Age Offerings Properly

How marketers frame a time span will influence how consumers respond to what’s offered. A research team at The University of British Columbia, Tilburg University, and Cornell University explored a specific example of this regarding the age of whiskey.
     A whiskey distilled for longer time is considered better. But what difference does it make if the marketer says “Distilled in 2005 and bottled in 2025,” which is a year-boundary format, or “20-year-old whiskey,” which is a length format? The researchers point out that these are equivalent in terms of whiskey quality, since, unlike with wines, whiskey which is stored properly after bottling does not improve or degrade with age.
     By analyzing a dataset of online whiskey auction listings, the researchers found that whiskeys described using primarily a length format sold for about 9% more than those using primarily a year-boundary format.
     The researchers’ explanation for the difference is that length framing elongates time perception compared with year-boundary framing, perhaps because year-boundary framing requires the consumer to compute the time duration.
     So when marketing whiskey, use length framing. Yet also recognize circumstances where the shopper considers a longer time as a sign of inferior quality. In their own companion studies and with reference to studies conducted by others, the researchers explore these circumstances. The results taken together lead to the following recommendations: 

• Use length framing in descriptions when age enhances value. For fine art and antiques, this might be, “Created 135 years ago.” For an organization wanting to convey a sense of enduring presence, this might be “In business for more than 25 years.” 
• Use year framing when greater age implies lesser value. Willingness to pay for secondhand goods should be higher with, “2015 model,” than, “11 years old.” 
• With products, such as wines, where quality could continue to improve through aging after bottling, but updating a length description on the individual bottle is impractical, post length framing on a shelf tag: “Bottled in 2021. Five years old.” Similarly, when a year is an important component of the item description, length framing could be added: “For Sale. Indian Banks 1699 Colonial-style house. Solidly built 327 years ago.” 
• Year framing tends to make financial payoffs seem closer. “Profitable by 2029” is better than “Profitable in three years.” When loan repayment completion is stated as length—“Paid off in ten years”—consumers place greater weight on time and less on interest rates.

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Use Familiar Measurement Units 

Cross Time Markers for Positive Experiences

Image at top of post based on photo by Poul Hoang from Unsplash

Sweeten Shoppers with Baby Talk

The way in which a brand name is pronounced influences the brand’s personality. In a study at University of Dundee and Nanyang Technological University, a toilet bowl cleaner given the name Goz was rated by study participants as stronger than one given the name Pas. A skin conditioner named Pota was rated as gentler than one named Vig.
     More generally, brand names containing solely consonant sounds produced with vocal cord vibration—b, d, g, v, or z—tend to be perceived as harsh, and those containing consonant sounds produced without vocal cord vibration—p, t, k, f, or s—tend to be perceived as mild. The finding holds true across languages and cultures, so is especially useful when marketers are choosing a name for a new product which will be sold internationally.
     Parallel findings hold true for how syllables in a brand name are pronounced. See if you can guess results from a related study, this one at The University of Tokyo, Chukyo University, and University of Dundee. The experimental question: For consumers seeking a sweet treat they’ve not heard about before, which brand name from each of these three pairs is more likely to be preferred and why? 

• Fipefipe or Fipeseti 
• Tepikipi or Tepitepi 
• Zopivuke or Zopizopi

     Want a hint? Look again at the title of this post and the image at the top.
     Ready to check which name from each pair was found to be more strongly associated with sweetness?
     Fipefipe, Tepitepi, and Zopizopi. Those are the alternatives in which the syllable sound repeats. The explanation was found to be that such repetition reminds consumers of baby talk, and consumers’ brains associate the cuteness of babies with sensations of sweetness. For example, across cultures internationally, some version of “I could just gobble you up” is often a response to something adorable.
     Two significant characteristics of these studies to notice as you think about applying the results: First, the brand names were not read aloud to participants, nor were participants instructed to read the names aloud. The effect depends on how the brand names are pronounced, but does not depend on consumers having heard the brand names pronounced, such as in a radio ad.
     Second, in all of the studies, the products were described as new to the marketplace. Existing products will have already established associations. Changing that name might have quite limited impact in selling more sweets.

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Cue Indulgence with Cute 

Throw Shoppers a Curve with Cursive 

Cue Adult Caring with Baby Cuteness 

Sweeten Treat Sales by Being a Sweet Thing

Align PWYW Cost Structure with Value

To broaden availability for financially constrained consumers of offerings like museum visits, dance workshops, and online courses, the provider could feature a “Pay What You Want” (PWYW) policy. Then to maintain financial viability of the offering, the provider would want purchasers to pay as much as they could. Findings by a set of researchers at University of Surrey, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, and University of Zurich point to a method for doing this.
     In presenting the method, the researchers distinguish between what they call alignable and non-alignable costs. A provider’s alignable costs are those which align with value to the consumer. With a museum, this might be the fees for mounting an exhibit of famous works. With an online course, it might be the fees paid to skilled teachers. On the other hand, a provider’s non-alignable costs are understood as necessary, but as not by themselves providing consumer value. Examples include advertising, rent, and utility bills.
     The researchers recommend describing alignable costs as part of a PWYW offer. This requires the provider to carefully determine what the consumer will value and to ensure that this is an integral part of what’s offered. To help the consumer decide on a fair price, the researchers recommend also including a reference price—how much is usually charged for the offering.
     A provider disclosing information about themselves, such as about their costs, establishes a sense of trust and fairness which can increase PWYW amounts. But the researchers recommend listing the types of costs, not the actual monetary numbers. The numbers can be hard to estimate because they depend on usage volume, and for an expensive offering of superb quality, the actual high money figure could alienate an economically challenged consumer rather than persuade them to maximize their voluntary toll.
     In one of the studies, participants were offered PWYW enrollment in a workshop by ImPulsTanz, Europe’s largest contemporary dance festival sponsor. Prospects given alignable cost structure information (“…pay the renowned workshop teachers from all over the world”) paid about 46% more than those not given cost structure information or those given only non-alignable cost structure information (“…renting the venue… as well as the costs for the workshop office and staff …”).
     In another of the studies, the alignable cost structure appeal proved especially effective with low-pay customers--those who would have paid less than half the reference price amount otherwise.

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Serve the Underserved 

Encourage Customers to Pay What’s Right 

Disclose Yourself to Radiate Authenticity

Pay Mind to Seniors’ Theory of Mind

When persuading others or when others are attempting to persuade you, a valuable skill is you accurately perceiving the beliefs, emotions, desires, and intentions of the others. Findings from researchers at University of Turin and University of Udine suggest that this skill—called Theory of Mind (TOM)—fades as we enter our senior years.
     In the studies, participants completed tasks such as reporting what one character in a story believes another character is thinking and inferring the emotions a person is experiencing based on seeing a photograph of their eyes. Accuracy was significantly lower among the participants age 65 years and above than among participants ages 20 to 40 years.
     These findings modify impressions from anecdotal evidence that older adults can lack performance speed, but bring greater wisdom than younger people do. In fact, seniors may be deficient in real-time social wisdom and emotional intelligence.
     From a marketing perspective, this means you could benefit seniors by verbalizing your intentions and emotional reactions while selling to them.
     From a public policy perspective, a concern is that seniors are especially susceptible to scams because of inabilities to accurately determine the intentions and truthfulness of salespeople. Advanced age brings with it an increased trust in people. The elderly may not realize they’re being cheated, instead attributing their losses to miscommunication or the good intentions of the marketer having gone wrong. Rigidity in thinking—which could be experienced as feeling that changing your mind shows weakness—contributes to the problem.
     From a preventive health perspective, techniques for improving TOM skills in seniors might head off the social isolation and increased dementia risk associated with another perceptual deficit—hearing loss. An additional study finding indicates what such techniques might be: Elderly study participants who reported a history of cognitively demanding occupations showed less deterioration in TOM abilities. Continuing engagement in complex social interactions and problem-solving tasks, whether through a job, volunteering, or structured activities, should be helpful.
     From still another perspective, beyond what happens to mindreading abilities as one ages, there’s the matter of how much the elderly really care about other people’s thinking. Older adults place less importance on accumulating power or demonstrating expertise than do their younger counterparts. We could say that seniors become relatively less sensitive to peer pressure. It’s probably most true for the oldest among us. When you’re 100 years old, let’s say, there aren’t so many peers around.

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Sandbag Senior Swindles 

Slice Open the Minds of the Elderly 

Skewer Status Appeals to Seniors

Vibrate Shoppers into Purchase Excitement

When seeking desire fulfillment, a gently vibrating massage often brings bonus pleasure.
     A set of University of St. Gallen studies applies that truth to ecommerce. A medium-duration vibration on a shopper’s mobile phone while the shopper is looking at attractive alternatives leads to more item purchases and higher shopping basket totals. In the studies, addition of a vibration signal increased item adds by 3% to 18%. The researchers explain this effect as the result of a learned association between vibrations on a mobile phone and a rewarding event, such as arrival of a message or completion of a step count goal.
     In one of the studies, the impact of vibration on positive consumer response was stronger than the impact of a visual signal or a sound. Regarding this finding, the researchers note that shoppers usually receive a multitude of sights and sounds moment-to-moment, while the haptic stimulation of vibration is distinctive.
     Because the mobile phone vibrations signaling positive events are generally of medium duration, the best purchase motivation vibration might be of medium duration. Indeed, a vibration of about 400 milliseconds produced a greater reward response among study participants than did a notably shorter or notably longer duration.
     The researchers caution that the effect they’ve described could be put to unethical use. They recommend that marketers inform consumers about the effect and limit use of vibration signals in marketing of potentially addictive behaviors—such as online gambling—and with especially persuadable audiences—such as children.
     These studies fit with other research showing how sensory stimulation of a consumer in association with a product leads to positive results. Researchers at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Université Laval, and University of Massachusetts find sensations experienced on or in the body can convince the consumer of product effectiveness.
     In one of their studies, participants read an ad which stated, “Introducing HerbLife Balm. Our yellow balm is made from herbs such as turmeric and prai. To use the product, rub and massage a small amount on the affected area. This balm improves your physical performance.”
     The participants were then instructed to apply the balm to their arm. For some of the participants, the balm had been formulated to produce a tingling sensation shortly after application. For the other participants, the balm formulation was identical except that the ingredient producing tingling was omitted.
     Those experiencing tingles were more likely to buy the balm.

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Reach Out for What Will Touch Your Shoppers 

Rough Up Customers a Bit 

Fizz Fizz to Generate Effectiveness Perception

Dig Into Best Digital Display Practices

Digital signage—electronic screens showing video ads to shoppers in a retail store—increased likelihood of purchasing the advertised items by an average of about 8% in a study by researchers at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Babson College.
     The study covered 237 advertising campaigns and 30 million shoppers. Because of the size of the sample and use of techniques to separate the effects of digital signage from the effects of other influences on purchasing, the researchers were able to specify circumstances in which digital signage was most effective. The researchers cite prior study findings in explaining why each of these matters.
     Among the best circumstances for use of digital signage are: 

• Display close to the shelved product. When the digital signage is placed close to the product being advertised, the impact on the shopper is at a crucial moment in the purchase decision process, with an increased probability of a motivating impulse. 
• For hedonic products with emotional appeal. Impulse buying is more likely with products purchased for the joy during use than for products purchased for the outcome after use. 
• For popular brands and low-priced items. Shoppers are more comfortable assuming the risk of buying on impulse when the item carries a well-recognized brand name or is offered at an especially low price. 
• For store visits later in the day. Another shopping motivation is variety seeking, and variety seeking increases when the shopper is fatigued, as happens later in the day.

     The researchers also point to characteristics of the specific use of digital signage in their field studies which might be expected to enhance the effectiveness: The display screens were in highly-frequented aisles, the video began playing as a shopper approached the screen, and the screens emitted sound to accompany the elements moving on the screen.
     Relevant to this last characteristic, researchers at King's College London, University of Bath, and Babson College explored the usefulness of stimulating multiple senses with digital displays, including an example of McCain Foods arranging for the display device to emit a baked potatoes odor. The study results indicated moderate stimulation works best. We don’t want to overwhelm the shopper to the point of disrupting the item selection process.
     Other research also points to the value of attending to characteristics of item movement in the display. For example, it’s best to show luxury products by zooming out and to show any product as being rotated.

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Display Interpersonal Warmth Above Digital Ads 

Reduce Risk Fears by Introducing Choices 

Slip Variety into Sleepy Shopper Selling 

Zoom In on Using Zoom Out for Luxury 

Turn It Around for the Sale