When a new technological product launching fails: A multi-method approach of facial recognition and E-WOM sentiment analysis

The dual aim of this research is, firstly, to analyze the physiological and unconscious emotional response of consumers to a new technological product and, secondly, link this emotional response to consumer conscious verbal reports of positive and negative product perceptions. In order to do this, biometrics and self-reported measures of emotional response are combined. On the one hand, a neuromarketing experiment based on the facial recognition of emotions of 10 subjects, when physical attributes and economic information of a technological product are exposed, shows the prevalence of the ambivalent emotion of surprise. On the other hand, a nethnographic qualitative approach of sentiment analysis of 67-user online comments characterise the valence of this emotion as mainly negative in the case and context studied. Theoretical, practical and methodological contributions are anticipated from this paper. From a theoretical point of view this proposal contributes valuable information to the product design process, to an effective development of the marketing mix variables of price and promotion, and to a successful selection of the target market. From a practical point of view, the approach employed in the case study on the product Google Glass provides empirical evidence useful in the decision making process for this and other technological enterprises launching a new product. And from a methodological point of view, the usefulness of integrated neuromarketing-eWOM analysis could contribute to the proliferation of this tandem in marketing research.