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PART 2
INTERNAL INFLUENCES
Chapter 8 Perception
Chapter 9 Learning and memory
Chapter 10 Motivation, personality and emotion
Chapter 11 Attitude and attitude change
The shaded area of the consumer-behaviour model shown opposite is the focal point
for this section of the text. Our attention now shifts from the different steps involved in
purchase decision making to the processes that occur primarily within the individual.
ATTITUDES/NEEDS
SITUATION
Problem recognition
Information search
Evaluation and selection
The perception and processing of information for consumer decision making is the
subject of Chapter 8. Then, the learning process necessary for consumer behaviour
is discussed in Chapter 9. Chapter 10 examines motivation, personality and emotion.
Consumer attitudes are the focus of Chapter 11, and these are considered as representing
consumers’ basic orientations in terms of products and marketing activities. Attitudes
are discussed at this stage in the text because they are the actual manifestations of our
learning about products, and are the basic concepts that marketers can measure and
use to predict purchase tendencies. They are a relatively stable composite of knowledge,
feelings and behavioural orientations that people bring to specific purchase situations.
Store choice and
purchase
Postpurchase
Problem recognition
processes
EXPERIENCES
224
Fig 8.0
225
CHAPTER 8
Perception
Strong visual components are often used in advertising to capture consumers’ attention
OBJECTIVES
When you have worked through this chapter, you should understand:
226
●
the nature of perception
●
the different steps involved in information processing
●
which stimulus factors influence this process
●
which individual factors influence this process
●
which situational factors influence this process
●
the way children process information
●
the implications of perception for retail, brand and communication strategies.
227
As the opening story illustrates, organisations that spend millions of dollars on advertising want
people to see and understand it. A sound knowledge of perception is essential for understanding
and, in most instances, avoiding problems when communicating with various target audiences.
Perception is the critical activity that links the individual consumer to group, situation and
marketer influences.
This chapter discusses:
●
●
●
●
PERCEPTION
●
A
Chapter 9 focuses on two of the outcomes of this process: learning and memory.
t a time of increasing media fragmentation, many communication experts feel that
outdoor advertising is replacing television as the ‘mass medium’. Consumers are
spending less time in front of their television sets and more time out and about:
dining out, travelling or even working longer hours. When they do consume media,
the choice is wider than it used to be, with pay TV, the Internet, DVDs and text
messaging all competing with free-to-air television. Out-of-home advertising is marketers’
response to these trends and, in 2001, represented about $271 million of the total $8 billion
advertising market in Australia. Although growing faster than the overall advertising category
(12.5 per cent per year as against just 7 per cent), this is still below overseas trends where
outdoor advertising represents an average of 6.8 per cent of total advertising expenditure.
The Rugby World Cup in October 2003 saw advertisers rushing to snap up sites
near stadiums, hotels and nightspots in the hope of capturing audience attention as
they commuted between games and related social activities, rather than watching the
competition on television.
One of the difficulties with using outdoor advertising stems from the fact that, unlike
television advertising where some measures of reach and frequency exist, no agreed standard
has been developed to evaluate its effectiveness. However, the industry has gone some way to
establishing a universal system of measurement. ROAM (research on outdoor measurement)
involves a consortium of 13 companies, which combine traffic surveys with demographic
information to capture more than just how many cars pass a given site. Yet while it may suit
the large-size billboard format, ROAM does little to help other players in the outdoor sector,
such as Taxi Media, BusPak and other street furniture and transit companies.
According to AdShel marketing manager Anthony Xydis: ‘A number of complex
variables are involved in the development of audience measurements and it is important
to ensure the qualitative aspects of each medium are evaluated in addition to the analysis
of quantitative data. In the case of street furniture, this would include variables such as the
site location and the angle to the road, 24-hour visibility via illumination and the size of the
advertising panel itself.’ He adds that the Australian market may benefit from knowledge
developed in more mature markets, with many measurement systems in place in European
countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Sweden and the Netherlands.1
228 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
the nature of perception
exposure
attention
interpretation
the marketing applications of the perception process.
the critical
activity that links
individual consumers
to group, situation and
marketer influences
perception
THE NATURE OF PERCEPTION
involves a series of activities by which stimuli are transformed into
information and stored. Figure 8.1 overleaf illustrates a useful information-processing model. This
model views information processing as having four main steps or stages:2
Information processing
1
2
3
4
exposure
attention
interpretation
memory.
The first three of these constitute the perception process. Exposure occurs when a stimulus
such as a billboard comes within range of a person’s sensory receptor nerves—the optic nerve in
the case of vision, for example. Attention occurs when the receptor nerves pass the sensations on
to the brain for processing. Interpretation is the assignment of meaning to the received sensations.
Memory is the short-term use of this meaning for immediate decision making, or the longer term
retention of the meaning.
Figure 8.1 and the above discussion suggest a linear flow from exposure to memory. However,
these processes occur virtually simultaneously and are clearly interactive.That is, memory influences
the information consumers are exposed to and attend to, and the interpretations they assign. At the
same time, memory itself is being shaped by the information it is receiving.
Both perception and memory are extremely selective. Of the massive amounts of information
available, an individual can be exposed to only a limited proportion. Of the information to which the
individual is exposed, only a relatively small percentage is attended to and passed on to the central
processing part of the brain for interpretation.The meaning assigned to a stimulus is as much or more
a function of the individual as it is of the stimulus itself. Much of the interpreted information will not
be available to active memory when the individual needs to make a purchase decision.
This selectivity, sometimes referred to as perceptual defences, means that individuals are not
passive recipients of marketing messages. Rather, consumers largely determine the messages they
will encounter and notice as well as the meaning they will assign them. Clearly, the marketing
manager faces a challenging task when communicating with consumers.
information
processing
a series of
activities by which stimuli
are transformed into
information and stored
occurs when
a stimulus comes within
range of our sensory
receptor nerves
exposure
occurs when
the stimulus activates one
or more sensory receptor
nerves and the resulting
sensations go to the brain
for processing
attention
the
assignment of meaning to
sensations
interpretation
the total
accumulation of prior
learning experiences;
consists of two interrelated
components, short-term
memory and long-term
memory
memory
EXPOSURE
Exposure, as noted above, occurs when a stimulus comes within range of our sensory receptor nerves.
For an individual to be exposed to a stimulus requires only that the stimulus be placed within the
person’s immediate environment.The individual need not perceive the stimulus in order for exposure
to have occurred. In other words, you have been exposed to a television advertisement if it was
broadcast while you were in the room, even if you were talking to a friend and did not notice it.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
229
FIGURE 8.1
Information processing for consumer decision making
Exposure
Perception
Random
Deliberate
Attention
Lowinvolvement
Highinvolvement
Interpretation
Lowinvolvement
Short-term
Active problem
solving
Highinvolvement
Memory
Long-term
Stored experiences,
values, decisions,
rules, etc.
Purchase and consumption decisions
CB fig 8.1
An individual is generally
exposed to no more than a small fraction of the available stimuli.We
normally watch only one television station at a time, read one magazine, newspaper or book at a
time, and so on. It is important for marketers to understand what determines which specific stimuli
an individual will be exposed to and whether this is a random process or a purposeful one.
For example, you are clearly reading this text for a particular reason. Likewise, most of the
stimuli to which an individual is exposed are ‘self-selected’. In other words, people deliberately
seek out exposure to certain stimuli and avoid others.
Evidence of the active, self-selecting nature of exposure can be seen with ‘zapping’. Zapping
occurs when television viewers switch channels or fast-forward (if watching a pre-recorded
show) when commercials occur on television. The advent of remote-controlled television sets
and videotape recorders has made this easy to do, and most consumers with this equipment
actively avoid commercials.3 However, in countries where fewer channels exist, zapping may not
be so prevalent. For example, a study of commercial viewing in New Zealand, with only three
television channels, found very little drop-off during commercials and no consistent demographic
characteristics associated with switching channels.4
230 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Overall exposure to different media is also changing. For example, in the year to June 2003
people aged 16 to 39 watched almost 9 per cent less television and average viewer watching of freeto-air TV from 6 p.m. to midnight fell by 2 per cent.5 At the same time, as access to the Internet
grows a consistent decline has been observed in newspaper readership for most metropolitan
newspapers.6 The only category growing in terms of daily press includes lift-outs and magazines as
they become increasingly popular with readers.
What influences the types of stimuli people seek out? Generally, consumers seek information
that they think will help them to achieve certain goals. These goals may be immediate or long
range. Immediate goals could involve seeking stimuli such as a television program for amusement,
an advertisement to assist in a purchase decision or a compliment to enhance one’s self-concept.
Long-range goals could involve studying this text in the hope of passing the next examination,
obtaining a degree, becoming a better marketing manager, or all three. An individual’s goals, and
the types of information needed to achieve those goals, are a function of the individual’s existing
and desired lifestyle, and such short-term motives as hunger or curiosity.
Of course, as consumers we are also exposed to a large number of stimuli on a more or less random
basis during our daily activities. While driving, we hear commercials on the car radio, see outdoor
posters and display advertisements, and so on, that were not purposefully sought out. Likewise, even
if television viewers now have a remote control, they do not always ‘zap’ commercials.
ATTENTION
Attention occurs when the stimulus activates one or more sensory receptor nerves, and the resulting
sensations go to the brain for processing. Consumers are constantly exposed to thousands of times
more stimuli than can be processed.The average Australian or New Zealand supermarket is estimated
to have about 16 000 individual items. It would take hours to attend to each of them. Therefore,
grocery shoppers have to be selective in attending to marketing as well as other messages.
This selectivity has major implications for marketing managers and others concerned with
communicating with consumers. For example, research suggests that less than half of all received
direct-mail advertisements are read.7 Figure 8.2 illustrates the results of a recent study examining
the activities undertaken when television advertisements are shown.8 It is clear from such results
that merely achieving exposure is unlikely to generate a response if less than one-third of the
audience actually watches the commercial.
FIGURE 8.2
Attention paid to prime-time television commercials
Leave the room
21%
Switch channels
26%
Fast-forward, if VCR
69%
Distracted by
something else
28%
Watch advertisement
29%
Talk to someone
31%
Source: Media Involvement Study, NFO BJM group for Periodicals Publishers Association, April 2002, p. 25.
CB fig 8.2
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
231
Capturing attention with print-media advertising
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Obviously, anyone wishing to communicate effectively
with consumers must understand how to obtain attention after
obtaining exposure. Some companies go to great lengths to try
to secure their target consumers’ attention to their advertising
message. They may recruit celebrities such as Pat Rafter or David
Beckham to draw audience attention to the message. Or they
may use clever and engaging commercials, such as ‘the cog’ used
by Honda to promote its new Accord, which showed an unlikely
sequence of precise and exquisitely timed events, all leading to
the presentation of the car. Exhibit 8.1 shows how advertisers can
effectively capture attention with print media as well.
What determines or influences attention? At this moment
you are attending to these words. If you shift your concentration
to your feet, you will most likely become aware of the pressure
being exerted by your shoes. A second shift in concentration
to sounds will probably produce awareness of a number of
background noises.These stimuli are available all the time but are
not processed until a deliberate effort is made to do so. However,
no matter how hard you are concentrating on this text, a loud
scream or a sudden hand on your shoulder would probably get
your attention.
Of course, attention always occurs within the context of
a situation. The same individual may devote different levels of
attention to the same stimulus in different situations. Attention,
therefore, is determined by three factors: the stimulus, the
individual and the situation.
Stimulus factors
are physical characteristics of the stimulus itself.
A number of stimulus characteristics tend to attract our attention
independently of our individual characteristics.
Stimulus factors
��������������
the
physical characteristics of a
stimulus itself
stimulus factors
the characteristic
of a stimulus, such as
loudness or brightness,
which influences the
probability of attention
being paid to it
intensity
the given
location of a stimulus in
a medium or at the point
of sale
position
Size and intensity
The size of the stimulus influences the probability of attention being paid to it. Larger stimuli are
more likely to be noticed than smaller ones.Therefore, a full-page advertisement is more likely to be
noticed than a half-page advertisement. Figure 8.3 indicates the relative attention-attracting ability
of various sizes of magazine advertisements.9 In addition, advertisements with longer copy have
been found to be more effective in attracting the attention of industrial buyers than advertisements
with shorter copy.10 Insertion frequency, the number of times the same advertisement appears in
the same issue of a magazine, has an effect similar to advertisement size. Three insertions generate
more than twice the impact of one insertion.11 The intensity (e.g. loudness, brightness) of a
stimulus operates in much the same manner as size.
Starcom Europe conducted research on the optimal repetition of outdoor advertising using
infrared rays shone into 140 consumers’ eyes to determine when and how often they looked at
the advertisements.The research revealed that 77 per cent of subjects look at a poster the first time
and that, after the fourth pass, a cumulative reach of 100 per cent is possible. It also found that even
in a cluttered environment, creative execution can result in highly effective reach.12 Hence using
multiple locations in urban centres is likely to ensure a high degree of billboard awareness.
Colour and movement
Both colour and movement serve to attract attention, with brightly coloured and moving items
being more noticeable. A brightly coloured package is more apt to receive attention than a dull
package. A study on the impact of colour in newspaper advertising concluded that ‘median sales
gains (on reduced-price items) of approximately 41 per cent may be generated by the addition of
232 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
FIGURE 8.3
The impact of advertisement size on advertising readership
100
100
90
Percentage of people noting ads
EXHIBIT 8.1
80
78
74
72
70
60
50
56
60
56
47
47
Full page
40
30
Half-page
20
Third-of-a-page
10
0
Black and white
2-colour
4-colour
Source: Magazine Dimensions 2002; and Media Dynamics Inc., based on
Burke, Gallup and Robinson, Starch and other studies.
CB fig 8.3
advertising’.13
one colour to black-and-white in retail newspaper
Figure 8.3 showed how colour systematically outperformed
black and white, for any given size. The use of four colours also
outperforms two colours in print advertisements. However, the
impact of contrast can reverse this.That is, if all the advertisements
in a magazine are in colour, a black-and-white advertisement
may attract substantial attention. Moreover, since colour is usually
more expensive, marketers should be aware that it could become
less cost-effective than monochromatic advertisements.14
Exhibit 8.2 shows how colour can be used in an advertisement
to attract attention.
EXHIBIT 8.2
Use of colour in an advertisement to attract
attention
Position
refers to the placement of an object in a person’s visual
field. Objects placed near the centre of the visual field are more
likely to be noticed than those near the edge. This is a primary
reason why consumer-goods manufacturers compete fiercely for
eye-level space in grocery stores. Research conducted by News
Limited in Australia indicates that advertisements are less noted
when located in the final quarter of the issue. This research also
seems to contradict prior belief that the right-hand-side position
would foster advertising effectiveness. Instead, it found that righthand-page advertisements were only very marginally better
noticed than their left-hand-page counterparts (34 per cent
versus 33 per cent).15 Likewise, the probability of a television
commercial being viewed drops sharply as it moves from being
the first to air in the commercial break to being the last.16
Position
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
233
EXHIBIT 8.3
EXHIBIT 8.4
Effective use of isolation
A complex ad format
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comax_ad 1
the separation
of a stimulus object from
other objects
isolation
the manner in
which the message is
presented
format
12/4/03, 10:57:32 AM
Isolation
means the separation of a stimulus object from other objects. The use of ‘white space’
(placing a brief message in the centre of an otherwise blank or white advertisement) is based on
this principle, as is surrounding a key part of a radio advertisement with silence.17 Exhibit 8.3
illustrates the effective use of this principle.
Isolation
Format
refers to the manner in which the message is presented. In general, simple, straightforward presentations receive more attention than complex presentations, such as that shown in
Exhibit 8.4.
Elements in the message that increase the effort required to process the message tend to
decrease attention. Advertisements that lack a clear visual point of reference or have inappropriate
movement (too fast, slow or ‘jumpy’) increase the processing effort and decrease attention.
Likewise, audio messages that are difficult to understand as a result of, for example, foreign
accents, inadequate volume, deliberate distortions (computer voices) or loud background noises
also reduce attention.18 However, format interacts strongly with individual characteristics. What
some individuals find to be complex others will find interesting. Format, like the other stimulus
elements, must be developed with a specific target market in mind.
Format
234 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Contrast
Contrast refers to our tendency to attend more closely to stimuli that contrast with their background
than to stimuli that blend with it. Contrast has been found to be a primary component of awardwinning headlines.19 Advertisements that differ from the type of advertisements consumers expect
for a product category often motivate more attention than advertisements that are more typical of
the product category.20 Exhibit 8.5 shows an example of an advertisement capitalising on contrast
to attract attention.
Over time, we adjust to the level and type of stimuli to which we are accustomed. Thus, an
advertisement that initially stands out will eventually lose its contrast effect. Adaptation level theory
deals with that phenomenon. Adaptation level theory has been hypothesised as the core reason for the
decline in the impact of television advertising. In the 1960s almost 20 per cent of viewers could recall
the brand of the last advertising broadcast, but this figure fell to 7 per cent by the 1980s as viewers
adapted to the presence of a television set and increasingly used it as a background to other things.21
In Australia, a telephone survey of 1024 homes conducted immediately after television
commercial breaks showed that two-thirds of those with television sets had not watched the
advertisements and that, of the 34 per cent who did, only 4 per cent could recall either
the advertiser or the product advertised in the break!22 Adaptation level is also the reason the
commercial break is accompanied by an increase in volume.Viewers are accustomed to a particular
noise level and increasing this will ‘force’ their attention—unless, of course, it causes them to hit
the ‘mute’ button!
refers to a
tendency to attend
more closely to stimuli
that contrast with their
background than to
stimuli that blend with it
contrast
adaptation level
theory theory that
people
adjust to the level and
type of stimulus to which
they are accustomed
Compressed messages
Earlier research indicated that speeding up a radio or television message could increase attention.
Such messages are termed compressed messages. In one experiment, 30-second commercials
were reduced to 24 seconds via a device that did not produce sound distortions. The compressed
commercials were found to be more interesting and to generate at least the same level of product
recall as standard commercials.23 Research also suggests that compressed commercials do not distract
from attention and may even increase attention. Moreover, attention level will vary with the type of
message, the product and the nature of the audience. For example, a television campaign for Sony
generated quite a debate in advertising circles as a result of its ‘frenetic’ pace and seemingly disjointed
and confusing images. Yet the advertisements were developed for people under 30 and market
research showed the advertisements to be effective with that particular target group.24
Information quantity
compressed messages
messages that are speeded
up to increase attention
information overload
A final stimulus factor, information quantity, relates more to the total stimulus field than to
any particular item in that field. Although there is substantial variation among individuals, all
consumers have only a limited capacity to process information. Information overload occurs when
consumers are confronted with so much information that they cannot or will not attend to all
of it.25 Instead, they become frustrated
and either postpone or give up the
Use of contrast in advertisements
decision, make a random choice or
utilise a suboptimal portion of the total
information available.
There are no general rules or
guidelines concerning how much information consumers can or will use.
Marketers, federal and state governments
and various consumer groups all want
product labels, packages and advertisements to provide sufficient information
to allow for an informed decision. One
approach is to provide all potentially
relevant information. This approach is
occurs when consumers are
confronted with so much
information that they
cannot or will not attend
to all of it
EXHIBIT 8.5
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
235
individual factors
all personal characteristics
likely to influence how
incoming information is
perceived and processed
those
elements in the situation
that are likely to influence
consumer behaviour
situational factors
are characteristics of the individual. Interest and need seem to be the primary
individual characteristics that influence attention. Interest is a reflection of overall lifestyle as well
as a result of long-term goals and plans (e.g. becoming a sales manager) and short-term needs
(e.g. hunger). Short-term goals and plans are, of course, heavily influenced by the situation. In
addition, individuals differ in their ability to attend to information.26
Individuals seek out (have exposure to) and examine (attend to) information relevant to
their current needs. For example, an individual contemplating a holiday is likely to attend to
holiday-related advertisements. Individuals attending to a specialised medium, such as Boating
Magazine or Business Review Weekly, are likely to be particularly receptive to advertisements for
related products. Parents with young children are more likely to notice and read warning labels
on products such as food supplements than are individuals without young children.27 Studies
also show that a group of consumers, coined ‘adversarial shoppers’, is becoming increasingly
suspicious of many marketing activities, including advertising claims of superiority, health benefits
or environmental friendliness. Found in all age groups, these consumers do not believe that price
is still a valid indicator of quality.28
Individual factors
Situational factors
include stimuli in the environment other than the focal stimulus (i.e. the
advertisement or package) and/or temporary characteristics of the individual that are induced by
the environment, such as time pressure or a very crowded store.
Obviously, individuals in a hurry are less likely to attend to the available stimuli than are those
with extra time (e.g. if you have been on a long flight without a book, you may recall reading even
the advertisements in the airline magazine). Individuals in an unpleasant environment, such as an
overcrowded store (see Chapter 2) or a store that is too noisy, too warm or too cold, will not attend
to many of the available stimuli as they attempt to minimise their time in such an environment.
Situational factors
Program involvement
Print, radio and television advertisements occur in the context of a program, magazine or newspaper.
In general, the audience is attending to the medium because of the program or editorial content,
not the advertisement. Indeed, as pointed out before, many consumers actively avoid commercials
by zapping or flicking through them.
The nature of the program or editorial content in which the advertisement appears has the
potential to influence its impact.29 For example, advertisements for Twisties were located in boring
programs in order to capitalise on the fact that bored people are more prone to snacking.
Figure 8.4 demonstrates the positive impact of involvement with a magazine on attention
to print advertisements. Figure 8.5 shows how involvement in a television program increases the
proportion of viewers able to recall the advertisements, finding them credible and forming positive
purchase intentions.30
It should be noted that most of the gain in attention occurs when program involvement moves
from low to moderate levels. There is some evidence that high levels of program involvement
may detract from the attention paid to some types of commercials.31 For example, in the case of
236 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
59
60
52
50
Percentage of readers
Individual factors
FIGURE 8.4
Involvement with a magazine and advertising effectiveness
51
45
43
38
40
34
31
30
30
32
Low-involvement
21
20
14
Medium-involvement
10
High-involvement
0
Recalled
reading ad
Rated ad as
believable
Rated ad as
effective
Bought advertised
product
Source: Cahners Advertising Research Report 120.1 and 120.12, Boston.
FIGURE 8.5
Involvement in a television program and advertising effectiveness
60
CB fig 8.4
54
48
50
Percentage of viewers
frequently recommended by regulatory agencies and is required for some product categories, such
as drugs. However, problems can arise with this approach. For example, a relatively simple one-page
advertisement for an over-the-counter medicine would require a second full page of small type telling
of dosage, precautions and warnings in order to comply with full-disclosure regulations.
The assumption behind the full-disclosure approach is that each consumer will utilise those
specific information items required for a particular decision. Unfortunately, consumers frequently
do not react in this manner, particularly for low-involvement purchases. Instead, they may
experience information overload and ignore all or most of the available data.
For this reason, the regulations should be concerned with the likelihood that information will
be attended to, rather than simply its availability. Marketers generally try to present the key pieces
of information and use message structures that make complete processing easy.
41
40
37
34
30
20
18
21
Low-involvement
24
22
16
18
Medium-involvement
13
10
0
High-involvement
Unaided recall
Aided recall
Copy
credibility
Purchase
interest
Source: K.J. Clancy (1992), ‘CPMs Must Bow to Involvement Measurement’, Advertising Age, 20 January, p. 7.
sponsorship, audience involvement in a soccer game was found to be negatively correlated with
their ability to recall sponsors.32
Program involvement not only influences the attention paid to the advertisement, it also affects
the viewer’s
attitude towards the advertisement and the product advertised.33 There are many
CB fig 8.5
reasons or motives underlying program involvement34 and it is highly desirable for marketers to be
able to anticipate the degree of involvement that his or her target market will feel for a particular
program in which marketing messages must be embedded.
Non-focused attention
So far, this chapter has discussed a fairly high-involvement attention process in which the
consumer focuses attention on some aspect of the environment due to stimulus, individual or
situational factors. However, stimuli may be attended to without deliberate or conscious focusing
of attention—that is, non-focused attention.
non-focused
attention superficial
and distracted allocation
of processing ability to a
stimulus
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
237
hemispheric
lateralisation
the concept
that each of the two sides
of the brain (right and
left) controls different
types of activities
subliminal message
a message that is not
consciously attended to by
the audience exposed to it
Hemispheric lateralisation is a term applied to activities that take place on each side of the brain.
The left side of the brain is primarily responsible for verbal information, symbolic representation,
sequential analysis and the ability to be conscious and report what is happening. It controls those
activities typically called rational thought. The right side of the brain deals with pictorial, geometric
and non-verbal information and information that is not chronological, without the individual
being able to report it verbally. This side of the brain works with images and impressions.
The left side of the brain needs fairly frequent rest. However, the right side of the brain can easily
scan large amounts of information over an extended period. This has led to the suggestion that it
is ‘the right brain’s picture-taking ability that permits the rapid screening of the environment—to
select what it is the left brain should focus on’.35
While this is a difficult area to research, the evidence indicates that there is some validity to the
theory, and that advertising, particularly advertising repeated over time, will have substantial effects
that traditional measures of advertising effectiveness cannot detect. The nature of these effects is
discussed in more detail in Chapter 9. However, applied research on this topic is just beginning
and much remains to be learned.36
There is evidence to indicate that some stimuli or messages, called subliminal messages, are
attended to without awareness, even if the individual tries to focus attention on them. A message is
subliminal if it is presented so fast or so softly, or is so masked by other messages, that the individual
is not aware of ‘seeing’ or ‘hearing’ it.
Public interest in masked subliminal stimuli has been enhanced by two books in which the author
reports on numerous advertisements that have supposedly contained the word ‘sex’ in ice cubes or
nude bodies in the shadows.37 Most, if not all, of these symbols are the chance result of preparing
thousands of print advertisements each year (a diligent search could no doubt produce large numbers
of religious symbols, animals or whatever—if you look at enough advertisements, you will find a
random shape that could be evocative of a skull, a breast and so on, even though the creator of the
advertisement has not intended this). Such masked symbols (deliberate or accidental) do not appear
to affect standard measures of advertising effectiveness or influence consumption behaviour.38
Research on messages presented too rapidly to elicit awareness indicates that such messages
have little or no effect. Hence, although the general public is concerned about subliminal
messages,39 such messages do not appear to present a threat to the general public, nor do they offer
a potentially effective communication device.40 In addition, there is no evidence that marketers
are using subliminal messages.41
The Ethical Edge boxed example opposite looks at supposed examples of subliminal messages
on computer microchips.
Cyber subliminal: a new way to persuade?44
S
ubliminal advertising is one of consumers’
most entrenched myths. Periodically,
consumer groups denounce and fight
what they perceive to be brain invasion
by invisible signs embedded in otherwise
innocuous programs. For example, Disney
was accused of having embedded the letters
‘S-E-X’ in the dust in the movie The Lion King
(no-one ever explained why Disney might have
done this). Furthermore, advertisers have, from
time to time, played on this fear, introducing
mock subliminal ads, making fun of, but
using the same approach as, subliminal ads,
by associating violent or sexually evocative
images with their brands. Alcohol and tobacco
advertisements, of course, are the worst
offenders, with products such as Bacardi Black
and Newport.
Perhaps even more baffling is the new
place where subliminal messages (also known
as embeds) are being found: the computer
microchip. Log onto www.microscopy.fsu.edu
and you will find a collection of images, all
of them too small to be seen by the naked
ETHICAL EDGE
eye, which have been discovered when
photographing microchips with a powerful
microscope. Images of Pepsi or the Saab
900 cabriolet, no bigger than a human hair,
are apparently buried inside computers. Is
this subliminal seduction? Despite the fear
and paranoia that consumers feel about such
practices, it is more likely than not that these are
just the creative expressions of people involved
in the design of the chips, an ‘inside joke’ to be
shared with friends or simply enjoyed privately.
For example, many embeds have no brands—
an unbranded sneaker without a swoosh, Daffy
Duck and many other things that are deprived
of any selling intent. So Pepsi or Saab are more
likely to be the joker’s favourite thing rather than
the object of a sinister new brain manipulation
assault by marketers.
Despite any proof that it works, or even
that it exists, consumers continue to fear and
search for evidence of subliminal messages.
What started out as a hoax, it seems, is now
one of the most persistent myths of consumer
behaviour!
Subliminal
advertising is
one of
consumers’ most
entrenched
myths
FIGURE 8.6
Determinants of interpretation
Individual
characteristics
INTERPRETATION
cognitive interpretation
a process whereby stimuli
are placed in existing
categories of meaning
Interpretation is the assignment of meaning to sensations. It is a function of the Gestalt, or pattern,
formed by the characteristics of the stimulus, the individual and the situation, as illustrated in
Figure 8.6. That interpretation involves both a cognitive, or factual, component and an affective,
or emotional, response.
The entire message, including the context in which it occurs, influences our interpretation,
as does the situation in which we find ourselves. We assign meaning to the tone and ‘feel’ of the
message as well as to the actual words used. For example, ‘Thanks a lot’ may be an expression of
gratitude or just the opposite depending on how you say it and in what circumstances. Members of
the same culture usually accurately assign the correct meaning based on voice tone and context.42
Cognitive interpretation is a process whereby stimuli are placed in existing categories of
meaning.43 This is an interactive process. The addition of new information to existing categories
also alters those categories and their relationships with other categories. When the CD player was
first introduced to consumers, they most probably grouped it in the general category of record
players in order to be able to evaluate it.With further experience and information, many consumers
have gained detailed knowledge about the product, and have formed several subcategories for
classifying the various brands and types.
238 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Stimulus
characteristics
Interpretation
Gestalt
• Cognitive
• Affective
Situational
characteristics
The advertisement in Exhibit 8.6 overleaf attempts to facilitate and/or encourage cognitive
interpretation.
CB fig 8.6
It is the individual’s interpretation, not objective reality, which will influence behaviour. For
example, a firm may introduce a high-quality new brand at a lower price than existing brands because
the firm has a more efficient production or marketing process. If consumers interpret this lower price
to mean lower quality, the new brand will not be successful, regardless of the objective reality.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
239
affective interpretation
the emotional or feeling
response triggered by a
stimulus
The above example indicates the critical importance of distinguishing between lexical or
semantic meaning—the conventional meaning, found in the dictionary, assigned to a word—and
psychological meaning—the specific meaning assigned to a word by a given individual or group of
individuals based on their experiences and the context or situation in which the term is used.45
For example, the semantic meaning of the expression ‘on sale’ is ‘a price reduction from the
normal level’. However, when applied to fashion clothes, the psychological meaning that some
consumers would derive is, ‘These clothes are, or soon will be, out of style’.
Affective interpretation is the emotional or feeling response triggered by a stimulus such as
an advertisement.46 Like cognitive interpretation, there are ‘normal’ (within-culture) emotional
responses to an advertisement (e.g. most Australians and New Zealanders experience a feeling
of warmth when seeing pictures of young children, such as that shown in Exhibit 8.7). Likewise,
there are also individual variations to this response (e.g. a person allergic to cats might have a very
negative emotional response to a picture of an extremely cute kitten).
Individual characteristics
A number of individual characteristics influence interpretation. For example, gender and social
class affect the meaning assigned to owning various products. Likewise, gender affects the nature
of the emotional response to nudity in advertisements.47 Two particularly important personal
variables affecting interpretation are learning and expectations.
EXHIBIT 8.6
���������������������������������������
EXHIBIT
8.7
Encouraging cognitive interpretation
Evoking a feeling of warmth
����������������������
� ���������
240 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
The meanings attached to such ‘natural’ things as time, space, friendship and colours are learned
and vary widely across cultures. Even within the same culture, different subcultures assign different
meanings to similar stimuli. For example, ‘dinner’ refers to the noon meal for some social classes in
some geographic regions, and to the evening meal for other social classes and geographic regions.
‘Tea’ can mean dinner, or simply a ‘cuppa’ in other places. In Scotland, ‘high tea’ is supper! Marketers
must be certain that the target audience has learned the same meanings that they wish to portray.
Expectations
Individuals tend to interpret stimuli consistently with their expectations. For example, it seems
natural to expect dark-brown pudding to taste like chocolate, not vanilla, because dark pudding
is generally chocolate-flavoured, and vanilla pudding is generally cream-coloured. In a taste test,
100 per cent of a sample of university students accepted dark brown vanilla pudding as chocolate
pudding. Further, in comparing three versions of the vanilla pudding that differed only in degree of
darkness, the students rated the darkest as having the best chocolate flavour.48 In other words, their
expectations, cued by colour, led to an interpretation that was inconsistent with ‘objective’ reality.
A similar phenomenon may explain the failure of Tab Clear in Australasia: while the product had
all the attributes people wanted in a cola drink, its colour (or lack thereof ) prevented consumers
from perceiving it as a satisfactory cola drink.
Consumers also frequently attribute advertisements for new or unknown brands to wellknown brands. Even an ‘objective’ product feature, such as price, is sometimes interpreted to be
closer to an expected price.49 Likewise, brands with promotional signs on them in retail stores are
interpreted as having reduced prices, even when the signs do not indicate that the prices have been
reduced and prices have not, in fact, been reduced.50
Situational characteristics
������� �������� ��������
�������������� ��������������������������������������
���������������������������� ��������������������������������
�����������������������������������������������
���� ��� ���� ���� ��� ���� ������ ��� ��� ������� ���
�����������������������������
Learning
A variety of situational characteristics influence interpretation. Temporary characteristics of
the individual, such as hunger or loneliness, influence the interpretation of a given stimulus,
as do moods.51 The amount of time available also affects the meaning assigned to marketing
messages. Likewise, physical characteristics of the situation, such as temperature, the number and
characteristics of other individuals present,52 the nature of the material surrounding the message
in question,53 external distractions54 and the reason the message is being processed55 affect how
the message is interpreted.
Proximity refers to the tendency to perceive objects or events that are close to one another
as related. Some manufacturers refuse to advertise some products during news broadcasts because
they believe that ‘bad’ news could affect the interpretation of their products.56 Conversely,
‘feel-good’ programs are much sought after by advertisers who want to capitalise on the likely
good mood in which the audience will be during the commercial breaks. In the print media, a
premium price often applies in order to select the more favourable context for an advertisement,
and a food manufacturer would gladly pay a 20 per cent premium to be in the recipe section of
most women’s magazines.
With the emerging role of Internet advertising, marketers have had to consider such issues
as where and how to position pop-ups. The increasing number of pop-ups, and the resulting
frustration of consumers, has made the positioning of pop-ups more difficult, with professionals
now advocating that they be used more sparingly on entry to a site, rather than as an annoying and
repetitive intrusion later on (see the Cyber Consumer boxed example overleaf ).
Stimulus characteristics
������������������������
The stimulus sets the basic structure to which an individual responds. The structure and nature of
the product, package, advertisement or sales presentation have a major impact on the nature of the
mental processes that are activated and on the final meaning assigned to the message.
In recognition of the critical importance of the meaning associated with stimuli, marketers
are beginning to use semiotics, which is the science of how meaning is created, maintained and
the science of
how meaning is created,
maintained and altered;
focuses on signs, which
are anything that conveys
meaning, including words,
pictures, music, colours,
forms, smells, gestures,
products and prices
semiotics
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
241
CYBER CONSUMER
Pop-ups flop up57
T
pop-ups can
infuriate
the average
surfer
he Web started out with no advertising
at all and a limited number of sites.
Then came banner ads, a boom in the
number of sites and lots more banner ads.
However, banner ads became less and less
effective: because they were poorly targeted
and appeared in the same place on a page,
people just stopped looking and did not see
them any more. Click-through rates for banner
ads plummeted, reaching 0.3 per cent by 2001.
Eagerness to grab the attention of potential
buyers and keep advertising revenues flowing to
sites motivated the development of pop-ups.
Pop-up ads come in two broad flavours:
pop-ups, which pop up in front of the site you
are viewing; and pop-unders, which open a
window underneath the current window you are
looking at. Some are static, while others blink or
flash as a means of grabbing attention. Harder
to ignore than banner ads, pop-ups are seen
as more disruptive, interrupting the user’s Web
surfing. At times, they can even crash the user’s
computer by exceeding the memory limit. In
other words, while making advertisers happy,
pop-ups can infuriate the average surfer.
Pop-ups are now experiencing a backlash.
Surfers are using stand-alone programs as
well as browser enhancements to foil pop-up
advertisements. For example, pop-up stopper
NoAds (www.southbaypc.com/NoAds) has
been available since 1999. The company
initially developed the software for internal use
but has since found a ready market. This is
not the only option: a whole category is listed
at software site Tucows (www.tucows.com/
adkiller95), and over 60 are listed at www.
popup-killer-review.com, while Google lists
such software under browser enhancements
(http://directory.google.com/top/Computers/
Software/Shareware/Windows/Internet/Browser
per cent5fEnhancements/).
Responding to user outrage at the intrusive
nature of pop-ups, major sites are starting
to abandon pop-ups entirely. For example,
AltaVista was one of the first major sites to go
pop-up free (Google never had any pop-ups).
User feedback was very positive. InfoSpace,
which runs WebCrawler, has removed pop-up
advertising from its site. And Ask Jeeves, which
has also removed pop-ups, recently announced
that it would go even further and remove all
banner ads in response to visitor feedback.
altered. It focuses on signs, which are anything that conveys meaning, including words, pictures,
music, colours, forms, smells, gestures, products, prices, and so forth.58 The general principles of
how meanings are learned are discussed more fully in Chapter 9.
Colours can be used to illustrate the importance of semiotics, as in the case where colour was
shown to have influenced the taste perceptions of puddings. The source of the message also affects
the interpretations of the message, as does the medium in which the message appears. Likewise,
the nature of the product influences the manner in which promotional claims are interpreted.
Previous experiences with the same or competing products or firms, and the nature of other firms’
advertising campaigns, also influence interpretation.
Consumers use brand names, price, physical product appearance and retailer reputation as
signals of product quality.59 In addition, factors directly related to the product, such as its country of
origin, can have a major influence on the meaning assigned to the product (see Exhibit 8.8). This
poses significant challenges for marketers competing with brands made in countries benefiting
from a better reputation.60
All aspects of the message itself also influence its interpretation. This can include consumers’
reaction to the overall style, visual and auditory background, and other non-verbal and verbal
aspects of the message, as well as its explicit content, and even its lack of content. For example,
the type of background music played during an advertisement has been found to influence the
interpretation of, and response to, the advertisement.61
242 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Misinterpretation
of marketing
messages
EXHIBIT 8.8
Promoting country of origin as an indicator of quality
Both marketing managers and
government policy makers want
consumers to interpret messages
accurately—that is, in a manner
consistent with what others or
experts would consider to be the
‘true’ or ‘objective’ meaning of the
messages. Yet it is clear that widespread agreement on, or accurate
interpretation of, mass-media
messages is often difficult to
obtain. Past research has confirmed
this. For example, a study of
television communications concluded that a large proportion of
the audience miscomprehended
the communication from both
program content and advertisements, and that an average of
30 per cent of the total information was miscomprehended.62 Moreover, some demographic
variables appeared to be slightly associated with miscomprehension.
While the methodology of this study has been criticised, there is no doubt that substantial
miscomprehension of television messages, including commercials, does occur. This is not
limited to broadcast messages: another study, focusing on editorial and advertis-ing content in
general-circulation magazines, reached essentially the same conclusions.63 There is also evidence
that package information is subject to miscomprehension. In addition, sponsors of sports and
cultural events are finding that such miscomprehension occurs, particularly with regard to the
sponsors. Several studies have revealed the incidence of mistaken identification of sponsors by
their targeted audiences.64
Marketers are just beginning to learn about methods to minimise miscomprehension, and
this is a complex task. For example, repetition does not appear to reduce miscomprehension.
Moreover, while very simple television messages are less subject to miscomprehension, the same
is not true for print messages. Unfortunately, no workable set of guidelines for eliminating this
problem has yet been developed. Therefore, marketers, government officials and others wishing
to communicate with the public should carefully pre-test their messages to ensure that they are
being interpreted correctly.
Children’s information processing
So far, information processing has been discussed from an adult perspective. However, there
is evidence that younger children have only a limited ability to process certain types of
information.65 Table 8.1 overleaf shows a widely accepted set of stages of information processing
or cognitive development—described by the psychologist Jean Piaget.66 Piaget’s approach
is basically developmental. It suggests naturally occurring stages that change, primarily, with
physiological maturation. Other researchers have suggested different stages, with learning rather
than maturation as the underlying cause of observed differences.67 However, the general pattern of
younger children’s lesser ability to deal with abstract, generalised, unfamiliar and/or large amounts
of information is common to all approaches.68
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
243
TABLE 8.1
assigned to the store. Semiotics have been used to design a hypermarket that would meet consumer
needs, merchandising requirements and marketing strategy.70
Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
Stage
Description
1
Sensorimotor intelligence (0–2 years)
During this period, behaviour is primarily motor. The child
does not yet ‘think’ conceptually, although ‘cognitive’
development is seen.
2
Pre-operational thought (3–7 years)
This period is characterised by the development of language
and rapid conceptual development.
3
Concrete operations (8–11 years)
During these years the child develops the ability to apply
logical thought to concrete problems.
4
Formal operations (12–15 years)
During this period the child’s cognitive structures reach their
greatest level of development and the child becomes able to
apply logic to all classes of problems.
Source: B. J. Wadworth (1971), Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development, David McKay, New York.
PERCEPTION AND MARKETING STRATEGY
Information is the primary raw material with which the marketer works in an attempt to influence
consumers. Therefore, a knowledge of the perception process is an essential guide to marketing
strategy. The following sections discuss seven areas where a knowledge of the perception process
is particularly useful:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
retail strategy
brand name and logo development
media strategy
advertising and package design
development of warning labels and posters
advertising evaluation
regulation of advertising and packaging.
Retail strategy
Most retail environments contain a vast array of information. Given the fact that consumers cannot
process all of this information, retailers need to be concerned about information overload.They do
not want consumers to become frustrated, or to minimise their in-store information processing.
Retailers often use exposure very effectively. Store interiors are designed with the frequently
sought-after items (e.g. canned goods, fresh fruits/vegetables, meats) separated so that the average
consumer will travel through more of the store. This increases total exposure. High-margin items
are often placed in high-traffic areas to capitalise on increased exposure.
Shelf position and the amount of shelf space influence which items and brands are allocated
attention. Point-of-purchase displays also attract attention to sale and high-margin items. Stores are
designed with highly visible shelves and overhead signs to make locating items (an informationprocessing task) as easy as possible.
Stores also can provide reference prices to increase consumers’ ability to interpret price
information accurately. To further facilitate price comparisons, unit-price information by brand
could be displayed on a separate sign in ascending or descending order. Nutrition information,
provided in a similar manner, enhances consumers’ ability to choose nutritious brands.69
The total mix of in-store information cues (brands, layout, point-of-purchase displays, etc.),
external building characteristics and advertising combine to form the meaning or store image
244 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Brand name and logo development
Marketers believe that the name of a company or product does affect the way it is perceived.71
Indeed, brand names are important for both consumer and industrial products, and are increasingly
being recognised as an important asset for any company. Creating a brand, however, is a long and
expensive endeavour, which requires consistency and clear strategic thinking.The Commonwealth
Bank reportedly spent more than $2 million to develop its ‘Sao dipped in Vegemite’ logo. Lavazza
coffee, an imported coffee, has achieved a high degree of recognition by coffee lovers for its black
and red logo through the distribution of coasters, cups, saucers and serviettes bearing its colours
to many cafés and restaurants.72 Athletics Australia launched its new logo during the Sydney 2000
Olympics in an attempt to rejuvenate the brand and raise the profile of athletics. Based on market
research, the new logo was designed to be in line with a new vision for the organisation and to
gain acceptance from the community at large.73
In general, concrete terms with relevant, established visual images, such as Apple or Cup-a-Soup,
are easier to recognise and recall than are more abstract terms.74 However, the suggestive power of
such names may not be easily transferable. Successive generations of fruity computer names, from
Apricot to Watermelon, will never quite achieve the fame of their Apple predecessor!
The impact of the image conveyed by a name was demonstrated in a study where three groups
of consumers evaluated the same sporting goods product.75 The only difference among the three
groups was the name associated with the product, and this induced perceptual differences.The data
clearly point to an effect that marketers should take into account when selecting a brand name
(see below).
PERCENTAGE ATTRIBUTING FEATURE TO PRODUCT
Feature
Name A
Name B
Name C
11
26
17
8
34
19
For professionals
42
53
30
Large
38
53
19
For all surfaces
Easy to see
How a product or service’s name is visually presented—its logo—is also important. Australasian companies are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of design to their image, and
are seeking to ensure that their company logo looks good and projects an accurate image of their
product or service to both consumers and other companies. For example, when Alcan Australia
became independent from its parent company, it sought to create its own identity and came up with
the name Capral. Legal advice was obtained to confirm that the name was acceptable in Australia,
New Zealand and Southeast Asia, where the company operated, and multicultural research was
undertaken to identify any potential problems with the new name and a new distinctive logo,
designed to project the image of a clean, dynamic and international organisation. And small
companies, too, can derive benefits from the consistency and rigour involved in developing and
using a single corporate identity.76
how a product or
service name is visually
presented
logo
Media strategy
The fact that the exposure process is selective rather than random is the underlying basis for
effective media strategies. If the process were random, a broad approach of trying to place messages
randomly in the environment would make sense. Since exposure is not random, the proper
approach is to determine to which media consumers in the target market are most frequently
exposed, and then to place the advertising messages in those media.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
245
TABLE 8.2
Examples of reader profiles for two popular magazines
AUSTRALIAN
PERSONAL COMPUTER
BUSINESS REVIEW
WEEKLY
’000
Magazine
readers (%)
’000
Magazine
readers (%)
Population
(%)
All people
194
100
259
100
100
Men
167
86
165
64
49
Women
27
14
94
36
51
25–34 years
53
27
59
23
18
35–49 years
63
32.5
88
34
27
50+ years
–
–
84
32
36
AB quintile
–
–
151
58
20
109
56
178
69
40
72
37
107
41
16
76*
69*
–
–
–
Income $50K+
133
51
17
Income $60K+
108
42
11
Income $70K+
89
34
7
Income $80K+
70
27
5
Full-time worker
Business decision makers
Income $40K+
*For APC, income of $40K and above = 76 000 copies and 69 per cent of readers.
Source: Roy Morgan Research, April 2002 and March 2003
For some products and target markets, consumers are highly involved with the product category
itself, and will go to considerable trouble to secure product-relevant information. This occurs
most frequently among heavy users of hobby and luxury items, such as skis and mountaineering
equipment, or fashion items.
For other products and target markets, consumers have only limited involvement with the
product category. Products such as salt and detergents are examples. In a situation such as this, the
marketer must find media that the target market is interested in, and place the advertising message
in these media. As will be seen later, potential target markets, as defined by age, ethnic group, social
class or stage in the family life cycle, have differing media preferences. Table 8.2 illustrates selective
exposure to two magazines based on demographic characteristics.
Advertisement and package design
Advertisements and packages must perform two critical tasks: capture attention and convey meaning.
Unfortunately, the techniques appropriate for accomplishing one task are often counterproductive
for the other.
What should a manager do to attract attention to a package or advertisement? As with most
aspects of the marketing process, this depends on the target market, the product and the situation.
If the target market is interested in the product category, or in the firm or brand, attention will not
constitute much of a problem. Once consumers are exposed to the message, they will most likely
attend to it. Unfortunately, most of the time, consumers are not actively interested in a particular
product. Interest in a product tends to arise only when the need for the product arises. Since it
is difficult to reach consumers at exactly this point, marketers have the difficult task of trying to
communicate with them at times when their interest is either low or non-existent.
246 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Let us assume that you are responsible for developing a campaign for your firm’s laundry
detergent designed to increase the number of users. Research indicates that the group you
wish to reach has very little interest in the product. What do you do? Two strategies seem
reasonable. One is to utilise stimulus characteristics, such as full-page advertisements, bright
colours, animated cartoons and surrealism, to attract attention to the advertisement. The second
is to tie the message to a topic the target market is interested in. Celebrities are often used
in advertisements partly for this reason, and sex appeal, in the form of attractive models, is
frequently used. Humour can also be used to great effect. There is universal appreciation for
humorous communication, making humour an ideal tool for international marketers, albeit with
some national variations.77
Attention-attracting features of the advertisement can also focus attention on specific parts
of the advertisement.78 Corporate advertising, or advertising that talks about a company rather
than the company’s products, tends to generate a relatively high level of attention. Yet a study of
more than 2000 such American advertisements has shown that about half of all people exposed
to the advertisements did not notice the single most important piece of information in the
advertisement—the company name. The same study found that the simplest way to avoid this
problem is to place the name in the most prominent part of the advertisement—the headline. The
following results for a Motorola corporate advertisement are typical:79
No name in headline
Magazine readership
Name in headline
4 600 000
4 500 000
Involved with advertisement
91% = 4 186 000
84% = 3 780 000
Involved and saw Motorola name
43% = 1 978 000
70% = 3 150 000
Successful advertisements can use consumer interests that are unrelated to the product.
However, using either stimulus characteristics or consumer interest unrelated to the product
category in order to attract attention presents two dangers. The first danger is that the strategy
will be so successful in attracting attention to the stimulus object that it will reduce the attention
devoted to the sales message. For example, the reader may observe an attractive person in an
advertisement and not attend to the sales message or copy.
The second danger is that the interpretation of the message will be negatively affected. For
example, the use of humour to attract attention to a commercial for beer may result in the brand
being viewed as appropriate for only very light-hearted, casual situations. Caution must therefore
be used to ensure that attention-attracting devices do not have a negative impact on attention to,
or interpretation of, the main message.
For example, the Global Gaze boxed example overleaf examines Benetton’s shock value
advertising techniques.
The advertisements shown in Exhibit 8.9 on p. 249 make extensive use of stimulus factors
to attract attention. They were printed in vivid colours and have bright designs and limited text
material.
All advertisements, such as the ones shown in Exhibit 8.9, may attract attention. But will they
convey the appropriate meaning and/or emotional response? Moreover, advertisements using
stimulus characteristics to attract attention run the risk of backfiring. Hence, pre-testing to ensure
the advertisement’s acceptability is advised.
In particular circumstances, some organisations need to influence consumers’ perception for
purposes other than purchase-related decisions. Non-profit or government organisations, such as
the Cancer Society, Federal Health and Family Services and the Transport Accident Commission,
all need to achieve public attention and comprehension of their messages in the hope that
improvements may be seen in relation to issues such as smoking, sun-related cancers and road
safety. Fear appeals have been used with some success in such circumstances, as the advertisements
have shown, sometimes graphically, the likely consequences of undesirable behaviours.80
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
247
GLOBAL GAZE
Benetton’s shock value81
C
Benetton has
earned worldwide
recognition by
creating
advertisements
promoting diversity
and tolerance
orporate advertising has been redefined
over the last few decades by the antics of
an Italian firm of global stature: Benetton.
Established in 1955 by the Benetton family,
as of 2001 the company operated in about
120 countries with more than 7000 retail stores.
Benetton is well known around the world
for its unusual advertising techniques and
themes, using shock value and the reality of
photographs to grab the viewer’s attention
and make the brand name memorable. Unlike
most advertisements where products or images
linked to the company are displayed, Benetton
chooses to use its advertising campaigns to
address social and political issues from AIDS
to pollution.
Benetton has earned worldwide recognition
by creating advertisements promoting diversity
and tolerance. In 1982, Oliviero Toscani,
a prominent fashion and advertisement
photographer, was appointed head of the
advertising department of the company. Early
Benetton advertisements under his direction
featured teenagers and children from culturally
diverse backgrounds all colourfully dressed and
in a variety of playful acts. Campaigns in 1984
and 1985 used symbols of peace and harmony
between nations. In 1988, the United Superstars
of Benetton featured Adam and Eve, Joan of
Arc, Julius Caesar and Marilyn Monroe. Other
EXHIBIT 8.9
Using stimulus factors to attract attention
advertisements used animals (a wolf and a lamb)
to make similar points about harmony.
The campaigns took a more socially
engaging tone in the 1990s starting with the
newborn baby to show the beauty of new life.
This was followed by increasingly confronting
images, such as an AIDS victim in 1992.
Engaging in what the company calls ‘reality
advertising’, Benetton advertisements have
shown boat people from Albania, the aftermath
of a Mafia bombing and floods in Calcutta.
Others pictures have shown close-ups of
various body parts tattooed with ‘HIV positive’,
homosexual couples, and so forth.
In 2000, a new campaign featured prisoners
sentenced to death, resulting in widespread
protests from consumers and government
bodies. The families of the victims and the
prisoners themselves also objected. The State
of Missouri where the inmates in question were
incarcerated even filed a lawsuit. This type of
controversy is nothing new for Benetton: many
of its advertisements have been banned and or
withdrawn (always in a flurry of publicity!) and
court cases by retailers have also taken place.
While Toscani left Benetton in May 2002
following the death row controversy, the
company maintains that it will continue to work
on less controversial causes such as child labour,
poverty and discrimination.
Warning labels and package designs
Ethical and legal considerations require marketers to place warning labels on a wide array of
products, including cigarettes, over-the-counter pharmaceutical products, power tools, and so on.
These can range from general warnings, such as those found on cigarette packages, to more specific
ones targeted to smaller groups (e.g. ‘Do not use if you are diabetic’). Governments, consumer
groups and ethical marketers want the warnings to accomplish their primary task—that is, to alert
the user to the potential risk associated with the product.
On the other hand, marketers worry that such warnings could unduly detract from the image of
the product or undeservedly negatively affect its risk-to-benefit assessment by potential consumers.
As a result, warnings and disclosures tend to be made less obvious than perhaps they should be. For
example, in television advertisements, warnings tend to be presented either orally or visually but
seldom via both modes, and visual disclosures tend to be of low contrast.82 Consequently, many
warnings are simply not noticed or effectively processed.
Despite the fact that many warnings are ignored, there is substantial evidence that well-designed
warnings are attended to and influence knowledge, belief and, to a lesser extent, behaviours.83 The
challenge, therefore, is to design warnings with the maximum likelihood of being successful.
248 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Warnings are incorporated in commercials, packages and point-ofpurchase displays and they are also often presented in freestanding posters
and advertisements. They should be pre-tested as any other commercial or
advertisement.
Advertising evaluation
A successful advertisement (or any other marketing message) must
accomplish four tasks:
1
2
3
4
exposure: it must physically reach the consumer
attention: it must be attended to by the consumer
interpretation: it must be properly interpreted
memory: it must be stored in memory in a manner that will allow
retrieval under the proper circumstances.
Advertising research covers all these tasks. As the opening story
showed, measurements are not readily available for all types of
advertising, with outdoor advertising lacking the same sort of standard
measurements available for television and radio advertising. However,
most of the efforts of researchers have been focused on attention and, to
a lesser extent, memory.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
249
Measures of exposure
Exposure to print media is most frequently measured in terms of circulation. Data on circulation
is provided by commercial businesses. Frequently, the major difficulty with this data is that it is
not broken down in a manner consistent with the target market of the firm seeking information.
A firm may be targeting the middle class but circulation data may be broken down by income
rather than social class. Further, measures of circulation are generally based on households rather
than individuals and do not provide data on which members of the household are exposed to the
magazine or newspaper.
However, trends in circulation can be useful in determining the most suitable vehicle for a particular
advertisement. For example, The Australian Women’s Weekly added an extra 148 000 readers in the 12
months to March 2003, confirming it as the most widely read title in the country with a total number
of readers in excess of 2.5 million. Belle also posted a spectacular 61 per cent increase in readership,
reaching 165 000 copies, and Burke’s Backyard saw its readership grow by 4 per cent to 668 000 which,
based with a circulation of 130 000+, means that one a copy is read by an average of 5.1 readers.84
The two methods used to determine the frequency of radio listening are diary reports, in
which respondents record their daily listening patterns, and telephone interviews.
Television viewing is measured primarily by diary reports but also (recently) by people meters,
which are electronic devices that automatically determine whether a television is turned on and, if
so, to which channel. They allow each household member to ‘log on’ when viewing by punching
in an identifying button. The demographics of each potential viewer are stored in the central
computer so that viewer profiles can be developed.
Measures of attention
The attention-attracting powers of commercials or packages can be measured in a direct manner,
using the techniques described in Exhibit 8.10.85 Of these techniques, eye tracking appears to
offer the greatest potential.86 ETS technology, initially developed by NASA to measure astronauts’
physiological responses to stimuli, has found a niche on the Internet, helping marketers to
determine where to place banner ads as well as how to design their content and format.87 Further
scientific developments may soon provide a more reliable indication of perception.
Indirect tests of attention (i.e. those measures that also tap at least some aspects of memory)
include theatre tests, day-after recall (DAR), recognition tests and Starch scores. Theatre tests
involve showing commercials along with television programs in a theatre. Viewers complete
questionnaires designed to measure which commercials (and what aspects of those commercials)
attracted their attention.
Day-after recall is the most popular method of measuring the attention-getting power of
television commercials. Individuals are interviewed the day after a commercial has been aired on
a program they have watched. Recall of the commercial and of specific aspects of the commercial
are interpreted as a reflection of the amount of attention. Day-after recall measures of television
commercials have been criticised as favouring rational, factual, ‘hard-sell’ type advertisements
and high-involvement products, while discriminating against ‘feeling’, emotional, ‘soft-sell’
advertisements. However, for most combinations of products and services with particular target
market segments, this approach may be superior. In response to the criticism, substantial work has
been done to develop recognition measures for television commercials.
Recognition tests are tests in which the commercial of interest, or key parts of it, are shown
to target-market members along with other commercials. Recognition of the commercial, or
key parts of the commercial, is the measure. This technique appears to work better than standard
recall measures.88
Starch scores are the most popular technique for evaluating the attention-attracting power of
print advertisements. The respondents are shown advertisements from magazine issues they have
recently read. For each advertisement, they indicate which parts (headlines, illustrations, copy
blocks) they recall reading. Three main ‘scores’ are computed:
1
2
3
EXHIBIT 8.10
Direct measures of attention
1
Eye-pupil dilation. Changes in the size of the pupil of the eye appear to be related to the
amount of attention that a person is giving a message. A pupilometer can measure these
changes accurately.
2
Eye tracking. An eye camera can track movements of the eyes relative to the advertisement
being read or watched. The paths of the eyes can then be mapped to determine:
(a) what parts of the message were attended to
(b) what sequence was used in viewing the message
(c) how much time was spent on each part.
3
Tachistoscopic tests. A tachistoscope is a slide projector with adjustable projector speeds
and levels of illumination. Advertisements can therefore be shown very rapidly and/or dimly.
Advertisements are tested to determine at what speeds elements such as the product,
brand and headline are recognised. Speed of recognition of various elements in the
advertisements and readership (attention) are highly correlated.
4
Theatre tests. Theatre tests involve showing commercials along with television shows in a
theatre. Some, such as the one maintained by ASI Market Research, have dials at each seat
which viewers use to indicate their interest (attention) in the show or commercial.
5
Brain-wave analysis. There is some evidence that electroencephalographs can indicate the
amount and type of attention given to an advertisement or package.
noted: the percentage who recall seeing the advertisement in that issue
seen-associated: the percentage who recall reading a part of the advertisement that clearly
identifies the brand or advertiser
read most: the percentage who recall reading 50 per cent or more of the copy.
Starch scores allow an indirect measure of attention to the overall advertisement and to key
components of the advertisement. Unfortunately, the scores are generally based on the responses
of a random sample of subscribers to the magazine, not a sample of target-market members.
Because attention is focused on topics of interest, this can cause a serious misinterpretation of the
effectiveness of an advertisement.
Measures of interpretation
the
most popular method of
measuring the attentiongetting power of television
commercials; individuals
are interviewed the day
after a commercial is
aired on a program they
watched
day-after recall
a
market research technique
aiming at estimating
how many respondents, if
shown an advertisement,
can recognise it
recognition tests
a
technique for evaluating
the attention-attracting
power of print
advertisements whereby
respondents are shown
advertisements from
magazine issues they
have recently read and are
asked to indicate which
parts of the advertisements
they recall reading
Starch scores
an
imperfect or faulty
allocation of meaning to a
stimulus
misinterpretation
Marketers investigate interpretation primarily through the use of focus groups, theatre tests and dayafter recall. Focus groups, also called group discussions, involve a group of eight to 12 members of the
target audience having a relatively free-form discussion of the meaning conveyed by the advertisement.
Theatre and day-after recall tests measure interpretation, as well as the content of the advertisement.
One of the problems with these techniques, particularly the last two, is their tendency to
produce a restatement of the verbal content of the advertisement rather than an understanding
of the subtle meanings conveyed by the total advertisement. However, it is clear that consumers
utilise all of the advertisement, including non-verbal visual and auditory imagery, in forming an
impression of the product.
Marketers are just beginning to measure the emotional (‘feeling’) meanings that consumers
assign to advertisements. While standard methods do not yet exist, this is clearly an important area
for development. The use of emotion in advertising is described more fully in Chapter 10.
PERCEPTION OF MARKETING MESSAGES AND ETHICS
Source: J. T. Cacioppo and R. E. Petty (1985), ‘Physiological Responses and Advertising Effects’, Psychology
and Marketing, Summer, pp. 115–26.
250 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
Many ethical concerns arise when marketers apply their understanding of perceptions. For
example, endorsements by independent bodies often convey particular meanings and affect
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
251
consumers’ perceptions. Anyone seeing the Heart Foundation ‘Tick’ on a product will probably
assume that this low-fat product is the most nutritionally sound one available for people who want
a healthy heart.This, however, is not entirely accurate.There are many products that are better than
some of the products displaying the endorsement but their manufacturers have simply refused to
pay the yearly royalties on sales—0.05 per cent of the projected wholesale sales over a period of
12 months—that the Heart Foundation requires in return for displaying its approval. As a result,
many low-fat products do not carry the ‘Tick’.
However, the ‘Tick’ has been found to be effective in both Australia and New Zealand, where
it is believed it has been instrumental in motivating companies to exclude 33 tonnes of salt through
the reformulation of 23 breads, breakfast cereals and margarines. Overall, 60 per cent of Australian
consumers and 59 per cent of New Zealand consumers say they rely on the ‘Tick’ to assist them
in making healthier food choices.89
Various regulatory agencies are deeply concerned with the interpretation of marketing messages.
However, determining the exact meaning of a marketing message is not a simple process.90
Obtaining accurate assignments of meaning is made even more difficult by the variation in
information-processing skills among differing population groups.91 For example, warnings in
the form of symbols might be appropriate when dealing with a multinational or multicultural
audience.92 Marketers often have to go to great lengths to provide messages that the relevant
audience will interpret correctly.
Advertising aimed at children
Many parents’ organisations and government agencies focus on the impact the content of
advertisements has on children, as well as on the ability of children to process these advertising
messages. However, children’s ability to comprehend advertising messages is also important, not
just the message content itself.93
Most research indicates that younger children (those under seven) have at least some difficulty
in distinguishing commercials from programs (they either do not notice the change or they think
of the commercials following a program as another program). As a result, a number of regulations
have been put in place by the Australian Broadcasting Authority. These regulations are aimed at
controlling the way advertising is included in children’s programs.
It also appears that younger children are less able to determine the selling intent of commercials.
However, there is some evidence that young children are aware of the selling intent, but cannot
verbalise it.94 This problem is growing in intensity, as children’s products are increasingly becoming
the ‘stars’ of animated children’s television programs. Walt Disney characters are all available as
toys. The same phenomenon was also particularly evident with the introduction of the infamous
Pokémon film and cartoon characters, on which dozens of toys, cards and other products were
based. Many claim that films and cartoons are now merely extended commercials that advertise the
products based upon the characters.
A second aspect of comprehension involves specific words or types of commercials that children
might misunderstand. In the case of misunderstood words, research indicates that disclaimers such
as ‘Part of a nutritious breakfast’, ‘Each sold separately’, and ‘Batteries not included’ are ineffective
with preschool children.95 Where cartoons are concerned, a child may view a commercial in
cartoon form without being able to identify it as a commercial.
Such issues are very emotionally charged, with consumer and parent groups often reacting
very strongly without validated scientific evidence (e.g. studies or surveys). Clearly, much research
is required to assess rigorously the extent of children’s perceptive ability.
252 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
MAX YOUR MARKS!
Thirty interactive questions on this chapter are available now at the Online Learning Centre that accompanies
this text—www.mhhe/com/au/neal4e. (For access to MaxMark, please refer to the front of the text.)
SUMMARY
1
What is the nature of perception?
Perception consists of those activities by which an
individual acquires and assigns meaning to stimuli. It is
also referred to as information processing.
2
What are the different steps involved in information
processing?
Perception begins with exposure. This occurs when a
stimulus comes within range of one of the individual’s
primary sensory receptors. Consumers are exposed to
only a small fraction of the available stimuli and this is
usually the result of ‘self-selection’. Attention occurs
when the stimulus activates one or more of the sensory
receptors, and the resulting sensations go into the
brain for processing. Interpretation is the assignment of
meaning to stimuli that have been attended to.
3
Which stimulus factors influence this process?
Stimulus factors are physical characteristics of the
stimulus itself, such as contrast, size, intensity,
colour and movement, position, isolation, format and
information quantity.
4
Which individual factors influence this process?
Individual factors are characteristics of the individual,
such as interests and needs.
5
Which situational factors influence this process?
Individual and stimulus factors are both influenced
by, and influence, the situation in which they occur.
For example, temporary characteristics of consumers
such as moods can influence the process. The amount
of time available and the physical characteristics of the
situation can also play a role in determining whether a
given stimulus is processed.
6
How do children process information?
In general, children under the age of 12 or so have less
developed information-processing abilities than older
individuals. Children develop their ability to process
information in a series of stages and are only capable of
formal integration around the age of 12 to 15.
7
What are the implications of perception for retail,
brand and communication strategies?
Marketing managers use their knowledge of information
processing in a variety of ways. The fact that media
exposure is selective is the basis for media strategy.
Retailers can enhance their operations by viewing their
outlets as information environments. Both stimulus and
personal-interest factors are used to attract attention
to advertisements and packages. Characteristics of the
target market and the message are studied to ensure
that accurate interpretation occurs. The meaning that
consumers assign to words and parts of words is the
basis for the selection of a brand name. Informationprocessing theory guides a wide range of advertising
evaluation techniques.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
253
KEY TERMS
adaptation level theory 235
affective interpretation 240
attention 229
cognitive interpretation 238
compressed messages 235
contrast 235
day-after recall 251
exposure 229
format 234
hemispheric lateralisation 238
individual factors 236
information overload 235
information processing 229
intensity 232
4
interpretation 229
isolation 234
logo 245
memory 229
misinterpretation 251
non-focused attention 237
perception 229
position 232
recognition tests 251
semiotics 241
situational factors 236
Starch scores 251
stimulus factors 232
subliminal message 238
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1
2
What is information processing? How does it differ from
perception?
7 In what ways, if any, do children process information
What does attention involve? What determines which
stimuli an individual will attend to? How do marketers
utilise this?
8 Describe Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.
3
What stimulus factors can be used to attract attention?
What problems can arise when stimulus factors are used
to attract attention?
4
What determines how an individual will interpret a given
stimulus?
5
What is the difference between cognitive and affective
interpretation?
6
What is the difference between lexical and psychological
meaning?
differently from adults?
9 How does a knowledge of information processing assist
the marketing manager in:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
5
6
the following objectives differ for different age groups?
Why?
Evaluate the full-page advertisements in this chapter.
Analyse the attention-attracting characteristics and the
meaning they convey. Are they good advertisements?
What risks are associated with each?
To what extent (if any), and how, should the government
regulate advertising seen by children?
How should a television commercial designed to achieve
(a) provide anti-drug use information and feelings
(b) sell a new chewing gum
7
What problems do you see with people meters?
8
Discuss a campaign that has recently attracted a lot of
attention. Was it ethical?
APPLICATION ACTIVITIES
1
Find three brand names that you feel are particularly
appropriate and three that you feel are not. Explain your
reasoning for each brand name.
2
Find three logos that you feel are particularly appropriate
and three that you feel are not. Explain your reasoning
for each logo.
3
Interview 10 students about their behaviour during
television commercials. What do you conclude?
4
Find two advertisements that you think make unethical
use of the perception process. Justify your selection.
5
Examine several magazines. Photocopy two
advertisements that do a good job of encouraging
readers to visit their web site. Justify your selection using
the principles of perception covered in this chapter.
6
Visit one of the following web sites. Evaluate the site
based on the principles of perception covered in this
chapter.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
7
www.absolutvodka.com
www.elle.com
www.purina.com
www.nj.com/yucky
Visit the Australian Broadcasting Authority’s web site
(www.aba.gov.au) and report the key points of the
regulations concerning advertising to children.
formulating media strategy?
formulating retail strategy?
designing advertisements and packages?
developing brand names?
evaluating advertising?
regulating advertising?
10 What is the underlying basis of media strategy?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1
2
How could a marketing manager for (a) the Cancer
Society, (b) a restaurant chain, (c) a superannuation
fund, (d) children’s vitamins or (e) a tax service use the
material in this chapter to guide the development of
a national advertising campaign? And to assist local
retailers in developing their promotional activities? Would
the usefulness of this material be limited to advertising
decisions? Explain your answer.
In recent years, manufacturers of meat products have
introduced a product labelled ‘Turkey ham’. The product
looks like ham and tastes like ham but it contains no
pork; it is all turkey. A nationwide survey of consumers
showed that most believed that the meat product
254 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
contained both turkey and ham. The label was approved
based on a dictionary definition for the technical term
‘ham’: the thigh cut of meat from the hind leg of any
animal. Discuss how consumers processed information
concerning this product and used this information in
purchasing this product. (One court ruled the label to be
misleading but was overruled by a higher court.)
3
Develop a brand name for:
(a) a non-alcoholic beer
(b) a magazine for high-school students
(c) a mountain bike
(d) a CD player
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
255
Case study
International articles
related to this topic are
available at the Online
Learning Centre at
www.mhhe/com/au/neal4e.
REFERENCES
Quit or else: fear and anti-smoking
advertising96
T
he results of a study by the National
Tobacco Campaign, based on the theme
‘Every cigarette is doing you damage’, were
released in December 1998 and suggested that
anti-smoking advertisements should be broadcast
year-round. According to Judith Watt, executive
director of the Quit Campaign, the success of the
advertisements showed that they need to be on
air 50 weeks of the year. The campaign, which has
been broadcast since 1997, urges smokers to call
a national Quitline for more information.
Dr Melanie Wakefield from the Royal Adelaide
Hospital’s Cancer Centre was in charge of the
study evaluating the campaign and found it to be
both popular and effective with 1 in 25 Australian
smokers calling the Quitline. Moreover, when
contacted 12 months later, 29 per cent of callers
had stopped smoking, an extremely good quit
rate according to Dr Wakefield. Furthermore, when
there were no advertisements on air, the number
of callers to the Quitline fell, demonstrating the
need for continuous media scheduling.
‘Quitting smoking in not an event but a
process and one which smokers go through many
times’, says Judith Watt, adding ‘We can’t at a
population level, expect a one-off, once-a-year
Quit Week to have any lasting impact’. While
smoking take-up rates among young people,
especially females, are a concern, helping adults
to quit is important because children cannot
realistically be asked not to start smoking when
1 in 4 adults still smoke.
Progress, however slow, is being felt at last.
Australia’s smoking rate, which stalled in the
1990s, has recommenced to a slide, with 22 per
cent of adults now smoking, the lowest figure ever
recorded. Much of this is attributed to the ‘Every
cigarette is doing you damage’ campaign, which
first ran from June to November 1997 at a cost of
$7 million. Given its positive results, both in terms
of calls and the subsequent quit rate, the campaign
has since been run in other countries such as the
United States (Massachusetts), Singapore, New
Zealand and Canada (British Columbia), and it has
been repeated in Australia as well.
The effectiveness of the campaign has been
attributed to the fear it evokes in many viewers.
For example, the advertisement found to be
the most motivating for smokers was the one
showing a surgeon’s gloved hand squeezing a
yellow atheroma out of an aorta during a necropsy.
Described by smokers as something you ‘see
once and never forget’, the advertisement
renewed the debate that scare tactics don’t work
in health promotion. Other advertisements have
shown children inhaling their parents’ cigarette
smoke and thus suffering health damage.
Other uses of fear appeals in Australia include
a road-safety campaign that has similarly seen
the road death toll reach its lowest point. Relying
on realistic crash scenes and depicting in a very
vivid manner the agony of road victims and their
relatives, these campaigns have been criticised
for their implicitly violent nature and their ability to
unsettle children or sensitive viewers. One of the
most infamous fear campaigns used in Australia,
however, remains the ‘grim reaper’ advertisements
showing families decimated by AIDS.
QUESTIONS
1 What is the main challenge, in terms of perception, faced by marketers trying to discourage
socially undesirable behaviour?
2 Why do you think the Quit Smoking campaign worked? Would it work for any other social
cause?
3 Comment on the ethics of using fear in advertising.
256 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
1 B. Messer (2003), ‘Outside Chances’, AdNews, 28
February, pp. 25–6; D.Veldre (2003), ‘Writing’s on the
Wall for Outdoor’, B&T Weekly, 31 January, p. 12.
2 For a more comprehensive model, see D. J. MacInnis
and B. J. Jaworski (1989), ‘Information Processing from
Advertisements’, Journal of Marketing, October, pp. 1–23.
3 See B. M. Kaplan (1985), ‘Zapping’, Journal of Advertising
Research, April/May, pp. 9–12; C. Heeter and B. S.
Greenberg (1985), ‘Profiling the Zappers’, Journal of
Advertising Research, April/May, pp. 15–19; D. A.Yorke
and P. J. Kitchen (1985), ‘Channel Flickers and Video
Speeders’, Journal of Advertising Research, April/May,
pp. 21–5; and P. A. Stout and B. L. Burda (1989), ‘Zapped
Commercials’, Journal of Advertising, no. 4, pp. 23–32.
4 P. J. Danaher (1995), ‘What Happens to Television Ratings
During Commercial Breaks?’, Journal of Advertising
Research, January, pp. 37–47.
5 P. Luker (2003), ‘Media Eye: Inserts Strong’, B&T Weekly,
10 July.
6 P. Bombara (2002), ‘Reader Decline “No Problem” Say
Papers’, B&T Weekly, 7 February.
7 J. L. Rogers (1990), ‘Consumer Response to Advertising
Mail’, Journal of Advertising Research, January, p. 22.
8 Media Involvement Study, NFO BJM group for
Periodicals Publishers Association, April 2002, p. 25.
9 News Limited (1995), ‘Readership of Newspaper
Advertisements’, Newspaper Advertising Bureau of
Australia, September, p. 5.
10 L. C. Soley (1986), ‘Copy Length and Industrial
Advertising Readership’, Industrial Marketing Management,
pp. 245–51.
11 P. H. Chook (1985), ‘A Continuing Study of Magazine
Environment, Frequency, and Advertising Performance’,
Journal of Advertising Research, August/September, pp. 23–33.
12 E. Mistilis (1999), ‘Laser Reveals Eye’s Attraction to
Outdoor’, AdNews, 5 November, p. 13.
13 N. Sparkman Jr and L. M. Austin (1980), ‘The Effect on
Sales of Color in Newspaper Advertisements’, Journal of
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14 J. W. Rosenberg (1956), ‘How Does Color, Size, Affect Ad
Readership?’, Industrial Marketing, 41, May, pp. 54–7.
15 News Limited (1995), op. cit.
16 J. C. Cronin (1995), ‘In-Home Observations of
Commercial Zapping Behaviour’, Journal of Current Issues
and Research in Advertising, Fall, pp. 69–75.
17 See G. D. Olsen (1995), ‘Creating the Contrast’, Journal of
Advertising, Winter, pp. 29–44.
18 D. Walker and M. F. von Gonten (1989), ‘Explaining
Related Recall Outcomes’, Journal of Advertising
Research, July, pp. 11–21. In relation to audio and
visual communication, see also M. Sutherland (1996),
‘Prospecting the Academic Wilderness’, Australia
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
Professional Marketing, December, pp. 17–20; and
K. Brown (1997), ‘Ad Effectiveness, Hearing is Believing’,
B&T Weekly, 20 June, p. 18.
See P. S. Schindler (1986), ‘Color and Contrast in
Magazine Advertising’, Psychology and Marketing, Summer,
pp. 69–78; R. F. Beltramini and V. J. Blasko (1986),
‘An Analysis of Award-Winning Headlines’, Journal of
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R. C. Goldstein (1993), ‘Category-Based Applications and
Extensions in Advertising’, Journal of Consumer Research,
June, pp. 87–99.
L. Bogart and C. Lehman (1983), ‘The Case of the 30s
Commercial’, Journal of Advertising Research, March,
pp. 11–19. Also M. H. Blair (1988), ‘An Empirical
Investigation of Advertising Wearin and Wearout’, Journal
of Advertising Research, January, pp. 45–50.
European Society for Opinion and Market Research
(1995), Quadrant Research Services, www.esomar.nl/
directory/110528.html.
J. MacLachlan and P. LaBarbera (1978), ‘TimeCompressed TV Commercials’, Journal of Advertising
Research, August, pp. 11–15; D. L. Moore, D. Hausknecht
and K. Thamodaran (1986), ‘Time Compression,
Response Opportunity, and Persuasion’, Journal of
Consumer Research, June, pp. 85–99; and J. W.Vann,
R. D. Rogers and J. P. Penrod (1987), ‘The Cognitive
Effects of Time-Compressed Advertising’, Journal of
Advertising, no. 2, pp. 10–19.
N. Shoebridge (1996), Column, Business Review Weekly,
November, p. 77.
See J. Jacoby (1984), ‘Perspectives on Information
Overload’, Journal of Consumer Research, March, pp. 432–5;
N. K. Malhotra (1984), ‘Reflections on the Information
Overload Paradigm in Consumer Decision Making’,
Journal of Consumer Research, March, pp. 436–40; and
N. K. Malhotra (1984), ‘Information and Sensory
Overload’, Psychology and Marketing, Fall/Winter, pp. 9–21.
D. Maheswaran and B. Sternthal (1990), ‘The Effects
of Knowledge, Motivation, and Type of Message on
Advertisement Processing and Product Judgments’,
Journal of Consumer Research, June, pp. 66–73;
D. J. MacInnis, C. Moorman and B. J. Jaworsky (1991),
‘Enhancing and Measuring Consumer Motivation,
Opportunity and Ability to Process Information from
Ads’, Journal of Marketing, October, pp. 32–53.
G. R. Funkhouser (1984), ‘Consumers’ Sensitivity to the
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N. Shoebridge (1996), ‘Adversorial Shoppers, a Rod for
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See G. L. Sullivan (1990), ‘Music Format Effects in Radio
Advertisements’, Psychology and Marketing, Summer,
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
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30
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pp. 97–108; D. L. Hoffman and R. Batra (1991), ‘Viewer
Response to Programs’, Journal of Advertising Research,
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K. J. Clancy (1992), ‘CPMs Must Bow to Involvement
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G. W. McClung and K. R. Franc (1995), ‘The Impact of
Program Involvement on Commercial Effectiveness’,
in eds B. B. Stern and G. M. Zinkham, Enhancing
Knowledge Development in Marketing, American Marketing
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B. Walliser (1994), ‘Les Determinants de la Memorisation
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See V. C. Broach, T. J. Page and R. D. Wilson (1995),
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G. J. Fitzsimmons (1995), ‘Program Involvement’, Journal
of Advertising Research, September, pp. 61–72; K. S.
Coulter and M. A. Sewall (1995), ‘The Effects of Editorial
Context and Cognitive and Affective Moderators on
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M. Sujan, Advances in Consumer Research XXII, Association
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V. Starr and C.A. Lowe (1995), ‘The Influence of Program
Context and Order of Presentation on Immediate and
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F. R. Kardes and M. Sujan, op. cit, pp. 184–9.
B. Lee and R. S. Lee (1995), ‘How and Why People Watch
TV’, Journal of Advertising Research, November, pp. 9–18.
H. E. Krugman (1980), ‘Sustained Viewing of Television’,
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See M. L. Rothschild et al. (1988), ‘Hemispherically
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pp. 185–98; C. Janiszewski (1988), ‘Preconscious
Processing Effects’, Journal of Consumer Research,
September, pp. 199–209; J. Meyers-Levy (1989), ‘Priming
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W. B. Key (1974), Subliminal Seduction, Signet Books, New
258 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
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39
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48
York; and W. B. Key (1977), Media Sexploitation, Signet
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D. L. Rosen and S. N. Singh (1992), ‘An Investigation
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Advertising Effectiveness’, Psychology and Marketing,
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Unconscious Stimuli’, Psychology and Marketing, May,
pp. 271–90.
M. Rogers and K. H. Smith (1993), ‘Public Perceptions
of Subliminal Advertising’, Journal of Advertising Research,
March/April, pp. 10–18.
J. Saegert (1987), ‘Why Marketing Should Quit Giving
Subliminal Advertising the Benefit of the Doubt’,
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S. E. Beatty and D. I. Hawkins (1989), ‘Subliminal
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C. L. White, M. Parthasarathy and J. W. Gentry (1995),
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B. Stern and G. M. Zinkhan, Enhancing Knowledge in
Marketing, American Marketing Association, Chicago,
pp. 133–8.
M. Rogers and C. A. Seiler (1994), ‘The Answer is No’,
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See L. M. Scott (1994), ‘The Bridge from Text to Mind’,
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M. Sutherland (2000), ‘Silicon Valley Goes Subliminal’,
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J. Leo (1991), ‘Hostility Among the Ice Cubes’, News and
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R. Friedman (1986), ‘Psychological Meaning of Products’,
Psychology and Marketing, Spring, pp. 1–15; R. Friedman
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Does an Ad Mean?” Language in Services Advertising’,
Journal of Advertising, no. 2, pp. 3–14; and K. A. Berger
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Variables in Advertising Messages’, in eds M. E. Goldberg,
G. Gorn and R. W. Pollay, Advances in Consumer Research
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D. A. Aaker, D. M. Stayman and R.Vezina (1988),
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M. S. LaTour (1990), ‘Female Nudity in Print
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G. Tom et al. (1987), ‘Cueing the Consumer’, Journal of
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49 J. G. Helgeson and S. E. Beatty (1987), ‘Price Expectation
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50 J. J. Inman, L. McAlister and W. D. Hoyer (1990),
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51 See D. M. Sanbonmatsu and F. R. Kardes (1988),
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52 R. P. Hill (1987), ‘The Impact of Interpersonal Anxiety
on Consumer Information Processing’, Psychology and
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53 S. N. Singh and G. A. Churchill Jr (1987), ‘Arousal and
Advertising Effectiveness’, Journal of Advertising, no. 1,
pp. 4–10.
54 J. E. Nelson, C. P. Duncan and P. L. Kiecker (1993),
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pp. 201–21.
55 M. Brucks, A. A. Mitchell and R. Staelin (1984), ‘The
Effects of Nutritional Informational Disclosure in
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pp. 1–25.
56 ‘GF, Coke Tell Why They Shun TV News’ (1980),
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57 T. Calishain (2003), ‘Pop-Ups Flop Up’, Searcher, vol. 11,
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58 D. G. Mick (1986), ‘Consumer Research and Semiotics’,
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R. D. Zakia and M. Nadin (1987), ‘Semiotics, Advertising
and Marketing’, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Spring,
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this topic. Marketing Signs is a newsletter on this issue
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Semiotic Studies at Indiana University. See also
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the Credibility of Product Attribute Claims’, Journal of
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59 N. Dawar and P. Parker (1994), ‘Marketing Universals’,
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Store Brand Quality’, Journal of Marketing, October,
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60 The literature on country of origin is plethoric. See, for
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
example, T. A. Shimp, S. Samie and T. J. Madden (1993),
‘Countries and their Products’, Journal of the Academy
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E. Babakus, R. Berl and W. Marks (1993), ‘Schematic
Representation of Country Image’, Journal of International
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Branding, Price and Perceived Performance Risk’, Journal
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R. Parameswaran and R. M. Pisharodi (1994), ‘Facets of
Country of Origin Image’, Journal of Advertising, March,
pp. 43–56; S. S. Andaleeb (1995), ‘Country of Origin
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J. J. Kellaris, A. D. Cox and D. Cox (1993), ‘The Effects
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J. J. Wheatley (1995), ‘Music and Radio Advertising’,
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Research XXI, Association for Consumer Research, Provo,
UT, pp. 286–91.
J. Jacoby and W. D. Hoyer (1982), ‘Viewer
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R. F. Beltramini and S. P. Brown (1995),
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D. R. John, Advances in Consumer Research XXI,
Association for Consumer Research, Provo, UT,
pp. 218–23. Also J. Jacoby and W. D Hoyer (1987),
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P. Quester (1996), ‘Sponsorship Return, the Case of
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M. Lee (1997), ‘Awareness Not the Key to Games
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See K. D. Bahn (1986), ‘How and When Do Brand
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B. J. Wadworth (1971), Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive
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D. R. John and J. C. Whitney Jr (1986), ‘The
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Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
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Journal of Consumer Research, March, pp. 406–17.
68 M. C. Macklin (1983), ‘Do Children Understand
TV Advertisements?’, Journal of Advertising Research,
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of Information in the Young Consumer’, Journal of
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G. F. Soldow (1985), ‘The Ability of Children to
Understand the Product Package’, Journal of Public Policy
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69 T. E. Muller (1985), ‘Structural Information Factors
Which Stimulate the Use of Nutrition Information’,
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70 J.-M. Floch (1988), ‘The Contribution of Structural
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71 See G. M. Zinkhan and C. R. Martin Jr (1987), ‘New
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72 N. Shoebridge (1996), ‘Every Day is Branding Time,
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73 M. Ligerakis (2000), ‘Athletics Body Reworks its Image’,
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74 K. R. Robertson (1987), ‘Recall and Recognition Effects
of Brand Name Imagery’, Psychology and Marketing,
Spring, pp. 3–15.
75 J. N. Axelrod and H. Wybenga (1985), ‘Perceptions That
Motivate Purchase’, Journal of Advertising Research, June/
July, pp. 19–21.
76 A. Casey (1996), ‘Logomotion’, Australian Professional
Magazine, April, pp. 16–20.
77 T. J. Maden and M. G. Weinberger (1982), ‘The Effects of
Humor on Attention in Magazine Advertising’, Journal of
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(1995), ‘Multi-Country Responses to Humour in
Advertising’, Proceedings of the Ninth New Zealand
Marketing Educators’ Conference, November, pp. 2–10.
78 S. B. MacKenzie (1986), ‘The Role of Attention in
Mediating the Effect of Advertising on Attribute
Importance’, Journal of Consumer Research, September,
pp. 174–95.
79 J. Treistman (1984), ‘Will Your Audience See Your Name?’,
Business Marketing, August, pp. 88–94.
80 S. Morton (1997), ‘Anti-Smoking Ads Shock’, B&T
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81 S. Ganesan (2002), ‘Benetton Group: Unconventional
260 PART 2 ■ Internal influences
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94
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M. G. Hoy and M. J. Stankey (1993), ‘Structural
Characteristics of Televised Advertising Disclosures’,
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See Special Issue of Journal of Public Policy and Marketing
(1993), Spring, pp. 1–90; and T. Barlow and
M. W. Wogalter (1993), ‘Alcoholic Beverage Warnings
in Magazines and Television Advertisements’, Journal of
Consumer Research, June, pp. 147–56.
ACP circulation and readership, April 2002 to March 2003,
www.acp.com.au; and D.Veldre (2003), ‘Strong Growth for
Food and Homemaker Titles’, B&T Weekly, 12 June.
J. T. Cacioppo and R. E. Petty (1985), ‘Physiological
Responses and Advertising Effects’, Psychology and
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B. von Keitz (1988), ‘Eye Movement Research’, European
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B. Lederer (2000), ‘Reading People’s Brainwaves May
Confirm Beliefs and Create New Insights’, Research World,
no. 6, pp. 12–13.
S. N. Singh, M. L. Rothschild and G. A. Churchill Jr
(1988), ‘Recognition vs Recall as Measures of Television
Commercial Forgetting’, Journal of Marketing Research,
February, pp. 72–80.
L.Young and B. Swinburn (2002), ‘Impact of Pick the Tick
Food Information Program on the Salt Content of Food
in New Zealand’, Health Promotion International,
vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 13–19; and Pick the Tick (Heart
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see www.heartfoundation.com.au/tick.
K. G. Grunet and K. Dedler (1985), ‘Misleading
Advertising’, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, vol. 4,
pp. 153–65; and P. N. Bloom (1989), ‘A Decision Model
for Prioritizing and Addressing Consumer Information
Problems’, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, vol. 8,
pp. 161–80.
G. J. Gaeth and T. B. Heath (1987), ‘The Cognitive
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B. Reid (1985), ‘Adequacy of Symbolic Warnings’,
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For detailed coverage of this area, see G. M. Armstrong
and M. Brucks (1988), ‘Dealing with Children’s
Advertising’, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, vol. 7,
pp. 98–113.
See M. G. Hoy, C. E.Young and J. C. Mowen (1986),
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(1987), ‘Preschoolers’ Understanding of the Information
Function of Television Advertising’, Journal of Consumer
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G. M. Armstrong and M. E. Goldberg (1988), ‘Children’s
Use of Cognitive Defenses against Television Advertising’,
Journal of Consumer Research, March, pp. 471–82.
95 M. A. Stutts and G. G. Hunnicutt (1987), ‘Can Young
Children Understand Disclaimers?’, Journal of Advertising,
no. 1, pp. 41–6.
96 S. Chapman (1999), ‘Scare Tactics Cut Smoking Rates
in Australia to All Time Low’, www.lists.essential.org/
intl.tobacco; ‘Anti-Smoking Advertisements a Success’
(1998), Health News, www.abc.net.au/science/news/
health/HealthRepublish_17759; and M. Latour, S. Snipes
and L. Robin (1996), ‘Don’t be Afraid to Use Fear
Appeals: An Experimental Study’, Journal of Advertising
Research, vol. 36, no. 2, p. 59.
Perception ■ CHAPTER 8
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