US business school opens consumer experience lab

The on-campus X-Lab will be dedicated to providing both academic research and content for students, and will allow graduate students opportunities to study and analyse consumer experiences.

The lab will use a biosensor research platform provided by software-as-a-system firm iMotions, and students will have access to biosensor technologies including eye tracking, facial expression analysis and skin conductance.

X-Lab will be used in a Master’s in marketing programme led by associate professor and consumer behaviour researcher Dr Mujde Yuksel.

The course will focus on understanding the influences, emotions and reasoning that occur in consumers’ nonconscious brains and how that can be used to improve customer experiences.

Yuksel said: “With X-Lab, we’re preparing the next generation of marketers and market researchers to look at the driving influences and emotions behind consumer’s decisions and actions.

“Without those insights, there remains a gap in our understanding for marketers to create meaningful consumer experiences.”

Peter Hartzbech, founder and chief executive at iMotions, said: “It’s no longer enough for marketers to know what decisions consumers made; they need to understand why those decisions were made – the reasoning, influences and motivations behind behaviour that ultimately can unlock greater success.

“Sawyer Business School is really putting itself at the forefront by developing a curriculum that provides students with access to the tools, technologies and information that will be central to success in business.”