Exhibit 15.9 Heatmaps depict hot spots of areas that are grabbing eyeballs.
(Source: Dr Jodi Sita, Australian Catholic University.)
Heatmaps like the one in Exhibit 15.9, represent the areas of the visual that are viewed most. They depict
the aggregate gaze points through a colour scheme where warm colours like red and yellow indicate hot spots or areas that
are viewed more often and for longer periods.
The “heat intensity” is equal to the proportion of participants fixating the area of interest times the average
fixation duration, or time spent.
These metrics are of considerable relevance to marketing analysts. Advertisers, for instance, design layouts so
that higher proportion of viewers (proportion fixating) see the value proposition or the key messages in the advertisement.
Similarly packaging designers want their packaging to stand out on the shelf. It is important for both, that the key elements
in their content are red hot spots.
