The Unseen Guide: Visual Salience Affects Product Recognition Memory

ObjectiveComputationally defined visual salience can predict attentional deployment in complex, e-commerce displays but less is known about the effect of salience on later cognitive processes. For instance, can salience also predict later memory for e-commerce products? If so, visual salience could be leveraged to inform design.BackgroundOnline shopping environments provide a wealth of visual information, with numerous products competing for attention. When consumers visit e-commerce pages, they may not have a specific purchase goal. Understanding attentional guidance in these complex displays is critical. Visual salience may influence what products consumers notice and later remember.MethodsHigh- and low-salience products were identified in naturalistic e-commerce webpages using a computational model. During the experiment, participants viewed the webpages and were told their memory for all products would be tested. Recognition memory for individual products was then tested.ResultsParticipants demonstrated better recognition memory for products that had high visual salience, compared to low, within their studied e-commerce page. These memory results mirror the relationship that exists between overt attention and visual salience and extend them to show a persisting effect of salience on information processing.ConclusionVisual salience enhances product recognition memory in naturalistic e-commerce pages. A computational salience model can, therefore, be useful in predicting subsequent memory.ApplicationStudy results offer insights for e-commerce designers. A computational salience model can be leveraged to improve product visibility and memorability. The model is particularly useful for quantifying salience in complex displays where images vary across feature dimensions.