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What to Say When: Influencing Consumer Choice by Delaying the Presentation of Favorable Information

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  • Xin Ge
  • Gerald Häubl
  • Terry Elrod

Abstract

Delaying the presentation of some favorable information about an alternative (e.g., a product, service, brand, store, or cause) until after consumers have completed their pre-choice screening can increase that alternative's choice share. While such a delay reduces the alternative's chance of surviving the screening, it can actually increase its probability of ultimately being chosen. Evidence from five experiments demonstrates this preference-enhancing effect of the delayed presentation of favorable information, and it illustrates the underlying preference dynamics across decision stages associated with such a delay. The findings also indicate that this preference-enhancing effect is driven by a combination of two mental mechanisms--a shift in the decision weights of attribute dimensions (rendering dimensions on which a delay occurs more influential across all alternatives) and an overall preference boost for the alternative about which information is delayed.

Suggested Citation

  • Xin Ge & Gerald Häubl & Terry Elrod, 2012. "What to Say When: Influencing Consumer Choice by Delaying the Presentation of Favorable Information," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 38(6), pages 1004-1021.
  • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:doi:10.1086/661937
    DOI: 10.1086/661937
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    Cited by:

    1. Bhargave, Rajesh & Chakravarti, Amitav & Guha, Abhijit, 2015. "Two-stage decisions increase preference for hedonic options," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 64119, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. Tingchi Liu, Matthew & Phau, Ian & Teah, Min, 2017. "“First in first out†or “last in first out†: Presentation of information order on evaluation of utilitarian products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 148-155.
    3. Shuai Yang & Xinyu Chang & Sixing Chen & Shan Lin & William T. Ross, 2022. "Does music really work? The two-stage audiovisual cross-modal correspondence effect on consumers’ shopping behavior," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 251-276, June.
    4. Bhargave, Rajesh & Chakravarti, Amitav & Guha, Abhijit, 2015. "Two-stage decisions increase preference for hedonic options," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 123-135.

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