The Halo effect: what is it and how do you use it in marketing?

[tasmih1234]

Introduction
"You never get a second chance for a first impression."

As an SME entrepreneur, this effect can increase your chances of success, but it can also create blind spots. In this article, we dive deeper into the nuances of the halo effect and how it affects your business decisions.

What is the Halo effect?
The Halo effect is a cognitive bias in which positive impressions of people, brands or products in one area positively influence our feelings in another area (Thorndike, 1920).

Our perception of one quality leads to a biased assessment of other qualities. We form judgments without having legitimate reasons for doing so. If someone is good at A, he/she must also be good at B and gansu mobile numbers list C, even though B and C may have nothing to do with A at all. We judge something or someone based on one characteristic. Several factors can cause the Halo effect, but a person's attractiveness is one of the most common factors. This includes characteristics such as weight and hair color, which thus influence our perceptions about someone's success and personality, for example (Wade & DiMaria, 2003).

The name "halo" refers to the positive light we shine on people or things, based on certain visible qualities. Because of their apparent "halo" qualities, we are likely to overestimate the value of this thing or person. Because of the Halo effect, we no longer think critically about opportunities and threats, we miss important points and we can no longer judge people objectively.

The opposite of the Halo effect is the Horn effect, in which a negative impression of something or someone also creates a negative expectation in other areas (Thorndike, 1920).

How does the Halo effect occur?
When we try to form an opinion about someone, we do so based on what we already know, and we fill in the rest ourselves with what fits. This is quick, but not objective. We like it when the new information confirms our existing beliefs, just like the confirmation bias. And by having to base our final judgment on only one aspect, we can decide faster, and our lazy brain likes that.