What do you see?

5-1

What do you see now?

5-2

What do you see?

Which line is longer?

5-4

Any thing other than the

FED EX..

Any observation about this

adv

What colour comes to mind?

RED

Our Brain !

So.what then is
perception?
How we interpret stimuli from the environment.
How we see the world around us.

Perception is how we organise and give meaning

to new information from the environment
Definition: Perception is the process by
which an individual selects, organizes, and
interprets stimuli into a meaningful and
coherent picture of the world.
The process is highly individual and is based on
each persons own needs, values & expectations.

Information processing

The Process of Perception

Sensatio
n
Perception

Elements of Perception

Sensation
Absolute threshold
Differential threshold
Subliminal perception

Sensati
on

Sensation is the
immediate and direct
response of the
sensory organs to
stimuli.

Sensation
Stimulus: A stimulus is any unit of input
to any of the senses (sensory input). Ex:
product, packages, advertisements,
brand name, price etc.
Sensory Receptors: Sensory receptors
are human organs that receive inputs. Ex:
eyes, ears, nose, mouth, skin.

Sensation
Sensitivity: Human sensitivity refers to
the experience of sensation.
Sensitivity to stimuli varies with the
quality of individuals sensory receptors
and the amount (intensity) of the stimuli.
In situations where lots of sensory inputs
are coming, the senses do not detect
small changes or difference in input. Exdifficult to notice the horn in heavy traffic.

Sensation

Sensation depends on the energy change

within the environment where the
perception occurs (i.e. on differentiation of
input). A perfectly bland or unchanging
environment , regardless of the strength of
the sensory input, provides little to no
sensation at all.

Vision

(A picture is worth a thousand

words)
Advertising, packaging, store design etc
The power of colours

Colours have meanings

Color provokes emotion
Reactions to color are biological and cultural
Trade dress: colors associated with specific
companies. Ex Vodafone, Airtel etc

Marketers rely heavily on visual elements in

advertising, store design, and packaging. They
communicate meanings on the visual channel
through a products color, size, and styling. Color
can also be part of a brands sensory signature.

Vertical-Horizontal Illusion
Which line is longer:
horizontal or vertical?

Smell (Odour)
Odours can activate emotions, create a soothing
feeling.
Fragrances relieves us from stress.
Odors create mood and promote memories.
Smell is a direct line to feelings of happiness, hunger,
and even memories of happy times.
Fragrance is processed by the limbic system=the
most primitive part of the brain=the place where
immediate emotions are experienced.
Some of our reactions to odour depends on our cultural
backgrounds.
Marketers use scents:
Inside products
In promotions (e.g., scratch n sniff)

Sound
Many aspects of sound affect peoples
feelings and behaviour.
Background music, Signature tune- ex-airtel,
Jingles etc

High tempo = more stimulation

Slower tempo = more relaxing

Touch
Haptic or tactile sensesor touchis the
most basic (primitive) of senses; we learn
this before writing and speaking.
Haptic senses affect product experience and
judgment. Touch increases involvement with
the product and help in decision making.
Individuals who do not normally possess a
compulsion to touch products are influenced
by feel of the package.

Taste
Flavour houses try to develop new
taste to please the ever changing and
demanding palates of consumers.
Ethnicity and cultural differences affects
taste preferences.
Marketers sometimes give free sample to
taste their products.
We remember the taste for longer period.

Exposure
Exposure occurs when our sensory receptors
detect a stimulus.
We can concentrate, ignore, or completely
miss stimuli.
Implication for marketers:
Consumers must be exposed to the marketing
efforts to be perceived anything.
Ad placement - being in the right place at the
right time!!
Road blocking - catch them at every corner:
Ads on competing channels
Use multiple media

Exposure (cont..)
Absolute threshold : The lowest level
at which an individual can experience a
sensation is called the absolute
threshold. Ex-The distance at which a driver
can notice a signboard on a highway is that
drivers absolute threshold.

It can vary from individual to individual

Also it varies due to similar and constant
stimulation. Ex-If a driver is driving in road
full of signboards, the absolute threshold to
notice a particular signboard will be increased.

Exposure (cont..)
Sensory Adaptation: It refers to
getting used to certain sensation.
Marketing implication: Change in
advertising campaign on regular
intervals.

Exposure (cont..)
Differential Threshold or Just Noticable
Difference (JND): The differential threshold is
the ability of a sensory system to detect
changes of differences between two stimuli.
The minimum difference we can detect between
two is the Just Noticeable Difference or j.n.d.
For instance, if we made a package smaller to
cut our costs, we would want to make the
change under the j.n.d. so that customers did
not notice that they were getting less product
for the price.

Exposure (cont)
Webers law states: the stronger the
initial stimulus,
the greater the change required for the
stimulus to be seen as different
Marketing application of JND:
For marketers it is important to determine
the relevant j.n.d. for the products
so that negative changes are not readily
discernible to the public
so that product improvements are very
apparent to consumers
Also JND is important in branding exercise

Application of JND

Product Pricing
Product Packaging
Product Extension
Product Promotion
Distribution Channels
Identity Retention

Exposure (Cont..)
Subliminal Perception:
Perception of very weak or rapid stimuli
received below the level of conscious
awareness.
Limen means threshold, so subliminal
means below the threshold.
It occurs when the stimulus is below the
level of consumers
awareness/consciousness.

Subliminal Techniques
Embeds: figures that are inserted
into magazine advertising by using
high-speed photography or
airbrushing.
Subliminal auditory perception:
sounds, music, or voice text inserted
into advertising.

2-32

What is the age of the

person ?

Attention
Attention occurs when information is transferred from
the sensory receptors to the brain for further
processing.
Consumers are often in a state of sensory overload.
Marketers need to break through the clutterHOW??
Attention getting techniques could include the use of:
Colour, size, intensity, contrast, position, novelty,
humour.
Salience - we tend to pay attention to things that we
think are important.
Repetition

Attention (cont)
Perceptual Selection: The process
of perceptual selection means that
people attend to only a small portion
of the stimuli to which they are
exposed.
Perceptual Selection depends on
two major factors
Consumers previous experience
Consumers motives (present need)

Concepts Concerning Selective

Perception..
Selective exposure
We dont notice everything!
We filter out unwanted information

Selective attention
We dont take in all the information around us
Marketers need to identify what their customers will notice
and pay attention to

Selective distortion
We add preconceived ideas or attitudes to interpret new
information that enters the sensory store of the memory

Selective retention
We remember information that we find meaningful and
interesting

Interpretation
Interpretation refers to the
meaning we assign to sensory
stimuli, which is based on a schema,
or set of belief.
Priming : A process where certain
properties of a stimulus evoke a
schema. This leads us to compare
the stimulus to other similar ones.

Stimulus Organization
Gestalt psychology: It says that people
interpret meaning from the totality of a set of
stimuli rather than from an individual
stimulus.
The German word Gestalt roughly means
whole, pattern, or configuration.
We can say that the whole is greater than
the sum of its parts.
The Gestalt perspective provides several
principles that relate to the way our brains
organize stimuli including the closure
principle, the principle of similarity,
principle of proximity and the figure-

Gestalt psychology
Closure: people perceive an incomplete picture
as complete
Similarity: consumers group together objects
that share similar physical characteristics
Proximity: things that are near to each other
are grouped together
Figure-ground: one part of the stimulus will
dominate (the figure) while the other parts
recede into the background (ground)

Gestalt Psychology: Figure/Ground

Gestalt
Psychology:
Figure/Grou
nd

How
many
horses
?

Gestalt Psychology: Closure

Closure occurs when an object is incomplete or a space is
not completely enclosed. If enough of the shape is
indicated, people perceive the whole by filling in the
missing information.

Gestalt Psychology: Closure

Cna yuo raed tihs?

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty
uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The
phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid,
aoccdrnig to a rscheearchr at Cmabrigde
Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr
the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt
tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in
the
rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses
and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm.
Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not
raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a
wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas
tghuhot
slpeling
was
ipmorantt!

Gestalt Psychology: Similarity

Similarity - similar things are grouped
together
(size, shape, orientation)

(a) Perceived as horizontal rows or vertical

columns or both but when color added, (b)
Perceived as vertical columns

Gestalt Psychology: Proximity

Proximity - things that are near to each other

are grouped together

Gestalt Psychology: Proximity

What do you see in Figure a? What about Figure b?

Things that are close together in space or time tend to be

perceived as grouped together.
Thus, if you want your audience to associate the product with the
presenter, put them close together.
If you want them to perceive two ideas as associated, present
them in close proximity.

Semiotics
Semiotics: The field of study
that studies the correspondence
between signs and symbols and
their role in the assignment of
meaning.
From the semiotic perspective
marketing messages have three
basic components:
Object: product that is the focus of the
message
Sign: sensory image that represents

Example of Semiotic
Relationships

Perceptual Bias / Distortion

Bias means deviation from the fact or rationality.
The human brain iscapable of 10 16processes per
second , but many times it interprets the stimuli on
the basis of heuristics (mental shortcuts like
Intuition, Thumb rule, Stereotyping, Educated
guess).
Some of the Perceptual Biases are:
Physical Appearances
Stereotypes
First Impressions
Jumping to Conclusions
Halo Effect

Issues In Consumer
Imagery

Product Positioning and Repositioning

Positioning of Services
Perceived Price
Perceived Quality
Retail Store Image
Manufacturer Image
Perceived Risk
Brand perceptions = functional
attributes + symbolic attributes

Positioning

Positioning : Establishing a specific

image for a brand in relation to
competing brands.
Positioning possibilities:

Attribute positioning
Benefit positioning
Use or application positioning
User positioning
Competitor positioning
Product category positioning
Quality or price positioning

Positioning in the market place

1.ATTRIBUTE POSITIONING : Positioning on

attributes / characteristic features like

Size , no of years in existence , Culture etc..

Ex: Disneyland -Positioned as the largest
manmade park in the world.
Dove soap -Contains moisturizing cream

2. BENEFIT POSITIONING : Positioned as a

leader in certain benefit.

Honda : Economy and reliability

BMW
: Ultimate driving machine
Volvo : Safety and Durability.

Positioning in the market place

3. USE / APPLICATION POSITIONING.
Positioning for some use or application
Nestle Maggi Noodles
Positioned as a snack item
Between meals
Fast to cook, good to eat

Nestle Milkmaid
Positioned as a base for dessert preparation .

4. USER POSITIONING
Positioning the product as best for some
user group.

Red and white cigarettes

Positioned for people who are bold and brave
Give bravery awards.

Positioning in the market place

5. COMPETITOR POSITIONING
Product claims to have better
performance than competitors , ExBrooke Bond Taj Mahal Tea
Endorsed by Zakir Hussain
If you find a better tea than Taj Mahal, then Zakir
Hussain will stop playing Tabla.

6. PRODUCT CATEGORY POSITIONING

Positioning as a leader in certain category.
Maruti 1000

Launched in 1990
Only luxury car in India
Positioned as ultimate in luxury

Hero Honda

Four Stroke, fuel efficiency

Claimed as the leader in fuel efficiency Fill it, shut it, forget it

Positioning in the market place

7. QUALITY OR PRICE POSITIONING
Positioning as offering the best quality
/price
Bajaj Scooters
Lowest prices
You just cannot beat a Bajaj
Repositioned as Hamara Bajaj

Micromax, Lava, Spice mobiles

Perceptual Mapping
Perceptual mapping is a research
technique that enables marketers to plot
graphically consumers perceptions
concerning product attributes of specific
brands.
Map of where brands are perceived in
consumers minds
Used to determine how brands are currently
perceived to determine future positioning

Perceptual Map
High Price

Low C
Quality

A
D

B
F
Low Price

High
Quality

Perceptions of Product/Service
Quality
Perceived quality a perceptual
outcome generated from processing
product or service features (benefits
delivered) that leads the consumer to
make inferences about the quality of that
product or service
Dimensions of perceived quality for
durable goods: ease of use, versatility,
durability, serviceability, performance, and
prestige
Perceived high quality product
satisfaction

Risk Perception/Risk
Reduction
It refers to a perceptual process and
behavior outcomes generated from the
perception of risk in the purchase or a
product or service
Components of risk:
Severity of consequences (how bad will it be)
Uncertainty related to those consequences
(what are the chances the consequence will
occur)

Types of Risk

Functional Risk
Physical Risk
Financial Risk
Psychological Risk
Time Risk

How Consumers Handle

Risk

Seek Information
Stay Brand Loyal
Select by Brand Image
Rely on Store Image
Buy the Most Expensive Model
Seek Reassurance