Classical Conditioning In Marketing/Advertising

            Classical conditioning is defined as 'a learning process that occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired: a response that is, at first, elicited by the second stimulus is eventually elicited by the first stimulus alone.' Basically, one stimulus is responded to in a set way, and a second stimulus, after being paired with the first stimulus, begins to cause the same response.

            Classical conditioning is used in advertising to make the viewer feel and react positively to a product or viewpoint. If we react positively to one stimulus, advertisers will pair it with their product or their opinion in hopes that we will therefore react in a similar, positive manner to their product or viewpoint.

            For example, the use of celebrities in advertising is to make the general population feel that their fame is related to their position on a certain product or political issue. The use of attractive people in commercials for products, even those that are not related to beauty, influences us to think that the product will make us attractive as well.

            In a recent political commercial I saw, three actresses – Scarlett Johansson, Eva Longoria, and Kerry Washington – spoke about women’s rights and abortion, ending with a “Vote for Obama.” Ads like these use both attractiveness and fame to influence people. When someone successful and/or beautiful tells us how he or she feels about whatever product or issue, we associate their viewpoints with their success and/or appearance, and may even adopt similar viewpoints because we are subconsciously seeking similar levels of success and/or beauty. Someone who admired one or more of these actresses and saw this advertisement might begin to associate the same positive reaction to the actress(es) with the Democratic cause.

            Advertisements like these may have either positive or negative effects; while many ads assert that we are entitled to whatever we want, thus inflating our egos and decreasing our sense of concern for the rest of the world, others serve as a metaphorical slap upside the head, mainly public service announcements. Classical conditioning works both ways.

            One of the first things we need to do when looking at advertisements is determine whether our response due to classical conditioning is even related to the product or viewpoint. For example, you may be conditioned, when you see an ad for a television with an attractive couple’s endorsement, to think that ownership of this product will make you attractive as well, which is highly illogical, because a television cannot change your appearance. Buying a pair of sneakers with Michael Jordan’s name on them will not enable you to play basketball as well as Michael Jordan.

            We also need to be careful what we associate with what. Associating “the good life” with popularity and money is unwise, because more fame and fortune don’t necessarily mean a better life (*celebrities*). Nice clothes certainly do not always mean intelligence is also present.

            Finally, we need to read the fine print. Though advertisers fully intend to use classical conditioning to take advantage of consumers, laws exist for our protection. When the little letters at the bottom of the screen say “Actual results may take up to six weeks,” or “Results not typical,” or my favourite, the ever vague “Some restrictions apply,” you can almost always believe them.