According to the levels-of-processing theory,

the deeper you process information, the more likely you will remember it.
shallow processing is best for long-term memory, while deep processing is best for short-term memory.
when trying to memorize information, the time spent studying the information is more important than the way the information is processed.
analyzing the superficial characteristics of the to-be-remembered information leads to better memory than analyzing the meaning of the to-be-remembered information.