Download Mark 432 – Lesson 2

Mark 432 – Marketing Communications
Lesson 3
Perspectives on Consumer Behavior
The Head vs. The Heart
Lecture Notes
After this lesson you should be able to:
1. Illustrate the Consumer Buying Decision Process.
2. Describe and illustrate how the internal psychological processes relate to the consumer
buying decision process.
3. Illustrate and describe the stages in the Selective Perception Process.
4. Describe what people attend to with regards to promotional material.
5. Describe how does the perceptual process of sensation, organization and interpretation
relate to the product positioning?
6. Describe the Hierarchy of Effects model.
7. Describe the relationship between beliefs/attitudes and behavior.
8. Describe how beliefs and attitudes are formed.
9. Describe the concepts of cognitive learning and behavioural learning (operant and
classical conditioning)
Positioning is mostly about logic/reasoning, however often times we are driven by
emotional processes. These emotional processes are driven by the limbic system
(reptilian system).
- Insecurities are derived from our limbic system. Ex. Clothing may be bought
because you don’t want to be perceived as poor, thus hindering your chances
of finding a mate.
o Ex. Cars (Hummers = Masculine, Smart Car = not so much)
o Ex. Gym membership, etc.
Weakly- Held Beliefs (WHB)  Strongly-Held Beliefs (SHB)
- A: Associative Learning
- B: Experiential Learning (Trial/Behavioural)
- C: Cognitive Learning
Low-Involvement Purchases
- “A” by itself = WHB
- “B” by itself = SHB
- “C” by itself = WHB
- “A+B” and “B+C” = SHB
High-Involvement Purchases (**HIGH RISK**)
- “A” by itself = WHB
- “B” by itself = SHB
- “C” by itself = SHB
- “A+B” and “B+C” = SHB
5 Types of Risk
1. Financial Risk
2. Social Risk (Reaction of Family & Friends)
3. Performance Risk (Will product perform well?)
4. Psychological Risk (Your own reaction to the product)
5. Time Risk
Lesson Notes
1. How the how the internal psychological processes relate to the consumer
buying decision process. (Objectives 1 and 2)
- Problem Recognition is the consumer’s recognition of an unmet need.
- Ex. Dissatisfaction, new needs/wants, related product purchases, new products
that solve problems, etc.
- Information Search: Ex. Grant Mac vs. U of A and MBA program.
- Information can be given at each of the stages.
- Perception is variable (Ex. Kids vs. Adults)
- Motivation: The driving force within individuals that impels them into action.
- This driving force is produced by this state of “tension” which exists as a result
of an unmet need.
- Guilt, Fear, Shame, Hunger, Cold/Hot  NEED: Psychological and Physical
Comfort.
2. The Selective Perception Process. (Objective 3)
Selective Exposure: Things we do and don’t notice.
- Consumers actively avoid pictures, images, and messages that are painful,
disgusting, or threatening.
- Consumers actively seek out messages that are found to be pleasant or interesting.
Selective Attention: Choose to pay attention to selective information.
- Even if a stimulus (ad, package, etc.) comes face-to-face with a customer, the
customer often unconsciously chooses to ignore/not attend to it.
- Stimuli/information that is deemed too relevant to the consumer will be let
through the selective attention filter.
- Subliminal Advertising is true, it works a little to affect our feelings and mode,
but it has no effect on consumer behaviour and does not influence how we buy.
Selective Interpretation: Stimuli are interpreted based on:
- Stimuli characteristics
- Context of the stimulus
- Customer characteristics and expectations
- Sense  Organize  Interpret
3. What people attend to in the Selective Attention stage of the perceptual process:
(Objective 4)
1. Information/stimuli that is perceived to be relevant to themselves.
2. Information/stimuli that is related to their needs wants and desires.
- You can lead a consumer to a drink stand, but they won’t purchase unless
they’re thirsty.
3. Information/stimuli that makes them feel good.
- Reinforcement
4. Information/stimuli that reassures the consumer about the wisdom of the purchase.
4. How does the perceptual process of sensation, organization and interpretation
relate to the product positioning? (Objective 5)
- Sensation: Sensory receptors pick up stimuli from: sights, sounds, smells, tastes,
textures.
- Organization: We categorize the stimuli sensed into similar object categories. Ex. Grubs
are pests, Grubs are a tasty snack.
- Interpretation: Attaching meaning to the stimulus. Ex. I like/do not like the product.
Ex. Dolphin Perfume Bottle
- Children only saw dolphins, Adults only saw naked couple.
- Physiology (hormones) play a large part.
LEARNING involves both the acquisition of knowledge and the retrieval of stored
information.
5. Hierarchy of Effects Model (Objective 6): The type of learning model we use can
influence whether we will be successful at moving the consumer through the
Hierarchy of Effects model.
Awareness → Beliefs → Attitudes → Behavior
Beliefs – The knowledge and feelings a person has accumulated about an object or issue.
Consists of Cognitive, Experiential, and Associative Learning.
Attitude – is an overall evaluation or judgment of a brand, person, or issue.
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6. What is the relationship between beliefs/attitudes and behavior. (Objective 7)
- Not all attitudes are tied closely to behavior.
- Consumers have positive attitudes to multiple brands.
- Attitudes are fickle and vary in their strength.
- Situational effects can alter purchase plans.
7. How are beliefs and attitudes developed? (Objective 8)
8. Cognitive learning theory states that consumers are problem solvers and
information processors who engage in a variety of mental activities in evaluating
and choosing among alternatives.
- Involves effortful thinking and reasoning.
- It should be used for high involvement purchases to reduce perceived risk.
- Takes a lot of energy on part of the consumer.
Experiential Learning
- Involves “learning by doing”.
- Trial and Error
- Can be used for high involvement purchases to reduce perceived risk.
- UofA = Cognitive. NAIT = Experiential.
9. Behavioral learning is an associative process. Behavioral learning requires a link
between a stimulus and a response.
- Inferring a relationship or transferring an image between two items or events.
o Ex. Cold FX and health benefits
- Associative learning requires a link between a stimulus and a response.
- The ordering of items to be associated is important.
- The proximity of items to be associated is important.
Classical Conditioning: involves the pairing of a neutral object with an unconditioned
stimulus. After several such pairings, the presence of only the conditioned stimulus will
produce a conditioned response or feeling.
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Definitions
• Stimulus - something that causes a response (think, feel, do).
• Neutral stimulus - something that does not cause a response.
• Condition – To change.
• Conditioned response - Changed response
• Unconditioned stimulus – a stimulus that causes an unconditioned response.
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When does classical conditioning work?
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Effectiveness of Classical Conditioning Methods: Effectiveness means transferring
the probability of image transfer. More likely to associate between two things.
Delayed conditioning: Most Effective. Neutral stimulus and unconditioned stimulus
(makes you feel good, does not need to be taught and is automatic) overlap.
Trace conditioning: Break between the presence of one stimulus (NS) and the presence of
the other (US). More likely to draw association if we see a stimulus quickly after another
stimulus. The longer the break, the less likely to associate.
Simultaneous conditioning: NS and US occur at the same time. Ex. Baby sitting inside
Michelin tire. Message: What are you carrying on your tires? Simultaneously trying to
associate two stimuli. However, tires are high-involvement purchases and require more
than a cuddly image. Cognitive learning is required.
- Co-Branding
Backwards conditioning: Least Effective. Reversing the stimulus and the response
(showing the stimulus after the response – showing the brand name afterwards).
Rule: The brand name should be presented at least for a moment before the body of the
advertisement if classical conditioning is to be most effective.
- High-involvement purchases MUST involve cognitive learning and, sometimes,
experiential learning (however, can’t transfer a lot of information).
Operant Conditioning: Operant conditioning occurs when a person performs a behavior
and receives positive or negative reinforcement.
Associative Learning (Conditioning) and Personality
- Due to higher levels of cortical arousal, introverts learn emotional associations
faster than extroverts.
- Thus, conditioning does not work as well with extroverts.
Radio and Television Advertising
- Delayed and Trace conditioning procedures are more effective than simultaneous
or backward procedures.
- The brand name should be presented at least for a moment before the body of the
advertisement if conditioning is to be most effective.
Peripheral (Associative Learning Theory) and Central Routes to Persuasion
(Cognitive Learning Theory)
KEYWORD: ELABORATE. How much do you have to elaborate about the product?