Consumer Behavior, Module 4

Prior knowledge is

The information that we have learned in the past and stored in memory

Knowledge content

Reflects the information we have already learned and stored in memory about brands, companies, stores, people, how to shop, how to use public transportation, etc.

Knowledge structure

Describes how knowledge is organized in memory

Schema is defined as

The set of associations linked to a concept in memory

Spreading of activation is

The process by which retrieving a concept or association spreads to the retrieval of related concepts or associations

Priming is

The increased sensitivity to certain concepts and associations due to prior experience based on implicit memory

Priming occurs when

A concept is activated by a stimulus and this activation influences consumers’ associations, positively or negatively, outside of conscious awareness

Associations in schemas vary in terms of

How abstract or concrete they are

Associations in schemas vary on 3 dimensions that are crucial to building strong brands and fostering consumers’ involvement in and their attitudes toward the brand:

• Favorability

• Uniqueness

• Salience

Favorability is where

Associations vary in favorability

Uniqueness is where

Associations vary in their uniqueness, the extent to which they’re also related to other concepts

Salience is where

Associations vary in their salience, or how easily they come to mind

Less salient associations may be remembered only in

Certain contexts

Brand image is defined as the

Specific type of schema that captures what a brand stands for and how favorably it’s viewed

Brand personality is where the

Set of associations included in a schema that reflect a brand’s personification

Script is defined as a

Special type of schema that represents knowledge of the sequence of actions involved in performing an activity

Some brands may activate scripts in

Consumers’ minds

When doing something for the first time, not having a script

Can prolong the task or make its execution more difficult

A schema or brand image helps consumers understand

What a new offering is, what it can do for them, and how it differs from competing offerings

Schemas and images help consumers

Understand the types of products offered

Brand extension is where you

Use the brand name of a product with a well-developed image on a product in a different category

Transfer of associations takes place from

The original brand schema to the new branded product

Engaging in co-branding is effective when

Core associations with each brand are favorable when combined into a co-branded product

Through consistent advertising

Brand images and personalities are maintained

Changing brand images adds

New and positive associations if brand or product image becomes stale, outdated, or linked to negative associations

When protecting brand images

Consumers’ prior expectations play a critical role during a crisis

Taxonomic categories are defined as

How consumers classify a group of objects in memory in an orderly, often hierarchical way, based on their similarity to one another

Prototype is defined as

The best example of a cognitive(mental) category

Prototypically is defined as the

Extent to which an object is representative of its category

Taxonomic categories can also be hierarchically organized:

• Superordinate

• Basic

• Subordinate

Superordinate is the

Broadest level, where objects share a few associations but also have many different ones

Basic is where

Finer discriminations between objects occurs

Subordinate is the

Finest level of differentiation

Correlated associations is when

An associative network contains attributes that are linked in the consumer’s mind

Knowledge about correlated attributes or benefits can significantly affect

Consumers’ inferences about a new brand

The flexibility of a consumers’ associative networks and categorizations depends, in part, on

Consumers’ goals and the time to implement these goals

A goal-derived category includes

Things viewed as belonging in the same category because they serve the same goals

Positioning an offering as relevant to a goal can be

An important marketing objective

Goal-derived category structures are employed by

Retail stores

Construal-level theory is defined as a

Theory that describes the relationship between psychological distance and how abstract or concrete people’s thinking is

When people are close to implementing a goal

More concrete knowledge about the feasibility of attaining the goal becomes salient

Construals also influence how

Consumers process information

People tend to use imagery processing more when thinking about

Near-term events

Consumers engage in more verbal processing when thinking about

Events in the more distant future

When consumers' feel confident, they will focus on

The abstract aspects of products

When consumers feel less confident, they will focus on

Concrete details

The associations that consumers link to a concept may vary considerably

Across cultures

Cultural groups also vary in how they

Organize taxonomic and goal-derived categories

Culture can affect whether

Associations are perceived to be correlated

Consumers vary in their ability to process information based on

How much prior experience they have

Expert consumers have a richer

Associative network with more associations and more concrete and abstract associations linked to a concept

Expert consumers have more graded and refined

Taxonomic category structures

Expert consumers exhibit more flexibility in

Activating associations (concrete or abstract) and categories (superordinate and subordinate)

Prior knowledge is defined as the

Information stored in long-term memory that we have learned based on past exposures or experiences

Long-term memory (LTM) is

That part of memory where information is permmanently stored for later use

Episodic (autobiographical) memory is

Knowledge we have about ourselves and our personal past experiences

Semantic memory is

General knowledge about an entity, detached from specific episodes

Various techniques can leverage the power of episodic memory for marketing:

• Promote empathy and identification

• Cue and preserve episodic memories

• Reinterpret past consumption experiences

Episodic memories can play a role in creating

Identification with characters or situations in ads

Consumers value some brands or products and have a positive attitude toward some ads because

They promote episodic memories by creating feelings of nostalgia

Marketing communications that encourage consumers to savor an upcoming vacation, meal, or massage can enhance

Consumers’ remembered consumption enjoyment

Long-term memory may be

Explicit or implicit

Explicit memory is memory where

Consumers are consciously aware that they remember something

Implicit memory is memory where

Consumers are not consciously attempting to remember something

Processing fluency leads to

Feelings of familiarity

Perceptual fluency makes it easier for consumers to

Recognize a brand and process perceptual information about it

Marketers can apply chunking, rehearsal, recirculation, and elaboration to

Help consumers remember their brands, communications, or offerings

Chunking:

• Provide larger bits of information the chunk together smaller bits

• Employ ads that draw conclusions that summarize or chunk disparate pieces of information into a single attribute or benefit

Rehearsal:

• Use tactics such as jingles, sounds, and slogans to instigate rehearsal

Recirculation:

• Strengthen the effect of recirculation by creating different ads that repeat the same basic message and by repeating the brand name frequently

Elaboration:

• Use unexpected or novel stimuli to attract attention and include elaboration

Retrieval is defined as the

Process of remembering or accessing information stored in long-term memory

Recognition is the

Process of identifying whether we have previously encountered a stimulus when reexposed to it

Recall is the

Ability to retrieve information about a stimulus from memory without being reexposed to it again

Retrieval is affected by:

• The characteristics of the stimulus itself

• What the stimulus is linked to

• The way the stimulus is processed

• The consumer’s characteristics

Several key characteristics of the stimulus affect retrieval:

• Salience

• Prototypicality

• Redundant cues

• The medium in which the stimulus is processed

Salient objects tend to

Attract attention and induce greater elaboration, thereby creating stronger memories

We are better able to recognize and recall prototypical or pioneer brands because

These have been frequently rehearsed and recirculated and are linked to many other concepts in memory, and pioneers were the first the occupy the links

Marketers can enhance consumers’ memory for brands by

Advertising two complementary products together and explain why they go together

Researchers are exploring whether certain media are more

Effective than others at enhancing consumer memory

Retrieval cue is defined as a

Stimulus that facilitates the activation and retrieval of information in long-term memory

Retrieval cues can be generated

Internally or provided externally

Effective cues may differ from

Culture to culture

Retrieval cues may include

Sounds, visuals, brand names, scents, etc.

Consumers, mood, and expertise can also

Affect retrieval

Being in a positive mood can

Enhance our recall of stimuli

We are more likely to recall information that is

Consistent with our mood

Expert consumers can recall more

Brands, brand attributes, and benefits than novices can

Consumers appear to access information about brands they encounter more quickly when

They are younger compared to when they are older

Three elements contribute to retrieval failures:

• Decay

• Interference

• Primary and recency effect

Decay is the

Weakening of memory strength over time

Interference is when the

Strength of a memory deteriorates over time because of competing memories

Primary and recency effect is the

Tendency to show greater memory for information that comes first of last in a sequence

Memory is also not always

Accurate or complete and may be selective of subject to confusion and distortion