1. Personality and Consumer Behavior
CHAPTER
FIVE
Personality and Consumer Behavior

2. Outline Theoretical foundations of Personality
Application in Marketing and its implications
Innovativeness
Materialism
Compulsive
Ethnocentrism
Application paper: Brand Personality
2 classes:
Theoretical foundations of personality + some applications
Applications + brand personality paper with some exericese

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Learning Objectives
To Understand How Personality Reflects Consumers’ Inner Differences.
To Understand How Freudian, Neo-Freudian, and Trait Theories Each Explain the Influence of Personality on Consumers’ Attitudes and Behavior.
To Understand How Personality Reflects Consumers’ Responses to Product and Marketing Messages.
Here is an outline of the topics for Chapter Five.
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Chapter Five Slide

4. Learning Objectives (continued)
To Understand How Marketers Seek to Create Brand Personalities-Like Traits.
To Understand How the Products and Services That Consumers Use Enhance Their Self-Images.
To Understand How Consumers Can Create Online Identities Reflecting a Particular Set of Personality Traits.
Here is an outline of the topics for Chapter Five.
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Chapter Five Slide

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What Is the Personality Trait Characterizing the Consumers to Whom This Ad Appeals?
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6. Enthusiastic or Extremely Involved Collectors
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7. What is Personality?
The inner psychological characteristics that both determine and reflect how a person responds to his or her environment
Some have emphasized the dual influence of heredity and early childhood experiences on personality development; others have stressed broader social and environmental influences and the fact that personalities develop continuously over time.

8. The Nature of Personality
Personality reflects individual differences
Personality is consistent and enduring
Personality can change
The study of personality has been approached in many different ways. Heredity, early childhood experiences, and other social influences have a strong effect on who you become. The definition given here is on inner characteristics which distinguish one individual from others. The web link on this page brings you to one of the thousands of personality tests you can find online.
There are some interesting findings regarding the nature of personality. First of all, personality reflects individual differences. Because no two people are exactly the same, marketers can look for certain similar personality traits in different consumers. These consumers can then be grouped together based on this identified personality train. Personality is consistent and enduring. This helps marketers predict consumer behavior over time in terms of personality. Finally, personality can change due to major life events, such as marriage. You may notice personally that your personality has changed somewhat as you have grown – certainly your personality now is somewhat different then from when you were 7 years old.
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Chapter Five Slide

9. Theories of Personality
Freudian theory
Unconscious needs or drives are at the heart of human motivation
Neo-Freudian personality theory
Social relationships are fundamental to the formation and development of personality
Trait theory
Quantitative approach to personality as a set of psychological traits
These are the three major theories of personalities. There are many more but these three have been chosen because they are important to the relationship between personality and consumer behavior. Each will be discussed in detail on the next couple of slides.
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Freudian Theory Id
Warehouse of primitive or instinctual needs for which individual seeks immediate satisfaction
Superego
Individual’s internal expression of society’s moral and ethical codes of conduct
Ego
Individual’s conscious control that balances the demands of the id and superego
Sigmund Freud was one of the most important and influential psychiatrists of all time. There are many web sited devoted to him and his theories. The web link on this page will take you to one such site.
Freudian theory itself is based on the existence of unconscious needs or drives as the heart of human motivation and personality. According to Freud, human personality consists of these three systems, the id, super ego and the ego. The Id is the “warehouse” of primitive drives, basic physiological needs such as hunger, thirst, and sex. The superego drives the individual to fulfill their needs in a socially acceptable function. Finally, the ego is the internal monitor that balances the needs of the id and the superego.
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Chapter Five Slide

11. Freudian Theory and “Product Personality”
Snack Foods
Personality Traits
Potato chips
Ambitious, successful, high achiever, impatient with less than the best.
Tortilla chips
Perfectionist, high expectations, punctual, conservative, responsible.
Pretzels
Lively, easily bored with same old routine, flirtatious, intuitive, may over commit to projects.
Snack crackers
Rational, logical, contemplative, shy, prefers time alone.
Cheese curls
Conscientious, principled, proper, fair, may appear rigid but has great integrity, plans ahead, loves order.
Ownership as extension of consumers’ personality.
Can certain foods be a reflection of your personality? This table shows the results of a study of 19,000 consumers which examined the link between snack food perceptions and personality types. The table shows, for example, that nuts are associated with a personality that is take charge, pitches in often, modest, self-confident but not a show-off.
Chapter Five Slide
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12. Neo-Freudian Personality Theory
Believe that social relationships are fundamental to the formation and development of personality.
Karen Horney’s three personality groups (CAD)
Compliant: move toward others
Aggressive: move against others
Detached: move away from others
As opposed to Freud’s theories which were based heavily on development, Neo-Freudian’s are concerned with social relationships. These relationships are formed to reduce feelings of inferiority or tension. Furthermore, people can be classified as to how they interact with others – are they compliant, aggressive, or detached. A compliant individual desires attention, an aggressive desires admirations, and a detached person desires independence and freedom from obligation. What is particularly interesting is how research has shown that these different personality groups differ in their brand usage.
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Why Is Appealing to an Aggressive Consumer a Logical Position for This Product?
Because its consumer seeks to excel and achieve recognition.
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Trait Theory
Focus on measurement of personality in terms of traits
Trait - any distinguishing, relatively enduring way in which one individual differs from another
Personality is linked to broad product categories and NOT specific brands
Unlike Freudian and Neo-Freudian theories, trait theory is less qualitative and more focused on measurement of personality. Tests can be done to measure single traits in consumers such as how receptive they are to new experiences (innovativeness), their attachment to worldly possessions (materialism), and their likelihood to accept or reject foreign-made products (ethnocentrism).
Trait researchers have found that it is generally more realistic to expect personality to be linked to how consumers make their choices and to the purchase or consumption of a brand product category rather than a specific brand.
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15. Soup and Soup Lover’s Traits Table 5.2 (excerpt)
Chicken Noodle Soup Lovers
Watch a lot of TV
Are family oriented
Have a great sense of humor
Are outgoing and loyal
Like daytime talk shows
Most likely to go to church
Tomato Soup Lovers
Passionate about reading
Love pets
Like meeting people for coffee
Aren’t usually the life of the party
Vegetable/Minestrone Soup Lovers
Enjoy the outdoors
Usually game for trying new things
Spend more money than any other group dining in fancy restaurants
Likely to be physically fit
Gardening is often a favorite hobby
Researchers have found that traits are more tied to general product categories then specific brands. For instance, in this chart we see the type of soup a consumer prefers but not necessarily the brands they would purchase.
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Chapter Five Slide

16. Personality and Understanding Consumer Behavior
Consumer innovativeness
Dogmatism
Social character
Need for uniqueness
Optimum stimulation level
Sensation seeking
Variety-novelty seeking
Marketers are very interested in the link between personality and consumer behavior. These are seven topics which are examined on the following slides.
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17. How Does This Ad Target the Inner-Directed Outdoors Person?
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18. Dimensions of Brand Personality (Jennifer Aaker, 1997)
Defined as “set of humann characteristics associated with a brand”
Serves symbolic or self-expressive funtion

19. Study Description
Objective: to develop a framework of brand personality dimensions.
631 subjects rated a subset of 37 brands on 114 personality traits.
Generalize five dimensions of brand personality

20. Confirmatory Sample of Brands
Marriot hotels
Macy’s stores
The Wallstreet Journal newspapers
Marlboro cigarettes
Maytag applainces
Holiday Inn hotels
Sear Stores
USA Today newsapers

21. Measurement Construct of B.P

22. Generalized Dimensions of B.P
Brand Personality
Sincerity (Hallmark cards)
Excitement (MTV Chanel)
Competence (The Wall Street Journal newspaper)
Sophistication (Guess jeans)
Ruggedness (Nike tennis shoes)

23. A Sole Person is Experiencing the Joys and Adventure of the Wilderness
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24. Applications in Marketing

25. Consumer Innovativeness
Willingness to innovate
Further broken down for hi-tech products
Global innovativeness
Domain-specific innovativeness
Innovative behavior
Consumer innovators are the group of consumers that are very open to new ideas and are usually the first to purchase products. Innovativeness is the underlying trait that describes a consumer’s willingness to try new products. Companies have found this very important when introducing brand extensions because it is a key factor in the consumer’s likelihood to try the new product. For hi-tech products, we see that innovativeness can be explained at three levels. The first, global innovativeness, is the overall innovative level of the consumer. Drilling down further, domain-specific innovativeness has to do with the particular product category, and finally, the innovative behavior is the actual purchase of the new product.
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Chapter Five Slide

26. Consumer Innovativeness Scale Table 5.3 (excerpt)
A “GENERAL” CONSUMER INNOVATIVENESS SCALE
1. I would rather stick to a brand I usually buy than try something I am not very sure of.
When I go to a restaurant, I feel it is safer to order dishes I am familiar with.
If I like a brand, I rarely switch from it just to try something different.
I enjoy taking chances in buying unfamiliar brands just to get some variety in my purchase.
When I see a new brand on the shelf, I am not afraid of giving it a try.
This is an example of a consumer innovation measurement scale that would be used by a researcher. There are many scales that are used to try to understand the consumer’s general or global level of innovativeness. On this scale, the respondent was asked to answer the questions on a scale as to how much they AGREE or DISAGREE with the statement.
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27. Consumer Innovativeness Scales Table 5.3 (excerpt)
A DOMAIN-SPECIFIC CONSUMER INNOVATIVENESS SCALE
1. Compared to my friends, I own few rock albums.
In general, I am the last in my circle of friends to know the titles of the latest rock albums.
In general, I am among the first in my circle of friends to buy a new rock album when it appears.
If I heard that a new rock album was available in the store, I would be interested enough to buy it.
I will buy a new rock album, even if I haven’t heard it yet.
I know the names of new rock acts before other people do.
This is an example of a consumer innovation measurement scale that would be used by a researcher. There are many scales that are used to try to understand the consumer’s general or global level of innovativeness. On this scale, the respondent was asked to answer the questions on a scale as to how much they AGREE or DISAGREE with the statement.
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Chapter Five Slide

28. Cognitive Personality Factors
Need for cognition (NFC)
A person’s craving for enjoyment of thinking
Individual with high NFC more likely to respond to ads rich in product information .
Researchers are aware that cognitive personality factors influence consumer behavior. In fact, it has been realized that the level of a consumer’s need for cognition affects how they are likely to respond to certain types of advertisements. Those that are high in need for cognition tend to respond to ads that supply product information as opposed to those who are low in need for cognition who tend to be attracted to the background of the ad, attractive models, and cartoon characters.
Find the original items of NFC
Several applications:
Cartoon message vs. written message: as expected, for those low in NFC, the cartoon message was more effective in changing attitudes and subjective norms, whereas the written message was more effective for those high in NFC.
See that green handbook for more application examples.
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29. Simplified NFC Scale I don’t like to do a lot of thinking
I try to avoid situations that require thinking in depth about something
I prefer to do something that challenges my thinking abilities rather than something that requires little thought.
I prefer complex to simple problem
Thinking hard and for a long time about something gives me little satisfaction

30. Applications of NFC
People who are low in NFC mare more likely to be attracted to the peripheral aspects of an advertisement (link to ELM)
Preference of Cartoon message/written message
Fill out online distractions

31. Consumer Materialism
They especially value acquiring and showing off possessions
They are particularly self-centered and selfish
They seek lifestyles full of possessions
Their many possessions do not give them greater personal satisfaction

32. Table 5.5 Sample Items from a Materialism Scale
Success
I admire people who own expensive homes, cars, and clothes.
I like to own things that impress people.
I don’t place much emphasis on the amount of material objects people own as a sign of success.
Centrality
I usually buy only the things I need
I try to keep my life simple, as far as possessions are concerned.
I like a lot of luxury in my life.
Happiness
I have all the things I really need to enjoy life.
My life would be better if I owned certain things I don’t have
It sometimes bothers me quite a bit that I can’t afford to buy all the things I’d like.
Page 132. Marsha L. Richins (2004), “The material values scale: measurement properties and development of a short form”, JCR, 31, 217

33. Implications of Consumer Materialism
Increasing emphasis on materialism in the print media
Related to compulsive shopping behavior

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Compulsive Behavior
Compulsive consumption behavior
“Addicted” or “out-of-control” consumers
17 million U.S consumers suffer from shopping addiction (shop till you drop)
Majority are female
Compulsive consumption behavior begins to enter the area of abnormal behavior. These individuals are somewhat out of control with their purchasing and suffer from a shopping addiction called oniomania.
See some references on page 134 (Faber and O’Guinn, JCR, 1992) for:
Definition of compulsive behavior
Consequences and marketing implications?
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Chapter Five Slide

35. PAGE 134. Figure 5.8

36. Consumer Ethnocentrism
CETSCALE
To identify consumers with a predisposition to accept (or reject) foreign-made products, and has been shown to be a reliable measure in both the U.S and other nations.
Consumer ethnocentrism has been found to differ from country to country and to change over time. Certain events in the U.S., including the terrorist attacks on 9/11, will change the ethnocentrism in the country. For some products, the country-of-origin can be very important when marketing the product, but in other situations it must be downplayed. In general, if the image of the country is positive, for example a French wine, it would be advantageous for the marketer to emphasize where the product was made.
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37. CETSCALE

38. Consumer Ethnocentrism
Vary by country and product
Products display different level of culture uniqueness
Country effect
Managing possible negative effects
Mexican consumers, for example, are more ethnocentric than their French and American counterparts; and Malaysian consumers, while preferring to purchase slacks, shirts and undergarments that are locally manufactured, want to buy imported sungalsses and watches. Other evidence suggests that some older American consumers, in remembrance of World War II, still refuse to purchase German/Jap made products, whereas some German and Jap consumers may feel similar about Amercan-made products.

39. Page 137, figure 5.9

40. Case two discussion page 152.

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Brand Personality
Personality-like traits associated with brands
Examples
Purdue and freshness
Nike and athlete
BMW is performance driven
Brand personality which is strong and favorable will strengthen a brand but not necessarily demand a price premium
Brand personality can be tied to many a successful brand. If the personality is favorable and strong, it will strengthen the brand and lead to a more favorable attitude, brand preference, higher purchase intention, and brand loyalty. In addition, in commodity category, detergent for example, it can help differentiate a brand (it’s the one with the Snuggly Teddy Bear).
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42. A Brand Personality Framework Figure 5.12
This is a brand personality framework that shows the five dimensions of a brands personality. Consider one of your favorite brands – how does it map out on this framework?
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43. Brand Personification
Recast consumers’ perception of the attributes of a products or service into a human-like character.
Consumes express their inner feelings about products or brands in terms of their association with known personalities.

44. What image does VS express in this ad?
Hello I’ve been around the block a few million times. And I’ve noticed something along the way. The people want to find true love. And they want their true love to be totally hot. The people want to lose a few extra pounds. And they want an extra scoop of ice cream. The people want to do something about global warming. And they also want to get a nice tan. ….
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45. Speaks English, is “interviewed” about VW products, and is a friend
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46. Colors in marketing
Marketers carefully select color in corporate campaign, logo design and etc. Colors serve as symbols and carry different meanings in different cultures.
Pick up your favorite color, and explain what the color stand for.

48. Fragrance commercial: high purchase intention

49. Fragrance commercial: with low purchase intention

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Discussion Questions
Pick three of your favorite food brands.
Describe their personality. Do they have a gender? What personality traits do they have?
You might find yourself choosing the Keebler Elves' cookies because the elves are cute and friendly. Perhaps you choose Gatorade because it is all about extreme physical performance. Perhaps you choose a gum because it is funny that it lasts so long (Stride).
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Chapter Five Slide