Chapter 8

interpretation

the assignment of meaning to sensations

Explain attention, the factors that affect it, and the resulting marketing implications

Attention occurs when the stimulus activates one or more of the sensory receptors and the resulting sensations go into the brain for processing. People selectively attend to stimuli as a function of stimulus, individual, and situational factors. Stimulus factors are physical characteristics of the stimulus itself, such as contrast, size, intensity, attractiveness, color, movement, position, isolation, format, and information quantity. Individual factors are characteristics of the individual, such as motivation and ability. Situational factors include stimuli in the environment other than the focal stimulus and temporary characteristics of the individual that are induced by the environment. Clutter and program involvement are situational factors of particular interest to marketers. Marketers can utilize all these factors to better develop stimuli that attract consumer attention in today's cluttered environment. Nonfocused attention occurs when a person takes in information without deliberate effort. Hemispheric lateralization is a term applied to activities that take place on each side of the brain. The left side of the brain is concerned primarily with those activities typically called rational thought and the ability to be conscious and report what is happening. The right side of the brain deals the pictorial, geometric, timeless, and nonverbal information without the individual's being able to verbally report it. A message presented so fast or so softly or so masked by other messages that one is not aware of seeing or hearing it is called a subliminal message. Subliminal messages have generated a great deal of interest but are not generally thought to affect brand choice or other aspects of consumer behavior in a meaningful way.

Explain exposure, the types of exposure, and the resulting marketing implications

Exposure occurs when a stimulus comes within range of one of an individual's primary sensory receptors. People are exposed to only a small fraction of the available stimuli. And when consumers actively avoid certain marketing stimuli, this is referred to as selective exposure. Selective exposure in the advertising area is termed ad avoidance. Marketers try to overcome avoidance by using tactics such as product placement and hybrid ads. It should be noted, however, that consumers seek out some marketing stimuli voluntarily. Examples include Super Bowl ads, ads that go viral online, and company-based emails that consumers choose to receive through permission-based marketing.

Explain interpretation, the factors that affect it, and the resulting marketing implications

Interpretation is the assigning of meaning to stimuli that have been attended to. Interpretation tends to be relative rather than absolute (perceptual relativity) and subjective rather than objective. Two general forms of interpretation are cognitive and affective. Cognitive interpretation appears to involve a process whereby new stimuli are placed into existing categories of meaning. Affective interpretation is the emotion of feeling response triggered by the stimulus. Interpretation is largely a function of individual traits, learning, and expectations that are triggered by the stimulus and moderated by the situation. Stimulus characteristics are critical. Stimulus organization is the physical arrangement of the stimulus object and relates to the perceptual principles of proximity, closure, and figure-ground. Marketers can use these principles to design effective communication strategies. Stimulus change and consumer reactions to it are also of concern and have consequences in relation to such strategies as "weighting out," whereby marketers attempt to reduce the quantity offered in increments that consumers won't detect. Interpretation often involves consumer inferences. Inferences go beyond what is directly stated or presented and help explain consumer use of quality signals (ex: higher price means higher quality), their interpretation of images, and how they deal with missing information. Inferences also help explain how consumers can be misled by marketing messages even when those messages are literally true.

Discuss how perception can enhance strategies for retailing, branding, advertising, and packaging

Marketers use their knowledge of perception to enhance strategies in a number of areas including retailing, branding, advertising, and packaging. For retailing, issues surrounding store and shelf location are important determinants of perception. For branding, issues surrounding the selection of brand names, extensions, and appropriate logos have important implications for perception. Advertising strategies and media selection are heavily influenced by considering factors that enhance exposure and attention. Packaging is a functional aspect of products, but also perceptual in that it can capture consumer attention and influence their brand interpretations.

perceptual relativity

An aspect of interpretation; it is generally a relative process rather than absolute -it is often difficult for people to make interpretations in the absence of some reference point

Describe the nature of perception and its relationship to consumer memory and decisions

Perception consists of those activities by which an individual acquires and assigns meaning to stimuli. Perception occurs in 3 stages 1) exposure 2) attention 3) interpretation If and when perception occurs, the meaning derived from a stimulus is typically transferred to memory, where it is stored and can be later retrieved when consumers are making purchase decisions.

perception

The first 3 stages of information processing 1) exposure: occurs when a stimulus comes within range of a person's sensory receptor nerves 2) attention: occurs when the stimulus is seen/heard/felt/etc 3) interpretation: the assignment of meaning to the received sensations

subliminal stimulus

a message presented so fast or so softly or so masked by other messages that one is not aware of seeing or hearing it

cognitive interpretation

a process whereby stimuli are placed into existing categories of meaning

information processing

a series of activities by which stimuli are perceived, transformed into information, and stored

hemispheric lateralization

a term applied to activities that take place on each side of the brain Left side: primarily responsible for verbal information, symbolic representation, sequential analysis, and the ability to be conscious and report what is happening. Controls those activities we typically call "rational thought" -needs fairly frequent rest Right side: deals with pictorial, geometric, timeless, and nonverbal information without the individual being able to verbally report it. Works with images and impressions -can easily scan large amounts of information over an extended period of time

co-branding

an alliance in which two brands are put together on a single product

ambush marketing

any communication or activity that implies, or from which one could reasonably infer, that an organization is associated with an event, when in fact it is not

smart banners

banner ads that are activated based on terms used in search engines

inference

goes beyond what is directly stated or presented

brand familiarity

how well customers recognize and accept a company's brand

perceptual defenses

individuals are not passive recipients of marketing messages

rhetorical figures

involve the use of an unexpected twist or artful deviation in how a message is communicated either visually in the ad's picture or verbally in the ad's text or headline

zapping

involves switching channels when a commercial appears

product placement

marketers increasingly seek to gain exposure by placing their brands within entertainment media, such as movies and TV programs, in exchange for payment or promotional or other consideration provides exposure that consumers don't try to avoid shows how and when to use the product

inattentional blindness

mental focus can result in people not perceiving things that they would otherwise observe -gorilla video

exposure

occurs when a stimulus is placed within a person's relevant environment and comes within range of their sensory receptor nerves

information overload

occurs when consumers are confronted with so much information that they cannot or will not attend to all of it

zipping

occurs when one fast-forwards through a commercial on a prerecorded program

attention

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

contextual cues

play a role in consumer interpretation independent of the actual stimulus when present in a situation

closure

presenting an incomplete stimulus with the goal of getting consumers to complete it and thus become more engaged and involved

figure-ground

presenting the stimulus in such a way that it is perceived as the focal object to be attended to and all other stimuli are perceived as the background

infomercials

program-length television commercials with a toll-free number and/or web address through which to order or request additional information

proximity

stimuli positioned close together are perceived as belonging in the same category

Adaptation level theory

suggests that if a stimulus doesn't change, over time we adapt or habituate to it and begin to notice it less

cross-promotions

the cooperative marketing by two or more companies of one another's products. signage in one area of the store promotes complementary products in another area (milk signage in a cookie aisle)

affective interpretation

the emotional or feeling response triggered by a stimulus such as an ad

just noticeable difference (JND)

the minimum amount that one brand can differ from another with the difference still being noticed

stimulus organization

the physical arrangement of the stimulus objects

sensory discrimination

the physiological ability of an individual to distinguish between similar stimuli

permission-based marketing

the voluntary and self-selected nature of such online offerings, where consumers "opt in" to receive email based promotions

muting

turning the sound off during commercial breaks

brand extension

when an existing brand extends to a new category with the same name

Ad avoidance

zipping, zapping, and muting are simply mechanical ways for consumers to selectively avoid exposure to advertising messages