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Schemas: Consumer Perceptions of a Brand

This week in Consumer Behavior we covered the topic of learning and memory. Diving deeper into this topic we explored our memory’s role in learning, including short-term and long-term memory, as well as the two paths to learning, conditioning or cognitive processing. The largest take away from our lectures that I grasped and took a liking to was human memory, and how brands can use schematic memory to influence consumers behaviors and perceptions around a brand.

Why are Schemas Important?

Schemas or schematic memory, sometimes called knowledge structures, are a pattern of associations around a particular concept. These associations are formed from within the long-term memory of a person. Marketers are specifically interested in semantic memory, and episodic memory, which make up LTM. Semantic memory is the basic knowledge and feelings an individual has about a concept, at a simple level, such as BMW being a “luxury car.” On the other hand, episodic memory is memory of a sequence of events in which a person chose to participate in, such as strong personal memories whether positive or negative, of a family gathering for example. These memories evoke feelings, imagery, and attitudes in the mind of the consumer, which brands try to capture. Companies try to evoke these feelings because they involve their brand, such as eating Hershey kisses at Christmas for example, and associate them with their brand to create a positive perception and image of their brand. The unique organization of these associations in the mind is called a schema, which brands can use to their advantage. Ultimately, a schema is what the consumer thinks or feels about when your brand comes to mind. By influencing these perceptions, you can influence the customer and their habits.

An Example: VW

Image result for mind map VW
This very elaborate schema of the Volkswagen brand shows how one consumer associates many concepts with VW to form their own personal meaning of that brand. The consumer uses their own feelings, ideas, experiences, and images to create a visual perception of the brand. They interpret the product attributes, benefits sought, different usage situations, and manufacturer’s marketing messages all together to form the schema. The sources of these schema can be personal memories associated with the brand such as “my first car,” or totally derived from marketing messages that the company intends people to associate with their brand. The main links, or the large bubbles, are the main concepts a person strongly attributes to a brand or thinks of when they hear the VW brand. The smaller connections are associations that link concepts together to form the complete meaning of an item.

How Marketers use Schemas

Marketers can use schemas to influence what consumers associate with their brand. For example, if a brand asked many consumers to complete a schema about their brand, and positive common connections occurred across all participants, they would be able to know that their brand is synonymous with those thoughts, feelings, or ideas. Marketers could then spend more effort strengthening and reinforcing these strong, easily activated links for their brand through learning techniques. On the other hand, if negative common connections occurred, the company could work to acknowledge and eliminate these perceptions. Lastly, marketers could use schemas to analyze if their current marketing messages are working. If they see their marketing messages being remembered and quickly accessed in memory by consumers, it is another way to validate their marketing messages effectiveness.

A Challenge

Create a schema of one of you favorite brands. Is there anything that would stand out to the brands marketers? Either positive or negative connections?

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