Learning is a relatively permanent change in behaviour caused by experience (Solomon, Michael, et al, 2019). Schools for example are institutions set up specifically to teach students certain things in order for them to become more knowledgeable. However, we can even learn even when we are not trying, for example consumers recognise many brand names in this world wether they use them or not. This casual, unintentional acquisition of knowledge is known as incidental learning.

Learning since the beginning of its conception is an ongoing process in that our knowledge about the world and the things in it are always being revised via exposure to new stimuli (Solomon, Michael, et al, 2019). The concept of learning itself covers a lot of ground, wether it be recall of stimuli or a complex string of cognitive operations. Phycologists today have come up with different theories of how these types of learning processes work called “learning theories”. Adidas as a brand have designed products and imaged themselves in accordance with these theories in order to maximise their brand reach.

One major learning theory Adidas has coupled their operations with is the “classical conditioning theory”. This theory involves pairing a a stimulus with another in order to over time gain the response from the first stimulus as a result of the second stimulus (Solomon, Michael, et al, 2019). The 1st instance of this type of learning became evident after salivation of a dog was able to be coupled with a neutral stimulus of a bell ringing even though naturally this stimulus would not cause such a reaction. This was achieved by exposing the bell with the stimulus of meat powder, which led the dog to overtime couple the bell as a sign of the meat powder and therefore create the drueling of the dog (Mcloud, S, (2018).

Adidas has used this research and have through their marketing implemented classical conditioning on its consumer base as well as the general public. Constant advertisement of Adidas’ active wear for example is coupled with athlete celebrity endorsement. The excitement and image of success of the celebrity consumers have when they see them is over time transferred to the products they are endorsing and thus classical conditioning occurs. Repetition is key for this to be efficient as possible as it is more likely to occur after the two different stimuli have been coupled with each other a number of times (Solomon, Michael, et al, 2019).

“Instrumental Conditioning” is also another major type of learning Adidas revolves their marketing around in order to increase their brand reach. This type of learning involves the learning of the consumer to act certain ways in order to produce positive outcomes and avoid negative ones (Solomon, Michael, et al, 2019). This can be as simple as a child learning not to touch the stove when it is on as it will burn their hand, or a puppy learning that lying in the rain will make it wet and cold over time. However it is the complex examples of this type of learning that Adidas use to increase their brand’s effectiveness. Thank you emails after purchasing an Adidas product online for example are a basic way to create a positive reaction from the consumer and thus issue them a reason to do so again as the email makes them feel valuable. This type of learning is taken further with Adidas’ use of gift cards, discounts and rewards to loyal customers. These reward programmes create benefits and rewards for consumers which is a positive outcome and promotes a reason to continue in investing with Adidas.

References

Mcloud, S, (2018), “Classical Conditioning”, Simply Psychology

Solomon, Michael., Russell-Bennett, R. and Previte, J. (2019) Consumer Behaviour, Australian Edition, 4th Ed., Pearson

Author Unknown, (2011), “Instrumental Conditioning, Eastern Washington University, Accessed 20/5/19, URL: https://sites.ewu.edu/cedp324-sain/2011/10/19/instrumental-conditioning/

Perception is a process of analysation of sorts of sensation we as human beings gather in our world. These sensations are gathered by every living being on the planet through their inbuilt senses within their bodies, for example the sensation of light is gathered through a living beings eyes. In other words, sensation is the “functioning of our senses and the immediate response of our sensory receptors (eyes, ears, nose, mouth, skin) to basic stimuli such as light, colour, sound, odour and texture” (Solomon, Michael, et al).

Perception is the next step living beings take after gathering sensory information, and can be defined as “the process by which these sensations are selected, organised and interpreted” (Solomon, Michael, et al). The study of perception therefore focuses on what we add to these raw sensations in order to give them meaning.

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Over the years, marketers have capitalised on the general landscape of what we add to these raw sensations to create meaning, and market their products toward meaning taken that is positive in order to maximise likability of the product. For example, the scent of fruit is gathered through sense of smell and is found by a lot of people to be sweet, mouthwatering, fresh and pleasurable . People who find the scent and taste of fruit to have these positive effects will naturally have a liking towards fruit, and will create a personal attachment to the fruit. In other words, their perception of fruit will be that of a positive one. Marketers can use this information to their advantage when marketing and designing their products. For example, a company could scent their soap with citrus flavours like orange, raspberry and blueberry to attract people who already have a positive perception of fruit to buy their products (Shapiro, B, 2013). Consumers in todays world generally need some type of soap to stay hygienic, so by coupling this necessity with a positively perceived item such as fruit will naturally attract more consumers to the product. Overtime, people will begin to associate the product and its nature with fruit, and so the product gains the original perceptions that fruit has.(Shapiro, B, 2013). In this case, the soap would be perceived as sweet, nice smelling, having the ability to keep you fresh like fruit etc.

Perception of everything in this world therefore is very important in a person’s understanding of an object or person, which is why marketers take it heavily into account when promoting their brand and company (Friederichsen, P, 2017). Adidas is of course no different being one of the world’s leading clothing and activewear brands and use many perception techniques within promotion and design of products to increase the want for their brand. The major perception tool used in Adidas’ products is “stimulus selection factors”. This refers to factors of the product that catch the eye of consumers better than other factors (Solomon, Michael, et al). Due to the modern world and the ease of sensory overload from all the distractions that can affect us marketers must find a way for their brand or product to stand out in order to grab their attention, and these selection factors Adidas use are very effective ways of doing so.

Adidas has a reputation, especially within their sports selection to design their products with a vast variety of bright and contrasting colours, whilst also having a selection of more standard colours as well. This is done on purpose by Adidas for many reasons. Use of bright and attention grabbing colours forces the eye to look at the product before other things in its field of view which leads to more exposure of the product. Colour for attention is not the only reason it’s used though however as colour also has commonly associated meanings as well. For example, alot of Adidas’ tracksuits and jackets are black with white stripes. This colour scheme is chosen as black typically represents elegance and elite reputation (Solomon, Michael, et al) and Adidas wants consumers to feel that way when they wear their brand. As mentioned earlier though Adidas typically have products in every colour imaginable in order to create an image of diversity and range within their brand and also to account for the many type of colour meaning that people find desirable.

The second stimulus selection factor used heavily within Adidas is it’s clever use of positioning. Research over the years has proven that products placed at eye level gain the most traffic of interaction, and that from a front on view products slightly placed to the right of the viewer get the most attention. Adidas of course like many other companies use this research within their ads and product layout in store. Adidas ads will almost always display their logo in the bottom right of the medium to allow the eye to view it most easily, and products in store that the company wish to gain consumer traffic such as discounted products or stock that must go will be placed towards the right of the store or the right of a display wall (Solomon, Michael, et al).

References:

Shapiro, B (2013) Scent Adds Sophistication to Hair Products, The New York Times

Friederichsen, P (2017) Brands Can Get Type Cast Too, Business Strategy Insider

Solomon, Michael., Russell-Bennett, R. and Previte, J. (2019) Consumer Behaviour, Australian Edition, 4th Ed., Pearson

Recently I bought 2 smart lamps for my room. These lamps have the ability to be controlled via wifi, so that they can be turned on and off, change colours and cycles etc through the use of a mobile phone, computer and even voice control. The lamps were priced at approximately $90 each, and were primarily bought to set a ‘cool’ tone for my room at night as well as for convenience.

I think I used extended problem solving as a main reason for my purchase. In my room I have a vast computer set up, used mainly for gaming, leisure and study. Normally I game during the night as I have university and work during the day, as well as the fact that my friends are normally available to play during the night. The main light in my room is very bright at night, and does not have a very ‘cosy’ feel if I’m chilling on my computer or watching T.V, but still want some background light. Therefore, I bought the smart lamps as they have a vast range of colours and cycles, with different brightness settings so that I could have that cosy feel when I wanted it.

Esports is essentially an umbrella term given to the professional play of video games across the globe. With the rise in technology in the 21st century people no longer have to be physically gifted to compete in sport, as the medium for the sport isn’t the physical realm traditional sports are played in, but the virtual.

Professional play and the fan base of these games are so big these days that they attract more attention than traditional sports in some circumstances, with big time companies such as Nike, Puma, Dr Pepper heavily involving themselves in sponsorship of teams.

Many teams of traditional sports have realised how big the industry is as well, and in result have created their own Esport teams within the industry to compete. Examples include Golden State Warriors and their Esports Team Golden Guardians, or the legendary LA Lakers point guard Rick Fox and his own team Echo Fox.

In other words, the industry formed from the classic love of video games, to a point to be able to compete to be the best as well as entertain and create communities for fans all around the world!