Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
A cloud does not know why it moves in just such a direction and at such a speed …… It feels an
impulsion…. This is the place to go now. But the sky knows the reasons and the patterns behind
all clouds, and you will know, too, when you lift yourself high enough to see beyond horizons.
…. Richard Bach
Objective of Studying Consumer Behaviour
The objective behind studying “Consumer Behaviour” as a student of marketing
management is to understand the consumer decision making process and try to influence it.
Who is a Consumer?
In common practice, we do not make any difference between a customer and consumer.
A Customer is one who is in the customary process of purchase or regularly purchases a
product or service from a particular organization or shop. A customer is always defined in terms of
a specific product or company.
In a simple sense Consumers refers to individuals or households that use goods and
services generated within the economy. But in marketing, consumer is anyone who typically
engages in the activities of evaluating, purchase, using or disposing of goods and services
Ultimate Consumer or End Consumer is one who purchases goods and services for the
purpose of individual or household consumption.
What is Behaviour?
Behaviour refers to the process of responding to stimuli (The cues or actions that
evoke/stimulate a reaction from the receiver), a human being shows his behaviour in the way he
feel, act and think (FAT) similarly the consumer also shows his behaviour in way he feel, think and
carry out action.
1
theories were developed on such analysis with the underlying assumption; consumer behaviour is a
uni-disciplinary economic activity.
By the later part of 20 th century as marketing become more important activity, marketers
were seeking answer of the many questions they had how their consumers behaved.
Why certain products accept better acceptance than others.
Why even identical placed products had different receptions by the consumer.
The each economic theories of consumer behaviour were found to be inadequate. It was realized
that consumer behaviour is really much complex and interdisciplinary, and it involved concepts
from various human behaviour sciences. The effect of Sociology, Psychology, and Anthropology
besides Economics, on the behaviour of consumers was recognized and the science of consumer
behaviour takes root.
2
Stimulus Buy
The marketer provides stimuli but he is uncertain of the buyer’s response. The stimulus is a
combination of product, brand name, colour, style packaging, intangible services, merchandising,
shelf display, advertising, distribution, publicity and so forth.
Nothing better illustrates this enigmatic buyer than the failure of an herbal anti-cold balm
launched by Warner Hindustan. Though the balm market has grown significantly and Vicks vaporub
had been dominating the anti-cold rub segment for more than two decades. Now Waner failed did
the consumer see no significant difference between Vicks and Waner. This has remained an
enigma.
Today customer is being greatly influenced by media especially electronics, Technological
development in the field of information. Clearly the internet has today forced the customer learning
and shopping behaviour. Multiple television channels are also shaping customers value. The
customer is aware than ever before of rights and choices available to him/her.
Today the consumer is willing to buy the book on the internet form US based Amazon. Com,
music from Sony, Banking for HDFC Bank in India, Airlines services for Jet Airways or order roses
form India to be delivered loved ones in the US on Valentines Day through 1-800-flowers.com
It is estimated on December 31, 2003 that 50 million people in India use internet out of
them 6.5% of the time is spent in E-commerce. The internet has created awareness among the
Indian consumers about quality and performance parameters that can get at an affordable price
(3rd Generation Mobile services)
Consumer behaviour is the subset of human behaviour and it is the function of the individual
involved. This can be presented nicely in below picture.
{1} CB is Person Specific: in our
daily experience we come across
many decision like purchasing food
item, soft drink, bathing soap. We
prefer individually television
programme telecasts on alternative
channels. It is true that we take
more or less time in taking those
decisions. In other words we take
more or less time in evaluating a
product or service before we
purchase. And while purchasing, we show a unique typical behaviour. Therefore the purchase
behaviour of an individual differs from others and it is unique to him.
{2} CB is Product Specific: we not only differ from other customers, but the purchase behaviour
of us is differing with product to product or product category to another. Suppose you have
selected LG Colour Television of 21 inch by spending almost one hour, but you might spend more in
3
selecting a LG Plasma Television and your evaluating criteria may certainly change when your are
suppose to purchase a Vidiocon washing machine.
{3} CB is Situation Specific: our purchasing and consumption behaviour for the same product
will differ depending on the situation where we are operating. For example our consumption of
sweet is more during festive days and almost we don’t prefer non-vegetable items, so our
consumption behaviour on festive days is different from the ordinary days.
{5} CB is Complex Process: consumer behaviour is really a complex process because what sort
of thinking goes in the mind of the customer is not known to all, difficult to predict. Moreover it is
influenced by several internal and external factors, that is why it is difficult to understand.
4
Section 1: The Decision Process the decision process as represented by the inner-most circle.
The decision process includes five stages as problem recognition, information search, and
evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision and post purchase behaviour.
Section 2: The Individual Determinants the individual determinants on the middle Circle, it
include all the psychological factors like perception, motivation, attitude, personality and learning.
All these psychological factors are internal in nature, influence the decision making process.
Section 3: The External Environment the external environment which is represented by the
outer circle, it includes cultural and sub-cultural influence, family influence, social group influence,
social class influence, personal influence. All these factors are external in nature, influences the
decision making process.
Everyday each of us makes numerous decisions concerning every aspect of our daily lives.
In most general terms a decisions is the selection of an opinion from two or more alternatives from
which to choose and is literally forced to make a particular purchase. Freedom often is expressed in
terms of wide range of product choices.
[A] Extensive Problem Solving (EPS): When consumers buy a new or unfamiliar product it usually
involves the need to obtain substantial information and a long time to choose. They must form the
concept of a new product category and determine the criteria to be used in choosing the product or
brand. At this level, the consumer needs a great deal of information for establish a set of criteria on
which to judge specific brands and a corresponding large amount of information concerning each of
the brand consideration.
[B] Limited Problem Solving (LPS): - Sometimes consumers are familiar with both product category
and various brands in that category, but they have not fully established brand preferences. They
search for additional information helped them to discriminate among various brands. Their search
for additional information is like ‘fine-tuning’, they must gather additional brand information to
discriminate among the various brands.
[C] Routinized Problem Solving (RPS): - consumers have some experience with the product
category and a well established set of criteria with which to evaluate the brands they are
considering. In some situations they may search for a small amount of additional information in
orders. Consumers involve in habitual and automatic purchases They simply review that already
know.
5
CONSUMER DECISION-MAKING
MODEL
INPUT PROCESS
( A ) Input
The input component of our consumer decision making model depends on external influence that
serves as source of information about a particular product and influences a consumers product
related values, attributes and behaviours.
1. Marketing Inputs: These inputs to the consumers’ decision making process take the form of
specific marketing mix strategies i.e. through product, price, place & promotion. Marketers
carry out market research fro the purpose of making their marketing input more strong
enough to remain alert to consumer perception.
2. Socio Cultural Inputs : Consists of a wide range of non-commercial influences e.g. the
comment of a friend and editorial in news paper, usages by family member or an article in
consumer reports are all specific and direct non-commercial sources of information.
The influence of social class, culture and sub-culture although less tangible are
important input factors that are internalize and affect how consumers evaluate and
ultimately adopt or reject products.
The collective impact of each firms marketing input and socio cultural inputs that are
likely to affect what consumers purchase and how they use what they buy.
( B ) Process
1. Psychological Field: represents the internal influence
Motivation - The driving force within the individual that impels them into action.
Perception - The process by which an individual select, organize and interprets stimuli into a
meaningful and coherent picture of the world.
Learning – The process by which individuals acquire the knowledge and experience they
apply to future purchase and consumption behaviour.
Personality – The psychological characteristics that both determine and reflect how a person
responds to his or her environment.
Attitude - A learning predisposition to behave in a consistently favorable or unfavorable
manner with respect to a given object.
2. Need Recognition: is likely to occur when a consumer is faced with a problem. Among consumers
there seems to be two different need or problem recognition styles. Some consumers are actual
state types who perceive that they have a problem when a product fails to perform satisfactory e.g.
a wristwatch no longer keeps accurate time. In contrast other consumers are desired state types
for whom the desire for some thing new may trigger the process.
Need or problem recognition also can be viewed as either simple or complex. Becoming
hungry and purchasing a candy bar from a vending machine (simple). Purchasing a luxury car, to
present as a gift for your wife on her birthday (Complex).
6
3. Pre-purchase Search: when a consumer perceives a need that might be satisfied by the
purchase and consumption of a product. But in all such purchasing situation consumer always
keeps himself or herself at safe side. Because a risk is associated with purchase. So inorder to
avoid risk it seek information. Past experience is considered an internal source of information.
Sometime it seeks information from external sources. In high risks situations consumers are likely
to engage in complex information search and evaluation.
4. Evaluation of Alternatives: when evaluate potential alternatives consumer tends to use two types
of information.
a) A list of brands from which plan to make selection.
b) The criteria they will use to evaluate each brand.
Evoked set : refers to the specific brands a consumer considers in making a purchase with
in a particular product category
Inept set: which consists of brands the consumer excludes from purchase consideration
because they are felt to be unaccepted.
Inert set: which consists brands the consumer is indifferent toward because they are
perceived as not having any particular advantage.
There are five expected reason for not selecting the brand to purchase form the consumer point of
view. They are as follows
1) Brands may be unknown because of consumers’ selective exposure to advertising media and
selective perception of advertising stimuli.
2) Brands may be unacceptable because of poor qualities or attributes or inappropriate
positioning in either advertising or product characteristics.
3) Brands may be perceived as not having any special benefit is regarded indifferently by the
consumer.
4) Brands may be overlooked (fail to see / ignore) because they have not been clearly
positioned.
5) Brands may not be selected because they are perceived by consumer as unable to satisfy
perceived needs.
The implication for marketers is promotional techniques should be designed to impart a more
favourable, perhaps more relevant product image to the target consumer. This may also require a
change in product feature or attributes.
Criteria Used for Evaluate Brands: When a company knows that consumer will be evaluating
alternatives, they some times advertise in a way that recommends the criteria that consumers
should use in assessing product or services option. Marketers effort in positioning the brand in such
a way that, brands names often reflect personality characteristics of childhood experience and it is
often ‘love at first sight’
We have possibly all gone through the experience of comparing or evaluating different
brands or models of a product and finding out the one that just feel, look and/or perform right.;
( C ) Output
7
I Purchase Behaviour: consumers make three types of purchase, Trial purchase, Repeat purchase
and Long-term purchases.
a) Trial is the exploratory phase of purchase behaviour in which consumers attempt to
evaluate a product through direct use.
b) Repeat purchase behaviour is closely related to the concept of brand loyalty which most
firms try to encourage, because it contributes to greater stability in the market place.
c) Long-term commercial purchase is not always feasible e.g. with most durable goods a
consumer usually moves directly from evaluating a long-term commitment without the
opportunity for an actual trial.
II. Post-purchase Evaluation: There are three possible outcomes of these evaluations
a) Actual performance matches expectations, leading to satisfaction or a normal behaviour.
b) Performance exceeds expectations, which lead to delight.
c) Performance is below expectations causing dissatisfaction.
An important component of post-purchase evaluation is the reduction of uncertainty or doubt that
the consumer might have had about the selection. As part of their purchase analysis, consumer try
to reassure them shelves that their choice was a wise one that they attempt to reduce post-
purchase cognitive dissonance.
1. How do consumers choose one brand from among the brand alternatives?
2. Do consumers use any identifiable and visible choice rule for evaluation?
3. Do consumers select the best alternative and reject the bad ones?
4. How do they find their way in a confusion of brand alternatives with significant attribute
differences?
Consumer Decision Rules is the Procedures adopted by consumers to reduce the complexity of
making products and brand decisions
Every consumers use a set of rules for evaluation for any kind of purchase. Consumers make a
variety of choices over time with reference to various products and brands on the basis of available
information to them. These are made on the basis of certain criteria known as decision rules or
heuristics. Such heuristics allow consumers to make complex decisions reasonably and effectively.
Consumer decision has been broadly classified into two major categories compensatory and
non-compensatory decision rules.
(1) In compensatory decision rules Consumers evaluate brand or model in terms of each
attribute and computes a weighted score for each brand. The computed score reflects the brand’s
relative merit as a potential purchase choice. The assumption is that consumer will select the brand
that scores highest among alternative brands. The unique feature of this rule is that it balances the
positive evaluation of a brand on one attribute to balance out a negative evaluation on some other
attribute. For example, a person intending to buy a family car may find styling, low maintenance
cost, fuel efficiency and price as the attributes of the car. Positive attribute like high fuel efficiency
is balanced with the negative evaluation of high maintenance cost.
(2) In contrast, non-compensatory decision rule do not allow consumers to balance positive
evaluation of a brand or one attribute against negative evaluation on some other attributes. E.g. in
case of an energy saving light bulb, the process negative rating on these light output would not be
offset by a positive evaluation of its energy saving. There are three type of non-compensatory
decision rules considered briefly here.
8
Conjunctive Decision Rule: the consumer establishes a separate minimally acceptable level
as a cut off point for each attribute. If any particular brand falls below the cut off point on
any attribute, the brand is eliminated from further consideration. Example, if a buyer of
refrigerator is considering three major brand alternatives, he may set a minimum cut-off
score of 3 out of maximum 10 marks on all the three attributes. Godrej fridge will be
dropped as it scores only 2 out of 10 on the Economy attribute. Though the conjunctive
choice heuristic aids in screening brand alternatives, it weighs negative information more
than the positive information in the evaluation.
Disjunctive Decision Rule: is the mirror image of the conjunctive rule. In applying for the
decision rule the consumer also establishes a separate, minimally acceptable level as the cut
off point for each attribute. The difference, however, lies in the fact that this, heuristic
stresses only the `salient' brand attributes (on the basis of weights) and accepts a brand
alternative if its performance exceeds the minimum cut-off performance on these dominant
attributes. Thus, in table, brand Godrej will be accepted by the consumer if the minimum
cut-off for the dominant attribute of low maintenance cost is 5. It will be in spite of the fact
that the overall performance of Godrej is lower than that of the other two 'brand
alternatives.
Lexicographic Decision Rule: the consumer first ranks the attributes in terms of perceived
relevance or importance. The consumer then compares the various brand alternatives in
terms of the single attribute that is considered most important. If one brand scores
sufficiently high attribute that is considered most important. In order to apply this heuristic,
buyers first rate the importance of attributes in the brands alternatives (column 2 of Table).
Thereafter, the brand alternatives are rated on these attributes (columns 3, 4 and 5 of
Table). The brand alternative that scores the highest on the most important attribute is
chosen, regardless of other attribute values. If all the brand alternatives score equally on
this attribute, then their scores on the second most important attribute is considered and
the highest scoring brand is chosen. Interpreting Table, as per the Lexicographic heuristic,
Godrej brand will be selected as it scores 5 out of 10 - higher than the other two brand
alternatives, on the most important attribute, i.e., low maintenance cost.
Decision Rules and Marketing Strategy: an understanding of which decision rule consumers
apply in selecting a particular product or service is useful to market concerned with formulating a
promotional program. A marketer familiar with the prevailing decision rule can prepare a
promotional message in a format that would facilitate consumer information processing. The
promotional message might even suggest how potential consumers should make a decision.
IV. Four Views of Consumer Decision Making- Economic man, Cognitive man,
Emotional man, Passive man
{1} An Economic View: the consumer has often been characterized as making rational
decisions. This model, called the economic theory has been criticized by consumer researchers for a
number of reasons. To behave rationally in the economic sense a consumer would have to
Be aware of the entire available alternative product.
9
Be capable of correctly ranking each alternative in the term of benefit and disadvantage.
Be able to identify the one best alternative.
To a leading social scientist, the classical economic model of an all rational consumer is unrealistic
for following reasons.
People are limited by their existing skill, habits and reflexes.
People are limited by their existing value and goals.
People are limited by the extent of their knowledge
Consumers operate in an imperfect world in which they do not maximize their decisions in terms of
economic condition such as price quantity relationship managerial utility or indifference curves.
Indeed, the consumer generally is unwilling to engage in extensive decision making activities and
will settle, instead, for a satisfactory decision one that is good enough;
{2} A Passive View: - depicts the consumer as basically submissive to the shelf-serving interests
and promotional efforts to marketers. In the passive view consumers are perceived as impulsive
and irrational purchases ready to yield to the aim and arms of marketers. In this passive model of
the consumer was subscribed to hard driving super salesman of old who trained to regard the
consumer awes an object to be manipulated.
“In the development of the selling process, there are four distinct stages first the salesman
must secure the prospects undivided attention. Secondly, this attention must be sustained and
developed into. Thirdly, their interest must be repined into desires. And fourthly, all lingering
doubts must be removed from the prospects mind and there must be implanted there a firm
resolution to buy; in other words, the sales must be closed.”
All that we have studied about motivation selective perception, learning attitudes,
communication that consumers are rarely objects of manipulation. Therefore the simple and single
minded view should else be rejected unrealistic.
{3} A Cognitive View: - the third model portrays the consumer as a thinking problem solver.
With in the framework, consumers frequently are pictured as either receptive to or actively
searching for products and services that fulfil their needs and enrich their lives. The cognitive
model focuses on the process by which consumers seek and evaluate information about selected
brands and retail outlets.
Within the context of cognitive model, consumers are viewed as information processors.
Information processing leads to the formulation preferences and ultimately t purchase intentions
consumers also may use a preferences formulation strategy that is “other based’ in which they
allow another person i.e. a trusted friend, and interior decorator, or an expert retail salesperson to
make the selection for them.
The cognitive or problem solving view describes a consumer who falls somewhere between
the extremer of the economic and passive views. The cognitive model seems to capture the
essence of well educated and involved consumer who seek information on which to base
consumption decisions.
{4} An Emotional View: - although long aware of the emotional or impulsive model of
consumer decision making, marketers frequently prefer to think of consumers in terms of either
economic or passive model. In reality however, each of us is likely to associate deep feeling or
emotions such as joy, fear, love, hop, sexuality, fantasy and even a little magic with certain
purchase or possession. These feelings or emotions are likely to be highly involving.
If we were to reflect on the nature of our recent purchase, we might be surprised to realize
just how impulsive some of them were rather than carefully searching, deliberating and evaluating
alternatives before buying. We are just as likely to have emotionally driven ‘go for it’ ‘feel oriented
advertising’
Consumer moods are also important to decision making. Mood can be defined as a ‘feeling
state’ or state of mind. Unlike an emotion, which is a response to a particular environment, a mood
is more typically an unfocused, pre-existing state- already present at the time a consumer
experiences an Advertisement a retail environment, a brand or a product.
10
Mood appears to be important to consumer decision making, because it impacts on when
consumers shop, where they shop and whether they shop alone or with others. It also is likely to
influence how the consumer responds to actual shopping environments. i.e. at point of purchase.
Some retailers attempt to create a mood for shoppers.
The buyers decision process consists of five stages and it start before actual purchase and continue
long after. Marketer needs to focus on the entire buying process rather than on just purchase
decisions. Sometimes the consumer often skips or reserves some of these stages. The most
important things to be considered by a marketer are to make all his promotion hitting the
consumers’ eye at each step of the whole process.
1st Need Recognition: is the first stage of the buyer decision process in which the consumer
recognizes a problem or need. The need can be trigged by internal stimuli when one of the person’s
normal needs hunger, thirst, and sex-rises to a level high enough to become a drive. A need can
also be trigged by external stimuli e.g. advertising, discussing with friends. Role of the marketers in
this case
To understand the drives/ motives related to unlimited purchases
To uncover the latent need structure surrounding a particular product
To arrange cues to match with timing of need arousal
To provide information in order to push needs above the threshold level
2nd Information Search: if the consumes drive is strong and satisfactory product is near at hand,
the consumer is likely to buy it then. The stage of buyer decision process in which the consumer is
aroused to search for more information, the consumer may simply have heightened attention or
may go into active information search. Consumer can obtain information from any of several
sources. These include.
a) Personal sources – family, friend neighbors, acquaintance.
b) Commercial sources – advertising, sales people, dealers, packaging, displays
c) Public sources – mass media, consumer retailing organization.
d) Experiential sources – handling, examining suing the product.
Commercial sources normally inform the buyer but personal sources legitimize or evaluate products
for the buyer.
High risk situation followed by complex information search and evaluation.
Low risk situation followed by simple search and information tactics.
Unit of information search depends on experience, social acceptability (gift), product factor,
personal factors.
3rd Evaluation of Alternatives: the stage of the buyer decision process in which the consumer
uses information to evaluate alternative brands in the choice set. How consumers go about
evaluating purchases alternatives. In some cases, consumer use careful calculations and logical
thinking. At other times, the same consumers do little or no evaluating instead they buy on
impulsive and rely on intuition. Some times consumers make buying decision on their own; some
time they turn to friends, consumers guides, or sales people for buying advice.
11
Marketers should study buyers to find out how they actually evaluate brand alternatives. If
they know what evaluating processes go on marketers can take step to influence the buyer’s
decision.
Evaluation of potential alternatives is made from ‘evoked set’ brands.
Criteria to be used for brand evaluation through Product attributes (selection of relevant
attributes, different weights to different attributes, developments of brand beliefs, utility
functions for each attributes, consumer arrival at an attitude) e.g. “100% fat free”
Judgments or preference.
4th Purchase Decision: the buyer’s decision about which brand to purchase but two factors can
come between the purchase intention and the purchase decision. The first factor is attitude of
others. The second factor is unexpected situational factors. The consumer may form a purchase
intention based on factors such as expected income, expected product benefits. However,
unexpected events may change the purchase intention.
After evaluation ranked set of preference is created and purchase intention is developed.
An attitude of others, unanticipated situational factors and perceived risks influences the
purchase decisions.
5th Post-purchase Behaviour: the stage of the buyer decision process in which consumers take
further action after purchase, based on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction.
The answer lies in the relationship between the consumer’s expectations and the products
perceived performance. If the product falls short of expectations the consumer is disappointed. If it
meets expectations, the consumer is delight.
Cognitive dissonance: buyers discomfort caused by post-purchase conflict. Customer satisfactions
are a key to building profitable relationships with consumers to keeping and growing consumers
and repeating their customer life time value. A dissatisfied consumer responds differently. Bad
word of mouth often travels further and faster than good word of mouth.
Therefore a company should measure customer satisfaction regularly. It should setup
systems that encourage customers to complain. In this way the company can learn how well it is
doing and how it can improve.
Satisfaction is a function of expectation and perceived benefit S=f(E,P)
If P>E = Consumer Delight, P=E = Consumer Satisfaction and P<E = Consumer Dis-
satisfaction.
Strategies by consumers to rationalize decision (change evaluation of alternatives, seeking
positive information, changing attitudes, may persuades friends/neighbors to try same
brand)
Marketing implication ( confirm expectations, inducing attitude change, reinforcing buyers)
12
{1} Cultural Factors:
Culture refers to the customs and beliefs, art, way of life and social organization of a particular
country or group. Cultural factors have a significant impact on customer behavior. Culture is the
most basic cause of a person’s wants and behavior. Marketers are always trying to spot “cultural
shifts” which might point to new products that might be wanted by customers or to increased
demand.
Similarly the increased desire for “leisure time” has resulted in increased demand for
convenience products and services such as microwave ovens, ready meals and direct marketing
service businesses such as telephone banking and insurance.
Each culture contains “Sub-Cultures” groups of people with share values. Sub-cultures can
include nationalities, religions, racial groups, or groups of people sharing the same geographical
location. Sometimes a sub-culture will create a substantial and distinctive market segment of its
own. For example, the “youth culture” or “club culture” has quite distinct values and buying
characteristics from the much older “gray generation”
Similarly, differences in social class can create customer groups. It is measured as a combination
of occupation, income, education, wealth and other variables
{2}Social Factors:
A customer’s buying behavior is also influenced by social factors, such as the groups to which the
customer belongs and social status.
Reference Groups: In a group, several individuals may interact to influence the purchase
decision.
The groups with whom you interact directly or indirectly influence your purchase decisions and thus
their study is of great importance to marketer. These groups can sever as a reference group for a
consumer if it serves as a point of reference or comparison the formation of the values, attitudes
and behavior.
Different kinds of groups, whether small or large, formal or reference group is a very wide
one and includes both direct and indirect or group influences.
Direct reference groups, which exert a significant influence on consumer’s, purchase decisions and
behavior, can be classified into six categories. There are the family, Friendship groups, Formal
social groups, Formal shopping groups, Consumer action groups, and Work groups.
Indirect reference groups comprise those individuals or groups with whom an individual does not
have any direct face to face contact, such as film stars, TV stars, sportsman, and politicians.
Reference groups are used in advertising to appeal to different market segments, group situation
with which potential customers can identify are used to promote products and services. Three
types of reference groups appeals most commonly used are:
a) Celebrities: are well known people (in their specific field of activity) who are admired and their
fans aspire to follow their behavior. Film stars and sports heroes are the most popular celebrities.
Soft drink (Thums up), shaving cream (Palmolive), toilet soaps (Lux) are advertised using
celebrities from the sports and film fields.
b) Experts: such as doctors, lawyer, accountants and authors are used for establishing the benefits
of the product. Colgate and Forhans toothpastes are examples of products, which use the expert
reference groups appeal for promotion.
c) The ‘common man’: Another reference group appeal is that which uses the testimonials of a
satisfied customer. It demonstrates to the prospective customer that demonstrates just like him
uses and is satisfied with the product.
Family: a group consisting of one or two parents and their children the other members of my
family who have a blood relation or relation by adoption. The family of orientation consists of one’s
parents and siblings. From parents, a person acquires an orientation toward religion, politics, and
13
economics as well as a sense of personal ambition, self-worth, and love. Marketers are interested
in the roles and relative influence of the husband, wife, and children in the purchase of a large
variety of products and services.
The family also plays a role in consumer decision-making, as shown Roles: An individual
may participate in many groups. His position within each group can be defined in terms of the
activities he is expected to perform. You are probably a manager, and when in your work situation
you play that role. However, at home you play the role of spouse and parent. Thus in different
social positions you play different roles. Each of these roles influences your purchase decisions.
Status: Each role that a person plays has status, which is the relative prestige accorded by society.
Status is often measured by the degree of influence an individual exerts in the behaviour and
attitude of others. People buy and use products that reflect their status.
14
associating it with strong motives, using the appropriate stimuli and cues and providing positive
reinforcement. Thus making the consumer ‘learn ‘that the brand is good and worth patronizing.
Beliefs & Attitudes: A belief is a descriptive thought that a person has about something. A person
may believe that a certain coking oil ‘Sunflower’ has the lowest fat content and is best for health.
This belief may be based on some real facts or it may merely be a notion or opinion that the person
has. The beliefs constitute the brand image about the brand. The marketer must ensure that
consumers have relevant and correct information about the brand to facilitate formation of a
positive brand image.
Attitude is a person’s enduring feeling, evaluation and tendency towards a particular idea or
object. Starting from childhood, attitude develops over the time with each fresh knowledge input,
experience and influence. Attitudes get settled into specific patterns and are difficult to change. It
is easier to market product that fits in well with the existing patterns of attitudes rather than
change the attitudes to fit a new product concept.
A. Complex Buying Behaviour:- consumer undertakes when they are highly involved in a
picture and perceived significant difference among brands. Consumer may be highly involved when
the product is expensive, risky, purchased infrequently and highly self expressive.
The buyer passes through a learning process, first developing beliefs about the
product than attributes, and then making a thoughtful purchase choice. Marketers of high
involvement products must understand information gathering and evaluation behaviour of high-
involvement consumers. They must motivate sales people and the buyer’s acquaintance to
influence the find brand choice.
Complex decision making
High uncertain level
Focused communication needed
Comprehensive positioning
Strategies for reducing stressing
Multiple attributes of brands
15
B. Dissonance- Reducing Buying Behaviour:- occurs when consumers are highly involved with
an expensive, infrequent or risky purchases but see little difference among brands. In this case,
because perceived brand difference are not large, buyers may shop around to learn what is
available but buy relative quickly. They may respond primarily to a good price or to purchase
convenience.
After the purchase consumers might experience post purchase dissonance (after sale –
discomfort). To counter dissonance, the marketers after sales communication should provide
evidence and support to help consumers feel good about their brand choice.
Positioning is most important
Creation of USP or brand image.
Decision making is complex
Loyalty develops after positive use experience
C. Habitual Buying Behaviour: - occurs under conditions of low consumer involvement and little
significant brand difference. In this the consumer positively receives information as they watch
television or read magazines. Advertisement repetition creates brand familiarity rather than brand
conviction consumer does not form strong attitudes towards a brand; they select the brand
because it is familiar. Because they are mot highly involved with the product, consumer may highly
evaluate the choice after purchase. In advertisement of low involvement product, advertisement
copy should stress only a few points. Visual symbols and imaginary are important because they can
be remembered easily and associated with the brand. Advertising campaign should include high
repetition of short duration messages.
Information search is limited
Favourable experience repurchases
Low involvement of consumers
Decision making process is simple
Moderate brand evaluation
Varity seeking behaviour
Often we find in a consumer decision process several individuals get involved. Each of them plays
an influencing role.
Initiator: this is a person who shows the seed in a customers mind to buy a product. This
person may be a part of customer’s family like child, spouse or parents. Alternatively the
persons may be a friend, a relative, a colleague or even the salesperson.
Influencer: this is a person with in or outside the immediate family of the customer who
influences the decision process. The individual perceived as an influencer is also perceived
as an expert. In consumer durable sale. The dealer plays an influencing role.
Decider: this is the person who actually takes the decision. In joint family- the elder in the
family, nuclear family – literacy among women.
Buyer: this is the person who actually buys the product. This could be decider himself or
herself or the initiator.
16
User: this is the person/ who actually consumes the product. This could be the entire family
or just one person with in the customer’s family.
People who play these roles seek different values in the product or services. The perception of the
value is a larger extent influenced by their prior experience or that oh the experience of other,
media reports and the marketing created by the firm. These values which may also be referred to
as market value are potential of a product or service to satisfy customers need and wants.
Buying Motives
And individual consumer is one who buys goods and services to satisfy his personal or household
wants. An individual consumer purchases product for these important reasons.
1. He has a desire which needs to be satisfied
2. He has an urge which includes him to purchase; and
3. He has reasoning.
Broadly speaking individuals are motivated to buy external and internal forces.
I External Motives: - are outside one self, since a consumer is the product of his environment,
hence mans attitude and behaviour influences his culture and various factors like income,
occupation, religion, culture, the family and social environment act as motives.
II Internal Motives:-
1. Rational buying motives: - which are based on logical reasoning of thinking. Prof Copeland
enumerates under such motives handiness; dependability in quality and use; durability; happiness;
healthfulness; efficiently in operation and use; reliability of auxiliary of earning and enhancing of
productivity.
2. Emotional buying motives: - which are based on personal feelings and cover a wide range of
international motives including, impulsive, instincts habits and drives and are varied in nature. To
Prof Copeland, these are emulation pride and ambition, economic emulation, social achievement,
happy seldom of gifts, maintaining and preserving, health, satisfaction of appetite, proficiency,
expression of artistic taste ambition, romantic instinct, securing personal comfort, security from
danger, securing comfort and obtaining greater leisure, distinctiveness, desire for recession and
entertainment, cleanliness, pride of personal appearance satisfaction of physical and emotional
appetites alleviation of laborious task and pleasing sense of taste.
(1) Bargaining: - a trend of bargaining is often found in the behaviour of Indian buyers. They
prefer buying goods by reducing the price as told by the seller. Indian buyers too do not
frame uniform price policy. The trend of bargaining is still vogue in the Indian market.
(2) Quality Vs Price: - Indian buyers focus on price instead of the variety of the goods. They
therefore, prefer high price goods. A little bit change has come now because the consumers
have now begun purchase of quality goods on higher price.
(3) Brand or Trademark consciousness it is the characteristics of the behaviour so Indian buyer
that he appears now aware of the brand or items and considers these goods authentic
higher quality.
(4) Changing Consumption Pattern: - owing to widespread education increases in income and
standard of living as also desire of more comforts, the patterns of consumption is now
being changed.
(5) Role of Women: - the role of women is increasing day to day in the manner of discussion
for purchase. The women do purchase of all kinds particularly in families who are the
husbands earn the bread.
(6) Credit and Guarantee:- new motives for purchase are getting their way rapidly because of
having credit and guarantee facility available in the market such facilities are developing
the trade commerce.
(7) Complaining; - Buyers are gradually being aware of their rights. They have started
exhibiting their complaints through media and representatives before concerned authorities
and the forum. They can lodge their complaint before consumer forum and thus can receive
the compensation against the damage/ loss so sustained.
17
Expected Short Question
Practical loyalist- those who buy the lowest priced items with little or no regard for brand.
Opportunistic switchers - those who use coupons or sales to decide among brands and products
that fall with in their evoked set.
Deal hunter- those who look for the best ‘bargain’ and are not brand loyal.
Consumption vision - a mental picture or visual image of specific usage outcomes and/or
consumption consequences
Word-Of-Mouth - Informal conversations concerning products or services
Feed Back - The response given by a receiver to the sender of the message
Consumer Socialization - The process, started in childhood by which an individual first learns the
skills and attitudes relevant to consumer purchase behaviour
Organisational Consumer - A business, government agency, or other Institution that buys the
goods, services, and/ or equipment necessary for the organization to function
II. PERSONALITY
No two people are exactly the same - not even identical twins. Some people are anxious,
some are risk-taking, some highly-strung (Very nervous, worried); some are confident, some shy;
and some are quiet and some are loquacious (talking a lot). This issue of differences is
fundamental to the study of personality.
What is Personality?
The word ‘personality’ derives from the Latin word ‘persona’ which means ‘mask’. The study of
personality can be understood as the study of ‘masks’ that people wear. These are the personas
that people not only project and display, but also include the inner parts of psychological
experience, which we collectively call our ‘self’.
To Schiffman and Kanuk, ”Personality is defined as those inner psychological characteristics
that both determine and reflect how a person responds to his or her environment”
18
Personality is a much more dynamic concept which describes the growth and development
of an individual's whole psychological system. As you know the personality is the composite sum of
an individual's psychological traits, characteristics, motives, habits, attitudes, beliefs and outlooks.
Over the years many different definitions have been proposed. One of the most widely used is that
by Allport according to which personality is defined as an `internal system' which includes all those
aspects of a person that are inherited as well as those that are learned. These two internal aspects
are interdependent and cannot be isolated
Theories of Personality
The Ego and Superego play roles in each of the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious,
but that the unconscious is the domain of the Id and a large proportion of the Superego. Freud
proposed that every individual's personality is the product of a struggle among three interacting
forces: the id, the ego and the superego. According to this theory, these three systems are fully
developed and are in a state of balance in a normal healthy person. However, when one or more of
these systems is underdeveloped then the internal balance is
disturbed. This disturbance leads to dissatisfaction with the self
and the world in general.
Freud emphasized that an individual’s personality is
formed as he or she passes through a number of distinct stages
of infant and childhood development. These distinct stages of
infant and childhood development are: oral, anal, phallic,
latent, and genital stages. An adult’s personality is determined
by how well he or she deals with the crises that are
experienced while passing through each of these stages.
20
Carl Jung a disciple of Sigmund Fraud, to accept frauds sexual aspect of personality. He
wanted to develop his own method of psychotherapy known as ‘Analytical Psychology’. He believed
that people are shaped by the cumulative experience of the past generation. A central part of his
perspective was an emphasis or what he called ‘collective unconscious’ a storehouse of memories
inherited from our ancestral past. For example, many people are afraid of dark because their
direct ancestors had good reason to exhibit this. Jung’s personality types have been made
particularly useful for marketers that measures the following pairs of Jungian inspired psychological
dimensions
(1) Sensing – Intuition: Sensing: refers to one of the five powers (sight, hearing, smell, taste and
touch) that your body uses to get information about the world around you. Intuition: the ability to
know by using your strong feelings rather than considering the facts
(2) Thinking – Feeling: Thinking: the process of forming ideas or opinions about, Feeling:
something that you feel through the mind or through the senses.
(3) Extroversion – Introversion: Extroversion: a lively and confident person who enjoys being with
other people, Introversion: a quiet person who is more interested in their own thoughts and
feelings than in spending time with other people
(4) Judging – Perceiving: Judging: an opinion that you form about after thinking about it carefully
with the available information with you. Perceiving: to understand or think of in a particular way.
Each of these two points of dimension results two distinctly different personality characteristics that
offer a picture as to how consumers respond to the world around them.
21
i) Consumer innovativeness—how receptive a person is to new experiences or the degree to which
a person likes to try new things.
ii) Consumer materialism—the degree of the consumer’s attachment to “worldly possessions.” Or
amount of emphasis placed on acquiring and owning products
iii) Consumer ethnocentrism—the consumer’s likelihood to accept or reject foreign-made products.
Researchers have learned to expect personality to be linked to how consumers make their choices,
and to the purchase or consumption of a broad product category rather than a specific brand.
22
Susceptibility: a person’s feelings which are likely to be easily hurt. SUSCEP is assumed to be a
general trait that reflects consumer differences in terms of response to social influence. There are
three types of interpersonal influence.
Informational influence: which is the tendency to accept information from others as
evidence about reality?
Value expressive influence: which captures consumers desires to enhance their standing
with others by being similar to them.
Utilitarian influence: where consumer conforms to the wishes of others to obtain a reward or
avoid punishment.
23
III. PERCEPTION
In a simple sense perception may be defined as ‘how we see the world around us’. Two individual
may be subject to the same stimulus under the same condition, but how each person select them,
organise them and interprets them is highly individual process based on each persons own need,
value and expectations. E.g. when there is violence killing of innocent people in Kashmir it is called
terrorism by India but those who do so call it struggle for freedom.
What is Perception?
“Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and interpreting information inputs to
produce meaning.”
This means we chose what info we pay attention to, organize it and interpret it. Information inputs
are the sensations received through sight, taste, hearing, smell and touch. Thus we can say that
the above definition of perception of perception lays emphasis on certain features:
Perception is a mental process, whereby an individual selects data or information from the
environment, organizes it and then draws significance or meaning from it.
Perception is basically a cognitive or thinking process and individual activities; emotions,
feelings etc. are based on his or her perceptions of their surroundings or environment.
Perception being an intellectual and cognitive process will be subjective in nature.
The key word in the definition of perception is individual. We can say that it is the process by which
an individual selects, organises and interprets information received from the environment
Sensation–Attending to an object/event with one of five senses
Organisation–Categorising by matching sensed stimulus with similar object in memory, e.g.
colour
Interpretation–Attaching meaning to stimulus, making judgements as to value and liking,
e.g. bitter taste
We will examine some of the basic concepts that underlie the perception process.
(A) Sensation: is the immediate and direct response of the sensory organs to stimuli (an
advertisement, a package, and a brand name). A stimulus is any unit of input to any of the senses.
Sensory receptors are the human organs (i.e., the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin) that receive
sensory inputs, sight, sound, smell, taste, or touch.
Human sensitivity refers to the experience of sensation. Sensitivity to stimuli varies with the
quality of an individual’s sensory receptors (eye sight and hearing) and the amount or
intensity of the stimuli to which he/she is exposed.
Sensation itself depends on energy change, the difference of input. Thus, a constant
environment, whether very busy and noisy or relatively quiet, would provide little sensation
because of the lack of change, the consistent level of stimulation.
As sensory input decreases, the ability to detect changes increases. This ability of the
human organism to accommodate itself to varying levels of sensitivity as external conditions
vary not only protects us from damaging, disruptive, or irrelevant bombardment when the
input level is high but has important implications for marketers.
(B) The Absolute Threshold: The lowest level at which an individual can experience a sensation
is called the absolute threshold. The point at which a person can detect the difference between
“something” and “nothing” is that person’s absolute threshold for the stimulus. For example, the
distance at which a driver can note a specific billboard on a highway is that individual’s absolute
threshold.
Marketers try to increase sensory input in order to cut through the daily clutter consumers
experience in the consumption of advertising.
24
Sensory adaptation is a problem that causes many advertisers to change their advertising
campaigns regularly. Sensory Adaptation refers specifically to “getting used to” certain
sensations, becoming accustomed to a certain level of stimulation.
Some advertisers’ uses silence (the absence of music or other audio effects) to generate
attention.
Some marketers seek unusual media in which to place their advertisements in an effort to
gain attention.
Some use scent researchers to enhance their products with a unique smell.
Package designers try to determine consumers’ absolute thresholds to make sure that their
new product designs will stand out from competitors’ packages on retailers’ shelves.
(C) The Differential Threshold: The minimal difference that can be detected between two stimuli
is called the difference threshold or the JND (just noticeable difference). A 19th century German
scientist named Ernst Weber discovered that the JND between two stimuli was not an absolute
amount, but an amount relative to the intensity of the first stimulus.
Weber’s law states that the stronger the initial stimulus, the greater the additional intensity
needed for the second stimulus to be perceived as different.
Also, an additional level of stimulus, equivalent to the JND must be added for the majority
of people to perceive a difference between the resulting stimulus and the initial stimulus. Weber’s
law holds for all senses and almost all levels of intensity. Retailers use the principle in reducing
prices. Markdowns must amount to at least twenty percent to be noticed by shoppers.
Marketing Applications of the J.N.D.: Let us look at the important applications of JND for
marketers:
1. Manufacturers and marketers endeavour to determine the relevant j.n.d. for their products so
that:
Negative changes—reductions or increases in product size, or reduced quality—are not
readily noticeable to the public.
So that product improvements are readily noticeable to the
consumer without being wastefully extravagant.
2. Marketers use the j.n.d. to determine the amount of change or updating
they should make in their products to avoid losing the readily recognized
aspects of their products
3. To better compete in a global marketplace that has been radically altered
by computer technology, many companies are updating their corporate
logos to convey the notion that they are timely and fast-paced and at the
top of their respective product class.
a. Many feature some element that conveys motion— streaking, slashing,
and orbiting.
4. Although some companies make minor changes (below the j.n.d.) to promote continuity, others
have deliberately changed their traditional block lettering and dark colours in favour of script
typefaces, bright colours, and hints of animation e.g. pop icons like MTV, Channel V.
5. Marketers want to meet or exceed the consumers’ differential threshold so that they readily
perceive the improvements made in the original product.
(D) Subliminal Perception: subliminal means affecting your mind even though you are not aware
of it. Stimuli below the “lumen” of conscious awareness, too weak or brief to be consciously seen or
heard, may be strong enough to be perceived by one or more receptor cells. This is subliminal
perception. Some time people are also stimulated below their level of conscious awareness—they
can perceive stimuli without being consciously aware of it.
In general there are three types of subliminal perception as
Briefly presented visual stimuli
Accelerated speech in low volume auditory message
Embedded or hidden imagery or words (often sexual nature) in print ads or product labels.
Example: In the year 1957 there was a firm called Subliminal Projection Company inserted
message in theatre by flashing the words “eat popcorn” and “drink coke” for 1/3000 second every
25
five seconds on the screen during the movie, so quickly that the audience was not aware of it. In a
six-week test sales of popcorn increased by almost 20 per cent and consumption of Coke grew by
almost 60 per cent. These claims created strong protest across America
Process of Perception
26
will not be available to active memory when the individual needs to make a purchase decision.
The perceptual process consists of many sub processes. We can understand this by taking a
note of the input-throughput –output approach. This approach is based on the fact that there is an
input, which when processed gives outputs.
Perceptual Inputs: The first process in the perceptual processes the presence of stimuli like
people, objects, events, information etc.
Perceptual mechanism: We will discuss the mechanism of perception in the next section.
Perceptual outputs: The perceptual outputs will be the behaviour or actions of the individuals,
i.e., the resultant opinions, feelings attitudes etc.
Dynamics of Perception
Physical stimuli from the outside environment, and internal stimuli based on expectations,
motives, and learning is based on previous experiences. Because each person is a unique
individual, with unique experiences, needs, wants, desires, and expectations, it follows that each
individual’s perceptions are also unique.
There are three aspects to perceptions—selection, organization, and interpretation of
stimuli. Individuals are very selective as to which stimuli they “recognize.” They subconsciously
organize the stimuli they do recognize according to widely held psychological principles. And they
interpret such stimuli (i.e., they give meaning to them) subjectively in accordance with their needs,
expectations, and experiences.
28
III. ATTITUDE
Defining Attitude
To Philip Kotler “An attitude is a person enduring favorable or unfavorable evaluations,
emotional feelings and action tendencies toward some object or idea.”
To Schiffman and Kanuk “A learned predisposition to behave in a consistently favourable or
unfavourable way with respect to a given object (1996).”
To Bem “Attitudes are likes and dislikes, 1979”
The main characteristics of attitudes are indicated by the key words in the definition: learned,
predisposition, behave. Remember that attitudes occur within a situation and that the situation can,
and will, influence the relationship between attitude and behaviour. A consumer can have different
attitudes towards the same product depending on the situation. The main characteristics of
attitudes are
Attitudes are learned from personal experience, information provided by others, and market
controlled sources, in particular exposure to mass media, advertising, internet and various
form of direct marketing.
Attitudes are predisposition. A predisposition is an inclination or tendency towards
something; attitudes have motivational qualities, they might appeal a consumer towards a
particular behaviour or repeal the consumer away from a particular behaviour.
Attitudes have a relationship with behaviour. For marketers, the behaviour of primary
interest is product purchase. Remember, however, that we are not suggesting or assuming
a causal relationship.
Attitudes are relatively consistent with the behaviour they reflect. However, this does not
necessarily mean that they are permanent; attitudes can change.
Attitudes are directed towards an object or situation; it means events or circumstances
that, at a particular point of time, influence the relationship between an attitude and
behaviour. A specific situation can cause consumers to behave in ways that are similarly
inconsistent with their attitudes. So, while measuring attitudes it is important to consider the
situation in which the behaviour takes place. The term ‘object’ includes specific consumption
or marketing-related concepts, such as product, product category, brand, service,
possessions, product use, advertisement, price, medium, or retailer.
PRODUCT SITUATION ATTITUDE
Monaco Party going on and ordered snacks have I need to serve an instant
not arrived substitute fro snacks
Vicks Action – 500 Suffering from blocked nose and You need to take a double
headaches action table to get immediate
relief
There is nothing to worry
Maxima Watches Watch slipped from hand and fell into since its an economical water
water proof wrist watch
There is the need for giving
29
children a complete planned
food.
Complain Mothers worried about children not taking You need to use an easy to
balanced food. use, very effective detergent
power.
Attitude is normally thought of as resulting from a combination of beliefs and values and
opinion. Terms such as opinion and beliefs are often used quite closely with attitudes. These beliefs
may be based on real knowledge, opinion, or faith. They may or may not carry an emotional
charge. Marketers are interested in the beliefs that people have about specific products and
services. Beliefs reinforce product and brand images. People act on beliefs.
Attitude tends to be generalized predisposition to react in some way towards object or
concepts, whereas.
Opinion tends to be focused on more specific aspects of the object or concept.
A Belief is a descriptive thought that a person holds about something. Simply beliefs are
the body of knowledge we hold about the world. A customer may believe that Complain is
good for his baby as it has been presented as a fact endorsed by the health and nutrition
specialist in the ad clipping.
Value is often an attribute possessed by an individual and considered to be desirable. we
can see that values involve an individuals judgment on what is right, good, desirable and
worthwhile.
The difference between attitude, opinions, beliefs and values exist only on conceptual basis. The
relationship between them is a complex one. It is usually said people have thousands of beliefs and
opinions about the world, hundreds of attitudes although probably fever than fifty values.
Brand-value; Dove- the moisturizing effect; Surf Ultra- the stain busting power; Le Sancy –
the longevity; Bajaj- Longevity and durability; T-Series cassettes- economical.
a) Lack of Involvement: If the involvement of an individual in a particular issue is low, then the
relationship between attitude and behavior is also low for example the involvement in the
purchase of an electric bulb for an individual may be low. For him buying a bulb is not of great
importance. In such a situation, he will not be enthusiastic to get more information on bulb
hence will not have any beliefs about any specific nature. Hence a particular brand does not
really matter him and will accept a Philips, or HMT or Surya or Bajaj.
b) Changing Market Conditions: One might have a very positive attitude towards a brand. He
may have continued buying it for a long time. But if the prices are suddenly increased beyond
his acceptable level or if the brand vanishes from the market then he will have no option but to
go in for a different brand. Hence attitude will have no link with the behavior.
c) Lack of Direct Product Experience: When consumers have direct product experience there
attitudes are more likely to be related to subsequent behavior lack of product experience may
result in weakly held attitudes that are not related to behavior
d) Lack of Purchase Feasibility: An individual may be highly enthusiastic about cars. He may
collect as much information on cars as possible. He may get totally attracted to the new ad of
Toyota 'Corolla'. After seeing the ad and getting more information about 'Corolla', he may form
strong positive beliefs about the brand. But such a belief may not lead to a buy basically
because the person may not have the buying capacity. Thus a positive attitude may not
necessarily lead to the act of purchase.
e) Lack of Relation between Values & Beliefs: an individual may well be aware of the risk of
smoking. The values an individual has towards smoking can be negative yet if he believes that
he does not want to live longer than there will be no association between values and beliefs.
Such an individual may continue smoking knowing well that it is injurious to health.
f) Poor Attitude Accessibility: Consumers retain brand beliefs in memory as schema
representing their associations with the brand. For these beliefs to affect brand evaluations,
30
they must be accessible from memory. Lack of a relationship between attitudes and behaviour
maybe due to the fact that some attitudes are so weakly held that they are not accessible. If
consumers have strong held attitudes, they spontaneously retrieve them when they encounter
the object. For example if a consumer has a strong positive attitude towards MAGGI noodles,
the consumer could spontaneously retrieve the MAGGI schema by the mere mention of 2
minutes noodles.
31
(1)The Attitude towards Object Model: is especially suitable for measuring attitudes towards a
product category or specific brands. To this model, the consumer attitude towards a product or specific
brands of a product is a function of the presence and evaluation of certain product-specific beliefs
and/or attitudes. In other words consumer generally have favourable attitudes towards those brands
that they believe have an adequate level of attributes that they evaluate as positive and they have
unfavourable attitudes towards those brands they feel do not have and adequate level of desired
attributes or have too many negative or undesired attributes. For instance, you may like Maruti Swift
(2) The Attitude towards Behaviour Model: is designed to capture the individuals attitude
towards behaviour having or action with respect to an object rather than the attitude towards it
self. The appeal of the attitude-towards-behaviour model is that it seems to correspond some what
more closely to actual behaviour than does the attitude towards object model. So taking on from
same example of Maruti Swift, we may say you are not ready to buy/drive one because you believe
that you are too old to do so.
(3) Theory of Reasoned Action Model: integration of attitude components into a structure that
is designed to lead to both tri-component attitude models. The theory of reasoned action model
incorporates a cognitive component, an affective component and a conative component however
these are arranged in a pattern different from that of the tri-component model.
(4) Theory of Trying to Consumer Model: this theory is designed to account for the many cases
where the action or outcome in not certain but instead reflects the consumer’s attempts to
consume or purchase. In such cases there are often personal and environmental impediments that
might prevent the desire action or outcome from occurring. That situation where consumers don’t
try to consume i.e. failing to try to consume, consumer appears to
Fail to see or are too ignorant of their option and
Make a conscious effort not to consume i.e. they might seek to self sacrifice or defer
gratification some future time.
32
(5) Attitude towards the Advertisement Model: in an effort to understand the impact of
advertising or consumer attitudes towards particular products or brands considerable attention has
been paid to developing what has been reinforced to as attitude the advertisement models.
Exposure to an
advertisement
Attitude towards
the brand
The consumer forms various feelings affection and judgment (Cognition) as the result of exposure
to an advertisement. These feelings and judgments in turn affect the consumer’s attitude towards.
The advertisement and beliefs about the brand acquired from exposure to the advertisement.
Finally the consumer’s attitude towards the advertisement and beliefs about the brand influences
his attitude toward the brand.
Attitude Formation
How do people, especially young people form their general attitude towards thing?
The answer to such question is of vital importance for marketers, without knowing how attitudes
are formed; they are unable to understand or to influence consumer attitudes or behaviour.
33
Direct-marketing programs: is widely used by marketers to attract small consumers niches with
products and services that fit their interests and life style niche marketing is sometimes called
micromarketing. Marketers very carefully target customers on the basis of their demographic
psychographic or geo-demographic profiles with highly personalized product offerings (e.g. watches
for left hand people) and message that show they understanding their special needs and desires.
Mass-media: these mass media communication provide important sources of information that
influences the formation of consumer attitudes. Other research indicates that for consumers who
lack direct experiences with a product, exposure to an emotionally appealing advertising message
is more likely to create an attitude towards the product.
Internet: is a vital source of getting information about the product. Today’s savvy consumers spent
more time in browsing the web for getting relevant consumption related information, thus it
influences their way to form attitude.
C. Personality Factors
Personality plays a crucial role in attitude formation e.g. individuals with a high need for cognition
(i.e. those who crave information and enjoy thinking) are likely to form positive attitude in
response to advertisement that features an attractive model or well known celebrity. In a similar
fashion, attitudes towards new products and new consumption situation are strongly influenced by
specific personality characteristics of consumers.
All marketers are concerned with maintaining positive attitudes in their current consumers, that
they do through; changing the neutral attitudes of ambivalent (two mind) consumers to positive
attitudes, hoping to increase market share; and, if necessary, changing negative attitudes to at
least neutral ones.
Then the question before them Can attitudes be changed? If you have ever tried to change
a bad habit, or ‘clean up’ your attitude, you know that it is difficult — but not impossible — to
change attitudes. Marketers have found that weakly held attitudes are easier to change than
strongly held attitudes. Consumers tend to develop strongly held attitudes in areas they consider
being of great personal importance, that is, of high involvement. Strongly held attitudes can be
either positive or negative, with the product falling in the evoked or the inept set. In areas of
limited or questionable importance, consumers tend to be ambivalent or neutral, or have weakly
held attitudes that are susceptible to change. These products would fall in the inert set. We
identify six categories of attitude change strategies:
[1] Changing the Basic Motivational Function. These strategies are based on the theory that
attitudes serve four basic functions: utilitarian, ego-defensive, and value-expressive and knowledge.
By changing the basic motivational function, the attitude towards the product can be changed.
The Utilitarian Function: a consumer develops a brand attitude because of its utility. So
marketers try to change consumer attitudes in favour of their product or brand by highlighting
its utilitarian purpose which the competitor consumers may not have considered. E.g. Jyoti
Laboratries have positioned Ujala as Neel jo Neela nahi, neel which is not blue and also the cost
benefit only Rs.7/- is given as utilitarian benefits.
The Ego-Defensive Function: most people want to protect their self image from inner feeling of
doubt. They want to replace their uncertainty with a sense of security and personal confidence.
Advertisements for coscemetics and personal care products, by acknowledging this need,
increase both their relevance to consumer and the likelihood of a favourable attitude change by
offering reassurance to the consumers self concept. Dove shop speaks about the skins dryness
which is taken care by the moisturing contents in the dove shop. Boroplus-“ Rukhapan se
aajadi”, Fair & Lovely “ Safalta ka chota rahasys”.
34
The Value Expressive Function: A consumer develops an attitude based on his general value,
life style and outlook. If the target consumers hold a positive attitude towards being
fashionable, then they will have a positive attitude towards high fashion clothes e.g. Van
Hussen, Louis Phillip etc. the ad for ‘ Yamaha RXG’ motor cycle is targeted at young people who
are out going and prefer a powerful bike the ad claims’ man machine and nature in perfect
harmony, Breathtaking power, unbeatable performance ’Bajaj Pulsar ‘ feel the black’
The Knowledge Function: individuals generally have a strong need to know and understand the
people and things will that they come in contact. The consumers need to know is important to
marketers concerned with product positioning. Indeed many product and brand positioning are
attempted to satisfy the need to know and to improve consumer’s attitude towards the brand
by emphasizing its advantageous over competitive brands. E.g. a message for an advanced
design tooth brush like Oral-B, Colgate-Flexi might point out how it is superior to other
toothbrush.
Combining Several Function: since different consumers may have developed positive or
negative attitudes towards the same product or services. Firms could use a functional frame
work for examining the consumer attitude. E.g. Asian Paints have highlighted the usage of their
paints to harmonise the home coming of the son on the festival day, when the house has also
been colourfully repainted with Asian Paints.
[2] Associating the Product with a Special Group, Event or Cause. Attitudes can be altered by
indicating to consumers the product’s relationship to particular groups, events or causes. Concern for
the environment has been one cause used recently. E.g Titan Cup is associated with cricket. Red &
White Bravery award, CRY greeting cards is associated with a cause, contribution goes to the UNICEF
[3] Relating to Conflicting Attitudes. Consumers like harmony — they do not like conflict. If they
can be shown that their attitude towards a product is in conflict with another attitude, they may be
induced to change one of the attitudes. However Marico Industries created a heart slopping
commercial for its Safola cooking oil to resolve the conflicting attitude that safola oil though healthy oil
is not particular tasty. Safolas product benefits “there are many things in you husband’s life that you
can’t control. Saffola: it’s your life insurance”
[4] Altering Components in the Multi-Attribute Model. In these strategies, marketers attempt to
change the evaluation of attributes by upgrading or downgrading significant attributes; change brand
beliefs by introducing new information; and by adding an attribute, or by changing the overall brand
rating.
Changing relative evaluation of attributes: Moov- a balm to relieve pain in the back (spinal cord
area) and Iodex to relieve pain due to any inflammation or swelling like sprain. Borolin – is
relieving pain due to burning of any part.
Changing brand belief: P&G’s Ariel microshine detergent claims this detergent is a tough
cleaner, powerful stain remover easy to use, unlike to other detergents which only whiten the
clothes.
Adding on attributes: Complain- a complete health drink for growing childen.
Changing the overall brand rating: Videocon- an Indian multinational company; westar: dual
time watches, the world on your wrist.
[5] Changing Beliefs about Competing Brands. In this strategy, we directly compare our product
with the competition in an attempt to change consumer beliefs about both products, for example,
BigBazar- ‘isse sasta aur kahan’.
[6] The Elaboration Likelihood Model. This model suggests that consumer attitudes can be
changed by either central or peripheral routes to persuasion. In the central route, attitude change
occurs because the consumer seeks and evaluates additional information about the product. In this
case, motivation levels are high and the consumer is willing to invest the time and effort to gather and
evaluate the information, indicating a high level of involvement. Multi-attribute models are based on
the central route to persuasion as attitudes are believed to be formed on the basis of important
product attributes/features and brand beliefs. In the peripheral route, consumers are either unwilling
or unable to seek additional product information. Involvement is low, so marketers must offer
secondary inducements such as price reductions or premiums in an attempt to induce attitude change.
More attention is paid in advertisement design to the credibility of the message source (spokesperson
or endorser) and his or her attractiveness.
35
Marketers must realise that attitudes change not only in response to their efforts but also in
response to the introduction of new or improved products by themselves or the competition; the
addition of new consumer experiences, either direct or indirect; the marketing efforts of the
competition; and how the product performs after purchase.
Conclusion: Attitude is the buzz word among marketers today. Marketers are emphasizing in a trend
which says “Attitude is about believing yourself”. And they are using this trend to bring their brands
within the realm of individual choice. Marketers are engaged in building brand image and personality
which can be offered to the attitudinal segment because marketers have realized that attitude sells.
Thus a good brand attitude will permeates across all product activity and then emerge the winner at
the market place.
IV. LEARNING
Consumers learn from past experience, and their future behavior is conditioned by such
learning. In fact, learning can be defined as a change in behavior occurring as a result of past
experience. As consumers gain experience in purchasing and consuming products, they learn not
only what brands they like, but also features they like most in particular brands. They then adjust
their future behavior based on past experience
To Long Schiffiman and Leslie Konuk “Learning is the process by which individuals acquire the
purchase and consumption knowledge and experience that they apply to future related behavior.”
The element include in most learning theories are drive, cues, response, and reinforcement.
Because everyday an individual receives a variety of stimulus. When a particular stimulus becomes
associated with a particular response, we conclude that learning has occurred.
Drive: Drive is said to be strong stimuli that forces action. The drive arouses in an individual an
urge to respond to the stimuli and thus forms the basis of motivation. For example, seeing a
product like a microwave oven at a friend’s place and watching advertisements may create a drive
to know more about the oven. This in turn motivates the individual to visit a retailer and have more
information about the oven and thus leads to learning.
Cues: A cue is any object existing in the environment, as perceived by the individual. Cues give
direction to motives. Cues increase the possibility of getting specific response. In the marketplace,
price, styling, packaging, advertising, and store displays all serve as cues to help consumers fulfill
their needs.
Reinforcement: It is a very basic condition of learning. Without it, we cannot observe any
measurable modification of behavior. Reinforcement refers to those environmental events, which
increase the likelihood of specific response occurring in the future as a result of particular cue or
stimuli.
Retention: The stability of learned behavior maintained by the individual over a period of time is
called Retention. Under repeated condition of positive reinforcement, there is a tendency for the
36
conditioned response to continue for a long period of time. For example, a consumer who is
absolutely delighted by the use of a product will continue to have a positive feeling about the
product for a long time.
There are two schools of thought in understanding the process of consumer learning: the
behaviorist and the cognitive. The behaviorist school is concerned with observing changes in an
individual’s responses as a result of exposure to stimuli. Whereas the cognitive school views
learning as problem solving and focuses on changes in customers psychological set (the consumer’s
attitudes and desired benefits) as a result of learning. In this respect, the cognitive school more
closely describes learning within a framework of decision-making.
1. Classical Conditioning
1. Early classical conditioning theorists regarded all organisms as passive recipients.
2. Conditioning involved building automatic responses to stimuli. Ivan Pavlov was the first to
describe conditioning and to propose it as a general model of how learning occurs.
3. For Pavlov, conditioned learning results when a stimulus that is paired with another stimulus
elicits a known response and serves to produce the same response when used alone.
4. He used dogs to demonstrate his theories. The dogs were hungry and highly motivated to
eat. Pavlov sounded a bell and then immediately applied a meat paste to the dogs’ tongues,
which caused them to salivate.
5. After a sufficient number of repetitions of the bell sound, followed almost immediately by
the food, the bell alone caused the dogs to salivate.
Unconditioned Stimulus
(Meat Paste)
Unconditioned
Response (Salivation)
Conditioned Stimulus
(Bell)
Classical conditioning and consumer behavior: the principles of classical conditioning provide
the theoretical underpinnings for many marketing applications. Repetition, stimulus generalization
and stimulus discrimination are the major applied concepts that help to explain consumer behavior
in the market place.
2. Instrumental Conditioning
1. Instrumental conditioning theory believes that learning occurs through a trial-and-error
process, with habits formed as a result of rewards received for certain response or
behaviours.
2. Instrumental conditioning theory is more helpful in explaining complex, goal directed
behavior. This model of learning applies to many situations in which consumers learn about
products, services and retail stores.
3. To American psychologist B.F. Skinner, most individual learning occurs in a controlled
environment in which individuals are ‘rewarded’ for choosing and appropriate behavior. In
consumer behavior terms, Instrumental conditioning suggests that consumer learns by
means of trial-and-error process in which some purchase behavior results in more favorable
outcomes (rewards) than other purchase behaviors. A favorable experience is ‘instrumental’
in teaching the individual to repeat a specific behavior.
4. Like Pavlov, Skinner developed his model of learning by working with animals. Small
animals, such as rats and pigeons, were placed in his ‘skinner box’; if they made
appropriate movements, they receive food. Skinners and his many adherents have done
38
amazing things with this simple learning model, including teaching pigeons to play ping-
pong and even to dance.
5. In a marketing context, the consumer who tries several brands and styles of jeans before
finding a style that fits her figure (positive reinforcement) has engaged in instrumental
learning. Presumably, the brand that fits best is the one she will continue to buy.
Try Brand A Unrewarded: Legs too loose
Stimulus
Try Brand B Unrewarded: Tight in seat
Situation
(Need good
looking Try Brand C Unrewarded: Baggy in seat
jeans)
Reinforcement of behavior: skinner distinguished two types of reinforcement that influence the
likelihood that a response will be repeated.
1. The first type the positive reinforcement consists of events that strengthen the likelihood of
a specific response. Using a shampoo your hair feeling silky and clean is likely to result in a
repeat purchase of the shampoo.
2. Negative reinforcement is an unpleasant or negative outcome that also serves to encourage
a specific behavior. An advertisement that shows a model with wrinkled skin is designed to
encourage consumers to buy and use the advertised skin cream; fear appeals. Negative
reinforcement should not be confused with punishment, which is designed to discourage
behavior
Extinction and Forgetting: when a learned response is no longer reinforced, it diminishes to the
point of extinction, which is the point at which the link between the stimulus and the expected
reward is eliminated. When behavior is no longer reinforced, it is unlearned. There is a difference,
however between extinction and forgetting.
Forgetting is often related to the passage of time; this is known as the process of decay
Marketers can overcome forgetting through repetition and can combat extinction through
the deliberate enhancement of consumer satisfaction.
39
Customer satisfaction (Reinforcement): the objective of all marketing efforts should be to
maximize customer satisfaction. Aside from the experience of using the product itself, consumers
can receive reinforcement from other elements in the purchase situation such as the environment
in which the transaction or services takes place, the attention and services provided by employees
and the amenities provided.
Some hotels offer reinforcement in the form of small amenities, such as chocolates on the
pillow or bottled water on the dresser
Some hotels send platters of fruit or even bottles of wine to returning guest’s to show their
appreciation for continued patronage.
Kellogg’s provides a frequent user program by including coupons on the top of its cereal
boxes that can be accumulated and exchanged for various premiums, such as a coffee mug
or denim shirt emblazoned with the company’s logo.
A considerable amount of learning take place as the result of consumer thinking and problem
solving. Sudden learning also a reality. When confronted with a problem, we sometimes see the
solution instantly. Learning based on mental activity is called cognitive learning. Cognitive learning
theory holds that the kind of learning most characteristics of human being is problem solving,
which enables individuals to gain some control over their environment.
1. Information Processing
Just as a computer processes information received as input, so too does the human mind process
the information it receives as input. Information processing is related to both the consumer’s
cognitive ability and the complexity of the information to be processed. Consumers process product
information by attributes, brands, comparison between brands, or a combination of these factors.
Individuals also differ in terms of imagery- that is, in their ability to form mental images-
and these differences influence their ability to recall information. Individual differences in imagery
processing can be measured with tests of imagery vividness ability to evoke clear images,
processing styles preferences for and frequency of visual versus verbal processing and
daydreaming fantasy content and frequently. The more experiences a consumer has with a product
category, the greater his or her ability to make product information.
Sensory store: all data come to us though our senses; however, the senses do not transmit whole
images as a camera does. Instead, each sense receives a fragmented piece of information such as
40
smell, color, shape and feels of flower and transmits it to the brain in parallel, where the
perceptions of a single instant are synchronized and perceived as a single image, in a single
moment of time. The image of a sensory input lasts for just a second or two in the mind’s sensory
store. If it is not processed it is lost immediately.
Short-term store: is known as working memory is the stage of real memory in which information
is processed and held for just a brief period. Anyone who has ever looked up a number in a
telephone book, only to forget it just before dialling, knows how briefly information lasts in short-
term storage. If information in the short-term store undergoes the process known as rehearsal i.e.
silent, mental repetition of information, it is then transferred to the long-term store. The transfer
process takes from 2 to 10 seconds. If information is not rehearsed and transferred, it is lost in
about 30 seconds of less. The amount of information that can be held in short-term storage is
limited to about four or five items.
Long-term store: retains information for relatively expanded periods of time. Although it is
possible to forget something within a few minutes after the information has reached long-term
storage, it is more common for data in long-term storage to last for days, weeks, or even years.
Rehearsal and encoding: the amount of information available for delivery from short-term
storage to long-term storage depends on the amount of rehearsal it is given. Failure to rehearse an
input, either by repeating it or by relating it to other data, can result in fading and eventual loss of
the information. Information can also be lost because of competition for attention.
The purpose of rehearsal is to hold information in short-term storage long enough for encoding
to take place. Encoding is the process by which we select a word or visual image to represent a
perceived object. Marketers, for example, help the consumer encode brands by using brand
symbols.
Kellogg’s uses Tony the Tiger o its frosted flakes.
Dell computer turns the ‘e’ in its logo on its side for quick name recognition
Microsoft uses a stylized window presumably on the world.
When consumer is presented with too much information called information overload. They may
encounter difficulty in encoding and storing it all. Often it is difficult for consumer to remember
product information from ads for new brands in heavily advertised categories.
Retention: information does not just sit in long-term storage waiting to be retrieved. Instead
information is constantly organized and reorganized as new links between chunks of information
are forged. As individuals gain more knowledge about a subject, they expand their network of
relationships and sometimes their search for additional information. This process is known as
activation, which involves relating new data to old to make the material more meaningful.
Consumer memory for the name of a product may also be activated by relating it to spokesperson
used in the advertising. Sachin Tendulkar means MRF Tires. The total package of association
brought to mind when a cue is activated is called a schema.
One study demonstrated that brand imprinting – message that merely establishes the
brand’s identity – conducted before the presentation of the brands benefits facilities
consumer learning and retention of information about the brand.
41
Studies also showed that a brands sound symbolism – a theory suggesting that the sounds
of words convey meaning and the brands linguistic- unusual spelling impacted the encoding
and retention of the brand name.
Consumers recode what they have already encoded to include larger amounts of information
called Chunking. Marketers should research the kinds and numbers of groupings (chunks) of
information that consumers can handle, when the chunks offered in an advertisement do
not match those in the consumer’s frame of references, information recalled may be
hampered.
Information is stored in long-term memory in two ways episodically (by the order in which it
is acquired) and semantically (according to significant concepts). We may remember having
gone to movie last time because of our ability to store data episodically, and we remember
the plot, the stars, and the director because of our ability to store data semantically.
Learning theories believes that memories stored semantically are organized into frameworks
by which we integrate new data with previous experiences.
Retrieval is the process by which we recover information from long-term storage. Marketers
maintain that consumers tends to remember the product’s benefit rather than it’s attributes
suggesting that advertising message are most effective when they link the products attributes with
the benefits that consumers seek from the product.
Incongruent (or unexpected) message elements pierce consumer’s perceptual screens and
improve the memorability of an advertisement when these elements are relevant to the advertising
message. E.g. easy to clean, stain resistant, easy to cook in two minutes
The greater the number of competitive ads in a product category, the lower the recall of
brand claims in a specific ad. These interference effects are caused by confusion with competing
ads, and make information retrieval difficult. Ads can also act as retrieval cues for a competitive
brand.
2. Involvement Theory
Involvement theory developed from a stream of research called hemispheral lateralization, of
split brain theory. The basic premise of split brain theory is that the right and left hemisphere of
the brain specialize in the kinds of information they process
The left hemisphere is primarily responsible for cognitive activity such as reading, speaking
and attributional information processing. Individuals who are exposed to verbal information
cognitive analyze the information through left brain processing and form mental images.
The right hemisphere of the brain is concerned with nonverbal, timeliness, pictorial and
holistic information. Put another way the left side brain is rational, active and realistic; the right
side is emotional, metaphoric, impulsive and intuitive.
Involvement theory and media strategy: a pioneer consumer research theorized that
individuals passively process and store right brain (nonverbal, pictorial) information with out active
involvement, TV itself was therefore considered a low-involvement medium.
To extend this line of reasoning, cognitive (verbal) information is processed by the left side
of the brain; thus, print media (newspaper and magazines) and interactive media the internet are
considered high-involvement media.
Pictorial cues are more effective at generating recall and familiarity with the product; where
as verbal cues generate cognitive ability that encourages the consumers to evaluate the
advantages and disadvantages of the product.
Central and peripheral routes to persuasion: the theory of central and peripheral routes to
persuasion illustrates the concepts of extensive and limited problem solving for high and low
involvement purchase situation
For high-involvement purchases, the central route to persuasion requires considered
thought and cognitive processing-is likely to be the most effective marketing strategy. For low-
involvement purchase, the peripheral route to persuasion is likely to be more effective. In this
42
instance, because the consumer is less motivated to exert cognitive effort, learning is more likely
to occur through repetition, the passive processing of visual cues and holistic perception.
The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM): The ELM suggests that a person’s level of
involvement during message processing is a critical factor in determining which route to persuasion
is likely to be effective.
High-involvement --- Central route; Low---involvement --- Peripheral route
The learning theory offers tremendous challenge to a marketer- that of guiding and
sometimes even directing human behavior. This is done by developing stimuli and cues, which will
bring to force the latent need in the customer. Attractive advertising, shelf displays, packaging,
how to use instructions, store layout, availability and sales persons are all examples of cues that
marketer develops to drive customers to the product or service. An excellent customer care
program of the marketer can help a customer have positive feelings about his or her experience.
The marketer may also develop cues to differentiate his or her product from that of the competitor.
1> Recognition and recall measures: tests are conducted to determine whether consumers
remember seeing an ad, the extent to which they read it or seen it can recall its content,
their resulting attitudes towards the product and the brand and their purchase intentions.
2> Cognitive response to advertising: the degree to which consumers accurately
comprehend the indented advertising message. Comprehension is a function of the message
characteristics the consumers opportunity and ability to process the information and the
consumers motivation. Copy testing
3> Attitudinal and behavioral measures of brand loyalty: Brand loyalty is the ultimate
desired outcome of consumer learning. Marketers agree that brand loyalty consists of both
attitudinal and behaviors towards a brand and that both must be measured. Attitudinal
measures are concerned with consumers overall feelings about the product and the brand
and their purchase intentions. Behavioral measures are based on observable responses to
promotional stimuli – repeat purchase behavior rather than attitude towards product or
brand.
4> Brand equity: the term brand equity refers to the value inherent in a well-known brand
name. This value system from the consumer’s perception of the brand’s superiority. The
social esteem that using it provides and the customers trust and identification with the
brand.
Cognitive Dissonance Theory Leon Festinger (New York psychologist) was the father of this concept
– where we have some sort of unbalance regarding an action so we find justifications for the action. He
suggests that consumers experience discomfort, called dissonance, when they are confronted with
new information about a belief or attitude that is in conflict with the original information. This often
happens after a purchase, when it is called post-purchase dissonance. The product was purchased
with a set of expectations (beliefs). Following the actual use of the product, the consumer may find
that the initial set of expectations was not met, or the consumer may question whether they made the
43
right choice given the features and benefits of the products not chosen. In either case, the consumer
is faced with new information that is in conflict with the original beliefs. In an effort to reduce the
discomfort or dissonance, the original attitude may be changed. If that happens, then behaviour —
purchase, use and evaluation — has led to a change in attitude.
V. MOTIVATION
Water is inexpensive from municipal agencies, yet million consumers pay 1,000 times the price of
municipal water to purchase bottled water. While heavy advertised brands such as Bislery,
Aquafina are well known, bulk water delivered to homes and offices in 5-gallon containers makes
up half the market.
To Hawkins, Best, Coney and Mookerjee “Motivation is the reason for behaviour. A motive is a
construct representing an unobservable inner force that stimulation and compels a behaviour
response specific and provides specific direction to that response. “
To Long Schiffiman and Leslie Konuk, ”Motivation is the driving force with in the individual that
impels them to action.”
This driving force is produced by a state of tension, which exist as the result of a fulfillment need.
Individuals strive both consciously and subconsciously to reduce this tension through the behaviour
that they anticipate will fulfill their needs and thus relive them of the stress they feel. The specific
goals they select and the patterns of action they undertake to achieve their goals are the result of
individual thinking and learning.
Previous Learning
Cognitive Processes
Tension Reduction
It portrays motivation as a state of need induced tension that ‘drives’ the individual to
engage in behaviour that he/she believes will satisfy the need and thus reduce tension. Whether
gratification is actually achieved depends on the course of action they takes to attain the previous
learning and experience. Therefore marketing must view motivation as a force that includes
consumption and through consumption experiences the process of consumer learning.
Need: every individual has need: some are innate, others are acquired. Innate needs are
physiological (biogenic) they include the needs for food, water, air clothing shelter and sex.
44
Because they are needed to sustain biological life, the biogenic needs are considered primary needs
or motives.
Acquired needs are needs that we learn in response to out culture or environment. These
may include needs for self-esteem, prestige, affection power and learning. Because acquired needs
are generally psychological i.e. psychogenic, they are considered secondary needs or motives.
Goals: our discussion of motivation in this chapter is in part concerned with the generic goals that
is the general classes or categories of goals that consumer see as a means or fulfil their needs. If a
student tells his parents that he wants to get an M.D. Degree for AMIS, he has expressed a product
specific goal. Marketers are particularly concerned with the product specific goals that are the
specifically branded products and services that consumers select goal fulfilment.
Feedback Reactions
46
A. Need is never fully satisfied
Most human needs are never fully or permanently satisfied e.g. at fairly regular intervals
throughout each day individuals experience hunger needs that must be satisfied. Most people
regularly seek companionship and approval from others to satisfy their social needs.
Marketers must be aware of the changing needs e.g. now a days everybody has become
environmentally conscious, so companies have also adopted environment friendly attitude like
using paper bags for promotional strategy.
1. Substitute goals: when an individual and cannot attain a specific goal or type of goal that
he/she anticipates will satisfy certain needs, behaviour may not be as satisfactory as primary goal,
it may be sufficient to dispel uncomfortable tension. Continued deprivation of a primary goal may
result in the substitute goal assuming primary goal status.
2. Frustration: failure to achieve a goal often results in feeling of frustration. At one time or
another everyone has experienced the frustration that comes from the inability to attain a goal.
The barrier that prevents attainment of a goal may be personal to the individual (e.g. limited
physical or financial resources) or an obstacle in the physical or social environment e.g. a storm
that causes the postponement of a long awaited vacation.
3. Defence mechanisms: people who can’t cope with frustration often mentally redefine their
frustration situations in order to protect their self-images and self-esteem. Defence mechanism
that people sometimes adopt to protect their egos from feelings of failure when they don’t attain
their foal other defence mechanism include regression, withdrawal projection, daydreaming,
identification and repression
Marketers often considered this fact in their selection of advertising appeals and construct
advertisement s that portray a person resolving a particular frustration through the use of
advertised product.
D. Arousal of motive
Most of individual specific needs are dermal much of the time. The arousal of any particular set of
needs at a specific moment in time may be caused by internal stimuli found in the individual
physiological condition by emotional or cognitive process, or by stimuli in the outside environment.
1. Physical arousal: bodily needs at any one specific moment in time are based on the
individual physiological condition at that movement. A drop in blood sugar level or stomach
contractions will trigger awareness of a hunger need. Secretion of sex hormones will awaken
47
the sex need -> most of these physiological cues are involuntary, however they arouse
related needs that cause uncomfortable tensions until they are satisfied.
2. Emotional arousal: sometimes daydreaming results in the arousal or stimulate of latent
need people who are bored on who are frustrated in trying to achieve their goals often
engage in daydreaming (autistic thinking) in which they imagine themselves in all sorts of
desirable situations.
3. Cognitive arousal: sometimes random through can lead to a cognitive awareness of
needs. An advertisement that provides reminders of home might trigger instant yearning to
speak with one’s parents. This is the basis for many long-distance telephone company
campaigns that stress the low cost of international long-distance rates.
4. Environmental arousal: the set of needs an individual experiences at a particular time are
often activated by specific cues in the environment. Without these cues the needs might
remain dormant. A most potent form of situational cue is the goal object itself. A man may
suddenly experience a need for a new car when passing a dealers display window.
Sometimes an advertisement or other environmental cues produce psychological imbalances in
viewers mind e.g. a young college student who constantly uses his cell phone may see a new slick-
looking cell phone model with more features displayed in a stored window.
There are two opposing philosophies concerned with the arousal of human motives
The behaviorist’s school considers motivation to be a much process behaviour is seen as the
response to a stimulus and elements of conscious thoughts are ignored.
The cognitive school believes that all behaviour is directed at goal achievement.
Needs and past experience are reasoned, categorized and transferred into attitudes and believes
that act as predispositions focused on helping the individual satisfy needs and they determine the
actions that he/she takes to achieve the satisfaction.
48
Maslow’ hierarchy of needs for clearly each level is depicted as mutually exclusive. According to the
theory, however there is some overlap between each level as no need is ever completely satisfied.
For this reason although all levels of need below the level that is currently dominant continues to
motivate behaviour to some extent. The prime motivator, the major driving force within the
individual is the lowest level of need that remains largely unsatisfied.
1. Physiological need: in the hierarchy of needs theory physiological needs are the first and most
basic level of human needs. These needs are required to sustain biological life, include food, water,
air shelter, and clothing, sex all these biogenic needs are the primary needs.
According to Maslow physiological needs are dominant when they are chronologically unsatisfied
“for the man who is extremely and dangerously hungry no other interest exists but foods. He
dreams food, he remembers food, he thinks about foods and he emotes about food, he perceives
only food and he wants only food.
2. Safety needs: after the first level of need is satisfied, safety and security needs become the
driving force behind individual’s behaviour. These needs are concerned not only with physical
safety but also include order, stability, routine, familiarity and control over one life and
environment. Health ability of health care is important concerns. Saving, accounts insurance
policies, education and vocational training are all means by which individuals satisfy the need for
security.
3. Social needs: include love, affection, belonging and acceptance. People seek warm and
satisfying human relationships with other people and are motivated by love for their families.
Because of the importance of social motives in our society advertisers of many product categories
of many product category emphasizes this appeal in their advertisement.
4. Egoistic needs: these needs can take either an inward or outward orientation or both. Inward
directly ego needs reflect an individual’s need for self acceptance, self esteem, success,
independence and personal satisfaction with a job well done outwardly directed ego needs include
to needs for prestige, reputation status and recognition from others.
5. Need for self actualization: this need refers to individuals desire to fulfill his or her potential
to become every thing he/she is capable of becoming. In Maslow word” what a man can be, he
must be” this need is expressed in different way by different people. E.g. a young man may desire
to be an Olympic star and work single mindedly for years to become the best in his sport. A
research scientific may strive to find a new drug that eradicate cancer.
Maslow noted that the self-actualization need is not necessary a creative urge but that likely to
take that firm in people with some capacity for creativity.
C. A Trio of Needs
Some psychologist believes in the existence of a trio of basic needs the needs for power, for
affiliation and for achievement.
(1) Power: the power need related to an individuals desire to control his/her environment. It
includes the need to control other persons and various objects. This need appears to be closely
related to the ego need, in that many individuals experience increased self-esteem when they
exercise power over objects or people.
(2) Affiliation: is a well known and well researched social motive that has for reaching influence
on consumer behaviour. The affiliation need suggests that behaviour is strongly influenced by the
desire for friendship, for acceptance for belonging people with high affiliation needs tend to socially
dependent on others. They often select goods they fill will meet with the approval of friend.
(3) Achievements: Individuals with strong need for achievements often regard personal
accomplishments as an end in itself. The achievements need is closely related to both the egoistic
need and self-actualization need. People with a high need for achievements tend to be more self-
confident, enjoy taking calculated risks actively research their environment and value feedback.
People with high achievement need prefer situation in which they can take personal responsibility
for finding solution.
How are motives identified? How they are measured? How do researchers know which motives are
responsible for certain kind of behaviour? These are diffucult questions to be answer because
motives are hypothetical constructs i.e. they can’t be seen or touched, handled, smelled or
otherwise observed.
50
The term motivational research which should logically include all types of research onto human
motives has become a ‘term of art used to refer to qualitative research designed to uncover the
subconscious or hidden motivation. Based on the premise that consumers are not always aware of
the reasons for their actions, motivational research attempts to discover underlying feeling,
attitudes and emotional concerning products services or brands.
While some critics accuse marketers of creating needs and manipulating consumers into
buying goods, they do not need, most people agree that marketers cant create needs, however
they can awaken latent needs and encourage consumers to engage in unwholesome behaviors, e.g.
pleasurable and social aspects of smoking, drinking and gambling are often promoted as enticing
and socially acceptable, while the addictive and health aspects are downplayed. Marketers
sometimes target vulnerable consumers such as children’s, teenagers and elderly, who may not
have the knowledge or experience to evaluate the products or services being promoted. These
market practices for new regulation and legislation to restrict their use. Many variation advertisers
voluntarily restrict these questionable marketing practices in order to maintain and enhance their
images with their target publics.
51
Some insurance companies have been accused of using retired military officers to
aggressively market life insurance high cost loans and other financial products to young recruits
and junior officers on American military bases.
These examples cited above clearly indicate that aggressive advertisement can increase the
level of demand for some products. Sometimes in a manner this is determined to the well-being of
the consumers targeted and to society. Social forces are effective in curtailing seemingly unethical
behaviour by marketers. Marketers do responds or forced by legislation to respond when their
advertising efforts are viewed as socially undesirable.
We can say that Social class is more of a continuum, i.e., a range of social positions, on
which each member of society can be place. But, social researchers have divided this continuum
into a small number of specific classes. Thus, we go by this framework, social class is used to
assign individuals or families to a social-class category.
Within a marketing context, social class is worth thinking about because of the insights it
offers on the market behaviour of consumers, and on the existence of market segments. Social
class influences affect various aspects of products that we aspire to own such as colour, styling,
what preferences we might have for product sizes, what type of stores we will shop at, and how we
go about the shopping process.
52
D. The Dynamics of Status Consumption
Status consumption – which is the process by which consumer endeavour to increase their social
standing through conspicuous consumption and possessions.
The research found that status consumption i.e. ranges the degree to which a consumer is
likely to consume for status and conspicuous consumption measures the extent to which a
consumer is to consumer conspicuously are different measures, yet they are related in that they
both are impacted by interpersonal and word-of-mouth communication.
Human are social animal. We are all belong to group, try to please others and take cues
about how to behave by observing actions of those around us. In fact, our desire to ‘fit in’ or to
identify with desirable individuals or groups is the primary motivation for many of our purchases
and activities.
“A group may be defined as two or more people who interact to accomplish either individual
or mutual goals.”
Propinquity: as physical distance between people decreases and opportunity for interaction
increases, relationship are more likely to form physical nearness is called propinquity.
Mere exposure: are come to use like persons or things simply as a result of seeing them more
often, which is known as the “mere exposure phenomenon”. Greater frequency of contact ever if
unintentional may help to determine one’s set of local referents. One study predicts 83% of the
winners of political primaries solely by the amount of media exposure given to candidates.
Group cohesiveness: cohesiveness refers to the degree that members of a group attracted to each
other and value their group membership. As the value of the group the individual increases so too
does the likelihood that guides consumption decisions.
Shopping Group: two or more people who shop together whether for food for clothing or simply to
pass time can be called as shopping group. The motivation for shopping with purchase range from
primary social motive to helping reduce the risk when making an important decision.
Work Group: the entirety amount of time that people spend at their jobs, provide ample
opportunities for work groups to serve as a major influential factors.
Consumer Action Group: these groups are dedicated to providing consumers with assistance in
their effort to make the right purchase decisions in their effort to make the right purchase
decisions, consume products and services in a healthy and responsible manner and to generally
54
add to the overall quality of their lives. E.g. youth development, community volunteerism, legal
assistance, and wildlife concerns, public health, disaster relief, energy conservation, education,
smoking.
55
F. The Power of Reference Group
Social power: refers to the capacity to alter the action of others to the degree that one is
able to make someone else do something whether they do it willingly or not, you have
power over that person.
Referent power: if a person admires the qualities of a person or a group, he will try to
imitate those qualities by copying the referents behaviours (choice of clothing, cars) as a
guide to forming consumption preferences. Referent power is important to many marketing
strategies because consumers voluntarily change behaviours to please or identify with a
referent.
Information power: a person can have power simply because he knows something others
would like to know. People with information power are able to influence consumer opinion
by virtue of their access to the ‘truth’.
Legitimate power: sometimes people are granted power by virtue of social agreements
such as the power given to policeman and professors. The legitimate power conferred by a
uniform is recognized in many consumer contexts, including medical students’ white coats
to enhance authority with patients. This form of power may be “borrowed” by marketers to
influence consumers. E.g. advertising features a model wearing a white doctors coat can
add an aura of legitimate or authority to the presentation of the product.
Expert power: Consumers accept information from members within a group whom they
perceive to be experts.
Reward power: when a person or a group has the means to provide positive
reinforcement, that entity will have reward power over a consumer to the extent that this
reinforcement is valued or desired.
Coercive power: a threat is often effective in the short term, but it does not tend to
produce permanent attitudinal or behavioural change. Coercive power refers to influencing a
person by social or physical intimidation. Some campaigns that emphasize the negative
consequences that might occur if people don’t use a product are the example of coercive
power.
56
Individual Family Friends Social Culture
Classes and Sub-
Culture
REFERENCE GROUP
The degree of influence that a reference group exerts or an individual’s behaviour usually depends
on the nature of the individual and the product and or specific social factors.
Information and experience: an individual who has first hand experience with a product
or services can easily obtain full information about it is less likely to be influenced by the
advice of others.
Credibility, attractiveness and power of reference group: a reference group that is
perceived as credible attractive or powerful can easily obtain full information about it is less
likely to be influenced by the advice of others.
Conspicuousness of the product: the potential influence of reference group on a
purchase decision varies according to how visually or verbally conspicuousness the product
is to others. A visually conspicuousness the product is one that will stand out and be noticed
(luxury items); a verbally conspicuousness product may be highly interesting or it may be
easily described to others.
Reference group and consumer conformity: some market leaders are interested on the
ability of reference group to change the consume attitudes and behaviour by encouraging
conformity. To be capable of such influence; a reference group must accomplish the
following. 1. Inform or make the individual aware of a specific product or brand. 2. Provide
the individual with the opportunity to compare his own thinking with the attitudes and
behaviour for the group. 3. Influence the individual to adopt attitude and behaviour that are
consistent with the norms of the group. 4. Legitimize the decision to use the same products
as the group.
Celebrates and other reference group appeals are used effectively by advertisers to
communicate with their markets. Celebrates can be a powerful force in creating interest or actions
with regard to purchasing or using selected goods and services. This identification may be based on
admiration and on aspiration on empathy or on recognition. Five major types groups appeals in
common marketing usages are- celebrity appeals, expert appeals, common-man appeals, executive
and employee appeals and trade or spoke character appeals.
The Celebrities
Celebrities particularly movie stars, TV personalities, popular entertainers and sports icons
provide a very common type of reference group appeal. Advertisers spend enormous sums of
money to have celebrities promote their products, with the expectations that the reading or viewing
audience will react positively to the celebrity’s association with react positively to the celebrity’s
association with their product.
Celebrity can be used through four ways
1. Using the celebrity to give the testimonial (celebrity attests to the quality of the product and
service)
2. To give an endorsement (celebrity and his name appears on behalf of a product with which
he may not be an expert)
3. As a company spokesperson (celebrity represents the brand or company over an extended
period of time)
Of all the benefits the celebrities contribute to the firm advertising programs: fame, talent,
credibility, or charisma. Celebrity is the most important. By celebrity credibility we mean both the
celebrity’s expertise and trustworthiness. For instance, when a celebrity endorses only the product,
57
consumers are likely to perceive the product on a higher favourable light and indicate greater
intention to purchase if. In contrast, when a celebrity endorses a variety of products his credibility
reduces.
The Expert
Another reference group appeal used by marketers is the expert, a person who because of
his occupation, special training or experiences is in a unique position. To have that prospective
consumer evaluate the product that the advertising promoters e.g. an advertise for a quality frying
pan may feature the endorsement of a chef or an advertise for volleyball shoes might featured the
endorsement of a champion volleyball team.
Trade or Spokes-Characters
Trade or spokes-character as well as familiar cartoon characters serve as quasi-celebrity
endorses. This trade spokes it present an idealized image and dispense information that can be
very important for the product or services that they work for.
The family is a major influence on the consumer behaviour of its members. The family commonly
provides the opportunity for product exposure and trial, and imparts consumption values to its
members. As a major consumption unit, the family is also a prime target for the marketing of many
Products and services.
A. What is a Family?
A family is a group of two or more persons related by blood, marriage, or adoption who reside
together. The nuclear family is the immediate group of father, mother, and children living together.
The extended family is the nuclear family, plus other relatives, such as grandparents, uncles and
aunts, cousins, and parents-in-law. The family into which one is born is called the family of
58
orientation, whereas the one established by marriage is the family of procreation. The term
household is used to describe all person, both related and unrelated, who occupy a housing unit.
59
The FLC is a composite variable created by systematically combining such commonly used
demographic variables as marital status, size of family, age of family members.
60
6. Extended family – young single-adult children who return home to avoid the expenses of
living alone while establishing their careers. Divorced daughter or son and grandchildren
return home to parents.
S2 Non-family Households
1. Increased couples – increased acceptance of heterosexual and homosexual couples.
2. Divorced persons (no children) - high divorce rate contributes to dissolution of households
before children are born.
3. Single persons (most are young) - primarily a result of delaying first marriage; also, men
and women who never marry.
4. Widowed persons (most are elderly) – longer life expectancy, especially for women, means
more over -75 single person households.
Consumption in Non-Traditional families
When households undergo status changes they often undergo spontaneous change in consumption
related preferences and thus become attractive targets for many marketers.
Characteristics of Lifestyle
1 Lifestyle is a group phenomenon: A person's lifestyle bears the influence of his/her
participation in social groups and of his/her relationships with others. Two clerks in the same office
may exhibit different lifestyles.
2 Lifestyle infuses various aspects of life: An individual's lifestyle may result in certain
consistency of behaviour. Knowing a person's conduct in one aspect of life may enable us to predict
how he/she may behave in other areas.
3 Lifestyle implies a central life interest: For every individual there are many central life
interests like family, work, leisure, sexual exploits, religion, politics etc. that may fashion his
interaction with the environment.
4. Lifestyles vary according to sociologically relevant variables: The rate of social change in
a society has a great deal to do with variations in lifestyles. So do age, sex, religion, ethnicity and
social class. The increase in the number of double income families and that of working women have
resulted in completely different lifestyles in the 1980's in India.
Activities: activities relate to research how the time spent by an individual, family or a group on
various activities such as working, resting, vacation, hiking, riding, playing, studying recreating,
etc. by asking suitable questions various activities of an individual, household or group are studies
and measured. Based on these replies society is divided into various groups. The various activities
depends upon social class one belongs, status i.e. the level of income, level of education,
profession, vocation or calling, area of residence, personality, knowledge, interest among other
factors also depend upon age. Young boys or girls or recently married couples may prefer to own a
house or spend more on fashion, travel as compared to middle aged person. Old family member’s
interest may be more on quiet simple life as compared to outing.
Interests: The interests also depend upon level of education. A person highly educated may have
greater interest in reading books of his subject while less educated person may not read books or
may prefer go to a movie or watch TV.
The preference and priorities are also affected by the regions one live.
The culture and social set up also decides or at least influences preference and interests.
Again with in same social group the interest of young stars may be different than that of
elders in almost every thing like eating, drinking, playing and researchers has to find out all
these points through well structured questions.
Religion is another variable which decides interests in certain respects and sometimes
influence entire thought process.
Language is another variable which influences ones and families interest.
Opinions: the opinion about various activities, products, services, health, fashion, books, beauty,
nature of consumption, politics, tours, travels, education, nature of education, institute, houses,
buses also decides consumer behaviour and so the consumption of various goods and services.
There fore researchers wants to study through formal or informal surveys, opinion poles etc. find
out opinion of consumers so that the goods and services may be modified, improved, restructured
and innovation may be carried out to introduce now products to satisfy the requirements of various
consumers.
The opinion studies are also conducted to find out opinion on various events which have
taken place, films, and social issues, political or cultural issues. It has become an important tool to
find out consumers opinion but this tools is successful when questions are very few and properly
structured first to get response from respondents and secondly to arrive at a conclusion to modify
the strategy.
Acronym for Values and Lifestyles, a system for grouping consumers according to
psychological and sociological theories in order to predict their behaviour in the purchase decision
process. There are three main categories: need-directed-consumers who make purchases based
solely on need; outer-directed-consumers who make purchases based on their perceptions of the
way others view them; and inner-directed-consumers that make purchases out of some inner need.
VALS can aid in defining targets for products and are also helpful in the development of advertising
copy and media strategies.
The best-known psychographic segmentation is called VALS, which stands for "value and
lifestyles." It was developed in the 1970s to explain changing U.S. values and lifestyles. It has
62
since been redone to enhance its ability to predict consumer behaviour. Segmentation research
based on VALS is a product of SRI Consulting Business Intelligence. The concept was reintroduced
in 1978 by the California consulting firm of SRI International.
As the VALS Framework shows, the groups are arranged in a rectangle and are based on
two dimensions. The vertical dimension segment people based on the degree to which they are
innovative and have resources such as income, education, self-confidence, intelligence, leadership
skills, and energy. The horizontal dimension represents primary motivations and includes three
different types. Consumers driven by knowledge and principles are motivated primary by ideals.
These consumers include the Thinkers and Believers groups. Consumers driven by a goal of
demonstrating success to their peers are motivated primarily by achievement. These consumers
include Achievers and Strivers. Consumers driven by a desire for social or physical activity, variety,
and risk taking are motivated primarily by self-expression. These consumers include both the
Experiences and Makers. At the top of the rectangle are the Innovators, who have such high
resources that they could have any of the three primary motivations. At the bottom of the
rectangle are the Survivors, who live complacently and within their means without a strong primary
motivation of the types listed above. The VALS Framework gives more details about each of the
eight groups
Innovator. These consumers are on the leading edge of change, have the highest incomes,
and such high self-esteem and abundant resources that they can indulge in any or all self-
orientations. Successful and sophisticated, they are open to change and are concerned with
social issues. As consumers, they display discriminating tastes and buy to please themselves
rather than to please others. They are located above the rectangle. Image is important to
them as an expression of taste, independence, and character. Their consumer choices are
directed toward the "finer things in life."
Thinkers. These consumers are the high-resource group of those who are motivated by
ideals. They are mature, responsible, well-educated professionals. Their leisure activities
centre on their homes, but they are well informed about what goes on in the world and are
open to new ideas and social change. They have high incomes but are practical consumers
and rational decision makers.
63
Believers. These consumers are the low-resource group of those who are motivated by
ideals. They are conservative and predictable consumers who favour American products and
established brands. Their lives are cantered on family, church, community, and the nation.
They have modest incomes.
Achievers. These consumers are the high-resource group of those who are motivated by
achievement. They are successful work-oriented people who get their satisfaction from their
jobs and families. They are politically conservative and respect authority and the status quo.
They favour established products and services that show off their success to their peers.
Strivers. These consumers are the low-resource group of those who are motivate by
achievements. They have values very similar to achievers but have fewer economic, social,
and psychological resources. Style is extremely important to them as they strive to emulate
people they admire.
Experiences. These consumers are the high-resource group of those who are motivated by
self-expression. They are the youngest of all the segments, with a median age of 25. They
have a lot of energy, which they pour to physical exercise and social activities. They are
young, action-oriented, and impulsive and tend to take risks, with sufficient resources; they
are eager to try new things and are keen customers. They are avid consumers, spending
heavily on clothing, fast-foods, music, and other youthful favourites, with particular
emphasis on new products and services.
Makers. These consumers are the low-resource group of those who are motivated by self-
expression. They are practical people who value self-sufficiency. They are focused on the
familiar-family, work, and physical recreation-and have little interest in the broader world.
As consumers, they appreciate practical and functional products.
Survivors. These consumers have the lowest incomes. They have too few resources (little
education, few skills, and no money) to be included in any consumer self-orientation and are
thus located below the rectangle. There are too concerned with meeting their daily needs to
worry about tomorrow. Their purchasing power is limited to daily essentials. They are the
oldest of all the segments, with a median age of 61. Within their limited means, they tend to
be brand-loyal consumers.
1> Marketing Plan Development: the lifestyle concept however as a framework for research
recommendations, offers marketing practitioners understandable portraits of people
engaged on recognizable patterns of consumption. A lifestyle portrait for heavy users of
men’s after shave lotion reveals not only how old user are, where they live and how
socioeconomic group they belong to, but also describes their interests and opinions and
how they feel about their daily activities. More importantly it predicts what other products
they are likely to buy and which media are most likely to reach them.
2> Media Selection: media salespeople generally advertisers through accurate profile
description of their readers, viewers or listeners using demographics gathered and
presented either by individual media representatives or through syndicated media research
resources. This type of demographic analysis provides little insight into people’s attitudes
and opinions. Lifestyle analysis provides considerably more information about the
personality characteristics, attitudes, opinions and product use patterns of heavy uses of
newspapers, magazines and television. And consumers can be differential further on the
basis of the types of magazines or programs they are most likely to read or watch.
3> Creative Strategy Formulation : lifestyle information about target consumers is helpful
to creative people of an ad agency’s creative department in three ways
It gives them an idea of what type of consumers will be at the other end of the
communication. This is useful is choosing actors and spokespeople for the product
and placing them in appropriate settings.
Lifestyle data suggests the tone and style of language appropriate to appeal to target
audiences humorous or serious, contemporary or traditional.
Lifestyle information indicates how the product fits into people’s lives, how they feel
about it, and how they may be using it to communicate things about themselves to
other people.
4> Product Poisoning: establishing a product in a consumer’s frame of references calls for an
understanding of just what that frames of references is. Take as an example a new brand of
toothpaste. A distinguishing characteristic is that it has an extra whitening ingredient.
Positioning this product effectively would demand research into heavy users of toothpaste
64
that promise sparking white teeth, such as the competing product, pearl drops. If target
consumers turned out to be teenagers and young singles, advertising and media strategies
would probably sell sex appeal – a print campaign in Seventeen or Cosmopolitan, along
with a heavy television and radio schedule. But AIO research might just as reality uncovers
surprising data on this group of teens, who may be attached by more traditional values. A
more appropriate advertising message would then be to emphasize the health benefits of
the toothpaste.
5> Retail Strategy Development: just as lifestyle information can be used to identify
consumers who are likely to use certain goods and services, it can also point to differences
in shopping behaviour. An early study identified two purchasing patterns; creative and
passive. Creative consumers are more likely to respond to new modes of distribution than
are passive consumers. They were found in the vanguard of people who first popularized
innovative retail environment such as the supermarket and the shopping centre.
65
other. The interest partly depends upon activities but partly on other factors. The opinion of various
individuals about product, philosophy, religion, polities and so on.
Psychographics is an important and often little understood area of market research. Over
the last thirty years interest in personality-based approaches to consumer behaviour understanding
how consumers of particular products can be divided into types or classes - has grown
considerably. Better research designs, more appropriate measures and more realistic expectations
have led to results that shed new light on consumer choice and are directly applicable in marketing
management and research. Understanding Psychographics helps marketers to
See beyond demographics to consumers relationships with goods and services. That is most
products and services do not lend themselves to demographic segmentation. Instead, they can
be segment using Psychographics.
Venture into cross-marketing with other products in the same constellation. Suppose you are a
marketer of athletic bags. To be effective, you can target certain athletes such as basketball
players, tennis players, racquetball players, etc.., identifying their needs and the various
products and services they use. Doing so would allow you to market your bag in conjunction
with those products and services.
Definition
Psychographic considers life experience basically based on psychology of the group and
accordingly decides market strategy and places them in different groups life style of Psychographic
can be defined as a “ Composite measures of the activities a consumer enjoys in and spends time
doing of interest of the consumer and of the opinions held by the consumer” Psychography studies
these factors in detail to formulate marketing strategy and segmenting consumers in different
groups so that they may be targeted accordingly.
In brief Psychographic is a science which studies all the activities, interests and opinions of
consumers through surveys, observations, personal discussions and using various statistical and
economical tools.
I Psychographics Vs Demographics
1>In Psychographic studies generally one depends upon lifestyle i.e. activities, interests and
opinions of an individual while demographics studies and segments the markets based on sex, age,
education, income which are collected by all the countries in census data.
2>Through demographic studies one find outs activities, interests and opinions of consumers of
various sex, age groups and literacy standards when Psychographic and demographic profiles are
combined it becomes very useful and powerful information for advertisement, sales promotion and
changing the attitude of consumers or mould their views on various issues.
3>In India also lately there is increasing on studies in demographics / Psychographic profiles of
consumers to promote their products and services and this approach had been quite successful.
Colgate is placing great emphasis in its advertisement aimed at children about strength of
teeth and their long life
Pepsodent of HUL also gives almost similar message to children about there tooth paste.
Nestle Cerelac has depicted that doing with hormone foods; mothers also consider balanced
nutrition again it depicted that how good cookery which is small thing “make a big difference
in life”.
4> the Psychographic may divide lifestyle into traditional, very traditional, non-traditional, modern
etc. and through demographic studies they can be further segmented as per age, income, sex,
profession etc. thus two together helps one to know in great detail about the consumer and then
attempt can be made to influence their behaviour fro a particular product or services. The further
studies also help to know the beliefs, tastes, likings, disliking of various segments to arrive at a
strategy. It can be tried to change the personality and lifestyle for which there is big scope in a
country like India.
66
1> Psychographics is the study of life style that exists at a point of time but motivation is the
reason for particular life style and thus two are highly interdependent. Thus Psychographics study
the existing position; the motivation research studies the reasons for current behaviour and also
studies how this behaviour can be changed.
2> Actually no action of a human being is without some motive or other but what forces but to act
differ from individual to individual based on if personality. Therefore, while psychographic studies
the present lifestyle the research on motivation helps to find out why and how a person acts in a
particular manner. The motivational research studies the behaviour, goals of different groups,
classes and the process motivates a consumer to buy or not to buy particular goods and services to
that marketer may use to result to change the attributes which “what we feel about a concept
which may be brand, category, a person, an ideology or any other infinity about which we can think
and to which we can attack.”
3> The main objective of motivational research in marketing, advertising and applied social
séances is to influence behaviour. E.g. those who have reasons or high income get many activities
for them done on payment like laundering they more often in restaurants rather than cooking at
home. They depend more on time saving products like Two Minutes Noodles (Nestle), precooked or
practically cooked food. They do not prepare snacks themselves but buy them from market.
Promotional Campaigns: the purpose of all consumer behaviour studies and so Psychographic
analysis is to promote sales of existing products or develop a new product according to AIO
(activities, interests and opinion) study, if some one wants quality razor blade, soap or cosmetics it
is produced for specific classes and their activities, interests and opinions are used for sales
promotion.
When it has found that some persons like very cool, AC KENSTAR has accordingly made its
ad campaign.
When it was discovered that consumers want the service promised, IODEX made a
campaign for its balm that if there is no relief the price will be refunded moreover it has
changed to colour of the balm form black to green.
When Nestle found out that people opinion in new noodle is not as good as for old formula
it reverted to old formula Maggie.
67
When scientist and doctors found that smoking is injurious to health and may cause cancer
Govt. started campaign against smoking.
There are companies like Bombay Dyeing who announces discount sales every year and
creates interests in them to push sales.
People like low cost car, that motivated Tata motors to rolled out TATA NANO.
Developing new product concepts: Study of existing market segments and analysis of their
needs have typically been used to conceptualize on new product opportunities.
Opinion leadership or word-of-mouth communication is the process by which one person the
Opinion leader informally influences the actions of attitude of others who may be opinion seekers of
merely opinion recipients.
The key characteristics of the influence is that it is interpersonal and informal and takes
place between two more people none of whom represents a commercial selling source that would
represent a common selling source that would gain directly from the sale of something. Word-of-
mouth implies personal or face-to-face communication although it may take place in a telephone
conversation.
One of the parties in a word-of-mouth encounter is the Opinion leader, who offers advice or
information about product or services. An Opinion receiver when another product is bought up as
part of the discussion. And who actively seek information advice about product is called as opinion
seeker. Example of opinion seeker.
During lunch a co-worker mentions the design to purchase a car and the colleague
recommends a particular brand.
A person shows a friend photograph of his recent skiing vacation and friend suggest a
particular film for better pictures.
A women who recently moved information a new how wants more light in her family room
and calls neighbour for the mane of a good electrician
68
Positive & negative product information: Information provided by marketers is invariably
favourable to the product, thus the very fact that opinion leader provides both favourable &
unfavourable information adds to their credibility.
Information and advice: Opinion leaders are the source of both information and advice. They
may simply talk about their experience with a product; relate what they know about a product or
more aggressively, advice others to buy or to avoid a specific product.
Opinion leadership is category specific: This means opinion leaders often “specialize” in
creation product categories about which they offer information and advice. When product
categories are discussed, they are just likely to reverse their roles and become opinion receivers.
Opinion leadership is a two way street: An opinion leader may also be influenced by an opinion
receive as the result of a product related conversation.
Opinion leaders ------------- opinion receivers
The need of opinion receiver: Opinion receivers satisfy a variety of needs by engaging in
product-related conversations.
1. They obtain new-product or new-message information.
2. They reduce perceived risk by receiving first hand information
3. They reduce search time in identification of a newer product or services.
Purchase pals
1. Researchers have explained the influence of purchase pal as information source who
actually accompany consumer on shopping trips.
2. Used 9 % for grocery items, used 25 % for electronic equipment
3. Male purchase pals are used as source of product category expertise, prior information, and
retail store and price information.
4. Female purchase pals are used for moral support and increase confidence in the buyer’s
decision.
Ideas often flow radio and print media to opinion leaders and from them to general public. This is
called two step flow of communication theory. It protects opinion leaders as direct receivers of
information from impress ional mass-media source who in turn transmit this information to the
masses.
Information Receives
70
This model depicts the information of information from mass media as a multi-step flow. The
revisers model takes into account the fact that information and influence of ten are two ways
process in which opinion leaders both influences and are influenced by opinion receivers.
71
The framework for exploring consumer acceptance of new products is drawn from the area
of research known as diffusion of innovation. Diffusion of innovation is concerned with two closely
related processes:
The diffusion process
The adoption process
Diffusion is a macro process concerned with the spread of a new product from its source to
the consuming public. Adoption is a micro process that focuses on the stage through which the
stages through which an individual consumer passes when deciding to accept or rejects a new
product.
The diffusion process deals with how innovations spreads, i.e. how they are assimilated with in a
market. Diffusion is a process by which the acceptance of an innovation (new product, service and
idea) is spread by communication (mass media, sales people) to members of a social system. This
definition includes four base element of different process.
1. The innovation
2. The channel of communication
3. The social system
4. Time
1. The innovation
An innovation is a product, service, idea, process, behaviour, or any other object which is
considered new by consumers. Innovations require acceptance from consumers to be successful,
but they also require them to change their existing behavioural pattern and habits. As there is no
universally accepted definition of innovation, this can be classified as firm, product, market, and
consumer directed definition of innovation.
72
Consumer oriented definition: in this context, a new product is any product that a potential
consumer judges to be new. In other words newness is based on the consumer’s perception of the
product rather than physical features or market realities.
Relative advantage: the degree to which potential customers perceives a new product as superior
for existing substitute is its relative advantage.
Compatibility : the degree to which potential consumer feel a new product is consistent with their
present needs, values and practices is a measure of its compatibility.
Complexity : the degree to which a new product is difficult to understand or use, affects product
acceptance, clearly the easier. It is to understand and use, the more likely is to be accepted. The
issue of complexity is important when attempting to gain market acceptance for high-tech
products. Four type of tech act as barrier.
Fear of technical complexity
Fear of rapid obsolescence
Fear of social rejection
Fear of physical harm.
Triability: the degree to which a new product is capable of being tried on a limited basis. The
greater the opportunity to try a new product, the easier it is for consumer to evaluate if and
ultimately adopt if.
Observability: it is the ease with which a product benefits or attributes can be observed imagined
or described to the potential consumer products. That have high degree of social visibility like
fashion items are more likely diffused than products that are used in private (new development). A
tangible product is promoted more easily than an intangible product (i.e. service)
Resistance to innovation
Low adoption rate, low compatibility, high complexity, low observability, low communicability. The
increase in information and opinions available to the consumer (innovation overlooked) are so
great that serious impair, decision making. As a result the consumer finds it difficult to make
comparisons among the available choices and delay the difference of innovation.
3. Social system
A set of interrelated units that are engaged in joint problem solving to accomplish a common goal.
4. Time
Time is the backbone of the difficult process. It pervades the study of different in 3 integrated ways
The amount of purchase time
The identification of adoption categories
The rate of adoption
Purchase time: Purchase time refers to the amount of time that elapses between consumer’s
initial awareness of a new product and the point at which they purchase or reject it. When the
individual purchase time is short, a marketer can expect that the overall rate of different will be
faster than when individual purchase time is long.
Adoption categories: This concept involves a classification schemes that indicates where a
consumer, stands in relation to other consumer in terms of time when consumer adopts a new
product. Five type of adoption categories are there, innovator, early adopter, early majority, late
majority, laggards.
The adoption categories are generally depicted as taking characteristics of a normal distribution
that describe the total population that ultimately adopt a product.
Rogers identifies several additional characteristics dominant in the innovator type: (1)
venturesome, desire for the rash, the daring, and the risky, (2) control of substantial financial
resources to absorb possible loss from an unprofitable innovation. (3) The ability to understand and
apply complex technical knowledge, and (4) the ability to cope with a high degree of uncertainty
about an innovation.
Characteristics Rogers identified in the Early Adopters: (1) integrated part of the local social
system, (2) greatest degree of opinion leadership in most systems, (3) serve as role model for
other members or society, (4) respected by peers, and (5) successful.
74
Characteristics Rogers identified in the Early Majority: (1) interact frequently with peers, (2)
seldom hold positions of opinion leadership, (3) one-third of the members of a system, making the
early majority the largest category. (4) Deliberate before adopting a new idea.
Characteristics Rogers identified in the Late Majority: (1) one-third of the members of a system,
(2) pressure from peers, (3) economic necessity, (4) skeptical, and (5) cautious.
Characteristics Rogers identified in the Laggards: (1) possess no opinion leadership, (2) isolates,
(3) point of reference in the past, (4) suspicious of innovations, (5) innovation-decision process is
lengthy, and (6) resources are limited.
The
bell shaped curve frequently illustrates the rate of adoption of a new product. Cumulative
adoptions are reflected by the S-shaped curve. The saturation point is the maximum proportion of
consumers likely to adopt a product.
In the case of refrigerators in the U.S., the saturation level is nearly one hundred percent of
households; it well below that for video games that, even when spread out to a large part of the
population will be of interest to far from everyone.
Rate of adoption: The rate of adoption is concerned with how long it takes a new product or
services to be adopted by members of a social system, i.e. how quickly it takes a new product to
be accepted by those who will ultimately adopt it.
In his book Diffusion of Innovations, Rogers defines the diffusion process as one "which is
the spread of a new idea from its source of invention or creation to its ultimate users or adopters".
Rogers differentiates the adoption process from the diffusion process in that the diffusion process
75
occurs within society, as a group process; whereas, the adoption process is pertains to an
individual. Rogers defines "the adoption process as the mental process through which an individual
passes from first hearing about an innovation to final adoption".
Adoption or Rejection
Preexisting
Awareness Interest Evaluation Trial Adopt Postadaption
problem or
or
need
Postpurchase
Evaluation
Evaluation
Discontinuation
Discontinuation or
Rejection
Rejection
Why is the Adoption Process of any relevance to advertisers? The purpose of marketing and
advertising is to increase sells, which hopefully results in increased profits. It is through analyzing
and understanding the adoption process that social scientists, marketers and advertisers are able
to develop a fully integrated marketing and communication plan focused at a predetermined stage
of the adoption process.
Rejection and Discontinuance Of course, as Rogers points out, an innovation may be rejected
during any stage of the adoption process. Rogers defines rejection as a decision not to adopt an
innovation. Rejection is not to be confused from discontinuance. Discontinuance is a rejection that
occurs after adoption of the innovation.
Consumer innovators are identified on the basis of time elapsed after the launch or as a
specific percentage of people out of total purchasers who buy early. Consumer innovators are
venturesome, young, highly educated, high status and income individuals, who have an interest in
76
new products and seek variety in life. They have low risk perception and have a positive attitude
towards change. They are very sociable and in the role of opinion leaders and market mavens, they
can be quite influential Consumer innovation can be defined as the relatively small group of
consumers who are the earliest purchasers of a new product.
Comparative profile of a consumer innovator and non innovator or later adopter
IV. Consumer Behaviour Applications for Profit and Not - For - Profit organization
(Study Material)
77
78