Sales Increase with Limbic Lighting

Craig DiLouie February 9, 2016

I contributed this short article to the February 2016 issue of tED Magazine, published by the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED). Reprinted with permission.

Manufacturer Zumtobel recently concluded a field study with Gerry Weber that showed an increase in sales based on a lighting solution optimized based on the personality type of the fashion retailer’s target market.

The study, conducted in 2014, follows laboratory research during the previous year by Zumtobel Research and consultancy Gruppe Nymphenburg, which had developed the “Limbic® Model,” a tool for analyzing the complex emotional personality structures of consumers.

Eighty percent of buying decisions made at the point of sale are made unconsciously, mainly depending on influences addressing people’s emotions. Zumtobel wanted to know how influential lighting is in those decisions.

In the lab study, subjects were assigned to seven different personality or Limbic types using a questionnaire. These included Bon Vivants, Hedonists, Adventurists, Performers, Disciplinarians, Traditionalists and Harmonizers. These subjects then looked at 20 different lighting scenarios while their unconscious physical reactions, including brain waves and cardiac activity, were measured. The researchers were then able to identify which lighting scenarios triggered positive or negative emotions, stimulation or relaxation among the different Limbic groups.

While all Limbic groups did not respond positively to a single lighting scenario, there were individual lighting scenarios that multiple groups responded positively to. This allowed the Limbic types to be combined into three main groups:

• Balance (Harmonizers, Traditionalist and Bon Vivants), which responded particularly positively to moderate accent lighting.
• Stimulance (Hedonists, Adventurers), which responded most positively to lighting scenarios with relatively strong contrasts, created by accent lighting and a variety of different spot lights.
• Dominance (Performers, Disciplinarians), which responded negatively to extreme contrasts and responded most positively to balanced, moderate lighting scenes.

These ideas were put to the test in the field study, which was conducted at a Gerry Weber store in Herford, Germany. Zumtobel designed an LED accent lighting solution identified as specifically satisfying the preferences of Harmonizers, a key target market for the retailer. As shown above, Harmonizers belong to the Balance Limbic Type and therefore react positively to moderate accent lighting. The new look at of the Herford store was designed to generate a bright and friendly atmosphere with a warm 3000K color appearance.

General purchasing behavior before and after installation of the new lighting was measured and observed over two months. A sampling of customers was tested using the Limbic Emotional Assessment tool and also interviewed about their shopping experience.

Gerry Weber reported a 10 percent increase in sales compared to a reference store, with an even higher average sales increase among the specific target group for which the lighting solution was optimized.

Horschlager Martin, head of retail operations for Gerry Weber, concluded: “For us as an international fashion brand, it was fascinating to see clear scientific findings that prove the significant influence of light at the point of sale …We have seen how profitable the Limbic lighting concept proved in our Herford store, with a marked increase in sales during the test period.”