Chapter 4 The Consumer Audience

Learning Objectives Understand the importance of learning about consumer behavior. Learn about various sources of influences on consumers. Learn about how to manage involvement through advertising.

What is Consumer Behavior? Consumer Behavior is defined as “the process involved when individuals or groups select, purchase, use, or dispose of products, services, ideas, or experiences to satisfy needs and desires.” 1

Hierarchy of Needs Need Product Promotional appeal Self-actualization Golf Clubs “Time is to enjoy” Esteem Luxury car “Be in control of the Road” Social Pendant “Show her your care” Safety Tires “Bounces off hazards” Physiological Breakfast cereal “The natural energy source”

Target Market Group of People (Segment) Who Are Most Likely to Respond Favorably to What a Marketer Has to Offer & to Provide the Highest Level of Profitability. Target Market Organizations Design Specific Marketing Strategies to Reach Markets’ Needs Effectively Ad Team Tries to Understand How & Why Consumers Think, Feel, and Behave

EXH 6-12

The Consumer Decision Process of the Target Market (Fig. 4.1)

Characteristics of Culture Boundaries for Behavior are Norms Culture is Defined as Shared Meanings that Together Define a Group of People or a Way of Life. Source of Norms are Values Customs are Culturally Acceptable Ways of Behaving in Situations Divide Into Subcultures Based on Geographic Regions or Characteristics

Core Values Values Are Hard To Change, Are Internal, and Sense of Belonging Self-Respect Values Are Hard To Change, Are Internal, and Guide Behavior Security Excitement Sense of Accomplishment Fun & Enjoyment Warm Relationships Respect From Others Self-Fulfillment

Social Class Income Wealth Education Occupation Family Prestige Value of Home Neighborhood Marketers Assume That People in One Class Buy Different Goods From Different Outlets and For Different Reasons Than People in Other Classes. It is Determined By:

Reference Groups and Family Provide Information Serve as Means of Comparison Offer Guidance Reference Groups - Collection of People That You Use as a Guide for Behavior in Specific Situations.

Psychological Influences on Consumers: Perception Perception is the process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting information from the environment so that it has meaning for us. Selective exposure refers to how we seek out information that interests us or is related to our needs, and we ignore unrelated stimuli. Selective perception refers to how incoming information is modified or matched to the knowledge, experiences, and expectations we already have. Cognitive dissonance involves justifying the feelings of dissonance or doubt that can occur in a purchase decision.

Psychological Influences on Consumers: Learning Perception Leads to Learning; Learning Often Leads to Changes in Purchasing or Behavior. Cognitive School Mental Processes Connectionist School Behavioral Conditioning

Psychographics Activities Personality Traits Interests Refers to all the Psychological Variables That Combine to Shape Our Inner Selves Attitudes Hobbies Values Opinions Needs

The VALS 2 System

Station Break Go to the SRI International Web site at www.future.sri.com and participate in an actual VALS lifestyle survey. Next, discuss the characteristics of the online shopper or e-buyer. How is this group different from the eight groups described in Figure 4.5? What are your thoughts on how to construct a VALS scheme that would aid advertisers that are seeking to advertise internationally? Notice how SRI has approached this problem.

Low- and High-Involvement Decision Process High-Involvement Decisions Spending a Great Deal of Effort on Expensive, Personal, Emotion-Laden Products i.e. Cars Low- and High-Involvement Decision Process Low-Involvement Decisions Acquiring Products Purchased Regularly i.e. Milk Amount of Involvement

Steps in the Decision Process (Fig. 4.6)

The ELM (Elaboration Likelihood Model): Involvement ( determined by motivation, ability, and opportunity) determines which route to take Central route (high involvement) vs. Peripheral route (low involvement) Different types of attitude changes: Argument based v ad-execution based Enduring, resistant to change v. temporal change ==>Implications for advertising practitioners: How to manage involvement

Enhancing Consumers’ Involvement Enhance Consumers’ MOTIVATION to A. Attend to the message by… Appealing to hedonic needs (Appetite appeals, sex appeals) Using novel stimuli (unusual pictures, different ad formats, large number of scenes) Using intense or prominent cues (action, loud music, colorful ads, celebrities, large pictures) Heightening ad complexity (complex pictures; edits and cuts)

Enhancing Consumers’ Involvement B. Process brand information by.. Increasing relevance of brand to self (asking rhetorical questions, using fear appeals, using dramatic presentations) Increasing curiosity about the brand (opening with suspense or surprise, using humor, presenting little information in the message)

Enhancing Consumers’ Involvement Enhance Consumers’ OPPORTUNITY to… Encode information by… Repeating brand information Repeating key scenes Repeating the ad on multiple occasions Reduce processing time by… Creating gestalt processing (using pictures and imagery

Enhancing Consumers’ Involvement Enhance Consumers’ ABILITY to.. Access knowledge structures by… Providing a context (employing verbal framing) Create knowledge structures by… Facilitating exemplar-based learning (using concretizations, demonstrations, and analogies)

Factors that Influence Consumers’ Involvement with Products and Brands Lower involvement Higher involvement Symbolic meanings regarding self: Few self-meanings (Pretzels) Social visibility of product: Not socially visible (Toothpaste) Time commitment to the purchase: Very short (Soft drink) Price: Low Price (Chewing gum) Potential harm to self and others: Small potential for harm (Ink pen) Potential for poor performance: Small potential for poor performance (Note pad) Many self-meanings (Clothing) High social visibility (Personal cassette player) Very long (Hot water heater) High price (Caviar) Larger potential for harm (Climbing equipment) Large potential for poor performance (Aerobic shoes)

Review Understand the importance of learning about consumer behavior. Learn about various sources of influences on consumers. Learn about how to manage involvement through advertising.