Researchers from Zeppelin University, the University of Cologne and UNSW Sydney have published a new study in the Journal of Marketing that examines the use of "behavioral labeling" in marketing: the attribution of a specific name or label to a behavior to encourage people to engage in that behavior. .
The study, published in the Journal of Marketing , is titled "Behavioral Tagging: Driving Consumer Behavior with Activity Tags." The authors of this research are Martin P. Fritze, Franziska Felkner and Valentina Melnik.
The term "plogging" is a combination of the Swedish verbs plocka upp (to collect) and jogga (jog) and refers to the activity of collecting litter while running to reduce its amount. According to Wikipedia, plogging began as an organized activity in Sweden around 2016 and spread to other countries following growing concerns about plastic pollution. An estimated two million people participate in plogging daily in more than 100 countries, and some plogging events have attracted more than three million participants.
The theory of linguistic relativity shows that language is not only an expression of thought, but also guides the way people think and act. Marketing literature suggests that consumers adapt their behavior in response to words that evoke certain images, such as in brand names and corporate labels. New research shows that naming or labeling an activity with a specific word can make people want to engage in that activity, what researchers call "behavioral labeling."
Research shows that labels can motivate people to do things, even if the relationship between the label and the action seems messy. It is true that when we give something a name, it can create an image in our mind of what we are talking about. As Fritze explains: “Behavioral labels help connect different sets of behaviors through a semantic structure. Therefore, behavioral labels provide guidance and increase the likelihood that people will behave appropriately. Five different studies measuring actual behavior show that labels can encourage new positive behaviors and discourage existing negative behaviors. It may work by creating a mental image in people's minds, but more research is needed to fully understand this relationship.
Behavioral labeling as a marketing advantage
Understanding the phenomenon of behavioral branding and its implications offers marketers an alternative and complementary view of branding in general, as well as new ways to design advertising campaigns for products and services that revolve around specific behaviors or new types of required actions. . For example, P&G's Ariel brand launched PODS all-in-1 laundry detergent, where a pod can be inserted into the washing machine before loading clothes. To promote its product, Ariel introduced the verb "to pod" (or "podding"), a behavioral abbreviation to encourage behavior in the use of Ariel capsules.
Using behavioral tags can create a marketing advantage for a brand over competitors that do not use behavioral tags, as shown in the example below. The study analyzed Google Trends data from two comparable grocery delivery services, Flink and Gorillas, which entered the German market around the same time. Both companies offer almost the same deal and advertise that the product will ship at retail price within 10 minutes of ordering. However, after a while, Flink began to communicate a behavior tag that was translated as "Flinking" (or expressed as "Flink it!"), while Gorilla did not introduce any behavior tag. The results showed that after launching behavioral shortcuts, Flink performed more Google searches than Gorilla.
Opportunities to change social behavior
"Public policymakers can use behavioral labels to encourage specific behaviors intended to support sustainability, prosocial goals, or consumer well-being and safety," Felkner said. For example, "Bob" is the word used by the Belgian Road Safety Institute to describe a driver who does not drink alcohol. Experience-based evidence shows that these campaigns are effective in changing consumer attitudes and reducing drink driving. The European Commission funded the campaign in other EU countries and the word "Bob" was added to Dutch and Flemish dictionaries. The verb "bobben" describes the act of designating or volunteering to be a sober, sober driver.
We've found that behavioral shortcuts like "smiling" (encouraging others with an encouraging emoji in online chat) can encourage more supportive and constructive behavior in online courses, consumer discussion groups, or forums. Leadcotting (boycotting takeaway cup lids) has the potential to reduce the use of single-use plastic, which has a positive impact on the environment by reducing waste. Additionally, behavioral shortcuts such as “trollspotting” (finding trolls online and ignoring their comments) can help consumers become more resistant to information from online trolls. On a more general level, these hashtags have the potential to break the “negative spiral” on social media and help make the online world a better place.
Melnick states that “although we have introduced “behavioral labeling” and provided the first evidence of its effectiveness, we have only begun to scratch the surface of this exciting new field. We hope our findings inspire further research and new marketing practices in this exciting area.
The full article and the author's contact details are available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429231213011.
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