Learning objectives

The role and nature of attitudes in MarComms

The role of persuasion in MarComms

The Elaboration Likelihood Model and its implications for MarComms

Attitude change strategies

Persuasion

Marketing communicators attempt to guide people towards the

acceptance of some belief, attitude or behaviour by using reasoning and
emotional appeals. This is known as persuasion.

Persuasion is the foundation of marketing communications

The nature and role of attitudes

Attitude is a general and enduring positive or negative predisposition

towards, or evaluative judgement of, some person, object or issue.

are learned
Attitudes: are relatively enduring
influence behaviour.
 Components of attitudes

Cognitive Affective Conative

(thinking) (feeling) (behaving)

A person’s beliefs about A person’s feelings A person’s

an object or issue. and evaluations. behavioural tendency
towards an object.
Attributes, symbols and positioning
 Persuasion in marketing
communications
• To guide people
towards accepting
some belief, attitude
or behaviour byusing
Persuasion reasoning and
emotional appeals.
• It is sometimesviewed
as unethical.
 Persuasion in marketing
communications

•Message • The strength or quality of message

arguments is the main determinant.

arguments • It is important tostress inter-brand

differences and link with emotions.

• These cues are elements (e.g.

•Peripheral background music, scenery and
graphics) peripheral to theprimary
cues message arguments.
 Persuasion in marketing
communications

• The personal relevance that a

marketing communication
has for a receiver is a critical
determinant of the extent
Receiver and form of persuasion.
• Highly involved consumers
involvement are motivated to process
message arguments.
• Uninvolved consumers may
only process peripheral cues.
 • deals with consumers’ mental activity
in response to a marketing message
• is determined by MOA:
Elaboration: • Motivation
• Opportunity

Elaboration • Ability.

Likelihood
(EL) • represents the chance that a message
receiver will elaborate on the
Elaboration: message
• can exist on a likelihood continuum
ranging from low to high.
 • ELMis amodel of attitude formation andchange
that recognises two forms of information
processing.
• Level of consumer involvement is directlyrelated to
Elaboration informationprocessing.
Likelihood • In low-involvement situations consumersmay rely
on peripheral cues rather than detailed message
Model (ELM) arguments.
• In high-involvement situations consumersare
motivated to process detailed message
arguments.
 Elaboration likelihood model (ELM)
Focuses on the way consumers respond to persuasive
messages based on the amount and nature of elaboration or
processing of information

Routes to attitude change

Central route to Peripheral route to

persuasion – ability and
motivation to process a
message is high and
close attention is paid
to message content
persuasion – ability and
motivation to process a
message is low and
receiver focuses more
on peripheral cues than
message content
Celebrities as ‘peripheral cues’
Product Placement
Enhancing motivation to attend to message

Voluntary attention Involuntary attention

• Engaged when • Occurs when

consumers devote consumer attention is
attention to messages gained by the use of
that are perceived as attention-gaining
being relevant to their techniques, rather
current purchase- than by the
related goals. consumer’s inherent
interest in the product.
 Novel and intense stimuli

Novel messages Intense stimuli Using motion

• Unusual, • Louder, more • Attracts and

distinctive or colourful, directs
unpredictable. bigger and consumer
• Consumers brighter. attention to
tend to notice the brand.
by exception.
 • Increased processing motivation strengthens
Enhancing the impact of brand attitudes on purchase
intentions.
motivation • Methods include:
to process • rhetorical questions
• fear appeals
messages • dramatic presentation.
 Enhancing opportunity
to encode information

Encode Reduce
information processing time
• Repeat brand • Use pictures
information. and imagery.
• Repeat key • Make
scenes. comprehension
• Repeat the ad. easier.
 Enhancing ability

Access existing Create new Create definite brand

knowledge structures knowledge structures benefits
• Provide a context for • Facilitate exemplar- • Easier for consumers
text or pictures. based learning. to recall and retrieve
• Use verbal framing. • E.g. Woolworths’ tangible information
slogan, ‘The fresh
food people’.
The influence process:
The persuader’s perspective

• Six tools of persuasion

1 2 3
Commitment
Social
Reciprocation and
Proof
consistency

4 5 6

Liking Authority Scarcity