The average supermarket has 30,000

individuals item
How many of these shall
catch your attention
Things to Ponder
Each television network shows 6,000
commercials per week.
How many of these are we able to watch?
How many of these are we able to watch
and remember
How many of these are we able to watch
and remember and recall?
 PERCEPTION

We are about to perceive the

topic perception
What is this?
C
A

L
Perception is defined as the process by which
an individual selects,
selects organizes and interprets
stimuli into a meaningful and coherent picture
of the world
The study of perception is largely the study of
what we subconsciously add to or subtract
from raw sensory inputs to produce our own
private picture of the world
The process of perception has three
sub stages /Elements of Perception
1. Sensation–When a person is exposed to any of the marketing
stimuli or an ad, the first reflex that is initiated in him/her is
known as sensation. How, one responds to a stimulus received
by any of our five senses is called sensation.
 Stimuli is any unit of input to any of the senses
2. Organization – Categorizing by matching sensed stimulus
with similar object in memory, e.g. colour and music

3. Interpretation– Attaching meaning to stimulus, making

judgments as to value and liking, e.g. bitter taste
 
 Information Processing for Consumer
Decision Making
Exposure
Ransom
Deliberate
Attention
Low and High
Involvement
Interpretation
Low and High
Involvement
Memory
Perception
Short Term
and Long
Term
Purchase and
Consumption
Decisions
Sensation itself depends on energy change, the
difference of input.
Absolute threshold and differential
threshold
Sunil Nair and Harish Godbole are traveling to
Lonavala. Will Sunil and Harish notice the billboard
on the highway at the same time?
Absolute threshold
The lowest degree of sensory inputs at which the
consumer becomes aware of a sensation is called the
absolute threshold.

In the three hours journey from Panvel to Lonavala for

how long will Sunil and Harish be able to notice the
Billboards that may come on their way?
 Adaptation
In the field of perception the term adaptation refers to “getting
used to.”
Sensory adaptation is a problem that concerns many TV
advertisers, that is one reason why ads keeps changing during
the campaigns regularly.
“The price of coffee has increased now, in our childhood it was
not so high.”

Did you feel you heard it from your mother or father.

Do you really feel that the price increased all of a sudden?
The Differential Threshold
The minimal level of difference that can be detected
between two similar stimuli is the differential
threshold or j.n.d (just noticeable difference)
In other words, it is the minimal amount of change in a
stimulus that can be consciously detected by a person.
This concept is given by a German scientist named
Ernst Weber in 19th century
Marketing Application of JND
Useful in seeing negative changes (e.g., reduction
in product size or reduction in product quality, or
increase in product price, or decrease in pack size)
are not readily discernible (visible) to
public.200g.191g,182g,170g
So that the product improvements (such as
improved or updated packaging, larger size, lower
price) are very apparent to consumers without
being wastefully extravagant.
Negative Changes and j.n.d
Mix of inferior quality of coffee beans (but within
the j.n.d) when the cost of coffee beans increase
without changing the price of the coffee.
Change of number of diapers or napkins in a
packet. Say 10 diapers were costing 90 rupees.
Instead 9 diapers will be placed and the cost will
be 90 rupees only and the consumer usually
doesn’t notice this change in the number of
diapers. But the company is actually increasing the
price of diaper by one rupee but still not increasing
the pack price instead reducing the quantity by one
 Stage 1
Example to illustrate the application
Of j.n.d

LaserPrinter 4029
Stage 2
by LEXMARK
LEXMARK
LaserPrinter 4029
IBM LaserPrinter 4029
By Stage 3 Stage 4
LEXMARK
J.N.D
Marketers often want to upgrade or change its
labeling and packaging without losing the ready
recognition by consumers who have been exposed
to years of cumulative advertising impact. In such
cases, they usually make a number of small
changes, each carefully designed to fall below the
j.n.d., so that consumers will not perceive any
difference.
IBM changing to Lexmark is one such example
Negative Changes and j.n.d

Consumer reports magazine reported that for five rolls of

P&G’s paper napkin bought in succession, the contents
dropped steadily from 85 to 70 square feet. Despite the fact
that the adjusted quantity is usually listed on the package label,
most consumers do not notice it, because the package size
remains the same. (This practice is referred to as packaging-to-
price or packaging-to-size)
Aspects of Perception

Selection

Organization

Interpretation
 Perceptual Selection
Concepts

Selective Exposure  Consumers seek out

Selective Attention messages which:
 Are pleasant
Perceptual Defense  They can sympathize
Perceptual Blocking  Reassure them of good
purchases
 heavy smokers avoid
articles on cigarette
smoking leading to cancer
 Perceptual Selection
Concepts

elective Exposure  Heightened awareness

Selective when stimuli meet their
Attention/Perceptual needs
vigilance
er
 Perceptual Selection
Concepts

 Screening out of stimuli

which are threatening
Perceptual Defense
 Perceptual Selection
Concepts

 Consumers avoid being

bombarded by:
 Tuning out

Perceptual Blocking
 Marketing Implication: Grabbing
Consumers’ Attention

Consumers are bombarded with product

information and advertisements each day
Companies have the formidable task of breaking
through the clutter to attract consumers’
attention which is due to selective perception
 Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
Connect with consumers’ needs
People are attentive to stimuli perceived as
relevant to their needs
Gaining consumers’ attention might require
reminding them of their needs
Use permission marketing: asking
consumers for their permission to send them
product-related materials
 Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
Pay consumers to pay attention
Getting attention with motion
Stimuli in motion are more likely to attract consumers than
stationary ones
POP displays may use moving parts and ads may use
simulated motion.
Example use of cartoons in premises of shopping complex
Use isolation
Place only a few stimuli in an
otherwise barren perceptual field
Use of Isolation and Contrast
This simple Ford Mustang billboard isn’t painted - it was
actually created using a special type of semi-transparent
material that blurs the scene behind it to make it look like
you’re moving really fast, regardless of weather.
Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
Make it bigger
Larger ads and larger pictures within
those ads tend to grab more attention
than smaller ones
Products have a greater chance of
being noticed as the size or amount of
shelf space allotted to them increases
Colors are nice
The attention-grabbing and holding
power of an ad may be increased
sharply with use of color
Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
Make it more intense
Loud sounds and bright colors are more
likely to attract attention

Location affects attention

Products may gain more attention
depending on where in the store they
are located (end-of-aisle or eye-level)
More attention is given to ads
appearing in the front of magazines
Upper-left corner gets most attention
Using Unexpected Stimuli

to Grab Attention
 Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
The surprise factor
Stimuli congruent with our expectations may
receive less attention than those which
deviate from what is expected
Ads and packaging may feature unusual
elements to gain attention
Example the new Idea Ad ?????
Distinctiveness
Products, ads, and packaging may be
altered to stand-out from others using
color and other elements of design
Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
The human attraction
Celebrities can attract attention in ads
and on packaging
Attractive people, often scantly
dressed, attract attention for a variety
of products and brands

The entertainment factor

Stimuli that entertain and amuse us draw
our attention, even if they happen to come
in the form of an ad.
Example: Cheer blossom shoe polish Ad
Grabbing Consumers’ Attention
Learned attention-inducing stimuli
Some stimuli attract attention because
we have learned to react to them
We react to sounds, such as doorbells,
and words, such as free and sale

Find a less-cluttered environment

This includes less-cluttered advertising
mediums and consumer environments.
Hutch mobile care taker van
Andhra Bank Mobile ATM are examples
Attracting Consumers’ Attention
Can consumers be influenced if
they don’t pay attention?
Subliminal persuasion: notion that
people are influenced by stimuli
below our conscious level of
awareness
The use of subliminal messages is
prevalent today
The ability of subliminal stimuli to
affect consumer behavior is highly
questionable
Subliminal perception
Stimuli that are too weak or too brief to be consciously
seen or heard may nevertheless be strong enough to be
perceived by one or more receptor cells.
Perception of stimuli that are above the level of
conscious awareness is called supraliminal perception
Experiment
The effectiveness of so called subliminal advertising was
reportedly tested at a drive-in-movie in New Jersy in
1957, where the words “Eat popcorn” and “Drink Coca-
Cola” were flashed on the screen during the movie.
Exposure time was so short that the viewers were
unaware of seeing a message.

Results of the Experiment

It was reported that during the 6 week test period,
popcorn sales increased 58% and Coca-Cola sales
increased 18%.
Research
In one study, people were visually exposed to the word
“beef” for 1/200th of a second every seven seconds.
At the end of the experiment, the people in the test
group reported being hungrier than those in the control
group, who did not receive the messages.
However when asked to choose from a menu where
beef was also a dish few chose beef
 Social Implications of Subliminal Perception
Useful in learning a foreign language
Or breaking a bad habit
Improve willpower
To reduce weight

The tapes play relaxing music or some sound of ocean waves

and contain subliminal messages not perceptible to the ear but
supposedly recognizable to the subconscious mind. (I chew
slowly, I eat less, I am capable, and so on)
Marketing Implications of Subliminal
Perception
 Along with the use in purchase of the product by the
subconsciously entering into the evoked set there
are other uses like:
1. Motivate the employees
2. Discourage the shoplifting
Topsy-turvy Ad
This ad is something different and it gains
attention by being different from
expectations and makes the readers take a
little extra time to see this ad.
McDonald’s has done this several times to
gain attention.
Aspects of Perception

Selection

Organization

Interpretation
 Organization
Principles

Figure and ground  People tend to organize

Grouping perceptions into figure-and-
Closure ground relationships.
 The ground is usually hazy.
Figure is clearer
 Marketers usually design so
the figure is the noticed
stimuli.
Perceptual Organization

People do not experience the numerous

stimuli they select from the environment as
separate and discrete sensations; they tend to
organize them into groups and perceive them
as unified wholes.
Specific principles underlying perceptual
organization are referred to as Gestalt
psychology.
Meaning of Gestalt, in German, means
patterns or configuration
Figure and Ground Principle
 Figure and Ground Principle

Ground Figure
Pretty Lady Old women
 Figure and Ground Principle
When this figure was shown to one 35 year-old lady
secretary after returning to work following an automobile
accident.
She described that there was an old lady.
It took great deal of time to explain to her that the picture
has a smartly dressed young woman.
Figure and Ground Principle
The figure is usually perceived clearly because, in
contrast to its ground, it appears to be well defined,
solid and in the forefront.
The ground, however, is usually perceived as
indefinite, hazy and continuous.
The common line that separates the figure and the
ground is perceived as belonging to the figure, rather
than to the ground, which helps give the figure greater
definition.
 Figure and Ground

In fact, the word Gestalt means a unified or

meaningful whole

Ground Figure flower

Two persons faces Vase
Figure and Ground

Basically, we seem to have an innate tendency to

perceive one aspect of an event as the figure or fore-
ground and the other as the ground or back-ground. 
There is only one image here, and yet,
by changing nothing but our attitude, we can see two
different things.  It doesn’t even seem to be possible to
see them both at the same time
Marketing Application
Advertisers have to plan their advertisements carefully
to make sure that the stimulus they want noted is seen
as figure and not as ground.
Example the musical background must not overwhelm
the jingle
Marketing Application
In some cases for extra attention there is a blurring of
figure and ground is deliberate.
The Absolut Vodka campaign- which started in 1981 –
often runs prints ads in which the figure (the shape of
Absolut bottle) is poorly delineated against its ground,
but readers are conditioned to search for the shape of
the Absolut bottle, which is usually cleverly hidden in
the ad.
 Organization
Principles

Figure and ground  People group stimuli to

Grouping form a unified impression
Closure or concept.
 Grouping helps memory
and recall.
 OXXXXXXXXXX
XOXXXXXXXXX
XXOXXXXXXXX
XXXOXXXXXXX
XXXXOXXXXXX
XXXXXOXXXXX The law of similarity
XXXXXXOXXXX says that we will tend to
XXXXXXXOXXX
XXXXXXXXOXX
group similar items
XXXXXXXXXOX together, to see them as
XXXXXXXXXXO forming a gestalt, within a
larger form. 
It is just natural for us to see the o’s as a line within a field of x’s.
 Organization
Principles

Figure and ground  People have a need for

Grouping closure and organize
Closure perceptions to form a
complete picture.
 Will often fill in missing
pieces
 Incomplete messages
remembered more than
complete
Closure
The law of closure says that, if something is missing
in an otherwise complete figure, we will tend to add it. 
A triangle, for example, with a small part of its edge
missing, will still be seen as a triangle.  We will
“close” the gap.
Perceptual Interpretation
Perceptual Interpretation
Distorting influences: individuals are subject to a
number of influences that tend to distort their
perception
Physical Appearance
Stereotypes
Irrelevant cues
First impressions
Jumping to conclusions
Halo effect
Physical Appearance

Studies on physical appearance have found that

attractive models are more persuasive and have more
positive influence on consumer attitudes and behaviour
than average-looking models
Stereotypes
The stereotypes serve as expectations of what specific
situations, people or events will be like and they are
important determinants of how such stimuli are
subsequently perceived.
Kingfisher
Swiss watch is country-of-origin stereotype
Kingfisher
Kingfisher Airlines


But due to Stereotype

Impact of kingfisher
beverages Consumers
tend forget the kingfishers
airlines
Irrelevant cues
When required to form a difficult perceptual judgment,
consumers often respond to irrelevant stimuli
Example: many high-priced automobiles are purchased
because of their colour or because of luxury options
rather than on the basis of mechanical or technical
superiority
First impressions
Jumping to conclusions

Many people tend to jump to conclusions before

examining all the relevant evident.
So, many copywriters are careful not to save their most
persuasive arguments are benefits in the last part of the
message
Halo effect
Walmart name is being used by Bharati retail and
it will pay royalty for using the name.
Historically, the halo effect has been used to
describe situations in which the evaluation of a
single object or person on a multitude of
dimensions is based on the evaluation of just one
or a few dimensions (e.g., a man is trustworthy,
fine and noble because he looks into your eyes
when he speaks)
Marketing Implication Halo effect
The consumer behaviorists broaden the notion of
the halo effect to include the evaluation of multiple
objects (e.g., a product line) on the basis of the
evaluation of just one dimension (a brand name or
a spokesperson)
Using this broader definition, marketers take
advantage of the halo effect when they extend a
brand name associated with one line of products to
another.
Consumer Imagery
Product and services images
Perceived price
Perceived quality
Retail store image
manufacturer’s image
Brand image
Product and Services Images
The image that a product or service has in the mind of
the consumer – that is, its positioning – is probably
more important to its ultimate success than are its
actual characteristics
Marketers try to position their brands so that they are
perceived by the consumer as fitting into a distinctive
niche in the marketplace
Product and Services Images
Positioning strategy
Perceptual mapping
Perceived Price
How a consumer perceives a price – as high, as low, as
fair – has a strong influence on both purchase
intensions and purchase satisfaction.
Reference price is any price that a consumer uses as a
basis for comparison in judging another price
Reference price can be external or internal
Price Images
External reference price: this is what the company puts
as price tag.
Usually an advertiser uses a higher external reference
price
Internal reference price: are those prices retrieved by
the consumer from memory.
 Product Class of Chocolates
Cadbury’s ----- Nestle, Amul,
But if we consider the ‘product class’ of festival
season gifts, consumers may position a decorative box
of chocolates against packaged and branded Halwa or
even Parle or other Candy brands and even, perhaps, a
pocket transistor.
transistor
Position of
Milkmaid
and Sprint
Violators of Traditional Boundaries
Pond’s Cold Cream had a comfortable position until
suddenly the Lakme’s Winter Care Lotion with a rude
shock – being described as a ‘greasy cold cream.’
Lakme claimed that its product as ‘Cold cream +
moisturiser in one.’
ITC wills plain shirts –discounts upto 30%
ITC wills on all products – 20 to 30%
Price Images
The semantic cues (i.e., specific wording) of the
phrase used to communicate the price-related
information may affect consumers’ price perception.
Save 10 to 40%, save up to 40% or save 20% or more
are Tensile Price claims
Save 25% is Objective price claims
Bundle pricing has more positive impact than single
pricing
Perceived Quality
Consumers often judge the quality of a product or
service on the basis of a variety of informational cues
that they associate with the product.
Some of these cues are intrinsic or extrinsic to the
product or service
Intrinsic Perceived Quality
Physical characteristic of the product
Colour (white, red, brown)
Size (75ml, 100ml)
Flavor (light, strong)
Aroma (mild, pungent)
Extrinsic Perceived Quality
These are external to product
Price
Brand image
Manufacturer’s image
Retail store image
Even the country of origin
Retail Store Image
When a low-priced store carries a brand with a high-
price image, the image of the store will improve, while
the image of the brand will be adversely affected.
Manufacturer’s Image
Researchers have found that consumers generally have
favorable perception of pioneer brands (the first in a
product category).
Manufacturers who enjoy a favorable image generally
find that their new products are accepted more readily
than those of manufacturer who have a less favorable
image.
Brand Image
Brand image is defined as the set of associations
linked to the brand that consumers hold in memory.