Executive Summary:
How can your product become memorable in the minds of consumers? New research by Priyali Rajagopal of SMU Cox and co-author Nicole Montgomery shows that vivid, imagery-evoking information more heavily influences memory, attitudes and behaviors than does pallid, more "humdrum" information. By processing high-imagery ads, viewers go beyond mere reaction and into the realm of memory-a powerful tool for marketers. These novel findings will disturb public policymakers with regard to children's advertising and consumer watchdog groups, especially since advertising is self-regulated.
Past research has demonstrated that product experience leads to stronger attitudes as compared to attitudes that are based on indirect product experience such as exposure to advertising. And attitude strength is important, since stronger attitudes are more predictive of behavior than weaker attitudes. Rajagopal mentions that much of the literature about attitudes has focused on which product is better liked, rather than how to make these attitudes stronger. She says little is known about the effects of imagery on attitude strength, and she and co-author wondered about false memory creation as well when diving into their research path.
Imagine That
Recent research in psychology has suggested that imagery increases people's confidence that an event occurred in the past, a phenomenon termed "imagination inflation." That is, the act of imagining an event may create a false memory for that event. A false memory may consist of a mistaken belief that a fictitious event occurred (e.g., being lost in a mall as a child) or a distortion of an event that actually did occur (e.g., meeting Bugs Bunny at Disneyland instead of Mickey Mouse). Rajagopal explains, "If you can expose people to vivid ads, they're going to believe they've actually tried the product. In our study, we show a single ad for a fictitious product: one week later, a large percentage of respondents they told us they have tried the product or used it. And they are very confident about their opinions about the product."
The authors suggest that if false memories are implanted through imagery, these false memories may exhibit some effects that are similar to genuine product experience. That high imagery advertising can create false memories in consumers has important implications for marketers, consumers, and public policy makers. From a marketing standpoint, the use of imagery advertising can strengthen consumer attitudes, offering greater resistance to competitors' persuasion and greater correlations with purchase behavior. Hence, the use of high-imagery advertising holds positive consequences for marketers.
But from the standpoint of consumers and public policymakers, the implications are not as benign. The creation of false memories through advertising suggests that consumers may be vulnerable to being misled into believing that they have tried products which they have not. "For public policymakers, I think this is a huge red flag," Rajagopal comments. "This research shows that consumers are very vulnerable to misleading assumptions as to what they've tried and have not. Thus believing you have tried a product, you have more favorable attitudes; are more likely to try the product again; and are more confident about the brand." Thus, the use of high-imagery advertising needs careful scrutiny in terms of its ethical implications.
Power of False Memory
The effects of false memories have been found to be strong enough to impact attitudes and future behaviors. "If you think you've tried something, you actually act as if you've tried it, "Rajagopal says. "This strongly impacts how strong your attitudes are, which is scary. The whole notion of attitude strength is shown to increase behavioral intentions: if you believe you've tried, you hold your beliefs firmly, and are more resistance to overturning them or changing your opinion."
Thus it follows: exposure to an advertisement containing imagery-evoking information that describes using a product or service may create a false memory. Consumers may confuse their imaginary experiences with actual experience. If consumers incorrectly believe that they have direct experience with a product, they would likely display stronger attitudes that are equivalent to those of consumers that actually used the product.
From threes studies in the research, the first one (study 1) finds that imagery leads to strong attitudes. Imagery has effects on attitude strength similar to that of direct experience in study 3 (which used Orville Redenbacher popcorn as their object of study). The creation of false product experience memories impacts attitude strength in study 2. Further, the authors showed that the effects of imagery on attitude strength hold across two different mediums - radio and print.
Implications
The finding that exposure to even a single imagery-evoking ad can create false product experience memories would suggest that consumers need to be vigilant while processing high-imagery advertisements. Thus, there is a need for public policymakers to study the effects of imagery advertising carefully. Rajagopal adds, "To me, this research is the most interesting from a public policy standpoint, and of the most concern with respect to children."
Specifically, because of the ethical concerns associated with false memory creation via advertising, children's product advertising should to be addressed in this light. Rajagopal thinks that television advertising would yield even more dramatic effects than print and radio given the coupled sensations of sound and visual impacts.
The results also suggest that imagery can be an effective and useful tool for the marketing of products and service that are aimed at improving consumer welfare. Rajagopal advises marketers: "High-imagery advertising is a good tool, but you must insure the attitudes generated are favorable. If the ads are not liked, then accomplishing goals becomes harder. Because you are getting strong attitudes with high images, it's a very good, low-cost way to get many effects."
"The effects of imagery, false memory and experience on attitude strength" by Priyali Rajagopal and Nicole Montgomery in under review at Journal of Consumer Research.
Written by Jennifer Warren. |
