[5.6] Roger’s Characteristics of Innovation & Consumers

Essential idea: Innovations take time to diffuse into a target audience.

Diffusion of innovations

Diffusion of innovations is a theory that seeks to explain how, why, and at what rate new ideas and technology spread through cultures

Diffusion of Innovation

Rogers proposes that five main elements influence the spread of a new idea:

the innovation itself,

The adopters

a person who does something differently than what they had previously (i.e., purchase or use a new product, acquire and perform a new behavior

communication channels,

time

Social system

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Element Definition

Innovation an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new

Communication channels

Time

Social system

Element Definition

Innovation an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new

Communication channels "the means by which messages get from one individual to another".

Time

Social system

Element Definition

Innovation an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as ne

Communication channelsthe means by which messages get from one individual to another

Time

Rate of adoption is the relative speed with which an innovation is adopted by members of a social system

Social system

Element Definition

Innovation an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new

Communication channelsthe means by which messages get from one individual to another".

Time

Rate of adoption is the relative speed with which an innovation is adopted by members of a social system

Social systeminterrelationships existing between individuals, groups, and institutions and forming a whole

Consumer Adoption of an Innovation

There are five established adopter categories. When promoting an innovation, there are different strategies used to appeal to the different adopter categories

Task: Categories of Consumers

Research the characteristics of the different adopters:• Innovators• Early adopters• Early Majority• Late Majority• Laggards

Adopter Characteristics• Innovators - want to be the first to try the innovation. Interested in new ideas.

willing to take risks, Very little, if anything, needs to be done to appeal to this population.

• Early Adopters - enjoy leadership roles, and embrace change opportunities. comfortable adopting new ideas. Strategies include how-to manuals and information sheets on implementation. They do not need information to convince them to change.

• Early Majority - rarely leaders, but do adopt new ideas before the average person. Need to see evidence that the innovation works. Strategies include success stories and evidence of the innovation's effectiveness.

• Late Majority - skeptical of change, and will only adopt an innovation after it has been tried by the majority. Strategies include information on how many other people have tried the innovation and have adopted it successfully.

• Laggards - bound by tradition and very conservative. Very skeptical of change and are the hardest group to bring on board. Strategies include statistics, fear appeals, and pressure from people in the other adopter groups.

Characteristics of Innovations

and the impact they have on whether the innovation is adopted.

Relative Advantage

Factors influencing adoption of an innovation

• Compatibility - values, experiences, and needs

Factors influencing adoption of an innovation

Complexity -

Factors influencing adoption of an innovation

• Triability -

Factors influencing adoption of an innovation

• Observability - tangible results

Influence of Social Media on Diffusion of innovations

Consumers are buzzing around social media, conveying their thoughts on products and services.

A survey by Nielsen found that 58% of the people on the Internet spend time discussing service and product issues.

Understanding new product adoption behaviour is critical for companies trying to explain and influence consumers’ decisions.

traditional advertising seems to be less effective

Influence of Social Media on Diffusion of innovations

'Deceptive' YouTube video ads helped promote Xbox One

YouTubers were paid up to $30,000 (£20,000) to endorse the Xbox One as part of a "deceptive" ad campaign, said the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The FTC said Machinima paid two YouTubers a total of $45,000 to produce videos specifically endorsing the console. It also guaranteed payouts, up to a maximum of $25,000, to a larger group of vloggers if they got people to view the clips in large numbers.The failure to disclose the fact that the favourable views of the YouTubers were being paid for broke US laws governing "deceptive advertising".'Social influencer'"When people see a product touted online, they have a right to know whether they're looking at an authentic opinion or a paid marketing pitch," said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection…

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34138251

Roots of consumerism?Based on scientific evidence or subjective evaluation

Social roots of consumerism

“…diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among members of a social system.”

Social roots of consumerism

“…most individuals evaluate an innovation, not on the basis of scientific research by experts, but on the basis of the subjective evaluations of near peers who have already adopted the innovation”

The influence of trends and the media on consumer choice

Mass Media

Interpersonal Communication