Gaze behaviour in front-of-shelf orientation

Abstract

PurposeThis study was predicated on gaze behaviour in front-of-shelf orientation. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect of the presence (absence) of competing brands on consumer attention in front-of-shelf orientation. The effects on visual attention investigated on the shelf were eye scan path of the total available area, information acquisition in extremities and mental effort.Design/methodology/approachTwo experiments were performed using eye-tracking technology. The first study was conducted in a closed and static environment. The second study was performed in an open and dynamic environment. In these studies, the authors used, as an independent variable, the arrangement of brands on shelves (presence vs absence of competing) and evaluated the variations in the visual attention through three dependent variables: eye scan path of the total available area, information acquisition in extremities and mental effort.FindingsThree hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis confirmed that scenarios of competitive brands are rather composed of natural complex scenes, so there is a greater number of eye fixations needed to identify and locate objects. In addition, the second hypothesis demonstrated that, in scenarios of competitive brands, there is an acceleration of information acquisitions causing an increase in peripheral vision at the ends of the shelf. Finally, the third hypothesis demonstrated that the presence of a greater attention effort in the scenario of competing brands was verified, since the mental effort variables (revisiting the shelf, noting and re-examining) were greater than in the scenario of non-competing brands.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations of this study may be associated with the absence of top-down factors and a lack of results associated with evaluation and verification phases.Originality/valueGaze behaviour is susceptible to the information derived from the absence and presence of competing brands.