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Perception: Consumer Behavior
Perception: Consumer Behavior
Perception
By Michael R. Solomon
Consumer Behavior
Buying, Having, and Being
Sixth Edition
2-1
Opening Vignette: Parmalat
• What was Gary’s perception of Parmalat?
• Why is shelf-stable milk popular in Europe?
• In the focus group research, what were the
U.S. consumers’ perceptions of Parmalat?
• What is Parmalat doing to overcome the
obstacles associated with marketing shelf-
stable milk in the United States?
2-2
Sensation and Perception
• Sensation:
– The immediate response of our sensory receptors (eyes,
ears, nose, mouth, fingers) to basic stimuli such as light,
color, sound, odors, and textures
• Perception:
– The process by which sensations are selected, organized,
and interpreted
• The Study of Perception:
– Focuses on what we add to raw sensations to give them
meaning
2-3
An Overview of the
Perception Process
• This Finnish ad
emphasizes the
sensual reasons to
visit the city of
Helsinki.
2-8
Sensory Perceptions - Vision
• Some reactions to color come from
learned associations.
– (e.g. Black is associated with mourning in the
United States, whereas white is associated with
mourning in Japan.)
• Some reactions to color are due to
biological and cultural differences.
– (e.g. Women tend to be drawn to brighter tones and
are more sensitive to subtle shadings and patterns)
2-9
Perceptions of Color
This ad campaign by
the San Francisco
Ballet uses color
perceptions to get urban
sophisticates to add
classical dance to their
packed entertainment
itineraries.
2 - 10
Sensory Perceptions - Vision
• Color plays a dominant role in Web page
design.
• Saturated colors (green, yellow, orange, and
cyan) are considered the best to capture
attention.
– Don’t overdo it. Extensive use of saturated colors can
overwhelm people and cause visual fatigue.
• Trade Dress:
– Colors that are strongly associated with a corporation, for
which the company may have exclusive rights for their use.
• (e.g. Kodak’s use of yellow, black, and red)
2 - 11
Perceptions of Color
• As this Dutch
detergent ad
demonstrates
(Flowery orange
fades without Dreft),
vivid colors are often
an attractive product
feature.
2 - 12
Discussion Question
• First Heinz gave us
“Blastin’ Green” ketchup
in a squeeze bottle. Now
they have introduced
“Funky Purple” ketchup.
• What sensory perception
is Heinz trying to appeal
to? Do you think this
product will be successful?
Why or why not?
2 - 13
Your Assignment
• Select three to five advertisements (in any
format) that target different sensory perceptions.
2 - 14
Sensory Perceptions - Smell
• Odors can stir emotions or create a calming
feeling.
• Some responses to scents result from early
associations that call up good or bad
feelings.
• Marketers are finding ways to use smell:
– Scented clothes
– Scented stores
– Scented cars and planes
– Scented household products
– Scented advertisements
2 - 15
Smell in Advertising
• This ad pokes fun at
the proliferation of
scented ads. Ah, the
scent of sweat.
2 - 16
Sensory Perceptions - Sound
• Advertising jingles create brand awareness.
• Background music creates desired moods.
• Sound affects people’s feelings and
behaviors.
• Muzak uses a system it calls “stimulus
progression” to increase the normally slower
tempo of workers during midmorning and
midafternoon time slots.
• Sound engineering:
– Top-end automakers are using focus groups of consumers
to help designers choose appropriate sounds to elicit the
proper response.
2 - 17
Stimulus Progression
2 - 18
Sensory Perceptions - Touch
• Relatively little research has been done on
the effects of tactile stimulation on the
consumer, but common observation tells
us that this sensory channel is important.
• People associate textures of fabrics and
other surfaces with product quality.
• Perceived richness or quality of the
material in clothing is linked to its “feel,”
whether rough or smooth.
2 - 19
Applications of Touch Perceptions
• Kansai engineering: A
philosophy that
translates customers’
feelings into design
elements.
• Mazda Miata designers
discovered that making
the stick shift (shown
on the right) exactly 9.5
cm long conveys the
optimal feeling of
sportiness and control.
2 - 20
Tactile Quality Associations
Tactile Oppositions in Fabrics
Table 2.1 2 - 21
Sensory Perceptions - Taste
2 - 22
Exposure
• Exposure:
– Occurs when a stimulus comes within the range of
someone’s sensory receptors
• Consumers concentrate on some
stimuli, are unaware of others, and
even go out of their way to ignore some
messages.
2 - 23
Sensory Thresholds
• Psychophysics:
– The science that focuses on how the physical environment
is integrated into our personal subjective world.
• Absolute Threshold:
– The minimum amount of stimulation that can be detected
on a given sensory channel.
• Differential Threshold:
– The ability of a sensory system to detect changes or
differences between two stimuli. The minimum difference
that can be detected between two stimuli is known as the
j.n.d. (just noticeable difference).
2 - 24
Weber’s Law
• The amount of change that is necessary to be
noticed is systematically related to the intensity of
the original stimulus
• The stronger the initial stimulus, the greater a
change must be for it to be noticed.
• Mathematically:
i
K
I
– K = A constant (varies across senses)
– Δi = The minimal change in the intensity required to produce j.n.d.
– I = the intensity of the stimulus where the change occurs
2 - 25
Subliminal Perception
• Subliminal perception:
– Occurs when the stimulus is below the level of the
consumer’s awareness.
• Subliminal techniques:
– Embeds: Tiny figures that are inserted into magazine:
advertising by using high-speed photography or airbrushing.
• Does subliminal perception work?
– There is little evidence that subliminal stimuli can bring
about desired behavioral changes.
2 - 26
Subliminal Messages in Ads
• Critics of subliminal
persuasion often focus
on ambiguous shapes
in drinks that
supposedly spell out
words like S E X as
evidence for the use of
this technique. This
Pepsi ad, while hardly
subliminal, gently
borrows this message
format.
2 - 27
Attention
• Attention:
– The extent to which processing activity is devoted
to a particular stimulus.
• Attention economy:
– The Internet has transformed the focus of
marketers from attracting dollars to attracting
eyeballs.
• Perceptual selection:
– People attend to only a small portion of the stimuli
to which they are exposed.
2 - 28
Attention and Advertising
2 - 31
Stimulus Selection Factors
• Size:
– The size of the stimulus itself in contrast to the competition
helps to determine if it will command attention.
• Color:
– Color is a powerful way to draw attention to a product.
• Position:
– Stimuli that are present in places we’re more likely to look
stand a better chance of being noticed.
• Novelty:
– Stimuli that appear in unexpected ways or places tend to
grab our attention.
2 - 32
Discussion Question
• What technique does
this Australian ad rely
on to get your
attention?
• Does the technique
enhance or detract
from the
advertisement of the
actual product?
2 - 33
Attention to Stimuli
• Interpretation:
– The meaning that we assign sensory stimuli.
• Schema:
– Set of beliefs to which the stimulus is assigned.
• Priming:
– Process by which certain properties of a stimulus
typically will evoke a schema, which leads
consumers to evaluate the stimulus in terms of
other stimulus they have encountered and believe
to be similar.
2 - 34
Schema-Based Perception
2 - 36
Stimulus Organization
• A stimulus will be interpreted based on its
assumed relationship with other events,
sensations, or images.
• Closure Principle:
– People tend to perceive an incomplete picture as complete.
• Principle of Similarity:
– Consumers tend to group together objects that share the
same physical characteristics.
• Figure-ground Principle:
– One part of a stimulus will dominate (the figure) and other
parts will recede into the background (the ground).
2 - 37
Gestalt Principle
2 - 41
Semiotic Components
Figure 2.2 2 - 42
Semiotics (cont.)
• Signs are related to objects in one of
three ways:
– 1) Icon: a sign that resembles the product in some
way
– 2) Index: a sign that is connected to some object
because they share some property
– 3) Symbol: a sign that is related to a product
through conventional or agreed-upon associations
• Hyperreality: The becoming real of what is
initially simulation or “hype”
2 - 43
Office Space and “The Red Stapler”
2 - 44
Perceptual Positioning
• Positioning Strategy
– A fundamental part of a company’s marketing
efforts as it uses elements of the marketing mix to
influence the consumer’s interpretation of its
meaning.
– Many dimensions can establish a brand’s position
in the marketplace:
• Lifestyle • Competitors
• Price Leadership • Occasions
• Attributes • Users
• Product Class • Quality
2 - 45
Perceptual Map
• Figure 2.3: HMV
Perceptual Map
2 - 46