Class 6- The Medium

Question 1

How do brands choose channels?

Answer 1

Brands are trying to choose the best medium to distribute their message.

Question 2

There are various mediums they can use:

Answer 2

Public Relations

Press releases
Press conferences
Interviews
Product events

Advertising

TV
Print
Digital

Personal Selling

Direct Marketing

Fliers
Email
Text
Phone

Question 3

lowest control vs highest control ?

Answer 3

Lowest control : Public relations
Highest control : Personal selling

Question 4

What should brands consider when choosing a channel?

Answer 4

control
credibility
reach
comm. task
money

Question 5

Channels : control

Answer 5

How much control do you want to have about the transmitted message and where it appears?
Can you target a particular audience?
Can you control what the message will be?
Can you adjust in response to changes in your circumstances?

Question 6

Channels: Credibility

Answer 6

How skeptical are people likely to be of your message

Question 7

Channels: Reach

Answer 7

What is the size of the segment you are trying to reach?
Can you deliver a personalized message?

How large a segment can you reach ?

Question 8

Communication tasks

Answer 8

What are you trying to do ?
- Inform, persuad, differentiate, remind & reassure

Question 9

Channels : cost

Answer 9

Even if a medium is appropriate, does it fit within your budget?

Absolute costs: how much does it cost to run the campaign?

Costs per contact: how much does it cost to reach one consumer one time?

Wastage: How much money do we spend marketing towards consumers outside our target market?

Question 10

How to assess channel fit with the message and the consumer

Answer 10

Channel effects on recipients

Technical & Reproduction
(how will your audience be exposed to your message?)

Audience-Channel Fit
(how will your audience be exposed to your message?)

Atmosphere
(tone, expertise, prestige)

Question 11

Atmosphere

Answer 11

Editorial Tone: How the views of the editorial team and their tone (e.g., relaxed, confrontational, humorous) fit with your brand.

Channel Expertise: Is the channel known for having expertise on a certain topic?

Channel Prestige: How prestigious / luxurious is this channel?

Question 12

Technical & reproduction

Answer 12

Technical Factors: What forms of communication does the channel allow you to use (e.g., text, speech, images, video)?
Exposure Opportunities: How likely is it that your target audience will see your promotion?
Perception Opportunities: How likely is it that your consumer will pay attention to your message?

Question 13

Audience-Channel Fit

Answer 13

Audience-Channel Fit: Are the people you want to capture likely to view this channel? At the time you are advertising?
Channel Mood Effects: What mood are people in when consuming this media? Does your messaging match that?

Question 14

How do communication mediums affect the speaker?

Answer 14

Modalities are methods of producing content (e.g., speaking, writing)
Devices are equipment through which content can be created (e.g., smartphone, PC, pen-and-paper)
Channels are the ways messages are delivered to audiences (text, email, social media, ads)

Question 15

Modalities

Answer 15

A modality is a means of producing content (e.g., speaking, writing)

The modality we choose affects the content we communicate.

This to applies to all types of communicators: brands, consumers writing reviews, employees communicating with their boss, etc

Question 16

Important constructs

Answer 16

Deliberation: The extent to which communicators thoughtfully consider what to say and how to say it.

Audience Salience: The extent that communicators are aware of and focused on their audience.

Question 17

Modalities - deliberation

The amount of deliberation is determined by…

Answer 17

SPEED OF PRODUCTION
When speaking, we communicate almost as fast as we think
While writing, we have more time to be deliberate about our word choice

EDITABILITY OF PRODUCT
Revision is often impossible in speech.
When writing, we can change minute or major details to alter tone, structure, or meaning

Question 18

Modalities: Audience Salience
The amount of audience salience is determined by…

Answer 18

LEARNED ASSOCIATIONS
When speaking, we tend to be talking to others
When writing, we may be writing to others but may also be writing to ourselves (reminders, to-do lists)
Speaking (more so than writing) puts us in an interactive mindset such that we are more aware of & focused on our audience.

Question 19

Modalities: So What?

Answer 19

Because people deliberate more when they write, they…
Are less emotional
Are more analytical
Use fewer heuristics

Because people are less audience focused when they write, they…
Produce less self-focused content (e.g., personal anecdotes)
Have more self-presentational concerns (are more likely to be embarrassed)

What types of products would you prefer to sell in-person (where conversation dominates) vs. online (where writing dominates)?

Question 20

Devices

Answer 20

Devices are equipment through which content can be created (e.g., smartphone, PC, pen-and-paper)
The device we choose affects the way we communicate (through deliberation and audience salience)

Question 21

Devices: Deliberation

The amount of deliberation is determined by…

Answer 21

EFFORT
It is more effortful to communicate on smartphones because of small keyboards and poor-quality speakers
Because the message itself takes so much effort, people deliberate less and write shorter, less detailed content

PORTABILITY
Because smartphones are more portable, they can be used anywhere
This leads consumers to write messages ”in the heat of the moment” and/or while they are distracted by surroundings

Question 22

Devices: Audience Salience

The amount of audience salience is determined by…

Answer 22

LEARNED ASSOCIATIONS
PCs are associated with individual and work-oriented tasks (low audience salience)
Smartphones are often used to connect us with others (high audience salience)

Question 23

Devices: So What?

Answer 23

Because people are less audience focused when they are on their PC (vs. phone), they…
Produce content that makes them look good (e.g., bragging about the cost of a good)
Produce content that is more relevant to the audience (e.g., approachable, tangible)

Because people deliberate more when they are on PCs (vs. phones), they…
Give more details
Are less emotional

Google may give you the option to prompt consumers to review your store while they are still there (push notifications on their phones) or later (by email on their PCs). In what cases might you prefer one over the other?

Question 24

Channels

Answer 24

Channels are the ways messages are delivered to audiences (text, email, social media, ads).
The channel we choose affects the way we communicate
As a person…
Deliberation
Audience Salience

Question 25

Channels: Deliberation

The amount of deliberation is determined by…

Answer 25

EPHERMERALITY
In some channels, messages disappear once delivered and cannot be seen again (e.g., speech, Snapchat)
Disappearing messages make it harder to deliberate because one must hold message content in memory

USER INTERFACE
Channels that restrict communication to smaller boxes should decrease deliberation
UI features can also encourage deliberation (subject lines in emails)

SYNCHRONICITY
Channels differ in how quickly a response is expected.
The faster the response must be, the less deliberation.

Question 26

Channels: Audience Salience

The amount of audience salience is determined by…

Answer 26

SYNCHRONICITY
Channels differ in how quickly responses are exchanged
The quicker the exchange, the more it feels like an interpersonal interaction (and thus the more salient the audience)

FELT PRESENCE
Features of a channel (e.g., hearing someone’s voice, seeing when they type, profile pictures) can make them feel more present
The more present they feel, the more salient the audience is

Question 27

Channels: So what?

Answer 27

Channels that foster deliberation should be used when consumers are making high-involvement purchases (e.g., cars, houses, vacations)

Channels that foster deliberation are a good place for two-sided arguments, complex language, and a lot of information

Channels that foster audience salience should use more personalized (e.g., informal, use of pronouns) messaging to be more persuasive

Question 28

Consumer engagement - definition

Answer 28

Definition: Non-purchase behaviors that are focused on the brand or firm (e.g., word-of-mouth, co-creation, social media engagement)

Prior research has shown that consumer who engage with brands…
- Have higher brand attitudes
- Purchase more
- Engage in more WOM

Bids for Engagement

A brand makes a bid for engagement when it asks consumers to participate in a customer engagement behavior—a non-purchase, brand-focused action.

Takeaway: Although organic consumer engagement is good, soliciting engagement may backfire unless you can commit to replying to all the comments*.