Persuasive Advertising - J. Scott Armstrong [78]
DTR has been traced back to Erickson (1964). Erickson practised hypnotism, and although his fame led people to seek him out for hypnosis, he realized that their unconscious mental resistance hindered their ability to be hypnotized. He sometimes used distraction techniques, such as speaking in a strange manner, looking up and to the left when people counter-argued, shaking hands too long, or interrupting a handshake, to disrupt the resistance; thus, people were distracted from arguing when asked to go into a trance.
Advertisers can use DTR for small, immediate purchases, such as for point-of-purchase, TV shopping channel, cell phone, or Internet ads. An objective of the DTR technique is to reduce counter-arguing; therefore, it is appropriate only for low-involvement or weak-argument products.
Evidence on the effects of disruption and reframing
Consider the question posed in the lead-in to this principle. In a field experiment, an odd phrase was added to a sales pitch for note cards. When a salesperson said, “They’re three dollars. It’s a bargain,” 35 percent purchased. However, when she said, “This package of cards sells for 300 pennies,” paused for two seconds, and reframed her sales presentation as, “That’s $3. It’s a bargain,” 70 percent purchased. The increased sales occurred only when the offer was reframed (e.g., “It’s a bargain” or “They taste good”) after the distraction. Two additional experiments showed the effectiveness of distraction techniques when trying to convince people to sign a petition. In these, distraction more than doubled the compliance rates. Similar results were obtained selling “half cakes” instead of “cupcakes,” and by asking for “money some” for a charity rather than “some money” (Davis and Knowles 1999).
Another field experiment invited subjects to participate in a lottery, then provided a subtle disruption (“350 pennies”), followed by a reframing of the offer (“$3.50”). The distraction/reframing version achieved participation by 43 percent of the subjects whereas the control version achieved participation by only 25 percent (Fennis, Das, and Pruyn 2004).
In field experiments conducted in a European retail store, shoppers were presented with an offer to purchase candy. The DTR subjects were told that “The price is now 100 eurocents … [pause] that’s one euro. It’s a bargain.” The control subjects were told, “The price is now one euro. It’s a bargain.” When the DTR technique was used, 65 percent of the shoppers made a purchase, while only 44 percent of the control-technique shoppers purchased. A second field experiment showed the importance of reframing the offer (Kardes et al. 2007).
Why do you get those mailings that look like they come from the tax authorities?
5.1.5. Create an unrelated problem, then remove it
Some advertisers use a strategy in which they create a problem on an unrelated topic, and then remove it prior to making a request. For example, a person receives direct mail that seems to be an audit request from tax authorities, but upon opening it finds that it is an advertisement. The advertiser hopes that the person, while distracted by the problem, will make a decision. However, some people might be annoyed with the advertiser.
While this principle is frequently used in an unethical manner, its purpose is sometimes laudable. For example, putting an ad that looks like a parking ticket on cars located near taverns would be a good way to advertise a taxi service to those who might have had too much to drink.
Evidence on the effects of unrelated problems
In a field experiment, flyers were either tucked under a windshield wiper (looking like a parking ticket) or taped to a door handle (looking like an ad). Two flyers were used, one for a fictitious medication for hair growth and the other an appeal for blood donations. After the subjects read the flyer, an experimenter asked them to complete an unrelated questionnaire. The subjects, 100 in each group, were more likely to comply with the request to complete the questionnaire when the flyer had been placed to