Learning, Memory and Perception Consumer Behaviour Learning, Memory and Perception

Learning Can be defined as relatively permanent change on behavior occurring as a result of experience. (experience may be of purchase and consumption)

Consumer Learning Processes Cognitive Learning (Thinking) Consumers learn through information processing and problem solving Behavioral Learning (Conditioning) Learning via association (classical conditioning) Learning via reinforcement (instrumental cond.) both with help of external stimuli and response (S-R) Modeling Processes (Modeling) Based on observation of outcomes and consequences experienced by others

Behavioral learning theory. Two approaches of the theory Classical conditioning Operant conditioning Says that learning is an associative process with an already existing relationship b/w a stimuli and response. that is not taught rather it already exists. e.g. of food and salivation

Classical conditioning (continued) –learning results from a relationship between a stimulus and a response Pavlov and his salivating dogs: a conditioned stimulus (the ringing bell before each feeding) results in a conditioned response (salivation) Marketing applications Higher order conditioning and celebrity advertising Strength of the unconditioned stimulus Number of pairings New versus existing products

This Brita ad uses classical conditioning

Operant/Instrumental conditioning The individual must actively operate or act on some aspect of environment for learning to ossur.Also called instrumental conditioning. Is that learner or consumer will discover the appropriate response that will be reinforced.

Instrumental Conditioning Process Behavior (consumer uses product or service) Positive or negative consequences occur (reward or punishment) Increase or decrease in probability of repeat behavior (purchase)

Memory

Memory Two sources of product information: External environment: packaging, labels, POS displays, prices, other marketing information Memory: past experiences, word-of-mouth, family preferences Network of nodes (concepts) and links (connections) Scripts: information organized in memory around different types of events or episodes (e.g., a restaurant script)

How Information is Captured and Stored in Memory Memory processing areas: New information is initially captured in sensory memory. processing is shallow; capacity is limited *see notes Sensory memory is the shortest-term element of memory. It is the ability to retain impressions of sensory information after the original stimuli have ended. It acts as a kind of buffer for stimuli received through the five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch, which are retained accurately, but very briefly. For example, the ability to look at something and remember what it looked like with just a second of observation is an example of sensory memory. Sensory memory is an ultra-short-term memory and decays or degrades very quickly, typically in the region of 200 - 500 milliseconds.

(May I have your attention please?) Continued… Information is transmitted from sensory memory to short-term memory (STM). Analyzing and assigning meaning; limited capacity to a finite number of pieces (units of memory); information may be rehearsed to retain its meaning Information is passed from the sensory memory into short-term memory via the process of attention (May I have your attention please?) Attention:  The cognitive process of selectively focusing on one aspect of the environment while ignoring other things, which filters the stimuli to only those which are of interest at any given time

Information rehearsed in Short term memory (STM) is transmitted to long-term memory (LTM) for storage and retrieval as needed; LTM capacity is unlimited Examples :

Information Retention It refers to the amount of material previously learned that is remembered Forgetting – the loss in retention of material previously learned Retention is affected by: Incoming information The person receiving the information

Retention: Characteristics of Incoming Information and Processing Repetition or rehearsal Relevance Competing information (new information competes with old; ad “clutter” issue) Completeness of information – if incomplete, info retained for later completion) Time (delay time since exposure) Mood (positive mood impact)

How Retention is Influenced by the Information Recipient Consumer familiarity or experience Being more familiar with a product category increases the chances of remembering information about new or existing brands Affects way information is organized in memory Consumer motivation Higher motivation to process info is positively related to doing so at deeper levels of memory and to retain info longer and more accurately.

How Information is Retrieved from Memory Retrieval cues – “self-” or “externally-” generated (sensory images: sounds, shapes, colors, smells,etc.) Consumer’s state of mind: higher retrieval levels occur when info processing and retrieval mood and/or interest levels match

Information Storage in Memory – Processing Effects Recall of numerically-coded information is better than verbal information

Sensation and Perception Sensation is the immediate response of our sensory receptors (eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and fingers) to basic stimuli (light, color, sound, odor, and texture). Perception is the process by which sensations are selected, organized, and interpreted. Like computers we undergo stages of information processing in which we input and store stimuli. We receive external stimuli or sensory inputs on a number of channels. The inputs our five senses detect are the raw data that begin in the perceptional process.

Figure 2.1 Perceptual Process We receive external stimuli through our five senses Figure 2.1 shows that there are three stages that make up the process of perception. These are exposure, attention, and interpretation.

Hedonic Consumption Hedonic consumption: multisensory, fantasy, and emotional aspects of consumers’ interactions with products Marketers use impact of sensations on consumers’ product experiences Target is an example of a retail store that has done very well using sensation to relate to consumers.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall Sensory Systems Our world is a symphony of colors, sounds, odors, tastes Advertisements, product packages, radio and TV commercials, billboards provide sensations Sensory marketing means that companies pay extra attention to how our sensations affect our product experiences. Marketers recognize that our senses help us to decide which products appeal to us. 9/16/2018 Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Vision Color provokes emotion Reactions to color are biological and cultural Color is becoming brighter and more complex Trade dress: colors associated with specific companies Marketers rely heavily on visual elements in advertising, store design, and packaging. They communicate meanings on the visual channel through a product’s color, size, and styling. Color can also be part of a brand’s sensory signature.

Vertical-Horizontal Illusion Which line is longer: horizontal or vertical? Answer: both lines are same length This figure illustrates that our perceptions regarding vision are not always accurate.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall Scents Odors create mood and promote memories: Coffee = childhood, home Cinnamon buns = Romance Marketers use scents: Inside products In promotions (e.g., scratch ‘n sniff) Odor can affect our moods and emotions. They can invoke memories or relieve or create stress. An interest in scent has spawned new products. Some brands utilize scent easily. For instance, Starbucks requires baristas to grind a batch of coffee each time they brew a post instead of just once each morning to ensure customers have that intense smell during their Starbucks’ experience. Ad companies spend about $80 million per year on scent marketing. For example, Burger King offered Flame, a body spray that smelled like flame broiled meat. 9/16/2018 Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Sound Sound affects people’s feelings and behaviors Uses sound and music to create mood High tempo = more stimulation Slower tempo = more relaxing Stores and restaurants often play certain kinds of music to create a certain mood.

Touch Haptic senses—or “touch”—is the most basic of senses; we learn this before vision and smell Haptic senses affect product experience and judgment Kinsei engineering is a Japanese philosophy that translates customers’ feelings into design elements Recent research found that participants who simply touch an item for 30 seconds or less had a greater level of attachment with the product. This connection in turn boosted what they were willing to pay for it. Some anthropologists view touch like a primal language. Researchers are starting to identify the role haptic sense plays in consumer behavior. Haptic senses appear to moderate the relationship between product experience and judgment confidence. Kinsei engineering helps marketers to understand how to design products to follow a consumer sense of touch. For instance, the Mazda Miata was designed to emulate the feeling of a horse and rider as one.

Table 2.1 Tactile-Quality Associations Perception Fine High class Wool Silk Low class Denim Cotton Coarse Heavy Light

Taste Flavor houses develop new invention for consumer palates Cultural changes determine desirable tastes The more respect we have for ethnic dishes, the more spicy food we desire Our taste receptors contribute to our experience of many products. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo use the tongue to test the quality of corn syrups. A food item’s image and the values we attach to it influence how we experience the actual taste. For instance, as consumer appreciation for ethnic foods increases, our desire for spicy food increases.

Exposure Exposure occurs when a stimulus comes within range of someone’s sensory receptors We can concentrate, ignore, or completely miss stimuli Cadillac’s 5 second ad We notice stimuli that come within range for even a very short time if we choose. That’s why Cadillac developed a 5-second commercial to illustrate that Cadillac’s can go from zero to 60 in less than 5 seconds.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall Absolute threshold There are some stimuli that people cannot perceive. The absolute threshold is the minimum stimulation to be noticed. For example, the sound of a dog whistle is too high for human ears to detect – it is beyond our auditory absolute threshold. The absolute threshold is an important consideration in designing marketing stimuli. 9/16/2018 Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Differential Threshold The ability of a sensory system to detect changes or differences between two stimuli Minimum difference between two stimuli is the j.n.d. (just noticeable difference) Example: packaging updates must be subtle enough over time to keep current customers Example: ABBEY to SANTANDER Bank The differential threshold is the ability of a sensory system to detect changes of differences between two stimuli. The minimum difference we can detect between two is the just noticeable difference of j.n.d. For instance, if we made a package smaller to cut our costs, we would want to make the change under the j.n.d. so that customers did not notice that they were getting less product for the price.

Subliminal Perception Subliminal perception occurs when stimulus is below the level of the consumer’s awareness. Rumors of subliminal advertising are rampant—though there’s little proof that it occurs. Most researchers believe that subliminal techniques are not of much use in marketing.

Subliminal Techniques Embeds: figures that are inserted into magazine advertising by using high-speed photography or airbrushing. Subliminal auditory perception: sounds, music, or voice text inserted into advertising. Marketers can use both visual and aural channels to send subliminal messages, supposedly. Embeds are tiny figures that are inserted into magazine advertising via high-speed photography or airbrushing. These hidden figures supposedly exert a strong but unconscious influence on the reader. We can do something similar for auditory messages. However, there is no evidence to support that subliminal stimuli can bring about desired changes in behavior.

Attention Attention is the extent to which processing activity is devoted to a particular stimulus Consumers are often in a state of sensory overload Marketers need to break through the clutter Attention refers to the extent to which processing activity is devoted to a particular stimulus. The allocation of processing activity can vary depending on the characteristics of the stimulus and the recipient. Although we live in an information society, consumers are often in a state of sensory overload. Sensory overload means consumers are exposed to far more information than they can process. Much of this comes from commercial sources. We are exposed to thousands of advertising messages each day in addition to the other types of stimuli we sense. This camera ad from Singapore reminds us that consumers do tune out stimuli.

Gestalt Theory of Perception Gestalt , loosely translated into English, means “shape” or “form” Gestalt principle: the whole adds up to more than the sum of its parts People perceive “form” or Shape above all else Applications: size, actual/illusion of motion, bordering for ads or displays while really the same

What do you perceive?

In an image, we can study the relationship between its elements, separately or together, to develop the message we want to transmit to the receiver.

Factors Influencing Gestalt Perception Stimulus factors: color and contrast, size, intensity, position, isolation, and unity Individual response factors: interest, involvement, needs, values, and cognitive set

Perceptions of Product/Service Quality Perceived quality – a perceptual outcome generated from processing product or service features (benefits delivered) that leads the consumer to make inferences about the quality of that product or service Dimensions of perceived quality for durable goods: ease of use, versatility, durability, serviceability, performance, and prestige Perceived high quality  product satisfaction

Risk Perception/Risk Reduction It refers to a perceptual process and behavior outcomes generated from the perception of risk in the purchase or a product or service Components of risk: Severity of consequences (how bad will it be) Uncertainty related to those consequences (what are the chances the consequence will occur) Risk reduction strategies: behaviors to reduce their perception of risk in purchase situations

Price Perception Consumers perceive a price as either high or low on the basis of a comparison with an internal price (or referent price). Price perceptions and the social judgment theory – “regions” “Assimilation” (acceptable) and “contrast” (too high or low)

Perceived Value The trade-off between product benefits and product costs. Perceived value = perceived benefits / perceived costs