Leading eye-tracking innovation measurement in uncertain times: RealEye
Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) KEEN team has launched an innovative concept called a temporary (pop-up) neuromarketing laboratory for science knowledge promotion activities. Pop-up digital neuromarketing lab is an entertaining and new activity for the students of all ages, enabled by KTU, KEEN team. Various digital tools such as digital eye-tracking system, emotion recognition software and digital tools (customer engagement behaviour on Facebook prediction tool created by KTU, EMODI team) are being used in the Lab for neuromarketing research.
The Covid pandemic has challenged researchers around the world: many had to move their research from labs to online platforms and /or Cloud or even to stop their research for a while. Traditionally, in springtime many students are preparing their final thesis. However, the pandemic has also altered this process. The students, who are focusing on neuromarketing studies, have faced the challenge of how to run a neuromarketing study during the pandemic.
In response to this, The RealEye company has launched a new service that enables researchers and practitioners to conduct neuromarketing research studies online. The digital RealEye solution uses a computer camera and cloud-based software that collects user attention data from the participants of the study. Notably, the solution has some limitations but the solution is developing further.
Digitalization research group and KEEN researcher Egle Vaiciukynaite from Kaunas University of Technology, is one of researchers to use a recommended solution and to explore its possibilitiesthat can track user attention patterns using a computer camera.
Egle Vaiciukynaite was impressed how easy it was to use Real Eye platform:
“We should design a study and then to set-up it properly. Indeed, we can easily add images, videos as a stimuli and involve external links such as SurveyMonkey for additional information about participants. Finally, we have to set a sample or a number of participants and invite potential participants to a study through a link. The eye-tracking results are generated automatically and an input includes heat maps, a detailed report with AOIs and other data. This solution is useful for hands-on neuromarketing experience, especially for educational purposes”
says Vaiciukynaite.
Researchers have an obligation to share their experience and knowledge with society. However, sometimes, it is challenging to show how neuromarketing tools work in reality, especially when all activities are conducted virtually. The RealEye solution has features that enable researchers to organize innovative lectures/knowledge sharing events. Indeed, this new type of activities evokes curiosity about science, digital technologies not only among mentors (IT specialists from all over Lithuania), but also young students curiosity and in such a way guarantees their high engagement.
Egle notes that the most successful examples of pop-up lab activities come from Science Festival “Spaceship Earth” at the Kaunas University of Technology, Santaka Valley, and bit & Byte Creative Technology Academy activities on Zoom this autumn 2020. The main activity of using a pop-up lab was to reveal user attention patterns to posts of social media platforms. Indeed, all developed digital posts were tested with a screen-based webcam eye-tracking tool, eye-tracking artificial intelligence (AI) and AI social media tools. Young students learned how to develop digital storytelling for customer attention and engagement on social media platforms. Specifically, the pop-up digital neuromarketing lab was organized twice, and 40 mentors training was received at the bit & Byte Creative Technology Academy. Mentors have delivered hands-on experience twice for more than 600 young students. Hence, both mentors and young students had an opportunity to try the most recent technologies.
The innovative approach to academic knowledge transfer is also one of the main priorities of KEEN (Knowledge Empowered Entrepreneurship Network). The innovative aspect of KEEN is that it focuses on public engagement and provides them with the opportunity to express their opinions, needs and challenges to shape the research agenda. KEEN objective is also to create and sustain a network of academic community, business and other relevant stakeholders focusing on building capacities to develop public engagement in entrepreneurship research in low-innovativeness level EU countries and foster the co-creation of more socially-relevant research with multiple actors such as policy makers, citizens and industrials. Among all these activities, designed to build networking and knowledge sharing opportunities, neuro-marketing simulations in schools, universities aspire to foster entrepreneurial mind-set and to promote entrepreneurship and academic career.
