How Advertising Affects

Consumer Memory
Lecture 3
Compiled by
Dr Rosaline Fernandez
Learning Objectives:

By the end of this lecture you

should understand:
 Structure and function of human
memory;
 The model of Atkinson and Shiffrin;
 The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch;
 Implications of memory on
advertising.
 Introduction
 Although enormous sums are spent on
advertising, many obstacles may limit
advertising's influence on brand decisions.

 Mostimportantly, there is typically a lag

between consumers' exposure to advertising
and their opportunity to purchase the
advertised brand.

 Given this time delay, advertising

effectiveness may depend critically upon
consumers' memory performance at the point
of purchase.
 Human memory is a system that not only allows us to record,
store and retrieve the information that is acquired through our
senses, but also influences the way this information is perceived,
encoded and stored.

 Encoding refers to the processes involved in getting the

information into the system by transforming an external stimulus
into an internal representation, which allows us to retain it in the
cognitive system.

 Storage involves information retention over time. This storage

can be short-term, as when a computer stores information
temporarily in the Random Access Memory, or relatively
permanent as when our computer stores information on a hard
drive.

 Retrieval refers to the processes that allow us to find the

information stored in our memory.

 Forgetting refers to the processes that prevent us from finding

it.
 The model of Atkinson and
Shiffrin
Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)
classified three major
components of memory, as
namely:
1. sensory memory,
2. working or short-term
memory and
3. long-term memory
 The flow of information through
the memory system

Source: Adapted from Atkinson & Shiffrin (1968). Human memory: a

proposed system and its control processes. In K.W. Spence & J.T. Spence
(Eds.). The psychology of learning and motivation: Advances in research
and theory (pp. 89–195). New York: Academic Press
The model of Atkinson and
Shiffrin
Sensory memory (Sensory Registers)

 Sensory memory stores are the briefest memory stores.

 The information that is stored in these sensory registers

is not yet encoded, but stored in the sensory modality in
which it has been perceived (Baddeley, 2002).

 Although all senses have such very short-term registers,

research has focused mainly on visual and auditory
sensory memory.

 These sensory registers store incoming sensory

information for less than a second, before the information
is either lost or transferred into short-term memory.
The model of Atkinson and
Shiffrin
Working or Short-term memory (Short-term store)
 Working memory is a unitary system where input from the
different sensory memories is integrated with information from
long-term memory to be briefly held in conscious awareness and
manipulated.

 It has very limited storage capacity. Input of new information is

only possible if old information is moved out.

 Since it is the workspace where thinking, problem-solving and

decision-making takes place, most information held in short-
term memory is information which we are consciously aware of.

 Verbal rehearsal lengthens the period for which information

stays in the short-term store and at the same time builds up the
trace in the long-term memory.
 The model of Atkinson and
Shiffrin
Long-term memory
 Long-term memory is assumed to store nearly unlimited amounts
of information for a nearly unlimited period of time.

 According to the model of Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) information,

which has entered the processing system through modality-specific
sensory stores and gone through the limited short-term or working
memory, needs to be encoded semantically before entering long-
term memory.

 The more the individual rehearses material the greater the

likelihood that it will be stored in long-term memory.

 Rehearsal requires attention. Thus, in order for information to

proceed from short-term to long-term stores, the individual has to
pay attention to the information.
 Evidence of the multi-systems
view of memory (Baddeley, 1997)

 Speed of retrieval. Retrieval from short-term memory

is faster than retrieval from long-term memory.

 Capacity. The capacity of short-term memory is much

more limited. As George Miller (1956) wrote in his
classic article ‘The magical number seven, plus or
minus two’, short-term memory can hold only five to
seven pieces of unrelated information. (However,
these seven items can be seven letters, seven words
or seven broad categories, depending on the extent to
which information is categorized, or ‘chunked’ by the
individual).
 Serial position effects. This term is a memory-related
term and refers to the tendency to recall information that
is presented first and last (like in a list) better than
information presented in the middle.

 Memory code. Short-term and long-term memory

appeared to use different forms of coding. Whereas long-
term memory seems to rely mainly on semantic codes
(meaning), short-term memory appears to use acoustic or
phonological coding (sound).

 Neuropsychology. The most impressive evidence

against a unitary view of memory comes from
neuropsychological studies of patients who suffer from
severe amnesia (for a review, see Baddeley, 1997).
Patients may have perfectly functioning short-term
memories but be seriously impaired in their long-term
memory (e.g. Milner, 1966; Baddeley & Warrington,
1970). There are also patients, whose short-term memory
is impaired, but whose long-term learning is quite normal
(e.g. Shallice & Warrington, 1970).
 Problems with the model of
Atkinson and Shiffrin
1. Conception of short-term and
long-term memory as separate
systems is inconsistent.
2. People sometimes do not
remember objects clearly even
though they are likely to have
seen them thousands of times.
Strategies to resolve these
inconsistencies:

1. Abandon the idea of different memory

systems altogether and concentrate
on the way information is processed
(Craik & Lockhart, 1972; Craik, 2002);

2. Reformulate the distinction between

short-term and long-term memory in
ways that made it consistent with
existing evidence (Baddeley & Hitch,
1974).
 (Craik & Lockhart, 1972) :
Levels of processing
 Craik and Lockhart’s (1972) main argument, that
there is no need to distinguish between two
memory systems to account for differences in
the length of time that things are remembered.

 It assumes that items are remembered better the

more we pay attention to them and the more
deeply they are processed.

 Longer storage results from deeper processing

and not from transfer of information from a short-
term to a long-term memory system.
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
Working memory is not described as
a unitary system, but as
multicomponent: it includes:
1. controlling attentional component
which is the central executive,
and
2. three sub-systems:
the phonological loop,
visuo-spatial sketch pad,
the episodic buffer.
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
 In this system, a controlling attentional system, the
central executive, which has no storage capacity of
its own, supervises and coordinates a number of
subsystems.

 Drivesthe whole system (e.g., the boss of working

memory) and allocates data to the subsystems: the
phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketchpad.

 Italso deals with cognitive tasks such as mental

arithmetic and problem-solving.
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
The sub-systems:

1. the phonological loop, responsible for the short-term

storage and manipulation of speech-based information;

2. the visuo-spatial sketchpad, responsible for the short-

term storage and manipulation of visual information;

3. the episodic buffer, a place where information from

long-term memory and the subsystems of working
memory can be temporarily stored, integrated and
manipulated.
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
 The phonological loop is part of working memory
that deals with spoken and written material. It can
be used to remember a phone number. It consists
of two parts

1. Phonological Store (inner ear) – Linked to

speech perception. Holds information in a speech-
2. based form (i.e., spoken words) for 1-2 seconds.

Articulatory control process (inner voice) –

Linked to speech production. Used to rehearse
and store verbal information from the
phonological store.
The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch

Visuo-spatial Sketchpad (inner

eye)
• deals with visual and spatial
information. Visual information
refers to what things look like.

• is used for navigation.

 The model of working memory of
Baddeley and Hitch
 Evidence suggests that working memory uses two different
systems for dealing with visual and verbal information.

 A visual processing task and a verbal processing task can be

performed at the same time.

 It is more difficult to perform two visual tasks at the same time

because they interfere with each other and performance is
reduced.

 The same applies to performing two verbal tasks at the same

time.

 This supports the view that the phonological loop and the
sketchpad are separate systems within working memory.
 Forms of long-term memory

 The long-term memory store is assumed to store nearly

unlimited amounts of information for a nearly unlimited period
of time.

 Two classifications of long-term memory:

1. Procedural/Implicit memory consists of how to do things.
Implicit memory, which is an experiential or functional form
of memory that cannot be consciously recalled. This is your
memory of how to ride a bike or how to balance

2. Declarative/Explicit/Recollective memory consists of

facts, general knowledge, and personal experiences. Explicit
memory is a memory that can be intentionally and
consciously recalled.
Declarative or explicit memory
 Declarative or explicit memory is
characterized by a person’s
conscious recollection of facts or
events (Schacter et al., 1993).

 The two subtypes of declarative or

explicit memory are:
1. episodic memory; and
2. semantic memory
An episodic memory is about a specific
event that occurred at a particular place
and time, such as your memory of having
seen McDonald’s new range of hamburgers
advertised on TV yesterday evening.

In contrast semantic memory refers to the

‘mental thesaurus, organized knowledge a
person possesses about words and other
verbal symbols, their meaning and
referents, about relations among them, and
about rules, formulas, and algorithms’ used
to manipulate them (Tulving, 1983, p. 386).
Free recall and recognition tests are
considered standard tests of explicit
memory.

In free recall test respondents, who

previously had to learn a list of words, are
simply asked to recall as many of the
recently presented words as possible.

A recognition test is a test to determine

whether the people remember a particular
advertisement. It is a technique used to
evaluate the effectiveness of an
advertising campaign.
 Implicit memory
Implicit
memory is sometimes referred to as
unconscious memory or automatic memory.

Implicit
memory uses past experiences to
remember things without thinking about
them.

Theperformance of implicit memory is

enabled by previous experiences, no matter
how long ago those experiences occurred
In measures of implicit memory
instructions refer only to the task
at hand and make no reference to
prior experiences (Richardson-
Klavehn & Bjork, 1988).

Standard tests of implicit memory:

1. word stem completion tests;
2. Word fragment identification
test;
3. Lexical decision task.
Priming is the implicit memory effect
in which exposure to a stimulus
influences response to a later stimulus.
Examples:

1. An example of this is introducing the

color blue to a person in order to help
him/her recognize "sky" as a word.
This is because sky and blue is a word
that psychologists consider to be
closely related like yellow and banana.
2. Associating words and pictures -
"school" relates to "student" and
"bus".
 Implications for
advertising
 Advertisers and those who
measure the impact of
advertising are obsessed with
memory.

 If advertising is to be successful,
it has to stick in the consumer’s
memory.
 How do these various
types of memories play a
part in advertising?
 Advertising memories that we retrieve through
standard recall and recognition cues are episodic.

 Here are a few questions that researchers might

use to retrieve those memories:
1. What brand of smartphone did you see
advertised on TV last night?
2. Do you recall if it was a Samsung Galaxy S22
Ultra or an iPhone 14?
3. What if I told you it aired during last night’s
episode of The Crown?
4. What if I told you it featured a father shooting a
video of his young daughter playing a scene in
Romeo and Juliet?
 But very often, consumers cannot tell us
exactly how they came to know what they know
about a brand.
 They know that Coca-Cola is refreshing, for
instance, but cannot tell us exactly how they
first came by that information.
 Was it an ad they saw, a word from a friend, a
personal experience? That memory is semantic.
 Unconscious associations (such as a non-
accessible childhood experience of drinking
Coca-Cola during a hot summer) create implicit
memories that can continue to affect brand
preferences much later in life.
 Explicit memory involves facts learned through
conscious interaction, while implicit memory
involves unconscious retention.
 Explicitly remembered information includes ad
slogans, product benefits, and website
addresses.
 In contrast, implicit memory might only come
into play when external stimuli trigger concepts.
 Forinstance, a consumer might only recall a
brand of toothpaste from a television ad when
he or she discovers it while browsing in a
store. Or the consumer might develop an
unconscious affinity for a certain brand
despite not knowing specific facts about it.
 Research tells us that memories
start to decay immediately after
they’re formed.

 Does this rapid decay of memory

spell doom for the ad industry?
 First, that time between exposure and measurement
matters. The 24 hours mark is ideal because that’s the
point where the memory curve starts to flatten.

 Second, that advertising memories are encoded in

context (asking questions about the show in which the ad
aired, for instance, is going to help consumers remember
that ad).

 Thirdly, that memories can endure—either via

repetition for explicit types of memories, or via implicit
internalization.

 Finally, a new study suggests that marketers should

not fixate on the number of people who click on ads.
According to the research, just seeing an ad on a Web page
can impact memory.
 Long term memory comprises the
meat of all our memory and is
the most pertinent to advertising,
particularly in its storage and
retrieval.

 Multiple elements, or cues, can

help you encode and retrieve
memory
 Associative network memory model is a
conceptual representation that
views memory as consisting of a set of nodes
and interconnecting links where nodes
represent stored information or concepts and
links represent the strength of association
between this information or concepts.

 Associative Network Theory states that

new memories don’t form in a vacuum, but
rather in association with existing memories,
thus resulting in an ever-growing,
complicating network.
Possible Associations with the
Apple Brand Name
 Two of the most common requests mentioned
in client and creative briefs are to
drive brand awareness and create brand
differentiation.

1. A brand that is widely known will be

remembered more often at purchase.
2. A brand that is different will be remembered
more often at purchase.
 The practice of driving brand awareness is cemented
in increasing brand recognition and brand recall
respective to the category.

 In
other words, improving retrieval of the brand’s
name from memory with the category as the cue.

 Pursuing differentiation actually moves a brand

away from the natural cues its competitors are
capitalizing on and makes it noticeable.

 Brand differentiation is being over-shadowed

by brand distinction, which emphasizes the use of a
brand’s unique assets to strengthen its portfolio of
cues and thus bolster existing avenues of brand
retrieval.
 Reference:
 Brandt, D. (2017). Understanding memory in advertising. Nielsen Journal of
Measurement. Retrieved from
https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/report/2017/understanding-memory-in-
advertising/.

 Braun-LaTour, K. A., LaTour, M. S., Pickrell, J. E., & Loftus, E. F. (2004). How and when
advertising can influence memory for consumer experience [Electronic version].
Retrieved [insert date], from Cornell University, School of Hospitality Administration
site: http://scholarship.sha.cornell.edu/articles/317

 Fennis, B. M., & Stroebe, W. (2021). The psychology of advertising. London GB:
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

 Lim, B. (2017). What We Know About Memory and its Implications for Modern
Advertising. Retrieved from https://medium.com/comms-planning/what-we-know-about-
memory-and-its-implications-for-modern-advertising-60399127c826

 McLeod, S. A. (2012). Working memory. Simply Psychology. Retrieved from

https://www.simplypsychology.org/working%20memory.html

 Keller, K. L. (1987). Memory factors in advertising: the effect of advertising retrieval

cues on brand evaluations. Journal of Consumer Research, 14, 316-332.

 Schrock, A. (2007). How ads affect our memory. MIT Technology Review. Retrieved from
https://www.technologyreview.com/2007/08/21/98765/how-ads-affect-our-memory/.
The End