Chapter 10

Groups

CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR, 9e
Michael R. Solomon

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-1

Chapter Objectives
When you finish this chapter, you should
understand why:

Others, especially those who possess some

kind of social power, often influence us.

We seek out others who share our interests

in products or services.

We are motivated to buy or use products in

order to be consistent with what other people

do.

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-2

Chapter Objectives (continued)

Certain people are particularly likely to

influence others product choices.

The things that other consumers tell us about

products (good and bad) are often more
influential than the advertising we see.

Online technologies are accelerating the

impact of word-of-mouth communication.

Social networking is changing the way

companies and consumers interact.
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-3

Reference Groups

Reference group: an actual or imaginary

individual/group conceived of having
significant relevance upon an individuals
evaluations, aspirations, or behavior

Influences consumers in three ways:

Informational
Utilitarian
Value-expressive
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-4

When Reference Groups Are Important

Social power: capacity to alter the actions of

others
Referent power

Information power

Legitimate power

Expert power

Reward power

Coercive power

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-5

Discussion
High schools have all types of reference
groups, with members representing all types of
social power. Think back and try to identify
people who had the following types of power.

Referent power
Information power
Legitimate power
Expert power
Reward power
Coercive power
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-6

Types of Reference Groups

Any external influence that provides social
clues can be a reference group

Cultural figure
Parents
Large, formal organization
Small and informal groups
Exert a more powerful influence on

individual consumers
A part of our day-to-day lives: normative
influence

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-7

Brand Communities and Consumer Tribes

A group of consumers who

share a set of social
relationships based upon
usage or interest in a product

Consumer tribes share

emotions, moral beliefs,
styles of life, and affiliated
product

Brandfests celebrated by
community
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-8

Membership versus
Aspirational Reference Groups

Membership reference groups

People the consumer actually knows
Advertisers use ordinary people
Aspirational reference groups
People the consumer doesnt know but

admire
Advertisers use celebrity spokespeople

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-9

Factors Predicting
Reference Group Membership
Propinquity

Mere exposure

Group cohesiveness

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-10

Positive versus
Negative Reference Groups

Avoidance groups: motivation to distance

oneself from other people/groups

Antibrand communities: coalesce around a

celebrity, store, or brandbut in this case
theyre united by their disdain for it

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-11

Consumers Do It in Groups

Deindividuation: individual identities become

submerged within a group

Social loafing: people dont devote as much

to a task when their contribution is part of a
larger group

Risky shift: group members show a greater

willingness to consider riskier alternatives
following group discussion than if members
made their own decisions
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-12

Discussion
Home shopping partiessuch as Tupperware, Avon,
Pampered Chef, Amway, or Botoxare designed to
put pressure on friends and neighbors to buy
merchandise.

Have you attended these parties? Why or why not?

Do you believe putting social pressure is ethical?
Why or why not?

Why are these parties more common among

women?

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-13

Factors Influencing Conformity

Cultural pressures
Fear of deviance
Commitment
Group characteristics
unanimity
size
expertise

Susceptibility to

interpersonal influence

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-14

Opinion Leadership

Opinion leaders influence

others attitudes and
behaviors
Experts
Unbiased evaluation
Socially active
Similar to the consumer
Among the first to buy

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-15

Opinion Leaders

Is there a generalized opinion leader whose

recommendations we seek for all types of
purchases?

Experts may be monomorphic or

polymorphic

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-16

Figure 10.1 Old and New Social Networks

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-17

The Market Maven

Market maven: actively
involved in transmitting
marketplace information of
all types

Just into shopping and

aware of whats happening
in the marketplace

Overall knowledge of how

and where to get products
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-18

The Surrogate Consumer

Surrogate consumer: a marketing

intermediary hired to provide input into
purchase decisions
Interior decorators, stockbrokers,
professional shoppers, college
consultants
Consumer relinquishes control over
decision-making functions

Marketers should not overlook influence of

surrogates!
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-19

How Do We Find Opinion Leaders?

The self-designating method

Simply ask individuals whether they

consider themselves to be opinion leaders

Easy to apply to large group of potential
opinion leaders
Inflation or unawareness of own
importance/influence

Key informant method

Key informants identify opinion leaders
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-20

Sociometric Methods

Sociometric methods: trace communication

patterns among group members

Systematic map of group interactions

Most precise method of identifying productinformation sources, but is very
difficult/expensive to implement

Network analysis
Referral behavior/network, tie strength
Bridging function, strength of weak ties
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-21

Word-of-Mouth Communication
WOM is product information transmitted by
individuals to individuals

More reliable form of marketing

Social pressure to conform
Influences two-thirds of all sales
We rely upon WOM in later stages of
product adoption

Powerful when we are unfamiliar with

product category
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-22

BzzAgent

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-23

Negative WOM and Power of Rumors

We weigh negative WOM more heavily than we do
positive comments!
Negative WOM is easy to spread, especially online
Determined detractors
Information/rumor distortion

There are 3 themes to complaint Web sites

Injustice
Identity
Agency

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-24

Figure 10.3
The Transmission of Misinformation

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-25

Cutting-Edge WOM Influences

Social Networking
Crowd Power
Guerilla Marketing
Viral Marketing
08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-26

Virtual Worlds: The Next Digital Frontier

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-27

Chapter Summary
People with social power influence our behavior as
consumers.

We are motivated to buy things that are consistent

with those in our reference groups.

WOM communication about products, especially

from opinion leaders, may be more influential than
information from marketers.

Web 2.0 accelerates the speed of delivery and the

power of WOM communication.

08/26/15
Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

10-28