How Customers Think, Ch. 8-13

1. How Customers Think, Ch. 8-13 Zaltman

2. Chapter 8 – Memory’s Fragile Power • Two types of memory • Verbatim • Gist • Memory is reconstructed • Marketers try to “aid” the reconstruction relative to their brands

3. Chapter 8 – Memory’s Fragile Power • Three forms of memory • Semantic – meanings of words and symbols • Episodic- circumstances of the occasion • Procedural – learned skills • Explicit memory and implicit memory

4. Chapter 8 – Memory’s Fragile Power • Encoding – both cognitive and affective components included • Processing – different strength levels • Retrieval • Associative • Strategic (voluntary) • Figures 8-1 and 8-2 on pp. 178-179 • Forward and backward framing

5. Chapter 9 – Memory, Metaphor, and Stories • Memories have a deep association with storytelling • Social memory – the rituals which surround us • Coca-Cola polar bear ads – effective with monkeys? • Social norms guide our aspirations and behaviors • Social memory has power to change prior beliefs • The power of perception – what is truth?

6. Chapter 9 – Memory, Metaphor, and Stories • Knowledge-driven memory builds a new schema (knowledge is factual – car price) • Belief-driven memory interprets new information using the existing general schema (belief is interpretation – car quality)

7. Chapter 10 – Stories and Brands • Brands are a form of storytelling • A brand implicitly contains a brand promise of expectations • We can personify brands and tell stories about them • Team exercise – pick a popular, well known brand and develop a short story about that brand if it was a person

8. Chapter 10 – Stories and Brands • Archetypes – universal themes – seasonal (father time) and hero (Ulysses) • When a brand ties into one of these archetypes, it brings all the associated baggage – for good or for worse • Memory is individual, influenced by our sense of self • Ecological self, interpersonal self, extended self, private self, conceptual self

9. Chapter 10 – Stories and Brands • Brain structures and the libmic system • Thalamus as the quarterback • Cortical areas (pre-frontal cortex) as cognition • Amygdala area as unconscious and affective modulation • Nestle Crunch – deep metaphor of time described by surface attributes of anticipation, memories, and escape • Brands can create “surrogate traditions” for us

10. Chapter 11 – Crowbars for Creative Thinking • Creativity comes from a rich, diverse experience set • Knowledge about consumers can come from many fields – explore constantly • Zaltman’s top ten list for thinking creatively • People tend to be pattern seekers • Avis – Stress-relief rather than speedy service

11. Chapter 12 – Quality Questions Beget Quality Answers • The sequence of questions determines the type and quality of the answers • Unaided brand awareness before aided • Ask what you think of a brand and what the brand thinks of you – two different types of responses! • Eight guidelines for framing research questions • Data are bits of information; answers are packets of learning • Frame of reference is critical - context

12. Chapter 12 – Quality Questions Beget Quality Answers • Asian disease problem – p. 280

13. Chapter 13 – Launching a New Mind Set • Lessons from the Titanic • Hubris – we’re unsinkable!