The impact of visualizing use versus acquisition of a product on the appeal of its complement

Keywords

acquisition; attributes; complementarity; goals; imagery; use; visualization

Abstract

Prior work on consumer visualization has focused on how visualization increases the appeal of the imagined product itself. Instead, the present work examines the effects of visualization on the appeal of the imagined product's complement. The authors distinguish between two visualized consumption actions: use and acquisition. Both are predicted to increase the appeal of the complement, but this increase is expected to be asymmetric, with imagined acquisition leading to a greater increase than imagined use. Specifically, the authors propose that imagining use evokes consideration of how one would interact with the product, which increases the salience of the imagined product's attributes. Conversely, imagining acquisition evokes consideration of why one would purchase the product, which increases the salience of the imagined product's goals. As complementarity is defined by products’ shared goals (not physical attributes), it is predicted and shown that imagining acquisition results in a greater increase in the appeal of the complement than imagining use. Four studies demonstrate the asymmetric effect of imagined use versus acquisition on preference, choice, and willingness-to-pay for a complement. The studies also provide evidence for the proposed process and rule out several alternative explanations. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Publication Date

4-1-2019

Publication Title

Psychology and Marketing

Volume

36

Issue

4

Number of Pages

251-265

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21176

Socpus ID

85060249955 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85060249955

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