Multisensory Neuro-Brand Design

This unit examines how multisensory cues (scent, sound, touch, typography, timing, and nostalgia) interact with neural systems to shape attention, memory, trust, and viral potential. Students move from theory to practice by designing and testing sensory-rich prototypes that balance emotional impact with ethical and accessibility considerations, building on foundational neuroscience and preparing for implementation and evaluation in subsequent units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze how specific multisensory elements (olfactory, auditory, haptic, visual, and temporal) evoke neural responses related to attention, memory, comfort, novelty, and social bonding across different life stages and demographics
• Apply sensory-branding and audiovisual-synchrony principles to create a concise prototype (moodboard, storyboard, or concept sketch) that leverages nostalgia, exclusivity cues, and haptic/typographic treatments for a defined target audience
• Demonstrate methods for measuring and validating sensory-driven engagement and decision-making (e.g., recall tests, attention metrics, A/B comparisons, and basic physiological indicators) and interpret results to iterate on design
• Evaluate ethical, cultural, and accessibility implications of sensory persuasion techniques (including scarcity, emotional triggers, and personal memory cues) and recommend transparent, inclusive strategies to ensure consent and minimize manipulation