Conditions Facilitating Successful Discounting in Consumer Decision Making

Abstract

Two types of discounting appeals were tested for effectiveness: an ignore appeal asks consumers to disregard a previously communicated claim because it may not be valid; a refute appeal specifically states that the challenged claim is incorrect. Results from two experiments indicate that the impact of the two appeals on consumer decision making depends on the elaboration the message underwent during encoding. Impact is also mediated by the extent to which a discounting cue provides counterinformation about a product and signals a reinterpretation of non-challenged claims. Refute appeals are more effective due to their specificity and strength.