Effects of 3-D Visualization on Persuasion in Online Shopping Sites: a Moderating Role of Product Knowledge

Kihan Kim, University of Texas at Austin, U.S.A. Terry Daugherty, University of Texas at Austin, U.S.A. ABSTRACT - The use of a three-dimensional (3-D) visualization in commercial Websites has been growing. In order to better understand the influences of this technology on marketing, a laboratory experiment (n=104) was conducted to examine the effects of visualization type (3-D vs. 2-D) and prior product knowledge (low vs. high) on persuasion. The results indicate that 3-D visualization positively influences attitude, and this relationship was found to be greater for novices than experts. Furthermore, a consumers sense of presence was found to mediate the effects of product visualization type on persuasion as previously postulated. These findings and future implications for developing effecting online marketing strategies are discussed.
[ to cite ]:

Kihan Kim and Terry Daugherty (2005) ,"Effects of 3-D Visualization on Persuasion in Online Shopping Sites: a Moderating Role of Product Knowledge", in AP - Asia Pacific Advances in Consumer Research Volume 6, eds. Yong-Uon Ha and Youjae Yi, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 371-377.

Asia Pacific Advances in Consumer Research Volume 6, 2005

Pages 371-377

EFFECTS OF 3-D VISUALIZATION ON PERSUASION IN ONLINE SHOPPING SITES: A MODERATING ROLE OF PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE Kihan Kim, University of Texas at Austin, U.S.A. Terry Daugherty, University of Texas at Austin, U.S.A. ABSTRACT The use of a three-dimensional (3-D) visualization in commercial Websites has been growing. In order to better understand the influences of this technology on marketing, a laboratory experiment (n=104) was conducted to examine the effects of visualization type (3-D vs. 2-D) and prior product knowledge (low vs. high) on persuasion. The results indicate that 3-D visualization positively influences attitude, and this relationship was found to be greater for novices than experts. Furthermore, a consumers sense of presence was found to mediate the effects of product visualization type on persuasion as previously postulated. These findings and future implications for developing effecting online marketing strategies are discussed. INTRODUCTION

The use of a three-dimensional (3-) visualization in commercial Websites has emerged because of the development of computer technology and practitioners efforts in presenting interactive virtual product experiences (Gill 2002). Accordingly, a growing number of academic researchers are also exploring the effects of the 3-D product visualization in advertising and marketing (Holbrook 1998; Li, Daugherty and Biocca 2002). In particular, recent work has conceptualized 3-D product visualization as an active user controlled psychological state consumers encounter when interacting with products in computer-mediated environments (Li, Daugherty and Biocca 2001). These compelling experiences are able to initiate psychological states by providing visual and motor sensory feedback enabling consumers to freely rotate, zoom-in or out, and examine an interactive 3-D representation of a product along each axis. Much of this work has found that 3D visualization conveys an enhanced experience of vividness, clarity, realism, and presence, ultimately increasing the impact of online marketing communications (Holbrook 1998; Li, Daugherty and Biocca 2003). Although positive relationships between interactive virtual product experiences and marketing effectiveness measures have been found (e.g., Coyle and Thorson 2001; Li et al. 2002; Klein 2003), these results suggest superior 3-D effects over 2-D at any time, which is a presumption calling for additional research. As a result, this study seeks to examine boundary conditions for the positive 3-D effects previously observed by examining individual differences associated with the level of prior knowledge each consumer brings when evaluating a product online. Invariably, the amount of prior knowledge of a specific product, or even category of products (i.e., computers), can influence a consumers motivation and/or ability to process information (Petty and Wegener 1999). Ability and motivation variables are especially important in persuasion since they are likely to influence elaboration of product information (Petty and Cacioppo 1986a). Therefore, the purpose of this study is to extend our knowledge in this area of work by investigating how consumer attitude toward a product evaluated online is impacted by the effects of 3-D product visualization and prior product knowledge. Overall, this research may potentially contribute to the body of persuasion literature in academia, and help practitioners select proper target audiences when developing marketing strategies. Furthermore, clarifying the influence of 3-D product visualization could facilitate a better understanding of online behavior leading to more effective marketing communication strategies. In the proceeding sections, a brief theoretical rational is presented outlining the hypotheses as well as the methodology and results of this study. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Elaboration & Product Knowledge A significant amount of research in social psychology provides support for the proposition that consumers assimilate information and everyday experiences by engaging cognitive systems (Chaiken 1980; Epstein 1990; Petty and Cacioppo 1986b; Sloman 1996). Within this framework, elaboration has been conceptualized as the amount of thought generated while processing persuasive messages (Petty and Cacioppo 1986; Petty and Wegener 1999). This is because independent factors are more likely to influence cognitive processes when elaboration is not constrained by other variables. In fact, ELM postulates a multiple role for persuasion as an

influencing variable as either a peripheral cue or central argument depending on the context (Petty and Wegener 1999). In this regard, central processing necessitates an expenditure of cognitive resources for information scrutiny, while peripheral processing involves more simplistic strategies (Petty and Cacioppo 1981, 1986a). Among the variables influencing consumers information processing styles, ability is one that has been extensively researched in marketing (Petty and Wegener 1999; MacInnis, Moorman and Jaworski 1991; Jaworski and MacInnis 1989). Ability refers to consumers skills or proficiencies in interpreting product information in marketing communications (MacInnis et al. 1991). The availability and accessibility of issue-relevant knowledge structures provide the foundation for processing ability. One of the most important variables affecting informationprocessing ability is the extent to which a person has an organized structure of knowledge (Wyer and Srull 1984). That is, high ability implies that the prior knowledge necessary to interpret issue-relevant information is present and accessible (Alba and Hutchinson 1987; MacInnis et al. 1991). For example, some people are more able to think about issues because of their welldeveloped product class knowledge (Petty and Wegener 1999). Thus, varying the degree of product knowledge would result in differential processing of a given marketing variable, which in turn, has differential impacts on the subsequent persuasive outcomes. Considering that research is generally consistent with the view that simple cues are more likely to affect susceptibility to influence when prior knowledge is low rather than high (Petty and Cacioppo 1986a), 3-D product visualization, if interpreted as a peripheral cue, may be more likely to influence persuasive outcomes under low rather than high elaboration. Marketing executions can still affect attitude change when information scrutiny is reduced resulting in low elaboration. Such variables operate by either inducing primitive affective states, or because they trigger some simple heuristic cues for making a judgment (Chaiken 1987; Petty and Cacioppo 1986a, 1999). Presence One of the most convincing constructs explaining the effects of 3-D product visualization is the psychological process known as presence, or sometimes referred to as telepresence. Steuer (1992) explains this psychosomatic feeling as "the experience of presence in an environment by means of a communication medium" (p.76). When we experience our sense of presence in the physical world, we automatically generate a mental model of this space. In computer-mediated environments, information that stimulates the structure of our experiences are used to activate the same automatic perceptual processes that generate the perception of the physical world (Biocca 1997). Thus, the experience of "being there" is potentially a product of all media (Reeves and Nass 1996), yet interactive multi-sensory environments are able to generate the most compelling sense of presence (Biocca 1997). Several studies have found that presence is capable of influencing persuasive outcomes based on interactivity as both antecedents (e.g., interactivity and vividness) and consequences (e.g., attitude, behavior intention) (Coyle and Thorson 2001; Klein 2003). Furthermore, Li and colleagues (2002) directly compared 2-D versus 3-D advertising and found that 3-D visualization incorporating interactivity and richness (or vividness) is capable of enhancing subjects perceived sense of presence leading to increases in reported product knowledge, brand attitude, and purchase intention.

Hypotheses Consistent with prior research (e.g., Coyle and Thorson 2001; Li et al. 2002; Klein 2003), positive relationships between product visualization type and persuasion are predicted as follows: H1: Product visualization type (i.e., 3-D vs. 2-D) will positively influence consumers attitude such that 3-D visualization will have a greater influence on consumer attitudes than 2-D representations. Given that product knowledge is an important variable influencing elaboration, the following interaction effects between visualization (i.e., 2-D vs. 3-D) and product knowledge on persuasion is predicted such that incorporating 3-D visualization is more likely to influence consumers attitudinal responses when prior knowledge of the product is low rather than high (Petty and Cacioppo 1986a). Thus, prior knowledge is predicted to moderate the influence of 3-D visualization on subjects attitudinal responses. This prediction is consistent with the tradeoff postulate of ELM (e.g., Petty, Cacioppo and Goldman 1981), which suggests that, as one moves along the elaboration continuum, the impact on attitude will vary based on the level of processing influenced by such factors as prior knowledge. That is, at low levels of information scrutiny, relatively low-elaboration judgment strategies (such as going with the early information or relying on heuristics) and low-elaboration judgment mechanisms and processes (such as identification with the source or classical conditioning) have a greater impact on attitudes than they do at high levels of scrutiny. Thus, as the impact of peripheral-route processing on judgments increases, the impact of central-route mechanisms on judgments decreases (Petty and Wegener 1999). H2: Three-dimensional visualization will have a greater influence on consumer attitudes than 2D representations when consumers have little prior knowledge of a product. Yet, 3-D visualization will have less effect on consumer attitudes when consumers have more product knowledge. Finally, consistent with the notion of previous research, the sense of presence should mediate the persuasive effects of 3-D visualization because the interactive nature of 3-D visualization evokes a compelling virtual experience that stimulates the sensation of presence absent from traditional static product representations (Li et al. 2002). Thus, presence is considered a mediator because it is predicted to carries the influence of 3-D visualization to the attitude measures. Note that this role of mediator is different from the role of moderator used in the first hypothesis. Mediation can be said to occur when (1) 3-D visualization affects the presence, (2) the 3-D visualization affects the attitude measures in the absence of the variable presence, (3) the mediator has a significant unique effect on the attitude measure, and (4) the effect of the 3-D visualization on the attitude measure shrinks upon the addition of the variable presence to the model. On the other hand, an interaction is said to occur when the magnitude of the effect of one independent variable on a dependent variable varies as a function of a second independent variable; in such cases, the second independent variable is called moderator. H3: Presence will mediate the influence of 3-D visualization on attitude.

METHODS To test the hypotheses, a laboratory experiment was conducted asking participants to access a Website and evaluate a consumer product. A 2 x 2 between-subject factorial design was used with prior product knowledge (low vs. high) and visualization type (3-D vs. 2-D) serving as the independent variables. Subjects were randomly assigned to the visualization type condition with product knowledge assessed beforehand to classify respondents accordingly. Sample A total of 104 students were recruited from introductory communication courses at a major southwestern university to participate in the study. In return for their participation, respondents received course credit with informed consent obtained prior to the experiment. Stimulus Material After considering a variety of products, a Portable Digital Assistant (PDA) was chosen as the experimental product used in creating the stimuli. In particular, the Compaq iPaq was used as it was found to have adequate variations in reported product class knowledge from a pretest. Two versions of an online shopping WebsiteBeither incorporating 3-D visualization or 2-D graphicsBwere constructed for use as the stimulus material in the experiment (see Appendix). In addition to the basic function of point and click, the 3-D visualization Website incorporates such features as product rotation, movement, and zooming in/out via the mouse. Accordingly, the 2-D version only allowed standard point and click functionality as product visuals were static. Except for the type of the product visualization (2-D vs. 3-D), all other information was identical across the two conditions. Product knowledge was measured using a five-item seven-point subjective knowledge scale (Mitchell and Dacin 1996). Specifically, respondents were asked to indicate their level of familiarity, understanding of the product characteristics, level of knowledge, knowledge relative the general population, and interest in portable computer devices. The index scores was then obtained by averaging all five items (a=.87) and the conventional median split method was used to divide the sample into high and low levels of product knowledge.