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Consumer Behaviour and Its Relationship to Marketing - Essay Example

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The paper "Consumer Behaviour and Its Relationship to Marketing" supports the concepts that marketing, motivation, and consumer behavior are tied. Consumer behavior is driven by intrinsic and externally-driven motives which seem to suggest that companies can be successful in the marketing process…
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Consumer Behaviour and Its Relationship to Marketing
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Analysing consumer behaviour and its relationship to marketing BY YOU YOUR SCHOOL INFO HERE HERE TABLE OF CONTENTS 0 Introduction 2.0 Literature review 2.1 What is marketing? 2.2 What is motivation? 2.3 Consumer behaviour 2.4 Linking marketing, motivation and consumer behaviour 2.5 Literature review summary 3.0 Reflective accounts 4.0 Discussion / Analysis 5.0 Conclusion References 1.0 Introduction Consumer behaviour is a complex matter for investigation, dealing with multi-faceted inherent characteristics of buyer segments and external influences that will predict consumption actions. However, understanding consumer behaviour is a primary requirement for successful marketing. Theory would seem to dictate that knowledge of consumer behaviour and their motivations will dictate whether one marketing strategy is successful over another, through incorporation of consumer behaviour and motivation as considerations of marketing activities. This report defines what constitutes marketing, explores the dynamics of consumer motivation, and then links these conceptions with consumer behaviour, using relevant examples, to understand how marketers respond to consumer behaviours and serve to influence them. Personal self-reflections by the researcher involving two consumption scenarios, with focus on the Tu clothing line by Sainsbury’s and the smartphone company, Blackberry, are explored in order to justify or refute theories of motivation, consumer behaviour and marketing that are investigated in the report’s review of literature. The explorations of theory versus real-world experiences in consumer behaviour and marketing underpin a relevant discussion about the relevancy of various motivational and behavioural models. By evaluating theory and then applying it to real-life consumption decisions, it provides a framework by which to critique various theoretical models or provide ample support for their viability and relevancy in what drives consumption decision-making. Exploration of secondary research underpins the investigation of primary research reflection and establishes a conceptual framework of best practice for today’s marketers that are marketing products to consumers fitting my personal target market profile. 2.0 Literature Review 2.1 What is marketing? Marketing is a set of activities within an organisation that attempt to communicate a product or service’s value to potential or existing customers, with the intention of ensuring sales of these goods or services. Marketing is a series of different processes which assist in satisfying the needs of important target customers that effective describe the benefits that customers will receive by selecting one company’s products over a competitor (Kotler and Keller 2009). There are many techniques involved in an organisation’s marketing process, including selection of desirable target markets through segmentation and analyses of consumers and other market conditions. A firm must understand consumer behaviour patterns and motivations that will assist in communicating product or service benefit, creating a linkage between the socio-psychological characteristics of consumers and economic relationships that will likely dictate a response toward these marketing communications. Marketing is a holistic set of activities that are directly related to commercial exchanges that is inclusive of price considerations of products, branding, advertising and distribution that will all effectively achieve revenue growth, satisfy customers and build a positive product reputation (McCall 2003). To be an effective marketer, an organisation must invest appropriate financial capital and labour to determine how a firm should structure its internal operations and allocate resources in the pursuit of capturing the attention, interest and loyalty of target consumers. The goal of a marketer is to improve competitive brand reputation that assists consumers in making perceptive connections between brand and product, which is accomplished by linking internal operational strategies with known (or perceived) consumer needs so as to provide a more valuable product to consumers. Aspects of the organisation’s value chain, such as service, assist in building relationships between brand and consumer, representing an effort at marketing a product or service effectively. A successful marketer ensures complete optimisation of resources to give a firm competitive advantage (Baker 2008), whilst focusing on direct or emotional relationship development which links brand values and tangible product attributes to known market characteristics gleaned through market research and analysis (Abimbola 2001). Marketing is both an analytic methodology and a corporate strategy that directly contributes to achieving an organisation’s objectives and goals as it pertains to important customer constituents. 2.2 What is motivation? Motivation is the processes of consumers that dictate why they behave in a certain fashion (Steel and Konig 2006). Using a rather simplistic definition, motivation begins when a particular need has been aroused and an individual seeks to satisfy it (Solomon, et al.). For example, when a consumer realises they are hungry, feeling hunger becomes a motivation which underpins the process of seeking and eating food to satisfy this need. Motivations can be complex or rather unsophisticated, however once a need or desire has been aroused, it is the inherent tendency of humans to seek satisfaction of this need using various strategies and behaviours. One of the most respected models of motivation has been offered by Abraham Maslow, a renowned psychologist and social researcher. Maslow presented his Hierarchy of Needs model, a five tier, structured model of human motivation that encompasses the primary needs of individuals in a society (Weiten and Lloyd 2010). On this pyramidal model, the most foundational motivation consists of physiological needs (i.e. food and shelter). Once fulfilled, a consumer demands personal security, such as safety or even job longevity. When personal security is satisfied, a consumer then seeks social belonging and, when satisfied, can develop self-esteem. It is through self-esteem development that a consumer becomes fully self-actualised, which is the achievement of the pinnacle of their talents and ambitions (Mittelman 1991). Hence, depending on what specific tier that a consumer is currently positioned might be influential in how they select, purchase, use and dispose of various products. For instance, if the consumers’ needs for security are not met, it is unlikely that their primary concern will be on social belonging when they do not feel safe, comforted or protected. Hence, in a hypothetical situation, a consumer with security fears might be more concerned about product safety from a tangible perspective than on the benefits a brand might provide for social inclusion that underpins their ultimate decision to make a purchase. Consumers can also be intrinsically or extrinsically motivated, which means being stimulated by inherent motivations or those generated or stimulated by the external environment; respectively. Intrinsic motivations are when certain behaviours are generated or an activity performed for the enjoyment or satisfaction achieved through the activity. They are desires that are internalised, such as achieving power or personal success (Gkorezis and Panagiotis 2008). Extrinsic motivations involved a desire to participate in an activity “as a means to an end, and not for its own sake” (Vallerand and Rousseau 2001, p.391). In many instances, social influences, such as a need for self-esteem development or social belonging can serve as extrinsic motivations that will determine a consumers’ behaviour (King 2009). 2.3 Consumer behaviour Consumer behaviour involves study and investigation of consumers and the methodologies by which they select, purchase, utilise and dispose of various services and products with relationship to individual consumer needs (Solomon, et al. 2010). It is a domain of knowledge which consists of an amalgamation of elements from social sciences, psychology, economics and marketing that assists an organisation is gaining fundamental knowledge of what influences the decision-making processes of customers as it pertains to buyer intentions and behaviours (Schiffman 1993). In contemporary marketing studies, consumer behaviour can be swayed by a plethora of different stimuli, including a firm’s emphasis on the marketing mix, cultural influences (Solomon 2011), attitudes, individual motivations, lifestyle, previous consumption experiences, social and economic factors (to name only a few). Consumer behaviour is very difficult to predict and quantify due to the complexity of influences that will ultimately determine whether a consumer accepts or rejects a product or brand (Armstrong 1991). In order for a company to successfully market, the behaviours of consumers are critical to how a company approaches communications, brand management, relationship development and management, as well as considering the tangible features and benefits of a product. Therefore, consumer behaviour is directly related to the study of internal organisational practices that will underpin either successful consumer acceptance of a product or service or their rejection of it; respectively. The most respected model of consumer behaviour involves the decision-making process. This model suggests that consumers first identify a problem or need, seek information, evaluate alternatives associated with this information-seeking process and ultimately make a product choice perceived as relevant for satisfying the identified problem (Solomon 2011). One factor associated with how a consumer makes a final selection is the perception of risk, as some decisions are high involvement or low involvement. Risks can include perceptions of financial risk, physical risk, functional risk, psychological or social risks (Solomon). For example, purchase of a new stereo system would be considered a higher-involvement purchase and the consumer might perceive that purchase could cause financial problems. Hence, this would extend the process of information seeking to locate various affordable options and this risk may well underpin a final decision not to make a purchase. Hence, marketers must be considerate of how risk plays into the decision-making process (such as considering placing affordable prices on its products) in order to coerce a consumer to buy the brand. 2.4 Linking marketing, motivation and consumer behaviour The specific factors that underpin motivation can be linked to consumer behaviour attributes which, in turn, determines the marketing approach of an organisation. For example, a consumer identifies a motivation for enhancing personal recreation and is therefore motivated to seek purchase of sporting equipment. This intrinsic motivation causes a consumer to seek information about the appropriate sporting goods that will satisfy this need for enjoyment. If perceived risk is low, a more rapid and spontaneous decision might be made toward a particular brand when the motivation is strong and requires immediate fulfilment to effectively satisfy a consumers’ motivational need. If perceived risk is high, such as maintaining a viewpoint that the equipment must have stringent safety features and benefits, it might extend the evaluation of alternatives process and dictate the ultimate purchase decision. In most instances, an extended consumer decision-making process is not desirable (Schiffman and Kanuk 2010), which underpins a marketer’s strategies to facilitate a more speedy purchase and motivate consumption of the firm’s brand over that of competition. Another extrinsic motivation, the social environment, also is influential in consumer behaviour patterns. There is a concept in social psychology and marketing known as conspicuous consumption, whereby consumers will buy high-priced or luxury products as a means of showing important reference groups in society that they have achieved high levels of social status or wealth (O’Cass and McEwen 2004). To many consumers, reference groups’ opinion is a primary motivation that dictates consumption decision-making. For some consumers, ensuring the construction of an auspicious social identity or reputation is directly related to their consumption behaviours and purchase outcomes (Mandrik 1996). In fact, how a consumer gauges the perception of self and identity is often underpinned by social sentiment. Taylor and Brown (1988) reinforce that assertion by describing social comparison theory, whereby consumers find a sense of personal satisfaction and well-being when individuals believe they are superior to others. Hence, consumers influenced by social factors will attempt to find what they perceive as the right brand that can create favourable social opinion about a purchase whilst also enhancing self-esteem when such judgments are positive. A consumer that strongly values social sentiment and opinion about their selected brands might theoretically shorten the information-seeking process, having a set of pre-determined brands that are already deemed correct and favourable within their reference group environments and make more rapid evaluations that lead to an expeditious product purchase decision. For this type of consumer motivated by social sentiment and reference groups, social factors could be the primary, foundational risk that will influence their decision-making processes. Though many companies focus on one or more dimensions of the marketing mix (product, price, place and promotion), to successfully market a product, businesses typically must be just as considerate of the socio-psychological factors that drive consumer behaviour. Whilst an affordable or acceptable pricing structure can be viable to remove risks perceived by consumers, or effective retail distribution methodologies, many companies rely on promotion to alter or influence consumer behaviour. For example, a firm might utilise lifestyle marketing (psychographics) to create a connection at the lifestyle level which make the target consumer favour the brand, rather than emphasising product benefits. For instance, a company operating in a saturated market environment with non-differentiated products in comparison to competitors might use socially-motivated integrated communications in advertisements to gain a purchase desire. Figure 1 illustrates this approach. Figure 1: Lifestyle-oriented marketing with social emphasis Source: Men’s Health. (2014). Be the life of the party. [online] Available at: http://www.menshealth.com.sg/sex-relationships/be-life-party (accessed 17 December 2014). In reference to Figure 1, an advertiser, in this case a spirits manufacturer, might have a product that is similar in texture, smoothness and taste to other alcohol marketers in an established market; a problem with differentiation. Hence, the firm utilises social scenes of happy and cohesive social groups enjoying the alcohol beverage rather than trying to market the product in terms of product or price. The consumer with motivations that underpin decision-making as it pertains to social belonging and self-esteem might find rather instant connections with this brand over that of competitors (who might utilise product-focused promotions). This could shorten information seeking and evaluation of alternatives in the decision-making process for this low-involvement decision, hence coercing the consumer to buy this brand rapidly over that of competing brands that are not perceived as relevant to the consumers’ motivations for social inclusion and status. From a different perspective, consumer behaviour can also be inter-linked with motivations as it pertains to cultural norms and values. To illustrate, one can examine a marketing situation in China, a highly collectivist culture where saving face (reputational issues) from a social context is a paramount need. In fact, in this culture, public loss of face is deemed a major offense and condemnation (Yuan 2009). A marketer that produces technology might utilise integrated communications that have cultural relevancy to consumers that believe social degradation and embarrassment are completely unacceptable. The marketer might utilise materials with slogans such as “you’re so smart” or “your friends are going to love you” in order to create extrinsic motivations to make the socially-focused, collectivist consumer consider purchasing this brand over that of competition. According to Zhang and Chan (2009), a consumer is more likely to build strong emotional attachments toward a brand when it can generate perceptions that the brand can provide social self-expansion. In this case, a marketer would theoretically transcend elements of the traditional 4Ps model of marketing and build a relationship with the consumer using integrated messages that appeal to the cultural values of saving face that underpin many of the consumers’ decision-making processes. 2.5 Literature review summary This section described the many complexities of motivation and consumer behaviour which influence how a firm approaches the marketing process. Disparate communications for desirable target segments, based on their behavioural characteristics and motivations, will be required to ensure that consumers ultimately make a purchase decision in favour of a firm’s particular brand. Using either unique promotions, setting relevant pricing structures, targeting a consumers’ emotional state or any variety of different strategies must be aligned with known consumer needs and motivations if the brand is to find market success. The following section consists of a personal reflection of real-world consumption situations that the researcher has experienced and how companies managed to motivate personal behaviours. 3.0 Reflective accounts Having defined motivation, marketing and consumer behaviour and provided relevant examples of different strategies undertaken by marketers to coerce consumer behaviour or respond to it, real-world consumption scenarios experienced by the researcher can be investigated. There are two particular situations which have been recalled that were influential in making a final purchase decision. The first scenario involved making a purchase of personal fashion products. The second scenario involved smartphones. I recognised, along the consumer decision-making process, that I was in need of new clothing, the identification of the problem. However, I immediately sustained many perceptions of risk, including affordability and also how my important social reference groups would formulate an opinion about the brands I had chosen. If the price structure for the clothing was too high, it could create more debt load through credit purchasing that would have long-term financial implications. Concurrently, I determined that if my important social peers found disfavour with these choices, it could undermine some moderate dimensions of the quality of my relationships. Upon conducting an information search, I came across the new TU clothing line, garments launched by the supermarket Sainsbury’s that were targeted at both men and women and distributed in-store at many Sainsbury’s locations. My previous experiences of consuming at fast fashion retailers, such as Zara, had been disappointing both economically and in terms of reference group opinion about the quality of these clothes, thus all information about Zara was rejected upon its procurement instantaneously. Though I personally liked the style and materials used in Zara’s clothing, my need for social favourability immediately terminated all considerations of the Zara brand. Sainsbury’s TU line utilised promotions which attempted to position the fashion merchandise as being top quality and affordable compared to competition that sought a younger market. They utilised attractive actors in their visual print and online advertisements, with the models selected wearing what appeared to be highly fashionable and trendy merchandise. Catch phrases such as Be Unique that were utilised by Sainsbury’s attempted to create a socially-driven motivation to select the Tu line, illustrating the capability of the brand to provide opportunities for self-expression and social ingenuity. With the supplementary focus on pricing in terms of affordability, these marketing communications somewhat removed my perceptions of risk associated with social sentiment and economics. These strategies shortened my information search about other fashion brands and coerced me to further explore the Tu line with a more focused lens, centring nearly all of my attention toward Tu and its vast presence online. From a marketing perspective, understanding that its target consumers are more influenced by social factors and affordability, the company did an excellent job at creating a motivational response in favour of Tu over that of competing brands. However, after exploring many websites which provided visual images of the clothing line and communications about its relevant value, my original social risk concerns were amplified which, in turn, prompted me to begin exploring more alternatives. The company attempted, strongly, to link the Tu fashion line directly with the Sainsbury’s brand identity, not working diligently to make Tu a stand-alone brand. The company consistently iterated that these products were available exclusively at Sainsbury’s, allegedly one of the UK’s favourite grocers. These communications caused a socio-psychological shift within me that began to wonder what my social peers would think about buying fashion clothing from a supermarket; a significantly negative outlook for a socially-motivated consumer. Though throughout what I personally believed to be a high involvement decision I still, at least moderately, considered the legitimate style and flair of the Tu line, my exploration of alternatives was elongated and I began to look toward other retailers. Ultimately, I made a decision to visit the retailer, Next, which also provides lower-cost, high fashion merchandise with unique styling and materials. The main problem with Sainsbury’s approach to sell the Tu line was that the firm did not seem to take into consideration that it is somewhat socially-abnormal to buy high fashion from a grocery store. For the younger consumer that maintains close ties with somewhat pretentious social circles, this would be a significant faux pas and likely meet with scorn and disfavour when asked about where these clothing were purchased. During the evaluation of alternatives process, the constant linkage with Sainsbury’s name made me contemplate the potential humiliation that I could face when confronted about why I had chosen to buy clothing from a supermarket, something I had not previously considered until the company, itself, attempted to prompt a positive consumption response by consistently iterating that it was a Sainsbury product. I personally believe that if Sainsbury’s had chosen a different distribution methodology, providing the Tu line in prominent retailers throughout the UK, I would have ultimately made a consumption purchase. I have little doubt, upon reflection, that the post-purchase experience would have significantly negative and likely ensured absolutely no loyalty toward Sainsbury’s in the future. What was most confusing was that Sainsbury’s Tu line seemed to recognise social needs and price as fundamental motivators designed to coerce behaviours in favour of the Tu brand. However, the firm did not seem to take into consideration that consumers with such a strong motivational force stemming from the social environment would be apprehensive and sceptical about the social outcomes of consuming fashion merchandise from a supermarket. In nearly every respect, the firm’s integrated communications and visual imagery that was relevant to a consumer sharing my motivations and risk perceptions were competent and could have been successful in prompting a shorter decision-making process and gaining a final purchase. However, the firm, sadly, brought about its own desolation by using the Sainsbury’s brand name to underpin Tu quality and benefit. The other consumption situation I experienced was recognising a need to purchase a smartphone to satisfy my social needs. When seeking information, I found many different competitors, such as Samsung, Blackberry and Nokia (to name only a few). Each of these products had different differentiation strategies and promotional strategies, including emphasis on price, emphasis on product, or attempting to utilise lifestyle-oriented marketing to build a positive perception about each respective brand. I personally considered this a medium-involvement purchase as risks of long-term contracts, functionality and cost were my primary risk concerns. Hence, it took nearly two weeks of recurring investigations into many different brands before finally narrowing the process down to two companies: Samsung and Blackberry. This narrowing-down process was founded on functionality benefits, social benefits and price. Samsung utilised promotional communications that made the brand seem fun and capable of enhancing one’s social lifestyle. The firm used many images of happy people in social scenarios who were visibly excited when utilising the Samsung brand. Blackberry, however, was more straight-forward with an emphasis on product functionality with an apparent attempt to differentiate itself as an innovator and pioneer in the smartphone industry. In the process of evaluating these two alternatives, ultimately Samsung was the victor in prompting a final purchase decision, which was a product of the firm’s approach in promotion that made it seem to be a fun and engaging brand. Upon researching Blackberry more intently, I discovered a plethora of negative consumer sentiment about the brand in the online environment; however largely out of the control of the brand. Many consumers were concerned about the pixel quality of its newest smartphone version cameras and lack of certain features that were prominent with competing models. I came across a Mintel study which surveyed a large sample of consumers that found the majority of consumers felt Blackberry was an outdated and useless brand (Paul 2013). Again, this is out of the control of Blackberry, however it prompted me to explore its functionality in a comparative methodology to competing products. What disturbed me most is that my social environment might question why I chose Blackberry and also that Blackberry seemed to consider itself a pioneer in promotions. Upon comparing functional benefits, this was unjustified and gave me a negative perception of Blackberry. Ultimately, I chose Samsung as Blackberry was being somewhat misleading in depicting the brand as innovative and pioneering in a market environment where consumers felt it was obsolete and where its tangible features were inferior to many different competing models. I suddenly did not trust Blackberry which was unjustifiably heralding its superior functional benefits which were, in reality, out-of-date with new smartphone competitor launches. 4.0 Discussion / Analysis The situation with Tu and with Blackberry reinforce many of the consumer behaviour theories and motivational strategies identified in this research study’s review of literature. Mandrick (1996) asserted that many consumers are strongly driven by social influences when making consumption decisions and I, personally, fit this profile substantially. With the Tu line, it would seem that Sainsbury’s would understand the perceived risks of the younger market which is the target demographic for this affordable and fashionable brand and consider strategies that would be aligned with these characteristics. It seems that Sainsbury’s was over-confident that this market would have loyalty toward the supermarket brand that would be sufficient communications to underpin a decision to make a rapid decision without much further exploration of alternative fashion products under an affordable and trendy business model. Whilst Sainsbury’s might hold its proverbial head high for the grocer’s reputation, it was a critical rejection factor (as well as not distributing it outside of the Sainsbury’s stores) that led to a different final purchase decision in favour of competition. I also maintained many characteristics of conspicuous consumption, buying brands that show achievement of superior social status, only without the resources necessary to seek luxury products with high price structures. Conspicuous consumption, as iterated by O’Cass and McEwen (2004) seems to be a justified theory driving consumer behaviour as it was primarily my own social group sentiment and opinion, as well as my desire to maintain self-esteem that comes through belonging, which dictated whether or not to make purchases of Tu and Blackberry. I believe both brands could have motivated a decision to purchase in their respective favours if their communications strategies had been more aligned with my motivational profile that strongly considered social factors. Whilst Tu was somewhat successful in this effort, ultimately by not making the Tu line a stand-alone brand as part of effective brand management, they lost any opportunity to gain a new customer. Prior to this research project and self-reflection of consumption decisions, I had not given much thought into the real-world application of consumer behaviour and motivational theories. It was not until reflecting on how I went about the consumption process that I recognised that the decision-making model in consumer behaviour and motivational strategies, especially Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Weiten and Lloyd 2010), were highly relevant in determining how a consumer explores alternative brands and makes an ultimate decision. In nearly all consumption decisions, I am extrinsically motivated and deeply consider how my esteem and social belonging will be impacted by brand decision-making. Furthermore, Schiffman and Kanuk (2010) identified that an elongated decision-making process, for the marketer, is unfavourable. Tu and Blackberry both extended the time it would normally take to make high- or moderate-involvement decisions by not utilising communications that were 100 percent in-line with target market consumer behaviour characteristics. This justifies the assertion by Schiffman and Kanuk that marketers should work diligently to create strategies in marketing that will shorten these processes. I believe that if Tu and Blackberry had been more focused on the socio-psychological aspects of their target consumers, they could have effectively shortened the evaluation of alternatives process and provided more incentive to make purchases in their favour. Blackberry could have prompted a decision to make a final purchase if the company had focused less on its ingenuity in product and attempted to make a socially-driven connection to motivate consumption decision-making. Samsung, which did have superior functionality to Blackberry to fit my personal needs for smartphone ownership, was just more engaging and trustworthy as a result of being consumer-centric at the social level and not attempting to over-emphasise its brand functionality. Samsung gave me positive emotions that my social group might very well have favourable impressions of my decision to buy the brand whilst Blackberry did not seem to understand the dynamics of younger consumers that are motivated by social sentiment. Trust depletion as a result of marketing strategies and communications that made the brand seem revolutionary (when it was not) underpinned my rejecting the Blackberry brand. This situation with Blackberry strongly supports that a firm can create extrinsic motivations that underpin consumer behaviours. 5.0 Conclusion The self-reflection of consumption decisions served to support the concepts identified in this study’s literature review that marketing, motivation and consumer behaviour are inter-linked. Consumer behaviour is driven by intrinsic motivations as well as externally-driven motivations which would seem to suggest that companies can be successful in the marketing process if they are able to influence and coerce the very motivations that drive consumption decision-making. This research identified that Tu and Blackberry created new problems in the decision-making process that were not originally identified or did not maintain paramount consideration prior to exploring information and evaluating alternatives. It would seem to reinforce that if a marketing company does not conduct appropriate research that examines all market motivations and needs, something of the marketing strategy, such as promotions, will be ineffective and will extend the decision-making process. This study reinforced that consumer behaviour is driven by multiple, complex factors and not just elements of the marketing mix. To be an effective marketer, the company must blend marketing activity with consumer motivations that underpin behavioural outcomes, which are directly inter-dependent in whether or not a consumer will make a final purchase decision. This study found, upon self-reflection, that I am the very model of the typical consumer and can be influenced substantially by the competency or lack of foresight about market characteristics and behavioural tendencies if these factors are not holistically considered in what drives marketing strategies. This report could provide a lesson to other businesses marketing a product to markets of my demographic and psychographic profiles to assist in coordinating a more effective marketing strategy. Whilst this project did not uncover any support that culture is influential in consumer behaviour and motivations, at my own personal level, it does not refute its relevancy for other market characteristics. Upon self-reflection, even though loss of face in the social group was a consideration when choosing a brand to purchase, it did not stem from cultural attributes, but from my own inherent beliefs about the relevancy of social sentiment and maintaining a positive reputation in a social circle. More research on this phenomenon with other market demographics and target characteristics would be required to justify or refute this potential influence on consumer behaviour. References Abimbola, T. (2001). Branding as a competitive strategy for demand management in SMEs, Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, 3(2), pp.97-106. Armstrong, J.S. (1991). Prediction of consumer behaviour by experts and novices, Journal of Consumer Research, 18, pp.251-256. Baker, M. (2008). The strategic marketing plan audit. Cambridge Strategy Publications. Gkorezis, P. and Panagiotis, E. (2008). Employees’ psychological empowerment via intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, Academy of Health Care Management Journal, 4(1), pp.17-37. King, P.W. (2009). Climbing Maslow’s pyramid: choosing your own path through life. Leicester: Matador. Kotler, P. and Keller, K.L. (2009). A framework for marketing management, 4th edn. Pearson Prentice Hall. Lewis, B.R. and Hawksley, A. (1990). Gaining a competitive advantage in fashion, International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, 18(4), pp.37-43. Mandrik, C.A. (1996). Consumer heuristics: The trade-off between processing effort and brand value choice, Advances in Consumer Research, 23, pp. 301-307. McCall, K.L. (2003). What’s the big dif? Differences between marketing and advertising. [online] Available at: http://www.marketingprofs.com/print.asp?source=%2F2%2Fmccall5%2Easp (accessed 19 December 2014). Mittelman, W. (1991). Maslow’s study of self-actualisation: a re-interpretation, Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 31(1), pp.114-135. O’Cass, A. and McEwen, H. (2004). Exploring Consumer Status and Conspicuous Consumption, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 4(1), pp. 25–39. Paul, D. (2013). The importance of brand in technology purchasing – UK: Mintel Report, Mintel Group Ltd. Schiffman, L.G. and Kanuk, L.L. (2010). Consumer behaviour, 10th edn. Prentice Hall International. Schiffman, L.G. (1993). Consumer behaviour. London: Prentice Hall International. Singer, H.A. Hausenblas and C.M. Janelle (eds.), Handbook of Sport Psychology, 2nd edn. New York: Wiley. Solomon, M.R. (2011). Consumer behaviour, 9th edn. UK: Pearson Prentice Hall. Solomon, M.R., Bamossy, G., Askegaard, S. and Hogg, M.K. (2010). Consumer behaviour: a European perspective, 4th edn. Harlow: Pearson Education. Steel, P. and Konig, C. (2006). Integrating theories of motivation, Academy of Management Review, 31, pp.889-912. Taylor, S.E. and Brown, J. (1988). Illusion and well-being: a social psychological perspective on mental health, Psychological Bulletin, 103(2), pp.193-210. Vallerand, R.J. & Rousseau, F.L. (2001). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in sport and exercise: a review using the Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation, in R.N. Weiten, W. and Lloyd, M.A. (2010). Psychology applied to modern life: adjustment in the 21st Century, 8th edn. Wadsworth Publishing. Yuan, W. (2009). Effectiveness of communication between American and Chinese employees in multinational organisations in China, Intercultural Communication Studies, 18(1), pp.188-204. Zhang, H. and Chan, D.K. (2009). Self-esteem as a source of evaluative conditioning, European Journal of Social Psychology, 39(2), pp.1065-1074. Read More
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This fact is not obvious only in the consumer buying behavior or organizations' marketing strategies but is also apparent in the current behaviors of consumers over the social media technology Consumer behavior is one of the most important subjects that are studied in the marketing and management fields.... The current paper critically assesses and evaluate the ways in which the consumer behaviors have altered and impacted in the present time....
7 Pages (1750 words) Assignment

Understanding of Consumer Behaviour to Attract Customers

This work "Understanding of consumer behaviour to Attract Customers" describes the concept of consumer behavior with the sole focus on the replication of consumer behavior through the integration of emotions in the promotional strategies adopted by companies when persuading customers.... consumer behavior is commonly described as the activities as well as the decision process adopted by people who buy goods as well as services for their personal uses depending on particular variables and factors....
8 Pages (2000 words) Literature review
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