Alternative overload is partially why customers select acquainted choices, and for this reason leveraging familiarity could be a superpower to make your model stand out in a sea of comparable decisions.
2. It modulates the way in which we understand experiences
Familiarity bias just isn’t solely a useful resource optimization course of but in addition an actual software that has been proven to modulate consideration, reminiscence, model preferences, donation conduct, and even perceived style in terms of meals.
Let’s take an instance that hits near house for me: As an Italian, my childhood afternoon snack was Nutella on bread, so at any time when I see every other chocolate unfold, I don’t even think about it, as all of them appear to style bizarre to me; nonetheless, my Spanish buddy Isabel grew up with Nocilla and swears by it, saying that Nutella tastes unhealthy compared.
However why does that occur? It’s as a result of familiarity may even modulate the way in which we perceptually expertise one thing, producing an affect-biased choice conduct, as proven by the Wageningen College & Analysis within the Netherlands. The analysis group examined model recognition and style choice in soy sauce and concluded that if the model of the sauce was recognized and acquainted, it was reportedly preferred extra. This style choice utilized even when members thought they acknowledged the acquainted model however had been incorrect. Recognition, both right or incorrect, of their very own acquainted model considerably elevated liking scores.
Whereas theories of decision-making and feelings are extra advanced and nonetheless beneath investigation, the ability of familiarity on model notion and choice has been demonstrated by a number of different research all through the previous couple of many years (Monroe, 1976; Park & Lessig, 1981; Maria Sääksjärvi, Saeed Samiee, 2007; Ma, Wang & Da, 2021 to call just some). For instance, an iconic one by McClure and colleagues investigated the behavioral choice displayed for acquainted manufacturers by exposing members to a blind style take a look at of Pepsi vs. Coca-Cola. When members didn’t know the model of the drink they had been tasting, the choice for one or the opposite was cut up equally within the group; nonetheless, when the drinks had been labeled, ‘model information for one of many drinks had a dramatic affect on expressed behavioral preferences and on the measured mind responses.’ Briefly, each model information and cultural influences bias choice based mostly on have an effect on.
3. It makes us really feel secure
As we’ve got seen, the familiarity bias permits us to skim down choices and free cognitive assets to allocate to different essential duties, however what makes it so highly effective in behavioral and monetary choices is one thing extra profound – the notion of security it may possibly convey.
Whereas it’s undoubtedly a resource-effective mechanism, familiarity additionally modulates how we really feel about manufacturers, particularly the perceived belief we will put in them. And it’s exactly the notion of security that may lead an informal customer to a trusted buyer.
The familiarity heuristic has been broadly recognized in behavioral economics, with traders selecting native or home firms as they affiliate it with much less danger. The identical appears to occur for on-line companies, too. Should you dig into the Google Search Console (GSC) queries of some international firms, you can see that branded, location-based key phrases are bringing in a number of searches – and typically minimal click-through charges (CTRs), which is the place they could lose potential clients who’re evaluating their provides.