.aandd.jp/editorial/archive/1998marmasa.html).

Yet looking at the “History of our innovations,” I have to admit that our innovations are centered on functional utilities. Some innovations can be said to be social, as we have had a social impact by promoting the importance of home monitoring. I suspect that what Rudy-san means by social is different from social impact, but rather refers to a sense of social belonging .

One example of a device that has emotional utilities, and which is a result of all existing technologies, is the iPOD. The iPOD has transformed the music industry by creating a new music experience and through the emotion it generates in people. It is difficult to identity similar emotional utilities generated by our products.

I am not even the right person to talk about the emotional utilities of a product: I am not fully aware of all the elements that comprise emotional utilities since I am now over the edge, and my emotions are at the phase of subsiding—though my adrenalin still pumps when I come across a young cheerful lady.

However, having observed the success of this Women’s Blood Pressure in the region where it was first launched, and witnessing the spontaneous, cheerful and natural reaction of Margaret Basyrova ( a young attractive lady from Russia) when she saw the product for the first time , I now have a sense of the excitement generated when a product possesses emotional utilities.

PS: I was tempted to attach a photo of our new Women’s BPM in this article, but I decided to just paste a silhouette. I would like you to experience its “emotional” utilities when you rendezvous in the marketplace.

You may address any comments concerning this editorial by email to Mr. Eto