Abstract

Given the increased popularity of social media in current years, there has been an increase in Facebook (FB) advertisements in educational institutions. As students nowadays tend to use FB pages to attain more knowledge and improve their skills, the current research is focused on understanding how such pages can be improved using the advanced and emerging technique of neuromaketing. Tobii Sticky was used to evaluate obtained eye-tracking behavioral measurements assessing visual attention, emotional analysis via facial recognition, and survey questions providing insights into users’ experience. While survey results suggested that subjects thought that the Oxford Business College (OBC) has well-designed visuals, the eye-tracking metrics showed otherwise - it took more than 20 seconds to notice the visuals, and subjects spent on average one second looking at the material. Majority of the subjects reported mostly feeling neutral while scrolling the FB page; however, an in-depth emotional analysis showed higher intensity of negative emotion and aversiveness toward the material. This study encourages marketers in Higher Education to reevaluate their traditional research methods focused on surveys and group discussions and implement neuromarketing methods for obtaining reliable and subconscious information.

Keywords:Behavioral engagement; Neuromarketing; Higher education; Emotion; Social media

Keywords:OBC: Oxford Business College; UK: United Kingdom; FB: Facebook; TTFF: Time to First Fixation; AOI: Area of Interest; LTIL: Long Text, Image, and Logo; STI: Short Text and Image; LTIT: Long Text, Image with Text; IL: Image and Logo; STIL: Short Text, Image, and Logo; SNSs: Social Networking Sites; EI: Emotional Intelligence; CBE: Cognitive Behavioral Engagement