Revolutionizing How We Evaluate Consumer Decision-Making

Systems 1 and 2: Not Either/Or, But Both

Plenty has been written about advances in cognitive science around System 1 thinking (fast, automatic, and emotional) and System 2 thinking (slow, deliberate, and rational). Since Daniel Kahneman published his book Thinking, Fast and Slow, popular industry lore has claimed that 95% of consumer decisions are made by non-conscious System 1 thought. (This assertion is misleading; the portion of non-conscious thinking can't even be measured, as we've written about this 95% fallacy.)

Therefore, in developing your brand strategy and marketing programs, it is critical to understand how consumers make decisions and choices using both System 1 and System 2 thinking. Each contributes to purchase decisions to a varying degree, depending on context and other factors. Moreover, with today's short-form communications, such as banner ads, in-store communications, or social media, you get only 6 seconds or 7 words to grab consumers' attention.

And yet, traditional market research tools focus exclusively on rational measures to the point that the emotional, impulsive reactions are nearly ignored, while some System 1 tools neglect thoughtful System 2 reactions. Because consumers use both System 1 and 2 thinking, it is unlikely that research evaluating only their rational assessment OR focusing entirely on implicit/emotional reactions will yield complete results and insight to make the best brand strategy and messaging choices possible.

A Groundbreaking Solution

ACUPOLL's SPARK MCR® (Multi-Cognition Research®) is a one-of-a-kind tool designed to tackle the challenges of evaluating consumer decisions by incorporating both System 1 Impulse (unconscious) and System 2 Reflection (conscious) thought processes. SPARK MCR® provides a comprehensive tool-set that considers both the emotional and rational aspects of consumer decision-making.

Measuring both System 1 and 2 thinking is important because it more accurately captures how the brain works: how messages capture people's attention and interest quickly with System 1 thinking and then drive choice when System 2's conscious thought kicks in, such as when consumers are comparing products or their usual product is out-of-stock. Today, you need to find the best message for when you have little time to grab attention and must hook people impulsively in their System 1 thinking stage.

That means screening short forms of early-stage ideas, e.g., headline only or headline + package, in the Impulse or System 1 portion of research, and then proceeding to more complete descriptions or concepts as needed. When developing new brand positionings or messaging, we often find clients can learn more by screening a wide range of benefit and reason-to-believe sound bites to find what best grabs attention and connects on both System 1 and 2 levels, rather than (or prior to) testing full-text concepts that can perform very similarly when compared as a whole piece of cloth.

Focusing on capturing emotional reactions alongside rational responses uncovers insights that traditional methods overlook, and reveals the subtle yet impactful differences that can truly resonate with consumers, even in brief interactions lasting mere seconds.

Spark MCR® is particularly effective for tasks like screening positioning messages, claims, and seed/early-stage ideas, where traditional methods fail to capture System 1 reactions. Moreover, it enables more detailed analysis by optimizing components such as phrases or one-line ideas across multiple vectors. SPARK utilizes proprietary visual scales for eliciting more Impulsive responses, which were optimized in six phases of quantitative validation, including more than 40,000 participant responses. These scales are preferred by participants nearly 2:1 over traditional 5-point scale responses for accurately capturing their natural or intuitive “gut” reaction.

SPARK MCR® was co-developed by ACUPOLL with P&G's former top cognitive scientist, who led their new methodology development. ACUPOLL conducted multiple validation studies to prove the effectiveness of SPARK MCR® against traditional methods:

• In one validation study, SPARK MCR® predicted trial and sales for 18 new nutritional bar/snack products across n=800 consumers, with an accuracy of R2 = 0.67.

• Another study measured the impact of 18 Pinterest ads/posts on engagement and e-commerce sales. We ran 2 cells: one used SPARK's Impulse metric and other measures, and the other used traditional 5-point scale metrics (Purchase Intent, Uniqueness, and Relevance). Results showed that SPARK MCR® measures were twice as predictive as Purchase Intent in delivering e-commerce sales from an audience of 1,300 Pinterest users.

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SPARK MCR® represents a paradigm shift in understanding consumer decision-making. By embracing the complexity of human cognition and exploring both System 1 and 2 processes, our tool empowers marketers to craft strategies and messages that truly resonate with their target audiences. In a time where attention spans are shrinking and competition is fierce, SPARK MCR® is the key to unlocking meaningful consumer connections and driving business success.

Tap into how both System 1 and System 2 thinking can work for your next project! Contact ACUPOLL to learn more about SPARK MCR®.

Going to Quirk’s–Chicago in March? Let's talk! Come see us present with T-Mobile, Fueling the T-Mobile Uncarrier Growth Story with System 1 Research, and Visit ACUPOLL in Booth 606!

5 Success Stories Leveraging Multi-Cognition Research

Research can help you identify your best ideas, yet the choice of research methodology can make or break your initiative. Failing to understand the strengths of each idea rationally AND emotionally can mean overlooking the most powerful idea, or even chasing the wrong one. 

SPARK Multi-Cognition Research® goes beyond the thoughtful “System 2” reasoning of traditional idea screening to also capture consumers’ “System 1” Impulse and Emotion – which are critical drivers of success in today’s noisy, hyper-competitive marketplace.

Here are 5 great examples of how our methodology has helped clients succeed:

• Leading OTC Health Care Company (Innovation) – Evaluated 144 seed ideas (headline, package, a few bullets) across 9 studies for their market-leading brand and 6 other brands, resulting in 20 new product launches

• Top 3 Telecom Company (Messaging) – Evaluated 126 ad messages, performance claims, value messages and offers across 7 studies, fueling multiple campaigns, including their 2023 Super Bowl ad

• Top 15 Fast Food Restaurant (Positioning) – Screened 37 positioning statements across 14 strategic territories to identify the top 2-3 sound bites – positioning benefits and RTBs – that most attract competitive users and elevate the brand’s Value perception

• Leading Lifestyle Food Brand (Packaging) – Evaluated 30 messages in 5 areas to find the most appealing and unique language for upgrading the positioning and on-pack claims, resulting in new designs with significantly increased purchase intent, uniqueness, taste, and equity communication

• Top Jewelry Retailers (Design/Style) – Screened 250 new jewelry designs, licenses, and product “stories” across 14 studies to determine the most powerful images and language to introduce across several retail chains

Connect with us to learn more about how Spark MCR® can help solve your challenge!

Factors in System 1 (Emotional/Impulsive) vs. System 2 (Rational/Conscious) Decision-Making

Key Conclusions

These are based on 2018 ACUPOLL research and ChatGPT AI, which draw similar conclusions; dialogue excerpt shown below

• Both non-conscious ”System 1” impulse/emotion and “System 2” rational/conscious thought play a critical role in decision-making

• ChatGPT identified 6 scenarios when we tend to rely more on rational System 2 thinking:

1. When decisions are more complex and we need to analyze/apply reason

2. When we’re less familiar with a situation or decision and can’t act on auto-pilot (e.g. habit) or intuition

3. When we’re less time-pressured and stakes are high (which allows System 2 conscious thought opportunity and motive to engage)

4. When emotions are more moderate (or, we’d add, in categories that are inherently more logical, like choosing a product for specific symptoms or a food based on ingredient/nutritional facts, not image-driven categories like fashion or fine fragrance)

5. When decisions involve personal goals or values, which cause our conscious mind to input more into decisions

6. When cognitive load is low and you have mental energy available to think through options

• ACUPOLL previously identified two additional factors that determine when conscious/thoughtful decisions occur more often:

  • When we’re deciding by ourselves and not in a social context where we feel judged (e.g. when people are drinking alcohol with others, System 1 emotions increase their influence on brand choices)

  • When situational context favors System 2 (e.g. no distractions, no pressure from salespeople or promotional nudges, a manageable number of choices, easy comparisons, a thoughtful/browsing shopping experience rather than a grab-and-go trip, etc.)

Connect with us to learn more about how to measure both impulsive and conscious/ rational reactions to positionings, messaging, claims, packaging, and ads!

Click here to read our previous conversation with ChatGPT about how much of our decision-making is rational versus emotional.

ChatGPT debunks “95% of decisions are non-conscious”

Key Conclusions

These are based on both ACUPOLL’s research and dialogue with ChatGPT ... when we dug deeper and won it over to our POV!

• Harvard Business School Professor Gerald Zaltman is the original source for this quote

• The 95% is an estimate – not the result of a particular study – as % non-conscious cannot even be measured

• When pressed, Zaltman and ChatGPT both acknowledge that the conscious mind still plays a critical role in decision-making (despite the impression one gets from hearing 95%!)

• Rational thought is particularly important in analyzing information, weighing options, and making choices – especially in later stages of decision-making – all things that can happen at times when buying, at the shelf, showroom, restaurant, or when online

• The interplay between conscious and non-conscious is complex, and both emotional and rational inputs to decision-making operate in tandem

• That’s why it’s critical to use research tools that measure both “System 1” impulse/emotion AND “System 2” rational reactions

Read our dialogue with ChatGPT below and see how it changes its “mind!”
Then connect with us to learn more about how to put this learning to use.

Ask us about our methodologies that combine non-conscious “System 1” and conscious “System 2” measures!

Click here to see ChatGPT’s response to our follow-up question about when rational thought outweighs emotion and impulse.

System 1 Weight Management

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How consumer psychology and marketing strategy helped me lose – and keep off – 20 pounds

42% of Americans say they’ve gained weight during COVID, with 1 in 7 saying they’ve packed on 10 pounds or more – yet nearly half also say diets have not been successful for them. If you’re one of those who struggle with managing and maintaining your weight, consider these “System 1”-inspired strategies.

Spark In-Market Validation

Last year, we unveiled Spark MCR's groundbreaking approach to more completely evaluate ideas than traditional surveys by capturing Impulse and Emotion, as well as conscious Reflection. Spark Multi-Cognition Research® is 2x more likely to capture consumers' "gut" reactions, and better discriminates across ideas to find the real winners. Now we're unveiling in-market results from a new study on Pinterest for a major retailer which demonstrates that Spark MCR results are significantly and more strongly correlated with higher online "engagement" and e-commerce sales than the traditional approach.

Moreover, Pinterest Promoted Pins with higher Spark Impulse and Affinity ratings are 4x more likely to have higher online engagement, and 2x more likely to generate higher e-commerce sales.

Finally, Spark MCR provides a practical tool that takes conscious and non-conscious measures into account and has sales data to back it up. Let us know if you would like to have a quick call to share the results and discuss Spark in more detail.

Research On Research: Methods Matter

Everyone knows the questions are important – but so are the answers!  In this head-to-head comparison, we assessed two research scales to see which performs better.

The Contestants

The Competition

• Sequential monadic concept test with 3 food concepts

• A separate cell using each scale, with a series of forced choice comparison questions at the end

• Nationally representative sample of 209 adults 18+

The Results

• TWICE as many respondents thought the ACUPOLL Scale was easier to answer, more intuitive, and better captured how they feel.

• This wasn’t just consumers’ opinions – they actually completed the survey with the ACUPOLL scale 15% faster!

The Implications

1. More Accurate Research: The ACUPOLL Scale provides clients with results that consumers indicate better represent their natural and true opinions, without forcing them to choose among labeled answers that often split hairs.

2. More In Less Time: With 15% faster data collection, your surveys can cover more ground in the same amount of time, with less consumer fatigue.

3. Better Statistics: Unlike traditional labeled scales where “extremely” is closer to “very” than “very” is to “somewhat,” the ACUPOLL Scale is an equal-interval scale that facilitates more accurate and reliable statistical analysis (correlations, regressions, etc.).

Contact us today to learn more, and find out how we can apply this to give you
Greater Clarity for Better Decisions™!

Additional perspective is below if you’re interested!

• The “System 1” Scale: As Nobel Prize-winning psychologist and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow describes, “Our thoughts and actions are routinely guided by [our brain’s] ‘System 1’ and generally are on the mark.”(1) System 1 is the automatic, impulsive, and more emotional side of the brain, as opposed to System 2, which is more effortful, reflective, and has a risk of “over-think.” An easier, more intuitive scale like ACUPOLL’s allows consumers to react more impulsively, consistent with their true feelings, which results in more accurate data for better learning.

• Ahead of Our Time: ACUPOLL launched with this scale in 1991. The 0-to-10 pain intensity scale recommended by the National Institute of Health was introduced in 1993.(2) And, Fred Reichheld used this scale when he introduced the Net Promoter Scale in 2003.(3)

• Consistent with Better Research Quality: Twice as many consumers also said the ACUPOLL Scale would be “more enjoyable in a long survey.” The Advertising Research Foundation’s Foundations of Quality study concluded, “As Survey Enjoyment increases, so does a respondent’s level of attention and engagement, ultimately affecting data quality.”(4)

1. Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, Fast and Slow. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

2. McCaffery, M., & Beebe, A. (1993). Pain: Clinical Manual for Nursing Practice. Baltimore, MD: V.V. Mosby Company.

3. Reichheld, F. (2003, December). The one number you need to grow. Harvard Business Review, 81(12), 46–54.

4. Walker, R.W., & Cook, W.A. (2013). You can’t put a price tag on a survey participant’s enjoyment: the latest findings from the ARF’s “foundations of quality” research. Journal of Advertising Research, 53(3), 254–257.