Final answer:
Memory interference, including proactive and retroactive types, involves competition between memories that obstructs recall. Marketers reduce interference by establishing distinct brand associations and reinforcing these through repeated advertising to ensure brand recall. This marketing approach addresses both potential encoding failures and interference.
Step-by-step explanation:
Memory interference is a phenomenon where one memory competes with another, causing one of the memories to be more difficult to recall. There are two types: proactive interference and retroactive interference. Proactive interference occurs when older information hinders the recall of newly learned information. Conversely, retroactive interference happens when newly learned information makes it difficult to remember older information.
Marketers aim to decrease competitive interference by creating strong, distinct brand associations and using repetitive advertising tactics to strengthen the memory of their product. This is similar to using mnemonic devices or rehearsal as a strategy to enhance memory in general. Marketers strive to make their brand information the most accessible and top-of-mind, which helps against both proactive and retroactive interference from competitors' brands.
Encoding failure is another concept that pertains to a person's inability to store information into their long-term memory in the first place, which means the memory never has a chance to be forgotten because it was never properly encoded. In contrast, interference implies that the encoding was successful, but access to the information is being blocked or hindered by other information. Marketers need to circumvent both encoding failures and interference to ensure that consumers remember their product or brand when making purchase decisions.