Understanding Certification Marks : A qualitative study on the influence of semiotics on consumers information processing of grocery certification marks

Abstract: Background: In the food market, certification marks are considered to give guidance and orientation. This specific market is constantly growing in its product range, which causes a choice overload for the consumer. At the same time, anincreasing differentiation of customer’s needs and demands exists. This increase requires information about the product and led to the development of further certification marks. Thus, it has come to a profusion of certification marks which results in a loss of information value for the consumer and ultimately in a deficient information process and understanding of the certification marks. Purpose: This study investigates the influence of semiotics in the information processing of certification marks. Further insight into the final stage of the consumers’understanding of certification marks is given, in order to reveal semiotics as a communication medium on certification marks. Furthermore, the study aims todraw attention to the current deficiency of the certification marks’ informationprocess and provides improvement measures. Method: An abductive research approach with an interpretivism philosophy was chosen to analyze the collected data. The exploratory study used a total of 17 semi- structured interviews, which were divided into three different modules. The firstmodule shortly investigated a consumer’s general grocery buying behavior andtheir understanding of certification marks. The following modules were basedon the information process. The second module looked at a consumer’sabsorption capacity of certification marks and the third module was divided intothree further themes that explored a consumer’s associations with semiotics. Conclusion: A lack of understanding certification marks was identified in the study, which is based on a deficient information process of the consumer. The first deficiency was detected between the sensory register and short-term memory showing that consumers have a limited absorption capacity for semiotics in certification marks. A further deficiency, found in the short-term memory, reveals that issue scope associations must align with the semiotics used in certification marks in order to be understood. Additionally, the product of the certification mark influences the information process. Finally, it can be said that semiotics play a key role in understanding certification marks as they strongly influence aconsumer’s information processing.