No. 3: PERCEPTUAL RESOURCES

Brand, Corporate Image, Reputation, etc have long been accepted as one of the core components in the mix of tangible assets. Since the publication of the Marketing Myopia by Theodore Levitte, the invention of Market Segmentation and many other consumer side marketing innovations, organizations have been able to distinguish themselves from the crowd. The debate on business model especially on value proposition has taken the basic concept to greater heights with holistic and granular thinking at a go. Advertising, through all its forms makes the challenge and debate even more interesting. Earlier, marketing was about the 4Ps and 4As. Later on it went to include three other Ps and As. The evolution in the domain of Corporate Social Responsibility also makes a good case for corporate reputation etc. Generally, there is quite a great danger of organizational demise if due diligence is not applied in the management of its Image, Brands, Reputations etc.

DEFINITION, LOGIC AND EXAMPLES

A Perceptual Resource is the bond between an identity and a discriminating observer established through the crystallization on the mind of, holding and using of distinctive information about the identity by the discriminating observer.

Identity: This is anything that an opinion can be formed about.

Distinctive Information: Information that differentiates one thing from another in a crowd.

Discriminating Observer: A free will agent who chooses in exclusion of others based on predefined criteria (rational, emotional, cultural etc.)

A perceptual resource is a bond. The bond is established through the crystallization on the mind of, holding and using of distinctive information about the identity by the discriminating observer. The identity emits distinctive information which is trapped, crystallized, held and used by the discriminating observer. The information may not come directly from the identity, however, it always points to the identity.

Examples of Perceptual Resources include Names, Brands, Reputations, Logos, and Cultures etc.

BASES OF VALUE

The value of Perceptual Resources is dependent on an Informational Value, Contextual Fit, and Perceptual Distance.

• Informational Value: This is the inherent value of the distinctive information to the discriminating observer.
• Contextual Fit: This is the extent to which the identity and the distinctive information it emits matches to and shapes the defined criteria of the discriminating observer.
• Perceptual Distance: This is the preference number of the identity to the discriminating observer from a group of competing identities.

A perceptual resource is built entirely by the information about the identity the discriminating observer is capable of crystallizing and making use of. For a perceptual resource to be, the informational content from the identity must be valuable to the discriminating observer.The value of the distinctive information may be absolute or relative.

Contextual fit is the component of the perceptual resource that depends entirely on the make-up and decision of the discriminating observer. Irrespective of the amount of information, for an individual discriminating observer to decide, he needs to have a predefined criterion on which to base his decision. This criterion could be emotional, rational, faith-based or cultural.

In a conventional setting, the criteria could be based on product, price, place, and promotion.