There is nothing more annoying than buying a large tub of popcorn before a movie, fully expecting it to last for the entire ninety minute feature, and then eating more than half of it before the movie even begins. According to research from Cologne University, however, this may not be a first-world problem that we as movie-goers will face for much longer. In a recent study, it was discovered that snacking on popcorn during the advertisements prior to a movie makes the viewer immune to the ads.
The logic behind this surprising effect is that when a new ad is played on the screen, our mouths subconsciously simulate saying the name of the brand or company, and repeat it the next few times it is said on screen, as well, allowing it to be added to our short term memory. If the audience has food in their mouth, they can't mouth the name of the company, and the repetition does not occur, which does not allow the brand name to be stored in the memory.
Does this mean the end of movie theater popcorn? Sascha Topolinksi, one of the researchers involved in the study, thinks it might."This finding suggests that selling candy in cinemas actually undermines advertising effects, which contradicts present marketing strategies. In the future, when promoting a novel brand, advertising clients might consider trying to prevent candy being sold before the main movie."
However, his statement seems to suggest that theaters may be able to get away with altering the order of events at the theaters, for instance, putting on advertisements first, then allowing time to go buy popcorn before beginning the film. Unfortunately, this particular solution could be easily avoided by movie-goers, arriving just in time to buy popcorn and enjoy the film. If this research will ever be put to use is questionable right now, and we as a movie-going population will have to wait on more research from different populations.
To read the full article:
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/oct/13/eating-popcorn-cinema-advertisers
