Consumer Behavior Test 3

Define classical conditioning and operant conditioning. Explain how marketers use these two forms of conditioning to encourage consumer behavior and provide an example of each.

Classical conditioning is using established relationship between one stimulus and response to bring about the learning of the same response to a different stimulus. Marketers use this to encourage consumer behavior by trying to elicit a positive feeling with their brand. An example of this would be that you have a new brand of pen and you want consumers to feel positively about this brand of pen. Marketers would pair this new brand with something that elicits positive feelings such as a popular music in an ad. Eventually. after repeatedly pairing the brand name and the music, the brand name alone will elicit the same positive feelings produced by the music. Operant conditioning or instrumental learning is rewarding desirable behaviors such as brand purchases with positive outcome that serves to reinforce behavior. Operant conditioning is used widely by marketers. The most common application is to offer consistent quality products so that the use of the products to meet a consumer need is reinforcing. An example of operant conditioning is giving extra reinforcement for purchasing a particular brand such as rebates, toys in cereal boxes, or discount coupons.

Define selective exposure and voluntary exposure

Selective Exposure: when people only seek out stimuli that interests them. For instance, most shoppers don't visit every aisle in the store. Voluntary Exposure: when consumers actively seek out commercials and other marketing stimuli for various reasons such as purchase goals, entertainment items and information.

* Attention

occurs when the stimulus activates one or more sensory receptor nerves, and the resulting sensations go to the brain for processing

Identify the three aspects of Interpretation (Hint: Not asking for the three characteristics that help determine interpretation; rather, the three aspects that define interpretation)

1. Relative process rather than absolute, referred to as perceptual relativity. 2. Tends to be subjective and open to a host of psychological biases 3. Can be a cognitive "thinking" process or an affective "emotional" process. * Cognitive interpretation is a process whereby stimuli are placed into existing categories of meaning * Affective Interpretation is the emotional or feeling response triggered by a stimulus such as an ad.

Define attention, and discuss how four of the several stimulus factors influence attention to a stimulus

Attention occurs when the stimulus activates one or more sensory receptor nerves, and the resulting sensations go to the brain for processing. Attention is determined by three factors: stimulus factors, individual factors, and situational factors. There are several stimulus factors that influence attention to a stimulus. Four of which are "color and movement", "isolation", "intensity", and "size". * Size: larger stimuli are more likely to be noticed than smaller ones. For instance, more shelf space can translate into greater attention and sales. In advertising, the larger the ad the more attention it will grab. Larger banner ads also attracts more attention which is why banner and online ads continue to increase in size. Intensity: Intensity is the loudness, brightness, & length of a stimulus. For instance, the longer a scene in an advertisement is held on screen, the more likely it is to be noticed and recalled. * Repetition is also related to intensity (the number of times an individual is exposed to a given stimulus, such as an ad or brand logo over time). Attention usually decreases across repeated exposures. * Color and Movement: brightly colored ad moving items are more noticeable. Certain colors and color characteristics create feelings of excitement and arousal, which are related to attention. Brighter colors are more arousing than dull. In a store, brightly colored packages or displays are more apt to receive attention. Also, point of purchase displays with moving parts and signage are more likely to draw attention and increase sales. Color and movement are also important in advertising. Banner ads with dynamic animation attract more attention than similar ads without dynamic animation. *Isolation: separating a stimulus object from other objects. In store, the use of stand-alone kiosks is based on this principle. In advertising, the use of "white space" (placing a brief message in the center of an otherwise blank to white advertisement) is based on this principle, as is surrounding a key part of a radio commercial with a brief moment of silence.

Describe the difference between manifest and latent motives. Provide an example of each.

Manifest: motives that are known and freely admitted. ex: buying J crew clothing because their clothes are high quality & comfortable or because a number of my friends wear J Crew Latent: unknown to the consumer or were such that he or she was reluctant to admit them. ex: wearing J crew clothing because it will show that I'm sophisticated and trendy.

Name and describe McGuire's four overarching categories of psychological motives

McGuire's four overarching categories of psychological motives are: cognitive preservation, cognitive growth, affective preservation, affective growth. * Cognitive Preservation Motives:

Define memory interference and explain specific ways marketers try to decrease competitive interference.

Memory interference occurs when consumers have difficulty retrieving a specific piece of information because other related information in memory gets in the way. A common form of interference in marketing is due to competitive advertising. Competitive advertising makes it harder for consumers to recall any given advertisement and its contents. For example seeing an advertisement for Canada Dry Ginger Ale might interfere with your memory of Mountain Dew. There are several things marketers do to decrease competitive interference. One of which is avoid competing advertising. Another is to strengthen initial learning. Marketers can also reduce similarity to competing ads or Provide external retrieval cues.

Define motivation, personality, and emotion. Describe why marketers are interested in learning about each as it relates to consumer behavior.

Motivation is the reason for behavior. Provides purpose for behavior "why". When a consumer feels a gap between a desired state and his or her actual current state, a need is recognized and experienced as a drive state referred to as motivation. Needs and motives influence what consumers perceive as relevant and also influence their feelings and emotion. For example, a consumer who feels hungry is motivated to satisfy that need, will view food and ads for food as personally relevant and will experience negative emotions prior to eating and positive emotions after eating. i.e. Maslow's Hierarchy of Human Needs. Personality is an individual's characteristic response tendencies across similar situations. Most useful theory of personality to marketers are trait theories. Trait theories examine personality as an individual difference and thus allow marketers to segment consumers as a function of their personality differences. Sometimes consumers choose products that fit their personality. Other times, consumers use products to bolster an area of their personality where they feel weak. Emotions are strong, relatively uncontrolled feelings that affect behavior. Emotions are often triggered by environmental events (viewing an ad, consuming a product that meets a need). However, they can also be initiated by internal processes such as imagery. Advertisers frequently use imagery to evoke specific emotional responses.

Explain how an individual's physiological and psychological traits influence how stimuli are interpreted

Physiological and psychological traits drive our needs and desires. These traits influence how a stimulus is interpreted. From a physiological standpoint, consumers differ in their sensitivity to stimuli. Some children are more sensitive to the bitter taste of certain chemicals found in the green, leafy vegetables such as spinach. From a psychological standpoint, consumers have natural cognitive, emotional, and behavioral predispositions. For example, some people experience emotions more strongly than others, a trait known as affect intensity.

Describe short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM). Why are marketers interested in maintenance rehearsal within STM and episodic memory within LTM?

Short Term Memory has a limited capacity to store information and sensations. Individuals use STM to hold information while they analyze and interpret it. They may then transfer it to another system (write or type it), place it in LTM, or both. Thus, STM is closely analogous to what we normally call thinking. It is an active dynamic process not a static structure. Information in working memory decays quickly. Consumers must constantly refresh information through maintenance rehearsal or it will be lost. Maintenance rehearsal is the continual repetition of a piece of information in order to hold it in current member for use in problem solving or transferral to LTM. Marketers frequently stimulate this by repeating the brand name or a key benefit in a prominent manner several times in an ad. Long Term Memory is viewed as an unlimited permanent storage. It can store numerous types of information. such as concepts, decision rules, processes, and affective (emotional) states. Episodic memory is the memory of a sequence of events in which a person participated. These personal memories of events such as a first date, graduation, or learning to drive can be quiet strong. They often elicit memory and feelings. Marketers frequently attempt to evoke episodic memories either because their brand was involved i them or to associate the positive feelings they generate with the brand.

Define situational factors and discuss the two major situational factors that affect attention

Situational factors are outside (external) factors that influence a consumers buying decisions. A variety of situational characteristics have an impact on interpretation, including temporary characteristics of the individual, such as time pressure and mood, and physical characteristics of the situation, such as the number and characteristics of other individuals present and the nature of the material surrounding the message in question. Color can be a contextual cue. Certain color characteristics were found to elicit feelings of relaxation (blue more so than red) and these feelings increased perceptions of faster web page loading even when actual speeds were identical. Nature of Programming surrounding a brand's advertisements can also be a contextual cue. Both Coca Cola and General Foods have refused to advertise some products during news broadcasts because they believe that "bad" news might affect the interpretation of their products.