PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Is it best to withhold favorable information about products?

2011-10-22
(Press-News.org) Consumers are more likely to choose products when marketers withhold some favorable information until late in the choice process, according to the Journal of Consumer Research. But marketers need to walk a fine line to disclose information at just the right time.

"Conventional wisdom suggests that when seeking to persuade consumers to buy certain products, sellers ought to always 'put their best foot forward' by providing as much favorable information about these products as possible once they have consumers' attention," write authors Xin Ge (University of Northern British Columbia), Gerald Häubl, and Terry Elrod (both University of Alberta). But the researchers' study challenges this view.

Consumers use a two-stage process to make purchase decisions. First, they assess the various alternatives available in the marketplace and screen out those that are not attractive to them. Then they evaluate a small set of products to make a final choice. The authors found that marketers need to strike a balance between revealing too much information too soon or delaying so long that the product doesn't survive the initial screening process.

"This research shows that the preference-enhancing effect of the delayed presentation of favorable information after consumers have completed their initial screening often trumps the disadvantage due to the increased risk of the product not surviving the screening, resulting in an increase in the product's overall probability of being chosen," the authors write.

Why does this happen? The authors found the delayed presentation of favorable information causes a shift in the relative importance that consumers attach to different attributes (like price, cleanliness, and size for hotel rooms). They also found that delayed release of information causes a preference boost for the product as consumers compare it to a more "static" competitor, for which no additional information becomes available in the final choice stage.

"These findings have important implications not only for the sellers of consumer products, but also for other 'persuaders' seeking to influence the actions of target individuals or organizations," the authors conclude.

###

Xin Ge, Gerald Häubl, and Terry Elrod. "What to Say When: Consumer Choice by Delaying the Presentation of Favorable Information." Journal of Consumer Research: April 2012 (published online August 15, 2011). For more information, contact the author at gerald.haeubl@ualberta.ca or visit http://www.ejcr.org.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Joplin Tornado: Businesses are Suffering Too

2011-10-22
The tornado that touched down in Joplin, Missouri earlier this year reminds us just how devastating natural disasters can be. This deadly tornado not only destroyed countless homes, but also decimated a number of Joplin businesses in the process. In a statement to CBS News, Rob O'Brian, president of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, estimated that as many as 300 businesses were lost due to the tornado - affecting as many as 4,000 jobs. Many of the area's largest employers, including national chains and large businesses, have pledged to rebuild. Even small, local ...

What defines life satisfaction for consumers living in poverty?

2011-10-22
People whose basic needs are met get more life satisfaction when they are more connected to others and when they experience greater autonomy, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. But those who live in dire conditions have little hope of achieving such satisfaction. "About three-fourths of the planet's population lives in nations with less than ideal material conditions, defined by low levels of marketplace abundance and lack of bargaining power necessary to access this abundance," write authors Kelly D. Martin (Colorado State University) and Ronald ...

Why does explaining why a cupcake is delicious make us love it less?

2011-10-22
When consumers share their thoughts about products or experiences, their opinions can intensify, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. But it depends on whether they're talking about something sensory or practical. "Consumers constantly share stories with others about products and services through word of mouth (WOM)," writes author Sarah G. Moore (University of Alberta). "How does sharing WOM change storytellers' feelings about their own experiences? Does sharing stories make consumers like the experience more or less than before? Moore asks. In ...

Social isolation: Are lonely consumers actually loners or conformers?

2011-10-22
Despite the proliferation of social networks, many Americans feel alone and isolated. According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, lonely individuals behave differently in the marketplace than people with strong social networks. "Despite the popularity of Wi-Fi technologies and social networks such as Facebook, Americans are more socially isolated than two decades ago," write authors Jing Wang (University of Iowa), Rui (Juliet) Zhu (University of British Columbia), and Baba Shiv (Stanford University). According to the authors, in 2004 almost twenty five ...

Housing, health care contribute most to rising costs of living in Washington

2011-10-22
It costs 8 percent more on average than it did two years ago for Washington residents to make ends meet, according to a new report from a University of Washington research group. A single parent with one preschooler and one school-age child living in Seattle needs an annual income of $56,904 – up 13 percent from $50,268 two years ago – to meet the family's most basic requirements, according to the Self-Sufficiency Standard for Washington State 2011 released today. A similar family living in Spokane County needs $41,750, up 8 percent from $38,562 two years ago. "Even ...

Researchers find coupling of proteins promotes glioblastoma development

2011-10-22
Two previously unassociated proteins known to be overly active in a variety of cancers bind together to ignite and sustain malignant brain tumors, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports this week in the journal Cancer Cell. This research is the first to connect FoxM1 to a molecular signaling cascade that regulates normal neural stem cells, said senior author, Suyun Huang, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in MD Anderson's Department of Neurosurgery. "When FoxM1 binds to beta-catenin, we found that it also supports ...

Sixth Circuit Court Rules Definition of "Employee" Includes Some Volunteers, Extending Title VII Discrimination Protection

2011-10-22
by: Edward Macey A recent ruling from Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals specifically confirms that the federal civil rights laws protect certain volunteers from discrimination at work. The case brought by a volunteer firefighter against the Middlefield Fire Dept. was originally thrown out before trial by the lower court. The Appeals court ruling reverses the lower court and sends the discrimination case back for trial, based on a determination that the law's protection against discrimination and harassment for "employees" includes employees who are unpaid. The ...

Why do some athletes choke under pressure?

2011-10-22
Athletes know they should just do their thing on the 18th hole, or during the penalty shootout, or when they're taking a 3-point shot in the last moments of the game. But when that shot could mean winning or losing, it's easy to choke. A new article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, looks at why paying too much attention to what you're doing can ruin performance. "We think when you're under pressure, that your attention goes inward naturally. Suddenly it means so much, you want to make sure ...

Psychologists defend the importance of general abilities

2011-10-22
"What makes a great violinist, physicist, or crossword puzzle solver? Are experts born or made? The question has intrigued psychologists since psychology was born -- and the rest of us, too, who may secretly fantasize playing duets with Yo Yo Ma or winning a Nobel Prize in science. It's no wonder Malcolm Gladwell stayed atop the bestseller lists by popularizing the "10,000-hour rule" of Florida State University psychologist K. Anders Ericsson. Using Ericsson's pioneering work -- but omitting equally prominent, contradictory, research -- Gladwell's book Outliers argued that ...

Commonly used 3-drug regimen for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis found harmful

2011-10-22
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health, has stopped one arm of a three arm multi-center, clinical trial studying treatments for the lung-scarring disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) for safety concerns. The trial found that people with IPF receiving a currently used triple-drug therapy consisting of prednisone, azathioprine, and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) had worse outcomes than those who received placebos, or inactive substances. "These findings underscore why treatments must be evaluated in a rigorous manner," ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Thirty-year mystery of dissonance in the “ringing” of black holes explained

Less intensive works best for agricultural soil

Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation

Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests

Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome

UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership

New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll

Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes

University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025

Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025

AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials

New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age

Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker

Chips off the old block

Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia

Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry

Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19

Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity

State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections

Young adults drive historic decline in smoking

NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research

Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development

This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack

FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology

In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity

Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects

A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions

AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

[Press-News.org] Is it best to withhold favorable information about products?