Cognitive dissonance describes situations where people do things that contradict their beliefs. For example, let’s say I believe I am very careful when it comes to spending money, yet I buy an expensive car. Cognitive dissonance is the feeling of discomfort that comes with that type of discrepancy. Human beings look to reduce those feelings of discomfort; in this example, I would need to add a belief that resolves the contradiction. For example, I might tell myself that the car is well-built and therefore worth the investment. Or that it’s important that others consider me to be a successful person.
Clearly, cognitive dissonance is extremely important in marketing. Successful marketers look to understand the different beliefs that may encourage or discourage the purchase of their products and then try to figure out how to overcome the beliefs that are getting in the way and accentuate the beliefs that will support making the purchase.
Cognitive dissonance isn’t just about getting people to overspend on luxury items. Take charitable giving as an example: most people believe themselves to be kind and generous people, but few give to charity. They have other beliefs that get in the way, for example, “there are so many people in need, if I gave to all of them, I’d have no money left.” One way successful charities get people to donate is to focus on the needs of a specific person in order to counter that belief.
How can you uncover the conflicting beliefs among your customers and prospects? If behavioral economics has taught us anything, it’s that people consider themselves rational; they don’t like to admit to any behaviors that conflict with their beliefs. But there’s a loophole: people are happy to point out other people’s irrational behaviors! Here’s a great exercise to reveal those conflicting beliefs and behaviors. Ask research participants what people say about your product or service. That will get you all the rational things participants think about it. Then ask them what people really think about the product. That one question does wonders at getting at the irrational beliefs people don’t want to admit to. Note that the question is asked about “people,” so participants can feel that they’re still rational, and they’re just telling us about the thoughts of all those other irrational people.
Here’s another example: say the Qualitative Research Consultants Association (QRCA) wanted to get you to attend their annual conference, which will take place in Savannah, GA from January 30 to February 1, 2019 and is open to anyone involved in the design, conduct or analysis or qualitative research. They might find that people are worried about spending the money on the conference or that there are too many conferences out there to choose from. The QRCA might emphasize the great line-up of speakers and how important it is to keep up-to-date on what’s going on in qualitative research to ensure you remain valuable to your clients and your internal clients. And they might emphasize the early-bird rate of $945. (See what I did there? I slipped in a commercial for the QRCA conference. You’re welcome! And even fuller disclosure: I’m one of the speakers. I hope to see you there! Go to qrca.org/2019 for more information.)
Find out what causes cognitive dissonance for your customers. Call me at 760-469-9266 or email info at bureauwest.com.
Sources: Bureau West research; “The Cognitive Dissonance Hiding Behind Strong Brands,” Medium, 4/3/17