Perception & Learning

Dr. Rohit Vishal Kumar

Reader, Dept. of Marketing
Xavier Institute of Social Service
Ranchi - 834001

The Model of Information Processing

Exposure
Random ---------------- Deliberate
Perception

Attention
Low Involvement ---------------- High Involvement

Interpretation
Low Involvement ---------------- High Involvement
Learning

Memory
Short Term ---------------- Long Term
Active Problem Stored Experiences, Values
Solving Decisions, Rules, Feelings

Purchase & Consumption Decisions

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Exposure
• Exposure occurs when a stimulus comes within the range of our
sensory receptor nerves
– For exposure to occur the only requirement is that the stimulus be
placed in the individuals relevant environment
– Most of the exposure is self-selected
– Exposure can be voluntary or involuntary

• In a marketing environment, there is a continuous “war”

between the individuals and organizations:
– Organizations try to expose individuals to marketing stimulus
• Advertisements, POP, Mailers, Banner Ads, Hoardings, Emails etc
– Individuals try to avoid being exposed to all the stimulus
• Zipping, Zapping, Muting, Ignoring

Attention
• Attention occurs when the stimulus activates one or more
sensory receptors and the resulting sensation go to the brain for
processing
• Consumers are selective in attention

• Factors affecting Attention:

– Stimulus Factors:
• Size of the Stimulus
– Larger stimulus are more likely to be noticed
• Intensity of the Stimulus
– Loud / Bright / Eye Catching stimulus are more likely to be noticed
• Color of the Stimulus
– Colorful stimulus is more likely to be attractive
• Movement of the Stimulus
– Audio Visual stimulus are more likely to be noticed
• Position of the Stimulus
– Ease of recognition / Placement in visual field more likely to be noticed
• Contrast of the stimulus
– Use of white spaces more likely to be noticed
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Attention
• Factors affecting Attention:
– Individual Factors:
• Interest
• Need
– Situational Factors:
• Involvement with the media / program
• Hemispheric Lateralization
– Left Brain:
» Responsible for Verbal Information, Symbolic Representation,
Sequential Analysis, Conscious Reporting
» Requires Frequent Rest
– Right Brain:
» Responsible for Pictorial Representation, Geometric Patterns, Emotions
» Can operate for a longer period of time
• Subliminal Stimulus:
– Stimulus presented without the aid of conscious knowledge

Interpretation
• Interpretation is the assignment of meaning to a sensation
• It is a function of the gestalt i.e. patterns formed by the
characteristics of the stimulus, the individual and the situation

• Meaning is assigned by:

– Cognitive Interpretation
• Is a process by which meaning is placed in to existing categories of
meaning
• If a product brand or language term is radically different a new
categorization may be developed
– Affective Interpretation:
• The emotional response generated by the stimulus

Interpretation is dependent on an Individual’s

Learning
Expectation
Inference

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Perception and Marketing Strategy
• Retailing:
– Increase total exposure by spacing out frequently brought items
– Place high margin items in high traffic area
– Display of products to draw attention
• Brand Name & Logo Development
– Allows consumers to associate the product with
• Quality
• Price
• Expected Performance
• Self Image
• Differentiation

Have you seen the movie 3000?

Pretty Woman

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Perception and Marketing Strategy

• Media Planning:
– TRP and OTS important for planning
– Larger ads tend to draw more attention

• Advertisement
– Use of humor, Sex Appeal, Bright Colors preferred
– Usage should be coordinated with product usage
• Insurance Ads sold by glamorous model

• Package Design
– Task to capture attention and convey information
– Needs to be carefully designed to meet legal rules of the country

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Evaluation of Advertising
• Measure of Exposure:
– Verification, circulation, readership used in print to compute OTS
– People Meter used in television to compute TRP
– Click-trough rate used in internet
• Measure of Attention:
– Eyeball tracking devices
– Day after Recall (DAR)
– Recognition Test
– Starch Test
• Noted:
– Percentage of people who recall seeing the advertisement
• Seen-Associated:
– Percentage of people who recall reading some part of the advertisement
• Read Most:
– Percentage of people who have read more than 50% of the advertisement
• Measure of Interpretation:
– Focus Group Discussion
– Day after Recall
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Ambush Marketing
• Involves any communication or activity that implies, or from
which one could reasonably infer, that an organization is
associated with an event, in fact when it is not

• Forms of ambush marketing:

– Sponsor Media Coverage of the Event
– Sponsor a small part of the event and advertise heavily
– Advertise heavily during the event

Coke / Pepsi tends to advertise heavily during cricket matches even when
They are not the official sponsors of the match

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 Learning

Learning
• Learning is any change in content or organisation of long term
memory or behaviour
• It is the key to Consumer Behaviour

Culture
Values
Sub Culture
Attitudes
Social Class
Tastes Purchase
Family
Preferences And
Friends Learning Skills Use
Group
Feelings Behaviour
Experiences
Meanings
Media
Behaviours
Advertising

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Theories of Learning (Conditioning)
• Classical Conditioning:
– Based on the association of a stimulus and response
– Most common in low involvement situations
– Also known as Pavlovian Conditioning
Unconditional Stimulus Unconditional Response
(Popular Film Music) (Positive Emotions)

Conditional Stimulus Conditional Response

(Pen Advertisement (Association of Pen with Music)
with Popular Film Music)

• Operant Conditioning
– Based on reward / punishment to desired response
– Use of free samples highly effective in operant conditioning
– Also known as Instrumental Learning

Stimulus Desired Response Reinforcement

(popcorn) (Consumption) (Pleasant Taste)

Higher Probability of Purchase

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Theories of Learning (Cognitive)

• Iconic Rote Theory
– Association between two concepts in the absence of conditioning
– Particularly useful in low / medium involvement purchase
– EG: Ketoprofin is a headache remedy

• Vicarious Learning / Modeling

– Learning by observation
– Useful in both high and low involvement purchase

• Reasoning / Analogy
– Also known as Cognitive Learning
– Is a problem solving process associated with goal achievement

Goal Purposive Behaviour Insight Goal Achievement

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7
Factors Affecting Learning
• Importance of Information
• Message Involvement
• Mood
• Reinforcement
• Punishment
• Repetition
• Imagery

• Related Aspects:
– Forgetting:
• Process of elimination of the link between stimulus and response due to
cessation of the stimulus
– Extinction:
• Process of elimination of the link between stimulus and response due to
self choice of an individual

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Memory
• Memory is the total accumulation of the prior learning
experience

• Short Term Memory

– That portion of the memory which is currently active or in use
– Has limited capacity to store information and sensation
– Two basic types of information processing:
• Elaborative Activities
– Use of previously stored experiences, activities, values, attitudes beliefs and
feelings to interpret and evaluate information in working memory as well as to
add relevant previously stored information
• Maintenance Rehearsals:
– Is the continuous repetition of a piece of information in order to hold it in
current memory for use in problem solving or transfer to long term memory
– Is dependent on
• Concepts:
– Abstractions of reality that capture the meaning of an item in terms of other
concepts
• Imagery:
– Concrete Sensory Representation of Ideas, feelings and objects
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Memory
• Long Term Memory
– Is an unlimited permanent storage
– Can be roughly divided in to 4 parts:
• Semantic Memory:
– Basic knowledge and feeling an individual has about a concept
– Represents a persons understanding of a concept at it’s simplest level
» EG: If features like soft cushion seats, AC, Power Steering and Car
Theatre System is present the car is a luxury car
• Episodic Memory:
– Memory of events in which an individual participated
– Evoked through “Nostalgia”
• Schematic Memory:
– Is a complex web of association
– Developed by breaking down of information into smaller pieces of related
information linked together
• Script Memory:
– Memory of how action sequence should occur
– Necessary for consumers to shop effectively

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A Schematic Memory for Mountain Dew

Mountain Dew

Green Cool
Crisp Fun

Different
Carbonated
Daredevil
Young

“Do the Dew”

Refreshing
Parties
Chasing Lions

Lemon Based
For People like Me
Cola

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Memory in Marketing

BRAND DECISIONS
ARE BASED ON
MODIFYING TARGET
MARKET’S MEMORY
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Memory in Marketing
• Brand Image
– Is the schematic memory of the brand

• Product Positioning
– Is the decision by the management to try and achieve a defined brand
image relative to competition in a market segment
– Related Concepts:
• Product Repositioning
• Product Depositioning

• Brand Equity
– Is the value assigned by consumers to a brand over and above the
functional characteristics of the product
– People are willing to pay a “Premium” for brands with higher equity

• Brand Leverage
– Is the use of brand equity of an existing brand for a new product
– Is also known as brand extension, family branding or umbrella branding

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