Bernice Samuels, group marketing executive at MTN Group, will present the topic, 'Relevance — Neurons and Narratives'.

Samuels says that delegates need to consider neurons, the information messengers of the brain, because there are deeper explorations at hand into what makes consumers tick.

Dale Hefer, the Nedbank IMC's CEO, says, "2022's virtual conference has the theme of relevance. As consumers become more sophisticated and discerning about what they consume, it makes sense for marketers to want to dig deeper to better understand the nuances that drive their behaviour."

The IMC says that an article published by the advertising agency Digivate highlights the importance of "neuromarketing", which draws on neuroscientific research with the aim of understanding consumer behaviour to improve the effectiveness of marketing.

According to the IMC, traditional market research seeks to explain consumer behaviour using largely consumer self-reporting on their habits, choices and activities.

Neuromarketing looks to unconscious signals using technologies that observe brain activity, eye gaze and biometrics to determine how people respond physiologically to marketing messages. Neuromarketing potentially gives marketers a powerful insight that can be applied to product and packaging design as well as brand messaging.

The IMC says that another area that is fast gaining traction in marketing discourse is neurodiversity. As described in an article on the Harvard Health website, neurodiversity refers to the idea that people experience and interact with the world around them in many different ways, with no one "right" way of thinking, learning and behaving. Instead, differences are not viewed as deficits.

Neurodiverse people are those who have neurological or developmental conditions such as dyslexia, ADHD or other learning disabilities. Forbes magazine reports that neurodiverse people account for as much as 15 to 20% of the world's population.

According to the IMC, in marketing's current drive for diversity and inclusivity, there is an awareness that brands should also cater to this neurodiverse audience.

Marketing behavioural specialists platform Creative Brief suggests that while assistive technologies have been successfully leveraged by companies such as Google and Apple to help neurodiverse audiences control their environments, the uptake in the broad marketing community is slow.

Creative Brief says, "Brands are obsessively trying to become more community-driven, drive advocacy and have a long-lasting impact, and here's a huge community with amazing stories to tell who deserves to be represented along with other underrepresented communities."

The IMC says that while it remains to be seen what perspective Nedbank IMC thought leader Bernice Samuels will be bringing to delegates, it will almost certainly reveal important new considerations for marketers.

Hefer concludes, "I think that by adding neurons or 'brain chemistry' into the mix will show us some powerful new possibilities as we unpack marketing relevance."

Tickets are priced at R 1 999.00 (excluding VAT). Group discounts will be available. Individuals can book here. Nedbank IMC 2022 bursaries are available here.

For more information, visit www.imcconference.com. You can also follow the Nedbank IMC Conference on Facebook or on Twitter.