Debenhams Strategy of Cultural Aspect in Consumer Buying Behavior - Research Paper Example

Debenhams’ strategy of exploiting the cultural aspect of consumer buying behavior Table of Contents 1Introduction 3 2Analysis of Debenhams’ strategy of incorporating culture into its marketing mix 4 1Heroes 4 2Rituals 5 3Symbols 6 4Cultural values 7 3Customer loyalty 7 4Fair trade practices 9 5Changes in technology 9 6Recommendations 10 7Conclusion 10 Bibliography: 12 1 Introduction Culture is the accumulation of a society’s shared meanings, rituals, traditions and norms. A culture is a society’s personality and shapes the identities of individuals in that society. Symbols are used for communication in a society and marketers adopt these symbols to communicate with customers. Cultures involve large groups or a significant proportion of the society. Cultures keep on changing, and marketers need to be aware of cultural changes. Core values are the values that are most pervasive in a society. They must be enduring, and with respect to marketing they must be consumer related so that marketers can use them to understand consumption (Luna and Gupta, 2001, P.50). Culture is manifested by society in different forms and includes heroes, rituals, symbols and cultural values. Values have a central role in the manifestation of culture and are shared by the majority of the people in the society. Debenhams is an international multi-channel brand with a British heritage which trades in 240 stores across 28 countries. The company gives customers around the world an exclusive mix of its own brands and concessions. In the UK, it has a market share in women swear, menswear, and children’s wear. It is also a market leader in health and beauty, home-ware, gifts and electric goods with its annual revenue exceeding £2 billion. The company is available online in 70 countries and is the 11th biggest online retailer by traffic volume in the UK. The Company has over the years invested in British design through its portfolio of brands. This paper explores the cultural aspect of consumer behavior evaluating ways in which Debenhams can use them in its marketing mix (About Debenhams, 2013, para2). 2 Analysis of Debenhams’ strategy of incorporating culture into its marketing mix Hofstedes defines culture as the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes members of one group or culture from the others. In this respect, culture is a lens for through which people shape reality, and at the same time it is a blueprint specifying a plan of action. Culture is unique to a group of people. The concept of values is central to most views of culture (Luna and Gupta, 2001, P.50). 1 Heroes Heroes possess characteristics which are highly prized in a culture and serve as models for behavior. Heroes influence consumer behavior when they are associated with certain products or brands. Marketers can exploit this influence by associating heroes with their products in marketing communication programs (Arnould, Price and Zinkhan, 2005, P.76). Debenhams recently launched an ad campaign starring paralympian amputee Stefanie Reid in an effort to show diversity in its advertising. The campaign also features three models over 40, an elderly lady and a size 18 swimwear model. The company aims to turn the industry standard of young thin models. The company argues that the campaign is a reflection of its customers and demonstrates a broad range of body and beauty ideals. The company spokesman asserted that the company’s customers are not the same size or shape and thus the new look book celebrates diversity. The campaign aims to make people more comfortable with their bodies. This is a move in the direction of showing that beauty is manifested in all forms, different ages, body shapes and sizes (Barrington, 2013, para4). Debenhams’ ad was well timed as it has appeared in a time when customers are increasingly holding brands accountable for the role they play in society as drivers of positive change. The stunt might be perceived as a genuine step in social progress, but they ought to make it feel aspiration and attractive (Blythe, 2008, P.158). 2 Rituals Debenhams expanded its designer collaboration Editions brand into home wares in 2012 in an effort to create a trendy offer with designs featuring British motifs. The British theme was part of a wider strategy intended to cash in on the Olympics mood. The company was not part of the official sponsors of the London 2012 Games but bought a range of official Olympics merchandise which it sold in spring 2012 featuring alongside ‘street party’ and ‘London-centric’ lines. Debenhams also introduced Union Jack and loyal themed designs among its new items, which include corgie cushions and customised lamps (Prior, 2013, Para 6). Debenhams alerted customers seven days before valentines of a 15% discount on all lingerie. This was a well planned offer as it gave customers ample time to make online orders and have the presents delivered in time for the lovers’ day. In an attempt to increase investment in its brand, Debenhams launched its Christmas made fabulous push, which was supported by a ‘Christmas made fabulous’ website in 2012. The website encouraged people to share photos of memorable Christmas moments; discuss about finding the perfect present and contribute unique recipes for the season. The company gave a way prizes on every week to people who had shared content on the website, and even encouraged participation on twitter and Facebook (Neighbours, 2011, para3). 3 Symbols Symbols are a category of processes or objects that carry a meaning that is unique to a certain group of people. Language is a set of symbols and includes different gestures, pictures and objects. Cultural values expressed in a society’s perception of reality and beliefs of what is desirable can be transferred to products through agents such as advertising. In this case, advertising charges these products with cultural meaning. For instance, a pair of sneakers can be elevated to a cultural symbol to represent the value of a sense of accomplishment by ads showing a sports star like Rafael Nadal wearing them. Furthermore, individuals in their efforts to define their social self are moved to consume products which are charged with symbolic meaning (Foxall, Goldsmith and Brown, 1998, P.347; Pride and Ferrell, 2011, P.496). Debenhams regularly hires celebrity designers into its list of renowned designers. The company has continued with this trend in the hiring of Patrick Grant who was a star of BBC2 ‘Great British Sewing Bee’ in early 2013. Grant will be launching Hammond & Co in winter 2013, which is designed to appeal to men who want classic and contemporary style that makes a statement. Debenhams also hired celebrated milliner Stephen Jones in March 2013. Stephen’s ‘TopHat is a 27-piece collection comprising of hats, fascinators and occasion handbags and clutches meant to complement the company’s existing offers. Jones has a reputation for collaborating with the most influential designers in the industry such as Giles Deacon and Christian Dior. He has created headpieces for celebrities like Kyle Minogue and Beyonce. The hiring of celebrities to design their brands exploits the prescription to celebrity worship and culture by most Britons (Barrington, 2013, para4). 4 Cultural values Values research indicates that values have a central role in manifestation of culture, and the relationship between these values is characterized by mutual influence. Symbols generally express cultural values, and through consumption rituals, consumer goods become symbols of cultural values. Symbols can reinforce values or even shift them (Hoyer and MacInnis, 2005, P.93; Hennig-Thurau, 2000, P.167). Both individualist and collectivist consumers use brands to express themselves. Collectivist consumers use brands to confirm their conformity in regard to their group while individualist customers consume brands to assert their defiance of the reference groups. Other researchers found that ads that portray norms consistent with home values were more effective than ads doing otherwise (Schiffman and Kanuk, 2010, P.435). A company can associate its brand with certain values like wealth through advertising until consumers perceive the brand to be synonymous with the values. Similarly, rituals and heroes can be created by advertising. Finally, values such as sophistication and class can be awakened in consumers through repeated advertising (Desmond, 2003, P.88; Ransome, 2005, P.124). 3 Customer loyalty Companies have adopted innovative ways to gain the loyalty of their customers. Others like Co-op gave dividends to customers where customers would have their own dividend numbers which they would present to the shop assistant when buying goods in exchange for some money back through a bank book. This trend has re-emerged in recent years with stores like Tesco using Club cards to reward customers with a money back voucher. In addition to encouraging loyalty, these loyalty cards provide companies with invaluable information on consumer buying behavior (Babin and Harris, 2011, P.333; Frain, 1999, P.372). Debenhams constantly updates its customers of imminent offers on its mobile app. A survey by Adobe that interviewed over 1000 UK consumers about their favorite features in smart phone applications found that 67% of the respondents rated discounted offers as the most valued feature. Sixty percent preferred a store locator; 58% preferred the ability to purchase within the app 57 % preferred support couponing and 56% preferred loyalty schemes. Sales and discount offers fall under the category of money saving offers and thus Debenhams innovation is in line with the prevailing trends in customer preference. With the economic downturn having hit customers hard, most consumers on the high street have had to settle for retail shopping, and Debenhams has worked hard to be on the customers’ agenda (Kornum, 2005, P139). Debenhams signed a sponsorship deal with channel 5 for its soap Neighbours in 2011. The retailer’s agency created indents replicating the Australian soap with every sight and character clothed by the retailer. The company then leveraged the deal in stores by tagging retail products used in the indents with stickers while at the same time sponsoring the campaign on social media. The marketing concept was meant to exploit neighbours longstanding, exciting, family-friendly programme that is very popular among its customers. Soaps like Neighbours represent family values of friendship and togetherness and Debenhams made a smart choice by associating its brand with such virtues (Neolane, 2012, para14). 4 Fair trade practices Of late, customers have become more sensitive to ethical issues, and this has affected buying habits. For instance, the Co-operative Society has taken a stand against the exploitation of citizens in less developed countries. To this end The Co-op has introduced the concept of ‘Fair Trade’ advocating for better compensation, better working conditions, sustainability, and fair trade for farmers in developing countries. The Co-op has marketed a range of ‘fair trade’ goods like coffee, and energy efficient household goods (Lantos, 2011, P.359; Jackson, et al, 2000, P127). Debenhams partnered with former Olympic rower Sir Steven Redgrave to launch a new men’s wear range produced from Fair-trade certified cotton in 2008. The partnership between Debenhams’ Maine New England brand and Sir Steve’s FiveG label features in 116 Debenhams stores around the UK. The Fairtrade cotton is sourced from Mali and was aggressively promoted during the Fairtrade Fortnight awareness campaign in 2008. Adam Creasy, the trading director at the company acknowledged the rise in consumer environmental awareness and hoped this partnership would make a difference to the Malian farmers by giving them a fair compensation for their cotton (Fairtrade, 2008, para6). 5 Changes in technology Research by Paderni indicates that online commerce has been embraced by consumers in Europe to buy fashion goods. Of the 40 million online consumers of fashion, most are young, high income females who use the web extensively. New technology has changed the way people buy goods and services; for example the UK’s first television shopping channel QVC was launched in 1993 while Amazon sold its first book through the internet in 1995 (Mooij, 2011, P.356; Ratneshwar and Mick, 2005, P.341). Companies are increasingly investing in their online footprint, and the latest research indicates that Debenhams is leading in terms of visibility in paid and organic search results. Research from Greenlight indicates that online searches for fashion correlated products on Google grew from 2.5 million in October 2012 to 2.8 million in January 2013. Debenhams was the most noticeable promoter in the Paid Media space with a 58% percent share while it was second in organic listings garnering 46% (Greenlight, 2013, Para 6; Pride and Ferrell, 2012, P.212). 6 Recommendations Npower has declared that it will not renew the current sponsorship of the English championship. While the Football League and the Conference lack international audience, they are popular in the UK, and there is an opportunity for brands to garner regional affinity with die hard football fans. The ideal concept would be to connect directly with the audience in a localized way. Debenhams would do good to exploit the opportunities presented by the fanatical football culture in the UK. 7 Conclusion Debenhams has done a decent job of engineering its marketing strategy in line with the prevailing cultural trends. This has been achieved by exploiting rituals such as Valentine’s Day by using products like lingerie to symbolize the occasion. It has also adapted well to the increasing trend of online shopping by investing in online visibility. With respect to heroes, Debenhams decided to go against the tide and adopted a strategy of celebrating diversity by using unconventional heroes. Culture theory asserts that there are both collectivist and individualist customers, and the use of unconventional heroes by Debenhams is likely to appeal to individualist customers who normally refuse to subscribe to the value of the reference group. This strategy resonates well with a society that is clamoring for tolerance and change. Debenhams incorporated symbolism in its marketing mix by hiring celebrity designers for its brands with the celebrities representing class, quality and a unique style. The most effective marketing strategy is that which is most consistent with local values. Research indicates that customers value discounts and, therefore, the concept of using apps to alert customers of imminent offers is in line with these values. Customers have become increasingly sensitive to environmental degradation and fair trade and the introduction of clothing-line using fair trade certified cotton shows sensitivity to these values. The sponsorship of a soap that reflects family values of love and friendliness will definitely endear the brand to customers as customers would like to associate with brands that represent the most cherished family values. 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