Perception is the way the consumer interprets all the different stimuli that is shoved down their throats everyday from marketers. Most of whats advertised isn’t remembered by consumers as products need to stand out with so much competition, in this weeks lecture it was mentioned the average person is subject to seeing 1200 ads every day but only takes note of 3%. Perception of an already well known brand can be changed over time with minimal changes overtime, this is seen through the concept of the differential threshold.
Differential Threshold
The Differential threshold is the minimal difference that a consumer can detect in a product or brand. This is used sometimes with a negative impact on consumers so the brand can make more profit like the size of a Freddo frog being reduced but the price being kept the same. However it can be used to positively influence consumers to perceive a brand in a beneficial way for the company, Converse have done this with the subtle change in logo design.
The change came with the addition of the chevron sign but the look of black and white simple letters with a star remains. Also they’ve made the star standout more itself previously using another concept of perception (figure ground reversal). According to The Drum author K. O’Brien Converse used the chevron symbol as a recognition of older versions of the logo. This was part of a campaign Converse used to show how they’ve lasted so long with minimal modernisation keeping with the classic look of the Chuck Taylor sneaker branding this sneaker as “unapologetically old, beacause hey, they got it right the first on the first try” (‘Ads of the World’, August 2017) a statement by Ads of the World in their look at the Converse Campaign which included the ad below showing how proud they are of the brands age with statements of “BUILT BEFORE MOUNT RUSHMORE… Perfect since 1917”.
The minimal change in Converse’s logo shows how they have used the differential threshold as part of their marketing to consumers to be perceived as positively acknowledging their long history as a brand and how successful it’s been for them to keep their product very similar with its easily recognisable look.
References:
O’Brien. ‘Converse subtly redesigns logo with a nod to its history’, The Drum, https://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/07/26/converse-subtly-redesigns-logo-with-nod-its-history , July 2017, (date accessed 27/03/19)
Ads of the World, Converse Campaign: Mount Rushmore, https://www.adsoftheworld.com/media/print/converse_mount_rushmore August 2017, (date accessed 02/04/19)
Converse 