Consumer perception

NEENA MOHAN

PERCEPTION IS NOT “WHAT”WE SEE AROUND US BUT “HOW” WE SEE THE

WORLD AROUND US.

Perception• The process by which an individual selects, organizes, and interprets stimuli into a meaningful and coherent picture of the world

• How we see the world around us

Elements of Perception• Sensation• Absolute threshold• Differential threshold• Subliminal perception

• SENSATION IS THE IMMEDIATE AND DIRECT RESPONSE OF THE SENSORY ORGANS TO A SIMPLE STIMULUS-

• ADVERTISEMENT,• PRODUCT,• BRAND NAME etc.

ABSOLUTE THRESHOLD

• The lowest level at which a consumer can experience a sensation is called the absolute threshold

• The point at which a consumer can detect a difference between “something” and “nothing” is that consumer’s absolute threshold

DIFFERENTIAL THRESHOLD.

• The minimal difference that can be detected between two similar stimuli is called the differential threshold.

• Also known as the just noticeable difference (the j.n.d.)

JND• German scientist Ernst Weber discovered that the jnd between two stimuli was not an absolute amount, but an amount relative to the intensity of the first stimulus. This was known as weber’s law.

• Weber’s law states that the stronger the initial stimulus, the greater the additional intensity needed for the second stimulus to be perceived as different

Marketing Applications of the J.N.D.

• Marketers need to determine the relevant j.n.d. for their products– so that negative changes are not readily discernible to the public

– so that product improvements are very apparent to consumers

• NEGATIVE CHANGES1. REDUCTION IN PRODUCT SIZE2. REDUCTION IN QUALITY3. INCREASE IN PRODUCT PRICE THEY ARE BELOW THE JND

• POSITIVE CHANGES1. LARGER SIZE2. LOWER PRICE3. IMPROVED PACKAGING

THEY ARE AT OR JUST ABOVE THE JND.

Subliminal Perception• Stimuli that are too weak or too brief to be consciously seen or heard may be strong enough to be perceived by one or more receptor cells.

• Extensive research has shown no evidence that subliminal advertising can cause behavior changes

• Some evidence that subliminal stimuli may influence affective reactions

SELECTION ORGANIZATION INTERPRETATION

PERCEPTUAL PROCESS

SELECTION ORGANIZATION INTERPRETATION

PERCEPTUAL PROCESS

Perceptual Selection• Consumers subconsciously are selective as to what they perceive.

• Stimuli selected depends on two major factors– Consumers’ previous experience – Consumers’ motives

• Selection depends on the– Nature of the stimulus– Expectations – Motives

Concepts of perceptual selection• Selective exposure• Selective attention• Selective defense• Selective blocking

• SELECTIVE EXPOSURE• Consumers seek for messages that they find are pleasant, and avoid painful and threatening ones.

• They selectively expose themselves to advertisements that reassure them of their purchase decisions

• SELECTIVE ATTENTION• Consumers note advertisements that satisfy their needs and disregard those in which they do not have interest.

•Heightened awareness when stimuli meet their needs

•Consumers prefer different messages and medium

PERCEPTUAL DEFENSE• Screening out of stimuli which are threatening

PERCEPTUAL BLOCKING• Consumers protect themselves from being bombarded with products by simply “turning out”-blocking such stimuli from conscious awareness. Eg: Zapping of TV commercials with remote controls.

SELECTION ORGANIZATION INTERPRETATION

PERCEPTUAL PROCESS

Principles:-• Figure and ground• Grouping• closure

Figure and ground

•People tend to organize perceptions into figure-and-ground relationships.

•The ground is usually hazy.•Marketers usually design so the figure is the noticed stimuli.

• The figure is perceived more clearly because, in contrast to its ground, it appears to be well defined, solid and in the forefront.

• Advertisers have to plan their advertisement carefully to make sure that the stimulus they want to be noted is seen as FIGURE and not as GROUND.

Figure and Ground in Product Placement

You will certainly notice Coke kept here

grouping• Individuals tend to group stimuli so that they form a unified picture or impression.

•People group stimuli to form a unified impression or concept.

•Grouping helps memory and recall• Eg:An Advt for tea may show a young man and woman sipping tea in a beautifully appointed room before a blazing hearth.

• Grouping will associate drinking of tea with romance and fine living

Grouping

CLOSURE• Individuals have a need for closure.They express this need by organizing their perceptions so that they form a complete picture.

•People have a need for closure and organize perceptions to form a complete picture.

•Will often fill in missing pieces•Incomplete messages remembered more than complete

Closure

ZEIGERNIK EFFECT• “Incomplete tasks are better remembered than complete tasks”.

• A person who begins a task has a tendency to complete it. If he or she is prevented from doing so,a state of tension develops which manifests itself in improved memory for the incomplete task.

• Hearing the beginning of a message leads to the need to hear the rest of it.

SELECTION ORGANIZATION INTERPRETATION

PERCEPTUAL PROCESS

• Physical Appearances• Stereotypes• First Impressions• Jumping to Conclusions• Halo Effect

Physical Appearances

•Positive attributes of people they know to those who resemble them

•Important for model selection•Attractive models are more persuasive for some products

Stereotypes

•People hold meanings related to stimuli

•Stereotypes influence how stimuli are perceived

First Impressions•First impressions are lasting•The perceiver is trying to determine which stimuli are relevant, important, or predictive

Jumping to Conclusions

•People tend not to listen to all the information before making conclusion

•Important to put persuasive arguments first in advertising

Halo Effect

•Consumers perceive and evaluate multiple objects based on just one dimension

•Used in licensing of names•Important with spokesperson choice

• The evaluation of a single object or person is based on the evaluation of just one or a few qualities of the object or the person.