Buy-ology : how everything we believe about why we buy is wrong / Martin Lindstrom.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Anti-smoking campaigns unwittingly encourage smoking. Negative messages from politicians win votes. Product placement in films rarely works. Many multi-million pound advertising campaigns are a complete waste of time. These are just a few of the findings of Martin Lindstrom's groundbreaking study of what really makes consumers tick. Convinced that there is a gulf between what we believe influences us and what actually does, he set up a highly ambitious research project that employed the very latest in brain-scanning technology and called on the services of some 2000 volunteers. Buy-ology shares the fruits of this research, revealing for the first time what actually goes on inside our heads when we see an advertisement, hear a marketing slogan, taste two rival brands of drink, or watch a programme sponsored by a major company. The conclusions are both startling and groundbreaking, showing the extent to which we deceive ourselves when we think we are making considered decisions, and revealing factors as varied as childhood memories, religious belief, even our sense of smell, that come together to influence our decisions and shape our tastes. www.martinlindstrom.com

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Martin Lindstrom was born in Denmark in 1970. He is the author of Brand Building on the Internet, Clicks, Bricks and Brands, Brandchild: Insights into the Minds of Today's Global Kids: Understanding Their Relationship with Brands, Brandsense: Building Powerful Brands Through Touch, Taste, Smell, Sight & Sound, Buyology: The Truth About Why We Buy, Brandwash: Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy, and Small Data: The Tiny Clues that Uncover Huge Trends. He is a columnist for Fast Company, Time Magazine, and Harvard Business Review. His work can also be seen on NBC's Today show. He has appeared in a movie documentary and has made other movie and television appearances. In 2009, Time Magazine included him in their list of the top 100 Most Influential People in The World. He is the founding partner and Chairman of the Board of Buyology Inc. and Director of Brand Sense Agency.