Signage as Marketing Communication A Conceptual Model and Research Propositions
Article Sidebar
Published:
Dec 30, 2016
Keywords:
signage way finding visual communications
Main Article Content
Abstract
Further advancement of the growing knowledge base in the emerging, cross-disciplinary field of signage should benefit from investigation into how and why communication effects of signs occur, as such insights could potentially inform evidence-based decision-making. To facilitate such research, the authors propose a conceptual model of signage as a marketing communication tool. Model components include objective and subjective traits of signs, characteristics and states of viewers, contextual variables, conscious and intuitive process mechanisms, and communication outcomes, including affective, cognitive, and behavioral responses to signs. In addition to providing directions for further research, the model provides a framework for mapping published findings onto a "big picture" and for identifying missing pieces of the puzzle.
Article Details
Section
Articles
References
Bargh, J. A. (2002), Losing consciousness: Automatic influences on consumer judgment, behavior, and motivation. Journal of Consumer Research, 29(2), 280-285. https://doi.org/10.1086/341577
Bitner, M. J. (1992), Servicescapes: The impact of physical surroundings on customers and employees. Journal of Marketing, 56(2), 57-71. https://doi.org/10.2307/1252042
Cacioppo, J. T., Petty, R. E., & Morris, K. J. (1983), Effects of need for cognition on message evaluation, recall, and persuasion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(4), 805-818. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.45.4.805
Calori, C. (2007), Signage and Wayfinding Design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Cian, L., Krishna, A., & Elder, R. S. (2015), A sign of things to come: Behavioral change through dynamic iconography. Journal of Consumer Research, 41: 1426-1446. https://doi.org/10.1086/680673
Courbet, D., & Fourquet-Courbet, M.-P. (2014), Non-conscious Effects of Marketing Communication and Implicit Attitude Change: State of Research and New Perspectives. International Journal of Journalism and Mass Communication, 1: 103. https://doi.org/10.15344/2349-2635/2014/103
Cox, D. S., & Cox, S. A. (1988), What does familiarity breed? Complexity as a moderator of repetition effects in advertisement evaluation. Journal of Consumer Research, 15(1), 111-116. https://doi.org/10.1086/209149
Cronley, M., Posavac, S. S., Meyer, T., Kardes, F. R., & Kellaris, J. J. (2005), A selective hypothesis testing perspective on price-quality inference and inference-based choice. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 15(2). 368-374. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1502_8
Edell, J. A., & Keller, K. L. (1989), The information processing of coordinated media campaigns. Journal of Marketing Research 26(2), 149-164. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172602
Eysenck, M. W. (1982), Attention and Arousal, Springer-Verlag, New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-68390-9
Gladwell, M. (2005), Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Little, Brown and Company.
Ronald C. Goodstein, R. C. (1994), Mood Effects in Consumer Behavior: a Unifying Theme, in Advances in Consumer Research Volume 21, eds. Chris T. Allen & Deborah Roedder John, Provo, UT : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 526-529.
Gorn, G. J. (1982), The effects of music in advertising on choice behavior: A classical conditioning approach. Journal of Marketing, 46(1), 94-101. https://doi.org/10.2307/1251163
Heckler, S. E., & Childers, T. L. (1992), The role of expectancy and relevancy in memory for verbal and visual Information: What is incongruence? Journal of Consumer Research, 18(4), 475-492.
https://doi.org/10.1086/209275
Henderson, P. W., & Cote, J. A. (1998), Guidelines for selecting or modifying logos. Journal of Marketing, 62 (2), 14-30. https://doi.org/10.2307/1252158
Isen, A. M., Shackler, T. E., Clark, M., & Karp, L. (1978), Affect, accessibility of material in memory, and behavior: A cognitive loop? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.36.1.1 PMid:621625
Janiszewski, C. (1988), Preconscious processing effects: Independence of attitude formation and conscious thought. Journal of Consumer Research, 15, 199-209. https://doi.org/10.1086/209157
Janiszewski, C. & Meyvis, T. (2001), Effects of brand logo complexity, repetition, and spacing on processing fluency and judgment. Journal of Consumer Research, 28(June), 18-32. https://doi.org/10.1086/321945
Johnson, E. J., & Russo, J. E. (1984), Product familiarity and learning of new information. Journal of Consumer Research, 11(1), 542-550. https://doi.org/10.1086/208990
Jourdan, D., Hurd, K., Hawkins, H. G., & Winson-Geideman, K. (2013), Evidence-based sign regulation: Regulating signage on the basis of empirical wisdom. Urban Lawyer, 45, 327-348.
Kellaris, J. J. (2014), Viewing signs through the eyes of the beholders. The Regulation of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 8-9, 2014.
Kellaris, J. J. (2013), Additional Insights from the BrandSpark / Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper StudyTM: A Three-year Longitudinal Update. Signage as Advertising: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 9-10, 2013.
Kellaris, J. J. (2012), Further Evidence from the BrandSpark / Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper StudyTM: A Longitudinal Update and Extension. The Technology of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 10-12, 2012.
Kellaris, J. J. (2011), 100,000 Shoppers Can't Be Wrong: Signage Communication Evidence from the BrandSpark International Grocery Shopper Survey. The Science of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 12-13, 2011.
Kellaris, J. J. (2010), Marketing Students' Attitudes Towards and Beliefs About Commercial Signage. In Brady, M. K., & Hartline, M. D. (Eds)., Marketing Theory and Applications, Proceedings of the 2010 American Marketing Association Winter Educators' Conference, 21.
Klein, R., Klein, B. E. K., Linton, K. L. P., & De Mets, D. L. (1991), The Beaver Dam Eye Study: Visual Acuity. Opthamology, 98(8), 1310-1315. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-6420(91)32137-7
Kraft, R. N. (1987), The influence of camera angle on comprehension and retention of pictorial events. Memory and Cognition, 15(4), 291-307. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197032
Lee, A. Y. & Labroo, A. A. (2004), The effect of conceptual and perceptual fluency on brand evaluation. Journal of Marketing Research, 41(2), 151-165. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.41.2.151.28665
Lewin, K. (1943), Defining the 'field at a given time'. Psychological Review, 50, 292-310. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0062738
Martin, M., & Jones, G. V. (1998), Generalizing everyday memory: Signs and handedness. Memory and Cognition, 26(2), 193-200. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03201132
Meyers-Levy, J., & Tybout, A. M. (1989), Schema congruity as a basis for product evaluation. Journal of Consumer Research, 16, 39-54. https://doi.org/10.1086/209192
Meyers-Levy, J., & Peracchio, L. A. (1992), Getting an angle in advertising: The effect of camera angle on product evaluations. Journal of Marketing Research, 29, 454-461. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172711
Nasar, J. L. (1987), The effect of sign complexity and coherence on the perceived quality of retail scenes. Journal of the American Planning Association, 53(4), 499-509. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944368708977139
Olson, J. C. & Jacoby, J. (1973), Cue utilization in the quality perception process. In M. Venkatesan, (Ed.). Proceedings 3rd Annual Conference (pp.167-179). Chicago: Association for Consumer Research.
Peracchio, L. A., & Meyers-Levy, J. (2005), Using stylistic properties of ad pictures to communicate with consumers. Journal of Consumer Research, 32, 29-40. https://doi.org/10.1086/429599
Peracchio, L. A., & Luna, D. (2006), The role of thin-slice judgments in consumer psychology. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16(1), 25-32. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1601_5
Presbrey, F. (1929), From the symbols in Babylon to painted walls in Rome. In History and Development of Advertising (pp. 1-13). Doubleday, Doran, & Company, Inc.
Reber, R., & Schwarz, N. (1999), Effects of perceptual fluency on judgments of truth. Consciousness and Cognition, 8, 338-342. https://doi.org/10.1006/ccog.1999.0386 PMid:10487787
Reber, R., Winkielman, P., & Schwartz, N. (1998), Effects of perceptual fluency on affective judgments. Psychological Science, 9(1), 45-48. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9280.00008
Salthouse, T. A. (2000), Aging and measures of processing speed. Biological Psychology 54, 35-54. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0301-0511(00)00052-1
Schmitt, B., Tavassoli, N. T., & Millard, R. T. (1993), Memory for print ads: Understanding the relations among brand name, copy, and picture. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2(1), 55-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1057-7408(08)80075-7
Schwarz, N. (2004), Metacognitive experiences in consumer judgment and decision making. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 14(4), 332-348. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1404_2
Shennan, J. R., Jr., (1986), Permanent media can generate a long-lasting image. Hotel and Motel Management, 201, 30.
Smith, E. R., & DeCoster, J. (2000), Dual-process models in social and cognitive psychology: Integration and links to underlying memory systems. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4(2), 108-131. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327957PSPR0402_01
Taylor, C. R., Claus, T. A., & Claus, S. L. (2005), On-premises Signs as Storefront Marketing Devices and Systems, published jointly by the U.S. Small Business Administration and The Signage Foundation.
Wadlinger, H. A., & Isaacowitz, D. M. (2006), Positive mood broadens visual attention to positive stimuli. Motivation and Emotion 30(1), 87-99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-006-9021-1 PMid:20431711 PMCid:PMC2860869
Webster, D. M., & Kruglanski, A. W. (1994), Individual differences in need for cognitive closure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(6), 1049-1062. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.6.1049
Weil, D. N. (2006), Population aging. Palgrave Encyclopedia of Economics, (2nd ed.).Wener, R. E. & Kaminoff, R. (1982), Improving environmental information: effects of signs on perceived crowding and behavior. Environment and Behavior, 14(6), 671-94. https://doi.org/10.3386/w12147
Wilson, T. D., Houston, C. E., Etling, K. M., & Brekke, N. (1996), A new look at anchoring effects: Basic anchoring and its antecedents. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 125(4), 387-403. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.125.4.387 PMid:8945789
Winkielman, P., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2001), Mind at ease puts a smile on the face: Psychophysiological evidence that processing facilitation leads to positive affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 8, 989-1000. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.81.6.989
Wittlesea, B. W. A. (1993), Illusions of familiarity. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 19(6), 1235-1253. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.19.6.1235
Zajonc, R. B. (1968), Attitudinal effects of mere exposure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 9(2), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0025848
Bitner, M. J. (1992), Servicescapes: The impact of physical surroundings on customers and employees. Journal of Marketing, 56(2), 57-71. https://doi.org/10.2307/1252042
Cacioppo, J. T., Petty, R. E., & Morris, K. J. (1983), Effects of need for cognition on message evaluation, recall, and persuasion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(4), 805-818. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.45.4.805
Calori, C. (2007), Signage and Wayfinding Design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Cian, L., Krishna, A., & Elder, R. S. (2015), A sign of things to come: Behavioral change through dynamic iconography. Journal of Consumer Research, 41: 1426-1446. https://doi.org/10.1086/680673
Courbet, D., & Fourquet-Courbet, M.-P. (2014), Non-conscious Effects of Marketing Communication and Implicit Attitude Change: State of Research and New Perspectives. International Journal of Journalism and Mass Communication, 1: 103. https://doi.org/10.15344/2349-2635/2014/103
Cox, D. S., & Cox, S. A. (1988), What does familiarity breed? Complexity as a moderator of repetition effects in advertisement evaluation. Journal of Consumer Research, 15(1), 111-116. https://doi.org/10.1086/209149
Cronley, M., Posavac, S. S., Meyer, T., Kardes, F. R., & Kellaris, J. J. (2005), A selective hypothesis testing perspective on price-quality inference and inference-based choice. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 15(2). 368-374. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1502_8
Edell, J. A., & Keller, K. L. (1989), The information processing of coordinated media campaigns. Journal of Marketing Research 26(2), 149-164. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172602
Eysenck, M. W. (1982), Attention and Arousal, Springer-Verlag, New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-68390-9
Gladwell, M. (2005), Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Little, Brown and Company.
Ronald C. Goodstein, R. C. (1994), Mood Effects in Consumer Behavior: a Unifying Theme, in Advances in Consumer Research Volume 21, eds. Chris T. Allen & Deborah Roedder John, Provo, UT : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 526-529.
Gorn, G. J. (1982), The effects of music in advertising on choice behavior: A classical conditioning approach. Journal of Marketing, 46(1), 94-101. https://doi.org/10.2307/1251163
Heckler, S. E., & Childers, T. L. (1992), The role of expectancy and relevancy in memory for verbal and visual Information: What is incongruence? Journal of Consumer Research, 18(4), 475-492.
https://doi.org/10.1086/209275
Henderson, P. W., & Cote, J. A. (1998), Guidelines for selecting or modifying logos. Journal of Marketing, 62 (2), 14-30. https://doi.org/10.2307/1252158
Isen, A. M., Shackler, T. E., Clark, M., & Karp, L. (1978), Affect, accessibility of material in memory, and behavior: A cognitive loop? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.36.1.1 PMid:621625
Janiszewski, C. (1988), Preconscious processing effects: Independence of attitude formation and conscious thought. Journal of Consumer Research, 15, 199-209. https://doi.org/10.1086/209157
Janiszewski, C. & Meyvis, T. (2001), Effects of brand logo complexity, repetition, and spacing on processing fluency and judgment. Journal of Consumer Research, 28(June), 18-32. https://doi.org/10.1086/321945
Johnson, E. J., & Russo, J. E. (1984), Product familiarity and learning of new information. Journal of Consumer Research, 11(1), 542-550. https://doi.org/10.1086/208990
Jourdan, D., Hurd, K., Hawkins, H. G., & Winson-Geideman, K. (2013), Evidence-based sign regulation: Regulating signage on the basis of empirical wisdom. Urban Lawyer, 45, 327-348.
Kellaris, J. J. (2014), Viewing signs through the eyes of the beholders. The Regulation of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 8-9, 2014.
Kellaris, J. J. (2013), Additional Insights from the BrandSpark / Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper StudyTM: A Three-year Longitudinal Update. Signage as Advertising: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 9-10, 2013.
Kellaris, J. J. (2012), Further Evidence from the BrandSpark / Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper StudyTM: A Longitudinal Update and Extension. The Technology of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 10-12, 2012.
Kellaris, J. J. (2011), 100,000 Shoppers Can't Be Wrong: Signage Communication Evidence from the BrandSpark International Grocery Shopper Survey. The Science of Signage: Proceedings of the National Signage Research and Education Conference, Signage Foundation, Inc, Cincinnati, October 12-13, 2011.
Kellaris, J. J. (2010), Marketing Students' Attitudes Towards and Beliefs About Commercial Signage. In Brady, M. K., & Hartline, M. D. (Eds)., Marketing Theory and Applications, Proceedings of the 2010 American Marketing Association Winter Educators' Conference, 21.
Klein, R., Klein, B. E. K., Linton, K. L. P., & De Mets, D. L. (1991), The Beaver Dam Eye Study: Visual Acuity. Opthamology, 98(8), 1310-1315. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-6420(91)32137-7
Kraft, R. N. (1987), The influence of camera angle on comprehension and retention of pictorial events. Memory and Cognition, 15(4), 291-307. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197032
Lee, A. Y. & Labroo, A. A. (2004), The effect of conceptual and perceptual fluency on brand evaluation. Journal of Marketing Research, 41(2), 151-165. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.41.2.151.28665
Lewin, K. (1943), Defining the 'field at a given time'. Psychological Review, 50, 292-310. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0062738
Martin, M., & Jones, G. V. (1998), Generalizing everyday memory: Signs and handedness. Memory and Cognition, 26(2), 193-200. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03201132
Meyers-Levy, J., & Tybout, A. M. (1989), Schema congruity as a basis for product evaluation. Journal of Consumer Research, 16, 39-54. https://doi.org/10.1086/209192
Meyers-Levy, J., & Peracchio, L. A. (1992), Getting an angle in advertising: The effect of camera angle on product evaluations. Journal of Marketing Research, 29, 454-461. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172711
Nasar, J. L. (1987), The effect of sign complexity and coherence on the perceived quality of retail scenes. Journal of the American Planning Association, 53(4), 499-509. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944368708977139
Olson, J. C. & Jacoby, J. (1973), Cue utilization in the quality perception process. In M. Venkatesan, (Ed.). Proceedings 3rd Annual Conference (pp.167-179). Chicago: Association for Consumer Research.
Peracchio, L. A., & Meyers-Levy, J. (2005), Using stylistic properties of ad pictures to communicate with consumers. Journal of Consumer Research, 32, 29-40. https://doi.org/10.1086/429599
Peracchio, L. A., & Luna, D. (2006), The role of thin-slice judgments in consumer psychology. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16(1), 25-32. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1601_5
Presbrey, F. (1929), From the symbols in Babylon to painted walls in Rome. In History and Development of Advertising (pp. 1-13). Doubleday, Doran, & Company, Inc.
Reber, R., & Schwarz, N. (1999), Effects of perceptual fluency on judgments of truth. Consciousness and Cognition, 8, 338-342. https://doi.org/10.1006/ccog.1999.0386 PMid:10487787
Reber, R., Winkielman, P., & Schwartz, N. (1998), Effects of perceptual fluency on affective judgments. Psychological Science, 9(1), 45-48. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9280.00008
Salthouse, T. A. (2000), Aging and measures of processing speed. Biological Psychology 54, 35-54. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0301-0511(00)00052-1
Schmitt, B., Tavassoli, N. T., & Millard, R. T. (1993), Memory for print ads: Understanding the relations among brand name, copy, and picture. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2(1), 55-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1057-7408(08)80075-7
Schwarz, N. (2004), Metacognitive experiences in consumer judgment and decision making. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 14(4), 332-348. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1404_2
Shennan, J. R., Jr., (1986), Permanent media can generate a long-lasting image. Hotel and Motel Management, 201, 30.
Smith, E. R., & DeCoster, J. (2000), Dual-process models in social and cognitive psychology: Integration and links to underlying memory systems. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4(2), 108-131. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327957PSPR0402_01
Taylor, C. R., Claus, T. A., & Claus, S. L. (2005), On-premises Signs as Storefront Marketing Devices and Systems, published jointly by the U.S. Small Business Administration and The Signage Foundation.
Wadlinger, H. A., & Isaacowitz, D. M. (2006), Positive mood broadens visual attention to positive stimuli. Motivation and Emotion 30(1), 87-99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-006-9021-1 PMid:20431711 PMCid:PMC2860869
Webster, D. M., & Kruglanski, A. W. (1994), Individual differences in need for cognitive closure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(6), 1049-1062. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.6.1049
Weil, D. N. (2006), Population aging. Palgrave Encyclopedia of Economics, (2nd ed.).Wener, R. E. & Kaminoff, R. (1982), Improving environmental information: effects of signs on perceived crowding and behavior. Environment and Behavior, 14(6), 671-94. https://doi.org/10.3386/w12147
Wilson, T. D., Houston, C. E., Etling, K. M., & Brekke, N. (1996), A new look at anchoring effects: Basic anchoring and its antecedents. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 125(4), 387-403. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.125.4.387 PMid:8945789
Winkielman, P., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2001), Mind at ease puts a smile on the face: Psychophysiological evidence that processing facilitation leads to positive affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 8, 989-1000. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.81.6.989
Wittlesea, B. W. A. (1993), Illusions of familiarity. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 19(6), 1235-1253. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.19.6.1235
Zajonc, R. B. (1968), Attitudinal effects of mere exposure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 9(2), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0025848