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Nicholas Gatto
Prof. Hamilton
MARK 222
2/17/14
Changing Attitudes Assignment

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Marketers use several methods of assessing and changing consumer attitudes. This paper
will examine three examples of print media utilizing different models of attitudinal change; the
first will demonstrate the ABC model, the second will show attempts to change functional
attitudes, and the last ad will demonstrate changing attitudes using the multi-attribute model.
The advertisements were found using AdForum thus their actual appearance in specific
publications is not known however comparable media were chosen to identify the characteristics
of their target audiences.
The ABC model of attitudes attributes three components to consumer attitudes. There is
an affective component, a behavioral component, and a cognitive component. In this model a
change in one component will cause a change in the other components. The FiveTen
advertisement, Dart Gun, attempts to cause a cognitive change in consumers thereby changing
affect and behavior (Appendix I). In this magazine advertisement the brand FiveTen is
attempting to change attitudes towards the performance of its rock-climbing shoes. The ad
shows a toy dart gun but instead of a suction cup on the dart there is a FiveTen shoe. The
message is that FiveTen shoes will help climbers because the shoes provide ample grip and
traction, also making them speedy like a dart. Dart Gun could be found in a publication like
Outside Magazine. Outside magazine has a readership over 2.5 million people, comprised of
active, affluent, educated, professionals (Outside.com). These people care about their fitness and
have the time and resources to be involved with multiple kinds of activities. Outside magazine
has a majority male audience. The target of the ad is probably very similar to Outdoor
magazines; outdoorsy, educated men are the most likely to be rock climbers because it is an
expensive, technical, and esoteric sport. Potential consumers of FiveTen shoes may be unsure of
how the product performs or if it actually improves individual performance; a rock climbers
main concern for shoes is traction. The creators of this advertisement are attempting to make
people believe that FiveTen shoes are sticky like a suction cup; the goal of the analogy is to bring
about some positive cognition that the shoes provide climbers with traction. I believe the ad is

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effective in changing customer attitudes because the juxtaposition of the shoe and the dart gun
cleverly makes customers create the easy analogy in their own heads.
The second advertisement for Maxell purports that they are leading the evolution of the
DVD (Appendix II). This is an example of the functional model of attitude change in use; this
theory posits that all attitudes express some underlying function. In this case Maxell is
attempting to target the utilitarian needs of consumers to change attitudes. The advertisement
shows the different ways that Maxell is improving DVDs to make them more functionally
effective for consumers. This ad would appear in a magazine such as Maximum PC. This
publication is aimed at PC enthusiasts with a readership of around two-hundred thousand and a
focuses on hardware reviews (SDRS). Initial consumer attitudes towards Maxell are probably
neutral to positive considering the fact that Maxell is a well-established brand in the blank media
products sector. The copy in the body of the ad reveals that this is an attempt at functional
attitude change because of the influential language listing specs and features. It attempts to
change attitudes by putting the goals of the brand in line with the needs of customers. Marketers
hope consumers will have the attitudes that Maxell provides performance products and is an
evolving, modern brand. I do not believe that this is an effective use of the functional model
because there is a dissonance between the copy of the ad and the imagery. The disembodied
robot arm, inserting a DVD into what can only be described as a computer youd find on the set
of a 1990s science-fiction movie, is wrong. It attempts to convey the message that Maxell is on
the cutting edge of futuristic technology but on the whole its a ridiculous image that does not
bring about any attitudes concerning functionality.
The multi-attribute model of attitudes proposes that consumers attitudes are the sum
products of their attitudes towards all the specific attributes of a product and the weighted
importance of each attribute. Nextels ad for its GPS tracking solutions shows a brand
attempting to change attitudes by changing the importance of attributes (Appendix III). Small
business owners are the real targets of Nextels ad thus this ad would be likely to appear in
Bloomberg Businessweek. Businessweek has an audience a little under one million readers

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comprised of mostly affluent men and women, a median income over $100k, with an average age
over fifty years old (SDRS). The target audiences of this magazine and of Nextels ad are very
similar in that they are both seeking educated, affluent, entrepreneurs. The customers attitudes
towards Nextel prior to seeing this advertisement are most likely ambivalent or negative; Nextel
is not necessarily a popular carrier for most private consumers. The multi-attribute model is
evident in this advertisement from the focus on GPS tracking services. Nextel is trying to
convince consumers that their GPS tracking services are an important attribute to have for
business mobile communication solutions. Marketers hope that people will have the attitude that
Nextels GPS tracking solutions are an important tool to get business done. The image of a man
using blood hounds to find his workforce suggests that his business is lacking the capabilities to
manage logistics, an issue easily remedied by the attribute Nextel is offering. Nextels
advertisement is effective because it highlights the importance of this feature through comical
representation of the consequences related to not weighting the importance of the attribute in
question.
The Dart Gun ad, out of these three, is the most effective at changing consumer
behaviors. FiveTen is able to express its message far more simply and creatively than Maxell or
Nextel. The predominant use of imagery as opposed to copy allows the ad to change consumers
attitudes simply by necessitating reasoning and analogy to view it. This means that customers see
the image and intuitively reach a belief about the brand as opposed to the same person reading a
block of text, filtering the information presented, and ultimately developing beliefs. Nextels
piece makes use of compelling imagery; however, the scene presented, although comical,
requires a far more reasoning to appreciate than the FiveTen ad. This does not mean that the
FiveTen ad uses the models of attitudinal change the best. Multiple models could be attributed to
each advertisement; for example the Nextel ad might be even considered as a utilitarian
functional ad.

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Appendix I: Changing Cognition; FiveTen Climbing Shoes

http://georgetown.adforum.com/creative-work/ad/player/27008/sxi:8947043sxi:8947043

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Appendix II: Utilitarian Function; Maxell Evolution of the DVD

http://georgetown.adforum.com/creative-work/ad/player/35622/sxi:8947176sxi:8947176

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Appendix III: Changing the Importance of Attributes; Nextel GPS Tracking Solutions

http://georgetown.adforum.com/creative-work/ad/player/57821/sxi:8947176

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Bibliography
"Bloomberg Businessweek: CIRCULATION." Kantar Media SRDS. N.p., n.d. Web.
<http://next.srds.com/nmp/datacard/show/1532/3>.

"Maximum PC: CIRCULATION." Kantar Media SRDS. N.p., n.d. Web.

<http://next.srds.com/nmp/datacard/show/1449/3>.

"Outside: CIRCULATION." Kantar Media SRDS. N.p., n.d. Web.

<http://next.srds.com/nmp/datacard/show/1433/3>.