How the Mere Exposure Effect Should Influence Your Content Marketing

What is the Mere Exposure Effect?

The mere exposure effect is a psychological phenomenon that causes people to prefer something because it is familiar.

An excellent example of the mere exposure effect in action is when you choose between two products at the grocery store, one familiar and one you haven’t tried before. People will choose the familiar over the unfamiliar almost every time.

In short, the more you are exposed to something, the more you will come to like it, providing that the first experience is not a negative one.

The same principle works well for logos, jingles, or any repeated stimulus because the brain finds it easier to process any information it has encountered before. The initial exposure to your brand must be a neutral one, as initial negative experiences will hurt your efforts.

If the first encounter is negative, then even repeated exposure will not change a negative image of your brand into a positive one.

Here’s how you can use the mere exposure effect to your advantage in your content marketing.

Improve Conversion Rates with the Mere Exposure Effect

Getting the most out of the mere exposure effect means increasing your visibility. Here are a few ways you can do that with your content marketing.

Show Up Everywhere

Whatever demographic you are targeting, not all of them will be on every platform. Some will be active on Twitter but not on Facebook, some search on Google and some prefer podcast information. Some may rely primarily on emails rather than social media, and some may spend more of their time on YouTube than anywhere else. You need to be on all of these channels with your content to get the most advantage out of the MEE.

This doesn’t mean creating a unique piece of content for every marketing platform, most of the time, if you have a good content agency, they can repurpose one or two videos or podcasts for a whole month of content!

Emulate Popular Websites

Follow the design principles of the most popular websites in your niche. People get used to seeing a certain type of website, which helps to breed familiarity and trigger the MEE. Pay close attention to the UI. The goal is not to copy a website but to use the same design principles, so you expose your visitors to a similar user experience.

Create Original Content

Your website design principles influence the MEE, but your content should make you stand out. Unique content is a valuable tool that can help your business stand out as an authority in your industry. In this way, you provide value and enhance your brand’s overall perception in the marketplace.

Give Your Ads Time to Work

If your company engages in any type of online paid advertising like Cost Per Click (CPC), you should give new ads time to work before you evaluate their performance. It may take a while before they become a familiar sight on the search engines or social media sites your audience are browsing. If you know your target audience is on Facebook every day, then run your ads for at least a week.

Are you ready to increase your Mere Exposure Effect to help your conversion rate? We can help you develop a high-converting marketing plan that will promote familiarity with your brand in the online marketing space. Call today to start growing your business.