In the consumer insight surveys, a method called laddering is frequently applied to understand the consumer's mind structure as to which product characteristics or brand characteristics are generating functional benefits and emotional benefits.
There are cases where you ladder up from the lower concepts such as product characteristics or brand characteristics to higher concepts, or ladder down from the higher concepts such as benefits to lower concepts.


Here are some typical questions used in qualitative researches. This question example is for "ladder up".

• Please tell me what is important when choosing Product X .
• Please tell me the importance of what has just been mentioned. <Very important / important / somewhat important>
•  <Start the laddering from the most important thing> Why is that important to you?
• <Continue laddering until no answer is given>

If you would like to understand the mind structure in which a particular brand is preferred, the questions will be as follows. Here, the questions are simplified and limited to “ladder-up”.

• How much do you like comparing Brand X and Brand Y?
• Please tell us why you prefer Brand Y to Brand X.
• <Start the laddering from the most important reason> Why is that important to you?
• <Continue the laddering until no answer is given>
  
  
  
  Based upon the answers, we try to understand the "brain concept" which is the mental image of the neural map.
  
  
  
  Neuroscience can tell us when, where, and how neurons are activated, but not the brain contents that neuron maps represent.
  Laddering does not make it possible to understand all of the brain concept because it uses words and images that the respondents can be aware of, but it is the most suitable research method to gain insight into the brain concept.
  
  The “product value map” created based on the research results is useful for understanding the following things.
  
• Which product attributes (concrete concepts) create benefits (concrete and abstract concepts)?
  
• Which abstract concepts contribute to feelings and emotions (interoceptive sense)?
  
  Using neuroscience findings, we can also infer which product attributes (concrete concepts) activate which brain areas among the five sensory areas (visionary, auditory, gustatory, olfactory, somatosensory) and the motor area.