Comments on: Where does influence come from?

By: Richard Becker

Richard Becker — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 00:52:50 +0000

Ryan,

You're right that influence comes from all over, including our own past experiences whether or not we realize that, but there is a degree of influence that can always be considered. That is usually determined by perceived authority (and not just about cars) and/or the personal proximity.

Scott Monty might be an excellent example. He might know more about cars than most people, but your experience predisposes you to think that he might looking out for Ford as much as you. (Makes sense.) Because you know this, experience may have influenced you to diminish his authority. Conversely, a close friend might not know anything about cars, but always seems to have luck with them or seems to be right about many subjects, might be more influential.

All in all, I think part of it is about predisposition. Just as much as some people are more influential than others, some people can be influenced more than others. Having met you, I would hazard a guess that you are not influenced very easy.

All my best,
Rich

By: ryananderson

ryananderson — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:15:44 +0000

I was going to delete "kanika's" comment, but I like Dan's so much, I'm going to leave it.

By: sabiq

sabiq — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 06:37:37 +0000

nice blog..
you have very2 nice blog..
nice to meet you..
have a nice day…
c u next time..

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 06:06:08 +0000

Yea, even I don't like spam comments. These comments has less reliability. There must exists some mechanism to test the ability of terrible social media PR company. www.youhavetobekidding.me

By: ryananderson

ryananderson — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 05:33:21 +0000

You're right – I had no interest in North American cars, and that was based on word of mouth from both regular people and friends who work in the auto industry.

I don't know if TV made me more excited about the car or not, but it definitely planted a seed and made me want to dig deeper. In the end, I chose the Fit over the Versa and Yaris because I liked it better.

I did go to the automotive sites, but in all honesty, they played no particular role, as most of them are just brochures.

By: kanika

kanika — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:02:47 +0000

Yea, even I don't like North American cars. These cars have less credibility. There must exists some mechanism to test the workability of the car. www.assurance.co.in

By: Uwe Hook

Uwe Hook — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:35:25 +0000

Clearly, you were leaning towards Japanese cars from the beginning. It seems Detroit cars never had a chance. Sure, Scott might have opened your mind a bit more but deep-seated perceptions are hard to change. I think that TV helps people understanding the image of the car and getting them excited about their choices. Social Marketing might not have made a big impact on your final decision but WOM definitely helped. Car buying is one of the more complex decision-making processes and everybody chooses a different path. In the end, the final choice comes down to how the car will fit your lifestyle and image.

Question: Did you every go to the automotive sites? Or just 3rd party sites?