Down or Right Lines for Limitation Effects

On websites or store signage, retailers may use horizontal and/or vertical lines to divide offerings into categories. Shoppers appreciate categorization. It heads off being mentally overloaded by all the alternatives.
     But researchers at Minnan Normal University and Xiamen University discovered a downside of the dividing lines: Their use can cause shoppers to perceive a lower quantity of total alternatives available. This, in turn, can lower satisfaction with the purchase. A related effect is that, when there is a dividing line on the page, viewers devote outsized attention to what is delineated as the topmost or leftmost category. The shopper might miss out on spotting the available alternative which would best satisfy their needs.
     These effects were seen in studies of verbal listings—food items on a menu—and pictorial images—profile photos on a dating website—and with Chinese consumers as well as consumers from an American culture.
     One of the studies also demonstrated a way to minimize the downsides when using lines: A color block highlighting the area below a horizontal dividing line reduced the tendency to underestimate the total number of running shoe items in a catalog.
     Another of the studies showed an upside of the downside when using dividing lines: People perceiving a lower quantity of flower bouquet alternatives because of use of a dividing line were more interested in purchasing a bouquet than were those people viewing the assortment without a dividing line. The researchers attribute this to consumers associating limited quantity with higher quality.
     Other research results recommend consideration of how categories are defined by the dividing lines. Most shoppers appreciate categorization by price, and some appreciate categorization by brand name. However, beyond that, novices and experts have different preferences for how you set up the categories. Novices—people less familiar with the product category—prefer the items to be categorized by what the alternatives can do for them. Experts—people who consider themselves to be highly knowledgeable about the product category—prefer items to be categorized by technical specifications.
     Research at University of Pittsburgh and University of South Carolina finds that experts also are attracted to categorization in ways that surprise them. Sporting equipment might be categorized by the sizes of the items. Power tools might be categorized by the type of job they could be used to complete. Clothing might be categorized by color. Foods might be categorized by country of origin.

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