Short answer
Design and marketing efforts should focus on shaping consumers' emotional expectations around a product or service to positively influence their purchase intent.
- Field
- Innovation & Markets
- Source
- Psychology and Marketing (2016)
- Method
- Experimental research
- Evidence
- Strong effect
Consumers' decisions to purchase or not purchase are significantly influenced by their expectations of how different outcomes will make them feel. This innovation & markets research insight is drawn from a 2016 study published in Psychology and Marketing. Using Experimental research, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Design and marketing efforts should focus on shaping consumers' emotional expectations around a product or service to positively influence their purchase intent.
Anticipated Emotions Drive Purchase Decisions
Consumers' decisions to purchase or not purchase are significantly influenced by their expectations of how different outcomes will make them feel.
Psychology and Marketing · 2016
Key Findings
- 01Anticipated emotions (AEs) related to both purchase and non-purchase play a coordinated role in motivating purchase or non-purchase decisions.
- 02AEs partially mediate the effect of outcome valence on purchase decisions.
- 03The amount of information about favorable and unfavorable outcomes has a greater influence on AEs motivating purchase than those motivating non-purchase, especially when considering the status quo bias.
Application
Design takeaway
Design and marketing efforts should focus on shaping consumers' emotional expectations around a product or service to positively influence their purchase intent.
How to apply
When developing marketing campaigns or product messaging, explicitly consider the emotional benefits and drawbacks associated with both purchasing and refraining from purchasing. Use language and imagery that evokes desired anticipated emotions.
Project actions
- 01When researching user needs, ask about their expectations of how a product will make them feel.
- 02Consider how different design choices might evoke different emotional responses before a purchase.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Provides a comprehensive framework for understanding anticipated emotions.
- +Integrates multiple theoretical approaches.
Limitations
It can be challenging to accurately measure or predict someone's future emotional state.
Reliability & validity
The use of multiple studies strengthens the reliability of the findings. Validity is supported by the integration of theoretical frameworks and the mediation analysis.
Think critically
To what extent do anticipated emotions outweigh rational considerations in purchase decisions, and how can designers ethically leverage this understanding?
Design Principles
"Design for emotional anticipation: Proactively consider and shape the emotional outcomes consumers expect from their interactions with a product or service."
Understanding the emotional landscape that precedes a purchase allows for more effective product positioning and marketing strategies. By tapping into anticipated positive and negative emotions associated with both buying and not buying, designers and marketers can better connect with consumer motivations.
What This Means for Your Design
People decide whether to buy something based on how they think they will feel if they buy it versus if they don't buy it.
How to use in your project
- 1.Use this research to justify investigating user emotions and expectations as a key factor in their design choices.
- 2.Incorporate user interviews that probe anticipated emotional outcomes of using a proposed design solution.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
This research highlights the significant role of anticipated emotions in consumer decision-making, suggesting that users are motivated by their expectations of how purchasing or not purchasing will affect their emotional state. This underscores the importance of considering the emotional impact of design choices and marketing messages on potential users.
Source
Psychology and Marketing
The Role of Anticipated Emotions in Purchase Intentions
journal · 2016
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about anticipated emotions drive purchase decisions?
- Design and marketing efforts should focus on shaping consumers' emotional expectations around a product or service to positively influence their purchase intent. Evidence: Psychology and Marketing (2016).
- Why does "Anticipated Emotions Drive Purchase Decisions" matter for design?
- Understanding the emotional landscape that precedes a purchase allows for more effective product positioning and marketing strategies. By tapping into anticipated positive and negative emotions associated with both buying and not buying, designers and marketers can better connect with consumer motivations.
- How can designers apply this research?
- Design and marketing efforts should focus on shaping consumers' emotional expectations around a product or service to positively influence their purchase intent.
- What were the main findings?
- Anticipated emotions (AEs) related to both purchase and non-purchase play a coordinated role in motivating purchase or non-purchase decisions.. AEs partially mediate the effect of outcome valence on purchase decisions.. The amount of information about favorable and unfavorable outcomes has a greater influence on AEs motivating purchase than those motivating non-purchase, especially when considering the status quo bias.
- What research method was used?
- Experimental research.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2016 journal from Psychology and Marketing.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When developing marketing campaigns or product messaging, explicitly consider the emotional benefits and drawbacks associated with both purchasing and refraining from purchasing. Use language and imagery that evokes desired anticipated emotions.
- What are the limitations?
- The research primarily focuses on anticipated emotions and may not fully capture the impact of actual post-purchase emotions or other cognitive biases.