business

Most of us have a hunch that, for better or worse, our moods and perceptions influence what we buy.

Joan Meyers-Levy puts some science behind it.

She's a marketing professor at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, and writes dense academic papers about such things as how ceiling heights, product displays or floor surfaces influence a consumer's mind-set.

As retailers polish their storefronts for what could be an idle season of holiday shopping, Meyers-Levy's research suggests they'll need to do more than put out the "on sale'' signs if they hope to clinch the deal.

"There's all this stuff around us that we think we can ignore,'' she said. "But it's profoundly affecting us."

On a recent outing among stores at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Meyers-Levy offered some insight into a field she's been immersed in for three decades.

Turns out, a little background music or even the chaos of a construction project can be a good thing. Why? Because research shows a "moderate level of stimulation" makes shoppers "evaluate things more positively,'' she said.

The skylights, windows and lighting in the mall itself are designed to stimulate big, positive thoughts. The height of a ceiling inside a store does more than create ambience. It influences the way people think, according to research Meyers-Levy did with partner Juliet Zhu of the University of British Columbia.

High ceilings -- often found in furniture stores -- encourage consumers to "process things in a more abstract, flowing way," Meyers-Levy said. "Your mind is thinking expansively. You see connections among things that aren't necessarily together."

A high ceiling might inspire shoppers to ponder how well that chair at Room & Board might fit in with your existing living room. Or whether a bookcase in the Broyhill area at Becker Furniture World showroom would complement a loveseat you spotted in the leather area.

A lower ceiling, on the other hand, makes people more focused on the task at hand, Meyers-Levy said. Consumers might zoom in on defects or study whether an item is scuffed or needs repairing.

As Meyers-Levy passed a MasterCuts, she hypothesized that the high ceiling in the salon area might bolster a woman's urge to get flamboyant and try a drastic new cut or color. The lower ceilings in the product area might spur a comparison among hair gels.

"I'm interested in the environment, and what goes unnoticed," Meyers-Levy said. When we're shopping, "we aren't conscious that we're standing on tile or carpet. All our focus is on the product. You wouldn't think that people would be sensitive to what they're standing on. But I find that they are. Carpet gives a sense of comfort in the body and that can affect people's perceptions of products."

Some of the theories may seem esoteric, but Meyers-Levy contends they are under-studied areas of consumer research, and she and Zhu are trying to generate interest for more research. Meyers-Levy's work has appeared in such trade publications as the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Applied Psychology, as well as in several books.

The retail lab

While she does get out to stores, much of the work of testing out theories happens in two small rooms on the third floor of the Carlson School on the University's West Bank. Students volunteer to be part of an experiment, and typically earn a couple of bucks or get class credit for their time.

The small, narrow labs have nondescript white walls and just enough room in them to outfit with a wall display, bookshelf, mirror, lamp and a chair. The rooms are arranged with the same basic layout and furnishings, but a key characteristic will be different: For example, one room will show a coffee mug on a wood table, the other will put it on glass. Or one will be filled with curvy furniture and objects, the other angular.

The labs allow Meyers-Levy to test how the context around a product influences people's impression of it.

One of the things she has learned: A field test of the product can cement the sale. For example, when you try on shoes at a place like REI and walk across the footbridge or climb up the wall, that experience does more than help you figure out if the shoes fit. Same goes for taking a test run on a Wii at a Best Buy store.

"It's a very effective sales technique," she said. "People get the sensation and exhilaration ... and attribute that to the shoes.''

And if you have to work hard to get at your object of desire -- say you need a ladder to get something off a shelf at the Home Depot -- you're not only more likely to buy it, but you're more likely to be satisfied with your purchase.

Small boutiques or store-within-a-store concepts foster reason-based decisions, Myers-Levy suspects, rather than more intuitive and feeling-based purchases.

Successful retailers aren't blind to this, of course. Many are highly skilled at design, architecture and use of colors and lighting. Paco Underhill's book, "Why We Buy," took an anthropological look at the science of shopping and found that a store's design often influences sales more than expensive advertising.

"A lot of what retailers do [with products and design] is by gut feel," she said. "But my research says it's not just whether you like it better. It's more about how effective it is in terms of the task you're trying to do."

Keep that in mind the next time you find yourself in a dressing room. Meyers-Levy has a theory -- untested, she stresses -- that even the size and shape of the mirror can influence the way consumers get to "yes."

"If it's a tall, vertical mirror, the eyes and head are nodding," she said. "Versus, it's a small mirror or wide mirror where you shake your head as you're looking. There's some evidence to suggest we're not conscious we're even making those movements, but it affects our evaluations."

Jackie Crosby • 612-673-7335