Let’s say your shopper is evaluating dining room tables on the basis of table size. Which of these two will sound larger? “4 by 5 feet.” “48 by 60 inches.”
The traditional consumer psychology answer is that the second one will sound larger because the numbers are larger. Researchers at Ghent University in Belgium and Tilburg University in the Netherlands asked consumers to compare the advantages of a seven-year warranty and a nine-year warranty. To one group, the duration was stated as seven years compared to nine years. To another group, the identical duration was stated as 84 months compared to 108 months. Those consumers presented the months figures saw the difference between the warranties as larger than did the consumers hearing the comparison in years.
However, more recent research, at University of South Carolina and Virginia Tech, finds that if the shopper is considering making the purchase at an indefinite point in the future, not right now, the “4 by 5 feet” description generally sounds larger than “48 by 60 inches.” This is because consumers who are gathering information for future use tend to process measurement information in terms of units rather than numbers. Feet are larger than inches.
The South Carolina/Virginia researchers uncovered this effect not only with table sizes, but also with perceptions of the time of maturity of financial products, the weight of nutrients, and the height of buildings. Consumers who are looking for large for imminent purchases respond better to larger numbers, so quote in smaller units. Those who anticipate making the purchase, but aren’t sure how far in the future it will be, respond better to quantity quotes using larger measurement units, even though the numerals will be less.
It also works with delivery times. Here, let’s say you need to tell the purchaser about a delay. When is it better to say, “Your product will be arriving in three weeks, not one week,” and when should you use, “Your product will be arriving in 21 days instead of 7”?
If the customer is anxiously awaiting the arrival in order to start using the item, favor the first wording. In this case, the customer is looking for small. If the customer’s focus is instead on, “I made the purchase then because it was a great price, but I won’t be using the item right away,” describe the delay in terms of days.
Click below for more:
Number Costs and Benefits for Desired Effects
Clarify Item Advantages via Pricing
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