What Is Implicit Memory In Subliminal Advertising

Implicit Memory and Subliminal Advertising
Implicit memory effects occur "when previous exposure to a stimulus (such as advertisement) influences our performance on subsequent tasks without the consumer remembering the previous experience or being aware of its influence on performance” (Fennis & Stroebe, 2016, p.72). Information processing in implicit memory is characterized as fast, parallel and effortless, as it does not need any conscious recollection of previous experiences (Chaiken & Trope, as cited in Fennis & Stroebe, 2016). Researchers have found that implicit memory for particular advertising elements tend to be more stable than explicit memory (Edell, 1993 as cited in Braun-Latour & Latour, 2004). The distinction between explicit

Through subliminal advertising, advertisers can influence consumers´ decisions by introducing new ideas or concepts to the implicit memory (Verwijmeren, Karremans, Bernritter, Stroebe, & Wigboldus, 2013). Mere exposure effect and priming effect are both psychological techniques used in subliminal advertising. One study conducted by Braun (1999) confirms that post-experience subliminal advertising can influence the memory for a product. 150 participants (66 female, 88 male) were asked to describe in their own words the taste of a new brand of orange juice, called Orange Groove. It was found that participants who were shown the positive advertisements after the tasting experience used more positive and vivid words to describe their tasting experience, whereas the participants who were not shown any advertisements gave neutral

Banner ads were shown for 5 seconds each and located on top of the article on the computer screen. In the zero-exposure condition (control group), only filler ads were presented to the participants. Filler ads were also used in both the five-exposure condition and the twenty-exposure condition in order to disguise the true nature of the study. After reading the article, participants responded to a few questions related to the article, followed by a recognition test and ad evaluation. Depending on the condition, participants in their respective groups were asked to rate the degree of their positive or negative reaction on the target banner ad on a nine-point scale, ranging from 1= no positive or negative reaction to 9 = very positive/negative reactions (Fang, Singh & Ahluwalia,