The Reification Bias in Marketing Communication: Antecedents and Consequences

几年前，苹果在其Mac电脑上推出了200美元的折扣券，称这一折扣相当于一台iPod mini的价值。这样的报价需要一个数字测量(节省200美元)和将该测量与对象(IPod Mini)相关联的附加信息。因此，节省下来的资金被具体化了。我们将物化定义为一种机制，通过将一个数字度量等同于一个非数字对象或问题，将其转换为某种具体的东西。物化是向消费者传达折扣等数字信息的一种特殊方式。它不同于常规的交流活动，后者只呈现一个简单的数字。我们的焦点问题是，物质化是否会偏向消费者的反应，比如对优惠的态度。换句话说，消费者对具体化的数字信息的反应会比普通的数字信息更有利吗？在总结以前的文献时，缺乏对物化偏见是否发生以及如何发生的研究。我们的项目旨在通过调查物化对消费者反应的影响来填补这一空白。特别是，我们通过解决四个以前的研究没有检查过的主要研究问题来为营销文献做出贡献：(1)是否会出现具体化偏差？在这里，我们第一次提出并试图找到消费者在定价环境中表现出物化偏见的证据。我们将物化偏差定义为消费者对公司产品的反应更积极，该产品将数字指标等同于对象或问题，而不是仅提供抽象指标的产品。(2)物化偏差产生的原因和方式；为了回答这个问题，我们提出并检验了心理意象作为物化偏见发生的理论解释。(3)物化是否总是对消费者的反应有正面影响？在这里，我们确定了重要的边界条件，在这些边界条件下，物化的优势可能被放大、减弱甚至逆转。(4)所提出的效应有多稳健？在研究问题1-3的同时，我们考察了作为向消费者呈现数字信息的典型语境的定价语境中的研究问题1-3，同时我们测试了具体化方法在其他营销传播语境中的普适性，即服务恢复、原因相关营销和技术产品提供。为了回答这四个研究问题，我们将进行包括实验室和现场实验在内的九个实验研究(加上前测)。这种方法使我们能够增加我们结果的内部和外部有效性。此外，我们的研究对营销从业者具有重要的启示意义。物化可能会增加营销传播的有效性。重要的是，这一策略不仅可以应用于定价，还可以应用于多种营销环境，只要公司向利益相关者传达数字信息(即在广告中)。

A few years ago, Apple promoted a 200 USD discount coupon on its Mac computers, stating that this discount corresponds to the value of an iPod mini. Such an offer entails a numerical measure (savings of 200 USD) and additional information that relates this measure to an object (an iPod mini). As such, the savings are reified. We define reification as a mechanism that converts a numerical measure into something concrete by equating it to a non-numerical object or issue. Reification is a particular way to communicate numerical information like discounts to consumers. It differs from regular communication activities that merely present a plain number. Our focal question is whether reification biases consumer responses, such as attitude toward the offer. In other words, do consumers respond more favorably to a reified than plain numerical information? In summarizing previous literature, research examining whether and how the reification bias occurs is lacking. Our project aims to fill this gap by investigating the effect of reification on consumer responses. In particular, we contribute to the marketing literature by addressing four major research questions that previous research has not examined: (1) Does a reification bias occur? Here, for the first time, we propose and attempt to find evidence that consumers exhibit a reification bias in a pricing context. We define reification bias as consumers responding more favorably to a firm's offering that equates a numerical measure with an object or issue than to an offering that presents the abstract measure alone. (2) Why and how does the reification bias occur? To answer this question, we offer and test mental imagery as a theoretical explanation for the occurrence of the reification bias. (3) Does reification always have a positive effect on consumer reactions? Here, we identify important boundary conditions under which the advantage of reification may be amplified, attenuated, or even reversed.(4) How robust is the proposed effect? While we examine research questions 1-3 in a pricing context serving as a prototypical context for presenting numerical information to consumers, we test the generalizability of the reification method to other marketing communication contexts, namely service recovery, cause-related marketing, and technological product offerings.In order to answer these four research questions, we will conduct nine experimental studies (plus pretests) including both laboratory and field experiments. This approach allows us to increase the internal and external validity of our results. Moreover, our research has important implications for marketing practitioners. Reification may increase the effectiveness of marketing communication. Importantly, this strategy can be applied not only to pricing, but also to multiple marketing contexts, whenever firms communicate numerical information to stakeholders (i.e., in advertising).