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At the end of this chapter, you must be able to explain the following:
1. The e ect of conditioning in learning.
2. How consumers learn about the product by observing others.
3. How consumers process and retain their memory about the product.
Learning is a process by which the consumer acquire knowledge about purchase and
consumption.
Learning by experience permanently shaped consumer’s behaviour. To learn by experience,
consumer need to feel the experience directly. However, consumer can also learn by observing
the conduct of others. Incidental learning is when the consumer unintentional learn about the
product.
Consumer learning process involves series of thinking process (cognitive) and consumer
interaction with the stimulus (such as product logo) and a response (advertisement).
There are few theories to explain learning process. However, we can classify the theories into two
(2)
1. Classical conditioning
2. Instrumental conditioning
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, CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Classical conditioning happen when a stimulus (1st stimulus) that draw a response combines with
another stimulus (2nd stimulus) that on its own does not evoke a response. Over time, once we
associate the 2nd stimulus and the 1st stimulus, 2nd stimulus will evoke the same response.
Ivan Pavlov experiment
Pavlov uses a bell (neutral/2nd stimulus) and dried meat powder
(unconditioned stimulus/1st stimulus). Every time Pavlov ring the bell, he will
put in the dried meat to the dog’s mouth. Every time he ring the bell, the dog
will salivate. The bell become conditioned stimulus. The drooling is
conditioned response. The experiment shows the application of visual and
sense of smell cues that cause hunger, thirst, and other basic drives.
Conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus combined together in number of times will
produce the intended conditioning e ects. Repetition increase increases the strength of
connection between the stimulus and the response. Marketers using repeated slogans in ads that
sticks in the consumer’s mind.
Extinction - once the conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus losses the connection, the
e ect of the conditioned is gone. The extinction happen because the conditioned stimulus and
the unconditioned stimulus were only occasionally paired and too weak to make an impact. The
extinction also happen when the brand was overexposed and after some time, losses its appeal
with the consumer.
Halo e ect is the stimulus generalisation, which is the tendency of stimuli that
generates conditioned responses. For example, in Ivan Pavlov experiment, the
dog will salivate when the dog hears sounds similar to bell like keys jangling. In
marketing, me-too product always using a similar packaging to ride on the
original product’s characteristics. Usually the me-too product is competing on
lower price compared to the original product.
In using this strategy, the marketers for me-too product need to be
aware that if the quality of the me-too product is lower than the
original, the consumers may appreciate the original more than the
me-too product. So the me-too product have to make sure that their
quality is the same or better than the original product. Once the me-
too product able to convince the consumers of its quality, then the
consumers will think that the original product is over price and switch
to the me-too product.
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