Store Image

What is Store Image?

What is store image? The way in which the store is defined in the shoppers’

mind, partly by its functional qualities and partly by an aura of psychological attributes’ Martineau (1958)

“What exactly do we mean by the image of a store? I submit that it is more than a factual description of its many characteristics. In many cases, it is less like a photograph than a highly interpretative portrait. In other words, an image is more than a sum of its parts” Oxenfeldt (1974)

What is store image? The range of tangible and intangible, factual

and emotional factors which combine to form the image in consumers mind

Impacts on the overall consumer experience (Marineau 1958).

The Store Personality (Martineau, 1958) Convergence between concepts of image and

concepts of branding

The importance of Store Image The link between store image and retail patronage is

now widely accepted. Success or failure of stores can often be related to

problems with image Image is positively related to store loyalty (Mazursky

and Jacoby, 1986; Osman, 1993) Research into store image informs positioning

strategies and how to differentiate stores Link between consumers self concept / ideal self and

store image Martineau (1958).

The Dull Personality “What happens to the retail store that lacks a

sharp character that does not stand for something special to any class of shoppers? It ends up as an alternative store in the customers mind. The shopper does not head for such a store as the primary place to find what she wants. Without certain outstanding departments and lines of merchandise, without a clear-cut attraction for some group, it is like a dull person”, Martineau (1958).

Question Can you identify any retailers in the

Irish market suffering from The Dull Personality syndrome?

What are the elements of store image?

Martineau refers to the personality factor What makes up a store’s image in the minds

of customers? Layout and architecture Symbols and colours – In the customers mind

colour schemes and designs have an intrinsic meaning.

Advertising – needs to be consistent with the character of the store itself.

Sales Personnel- Martineau suggests that the biggest single factor in the store image is the character of the sales personnel!

Elements of store image Lindquist (1974) summarized the results of 21

studies and identified 35 different components supposedly operating in store image formation. These were grouped into 9 independent sets: merchandise, service, clientele, physical facilities, convenience, promotion, store atmosphere, institutional attributes and post transaction satisfaction.

Merchandise Components were mentioned by the highest proportion of researchers

Elements of Store Image McGoldrick lists 18 general areas and 90

more specific elements that have been identified in previous studies of image and brand identity (List is not exhaustive)

Elements include tangible and intangible elements such as feelings, pictures and associations.

Relative importance of components varies considerably between markets, sectors, competitive situations and customer segments

Retailers View of their store image Martineau (1958) observed a disconnect between what retailers

were communicating and promoting and what shoppers actually valued.

Significant gaps between Store managers and customers perceptions of store image continue to highlighted in many more recent studies.

A lack of consistent measuring and monitoring of store image among many retailers observed.

Employees generally less critical of their store than consumers (Birtwistle et al 1999)

Dept store managers found to overrate the attributes of their store image (Pathak et al 1975)

Researching Store Image A difficult concept to explore and manage due to the

tangible and intangible nature of it Attributes of importance will vary across retail sectors

and are not necessarily applicable to other sectors. Image built up over time and impacts on our attitudes

and behaviour towards a retailer Central and peripheral cues Lifestyle and shopping orientations (Osman 1993 Education (Geistfeld, 2003) Age (Joyce and Lambert, 1996)

Researching Store Image Quantitative research - Scaling techniques Qualitiative Research - Projective techniques

Scaling techniques The semantic differential

Osgood et al (1957) Most widely used measurement system in image research Bi-polar contrasting adjectives Usually 5 or 7 point scale Traditional scale rates each retailer on all attributes before

moving to next retailer

The Semantic Differential

…semantic scales Modified Semantic Differential The Graphic positioning scale

Respondents place a symbol to represent perception of each retailer

Saves space Problems with coding for computer analysis and more

complex instructions for respondents

Modified Semantic differentialWide Selection Narrow Selection

Next 1 2 3 4 5 6 7Top Shop 1 2 3 4 5 6 7River Island 1 2 3 4 5 6 7etcRef McGoldrick pg. 193

Graphic Positioning Scale Ref McGoldrick pg. 193

…semantic scales Numerical comparative scale

Overcomes some problems association with graphic positioning

Economical on space Rating on attribute by attribute basis leads to better

discrimination between stores (Teas, 1994) However, ratings given to one store will influence ratings

given to others

Numerical Comparative ScaleNext Top Shop River Island

Wide selection 1234567 Narrow Selection

Good Value 1224567 Poor Value

Etc

Ref McGoldrick pg. 193

The Likert Scale Likert (1932) Used to measure attitudes and opinions Usually 5 or 7 point scale Measuring degree of agreement or

disagreement to a series of attitudinal statements

Some comments on scales Good for allowing comparisons between different groups of

respondents in relation to common and defined attributes Extensive evidence to support their validity, reliability and

sensitivity (Osgood et al, 1957)

Some problems with many previous studies on Image However, Oppenhiem, 1976 questioned the equality of distance

between intervals “Are we justified in basing our calculations on the assumption of

equality of interval, both within each scale and between different scales”

A key criticism is that they involve forced choice measures - the characteristics may not necessarily comprise the image that respondents have of the store.

The dimensions used to rate stores largely determined by the researcher as opposed to the respondent

Many studies have treated the attributes as being equally important which is not necessarily the case.

Open-ended approaches / Projective Techniques

Objective is to bypass the inhibiting thinking process of the respondent

Used when respondents are unable or unwilling to verbalize their response

Subjectivity of the analyst/researcher

Used to gain access to answers which would be denied by other approaches

Conducted on individual and group basis

Project their feelings onto other people; objects or situations

Uncover those topics such as feelings; attitudes, motivations which respondents may have difficulty in articulating due to

Fear of disapproval Unwarranted invasion of

privacy Encourages a state of freedom

and spontaneity of expression The true purpose of the

research is generally disguised Disadvantages include cost;

subjectivity potential; time consuming

Open ended techniques Free association techniques - e.g. word association and

sentence completion Picture interpretation Store/brand as a person - identifies personality issues e.g. if

M&S were a person describe the type of person / act out the type of person

Places, animals, activities and magazines Use experience What is user like - how does the user of Dunnes stores differ

from the user of M&S What distinguishes brands/stores from each other

…Open Ended Techniques Completion tests

Complete stories, sentences or conversations;

Brand Mapping Used to identify gaps in the

market, NPD ideas, respondents perception of product market etc.

Association tests Pictures and Words Brand personality tests

Construction tests Cartoon tests; Picture

response/Thematic Apperception Test

e.g. pick three images from a selection that best describe thoughts feelings and attitudes towards object in question and explain why.

Choice ordering Present list of words and ask

respondent to rank in order or put into categories based on factors associated with product/brand

Expressive techniques Role Playing - Participant is

asked to assume the role of another person or object.

Third-person Technique e.g. Nescafe research in 1950s

Personification - If Guinness was a person, what type of person would it be? / Obituary for a brand

Projective Techniques Belk, Ger and Askegaard (1997),

“Consumer desire in 3 Cultures: Results from Projective Research” in Advances in Consumer Research, 24, pp 24-28

Methods used were: Collage - your understanding of desire Association - a sea of objects people or

experiences Sketches - “Desire” and “not desire” artworks Synonym examples and feelings - Things a person

might strongly desire

What were the key results? Men and women focus on different objects of

desire Men focused on

Luxury cars Women as objects of their desire

Women focused on Food, especially chocolates Relationships as the interpersonal objects of their

desire American and Turkish women more likely to see

desire as sinful

Reading Chapter 5, McGoldrick, P. Retail Marketing, Second edition,

McGraw Hill, 2002. Journal Articles presented in class