Perceiving and making sense of different -and often contrasting- external stimuli is one of the many complex tasks that we, as humans, manage remarkably well. this process is part of our basic intuitive functions,we do that extraordinarily well and we cannot prevent it from happening.
Every day, our mind generates tons of ideas, perceptions, feelings and associations by perceiving one idea as a node in a bigger and more complex network known as associative memory. Creating a cascade effect on other memories and feelings, this mechanism eventually influences the way we relate to the world and approach others.
We are usually aware of most of these connections however, many others happen at a deeper or unconscious level still influencing our ability to make decisions and think rationally.
This argument was first proven in 1997 by North at All. The authors investigated the extent to which consumers are influenced by the music in the shop. For the purpose of the experiment, four French and four German wines -matching for sweetness, dryness and price- were placed on the shelves of a supermarket for a 2 weeks’ period. Researchers alternated German and French music and patiently observed the consumer behavior. While customers were completely unaware that a specific music was playing in the background, the experiment saw an important positive relation between the nationality of the music and the nationality of the wine.
The same mechanism plays a critical role on how consumers estimate the quality of a given product. In 1932, long before marketing became a critical aspect of the business plan, the Journal of Applied Psychology published a significant experiment. Participants to the experiment had to judge two pairs of stockings made by the same manufacturer, of the same style, color, and design; each pair was packed in a separate but identical box. Only one pair had perfume on it. Not a coincidence that the pair with perfume was rated as higher quality by the participants. Eighty years and many experiments later, we have now an extensive literature on how scents enhance product distinctiveness and product perception.
In Spite of Everything, We Judge a Book by its Cover.
One of the most important functions of marketing is to blur the line between real value and perceived one by appealing to the consumer’s intuitive system.
Defying every rules of rational thinking, marketing creates a extra coating of worth filtering the product as it is and the product as it is perceived
This idea was first proven by Louis Cheskin, a scientific researcher and marketing innovator that, at the beginning of last century, observed how people’s perceptions of products and services are directly related to aesthetic design. The researchers forged the name sensation transference.
Few years later, The Colour Research Institute proved this principle when testing the package design for a new detergent. For the purpose of the experiment, participants were asked to use and rate three different detergents. They were completely unaware that the three detergents were actually the same one packed in different boxes. Participants, against any rational explanation, noticed a significant difference in performance between them: one package had 60% association with the words strong and heavy while the second and third package design had only a 37% and 13% association with the same words.
Why did consumers perceive such a difference? Because we do, despite everything, judge a book by its cover. The size, shape and (in this case) the color of the box added something to the experience and to the enjoyment of the product that made it more valuable. Hence a different perception.
Using Cheskin words, the aesthetic of the package transferred the sensation from the package to the product itself making it more valuable.
Marketing messages, promotions, brands, boxes and colors can create a strong expectation and when the consumer has strong expectation, she or he will get a better experience and the perception of higher value will turn into actual higher value validating the self-reinforcing feedback loop between expectation and perception.
To conclude, while marketing is not a substitute for a good quality product, when there is an objective high value, marketers’ job is to stretch it by appealing to the customer’s intuitive system. Because we do, after all, judge a book by its cover.
