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Readings Week 2

The document discusses three articles on the effects of sensory elements in marketing. The first article finds that congruence between ambient scent and music in a retail environment improves consumer evaluations and behaviors such as approach behaviors, satisfaction, and positive evaluations. The second article examines how seeing a hand touch a product online, known as "vicarious touch", increases feelings of ownership and valuation of the product. Studies show vicarious touch enhances engagement with social media posts and influences perceptions in digital environments. The third article explores how enhanced product aesthetics can discourage usage and lower enjoyment of consumption. More aesthetically pleasing products are preferred but also perceived as too valuable to use, creating tension for consumers.

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laurine.hoyo
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12 views

Readings Week 2

The document discusses three articles on the effects of sensory elements in marketing. The first article finds that congruence between ambient scent and music in a retail environment improves consumer evaluations and behaviors such as approach behaviors, satisfaction, and positive evaluations. The second article examines how seeing a hand touch a product online, known as "vicarious touch", increases feelings of ownership and valuation of the product. Studies show vicarious touch enhances engagement with social media posts and influences perceptions in digital environments. The third article explores how enhanced product aesthetics can discourage usage and lower enjoyment of consumption. More aesthetically pleasing products are preferred but also perceived as too valuable to use, creating tension for consumers.

Uploaded by

laurine.hoyo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Article 1 : Congruency of scent and music as a driver of in-store evaluations and

behavior

Research Question: How does the congruence between ambient scent and music in
terms of their arousal qualities a ect consumer evaluations and behavior in a retail
environment?

Theories Leading to the Hypotheses:

• Optimal Arousal Theory: Proposes that an optimal level of stimulation enhances the
novelty and agreeableness of the environment, positively in uencing consumer
behavior.
• Environmental Psychology: Emphasizes the impact of emotional states (pleasure
and arousal) mediated by environmental stimuli on behavior, especially in retail
contexts.

Hypotheses:

• H1: Aligning the arousal of scent and music (high/high or low/low) increases
pleasure, approach behaviors, positive perception, impulsive purchases, and
satisfaction versus discordant levels (high/low, low/high).

Research Methods and Results:

• Method: A 3x3 factorial design in a eld setting, using a gift shop context.
Lavender scent (low arousal) and grapefruit scent (high arousal), along with
classical music at varying tempos, were employed to manipulate environmental
stimuli.
• Results: Congruence in the arousal qualities of scent and music signi cantly
improved consumer evaluations and behaviors. This includes higher levels of
approach behaviors and impulsive buying, increased satisfaction, and more
positive evaluations of the retail environment.

Discussion Points / Re ections:

• The study highlights the importance of a holistic approach to sensory marketing in


retail contexts.
• Interesting to consider how speci c combinations of sensory stimuli can be
optimized for di erent types of retail environments or target demographics.
• Could the results extend to online retail contexts, where visual and auditory cues
are predominant, but olfactory cues are absent?

Potential New Research Idea:

• Explore the impact of visual stimuli (e.g., color and lighting) congruence with
auditory stimuli on consumer behavior online.
• Investigate the long-term e ects of sensory congruence on brand loyalty and
customer retention in retail.
• Assess cultural di erences in sensory perception and its implications for
international retail strategies.
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Article 2 : Observing Product Touch: The Vicarious Haptic E ect in Digital Marketing
and Virtual Reality

Main Research Question: How does vicarious touch—seeing a hand touch a product
online—a ect consumer perceptions and valuation of products in digital settings?

Theories Leading to the Hypotheses:

• Body Ownership Theory: Observing a hand touching a product can create a sense
of ownership over the product.
• Psychological Ownership Theory: Suggests that perceived ownership can enhance
the value assigned to an object.

Main Hypotheses:

• Viewing vicarious touch in digital environments increases consumers' sense of


body ownership and psychological ownership, leading to higher product valuation.

Method and Results:

Instagram Study on Vicarious Touch

• Objective: To analyze the impact of vicarious touch in Instagram brand posts on


engagement.
• Method: Evaluation of brand posts for hand presence and product interaction.
• Results: Posts featuring vicarious touch receive more likes, indicating higher
engagement.

Study on Body Ownership & Psychological Ownership

• Purpose: To explore how vicarious touch in uences perceived ownership.


• Key Results: Vicarious touch signi cantly elevates both body and psychological
ownership, a ecting product valuation.

Study on Consumer Behavior

• Findings: Vicarious touch in uences product perceptions across diverse hand


depictions and skin tones.

Studies on Touch Diagnosticity

• Key Outcome: The authenticity of touch is crucial; realistic (diagnostic) touch


enhances ownership feelings more than nondiagnostic touch.
• Insight: Marketing strategies should employ realistic touch depictions for a
stronger impact on consumers.

Study in a VR Environment

• Findings: Vicarious touch in VR impacts product evaluation and willingness to pay


(WTP), moderated by individual needs for stimulation.
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• Implications: VR retail bene ts from incorporating touch; targeting users responsive
to sensory cues increases engagement and valuation.

Findings:
• Observing touch boosts the feeling of body ownership, thereby increasing product
value.
• Psychological ownership, or the "feeling of mine," is enhanced, even with indirect
touch.

Questions/Clari cations:

• How do di erent digital environments (images vs. VR) compare in their e ectiveness at
conveying vicarious touch?

Discussion Points:

• Potential for digital retailers to integrate touch simulations in online shopping


experiences.
• Comparison with traditional retail experiences regarding consumer engagement and
satisfaction.

New Research Ideas:

• Examining the impact of vicarious touch across di erent product categories.


• Investigating the long-term e ects on consumer loyalty and trust.
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Article 3: It’s Too Pretty to Use! When and How Enhanced Product Aesthetics
Discourage Usage and Lower Consumption Enjoyment

Main Thesis: Product aesthetics deter consumers from using them, considered "too
pretty." This has a negative impact on the consumer experience.

Research Question: How does the enhanced aesthetics of products a ect their use by
consumers and their enjoyment of consumption?

Theories Leading to the Hypotheses:

• Perceived Value: Emotional or symbolic value assigned to the product is higher for
aesthetically attractive products => viewed as collectibles rather than items for
consumption.
• Fear of Use: Fear of damaging or diminishing the product's beauty => discourages
use. Consumers want to "save" and preserve this resource they consider rare.

Hypotheses:

• Products with enhanced aesthetics are less likely to be used due to their
perception as being too valuable.
• The reluctance to use these products diminishes consumption pleasure, as
consumers experience tension between the desire to preserve the product's
aesthetics and the desire to use it.

Research Methods:

• Toilet Paper: Field Study 1


◦ Superior aesthetic condition: mean = 3.77
◦ Inferior aesthetic condition: mean = 2.53
◦ Statistical test result: t(128) = –4.69, p < .001 (signi cant)
◦ Conclusion: More aesthetically pleasing toilet paper is preferred.
• Cupcake: Lab Study 2
◦ Superior aesthetic condition: mean = 5.56
◦ Inferior aesthetic condition: mean = 3.05
◦ Statistical test result: t(128) = –11.20, p < .001 (very signi cant)
◦ Conclusion: More aesthetically pleasing cupcakes are rated better.
• Napkins: Simulation Studies 3, 4, 5, and 6
◦ In all studies, superior aesthetic napkins received better ratings than inferior
ones.
◦ Statistically signi cant results.

Discussion Points / Re ections:

• The in uence of aesthetics on product perception.


• Statistical signi cance as an indicator of clear preferences.
• Potential application: The importance of aesthetics in marketing and product
design.
• How can brands design aesthetically pleasing products without discouraging their
use?
• What role can marketing communication play to mitigate the negative e ects of
enhanced aesthetics on product usage?
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Potential New Research Idea

• Investigate whether the e ect of aesthetics on usage and consumption pleasure


varies by product type (e.g., durable consumer goods vs. luxury products) or
cultural context (e.g., di erences between cultures emphasizing aesthetics vs.
utilitarianism).
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