Are you familiar with the “heuristic” law that has been used in marketing in recent years? By understanding the rules of how consumers think, you can apply them to your marketing efforts. This time I will explain heuristics. We will also introduce examples of its use in marketing, so please take a look.
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What is a heuristic?
A heuristic is a way of thinking that allows you to intuitively come up with an answer based on experience or preconceptions. A synonym is “rule of thumb.” Have you ever been convinced that because you’re American, you must be able to speak English? This is a heuristic. As we go through our lives, we make many unconscious decisions based on heuristics.
merit
The advantage of heuristics is that they reduce the burden on your brain as you go about your life. It is said that humans make approximately 35,000 decisions a day, and are unable to judge all events rationally. Therefore, when it comes to questions of low importance, we intuitively come up with answers based on our experience and preconceptions. Another advantage is that you can get an answer instantly based on your intuition.
Demerit
The disadvantage of heuristics is that they come up with answers based on experience and preconceptions, which can lead to biased judgments. You must be careful because you may be misled into thinking that the answer is correct based on your experience or preconceptions.
Supplement: What is heuristic analysis?
There is a method of evaluating sites and apps called heuristic analysis. Data is often used to evaluate sites and apps, but some problems cannot be seen from the data. Heuristic analysis uses empirical rules to evaluate such things as “Is the site content what the user wants?” and “Is the site structure so that the user can follow the desired route?” If you would like to learn more about heuristic analysis,
Difference between heuristic and bias
“Bias” is a word that is often mistaken for heuristic. They are often confused, so be sure to understand their differences.
What is bias?
Bias means “bias,” “preconception,” or “bias in data .” This refers to the result of judging things based on preconceived notions or rules of thumb, resulting in bias and distortion of perception, resulting in incorrect judgment. Bias is often used to cause errors in judgment. Therefore, it is important to be aware that biases occur when making decisions and to create an environment where biases are less likely to occur.
Type of bias
There are many different types of bias. Among them, we will introduce the most representative biases.
- halo effect
The evaluation of a specific thing influences the evaluation of something that has no causal relationship at all
Example: Using popular celebrities in TV commercials gives the illusion of high credibility.
- bandwagon effect
Because so many people have made the choice, we assume that is the correct answer.
Example: People are under the illusion that a product must be great because it has a lot of likes on SNS.
- confirmation bias
Gather convenient information to justify yourself
Example: Collecting only satisfying information from fortune-telling results and distorting it
Heuristic is a parent-child relationship
Heuristics and biases are often confused, but they are easier to remember if you understand that they have a parent-child relationship.
- heuristic
Laws of thinking that give answers intuitively based on experience and preconceptions
- bias
Mistakes that occur when making decisions using heuristics
Types of heuristics
Heuristics can be classified into five types. Here, we will explain the characteristics of each heuristic based on marketing usage examples.
1. representativeness heuristic
The representativeness heuristic refers to the use of representative or typical images held by people in making judgments and decisions.
| [example] If the product is from a company that can run TV commercials with celebrities, it must be safe. ⇒Often used to promote reliability |
2. availability heuristic
The availability heuristic refers to making decisions based on memorable memories. Ease of recall (having a large impact when memorizing) and retrieval factor (something that can be easily recalled) are deeply involved.
| [example] I want to eat ramen today, so I decided to go to a popular ramen restaurant with good reviews that I saw on an information site the other day. ⇒Predict consumer behavior (search for stores with good reviews on information sites) |
3. Mooring and coordination heuristics
The mooring and adjustment heuristic refers to evaluating things based on the information initially given. The first information you see can greatly affect your impression of the next information you see.
| [example] When I see a pork bowl for 500 yen at a beef bowl restaurant that sells beef bowls for 350 yen, I hesitate because I think it’s expensive. If you see a pork bowl for 500 yen at a cutlet shop that sells katsudon for 700 yen, it feels cheap. ⇒Take advantage of the psychology that the price of the next product changes depending on the price of the first product you see |
4. emotion heuristic
Emotional heuristics refers to making decisions based on emotional factors. It was proposed by psychologist Paul Slovic in 2002. When you have positive emotions, you think there are many benefits and few risks. On the other hand, when you have an unfavorable account, you think there are fewer benefits and more risks.
| [example] I wouldn’t try out the cosmetics that my favorite celebrities use. Now that I know that celebrities are doing bad things, I can’t trust cosmetics. ⇒Use celebrities your target likes to promote product purchases |
5. simulation heuristic
Simulation heuristics refers to creating scenarios based on experience and preconceptions and estimating the results. It is used for future prediction, causal inference, and counterfactual hypothesizing.
| [example] I have blemishes on my face, but no matter how many expensive cosmetics I buy, they never go away, so all cosmetics are the same. ⇒By creating a story that resonates with consumers, you can shorten the distance with them. |
Use heuristics in marketing
This time I explained heuristics. Heuristics are rules of judgment that we unconsciously make in our daily lives. By understanding this law, you can distort and guide the other person’s judgment.
Pantograph provides heuristic analysis services by usability specialists. We support improving web usability by discovering usability problems and suggesting improvements.
