Information Processing:Part I

MKT 750Dr. West

Agenda

Information Processing FrameworkExposureAttentionComprehensionRetention

McGuire’s Model of Ad EffectivenessMeasuring effectivenessTactical Decisions

Consumer Information Processing

Stimuli Exposure

Attention

Comprehension

Acceptance

Retention Purchase

Measuring Advertising Effectiveness

McGuire Model Testing Ad Effectiveness

Expos

ure

Attent

ion

Compreh

ension

Yielding/

Acceptance

Purch

ase

Retention

Success: p(E) p(E)·p(A) p(E)·p(A)·p(C)·p(Y)·p(R)…

Failure:.8 .8 x .7=.56 .8 x .7 x .7=.39 .8 x .7 x .7 x .6=.24 .8 x .7 x .7 x .6 x .8 =.19.2 =.44 =.61 =.76 =.81

Gaining Exposure

This occurs when there is physical proximity to a stimulus

Selective exposure Consumers deliberately try to avoid our attempts to interact with them

Advertising, Direct mail, Telemarketing

Gaining Exposure

What’s a marketer to do? Make your message involving

Taster’s Choice “Brewing Romance” Campaign (circa 1990)

Product positioned as “tasting closest to fresh brewed” McCann-Erickson was hired to kick up the emotional connection to the brand

“Brewing Romance” Campaign

UK Campaign quickly adopted an avid following

British tabloids chronicled the seriesViewers wrote in for autographs Campaign lasted for six yearsSales of Gold Blend soared by 40 percent.Ended with Sharon and Tony wedding and driving happily off into the sunset The campaign was expanded to the US, Canada, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan

“Brewing Romance” Campaign

US Campaign launched in 1991

Generated a reaction similar to the UKThe debut of each new “episode” became a major media event, often premiering on network shows such as “Good Morning America.” In February 1998, Taster's Choice ran a contest. The results were announced in Soap Opera Digest

Gaining Exposure

What’s a marketer to do? Nontraditional approach BMW’s re-launch of the Mini Cooper in 2002

“Giving a small car big 'tude: cute enough for kids to ride, small enough to fit on top of an SUV and sexy enough to be a Playboy centerfold, the new BMW Mini launched with many guerrilla twists and turns.” Brandweek BMW assigned the new unit a paltry $40 million budget and staff just big enough to fill, well, a Mini.

Nontraditional Approach…

BMW’s re-launch of the Mini Cooper in 2002Kerri Martin was assigned to be the guardian of the brand’s soul. She refused to consider a traditional launch for the car. Instead she looked for novel ways to “create buzz” about the brand.

Target Market: People who see themselves as risk takers, nonconformists, and adventure seekers. These individuals were not defined by their age but by their spirit. Objectives: Reach 25% brand awareness within one year, and sell 20,000 cars.

Non-traditional Approach…

Magazine ads broke the mold Mini is the first automobile to actually win bragging rights as Playboy's Playmate of the Month in June. Ads ran biographical photos of Mini's "youth" in London, complete with cartoons on the flip-page.

In the six months preceding the launch, the website registered 210,000 leads. 55,000 visitors signed up to receive the e-mail newsletter Brand awareness levels went from zero to 25% in nine months, and up to 67% by June 2003. Exceeded its sales goal, with 24,590 cars sold in nine months.

Results

Can there be too much exposure?

OverexposureWhen your brand loses it coolness

HabituationWhen a stimulus becomes familiar it loses it’s attention getting power

Ads lose half their effectiveness after accumulating 1,000 GRPs (approx 10 exposures)

Products are less attractive when everyone else owns one

Avoiding Overexposure

Avoid overexposure throughLimited availability (scarcity)

Harry Potter

Use different ad executions carrying the same message

Absolut Vodka

Tactical Decisions

Gaining Exposure Channel/Medium: The general category for message delivery

broadcast (TV, radio), print (magazines, newspaper), direct mail & internet, outdoor …

Vehicle: The specific message carrier The Apprentice, WSJ, COTA busses

Scheduling: How is the media budget distributed?

reach and frequency, breadth of coverage, seasonality

Consumer Information Processing

Stimuli Exposure

Attention

Comprehension

Acceptance

Retention Purchase

Pre-attentive Processing

Pre-attentive Processing

Turning Exposure Into Attention

Attention can occur when there is activation of one or more of our five senses.

Each of our sensory receptors has an activation threshold Weber’s Law: JND

The amount of change necessary to be noticed is directly related to the intensity of the original stimulus

Voluntary Attention

This refers to the conscious allocation of processing capacity to a stimulus.Selective Attention

Occurs when a stimulus is in line with current goals or needs Such attention is selective due to the plethora of messages we are exposed to.

Involuntary Attention

Occurs due to a built in “novelty monitoring” mechanism

Evolutionary hypothesis – survival was best insured by attending to unusual events in the environment

Triggers: Size, Color, Contrast, Motion, Sounds are noticed Appeals to our hedonic side (food & sex) are also noticed

Tactical Decisions

Getting Attention Source: The person/organization sending the message

Who: Spokesperson, Celebrity Endorser, Salesperson … Characteristics: Attractiveness, Likeability, Familiarity, Similarity, Identification, Trustworthiness, Expertise, Credibility

Tactical Decisions

Getting Attention Message Execution: The technique or style utilized in communication

Humor, Emotions, Fear Appeal, Informational, Demonstration, Testimonial, Lifestyle, Jingle…

Comparative vs. Two-sided

Message Elements: Features of the message

Pictures versus words, color & contrast, size & isolation, novelty & motion, music

Is Getting Attention Enough?

Attention may be short lived You have to use attention well once you have it Attention should be used in the service of building the brand, or attaining other strategic goals

Comprehension

Refers to the meaning we assign to a sensory stimulusThe most crucial process in CB because…

What consumers perceive and remember determines their actions!

Comprehension

Perceptions are often the heart of marketing issues/problems.

Olay – P&G faced issues with “Oil of Olay” being perceived as oily and old

Comprehension

Gestalt Principles: Closure – we have a tendency to complete a figure, or fill in the gaps Processing effort – the effort devoted to interpreting a stimulus leads to better comprehension and memory Figure/Ground – perceptions differ depending upon what the individual sees as figure (dominant) versus ground (background).

Tactical Decisions

Improving Comprehension Channel/Medium: High Involvement (print, internet) vs. Low Involvement (TV and radio)

Source: Distraction and Affect Transfer

Message Content: Complexity, Ambiguity Scheduling: Repetition

Information Processing:

• Sensory • Short Term• Long Term

Stimuli Exposure

Involvement Attention Memory

Motivation

Ability Comprehension

Opportunity Acceptance

Retention

Tactical Decisions

Fostering Yielding/Acceptance Source: Credibility, Similarity & Likeability

Message Execution: Stirring emotions, telling both sides of the story Scheduling: Mere exposure effects

Improved liking Improved recall Improved acceptance

The Importance of Memory

Marketers use memory-based criteria to judge the effectiveness of their efforts

Ad claims – e.g. day after recall Package and brand recognition Beliefs and brand associations are indicators of “brand equity”

The Memory Process

Relationship of Memory Stores

Encoding & Retrieval

Exposure

Attention

Retention

SignalStrength

Sensory Memory

Short Term Memory

Long Term Memory

Incoming Information

Pertinence

Encoding (Rehearsal)

Retrieval(Cues)

Facilitating Encoding

Elaboration Closure

Repetition & Rehearsal Jingles

Generating Affect Humor (tricky)

Personal Linkages Autobiographical Memories

Facilitating Encoding

A Picture is Worth a 1000 Words

Memory for faces of high school classmates was 75% correct up to 40 years after graduation Recognition rates for 600 ads! (Shepard)

Time Delay 0 2 hrs 3 days 7 days 120 days% correct 98% 99% 92% 87%

58%

Feelings

Ads can evoke feelings or emotions Hallmark, McDonalds, Kodak

There is a bias toward retrieving positive memories which result in…

More feelings during an ad More favorable attitude toward the ad and the brand

Facilitating Retrieval

Encoding-specificity Memory is context dependent, thus memory performance is improved when contextual cues present at encoding are retrieval are the same

Summary

Familiarity breeds liking while tedium invites argumentation and criticism

Use attention well (to build your brand)once you have it, or it will be short lived

Advertising is often used to set expectations which influence our experiences

A brand’s message must remain the “figure” and shouldn’t be overshadowed by other elements

Exposure

Attention

Comprehension

Retention

Assignment

Read Chapter 16