Some of the things that would go on in your mind are as follows:
You might be having an existing mental picture about the product owing to advertising, word of mouth, etc. In such a case, the first thought is to see how the product looks in reality. You will look at the size of the product, the shape, the colour, the feel, etc. and try and compare it with the mental picture and the positive or negative associations which are attached to it. There will be an impulsive reaction where the mind will reach a conclusion by placing the product either at level, below or above the mental picture which exists. This is the first reaction.
You would immediately start looking either at the person to whom the product belongs for approval of your impression by comparing it with the unspoken messages which are communicated from the person. Also, you would be looking at the product a little deeper and feeling it with your own hands and trying to see how well the product goes with your personality. This is the second stage and here, you start adding your self image to the image of the product which is there in the mind. The association can go very far where you would start placing yourself with the product and visualize yourself in different kinds of scenarios and plots. The most common plots where you would visualize yourself would be about situations which have either happened in the recent past or which you are waiting for in the near future. It can also be from the strongest ambitions and desires which exist in your mind.
Usually by this time, the owner of the product is also expecting a reaction from you. Your reaction would enable him to compare his visualization of scenario which he had at the time he was making a purchase decision with the reality in your actions.
At the third stage, you are about to show your first reactions to the owner of the product. The reaction would depend on the following factors:
a) The spoken/ unspoken message which the owner of the product communicates to you about the product.
b) The spoken/ unspoken message which the owner of the product communicates about his mental association with the product.
c) Your initial mental impression about the product before you had seen the product.
d) Your first comparison about the product on seeing it and comparing it with your mental impression of the product.
e) Your mental association of the product image with the various scenario’s where you are with the product
f) Your social relationship with the owner.
g) Your understanding about the likes and dislikes of the owner.
h) Your estimate about how the owner would react to your judgement.
i) Your judgement about what the owner would think about you depending on your response.
j) And a few other aspects
Based on the above, you would usually not reveal the actual feeling about the product and end up reacting in a manner which is influenced by the above factors. There are situations where you want to ego massage the owner, where you want to make the owner feel good, where you want to hide your own satisfaction with the product, where you hide the faults with the product, where you try to over-emphasize small product features or underplay the major product features.
However, once you return the product to its owner post your inspection of the product and showing your reaction, you would take away some of the following impressions:
a) A new mental image of the product which would be either below, at par or above the past impression which you had before you had seen the product.
b) A new series of situations/plots where you have associated the image of the product with yourself and if there are positive or negative resolutions to these scenarios.
c) A series of situations/plots where you have associated the image of the product with the owner which again would depend on the way the owner displayed his ownership of the product.
d) A plan to buy or not to buy the product. A plan to buy a variant somewhere similar to the product. A plan of action as to how you would go about with achieving your target with regard to buying/ not buying/ buying a variant, etc.
e) An impression about the owner of the product which would place him at a certain socio-economic, emotional or practical level.
f) An emotional feeling which can be of jealousy, pride, self-esteem, etc. about your own socio-economic, emotional or practical level which you will compare with that of the owner of the product.
All of these impressions and associations will remain in your mind and will keep returning back to you every time you see the product in future or hear or discuss about it. All further advertising which the product does and all communication which is made by the product will always end up being compared with these impressions. However, post this first impression forming stage, it would be difficult to change these impressions and associations. Any advertising communication which is exposed to you directly post this stage will be taken skeptically and carefully. It can lead to formation of more positive impressions if you are carrying away a positive impression of the product post its first contact. The reverse can also happen where the impression of the product will keep on falling with every further communication which is consumed. Any message which reaches you through indirect sources would have a greater influence on your impressions and associations. This also shows that once you are exposed to the product, communication being made by the brand can act either in their favour or against them depending on how the first impression and association has been.
You might be having an existing mental picture about the product owing to advertising, word of mouth, etc. In such a case, the first thought is to see how the product looks in reality. You will look at the size of the product, the shape, the colour, the feel, etc. and try and compare it with the mental picture and the positive or negative associations which are attached to it. There will be an impulsive reaction where the mind will reach a conclusion by placing the product either at level, below or above the mental picture which exists. This is the first reaction.
You would immediately start looking either at the person to whom the product belongs for approval of your impression by comparing it with the unspoken messages which are communicated from the person. Also, you would be looking at the product a little deeper and feeling it with your own hands and trying to see how well the product goes with your personality. This is the second stage and here, you start adding your self image to the image of the product which is there in the mind. The association can go very far where you would start placing yourself with the product and visualize yourself in different kinds of scenarios and plots. The most common plots where you would visualize yourself would be about situations which have either happened in the recent past or which you are waiting for in the near future. It can also be from the strongest ambitions and desires which exist in your mind.
Usually by this time, the owner of the product is also expecting a reaction from you. Your reaction would enable him to compare his visualization of scenario which he had at the time he was making a purchase decision with the reality in your actions.
At the third stage, you are about to show your first reactions to the owner of the product. The reaction would depend on the following factors:
a) The spoken/ unspoken message which the owner of the product communicates to you about the product.
b) The spoken/ unspoken message which the owner of the product communicates about his mental association with the product.
c) Your initial mental impression about the product before you had seen the product.
d) Your first comparison about the product on seeing it and comparing it with your mental impression of the product.
e) Your mental association of the product image with the various scenario’s where you are with the product
f) Your social relationship with the owner.
g) Your understanding about the likes and dislikes of the owner.
h) Your estimate about how the owner would react to your judgement.
i) Your judgement about what the owner would think about you depending on your response.
j) And a few other aspects
Based on the above, you would usually not reveal the actual feeling about the product and end up reacting in a manner which is influenced by the above factors. There are situations where you want to ego massage the owner, where you want to make the owner feel good, where you want to hide your own satisfaction with the product, where you hide the faults with the product, where you try to over-emphasize small product features or underplay the major product features.
However, once you return the product to its owner post your inspection of the product and showing your reaction, you would take away some of the following impressions:
a) A new mental image of the product which would be either below, at par or above the past impression which you had before you had seen the product.
b) A new series of situations/plots where you have associated the image of the product with yourself and if there are positive or negative resolutions to these scenarios.
c) A series of situations/plots where you have associated the image of the product with the owner which again would depend on the way the owner displayed his ownership of the product.
d) A plan to buy or not to buy the product. A plan to buy a variant somewhere similar to the product. A plan of action as to how you would go about with achieving your target with regard to buying/ not buying/ buying a variant, etc.
e) An impression about the owner of the product which would place him at a certain socio-economic, emotional or practical level.
f) An emotional feeling which can be of jealousy, pride, self-esteem, etc. about your own socio-economic, emotional or practical level which you will compare with that of the owner of the product.
All of these impressions and associations will remain in your mind and will keep returning back to you every time you see the product in future or hear or discuss about it. All further advertising which the product does and all communication which is made by the product will always end up being compared with these impressions. However, post this first impression forming stage, it would be difficult to change these impressions and associations. Any advertising communication which is exposed to you directly post this stage will be taken skeptically and carefully. It can lead to formation of more positive impressions if you are carrying away a positive impression of the product post its first contact. The reverse can also happen where the impression of the product will keep on falling with every further communication which is consumed. Any message which reaches you through indirect sources would have a greater influence on your impressions and associations. This also shows that once you are exposed to the product, communication being made by the brand can act either in their favour or against them depending on how the first impression and association has been.
