Emily Dvorchak

Consumer Behavior Tu/Th 3:30pm

Dr. Verrochi Coleman
28 January 2014
The Movie Theater Experience; A Look at Qualitative Research
Why do people choose to see movies in theaters? How can we compel them to frequent
theaters more often? In todays world, where technology is ubiquitous, there are many alternative
options when it comes to watching movies. Consumers can watch them at home (on Netflix or
OnDemand), buy them on DVD, or even stream them illegally online. In light of this, it seems
somewhat unlikely that people would decide to make the trek to theaters. Yet, the movie theater
industry still exists and still appeals to consumers. The following summary explores the elements
of that appeal by describing qualitative research that was conducted on this topic. It provides
insights into the minds of consumers who have faced this decision, and may be helpful in
determining how we can motivate them to make the decision more often. Specifically, this
summary is written based on the responses of one teenager, one college student, and one adult.
Consumers attend movie theaters for many reasons, one of which is to satisfy the need to
see specific films. Said one respondent, If I go its usually because [] its a movie you cant
just readily see at home. Said another, If the movies in the theater and not playing elsewhere,
Ill go to the theater. The fact that movie theaters typically show brand new films makes a
difference to consumers. They want to see new things, and this creates the drive to go out to
theaters instead of staying home.
However, the need for novelty is not the only factor supporting the drive to leave home.
Consumers will also go to movies when they feel the need to connect with a group of friends
whom they wouldnt otherwise see. The adult respondent says she will sometimes [go to the
movies] with a group of friends from work, but if watching a movie at home she would never

[go] with a group of girls or friends from work. We wouldnt sit down and watch a movie at
home. Similarly, the college student reflects that she most often goes to movies with her friends,
especially since graduating high school and splitting away from friends back home. Well use a
movie as a way to meet up. Yet at home, movies are watched more with family than with
friends. Said the teenager, If my friends want to go, Ill go. Clearly, the desire to fulfill certain
social needs is part of what gets people into theaters.
Furthermore, consumers will go to the movie theater because they value the sense of
community that it provides. Said the adult:
If you watch [a movie] at home yourself, or with just another person, it [] seems to me
that in most cases the movies just over, and you might say Oh that was good, or
something. But [] its not the same kind of thing as when youre there seeing and
hearing everyone elses reactions to things, and then get to discuss it or get comments
from other people about certain parts of it or something. [] In that respect you can get
more out of it at the theater.
Consumers value the sort of community effects of watching [a movie] with a lot of strangers,
because it gives them a sense of belonging. They can talk and engage with others in a way that
would not be possible without the shared experience of watching the film. It certainly would not
be possible on the couch at home. For the teenager, this phenomenon is as simple as walking
out of the theater and [saying], hey that was a good movie. Evidently, that sense of
community is valued no matter how it unfolds.
In terms of metaphorical drive, respondents implied that going to the movie theater could
be likened to actually being in the movie. Said one respondent, Youre actually experiencing
whats happening on screen, more than if you were at home. Said another, Its just more real.

Its like you were there. The dark theater, the surround sound, the quality each of these
attributes seem to make people associate the movie theater experience with full immersion in the
movies storyline. This increases their drive to attend movie theaters.
In addition to the aforementioned needs, values, and metaphors, there are also certain
emotions associated with the decision to see a movie in theaters. Most notably, the behavior
relates to feeling joyful, because going to the movie theater is fun. Its fun because its like an
outing, says the teenager. Its like oh lets go to the movies instead of lets hibernate in my
basement and watch a movie. And of course, they have better food and popcorn there.
People want to enjoy themselves, and they find joy in the full experience that a movie theater
offers them. Says the college student, you get a bunch of friends and bring snacks and stuff and
you go and watch movies. To some extent, the desire to go to the theater is as simple as that
having fun and feeling joyful.
Additionally, the movie theater experience can sometimes be associated with feeling
enlightened. After she leaves the movies, the college student feels a certain way. Thinking
further, she says, you still think about what happened, especially if its a powerful thing. The
teenager observes that after a movie ends in theaters, its kind of like a bigger deal than when
the movie ends at home. It seems that the experience of fully engaging with a story on the screen
in theaters is one that sticks with people over a significant period of time. It makes them
experience such emotions as awareness, alertness, and enlightenment towards specific topics.
Overall, there are many positive aspects of going to the movie theater that marketers
could seize upon in order to encourage repetition of this behavior. However, there are also
evident hurdles that exist and may present some difficulty when trying to make this change. Most
notably, going to the theater is expensive. The teenager wishes she could change this, lamenting

that it costs more money, and since I refuse to go to the movie theaters with my parents, I have
to pay for my own ticket. Similarly, the college student seems certain when she says, Im not
going to pay $9 every time I want to watch a movie. Pricing may need to be changed in order to
draw more guests to the theater. Perhaps movie tickets could be positioned as more of a loss
leader, and the price of refreshments could be increased to make up for that change. However,
since theater refreshments are already somewhat pricey, people may not be willing to pay more
for them. Thus, this strategy may not work, and the price hurdle may prove to be insurmountable.
Another problem mentioned by respondents was the fact that it can sometimes be
difficult to get admitted to movie theaters. Says the adult, When the movies new, you have to
go really early to get a seat because it might be crowded. Youre not always sure you can get in
and get a seat []. This can be frustrating for consumers and may reduce the drive to attend
theaters. However, the problem could potentially be remedied. Movie theaters might be able to
incorporate some kind of fast-paced admission lane into their operations. Similar to what Disney
does at its parks, certain customers could be granted pre-admission and allowed to enter without
waiting in line for too long. The privilege to buy tickets in advance and utilize this lane would of
course need to be distributed fairly. Perhaps theaters could create a customer loyalty program,
and grant this privilege to those who have been loyal, good customers. Alternatively, they could
award the right by lottery or random chance. If something like this were developed and
implemented, lines might be shorter at theaters and the stress of getting a ticket could be reduced
for at least some portion of consumers. This may incentive them to attend theaters more often.
Evidently, the results of this qualitative research will be useful. However, the conducted
interview has certain limitations worth mentioning. For instance, at times the interviewees
struggled to put feelings into words. As previously mentioned, the college student was able to

express that when leaving the movie theater she felt a certain way, and this was definitely
interesting from the interviewers standpoint. Yet, the observation would have been more useful
if the respondent had been able to further clarify her feeling. When prompted, she could not put
words to that [feeling]. In general, the interviewees were able to imply that the movie theater
experience is special and that it gives them feelings of joy and enlightenment, but it was difficult
to determine how exactly those feelings are different from the ones garnered when watching a
new movie at home. To capture those specific emotions in an incentivizing strategy, it will be
necessary to better understand them. When surveying consumers about competitor behaviors and
completing the perceptual map, this limitation will likely be eliminated, as it will then be easier
to pinpoint differences between feelings at home and feelings in the theater.
Additionally, the interviewees were able to name their favorite and least favorite types of
movies during the interviews. But it was tough to determine whether the feelings and values
gained from watching movies in theaters would change based on the type of movie viewed. If I
were to divide the movie theater experience into 3D, regular, and IMAX, could the same
conclusions be drawn for each? Could the behavior be incentivized in similar ways? I may need
to conduct further qualitative research to determine the answer. Questions could be specific to
types of movies, rather than the general movie theater experience.
Despite its evident limitations, this qualitative research will be valuable in general. It
serves as a solid foundation for determining why people go to movie theaters and how they can
be made to go more often. The interviews have raised new issues that were not previously
considered, and these will prompt further investigation. The continued exploration of this topic
should be exciting.