This Individual Assignment is going to be a bit different. The best time to do this is probably over the 4-day Thanksgiving weekend (Black Friday through Cyber Monday).
You're going "on the field" and surveying any outlet of your choice, such as retailers, shopping malls, etc., to observe, record, and analyzehow the stores, brands, etc. have been laid out in order to attract customers' attention.
Here are your requirements:
Visit a shopping mall, major-brand retailer, pharmacy, large-retailer, supermarket, shopping plaza, outlet-mall, whichever shopping venue you want.
Since you haveseveral days to conduct this, choose a place you're likely going to anyway, particularly since there is going to be a lot of shopping deals and holiday decorations (be it Thanksgiving or Christmas), so chances are you may be shopping where there may be sales or promotions.
• Bring a small notepad, or if you're savvy at texting, just bring your smartphone (if you wish to go for ultimate geekiness, bring your tablet).
• Spend a few minutes at your chosen location, observing shoppers: their routines, their behaviors, any patterns, etc.
• You may even speak to the store or mall manager and ask questions regarding stores layouts, lighting, merchandise arrangement, displays, decorations, choice(s) of music, etc...
• Take at least two good, clear pictures of a particular area of the store, or shelves, or product or brand-specific displays...
DO NOT TAKE PICTURES OF PEOPLE! This is a violation of privacy, so please make sure the picture is clear of people.
Post your pictures, notes, and interviews (if any) all in a short, 5-minute, 3-4 slide PPT Presentation (note: format pictures to a smaller file size, otherwise the file itself will become enormous... right-click on Keynote to "Reduce image file size" or click on Format on PPT to Compress Image"). And yes, you will be asked to present.
Discuss your own notes & findings:
1. What particular methods/stimuli were used to gain customers' attention? Were any of them unique?
2. Were there layouts, displays, or interactive features that required attentive (conscious) customer interaction, or seamless/intuitive/routine (unconscious) interaction?
3. Based on your pictures, if an Eye-tracking/gazing test was conducted, where do you believe subjects would be gazing at, the most? Why? Explain.