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224

INTERNAL I

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 inpurchase decision making to the processes that occur primarily within the individual.

The perception and processing of information for consumer decision making is thesubject of Chapter 8. Then, the learning process necessary for consumer behaviouris discussed in Chapter 9. Chapter 10 examines motivation, personality and emotion.Consumer attitudes are the focus of Chapter 11, and these are considered as representingconsumers basic orientations in terms of products and marketing activities. Attitudesare discussed at this stage in the text because they are the actual manifestations of ourlearning about products, and are the basic concepts that marketers can measure anduse to predict purchase tendencies. They are a relatively stable composite of knowledge,feelings and behavioural orientations that people bring to speci c purchase situations.

Chapter 8 PerceptionChapter 9 Learning and memoryChapter 10 Motivation, personality and emotionChapter 11 Attitude and attitude change

EXPERIENCES

ATTITUDES/NEEDS

Problem recognition

SITUATION

Problem recognition

Information search

Evaluation and selection

Store choice andpurchase

Postpurchase processes

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P

OBJECTIVES

When you have worked through this chapter, you should understand:

the nature of perception the different steps involved in information processing which stimulus factors in uence this process which individual factors in uence this process which situational factors in uence this process the way children process information the implications of perception for retail, brand and communication strategie s.

226

Strong visual components are often used in advertising to capture consumers attention

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228 PART 2 Internal in uences P

PERCEPTION

At a time of increasing media fragmentation, many co mmunication experts feel thatoutdoor advertising is replacing television as the mass medium. Consumers arespending less time in front of their television sets and more time out and about:dining out, travelling or even wor king 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 marketersresponse to these trends and, in 2001, represented about $271 million of the total $8 billionadvertising 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 whereoutdoor 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 sitesnear stadiums, hotels and nightspots in the hope of capturing audience attention asthey commuted between games and related social activities, rather than watching the

competition on television.One of the dif culties with using outdoor advertising stems from the fact that, unlike

television advertising where some measures of reach and frequency exist, no agreed standardhas been developed to evaluate its effectiv eness. However, the industry has gone some way toestablishing a universal system of measurement. ROAM (research on outdoor measurement)involves a consortium of 13 companies, which combine traf c surveys with demographicinformation to capture more than just how many cars pass a given site. Yet while it may suitthe 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 complexvariables are involved in the development of audience measurements and it is importantto ensure the qualitative aspects of each medium are evaluated in addition to the analysisof quantitative data. In the case of street furniture, this would include variables such as thesite location and the angle to the road, 24-hour visibility via illumination and the size of theadvertising panel itself. He adds that the Australian market may bene t from knowledgedeveloped in more mature markets, with many measurement systems in place in Europeancountries such as the United Kingdom, France, Sweden and the Netherlands. 1

As the opening story illustrates, organisations that spend millions of dollars on advertising wantpeople to see and understand it. A sound knowledge of perception is essential for understandingand, in most instances, avoiding problems when communicating with various target audiences.Perception is the critical activity that links the individual consumer to group, situation andmarketer in uences.

This chapter discusses:

the nature of perception exposure attention interpretation the marketing applications of the perception process.

Chapter 9 focuses on two of the outcomes of this process: learning and memory.

THE NATURE OF PERCEPTIONInformation processing involves a series of activities by which stimuli are transformed intoinformation and stored. Figure 8.1 overleaf illustrates a useful information-processing model. Thismodel views information processing as having four main steps or stages: 2

1 exposure2 attention3 interpretation4 memory.

The rst three of these constitute the perception process. Exposure occurs when a stimulussuch as a billboard comes within range of a persons sensory receptor nervesthe optic nerve inthe case of vision, for example. Attention occurs when the receptor nerves pass the sensations onto 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 termretention of the meaning.

Figure 8.1 and the above discussion suggest a linear ow from ex posure to memory. However,these processes occur vir tually simultaneously and are clearly interactive. That is, memory in uencesthe information consumers are exposed to and attend to, and the interpretations they assign. At thesame time, memory itself is being shaped by the information it is receiving.

Both perception and memory are extremely selective. Of the massive amounts of informationavailable, an individual can be exposed to only a limited proportion. Of the information to which theindividual is exposed, only a relatively small percentage is attended to and passed on to the centralprocessing part of the brain for interpretation. The meaning assigned to a stimulus is as much or morea function of the individual as it is of the stimulus itself. Much of the interpreted information will notbe 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 notpassive recipients of marketing messages. Rather, consumers largely determine the messages theywill encounter and notice as well as the meaning they will assign them. Clearly, the marketingmanager faces a challenging task when communicating with consumers.

EXPOSUREExposure , 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 thepersons immediate environment. The individual need not perceive the stimulus in order for exposureto have occurred. In other words, you have been exposed to a television advertisement if it wasbroadcast while you were in the room, even if you were talking to a friend and did not notice it.

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An individual is generally e xposed to no more than a small fraction of the available stimuli. Wenormally watch only one television station at a time, read one magazine, newspaper or book at atime, and so on. It is important for marketers to under stand what determines which spe ci c stimulian individual will be exposed to and w hether this is a random process or a purposeful one.

For example, you are clearly reading this text for a particular reason. Likewise, most of thestimuli to which an individual is exposed are self-selected. In other words, people deliberatelyseek out exposure to certain stimuli and avoid others.

Evidence of the active, self-selecting nature of exposure can be seen with zapping. Zappingoccurs when television viewers switch channels or fast-forward (if watching a pre-recordedshow) 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 equipmentactively avoid commercials. 3 However, in countries where fewer channels exist, zapping may notbe so prevalent. For example, a study of commercial viewing in New Zealand, with only threetelevision channels, found very little drop-off during commercials and no consistent demographiccharacteristics associated with switching channels. 4

Overall exposure to different media is also changing. For example, in the year to June 2003people aged 16 to 39 watched almost 9 per cent less television and average viewer watching of free-to-air TV from 6 p.m. to midnight fell by 2 per ce nt. 5 At the same time, as access to the Internetgrows a consistent decline has been observed in newspaper readership for most metropolitannewspapers. 6 The only category growing in terms of daily press includes lift-outs and magazines asthey become increasingly popular with readers.

What in uences the types of stimuli people se ek out? Generally, consumers seek infor mationthat they think will help them to achieve certain goals. These goals may be immediate or longrange. 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 ones 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 individuals goals, andthe types of infor mation needed to achieve those goals, are a function of the individuals existingand desired lifestyle, and such short-term motives as hunger or cur iosity.

Of course, as consumers we are also exposed to a large number of stimuli on a more or less randombasis during our daily activities. While driving, we hear commercials on the car radio, see outdoorposters and display advertisements, and so on, that were not purposefully sought out. Likewise, evenif 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 resultingsensations go to the brain for processing. Consumers are constantly exposed to thousands of timesmore stimuli than can be processed. The average Australian or New Zealand supermarket is estimatedto have about 16 000 indiv idual 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 withcommunicating with consumers. For example, research suggests that less than half of all receiveddirect-mail advertisements are read. 7 Figure 8.2 illustrates the results of a recent study examiningthe 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 theaudience actually watches the commercial.

P e r c e p

t i o n

Exposure

Random Deliberate

Attention

Low-involvement

High-involvement

Purchase and consumption decisions

Interpretation

Memory Short-term Long-term

Active problemsolving

Stored experiences,values, decisions,

rules, etc.

Low-involvement

High-involvement

FIGURE 8.1 Information processing for consumer decision making

Fast-forward, if VCR69%

Talk to someone31%

Watch advertisement29%

Distracted bysomething else

28%

Switch channels26%

Leave the room21%

Attention paid to prime-time television commercials

Source : Media Involvement Study, NFO BJM group for Periodicals Publishers Association, April 2002, p. 25.

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Obviously, anyone wishing to communicate effectivelywith consumers must understand how to obtain attention afterobtaining exposure. Some companies go to great lengths to tryto secure their target consumers attention to their advertisingmessage. They may recruit celebrities such as Pat Rafter or DavidBeckham to draw audience attention to the message. Or theymay use clever and engaging commercials, such as the cog usedby Honda to promote its new Accord, which showed an unlikelysequence of precise and exquisitely timed events, all leading tothe presentation of the car. Exhibit 8.1 shows how advertisers caneffectively capture attention with print media as well.

What determines or in uences attention? At this moment you are attending to these words. If you shift your concentrationto your feet, you will most likely become aware of the pressurebeing exerted by your shoes. A second shift in concentrationto sounds will probably produce awareness of a number ofbackground noises. These stimuli are available all the time but arenot processed until a deliberate effort is made to do so. However,no matter how hard you are concentrating on this text, a loudscream 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 ofattention to the same stimulus in different situations. Attention,therefore, is determined by three factors: the stimulus, theindividual and the situation.

Stimulus factorsStimulus factors are physical characteristics of the stimulus itself.A number of stimulus characteristics tend to attract our attentionindependently of our individual characteristics.

Size and intensityThe size of the stimulus in uences the probability of attention being paid to it. Larger stimuli aremore likely to be noticed than smaller ones. Therefore, a full-page advertisement is more likely to benoticed than a half-page advertisement. Figure 8.3 indicates the relative attention-attracting abilityof various sizes of magazine advertisements. 9 In addition, advertisements with longer copy havebeen found to be more effective in attracting the attention of industrial buyers than advertisementswith shorter copy. 10 Insertion frequency, the number of times the same advertisement appears inthe same issue of a magazine, has an effect similar to advertisement size. Three insertions generatemore than twice the impact of one insertion. 11 The intensity (e.g. loudness, brightness) of astimulus operates in much the same manner as size.

Starcom Europe conducted research on the optimal repetition of outdoor advertising usinginfrared rays shone into 140 consumers eyes to determine when and how often they looked atthe advertisements. The research revealed that 77 per cent of subjects look at a poster the rst timeand that, after the fourth pass, a cumulative reach of 100 per cent is possible. It also found that evenin a cluttered environment, creative execution can result in highly e ffective reach. 12 Hence usingmultiple locations in urban centres is likely to ensure a high degree of billboard awareness.

Colour and movementBoth colour and movement serve to attract attention, with brightly coloured and moving itemsbeing more noticeable. A brightly coloured package is more apt to receive attention than a dullpackage. A study on the impact of colour in newspaper advertising concluded that median salesgains (on reduced-price items) of approximately 41 per cent may be generated by the addition of

one colour to black-and-white in retail newspaper advertising. 13 Figure 8.3 showed how colour systematically outperformedblack and white, for any given size. The use of four colours alsooutperforms two colours in print advertisements. However, the

impact of contrast can reverse this. That is, if all the advertisementsin a magazine are in colour, a black-and-white advertisementmay attract substantial attention. Moreover, since colour is usuallymore expensive, marketers should be aware that it could becomeless cost-effective than monochromatic advertisements. 14

Exhibit 8.2 shows how colour can be used i n an advertisementto attract attention.

PositionPosition refers to the placement of an object in a persons visual

eld. Objects placed near the centre of the visual eld are morelikely to be noticed than those near the edge. This is a primaryreason why consumer-goods manufacturers compete ercely foreye-level space in grocery stores. Research conducted by NewsLimited in Australia indicates that advertisements are less notedwhen located in the nal quarter of the issue. This research alsoseems to contradict prior belief that the right-hand-side positionwould foster advertising effectiveness. Instead, it found that r ight-hand-page advertisements were only very marginally betternoticed than their left-hand-page counterparts (34 per centversus 33 per cent). 15 Likewise, the probability of a televisioncommercial being viewed drops sharply as it moves from beingthe rst to air in the commercial break to being the last. 16

EXHIBIT 8.1

Capturing attention with print-media advertising

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

0

74

Black and white 2-colour 4-colour

78

100

72

6056 56

47 47Full page

Half-page

Third-of-a-page

P e r c e n

t a g e o

f p e o p

l e n o

t i n g a

d s

The impact of advertisement size on advertising readership

Source : Magazine Dimensions 2002; and Media Dynamics Inc., based onBurke, Gallup and Robinson, Starch and other studies.

EXHIBIT 8.2

Use of colour in an advertisemeattention

stimulus factors the physical characteristics of astimulus itself

intensity the characteristicof a stimulus, such asloudness or brightness,which in uences the

probability of attentionbeing paid to it

position the givenlocation of a stimulus ina medium or at the point

of sale

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IsolationIsolation 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 onthis principle, as is surrounding a key part of a radio advertisement with silence. 17 Exhibit 8.3illustrates the effective use of this principle.

FormatFormat refers to the manner in which the message is presented. In general, simple, straight-forward presentations receive more attention than complex presentations, such as that shown inExhibit 8.4.

Elements in the message that increase the effort required to process the message tend todecrease attention. Advertisements that lack a clear visual point of reference or have inappropriatemovement (too fast, slow or jumpy) increase the processing effort and decrease attention.

Likewise, audio messages that are dif cult to understand as a result of, for example, foreignaccents, inadequate volume, deliberate distortions (computer voices) or loud background noisesalso reduce attention. 18 However, format interacts strongly with individual characteristics. Whatsome individuals nd to be complex others will nd interesting. Format, like the other stimuluselements, must be developed with a speci c target market in mind.

ContrastContrast refers to our tendency to attend more closely to stimuli that contrast with their backgroundthan to stimuli that blend with it. Contrast has been found to be a pri mary component of award-winning headlines. 19 Advertisements that differ from the type of advertisements consumers expectfor a product category often motivate more attention than advertisements that are more typical ofthe product category. 20 Exhibit 8.5 shows an example of an advertisement capitalising on contrastto attract attention.

Over time, we adjust to the level and type of stimuli to which we are accustomed. Thus, anadvertisement 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 thedecline in the impact of television advertising. In the 1960s almost 20 per cent of viewers could recallthe brand of the last advertising broadcast, but this gure fell to 7 per cent by the 1980s as viewersadapted to the presence of a television set and increasingly used it as a background to other things. 2

In Australia, a telephone survey of 1024 homes conducted immediately after televisioncommercial breaks showed that two-thirds of those with television sets had not watched theadvertisements and that, of the 34 per cent who did, only 4 per cent could recall eitherthe advertiser or the product advertised in the break! 22 Adaptation level is also the reason thecommercial break is accompanied by an increase in volume. Viewers are accustomed to a particularnoise level and increasing this will force their attentionunless, of course, it causes them to hitthe mute button!

Compressed messagesEarlier research indicated that speeding up a radio or television message could increase attention.Such messages are termed compressed messages . In one experiment, 30-second commercialswere reduced to 24 seconds via a device that did not produce sound distortions. The compressedcommercials were found to be more interesting and to generate at least the same level of productrecall as standard commercials. 23 Research also suggests that compressed commercials do not distractfrom attention and may even increase attention. Moreover, attention level will vary with the type ofmessage, the product and the nature of the audience. For example, a television campaign for Sonygenerated quite a debate in advertising circles as a result of its frenetic pace and seemingly disjointedand confusing images. Yet the advertisements were developed for people under 30 and marketresearch showed the advertisements to be effective with that particular target group. 24

Information quantityA nal stimulus factor, information quantity, relates more to the total stimulus eld than toany particular item in that eld. Although there is substantial variation among individuals, allconsumers have only a limited capacity to process information. Information overload occurs whenconsumers are confronted with so much information that they cannot or will not attend to allof it. 25 Instead, they become frustratedand either postpone or give up thedecision, make a random choice orutilise a suboptimal portion of the totalinformation available.

There are no general rules orguidelines concerning how much in-formation consumers can or will use.Marketers, federal and state governmentsand various consumer groups all want

product labels, packages and adver-tisements to provide suf cient informationto allow for an informed decision. Oneapproach is to provide all potentiallyrelevant information. This approach is

EXHIBIT 8.3

Effective use of isolation

EXHIBIT 8.4

A complex ad format

Use of contrast in advertisements

isolation the separationof a stimulus object fromother objects

format the manner inwhich the message is

presented

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frequently recommended by regulatory agencies and is required for some product categories, suchas drugs. However, problems can arise with this approach. For example, a relatively simple one-pageadvertisement for an over-the-counter medicine would require a second full page of small type tellingof 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 thosespeci c information items required for a particular decision. Unfortunately, consumers frequentlydo not react in this manner, particularly for low-involvement purchases. Instead, they mayexperience infor mation overload and ignore all or most of the available data.

For this reason, the regulations should be concerned with the likelihood that infor mation willbe attended to, rather than simply its availability. Marketers generally try to present the key piecesof information and use message structures that make complete processing easy.

Individual factorsIndividual factors are characteristics of the individual. Interest and need seem to be the primaryindividual characteristics that in uence attention. Interest is a re ection of overall lifestyle as wellas 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 in uenced by the situation. Inaddition, individuals differ in their ability to attend to information. 26

Individuals seek out (have exposure to) and examine (attend to) information relevant totheir current needs. For example, an individual contemplating a holiday is likely to attend toholiday-related advertisements. Individuals attending to a specialised medium, such as BoatingMagazine or Business Review Weekly, are likely to be particularly receptive to advertisements forrelated products. Parents with young children are more likely to notice and read warning labelson products such as food supplements than are individuals without young children. 27 Studiesalso show that a group of consumers, coined adversarial shoppers, is becoming increasinglysuspicious of many marketing activities, including advertising claims of superi ority, health bene tsor environmental friendliness. Found in all age groups, these consumers do not believe that priceis still a valid indi cator of quality. 28

Situational factorsSituational 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 bythe 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 ight without a book, you may recall reading eventhe advertisements in the airline magazine). Individuals in an unpleasant environment, such as anovercrowded store (see Chapter 2) or a store that is too noisy, too warm or too cold, will not attendto many of the available stimuli as they attempt to minimise their time in such an environment.

Program involvementPrint, radio and television advertise ments 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 commercialsby zapping or icking through them.

The nature of the program or editorial content in which the advertisement appears has thepotential to in uence its impact. 29 For example, advertisements for Twisties were located in bor ingprograms 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 attentionto print advertisements. Figure 8.5 shows how involvement in a television program increases theproportion of viewers able to recall the advertisements, nding them credible and forming positivepurchase intentions. 30

It should be noted that most of the gain in attention occurs when program involvement movesfrom low to moderate levels. There is some evidence that high levels of program involvementmay detract from the attention paid to some types of commercials. 31 For example, in the case of

20

10

0

30

Recalledreading ad

Rated ad asbelievable

Rated ad aseffective

Bought advertisedproduct

34

45

52

21

31

43

P e r c e n

t a g e o

f r e a

d e r s

40

50

60

14

3032

38

51

59

Involvement with a magazine and advertising effectiveness

18 2122

34

48

54

24

3741

1316

18

20

10

0

30

Unaided recall Aided recall Copycredibility

Purchaseinterest

P e r c e n

t a g e o

f v i e w e r s

40

50

60

Involvement in a television program and advertising effectiveness

individual factors all personal characteristicslikely to in uence howincoming information is

perceived and processed

situational factors those

elements in the situationthat are likely to in uenceconsumer behaviour

sponsorship, audience involvement in a soccer game was found to be negatively correlated withtheir ability to recall sponsors. 32

Program involvement not only in uences the attention paid to the advertisement, it also affectsthe viewers attitude towards the advertisement and the product advertised. 33 There are manyreasons or motives underlying program involvement 34 and it is highly desirable for marketers to beable to anticipate the degree of involvement that his or her target market will feel for a particularprogram in which marketing messages must be embedded.

Non-focused attentionSo far, this chapter has discussed a fairly high-involvement attention process in which theconsumer focuses attention on some aspect of the environment due to stimulus, individual orsituational factors. However, stimuli may be attended to without deliberate or conscious focusingof attentionthat is, non-focused attention .

Source: K.J. Clancy (1992), CPMs Must Bow to Involvement Measurement, Advertising Age , 20 January, p. 7.

Source: Cahners Advertising Research Report 120.1 and 120.12 , Boston.

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Hemispheric lateralisation is a term applied to activities that take place on each side of the brain.The left side of the brain is primar ily responsible for verbal information, symbolic representation,sequential analysis and the ability to be conscious and report what is happening. It controls thoseactivities typically called rational thought . The right side of the brain deals with pictorial, geometricand non-verbal information and information that is not chronological, without the individualbeing able to report it verbally. This side of the brain works wi th images and impressions.

The left side of the brain needs fair ly frequent rest. However, the right side of the brain can easilyscan large amounts of information over an e xtended period. This has led to the suggestion that itis the right brains picture-taking ability that permits the rapid screening of the environmenttoselect what it is the left brain should focus on. 35

While this is a dif cult area to research, the evidence indicates that there is some validity to thetheory, and that advertising, particularly advertising repeated over time, will have substantial effectsthat traditional measures of advertising effectiveness cannot detect. The nature of these effects isdiscussed in more detail in Chapter 9. However, applied research on this topic is just beginningand much remains to be learned. 36

There is evidence to indicate that some stimuli or messages, called subliminal messages , areattended to without awareness, even if the individual tries to focus attention on them. A message issubliminal if it is presented so fast or so softly, or is so masked by other messages, that the individualis not aware of seeing or hearing it.

Public interest in masked subliminal stimuli has been enhanced by two books in which the authorreports on numerous advertisements that have supposedly contained the word sex in ice cubes ornude bodies in the shadows. 37 Most, if not all, of these symbols are the chance result of preparingthousands of print advertisements each year (a diligent search could no doubt produce large numbersof religious symbols, animals or whateverif you look at enough advertisements, you will nd arandom shape that could be evocative of a skull, a breast and so on, even though the creator of theadvertisement has not intended this). Such masked symbols (deliberate or accidental) do not appearto affect standard measures of advertising effectiveness or in uence consumption behaviour. 38

Research on messages presented too rapidly to elicit awareness indicates that such messageshave little or no effect. Hence, although the general public is concerned about subliminalmessages,39 such messages do not appear to present a threat to the general public, nor do they offera 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.

INTERPRETATIONInterpretation 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 inFigure 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, in uences our interpretation,as does the situation in which we nd ourselves. We assign meaning to the tone and feel of themessage as well as to the actual words used. For example, Thanks a lot may be an expression ofgratitude or just the opposite depending on how you say it and in what circumstances. Members ofthe 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 ofmeaning. 43 This is an interactive process. The addition of new information to existing categoriesalso alters those categories and their relationships with other categories. When the CD player was

rst introduced to consumers, they most probably grouped it in the general category of recordplayers in order to be able to evaluate it. With further experience and information, many consumershave gained detailed knowledge about the product, and have formed several subcategories forclassifying the various brands and types.

S ubliminal advertising is one of consumersmost entrenched myths. Periodically,consumer groups denounce and ghtwhat they perceive to be brain invasionby invisible signs embedded in otherwiseinnocuous programs. For example, Disneywas accused of having embedded the lettersS-E-X in the dust in the movie The Lion King (no-one ever explained why Disney might havedone this). Furthermore, advertisers have, from

time to time, played on this fear, introducingmock subliminal ads, making fun of, butusing the same approach as, subliminal ads,by associating violent or sexually evocativeimages with their brands. Alcohol and tobaccoadvertisements, of course, are the worstoffenders, with products such as Bacardi Blackand Newport.

Perhaps even more baf ing is the newplace where subliminal messages (also knownas embeds) are being found: the computermicrochip. Log onto www.microscopy.fsu.eduand you will nd a collection of images, allof them too small to be seen by the naked

eye, which have been discovered whenphotographing microchips with a powerfulmicroscope. Images of Pepsi or the Saab900 cabriolet, no bigger than a human hair,are apparently buried inside computers. Isthis subliminal seduction? Despite the fearand paranoia that consumers feel about suchpractices, it is more likely than not that these are

just the creative expressions of people involvedin the design of the chips, an inside joke to be

shared with friends or simply enjoyed privately.For example, many embeds have no brandsan unbranded sneaker without a swoosh, DaffyDuck and many other things that are deprivedof any selling intent. So Pepsi or Saab are morelikely to be the jokers favourite thing rather thanthe object of a sinister new brain manipulationassault by marketers.

Despite any proof that it works, or eventhat it exists, consumers continue to fear andsearch for evidence of subliminal messages.What started out as a hoax, it seems, is nowone of the most persistent myths of consumerbehaviour!

Cyber subliminal: a new way to persuade?44

The advertisement in Exhibit 8.6 overleaf attempts to facilitate and/or encourage cognitiveinterpretation.

It is the individuals interpretation, not objective reality, which will in uence behaviour. Forexample, a rm may introduce a high-quality new brand at a lower price than existing brands becausethe rm has a more ef cient production or marketing process. If consumers interpret this lower priceto mean lower quality, the new brand will not be successful, regardless of the objective reality.

GestaltInterpretation

Cognitive Affective

Situationalcharacteristics

Stimuluscharacteristics

Individualcharacteristics

Determinants of interpretation

subliminal message a message that is notconsciously attended to bythe audience exposed to it

cognitive interpretation a process whereby stimuliare placed in existingcategories of meaning

hemisphericlateralisation the conceptthat each of the two sidesof the brain (right andleft) controls differenttypes of activities

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LearningThe meanings attached to such natural things as time, space, friendship and colours are learnedand vary widely across cultures. Even within the same culture, different subcultures assign differentmeanings to similar stimuli. For example, dinner refers to the noon meal for some social classes insome 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! Marketersmust be certain that the target audience has learned the same meanings that they wish to portray.

ExpectationsIndividuals tend to interpret stimuli consistently with their expectations. For example, it seemsnatural to expect dark-brown pudding to taste like chocolate, not vanilla, because dark puddingis generally chocolate- avoured, 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 deg ree ofdarkness, the students rated the darkest as having the best chocolate avour. 48 In other words, theirexpectations, cued by colour, led to an interpretation that was inconsistent w ith objective reality.A similar phenomenon may explain the failure of Tab Clear in Australasia: while the product hadall the attributes people wanted in a cola drink, its colour (or lack thereof ) prevented consumersfrom perceiving it as a satisfactory cola dr ink.

Consumers also frequently attribute advertisements for new or unknown brands to well-known brands. Even an objective product feature, such as price, is sometimes interpreted to becloser to an expected price. 49 Likewise, brands with promotional signs on them i n retail stores areinterpreted as having reduced pr ices, even when the signs do not indicate that the pr ices have beenreduced and prices have not, in fact, been reduced. 50

Situational characteristicsA variety of situational characteristics in uence interpretation. Temporary characteristics ofthe individual, such as hunger or loneliness, in uence the interpretation of a given stimulus,as do moods. 51 The amount of time available also affects the meaning assigned to marketingmessages. Likewise, physical characteristics of the situation, such as temperature, the number andcharacteristics of other individuals present, 52 the nature of the material surrounding the messagein question, 53 external distractions 54 and the reason the message is being processed 55 affect howthe message is interpreted.

Proximity refers to the tendency to perceive objects or events that are close to one anotheras related. Some manufacturers refuse to advertise some products during news broadcasts becausethey believe that bad news could affect the interpretation of their products. 56 Converselyfeel-good programs are much sought after by advertisers who want to capitalise on the likelygood mood in which the audience will be during the commercial breaks. In the print media, apremium 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 ofmost womens magazines.

With the emerging role of Internet advertising, marketers have had to consider such issuesas where and how to position pop-ups. The increasing number of pop-ups, and the resultingfrustration of consumers, has made the positioning of pop-ups more dif cult, with professionalsnow advocating that they be used more spari ngly on entry to a site, rather than as an annoying andrepetitive intrusion later on (see the Cyber Consumer boxed example overleaf ).

Stimulus characteristicsThe stimulus sets the basic structure to which an individual responds. The structure and nature ofthe product, package, advertisement or sales presentation have a major impact on the nature of themental processes that are activated and on the nal meaning assigned to the message.

In recognition of the critical importance of the meaning associated with stimuli, marketersare beginning to use semiotics , which is the science of how meaning is created, maintained and

EXHIBIT 8.6

Encouraging cognitive interpretation

EXHIBIT 8.7

Evoking a feeling of warmth

The above example indicates the critical importance of distinguishing between lexical orsemantic meaning the conventional meaning, found in the dictionary, assigned to a wordand

psychological meaning the speci c meaning assigned to a word by a g iven individual or group ofindividuals 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 thenormal level. However, when applied to fashion clothes, the psychological meaning that someconsumers 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 asan advertisement. 46 Like cognitive interpretation, there are normal (within-culture) emotionalresponses to an advertisement (e.g. most Australians and New Zealanders experience a feelingof 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 verynegative emotional response to a picture of an extremely cute kitten).

Individual characteristicsA number of individual characteristics in uence interpretation. For example, gender and socialclass affect the meaning assigned to owning various products. Likewise, gender affects the natureof the emotional response to nudity in advertisements. 47 Two particularly important personalvariables affecting interpretation are learningand expectations.

affective interpretation the emotional or feelingresponse triggered by astimulus

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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 ofhow 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 wasshown to have in uenced the taste perceptions of puddings. The source of the message also affectsthe interpretations of the message, as does the medium in which the message appears. Likewise,the nature of the product in uences the manner in which promotional claims are interpreted.Previous experiences with the same or competing products or rms, and the nature of other rmsadvertising campaigns, also in uence interpretation.

Consumers use brand names, price, physical product appearance and retailer reputation assignals of product quality. 59 In addition, factors directly related to the product, such as its country oforigin, can have a major in uence on the meaning assigned to the product (see Exhibit 8.8 ). Thisposes signi cant challenges for marketers competing with brands made in countries bene tingfrom a better reputation. 60

All aspects of the message itself also in uence its interpretation. This can include consumersreaction 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 in uence theinterpretation of, and response to, the advertisement. 61

Misinterpretationof marketingmessagesBoth marketing managers andgovernment policy makers wantconsumers to interpret messagesaccuratelythat is, in a mannerconsistent with what others orexperts would consider to be thetrue or objective meaning of themessages. Yet it is clear that wide-spread agreement on, or accurate

interpretation of, mass-mediamessages is often dif cult toobtain. Past research has con rmedthis. For example, a study oftelevision communications con-cluded that a large proportion ofthe audience miscomprehendedthe communication from bothprogram content and advertise-ments, and that an average of30 per cent of the total information was miscomprehended. 62 Moreover, some demographicvariables appeared to be slightly associated with miscomprehension.

While the methodology of this study has been criticised, there is no doubt that substantialmiscomprehension of television messages, including commercials, does occur. This is notlimited to broadcast messages: another study, focusing on editorial and advertis-ing content ingeneral-circulation magazines, reached essentially the same conclusions. 63 There is also evidencethat package information is subject to miscomprehension. In addition, sponsors of sports andcultural events are nding that such miscomprehension occurs, particularly with regard to thesponsors. Several studies have revealed the incidence of mistaken identi cation of sponsors bytheir targeted audiences. 64

Marketers are just beginning to learn about methods to minimise miscomprehension, andthis 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 sameis not true for print messages. Unfortunately, no workable set of guidelines for eliminating thisproblem has yet been developed. Therefore, marketers, government of cials and others wishingto communicate with the public should carefully pre-test their messages to ensure that they arebeing interpreted correctly.

Childrens information processingSo far, information processing has been discussed from an adult perspective. However, thereis evidence that younger children have only a limited ability to process certain types ofinformation. 65 Table 8.1 overleaf shows a widely accepted set of stages of infor mation processingor cognitive developmentdescribed by the psychologist Jean Piaget. 66 Piagets approachis basically developmental. It suggests naturally occurring stages that change, primarily, withphysiological 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 childrens lesser ability to deal with abstract, generalised, unfamiliar and/or large amountsof information is common to all approaches. 68

The Web started out with no advertisingat all and a limited number of sites.Then came banner ads, a boom in t henumber of sites and lots more banner ads.However, banner ads became less and lesseffective: because they were poorly targetedand appeared in the same place on a p age,people just stopped looking and did not seethem any more. Click-through rates for bannerads plummeted, reaching 0.3 per cent by 2001.

Eagerness to grab the attention of potentialbuyers and keep advertising revenues owing tosites motivated the development of pop-ups.

Pop-up ads come in two broad avours:pop-ups, which pop up in front of the site youare viewing; and pop-unders, which open awindow underneath the current window you arelooking at. Some are static, while others blink or

ash as a means of grabbing attention. Harderto ignore than banner ads, pop-ups are seenas more disruptive, interrupting the users Websur ng. At times, they can even crash the userscomputer by exceeding the memory limit. Inother 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 aswell as browser enhancements to foil pop-upadvertisements. For example, pop-up stopperNoAds (www.southbaypc.com/NoAds) hasbeen available since 1999. The companyinitially developed the software for internal usebut has since found a ready market. This isnot the only option: a whole category is listedat software site Tucows (www.tucows.com/ adkiller95), and over 60 are listed at www.

popup-killer-review.com, while Google listssuch software under browser enhancements(http://directory.google.com/top/Computers/ Software/Shareware/Windows/Internet/Browserper cent5fEnhancements/).

Responding to user outrage at the intrusivenature of pop-ups, major sites are startingto abandon pop-ups entirely. For example,

AltaVista was one of the rst major sites to gopop-up free (Google never had any pop-ups).User feedback was very positive. InfoSpace,which runs WebCrawler, has removed pop-upadvertising from its site. And Ask Jeeves, whichhas also removed pop-ups, recently announcedthat it would go even further and remove allbanner ads in response to visitor feedback.

Pop-ups fop up57CYBER CONSUMER

pop-ups caninfuriatethe average

surfer

EXHIBIT 8.8

Promoting country of origin as an indicator of quality

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PERCEPTION AND MARKETING STRATEGYInformation is the primar y raw material with which the marketer works in an attempt to in uenceconsumers. Therefore, a knowledge of the perception process is an essential guide to marketingstrategy. The following sections di scuss seven areas w here a knowledge of the perception processis particularly useful:

1 retail strategy2 brand name and logo development3 media strategy4 advertising and package design

5 development of warning labels and posters6 advertising evaluation7 regulation of advertising and packaging.

Retail strategyMost retail environments contain a vast array of information. Given the fact that consumers cannotprocess all of this information, retailers need to be concerned about information overload. They donot 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 frequentlysought-after items (e.g. canned goods, fresh fruits/vegetables, meats) separated so that the averageconsumer will travel through more of the store. This increases total exposure. High-margin itemsare often placed in high-traf c areas to capitalise on increased exposure.

Shelf position and the amount of shelf space in uence which items and brands are allocatedattention. Point-of-purchase displays also attract attention to sale and high-margin items. Stores aredesigned with highly visible shelves and overhead signs to make locating items (an information-processing 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 brandcould 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

assigned to the store. Semiotics have been used to design a hypermarket that would meet consumerneeds, merchandising requirements and marketing strategy. 70

Brand name and logo developmentMarketers believe that the name of a company or product does affect the way it is perceived.Indeed, brand names are important for both consumer and industri al products, and are increasinglybeing recognised as an important asset for any company. Creating a brand, however, is a long andexpensive endeavour, which requires consistency and clear strategic thinking. The CommonwealthBank reportedly spent more than $2 million to develop its Sao dipped in Vegemite logo. Lavazzacoffee, an imported coffee, has achieved a high degree of recognition by coffee lovers for its blackand red logo through the distribution of coasters, cups, saucers and serviettes bearing its coloursto many cafs and restaurants. 72 Athletics Australia launched its new logo during the S ydney 2000Olympics in an attempt to rejuvenate the brand and raise the pro le of athletics. Based on marketresearch, the new logo was designed to be in line with a new vision for the organisation and togain 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 ofsuch names may not be easily transferable. Successive generations of fruity computer names, fromApricot to Watermelon, will never quite achieve the fame of their Apple predece ssor!

The impact of the image conveyed by a name was demonstrated in a study where three groupsof consumers evaluated the same spor ting goods product. 75 The only difference among the threegroups was the name associated with the product, and this induced perceptual differences. The dataclearly 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

For all surfaces 11 26 17

Easy to see 8 34 19

For professionals 42 53 30Large 38 53 19

How a product or services name is visually presentedits logo is also important. Austral-asian companies are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of design to their image, andare seeking to ensure that their company logo looks good and projects an accurate image of theirproduct or service to both consumers and other companies. For example, when Alcan Australiabecame independent from its parent company, it sought to create its own identity and came up withthe name Capral. Legal advice was obtained to con rm that the name was acceptable in Australia,New Zealand and Southeast Asia, where the company operated, and multicultural research wasundertaken 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 smallcompanies, too, can derive bene ts from the consistency and rigour involved in developing andusing a single cor porate identity. 76

Media strategyThe fact that the exposure process is selective rather than random is the underlying basis foreffective media strategies. If the process were random, a broad approach of trying to place messagesrandomly in the environment would make sense. Since exposure is not random, the properapproach is to determine to which media consumers in the target market are most frequentlyexposed, and then to place the advertising messages in those media.

Stage Description

1 Sensorimotor intelligence (02 years) During this period, behaviour is primarily motor. The childdoes not yet think conceptually, although cognitivedevelopment is seen.

2 Pre-operational thought (37 years) This period is characterised by the development of languageand rapid conceptual development.

3 Concrete operations (811 years) During these years the child develops the ability to applylogical thought to concrete problems.

4 Formal operations (1215 years) During this period the childs cognitive structures reach theirgreatest level of development and the child becomes able to

apply logic to all classes of problems.Source : B. J. Wadworth (1971), Piagets Theory of Cognitive Development , David McKay, New York.

TABLE 8.1 Piagets stages of cognitive development

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For some products and target markets, consumers are highly involved with the product categoryitself, and will go to considerable trouble to secure product-relevant information. This occursmost frequently among heavy users of hobby and luxury items, such as skis and mountaineeringequipment, or fashion items.

For other products and target markets, consumers have only limited involvement with theproduct category. Products such as salt and detergents are examples. In a situation such as this, themarketer must nd media that the target market is interested in, and place the advertising messagein these media. As will be see n later, potential target markets, as de ned by age, ethnic group, socialclass or stage i n the family life cycle, have differing media preferences. Table 8.2 illustrates selectiveexposure to two magazines based on demographic characteristics.

Advertisement and package designAdvertisements and packages must perform two critical tasks: capture attention and convey meaning.Unfortunately, the techniques appropriate for accomplishing one task are often counterproductivefor the other.

What should a manager do to attract attention to a package or advertisement? As with mostaspects of the marketing process, this depe nds on the target market, the product and the situation.If the target market is interested in the product category, or in the r m or brand, attention will notconstitute much of a problem. Once consumers are exposed to the message, they will most likelyattend to it. Unfortunately, most of the time, consumers are not actively interested in a particularproduct. Interest in a product tends to arise only when the need for the product arises. Since itis dif cult to reach consumers at exactly this point, marketers have the dif cult task of trying tocommunicate with them at times when their interest is either low or non-existent.

Let us assume that you are responsible for developing a campaign for your rms laundrydetergent designed to increase the number of users. Research indicates that the group youwish to reach has very little interest in the product. What do you do? Two strategies seemreasonable. One is to utilise stimulus characteristics, such as full-page advertisements, brightcolours, animated cartoons and surrealism, to attract attention to the advertisement. The secondis to tie the message to a topic the target market is interested in. Celebrities are often usedin advertisements partly for this reason, and sex appeal, in the form of attractive models, isfrequently used. Humour can also be used to great effect. There is universal appreciation forhumorous communication, making humour an ideal tool for international marketers, albeit withsome national variations. 77

Attention-attracting features of the advertisement can also focus attention on speci c partsof the advertisement. 78 Corporate advertising, or advertising that talks about a company ratherthan the companys products, tends to generate a relatively high level of attention. Yet a study ofmore than 2000 such American advertisements has shown that about half of all people exposedto the advertisements did not notice the single most important piece of information in theadvertisementthe company name. The same study found that the simplest way to avoid thisproblem is to place the name in the most prominent part of the advertisementthe headline. Thefollowing results for a Motorola corporate advertisement are typical: 79

No name in headline Name in headline

Magazine readership 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 productcategory in order to attract attention presents two dangers. The rst danger is that the strategywill be so successful i n 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 anadvertisement 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 brandbeing viewed as appropriate for only very light-hearted, casual situations. Caution must thereforebe 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 Benettons shock valueadvertising techniques.

The advertisements shown in Exhibit 8.9 on p. 249 make extensive use of stimulus factorsto attract attention. They were printed in vivid colours and have bright designs and limited textmaterial.

All advertisements, such as the ones shown in Exhibit 8.9, may attract attention. But will theyconvey the appropriate meaning and/or emotional response? Moreover, advertisements usingstimulus characteristics to attract attention r un the risk of back ring. Hence, pre-testing to ensurethe advertisements acceptability is advised.

In particular circumstances, some organisations need to in uence consumers perception forpurposes other than purchase-related decisions. Non-pro t or government organisations, such asthe Cancer Socie ty, Federal Health and Family Services and the Transport Accident Commission,all need to achieve public attention and comprehension of their messages in the hope thatimprovements may be seen in relation to issues such as smoking, sun-related cancers and roadsafety. Fear appeals have been used with some success in such circumstances, as the advertisementshave shown, sometimes graphically, the likely consequences of undesirable behaviours. 80

AUSTRALIANPERSONAL COMPUTER

BUSINESS REVIEWWEEKLY

000Magazine

readers (%) 000Magazine

readers (%)Population

(%)

All people 194 100 259 100 100

Men 167 86 165 64 49

Women 27 14 94 36 51

2534 years 53 27 59 23 18

3549 years 63 32.5 88 34 27

50+ years 84 32 36

AB quintile 151 58 20

Full-time worker 109 56 178 69 40

Business decision makers 72 37 107 41 16

Income $40K+ 76* 69*

Income $50K+ 133 51 17

Income $60K+ 108 42 11

Income $70K+ 89 34 7

Income $80K+ 70 27 5

*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

TABLE 8.2 Examples of reader pro les for two popular magazines

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Warning labels and package designsEthical and legal considerations require marketers to place warning labels on a wide array ofproducts, 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 speci cones targeted to smaller groups (e.g. Do not use if you are diabetic). Governments, consumergroups and ethical marketers want the war nings to accomplish their pri mary taskthat is, to alertthe user to the potential risk associated with the product.

On the other hand, marketers worry that such warnings could unduly detract from the image ofthe product or undeservedly negatively affect its risk-to-bene t assessment by potential consumers.As a result, warnings and disclosures tend to be made less obvious than pe rhaps they should be. Forexample, in television advertisements, warnings tend to be presented either orally or visually butseldom via both modes, and visual disclosures tend to be of low contrast. 82 Consequently, manywarnings are simply not noticed or effectively processed.

Despite the fact that many warnings are ignored, there is substantial evidence that well-designedwarnings are attended to and in uence knowledge, belief and, to a lesser extent, behaviours. 83 Thechallenge, therefore, is to design warnings with the maximum likelihood of being successful.

Warnings are incorporated in commercials, packages and point-of-purchase displays and they are also often presented in freestanding postersand advertisements. They should be pre-tested as any other commercial oradvertisement.

Advertising evaluationA successful advertisement (or any other marketing message) mustaccomplish four tasks:

1 exposure: it must physically reach the consumer 2 attention: it must be attended to by the consumer 3 interpretation: it must be properly interpreted4 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 storyshowed, measurements are not readily available for all types ofadvertising, with outdoor advertising lacking the same sort of standardmeasurements available for television and radio advertising. However,most of the efforts of researchers have been focused on attention and, toa lesser extent, memory.

Corporate advertising has been rede nedover the last few decades by the antics ofan Italian rm of global stature: Benetton.Established in 1955 by the Benetton family,as of 2001 the company operated in about120 countries with more than 7000 retail stores.

Benetton is well known around the worldfor its unusual advertising techniques andthemes, using shock value and the reality ofphotographs to grab the viewers attention

and make the brand name memorable. Unlikemost advertisements where products or imageslinked to the company are displayed, Benettonchooses to use its advertising campaigns toaddress social and political issues from AIDSto pollution.

Benetton has earned worldwide recognitionby creating advertisements promoting diversityand tolerance. In 1982, Oliviero Toscani,a prominent fashion and advertisementphotographer, was appointed head of theadvertising department of the company. EarlyBenetton advertisements under his directionfeatured teenagers and children from culturallydiverse backgrounds all colourfully dressed andin a variety of playful acts. Campaigns in 1984and 1985 used symbols of peace and harmonybetween nations. In 1988, the United Superstarsof Benetton featured Adam and Eve, Joan of

Arc, Julius Caesar and Marilyn Monroe. Other

advertisements used animals (a wolf and a lamb)to make similar points about harmony.

The campaigns took a more s ociallyengaging tone in the 1990s starting with thenewborn baby to show the beauty of new life.This was followed by increasingly confrontingimages, such as an AIDS victim in 1992.Engaging in what the company calls realityadvertising, Benetton advertisements haveshown boat people from Albania, the aftermath

of a Ma a bombing and oods in Calcutta.Others pictures have shown close-ups ofvarious body parts tattooed with HIV positive,homosexual couples, and so forth.

In 2000, a new campaign featured prisonerssentenced to death, resulting in widespreadprotests from consumers and governmentbodies. The families of the victims and theprisoners themselves also objected. The Stateof Missouri where the inmates in question wereincarcerated even led a lawsuit. This type ofcontroversy is nothing new for Benetton: manyof its advertisements have been banned and orwithdrawn (always in a urry of publicity!) andcourt cases by retailers have also taken place.

While Toscani left Benetton in May 2002following the death row controversy, thecompany maintains that it will continue to workon less controversial causes such as child labour,poverty and discrimination.

Benettons shock value81GLOBAL GAZE

Benetton hasearned worldwiderecognition by

creatingadvertisementspromoting diversityand tolerance

EXHIBIT 8.9

Using stimulus factors to attract attention

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Measures of exposureExposure to print media is most frequently measured in terms of circulation. Data on circulationis provided by commercial businesses. Frequently, the major dif culty with this data is that it isnot broken down in a manner consistent with the target market of the rm seeking information.A rm may be targeting the middle class but circulation data may be broken down by incomerather than social class. Further, measures of circulation are generally based on households ratherthan individuals and do not provide data on which members of the household are exposed to themagazine or newspaper.

However, trends in circulation can be useful in deter mining the most suitable vehicle for a particularadvertisement. For example, The Australian Womens Weekly added an extra 148 000 readers in the 12months to March 2003, con rming it as the most widely read title in the country with a total numberof readers in excess of 2.5 million. Belle also posted a spectacular 61 per cent increase in readership,reaching 165 000 copies, and Burkes 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, inwhich respondents record their daily listening patterns, and telephone interviews.

Television viewing is measured primarily by diar y reports but also (recently) by people meters,which are electronic devices that automatically determine whether a television is tur ned on and, ifso, to which channel. They allow each household member to log on when viewing by punchingin an identifying button. The demographics of each potential viewer are stored in the centralcomputer so that viewer pro les can be developed.

Measures of attentionThe 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 tooffer the greatest potential. 86 ETS technology, initially developed by NASA to measure astronautsphysiological 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 Furthescienti c developments may soon provide a more reliable i ndication 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 testsinvolve showing commercials along with television programs in a theatre. Viewers completequestionnaires 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 oftelevision commercials. Individuals are interviewed the day after a commercial has been aired ona program they have watched. Recall of the commercial and of speci c aspects of the commercialare interpreted as a re ection of the amount of attention. Day-after recall measures of televisioncommercials have been criticised as favouring rational, factual, hard-sell type advertisementsand high-involvement products, while discriminating against feeling, emotional, soft-selladvertisements. However, for most combinations of products and services with particular targetmarket segments, this approach may be superior. In response to the criticism, substantial work hasbeen done to develop recognition measures for television commercials.

Recognition tests are tests in which the commercial of interest, or key parts of it, are shownto target-market members along with other commercials. Recognition of the commercial, orkey parts of the commercial, is the measure. This technique appear s to work better than standardrecall measures. 88

Starch scores are the most popular technique for evaluating the attention-attracting power ofprint advertisements. The respondents are shown advertisements from magazine issues they haverecently read. For each advertisement, they indicate which parts (headlines, illustrations, copyblocks) they recall reading. Three main scores are computed:

1 noted : the percentage who recall seeing the advertisement in that issue2 seen-associated : the percentage who recall reading a part of the advertisement that clearly

identi es the brand or advertiser 3 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 keycomponents 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 theffectiveness of an advertisement.

Measures of interpretationMarketers investigate interpretation primarily through the use of focus groups, theatre tests and day-after recall. Focus groups, also called group discussions, involve a group of eight to 12 members of thetarget 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 toproduce a restatement of the verbal content of the advertisement rather than an understandingof the subtle meanings conveyed by the total advertisement. However, it is clear that consumersutilise all of the advertisement, including non-verbal visual and auditory imagery, in forming animpression of the product.

Marketers are just beginning to measure the emotional (feeling) meanings that consumersassign to advertisements. While standard methods do not yet e xist, this is clearly an important areafor development. The use of emotion in advertising is described more fully in Chapter 10 .

PERCEPTION OF MARKETING MESSAGES AND ETHMany ethical concerns arise when marketers apply their understanding of perceptions. Forexample, endorsements by independent bodies often convey particular meanings and affect

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 theamount of attention that a person is giving a message. A pupilometer can measure thesechanges accurately.

2 Eye tracking. An eye camera can track movements of the eyes relative to the advertisementbeing 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 speedsand 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 theadvertisements and readership (attention) are highly correlated.

4 Theatre tests . Theatre tests involve showing commercials along with television shows in atheatre. Some, such as the one maintained by ASI Market Research, have dials at each seatwhich 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.

Source : J. T. Cacioppo and R. E. Petty (1985), Physiological Responses and Advertising Effects, Psychology and Marketing , Summer, pp. 11526.

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consumers perceptions. Anyone seeing the Heart Foundation Tick on a product will probablyassume that this low-fat product is the most nutri tionally sound one available for people who wanta healthy heart. This, however, is not entirely accurate. There are many products that are better thansome of the products displaying the endorsement but their manufacturers have simply refused topay the yearly royalties on sales0.05 per cent of the projected wholesale sales over a period of12 monthsthat 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 N ew Zealand, whereit is believed it has been instrumental in motivating companies to exclude 33 tonnes of salt throughthe reformulation of 23 breads, breakfast cereals and margarines. Overall, 60 per cent of Australianconsumers and 59 per cent of New Zealand consumers say they rely on the Tick to assist themin 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 dif cult by the variation ininformation-processing skills among differing population groups. 91 For example, warnings inthe form of symbols might be appropriate when dealing with a multinational or multiculturalaudience. 92 Marketers often have to go to great lengths to provide messages that the relevantaudience will interpret correctly.

Advertising aimed at childrenMany parents organisations and government agencies focus on the impact the content ofadvertisements has on children, as well as on the ability of children to process these advertisingmessages. However, childrens 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 dif cultyin distinguishing commercials from programs (they either do not notice the change or they thinkof the commercials following a program as another program). As a result, a number of regulationshave been put in place by the Australian Broadcasting Authority. These regulations are aimed atcontrolling the way advertising i s included i n childrens programs.

It also appears that younger children are less able to deter mine the selling intent of commercials.

However, there is some evidence that young children are aware of the selling intent, but cannotverbalise it. 94 This problem is growing in intensity, as childrens products are increasingly becomingthe stars of animated childrens television programs. Walt Disney characters are all available astoys. The same phenomenon was also particularly evident w ith the introduction of the infamousPokmon lm and cartoon characters, on which dozens of toys, cards and other products werebased. Many claim that lms and cartoons are now merely extended commercials that advertise theproducts based upon the characters.

A second aspect of comprehension i nvolves speci c words or types of commercials that childrenmight misunderstand. In the case of misunder stood words, research indicates that disclaimers suchas Part of a nutri tious breakfast, Each sold separately, and Batteries not included are ineffectivewith preschool children. 95 Where cartoons are concerned, a child may view a commercial incartoon form without being able to identify it as a commercial.

Such issues are very emotionally charged, with consumer and parent groups often reactingvery strongly without validated scienti c evidence (e.g. studies or surveys). Clearly, much researchis required to assess rigorously the extent of childrens perceptive ability.

MAX YOUR MARKS!

Thirty interactive questions on this chapter are available now at the Online Learning Centre thathis textwww.mhhe/com/au/neal4e . (For access to MaxMark, please refer to the front of the te

SUMMARY1 What is the nature of perception?

Perception consists of those activities by which anindividual acquires and assigns meaning to stimuli. It isalso referred to as information p rocessing.

2 What are the different steps involved in informationprocessing?Perception begins with exposure. This occurs when astimulus comes within range of one of the individualsprimary sensory receptors. Consumers are exposed toonly a small fraction of the available stimuli and this isusually the result of self-selection. Attention occurswhen the stimulus activates one or more of t he sensory

receptors, and the resulting sensations go into thebrain for processing. Interpretation is the assignment ofmeaning to stimuli that have been attended to.

3 Which stimulus factors in uence this process?Stimulus factors are physical characteristics of thestimulus itself, such as contrast, size, intensity,colour and movement, position, isolation, format andinformation quantity.

4 Which individual factors in uence this process?Individual factors are characteristics of the individual,such as interests and needs.

5 Which situational factors in uence this process?Individual and stimulus factors are both in uencedby, and in uence, the situation in which they occur.

For example, temporary characteristicsuch as moods can in uence the procof time available and the physical chasituation can also play a role in determgiven stimulus is processed.

6 How do children process information?In general, children under the age of 1developed information-processing abindividuals. Children develop their abinformation in a series of stages and aformal integration around the age of 1

7 What are the implications of perception fbrand and communication strategies?Marketing managers use their knowleprocessing in a variety of ways. The fexposure is selective is the basis for mRetailers can enhance their operationoutlets as information environments. personal-interest factors are used to atto advertisements and packages. Chartarget market and the message are stuthat accurate interpretation occurs. Thconsumers assign to words and parts obasis for the selection of a brand namprocessing theory guides a wide rangeevaluation techniques.

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KEY TERMSadaptation level theory 235affective interpretation 240attention 229cognitive interpretation 238compressed messages 235contrast 235day-after recall 251exposure 229format 234hemispheric lateralisation 238individual factors 236information overload 235information processing 229intensity 232

interpretation 229isolation 234logo 245memory 229misinterpretation 251non-focused attention 237perception 229position 232recognition tests 251semiotics 241situational factors 236Starch scores 251stimulus factors 232subliminal message 238

REVIEW QUESTIONS1 What is information processing? How does it differ from

perception?

2 What does attention involve? What determines whichstimuli an individual will attend to? How do marketersutilise this?

3 What stimulus factors can be used to attract attention?What problems can arise when stimulus factors are usedto attract attention?

4 What determines how an individual will interpret a givenstimulus?

5 What is the difference between cognitive and affective

interpretation?6 What is the difference between lexical and psychological

meaning?

7 In what ways, if any, do children process informationdifferently from adults?

8 Describe Piagets stages of cognitive development.

9 How does a knowledge of information processing assistthe marketing manager in:

(a) formulating media strategy?(b) formulating retail strategy?(c) designing advertisements and packages?(d) developing brand names?(e) evaluating advertising?(f) regulating advertising?

10 What is the underlying basis of media strategy?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

APPLICATION ACTIVITIES1 Find three brand names that you feel are particularly

appropriate and three that you feel are not. Explain yourreasoning for each brand name.

2 Find three logos that you feel are particularly appropriateand three that you feel are not. Explain your reasoningfor each logo.

3 Interview 10 students about their behaviour duringtelevision commercials. What do you conclude?

4 Find two advertisements that you think make unethicaluse of the perception process. Justify your selection.

5 Examine several magazines. Photocopy twoadvertisements that do a good job of encouraging

readers to visit their web site. Justify the principles of perception covered i

6 Visit one of the following web sites. Ebased on the principles of perceptionchapter.

(a) www.absolutvodka.com(b) www.elle.com(c) www.purina.com(d) www.nj.com/yucky

7 Visit the Australian Broadcasting Au(www.aba.gov.au) and report the key pregulations concerning advertising to

1 How could a marketing manager for (a) the CancerSociety, (b) a restaurant chain, (c) a superannuationfund, (d) childrens vitamins or (e) a tax service use thematerial in this chapter to guide the development ofa national advertising campaign? And to assist localretailers in developing their promotional activities? Wouldthe usefulness of this material be limited to advertisingdecisions? Explain your answer.

2 In recent years, manufacturers of meat products have

introduced a product labelled Turkey ham. The productlooks like ham and tastes like ham but it contains nopork; it is all turkey. A nationwide survey of consumersshowed that most believed that the meat product

contained both turkey and ham. The label was approvedbased on a dictionary de nition for the technical termham: the thigh cut of meat from the hind leg of anyanimal. Discuss how consumers processed informationconcerning this product and used this information inpurchasing this product. (One court ruled the l abel to bemisleading 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

4 Evaluate the full-page advertisements in this chapter. Analyse the attention-attracting characteristics and themeaning they convey. Are they good advertisements?What risks are associated with each?

5 To what extent (if any), and how, should the govern

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