Inside The Mind of The Consumer Reading Answers

Dec 31, 2022

Inside The Mind of The Consumer Reading Answers topic comprises 13 questions within the time limit of 20 minutes. It is an IELTS reading answers topic. It. This topic has been taken from the book: Cambridge IELTS 3 Student’s Book with Answers. The topic: Inside The Mind of The Consumer Reading Answers is the second part of the reading section. The candidates must study the IELTS reading passage for keywords and for answering accurately to the questions. The IELTS Reading practice papers include more similar topics like this Inside The Mind of The Consumer Reading Answers. The candidates can practice from these practice papers to improve their knowledge and proficiency.

Section 1

Read the passage to answer the following questions

Inside The Mind of The Consumer Reading Answers

Marketing people are no longer prepared to take your word for it that you favour one product over another. They want to scan your brain to see which one you really prefer. Using the tools of neuroscientists, such as electroencephalogram (EEG) mapping and functional magnetic-resonance imaging (fMRI), they are trying to learn more about the mental processes behind purchasing decisions. The resulting fusion of neuroscience and marketing is inevitably, being called 'neuromarketing’.

The first person to apply brain-imaging technology in this way was Gerry Zaltman of Harvard University, in the late 1990s. The idea remained in obscurity until 2001, when BrightHouse, a marketing consultancy based in Atlanta, Georgia, set up a dedicated neuromarketing arm, BrightHouse Neurostrategies Group. (BrightHouse lists Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines and Home Depot among its clients.) But the company's name may itself simply be an example of clever marketing. BrightHouse does not scan people while showing them specific products or campaign ideas, but bases its work on the results of more general f MRI -based research into consumer preferences and decision-making carried out at Emory University in Atlanta.

Can brain scanning really be applied to marketing? The basic principle is not that different from focus groups and other traditional forms of market research. A volunteer lies in an f MRI machine and is shown images or video clips. In place of an interview or questionnaire, the subject's response is evaluated by monitoring brain activity. f MRI provides real-time images of brain activity, in which different areas “light up” depending on the level of blood flow. This provides clues to the subject's subconscious thought patterns. Neuroscientists know, for example, that the sense of self is associated with an area of the brain known as the medial prefrontal cortex. A flow of blood to that area while the subject is looking at a particular logo suggests that he or she identifies with that brand.

At first, it seemed that only companies in Europe were prepared to admit that they used neuromarketing. Two carmakers, DaimlerChrysler in Germany and Ford's European arm, ran pilot studies in 2003. But more recently, American companies have become more open about their use of neuromarketing. Lieberman Research Worldwide, a marketing firm based in Los Angeles, is collaborating with the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) to enable movie studios to market-test film trailers. More controversially, the New York Times recently reported that a political consultancy, FKF Research, has been studying the effectiveness of campaign commercials using neuromarketing techniques.

Whether all this is any more than a modern-day version of phrenology, the Victorian obsession with linking lumps and bumps in the skull to personality traits, is unclear. There have been no large-scale studies, so scans of a handful of subjects may not be a reliable guide to consumer behaviour in general. Of course, focus groups and surveys are flawed too: strong personalities can steer the outcomes of focus groups, and people do not always tell opinion pollsters the truth. And even honest people cannot always explain their preferences.

That is perhaps where neuromarketing has the most potential. When asked about cola drinks, most people claim to have a favourite brand, but cannot say why they prefer that brand’s taste. An unpublished study of attitudes towards two well-known cola drinks. Brand A and Brand 13. carried out last year in a college of medicine in the US found that most subjects preferred Brand B in a blind tasting fMRI scanning showed that drinking Brand B lit up a region called the ventral putamen, which is one of the brain s ‘reward centres’, far more brightly than Brand A. But when told which drink was which, most subjects said they preferred Brand A, which suggests that its stronger brand outweighs the more pleasant taste of the other drink.

“People form many unconscious attitudes that are obviously beyond traditional methods that utilise introspection,” says Steven Quartz, a neuroscientist at Caltech who is collaborating with Lieberman Research. With over $100 billion spent each year on marketing in America alone, any firm that can more accurately analyse how customers respond to products, brands and advertising could make a fortune.

Consumer advocates are wary. Gary Ruskin of Commercial Alert, a lobby group, thinks existing marketing techniques are powerful enough. “Already, marketing is deeply implicated in many serious pathologies,” he says. “That is especially true of children, who are suffering from an epidemic of marketing-related diseases, including obesity and type-2 diabetes. Neuromarketing is a tool to amplify these trends.”

Dr Quartz counters that neuromarketing techniques could equally be used for benign purposes. “There are ways to utilise these technologies to create more responsible advertising,” he says. Brain-scanning could, for example, be used to determine when people are capable of making free choices, to ensure that advertising falls within those bounds.

Another worry is that brain-scanning is an invasion of privacy and that information on the preferences of specific individuals will be misused. But neuromarketing studies rely on small numbers of volunteer subjects, so that seems implausible. Critics also object to the use of medical equipment for frivolous rather than medical purposes. But as Tim Ambler, a neuromarketing researcher at the London Business School, says: ‘A tool is a tool, and if the owner of the tool gets a decent rent for hiring it out, then that subsidises the cost of the equipment, and everybody wins.’ Perhaps more brain-scanning will some day explain why some people like the idea of neuromarketing, but others do not.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 14-19
Reading Passage has ten paragraphs A-J
Choose the correct heading for Paragraphs B-G from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number (i-x) in boxes 14-19 on your answer sheet.

List of headings

A description of the procedure
An international research project
An experiment to investigate consumer responses
Marketing an alternative name
A misleading name
A potentially profitable line of research
Medical dangers of the technique
Drawbacks to marketing tools
Broadening applications
What is neuromarketing?

Paragraph B

Answer: v) A misleading name
Supporting Sentence: But the company's name may itself simply be an example of clever marketing.
Keyword: example of clever marketing, does not scan people, consumer preferences, decision-making.
Keyword Location: 2nd paragraph, 3rd and last sentence
Explanation: The paragraph depicts the principle of the company named BrightHouse Neurostrategies Group. Though it serves as a neuromarketing arm, it is in reality a marketing gimmick. It does not scan people by displaying products, rather it is operated on the basis of the research of customer preferences. Therefore, the heading “A misleading name” suits perfectly with the paragraph.

Paragraph C

Answer: i) A description of the procedure
Supporting Sentence: f MRI provides real-time images of brain activity, in which different areas “light up” depending on the level of blood flow.
Keyword: real-time images, brain activity, light up, blood flow, clues, subconscious thought patterns.
Keyword Location: 3rd paragraph, lines 4-6
Explanation: The third paragraph depicts the entire procedure of f MRI machine. The f MRI offers images of the activities of the brain on a real-time basis and shows the blood flow level. It displays one’s thought patterns in a subconscious mind. Therefore, the paragraph discusses the process of f MRI. Hence the heading “A description of the procedure” suits the paragraph in a suitable manner.

Paragraph D

Answer: ix) Broadening applications
Supporting Sentence: More controversially, the New York Times recently reported that a political consultancy, FKF Research, has been studying the effectiveness of campaign commercials using neuromarketing techniques.
Keyword: Use of neuromarketing, a marketing firm, market-test film trailers, effectiveness of campaign, neuromarketing techniques,
Keyword Location: 4th paragraph, lines 3-5.
Explanation: The fourth paragraph depicts the effectiveness of the campaign launched by different companies with the use of neuromarketing. American companies have recently started using neuromarketing more openly. A marketing firm, Lieberman Research Worldwide unites with the California Institute of Technology to allow movie studios to market-test film trailers. Therefore, the heading “Broadening applications” perfectly suit the content of the paragraph.

Paragraph E

Answer: viii) Drawbacks to marketing tools
Supporting Sentence: There have been no large-scale studies, so scans of a handful of subjects may not be a reliable guide to consumer behaviour in general.
Keyword: no large-scale studies, a handful of subjects, not a reliable guide, consumer behaviour.
Keyword Location: 5th paragraph, sentence 3.
Explanation: As per the author, there are no large-scale studies performed to understand the consumer preferences and behaviour. Instead, all of the results are based on a small sample of people, which may not be a dependable study to design the marketing tool. Hence, paragraph E is a suitable paragraph for this heading.

Paragraph F

Answer: iii) An experiment to investigate consumer responses
Supporting Sentence: When asked about cola drinks, most people claim to have a favourite brand, but cannot say why they prefer that brand’s taste.
Keyword: favourite brand, prefer that brand’s taste.
Keyword Location: 6th paragraph, sentences 2-4.
Explanation: The sixth paragraph depicts the investigation process of identifying the consumers’ preferences. It has been analysed that people always want their favourite drinks but cannot say the reason behind their preferences for that brand’s taste. Moreover, after investigating it has been found that people favoured Brand A since its taste is more pleasant than the other drinks. Therefore, the heading “An experiment to investigate consumer responses” is correct as it supports the content of the paragraph.

Paragraph G

Answer: vi) A potentially profitable line of research
Supporting Sentence: With over $100 billion spent each year on marketing in America alone, any firm that can more accurately analyse how customers respond to products, brands and advertising could make a fortune.
Keyword: $100 billion spent, customers respond to products, advertising could make a fortune.
Keyword Location: 7th paragraph, last sentence
Explanation: The seventh paragraph illustrates that a firm can profit by analysing the customer’s reaction to the brands and products. The firm can spend over $100 billion on advertising that could enhance its brand value. Therefore, the heading “A potentially profitable line of research” suits the content of the paragraph.

Questions 20-22

Look at the following people (Questions 20-22) and the list of opinions below.
Match each person with the opinion credited to him.
Write the correct letter A-F in boxes 20-22 on your answer sheet.

Steven Quartz
Gary Ruskin
Tim Ambler

List of opinions

Neuromarketing could be used to contribute towards the cost of medical technology.
Neuromarketing could use introspection as a tool in marketing research.
Neuromarketing could be a means of treating medical problems.
Neuromarketing could make an existing problem worse.
Neuromarketing could lead to the misuse of medical equipment.
Neuromarketing could be used to prevent the exploitation of consumers.

Answer20: F
Supporting Sentence: Brain-scanning could, for example, be used to determine when people are capable of making free choices, to ensure that advertising falls within those bounds.
Keyword: Brain-scanning, capable, free choice
Keyword Location: 9th paragraph, lines 3
Explanation: As per Dr Quartz, neuromarketing is a method that can be used to create more reliable marketing strategies. Brain-scanning is a powerful method that can be used to determine the preference pattern when people have the capability of determining their choices. This will ensure that the advertisements are correctly presented for each group of people according to their preferences. Therefore, F is the correct answer.

Answer21: D
Supporting Sentence: Neuromarketing is a tool to amplify these trends.
Keyword: deeply implicated, a tool, amplify these trends.
Keyword Location: 8th paragraph, lines 2-5.
Explanation: As per the paragraph, Gary Ruskin has a belief that the existing techniques of marketing are more powerful than the recent neuromarketing tool. He has proposed that existing marketing has created an epidemic of diseases in children like obesity and type-2 diabetes. However, the neuromarketing tool further increases these trends of diseases. Hence D is the correct answer since it justifies the fact provided in the paragraph.

Answer22: A
Supporting Sentence: But as Tim Ambler, a neuromarketing researcher at the London Business School, says: ‘A tool is a tool, and if the owner of the tool gets a decent rent for hiring it out, then that subsidises the cost of the equipment, and everybody wins.’
Keyword: Neuromarketing, decent rent, subsidises, everybody wins
Keyword Location: 10th paragraph, lines 3-4.
Explanation: The paragraph suggests that the application and use of neuromarketing could help in getting the cost of upkeep of expensive medical equipment. It suggests that the modernized medical equipment used in the field of neuroscience and the medical area is quite expensive. It would be greatly useful for everyone from the cost minimization perspective if they can rent the equipment to marketers and hence, obtain it at a subsidized rate.

Questions 23-26

Complete the summary below using words from the passage.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 23-26 on your answer sheet.

Neuromarketing can provide valuable information on attitudes to particular 23 .................... . It may be more reliable than surveys, where people can be 24 .................... or focus groups, where they may be influenced by others. It also allows researchers to identify the subject’s 25 .................... thought patterns. However, some people are concerned that it could lead to problems such as an increase in disease among 26 .................... .

Answer23: brands
Supporting Sentence: A flow of blood to that area while the subject is looking at a particular logo suggests that he or she identifies with that brand.
Keyword: flow of blood, particular logo, brand.
Keyword Location: 3rd paragraph, last sentence.
Explanation: The statement mainly indicates the attributes of neuroscience in marketing. It mainly illustrates the ways neuroscience is helping brands to recognise the reaction and behaviour of customers towards their brands. This is because neuroscience plays a significant role in recording the thought pattern of the subconscious mind of people. Hence “Brands” is the correct answer to fill up the blank in the sentence.

Answer24: untruthful
Supporting Sentence: Of course, focus groups and surveys are flawed too: strong personalities can steer the outcomes of focus groups, and people do not always tell opinion pollsters the truth.
Keyword: flawed too, can steer the outcomes, opinion pollsters the truth.
Keyword Location: 5th paragraph, sentence 3.
Explanation: The author suggested that often the results of certain surveys and poles are not trustworthy and they may even be very deceptive. In most cases, people might answer in a fabricated way. Hence, it is not the correct way to blindly trust the result of such surveys.

Answer25: unconscious
Supporting Sentence: “People form many unconscious attitudes that are obviously beyond traditional methods that utilise introspection,” says Steven Quartz, a neuroscientist at Caltech who is collaborating with Lieberman
Research.
Keyword: Neuromarketing, unconscious attitude, introspection.
Keyword Location: 7th paragraph, First sentence.
Explanation: The paragraph suggests that neuromarketing may help businesses to understand the complex behaviours of people. It will try to capture the unconscious preferences of people. The method will sum up the result of complicated introspection and unconscious attitudes of people. Hence, “Unconscious” is the correct word to fill up the blanks in the question.

Answer26: children
Supporting Sentence: That is especially true of children, who are suffering from an epidemic of marketing-related diseases, including obesity and type-2 diabetes.
Keyword: epidemic, marketing-related diseases, Neuromarketing, tool, amplify these trends.
Keyword Location: 8th paragraph, lines 3-4
Explanation: The paragraph clearly suggests that neuromarketing according to Ruskin could instigate the problems which occur as a result of marketing. As per the opinion of Gary Ruskin, the children are most affected by this epidemic of marketing diseases. Children are most vulnerable to being brainwashed and enchanted by marketing gimmicks, which have created a lot of health issues such as diabetes and obesity in children over the years.

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