In 1974, psychologists Elizabeth Loftus and John Palmer showed test subjects seven 5-30 second video clips of car accidents. Every subject saw the same clips.
After viewing the videos, the subjects were given questions about the accidents and were asked to write down their answers.
The twist was that they were given different questions.
The critical questions were:
The results? The highest speed estimates - 40.8 miles per hour on average - were provided by those asked how fast the cars were going when they smashed into each other.
The lowest speed estimates - 31.8 miles per hour on average - were provided by those asked how fast the cars were going when they contacted each other.
A slight change in verbs resulted in a 22.1% difference in recall.
Speed Estimates From Various Verbs
Verb: Smashed
Mean Speed Estimate: 40.8 mph
Verb: Collided
Mean Speed Estimate: 39.3 mph
Verb: Bumped
Mean Speed Estimate: 38.1 mph
Verb: Hit
Mean Speed Estimate: 34.0 mph
Verb: Contacted
Mean Speed Estimate: 31.8 mph
Are you connecting the dots that this has profound and far-reaching implications for advertising and marketing?
For example, consider which of the following article headlines would impact you more and make you more likely to read the article:
After viewing the videos, the subjects were given questions about the accidents and were asked to write down their answers.
The twist was that they were given different questions.
The critical questions were:
- About how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?
- About how fast were the cars going when they smashed each other?
- About how fast were the cars going when they collided with each other?
- About how fast were the cars going when they bumped into each other?
- About how fast were the cars going when they contacted with each other?
The results? The highest speed estimates - 40.8 miles per hour on average - were provided by those asked how fast the cars were going when they smashed into each other.
The lowest speed estimates - 31.8 miles per hour on average - were provided by those asked how fast the cars were going when they contacted each other.
A slight change in verbs resulted in a 22.1% difference in recall.
Speed Estimates From Various Verbs
Verb: Smashed
Mean Speed Estimate: 40.8 mph
Verb: Collided
Mean Speed Estimate: 39.3 mph
Verb: Bumped
Mean Speed Estimate: 38.1 mph
Verb: Hit
Mean Speed Estimate: 34.0 mph
Verb: Contacted
Mean Speed Estimate: 31.8 mph
Are you connecting the dots that this has profound and far-reaching implications for advertising and marketing?
For example, consider which of the following article headlines would impact you more and make you more likely to read the article:
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stephen_D._Palmer
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