We'd like our shoppers to have positive attitudes towards items we prefer them to purchase and actions we'd like them to take. Your customers make most of these decisions quickly. Classic research at University of Michigan showed how people form attitudes so they don't have to get bogged down thinking through every purchase. Attitudes are snapshot expressions of the consumer's values and concerns.
To build the right attitudes, start by realizing that each attitude—positive or negative—is composed of three parts which feed into each other:
Belief. For instance, "You get more value for your money when using a coupon from a manufacturer than a coupon from a store because the store gets reimbursed by the manufacturer for the discount." The belief might be mistaken, but unless you know what the belief is, you can't be sure.
Emotion. "Getting a bargain other people aren't getting makes me feel warm all over." These are emotions, like happy, sad, confused, or embarrassed. When shopping, most consumers will experience only one strong emotion at any one time. Emotions are somewhat tougher for you to change than are beliefs. Your best chance is to create a positive tone in your advertising and personal selling and to then work on the beliefs, which indirectly affect the emotions.
Intention. "I'll buy the products where I have a manufacturer's coupon in hand." Intentions are the closest of the three to the consumer taking action, so it's to your benefit to know what your customers intend to do.
Well-designed consumer attitude questionnaires and focus groups will analyze beliefs, emotions, and intentions, not just one or two of the three. In personal selling, pay attention to signs of all three. That way, you'll know what actions to take to build attitudes useful to both your customers and you.
No comments:
Post a Comment