Brain Food: Digitally Distracted

Never before in our human evolution has change occurred with such unrelenting speed. Stimuli are bombarding us from multiple sources, not at the speed of hearsay along the old trade routes, but at the speed of light over a globally interconnected technology superhighway that has expanded the store to every corner of the planet.

It seems almost commonplace to talk about the pace of change. The deltas between significant moments of change in our collective lives are continually diminishing. If you listen to some futurists, these periods between changing paradigms will continue to contract until the time lapse between them will be close to zero. And, when that happens, continual life-altering change will outpace our ability to keep in step; and humans may well seem to be devolving compared to the world around us.

When I think of that, my brain hurts.

From an evolutionary point of view, it made a lot of sense to pay attention to alerts in our environment, such as the sounds or sights of predators, rather than continuing to add more sticks, mud and skins to the walls of the shelter. When our perceptual senses took note of an anomaly in our environment, signals shot out across our ancestors’ brains, focusing their attention and making them alert. Areas of the brain that were related to the fight, flight or freeze systems shot adrenaline into the body, prepping them for a quick reaction.

This was a good thing when it was a matter of having lunch or being lunch. But even back then, this didn’t happen all day long. The old reactive brain system that had us on the look out for things lurking in the tall grass is still very much a part of us and the information onslaught of our digital age is creating a stress-reactive brain that is a draw on our energy.

Messages and alerts come in to our mobile devices all day long to notify us of activity among the hundreds of “friends” in our social networks. We get news feeds, podcasts, push notifications, emails, texts and other messages from colleagues, clients, friends and family. We listen to music, watch video downloads, take pictures and edit them for rebroadcast to the Internet. In a contemporary world, the rings, pings, chirps and vibrations coming from the smartphone can override the work task at hand, a good night’s sleep or taking a moment to relax or play.

Every day, we can see how the proliferation of digital technology is changing the way we interact and shop. If we could see into the minds of all those exposed to a constant influx of digital content, we may come to the realization that the shopper’s brain is in a state of constant partial attention – a digitally induced sort of attention deficit disorder. In a retail marketplace where customers are continuously bombarded with thousands of images each day, creating a resonant message with customers, amid all their other mental clutter, will increasingly be a challenge

Humans just weren’t built to be able to maintain a constant state of monitoring of our environment for long periods of time. If you have ever spent an extended period of time on your computer working, playing games or surfing the Internet, you might have felt a bit spaced out, fatigued and maybe even irritable or distracted. Under this sort of stress, our brains send out signals to the adrenal glands to secrete cortisol and adrenaline. In the short term, these chemicals increase energy levels and enhance memory. However, when we are under chronic stress, they are said to lead to depression and impair cognition, as well as affect the regions of the brain that control mood, like the amygdala, the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus. The more shoppers are exposed to within an omnichannel marketplace, the more likely they are to feel negative and unable to make clear-headed buying decisions that enhance their satisfaction with the experience.  

Living in a digitally connected, omnichannel world is having an effect on a younger generation whose vulnerable growing cortices are wired to fit a new normal of how we communicate and enter into relationships with each other. The earlier children are exposed to hours of digital content, the more their young plastic brains are rewiring, changing their capacity to relate to others. The more screen time we have, the more likely it is that the brain develops neural pathways favoring communication that is based on quick spurts of visual content at the expense of more traditional face-to-face interactions. Young brains are pruning away neural connections between the ages of two and 20 at a rate unlike any other time in our evolutionary history. What digital natives are exposed to during those crucial years solidifies who they are later and how they communicate with the world around them.

The omnichannel-shopping brain exists in a series of dichotomies: As information and choice increase, attention and decision-making abilities decrease; as empathy declines, narcissism increases; as abundance rises, satisfaction diminishes; as digital content takes over our environments, the less fit we are to decode it; and as shopping opportunities abound, we garner convenience at the expense of engaging in meaningful embodied connections.

The world of omnichannel shopping is both a blessing and a curse. It provides convenience to potential customers through offering goods and services anywhere, any time they want. However, it also adds extraordinary selection opportunity to the equation. It seems natural to assume that, given abundance in both the array of products available and the multiple ways to buy them, that in an omnichannel shopping world we are simply adding to the noise in the customer’s head in the name of providing convenience.

These days, when tech-enabled and educated customers show up in the store, they aren’t necessarily looking for more information or products than they have likely uncovered through hours of Internet searches. They are often looking for validation, connection and support as they wade through the plethora of options and information at their fingertips. In an omnichannel retail world, the shopping brain is going to need help. Stores will have to provide experiences that are fast, captivating, efficient, relevant, informed and emotional – all without overwhelming the already-overloaded brain.

David Kepron is Vice President – Global Design Strategies with Marriott International. His focus is on the creation of compelling customer experiences within a unique group of Marriott brands called the “Lifestyle Collection,” including Autograph, Renaissance and Moxy hotels. As a frequently requested speaker to retailers, hoteliers and design professionals nationally and internationally, David shares his expertise on subjects ranging from consumer behaviors and trends, brain science and buying behavior, store design and visual merchandising as well as creativity and innovation. David is also author of “Retail (r)Evolution: Why Creating Right-Brain Stores will Shape the Future of Shopping in a Digitally Driven World,” published by ST Media Group Intl. and available online from ST Books. @davidkepron; www.retail-r-evolution.com.