Case 2-3
Virtually Free!

1. Consumers, whether adults or children, have to learn how to play online games like Tiny Zoo and Castleville. In this part of the book, learning is described as being intentional or unintentional. Explain your opinion on whether these games are learned more by intentional or unintentional learning mechanisms. Intentional learning is the process by which consumers set out to specifically learn information devoted to a certain subject. Unintentional learning is learning that occurs when behavior is modified through a consumer-stimulus interaction without any effortful allocation of cognitive processing capacity toward that stimulus. In this situation I feel the games are learned by intentional learning. In this situation the consumer is actively taking an interest in how they wish to accomplish a particular task and participate in the activity.

2. Brand loyalty is an important marketing concept. Define the concept of schema. How important is the brand schema in consumer decisions to play these games? Do you think consumers think of the company (Zynga), the game (Cityville), or the host (Facebook) when playing the games? A schema can be defined as the mental concept that informs a person about what to expect from a variety of experiences and situations. A schema can be developed based on information that is provided by life experiences and are then stored in the memory. The brand schema in consumer decisions to play these games is extremely important and is a huge marketing technique and is a great example of the concept of schema working. It is important because a brand can live and evolve in the minds of their potential clients. It is often a fostered set of emotions that consumers associate with your particular company and with such large numbers of options consumers have now days it leaves companies looking for new