Attitudes and Influencing Attitudes

Part 3: Internal Influences - Attitudes

An attitude is a learned predisposition to respond in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a given object, person, or idea.
It reflects how one thinks, feels, and acts toward aspects of their environment like retail stores, TV programs, or products.

Attitude Components and Manifestations
- Stimuli: Products, situations, retail outlets, sales personnel, advertisements, and other attitude objects.
- Components:
  - Affective: Emotions or feelings about specific attributes or the overall object.
  - Cognitive: Beliefs about specific attributes or the overall object.
  - Behavioral: Behavioral intentions with respect to specific attributes or the overall object.
- Overall orientation: Attitude toward the object.

The cognitive component consists of a consumer's beliefs about an object.
People hold multiple beliefs about most attitude objects.
- Example: Mountain Dew
  - Popular with younger consumers.
  - Contains a lot of caffeine.
  - Competitively priced.
  - Made by a large company.
The configuration of beliefs represents the cognitive component of an attitude.
Marketers must promote benefits rather than features, especially for less knowledgeable consumers and complex products, to ensure consumers can evaluate and respond effectively.
The more positive beliefs, the more positive each belief is, and the easier it is to recall the beliefs, the more favorable the cognitive component.
This underlies the multiattribute attitude model.

Several versions exist; the simplest:
- A = \sum{i=1}^{n} Xi
  - Where:
    - A = Consumer's attitude toward a particular brand b
    - X_i = Consumer's belief about brand b's performance on attribute i
    - n = Number of attributes considered
This assumes all attributes are equally important.
A more complex version adds an importance weight for each attribute:
- A = \sum{i=1}^{n} Wi X_i
  - Where:
    - W_i = The importance the consumer attaches to attribute i
This version is useful but assumes more is always better.
Example with Diet Coke:
- Coca-Cola gathers data on beliefs about Diet Coke's performance (X) and desired performance (I) on attributes:
  - Low price
  - Sweet taste
  - High status
  - Low calories
Importance weights can be measured using a 100-point constant-sum scale.

Feelings or emotional reactions to an object represent the affective component of an attitude.
Marketers are increasingly focusing on the affective component to enrich the understanding of attitudes.
Marketers distinguish between:
- Utilitarian or functional benefits and attitudes
- Hedonic or emotional benefits and attitudes.

The behavioral component is one's tendency to respond in a certain manner toward an object or activity.
Decisions to purchase or not purchase Diet Coke, or to recommend it, reflect this component.
Brand interest, as shown by seeking out the brand or searching for information, also reflects this.
The behavioral component provides response tendencies or behavioral intentions.

Attitude Change Strategies
- Marketers attempt to influence behavior by changing attitude components.
- Ethical concerns arise with potentially harmful or deceptive persuasion.
- Strategies:
  - Change the Cognitive Component
  - Change the Affective Component
  - Change the Behavioral Component

Four basic marketing strategies:
- Change Beliefs: Shift beliefs about brand performance on attributes.
- Shift Importance: Convince consumers that strong attributes are most important.
- Add Beliefs: Add new beliefs to the consumer's belief structure.
- Change Ideal: Change perceptions of the ideal brand or situation.

Three basic approaches to increase affect directly:
- Classical Conditioning: Influencing affect through association.
- Affect toward the Ad: Liking the ad increases liking the brand.
- Mere Exposure: Repeatedly presenting a brand to increase positive attitudes.

Behavior (purchase or use) may precede or contrast cognitive and affective components.
The key task is to induce purchase or consumption.
Techniques include coupons, free samples, point-of-purchase displays, tie-in purchases, and price reductions.
A sound distribution system is important to prevent trying competing brands.

Individual and Situational Characteristics that Influence Attitude Change
- Attitude change is determined by individual, situational factors, and marketing activities.
- Consumer involvement is a key motivational factor.
- The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) explains attitude formation and change under varying conditions of involvement.
- Involvement determines how information is processed and attitudes are changed.

Central Route to Persuasion:
- High involvement with product, message, or decision.
- Strong attention on product-related features and factual information.
- Conscious thoughts and elaborative activities.
- Persuasion alters product beliefs, influences brand attitude, and affects purchase intentions.
Peripheral Route to Persuasion:
- Low involvement with product, message, or decision.
- Limited attention to non-product features and feelings.
- Low or non-conscious information processing.
- Persuasion operates through classical conditioning, affect change, attitude toward the ad, and non-conscious belief changes, leading to behavioral and attitude change.

Consumer Resistance to Persuasion
- Consumers are not passive.
- They are often skeptical and resist persuasion.
- Consumers infer an advertiser's intent.
Communication Characteristics that Influence Attitude Formation and Change
- Three types:
  1. Source Characteristics (who delivers the message)
  2. Appeal Characteristics (how the message is communicated)
  3. Message Structure Characteristics (how the message is presented)

Source Credibility
- Persuasion is easier when the source is credible.
Celebrity Sources
- Enhance attention, attitude toward the ad, trustworthiness, expertise, aspirational aspects, and meaning transfer.
Sponsorship
- Works similarly to celebrity endorsers.

One-Sided versus Two-Sided Messages
- One-sided messages present only benefits.
- Two-sided messages present both good and bad points.
Positive versus Negative Framing
- Positive framing presents outcomes in gain terms.
- Negative framing presents outcomes in loss terms.
- Attribute framing focuses on a single attribute.
Nonverbal Components
- Influence attitudes through affect, cognition, or both.