The case for progression
There are 24 letters between A and Z. If we only needed A and Z, well...there would only be two letters in the English alphabet.
So, why are marketers obsessed with A and Z.
Think back to the last time you saw a weight loss commercial.*
Here’s what a typical weight loss spot looks like.
Before: On the left, the before picture in poor lighting. The model is heavy and has a slight scowl.
After: On the right, the after picture is well-lit and in full color The model is chiseled with a ginormous grin.
What’s wrong with this picture?
First, this is a picture of A (the before) and Z (the after). This format can be useful, but it doesn’t always work. It usually leaves a lot of unanswered questions.
What’s going in between?
What does transformation truly look like?**
Unanswered questions create doubt.
What difference might it make, if you showed the progression? What if, in addition to the starting point and end point, you also showed the journey. Would that make the outcome more achievable? Would it make the promise of transformation more credible?
Perhaps, the momentum generated by visualizing progress could be enough to encourage a skeptic to take the first step.
Progression advertising can help your audience simulate the process of attaining a desired result, making your offer much more credible and persuasive than before-and-after ads.
In their brilliant finding, Advertising a Desired Change***, Luca Cian, Chiara Longoni and Aradhna Krishna analyzed progression ads and before/after ads. They found that, within proper context, progression ads promoted more choice, better behavior and more credibility than traditional before/after ads.
Credibility relies on the process by which a consumer is able to understand the path to a result. This is a huge part of what makes progression ads more effective than before/after ads. It’s a story of transition. After all, most of us are in transition—one way or another.
Most people watching a late-night infomercial on weight loss do not look like fitness models. But, they can relate to someone somewhere in-between (B-Y). And seeing yourself represented in the story is sometimes enough to take that vital first step.
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*Because it’s a common scenario and the one used in the research cited later in this post. Feel free to swap out “weight loss product” for your product or service.
**If the product is effective, wouldn’t you be eager to show the process?
***From the Journal of Marketing Research. Luca Cian is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Darden School of Business, University of Virginia. Chiara Longoni is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Questrom School of Business, Boston University. Aradhna Krishna is Dwight F. Benton Professor of Marketing, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan.