In daily life, our consumption choices often seem to be self-decided, but in fact, many psychological effects subtly influence our judgment. From product pricing to brand promotion, from promotions to shopping decisions, consumer and marketing psychology effects are everywhere. Understanding these effects will not only help us see the logic behind consumption, but also allow merchants to formulate marketing strategies more scientifically. Let’s take a closer look at the most influential psychological effects in the fields of consumption and marketing.
Price anchoring effect
What is the price anchoring effect?
The price anchoring effect refers to when people evaluate the price of a certain product, they will unconsciously use the initial price as the 'anchor point' and use this as a benchmark to judge whether other prices encountered in the future are reasonable. This 'anchor point' is like an anchor sinking to the bottom of the sea, firmly fixing people's perception of prices and affecting the final purchasing decision.
Background source
This effect was first proposed by Nobel Prize winners in Economics Daniel Kaneman and Amos Tworsky, who discovered this phenomenon when studying the heuristic bias of human judgment and decision-making. They believe that when people face uncertain information, they rely on easily obtained initial information (anchor points) to simplify the decision-making process. Although this cognitive shortcut can improve judgment efficiency, it can easily lead to deviations.
Core Principle
The core principle of the price anchoring effect is the insufficient anchoring effect and adjustment of the initial information. When consumers do not have a clear price reference standard, the first price will become a psychological benchmark, and subsequent prices will be compared with this anchor point regardless of their high or low. However, because people often do not adjust their judgments enough, the final evaluation results will be seriously biased towards the initial anchor point.
Experimental basis
Kaneman and Tworsky once conducted a classic experiment: they asked the subjects to turn a lucky wheel marked 0-100, record the transferred numbers, and then judge 'What is the proportion of African countries in the United Nations?' The results showed that subjects with larger numbers generally gave higher proportion estimates; subjects with smaller numbers had lower estimates. Although this experiment does not directly involve price, it clearly proves the powerful influence of anchor points on numerical judgment. In the price experiment, when consumers first see a high-priced product and then look at similar low-priced products, they will think that low-priced products are more cost-effective, and vice versa.
Realistic application
In marketing, the price anchoring effect is widely used. For example, luxury goods stores will place sky-high-priced goods next to ordinary goods, making consumers feel that ordinary goods are 'relatively cheap'; e-commerce platforms will mark 'original price XX yuan, current price XX yuan' during promotions, using the original price as the anchor point to highlight the price discount; in the restaurant menu, high-priced dishes will be placed in front, making dishes of intermediate prices more easily accepted.
Critical Analysis
Although the price anchoring effect can help merchants promote sales, it may also have negative effects. Some merchants will deliberately set inflated anchor prices, such as raising prices significantly first and then discounting, making consumers mistakenly believe that they have gained benefits. This behavior may be suspected of price fraud and damage consumers' trust. For consumers, they should be wary of being misled by false anchors. Before shopping, they can understand the reasonable price range of the product through multiple channels.
Decoy effect
What is the bait effect?
The bait effect refers to when consumers are difficult to choose between the two options, the merchant introduces a 'bait option' with obvious disadvantages, which will make one of the original options more attractive, thereby guiding consumers to choose the option the merchant wants. This bait option is like a 'reference' and quietly changes consumers' evaluation of the original options.
Background source
The concept of bait effect was first systematically proposed by economist Dan Arrey in his book 'Gravely Behavior', and he verified the universality of this effect in consumer decision-making through a large number of experiments. In fact, the essence of this phenomenon is that consumers are susceptible to interference from additional options when making comparison decisions, thereby changing preferences.
Core Principle
The core principle of the bait effect is relative comparative advantages . When there are only two options, consumers may hesitate because of their advantages and disadvantages; but after adding a bait option that is not as good as one of the options (target options) in all aspects but is partially comparable to the other (competitive options), the advantages of the target option will be magnified in comparison, and consumers will be more inclined to choose the target option.
Experimental basis
Dan Arrily once conducted an experiment on the Economist subscription package: There were two options initially, 'Electronic version $59 per year' and 'Electronic version + Printed version $125 per year', and the majority of people chose the electronic version at this time. Later he added the third option, 'Print Edition 125 USD per year' (bait option), which is also less expensive than 'electronic version + printing version', which is significantly worse. The results show that the people who chose 'electronic version + printing version' soared from the original 32% to 84%. This experiment vividly proves the role of the bait effect.
Realistic application
The bait effect is widely used in package pricing. For example, the coffee set in a coffee shop: a small cup of 20 yuan, a medium cup of 25 yuan, and a large cup of 26 yuan. The medium cup here is bait, making consumers feel that a large cup is more cost-effective; in the mobile phone package, the basic package is 100 yuan (10GB traffic), the advanced package is 120 yuan (20GB traffic), and the premium package is 125 yuan (30GB traffic). The premium package will attract more people to choose through comparison with the advanced package; in the sales of home appliances, merchants will launch low-end versions with simple functions but not low prices to highlight the cost-effectiveness of the mid-end version.
Critical Analysis
The bait effect takes advantage of consumers' comparative psychology and can help consumers simplify decisions to a certain extent, but may also allow consumers to make non-optimal choices. For example, consumers may choose options that exceed their own needs for the sake of 'favorable', resulting in unnecessary spending. When using this effect, merchants should ensure the authenticity and rationality of the options and avoid misleading consumers by setting meaningless baits. Consumers need to clarify their needs and avoid being interfered with the judgment by additional options.
Left-digit effect
What is the price left effect?
The left-right price effect means that the number on the leftmost price of a commodity has the greatest impact on consumers' price perception. Even if the difference in numbers after the decimal point is small, consumers will think that the price of smaller left digits is cheaper. For example, people will think that $9.99 is much cheaper than $10, but in fact the difference between the two is only 1 cent.
Background source
This effect stems from consumers' left-digit cognitive habits of price dependence , which was first discovered in retail pricing research. Psychologists believe that when people quickly judge prices, they will pay priority to the numbers on the left, while the numbers on the right are less concerned, which leads to deviations in price perception.
Core Principle
The core principle of the price left-position effect is the significance of digital cognition and the convenience of processing . When processing information, the brain will prioritize capturing the most significant and easiest parts to process. The left digit of the price is the visual 'first-eye information', which will directly affect the judgment of the price level. Even if the difference between the right digits is small, the change in the left digits (such as from 10 to 9) will make consumers feel that 'the price has been reduced by one level.'
Experimental basis
Researchers at MIT once conducted an experiment: they priced women's clothing from the same brand at $34, $39 and $44 respectively, and found that women's clothing with a price of $39 is higher than those with a price of $34 and $44. In another experiment, after adjusting the product price from $10 to $9.99, sales increased by an average of 23%. These experiments have proved that the price with a left digit of 9 can significantly increase consumers' willingness to buy, even if the actual price difference is only a small difference.
Realistic application
The price left-position effect is one of the most commonly used strategies in retail pricing. Almost all supermarkets and convenience stores will set the price of goods as 'X.99' and 'X.98', such as snacks for 5.99 yuan and shampoo for 19.98 yuan; e-commerce platforms will use '99 yuan' and '199 yuan' instead of '100 yuan' and '200 yuan' during promotions to strengthen the perception of 'low price'. Even high-end products will use this strategy, such as the price of watches of 19,999 yuan, rather than 20,000 yuan, reducing consumers' perception of 'more than 20,000 yuan'.
Critical Analysis
The left-price effect can effectively increase the attractiveness of the product, but overuse may also cause problems. If all products are priced at the end of '9', consumers may gradually become immune, and even feel that the merchant is not sincere enough; for high-end brands, frequent use of last-digit pricing may reduce the brand's sense of high-end and affect the brand image. In addition, consumers also need to look at the price permanence rationally to avoid being confused by the 'left digit' and ignoring the actual value of the product and its own needs.
Mere exposure in branding
What is the pure exposure brand effect?
Pure exposure of the brand effect means that when consumers come into contact with a brand many times, even if they do not have a deep understanding of the brand information, they will develop a more positive attitude towards the brand, which is what we often say, 'The more familiar you are, the more you like it.' This effect does not rely on the specific functions or advantages of the brand, and can enhance the brand's favorability by just repeating exposure.
Background source
This effect was proposed by psychologist Robert Zaronz in 1968. Through a series of experiments, he found that people show higher preferences for repetitive stimuli (whether text, images or sounds), even if these stimuli are meaningless and not even liked at first. Later, this theory was widely used in the field of brand marketing.
Core Principle
The core principle of pure exposure brand effect is to reduce cognitive fluency and uncertainty . When the brand is repeatedly exposed, consumers' perception of the brand will become smoother, and the brain's difficulty in processing information will be reduced. This 'easy' will be transformed into positive emotions; at the same time, repeated exposure will reduce consumers' unfamiliarity and uncertainty about the brand, thus making it easier to generate trust and favorable feelings.
Experimental basis
Zarongz once conducted a classic experiment: he asked the subjects to watch some meaningless syllables and strange faces repeatedly, and each time they watched it for a short time. The results showed that the more recurring syllables and photos the subjects evaluated the more positively. In the brand experiment, the researchers asked consumers to see the brand logo of a strange beverage many times. When choosing a beverage, the probability of these consumers choosing the brand is significantly higher than that of consumers who have not been exposed to the logo, even if they cannot tell the specific reason for their liking the brand.
Realistic application
Pure exposure of the brand effect is one of the core logics of brand advertising. Brands repeatedly expose logos, slogans or brand images on multiple channels such as TV, social media, outdoor advertising, etc. to enhance consumers' familiarity and favorability. For example, brands such as Coca-Cola and McDonald's keep their advertising exposed all year round. Even if consumers are already very familiar with it, they can maintain brand popularity through repeated exposure; emerging brands quickly let consumers know and remember themselves through intensive advertising; on e-commerce platforms, merchants will repeatedly display brands through pop-ups, recommendation positions, etc., to increase consumers' contact frequency.
Critical Analysis
Pure exposure of the brand effect can effectively enhance brand awareness and favorability, but there are certain limitations. If the content exposed by a brand is of low quality and single form, repeated exposure may make consumers feel bored, that is, the 'overexposure effect'; in addition, this effect is more suitable for enhancing the brand's favorability, and for products that need to highlight functional advantages, it is difficult for consumers to buy by exposure alone. When using it, merchants should pay attention to the quality and diversity of exposed content, control the exposure frequency, and avoid causing consumer disgust.
Familiarity-affect transfer
What is the familiar-love migration effect?
Familiarity-love migration effect refers to when consumers become familiar with a brand, character or thing, they will transfer the positive emotions brought by this familiarity to other things related to it, which is what we often call 'Love the House and the Wu'. For example, fans who like a certain star will be more likely to accept products endorsed by the star.
Background source
This effect originated from the 'emotional transfer theory' in social psychology, and was later applied to the field of consumer psychology. Psychologists believe that people naturally develop a sense of trust and favorable feeling for familiar things, and this emotion is transferable and extends to the associated objects, thereby simplifying the decision-making process.
Core Principle
Familiarity-love transfer effect core principles are emotional association and associated memory . When two things frequently relate to each other, consumers' familiarity and love for one thing will automatically migrate to the other. This migration does not require rational analysis, but is more based on instinctive reactions based on emotional associations.
Experimental basis
Psychologists have conducted an experiment on brand endorsement: they ask a group of consumers to first contact a popular star (build familiarity and love), and then show a strange product endorsed by the star; and another group of consumers to directly contact the strange product. The results show that the first group of consumers' favorability and willingness to buy products are significantly higher than the second group. In another experiment, the brand logos that consumers are familiar with are displayed together with newly launched products, and consumers' acceptance of new products has significantly increased, even if the new products belong to different categories from the original products.
Realistic application
Familiarity-Love migration effect is widely used in brand marketing. Celebrity endorsement is the most typical example. By inviting popular celebrity endorsement products, merchants move fans' love for celebrities to products; brand extension also takes advantage of this effect. For example, Haier extends from refrigerators to washing machines, air conditioners and other products, consumers' familiarity and trust in Haier's brand will be moved to new products; the same is true for joint marketing, such as the Forbidden City and cosmetics brands, consumers' love for the Forbidden City culture will be moved to joint products.
Critical Analysis
Familiarity - Love the migration effect can help brands quickly gain consumer recognition, but there are risks. If negative news appears in the object of being migrated (such as endorsement stars, co-brands), this negative emotion will also be transferred to the original brand, causing damage to the brand; in addition, excessive reliance on emotional migration and ignoring the quality of the product itself may lead to a gap in consumers after use, which will affect the brand reputation. Therefore, when merchants use this effect, they should carefully select related objects and ensure product quality.
Birdcage effect
What is the birdcage effect?
The birdcage effect refers to when people obtain an unwanted item (such as a birdcage), in order to make the item 'useful', they will unconsciously purchase more related items (such as birds), even if these additional items are not what they really need. Just as a bird cage “forces” people to buy birds, an initial item triggers a series of unnecessary consumption.
Background source
The birdcage effect originates from a story by psychologist William James and physicist Carlson: James said that if Carlson received a birdcage, he would definitely buy a bird soon. Carlson didn't believe it, but when he actually received the bird cage, he would ask 'where is the bird' every time the guest came to visit, and repeated inquiries made him eventually buy a bird. Later, psychologists called this phenomenon of subsequent consumption caused by initial items the birdcage effect.
Core Principle
The core principle of the birdcage effect is cognitive consistency needs and sunk costs psychology . People do not want the items they own to appear redundant or unreasonable. In order to maintain cognitive consistency ('bird cages should keep birds'), they will rationalize the existence of the initial items by purchasing related items; at the same time, the acquisition of the initial items (even if it is free) will make people feel 'already invested', and they are willing to continue to invest to avoid 'waste'.
Experimental basis
Psychologists once conducted an experiment: they randomly gave beautiful vases (bird cage characters) to some families, while others did not give them. After a period of time, it was found that 65% of households who received the vase purchased flowers or flower arrangement supplies, while only 20% of households who did not receive the vase purchased flowers. In another experiment, consumers were given free coffee cups, and the result was that these consumers bought coffee 40% more frequently than consumers who did not receive the cup because they felt that 'if you have a cup, you should buy coffee.'
Realistic application
The birdcage effect is very common in marketing, especially in giveaway marketing. Merchants will drive the sales of main products or related products by giving away 'bird cage' gifts, such as: buying home appliances and delivering matching small appliances (such as buying refrigerators and giving special bowls for microwaves), prompting consumers to buy microwaves; gyms give free sports backpacks, making it more likely for consumers to apply for fitness cards to 'use the best of their belongings'; cosmetic brands give away exquisite cosmetic bags to guide consumers to buy more cosmetics and fill them; e-commerce platforms’ 'full gift activities', such as giving away tableware worth 50 yuan for 200 yuan, prompting consumers to buy more products for gifts.
Critical Analysis
The birdcage effect can effectively stimulate consumption, but it may also lead to irrational consumption by consumers. Many times, consumers purchase unwanted goods in order to 'not waste gifts', which not only increases spending, but may also stock up on a large number of useless items. For merchants, rational use of gifts can increase sales, but over-reliance on this method may make consumers feel 'routine' and affect brand favorability. Consumers need to be alert to the influence of the birdcage effect. When receiving gifts or facing promotions, first think about whether they really need relevant products to avoid being kidnapped by the 'birdcage'.
Conclusion
These effects in consumer and marketing psychology reveal the cognitive laws and emotional logic behind consumer decision-making. The price anchoring effect allows us to see the powerful influence of the initial information. The bait effect shows the cleverness of the option design. The price left-position effect reflects the deviation of digital perception. The pure exposure of the brand effect shows the importance of familiarity. The familiar-love migration effect reflects the power of emotional associations. The birdcage effect warns us to be wary of unnecessary consumer chain reactions.
For consumers, understanding these effects can help us make consumer choices more rationally and avoid being misled by marketing methods; for merchants, rational use of these effects can improve marketing efficiency and better meet consumer needs. But in any case, respecting consumers and providing truly valuable products and services is the foundation of marketing. I hope that through this article, you can have a clearer understanding of these psychological effects and make smarter decisions in both consumption and marketing.
Continue to pay attention to the series of articles in 'Complete Psychological Effects' and explore more secret weapons of psychology in depth.
Link to this article: https://m.psyctest.cn/article/egdQ745b/
If the original article is reprinted, please indicate the author and the source in the form of this link.
