The problem of imperfect information is one of the central focuses of institutional economics. Information asymmetry creates a contextual environment for marketing promotion. Its manifestations are associated with both the inability for the buyer to know the true price of the product and the risk of making the wrong choice. The paper deals with the assessment of information asymmetry that occurs in retail trade, as well as the development of algorithms for identifying areas of visual consumer interest that are responsible for consumer decision-making. The methodological framework of the research is based on experimental economics, including the methods of classical marketing and neuromarketing. The information base of the study embraces the research works of Russian and foreign scholars published in the leading peer-reviewed journals, as well as the authors’ previous studies, designed algorithms and methods for analyzing marketing and neuromarketing data. Empirical and experimental results show that when making a choice and a purchase decision, the buyer is guided by different types of information attributes that create information asymmetry. We put forward and statistically confirm five hypotheses concerning the optimization of consumer visual attention management, such as: there are differences in eye movement behavior of men and women when choosing goods; there is a correlation between time spent in a store and the number of impulse purchases made; the design of supermarket shelves increases the amount of visual attention; there is a relationship between the visual hierarchy of products and consumer choice; and information asymmetry of product display proves the redundancy of unstructured visual information. The research results are useful for retail businesses and are of high importance in terms of the fundamental understanding of the space organization in stores, as this allows getting new evidence about the possibilities of consumer visual attention management.

One of the promising areas of scientific research today is branding of territories. This issue is widely covered in the context of territorial marketing. Brand influence on recipient’s behavior is a significant brand management goal. That is why branding is actively used today in economy, in particular, when creating a territorial image. The development of urban space is predetermined by the need to form strategic guidelines that are adaptive to the existing competitive potential of the territory, dynamically changing environmental conditions, and toughening competition in the investment, information, labor, event, tourist and other markets. In this regard, the issues of territory’s promotion in the domestic and intercountry spaces by means of creating a recognizable urban brand which is associated with the most significant competitive advantages of the territory become more and more crucial. The importance of understanding the category of territory branding in the economic context is determined, in our opinion, by the formation of a territory brand, which helps to significantly strengthen the regional identity aimed at the elimination of various contradictions of religious, national character, as well as solution of problematic issues connected with the coexistence of various social groups within the same region. In order to determine the influence of brand identifiers on the economic development of the region, the authors have conducted a marketing study among the population of the Republic of Crimea, in which 242 respondents from various social and age groups took part. The survey reveals: respondents’ awareness of regional symbols depending on their age; respondents’ emotional perception of the logo of the city of Yalta; associative perception of the logo of the city of Saki; visual perception of the logo of the city of Kerch; knowledge of the logo of the city of Sudak; associative perception of the logo of the city of Feodosia; attitude of the population of the Republic of Crimea to the logos of cities in the region.

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Introduction. The relevance of the considered scientific problem is that souvenir products are a component of the communicative paradigm of territorial branding, and a souvenir itself acts as a visual carrier of identification of a tourist region. A regional souvenir product has the following specific features: geographical reference to the territory reflecting its peculiarities, cultural and historical traditions in manufacturing and positioning. Consumers’ perception of souvenirs plays an important role in forming impressions about the region. Despite the availability of researches on this topic, the question remains unexplored to what extent the perception of souvenir products forms the basis for their choice. At the same time, to find answers it is essential to use an integrated approach to obtaining the information of interest to us for a comprehensive objective coverage of the issues of territorial branding and the elements of its components, based on the use of both verbal and experimental methods. Thus, the purpose of this article was to study the verbal and non-verbal consumer perception of regional souvenir products to assess the possibilities of its use in the process of commodity positioning and promotion of the Republic of Crimea. Materials and Methods. To examine the visual perception of autochthonous souvenirs, an experimental study of consumer perception based on neuromarketing methods was conducted. The work was carried out on the materials of the Republic of Crimea. The research data were an array of biometric data obtained during experiments, proprietary algorithms and analysis models were applied. Results. The verbal and nonverbal consumer perceptions of souvenir products have been studied. It is shown that the most popular souvenirs are sweets, cosmetics, essential oils and wine. These products emphasize the authenticity of origin and contribute to the commodity positioning of administrative-territorial units. There is an unevenness in the development of souvenir production in the Republic of Crimea. The classification of districts has been carried out, administrative-territorial units with high and medium levels of diversification of goods have been identified, as well as depressed territories that are poorly positioned. Promising models of promotion of regional souvenir products are shown. Discussion and Conclusion. The theoretical and applied aspects of the study of the visual attractiveness asymmetry of souvenirs have been improved. The paper also presents the author’s position on the relevance of the promotion of souvenir branding in regional tourist destinations. As a result of a comprehensive neuromarketing experiment, the most attractive Crimean souvenir products from the consumers’ point of view were determined based on the assessment of the figurative identification of territories by respondents and the correlation of gender characteristics with the choice of souvenirs offered. The results of the study can be used to improve and adjust the process of cooperation between souvenir producers, tourism entities and the state, as the most interested entity in the development of tourist destinations.