PROJECT REPORT ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING WITH PURCHASE PROCESS AND POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOR
SUBMITTED BY RAJESH CHAURASIYA M.Com Semester -1 Roll No. 19 Academic Year 2014-15
PROJECT GUIDE Prof. SHAUKAT ALI
Anjuman - I - Islam Akbar Peerbhoy College of Commerce & Economics MS. Road, Two Tank, Mumbai – 400 008.
Anjuman - I - Islam
Akbar Peerbhoy College of Commerce & Economics NAAC ACCREDITED COLLEGE Maulana Shaukatali Road, Do Taki, Mumbai – 400 008. Email :
[email protected],
[email protected] Website : www.apcollege.in
Ref. : No. ___________
CERTIFICATE I Principal Dr. SHEIKH MEHMOOD HASAN here by certify that Mr. RAJESH CHAURASIYA of Master of Commerce (M.Com) Part-1, Roll No. 19 Academic Year 2014-15 has completed project on CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING WITH PURCHASE PROCESS AND POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR, the information submitted is true and original to the best of my knowledge.
Dr. Sheikh Mehmood Hasan (Principal)
DECLARATION
I, Rajesh Chaurasiya of AKBAR PEERBHOY COLLECGE OF COMMERECE AND ECONOMICS M.com Part - 1, Sem. 1
hereby declare that I have completed the project on CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING WITH PURCHASE PROCESS AND POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR in academic year2014-15. The information submitted is true and original of the best my knowledge
Place : Mumbai Date : Rajesh Chaurasiya
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We take this opportunity to thank all the individual under Whose valuable guidance helped us to come up with successful completion of the project CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING WITH PURCHASE PROCESS AND POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR
I express my sincere thanks to the Dr. Sheikh Mehmood Hasan (principal of Akbar Peerbhoy College of Commere And Economics) for giving us chance to Fabricate our skills & come up with such an output.
I would personally thanks to our project Co-ordinate Prof. Dr. Shaukat Ali for his support.
I got amazing experience working on this project and would Once again wish thank all people related to it for making the experience and so much fun.
Thank You
Evaluation Project Report on CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING WITH PURCHASE PROCESS AND POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR M. Com. Part 1 UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI 2014-2015
Internal Examiner
External Examiner
________________
_________________
INDEX
Sr. No.
Particulars
Page No.
1
Consumer Behaviour
1–2
2
Impact of Gender on Consumer Purchase Behaviour
2–4
3
Post Purchase Behaviour and Disposal
4-5
4
Consumer Behaviour And Lifestyle Marketing
6
5
Post-purchase decision Processes and Behaviour
6-18
CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR Consumer Behaviour is the study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society.[1] It blends elements from psychology, sociology, social anthropology, marketing and economics. It attempts to understand the decision-making processes of buyers, both individually and in groups such as how emotions affect buying behaviour. It studies characteristics of individual consumers such as demographics and behavioural variables in an attempt to understand people's wants. It also tries to assess influences on the consumer from groups such as family, friends, reference groups, and society in general. Customer behaviour study is based on consumer buying behaviour, with the customer playing the three distinct roles of user, payer and buyer. Research has shown that consumer behaviour is difficult to predict, even for experts in the field.[2] Relationship marketingis an influential asset for customer behaviour analysis as it has a keen interest in the re-discovery of the true meaning of marketing through the re-affirmation of the importance of the customer or buyer. A greater importance is also placed on consumer retention, customer relationship management, personalisation, customisation and one-to-one marketing. Social functions can be categorized into social choice and welfare functions. Each method for vote counting is assumed as social function but if Arrow’s possibility theorem is used for a social function,
social
welfare
function
is
achieved.
Some
specifications
of
the
social
functions
are
decisiveness, neutrality, anonymity, monotonicity,unanimity, homogeneity and weak and strong Pareto optimality. No social choice function meets these requirements in an ordinal scale simultaneously. The most important characteristic of a social function is identification of the interactive effect of alternatives and creating a logical relation with the ranks. Marketing provides services in order to satisfy customers. With that in mind the productive system is considered from its beginning at the production level, to the end of the cycle, the consumer (Kioumarsi et al., 2009).
Purchase Decision Once the alternatives have been evaluated, the consumer is ready to make a purchase decision. Sometimes purchase intention does not result in an actual purchase. The marketing organisation must facilitate the consumer to act on their purchase intention. The organisation can use a variety of techniques to achieve this. The provision of credit or payment terms may encourage purchase, or a sales promotion such as the opportunity to receive a premium or enter a competition may provide an incentive to buy now. The relevant internal psychological process that is associated with purchase decision is integration. Once the integration is achieved, the organisation can influence the purchase decisions much more easily.
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There are 5 stages of a consumer buying process [6] they are: The problem recognition stage, meaning the identification of something a consumer needs. The search for information, which means you search your knowledge bases or external knowledge sources for information on the product. The possibility of alternative options, meaning whether there is another better or cheaper product available. The choice to purchase the product and then finally the actual purchase of the product.[6] This shows the complete process that a consumer will most likely, whether recognisably or not, go through when they go to buy a product.
Post Purchase Evaluation The EKB (Engel, Kollat, Blackwell) model[7] was further developed by Rice (1993) which suggested there should be a feedback loop, Foxall (2005)[8] further suggests the importance of the post purchase evaluation and that it is key because of its influences on future purchase patterns.
Impact of Gender on Consumer Purchase Behaviour Introduction Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how, and where people do or do not buy a product. It attempts to understand the buyer decision making process and studies characteristics of individual consumers as well as groups in an attempt to understand people’s wants and needs. Consumer behaviour research is the scientific study of the processes consumers use to select, secure, use and dispose of products and services that satisfy their needs. Knowledge of consumer behaviour directly affects marketing strategy (Anderson et al, 2005).
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Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior There are various factors that influence the way people behave in a particular situation. Consumers vary tremendously in age, income, education, tastes, and other factors. The behaviour of consumer while engaging in a purchase decision is influenced by these characteristics. Consumer characteristics include four major factors and these factors are majorly responsible for the different types of behaviors depicted by the consumers. Though it does not mean that people of same, age or gender or social background are similar, because there is a lot of influence of the psychological factors that vary from individual to individual. Following factors can influence the Buying decision of the buyer: Cultural: Culture is the fundamental determinant of a person’s wants and behaviors acquired through socialization processes with family and other key institutions. Social : Consumer Behaviour is also influenced by social factors like reference Groups, family, social Role and status Personal: A buyer’s decisions are majorly influenced by personal characteristics like gender, age, stage in lifecycle, occupation, income, and lifestyle. Psychological: Psychological factors like motivation, perception, beliefs & attitudes of consumers also have a deep impact on the buyer decision. Process of Purchase Decision Understanding consumers’ purchase decision-making process allows marketers to gain more knowledge about their consumers. Moreover, it can be a foundation for them to create more suitable marketing strategies for their target consumers. If marketers understand this process of their consumers, they will know how their consumers search for information before buying, which criteria can encourage them to buy, and what factors influence their purchase decision-making. (Solomon et al., 2010) In many consumer behaviour studies, the classic view of consumer behaviour principle is the five stage of decision-making model, which is based on the idea that considers consumers as an information-processing machine. The classical five stages of consumer decision-making process are (1) problem recognition, (2) information search, (3) alternatives evaluation, (4) product choice, and (5) post-purchase evaluation. (Solomon et al., 2010) Problem Recognition Problem recognition is the first stage of consumer decision-making process. It happens when consumer realizes that there are some differences between their actual state and ideal or desired state. P a g e |3
Information Search Information search is the stage when consumers are searching for more knowledge in order to solve the recognized problem. To help themselves to make a decision, consumers will look for information from their environment. (Solomon et al., 2010) Information search process can be classified into two types. Firstly, the pre-purchase search process is the process when consumers seek for the information to satisfy their needs or solve their problems, which begin after consumers realize their needs or problems. Secondly, an ongoing search is the process when consumers browse the information for their pleasure and to keep them up-to-date with new products or current situations of the products’ market. (Bloch et al., 1986) Alternative Evaluation In this stage, consumers have to evaluate their available alternatives that they have received from the previous stage, information search. (Solomon et al., 2010) Since there are a great number of brands in the marketplace, consumers will create their own evoke set which consists of brands which are already in their minds. (Jobber, 2007) The brands that are included in the consumers’ evoke sets will have more opportunities to be selected by the consumers. Product Choice Consumers have to choose one brand among after evaluating their brand choices from the previous stage. Choosing product choice can be either a simply and quick or a complex stage. (Solomon et al., 2010) Consumers’ product choices can be affected by various source of information during the process of decisionmaking.
Post Purchase Behaviour and Disposal Even though the buying decision has finished, consumers often still evaluate their decisions. This is because they want to feel confident about their choices and to ensure that the product can solve their problems or satisfy their needs. Jobber (2007) stated in his study that the quality of product and service is a main determinant in post-purchase evaluation Gender Difference Out of all the factors that influence customers decision making behaviour, one of the major
factor is the gender. It refers to the social
relationship/ roles and responsibilities of men and women, the expectations held about the characteristics, aptitudes and likely behaviors of both women and men (femininity and masculinity) that are learned change over time and vary within and between cultures.
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According to Mitchell and Walsh (2004), males and females want different products and they are likely to have different ways of liking and obtaining these. Gender has an important role in consumer behaviours. Because, the differences between men and women about expectation, want, need, life-style etc. reflect to their consumption behaviours (Akturan, 2009:66). Solomon et al (2010) suggests that, products are sex-typed or androgynous. Sex-typed defines a product that takes on masculine or feminine characteristics. Put simply, Barbies for girls and Hotwheels for boys. As per the socialization of men and women, women are perceived to be internally focused and often talk as a way to connect and relate to others, whereas men are perceived to be externally focused and often view situations as issues to be resolved. They talk to inform others. This perception though is generalized and may have lot of exceptions but exceptions do not invalidate generalizations. For example, there are many women who are taller than the average man, and there are many men who are shorter than the average woman. But the generalization “Men are on average taller than women” is still valid. Similarly, not all men have a strong male brain, and not all women have a strong female brain, but there are average differences between men and women, and men are far more likely to have the male brain and women are far more likely to have the female brain. Women are considered as being warm, expressive, compassionate, and understanding (Broverman et al., 1972; Martin, 1987; Ruble, 1983; Williams & Best, 1990). People feel more positive toward women than men and, also, prefer to like women to men. (Eagly & Mladinic, 1989) This fashionable paradigm of the differences between men and women are passively accepted by marketing practitioners around the world. Obvious sex differences exist not just because of genetic reasons, but are quite often due to cultural variations (Teather 1995). Every marketer today has realized this fact and hence gender has become one of the major factors and basis of segmenting a market and targeting the customers. Differences in problem solving between men and women Men and women approach problems with similar goals but with different considerations. While men and women can solve problems equally well, their approach and their process are often quit different. For most women, sharing and discussing a problem presents an opportunity to explore, deepen or strengthen the relationship with the person they are talking with. Women are usually more concerned about how problems are solved than merely solving the problem itself. Most men on the other hand are less concerned and do not feel the same as women when solving a problem. Men approach problems in a very different manner than women. For most men, solving a problem presents an opportunity to demonstrate their competence, their strength of resolve, and their commitment to a relationship. How the problem is solved is not nearly as important as solving it effectively and in the best possible manner. Men have a tendency to dominate and to assume authority in a problem solving process.
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Consumer Behaviour And Lifestyle Marketing Introduction Lifestyle marketing is a process of establishing relationships between products offered in the market and targeted lifestyle groups. It involves segmenting the market on the basis of lifestyle dimensions, positioning the product in a way that appeals to the activities, interests and opinions of the targeted market and undertaking specific promotional campaigns which exploit lifestyle appeals to enhance the market value of the offered product. The Marketing Dictionary of Rona Ostrow and Sweetman R. Smith describes lifestyle as "a distinctive mode of behaviour centred around activities, interests, opinions, attitudes and demographic characteristics distinguishing one segment of a population from another. A consumer's lifestyle is seen as the sum of his interactions with his environment. Lifestyle studies are a component of the broader behavioural concept called psychographics." Harold W. Berkman and Christopher Gilson define lifestyle as "unified" patterns of behaviour that both determine and are determined by consumption. The term "unified patterns of behaviour" refers to behaviour in its broadest sense. Attitude formation and such internal subjective activities may not be observable, but they are behaviour nonetheless. Lifestyle is an integrated system of a person's attitudes, values, interests, opinions and his over behaviour.
Demographics, Psychographics And Lifestyle Demographic variables help marketers "locate" their target market and psychographic variables provide the marketer with more insight about the segment. Psychographics is, in common parlance, lifestyle analysis or AIO research. In its most widely practised form, a psychographic study consists of a long list of statements designed to capture relevant aspects of a consumer, like personality, hinting motives, interests, attitudes, beliefs and values. When the study becomes oriented towards a particular product, the consumers have to respond to statements which are selected for the purpose i.e. on products, brands, services, competitive situations etc. The demographic and psychographic lifestyle approaches are highly complimentary and work best together. People hailing from the same sub-culture, social class and even occupation follow quite different lifestyles. If we can create a fictitious Mrs. Mathur to look at possibly it may be like this: She may choose to live a "belonging" lifestyle which will be reflected in her wearing conservative clothes, spending considerable time with her family and participating in social activities. Or she can be an "achiever" marked by an active personal life and playing hard when it comes to travel and sports. It can be seen that lifestyle depicts the "whole person" in active interaction with his environment. The lifestyle analysis adds a great amount of understanding to a typical demographic description. A person buying a new designer shirt may be 34 years old, married and living in a three bedroom house and having 2 children. The lifestyle analysis would help marketers to paint a more human portrait to their target market. For instance the "young, upwardly mobile" P a g e |6
lifestyle group cutting across sub-cultures, social class, occupation etc. is now being increasingly used by Indian marketers as their market group. This finds its expression in advertising appeals "He loves the feel of the city... The skyscrapers... The crowds... The pretty faces... And the heedy feeling of being successful... Above all the freedom of being himself." So says the advertisement for Pantaloon cotton trousers from Manz Wear. Another advertisements for men's underwear from Bhilwara loudly announces "for the man who plays many roles-here comes the very best in wearunders via the grand fashion avenues of Paris...Champs Elise". The behavioural differences between prospects that do not show up in demographic figures come alive in lifestyle patterns. Lifestyle, analysis leads to more comprehensive and penetrating profiles of how consumers think and act than may be available from other approaches.
Characteristics Of Lifestyle Feldman and Theilbar describe lifestyle by the following characteristics:
Lifestyle Is A Group Phenomenon A person's lifestyle bears the influence of his/her participation in social groups and of his/her relationships with others. Two clerks in the same office may exhibit different lifestyles.
Lifestyle Pervades Various Aspects Of Life An individual's lifestyle may result in certain consistency of behaviour. Knowing a person's conduct in one aspect of life may enable us to predict how he/she may behave in other areas.
Lifestyle Implies A Central Life Interest For every individual there are many central life interests like family, work, leisure, sexual exploits, religion, politics etc. that may fashion his interaction with the environment.
Lifestyles Vary According To Sociologically Relevant Variables The rate of social change in a society has a great deal to do with variations in lifestyles. So do age, sex, religion, ethnicity and social class. The increase in the number of double income families and that of working women have resulted in completely different lifestyles in the 1980's in India.
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Influences On Lifestyle Cultural and societal variables establish the outer boundaries of lifestyle specific to our culture. The interaction of group and individual expectations and values creates a systematic pattern of behaviour. This is the lifestyle pattern that determines purchase decisions. When goods and services available in the market are in tune with lifestyle patterns and values, consumer market reactions are favourable. And purchases that reinforce these patterns further illuminate these lifestyles. Lazer's lifestyle hierarchy brings out these interactions.
Approaches To Study Lifestyle The study of lifestyle is interdisciplinary. It draws on a variety of disciplines such as anthropology, psychology, sociology and economics. Marketing uses this eclectic approach for segmenting, targeting and positioning which forms the core of marketing strategy. Because lifestyle refers to the way in which people live and spend money, consumers psychographic profiles are derived by measuring different aspects of consumer behaviour such as: 1) Products and services consumed 2) Activities, interests and opinions 3) Value systems 4) Personality traits and self-conception 5) 5 Attitude towards various product classes Many approaches are available to the study of psychographic variables. One of the ways is to study the lifestyle variables by an AIO inventory for use in segmenting, targeting and positioning. Another lifestyle approach is by using VALS typology. We will expand on these concepts now.
Aio Inventories AIO studies envisage a wide variety of variables and measures the major dimensions shown below: Activities
Interests
Opinions
Demographics
Work
Family
Themselves
Age
Hobbies
Home
Social
Education
Social events
Job
Politics
Income
Vacation
Community
Business
Occupation
Entertainment Recreation
Economics
Family
size
Club member
Fashion
Education
Geography
Community Food
Products
City
size
Shopping
Media
Future
Lifecycle
Sports
Achievements
Culture
Dwelling
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Let us take a closer look at these variables : • What are activities? Activities indicate how a consumer/family spends his/her/their time. • What are interests? Interests are a family's or consumer's preferences or priorities. • What are opinions? Opinions are how a consumer feels about a wide variety of events and things. In order to explore an individual’s activities, interests and opinions, respondents are given lengthy questionnaires in which they are asked how strongly they agree or disagree with statements such as:
I would like to become an actor
I usually dress for fashion and not for comfort
A woman's place is in the house
I-often have drinks before dinner
I love the outdoors.
The statements can be general or product-specific. They can be pertaining to individual or family/household. For instance, the classifications of different type of Psychographic statements for traveller’s cheques are given below: In constructing an inventory of such lifestyle statements researchers first go through market research studies that might be of help in isolating psychographic variables.
Application of AIO Studies Studying the lifestyle closely through the AIO inventory of heavy/medium/light users of a product has been found to be immensely useful for marketers. In the US studies have been done regarding the heavy use of beer, eye make-up and bank credit cards. When it was revealed that 23% of the people who drink beer consume 80% of the beverage sold, the heavy beer user became the advertising target of the new campaign. Willian Wells and Douglas Tigert used an AIO inventory to probe the4tteavy user of eye cosmetics. Demographic data revealed that such women were young, well educated and metropolitan. But she also tended to. be a heavy smoker and more inclined than the average woman to make long distance telephone calls. From the responses to statements, she emerged as one who fantasises about trips around the world, and as one who wanted a very stylish home. In a study Plummer applied to bank credit card users, males who used bank charge cards heavily were described as urbane and active with high income level and occupational and educational achievements. The heavy card user places high value on personal appearance consistent with his career and lifestyle. He was found to buy at least three new suits a year, to belong to several organisations and revealed contemporary attitudes and opinions. Thus, a study of personality, lifestyle and social class gives a more comprehensive consumer profile and not a mere physical description of demographics. Using the AIO inventory, the Chicago based advertising agency of Needham, Harper and Steers have identified five female P a g e |9
lifestyle groups and five male lifestyle groups. We have Indian parallels of these types and you may try to recall the advertisements given alongside in brackets to identify the lifestyle portrayed through these characters and decide whether they conform.
Female Lifestyle Types 1. Cathy The Contented Housewife (Beena Ganguly In The Dalda Refined Oil Advertisements? ) Cathy epitomises simplicity. She is devoted to her family and faithfully serves them as mother housewife and cook. She enjoys a relaxed pace and avoids anything which might disturb her equilibrium. 2. Candice-The Chic Subarbanite. (Kitu Gidwani In The Halo Shampoo Advertisement?) Candice is an urban woman.She is well educated and genteel. Socializing is an important part of her life. She is a doer, interested in sports and the outdoors, politics and current affairs. Her life is hectic and lived at a fast clip. She is a voracious reader and there are few magazines she does not read. 3. Eleanor-The Elegant Socialite. (Shyamolie Verma In The Lakme Advertisement?) Eleanor is a woman with style. She lives in the city because that is where she want to be. She likes the socioeconomic aspects of the city in terms of her career and leisure time activities. She is fashion conscious and dresses well. She is financially secure and hence not a careful shopper. She shops for status and style and not for price. She is a cosmopolitan woman who has travelled abroad and wants to. 4. Mildred-The Militant Mother. (As An Exercise, Can You Think Of An Example So As To Draw A Comparison?) Mildred is a woman who got married young and had children before she was ready to raise a family. Now she is unhappy. She is frustrated and vents her frustration by rebelling against the system. Television provides an ideal medium for her to live out her fantasies. 5. Thelma-The Old Fashioned Traditionalist. (Lalitaji Of The Surf Advertisement?) Thelma is a lady who has lived a good life. She has been a devoted wife, a doting mother and a conscientious housewife. Even now, when most of her children have left home, her life is centred around the kitchen. She lacks higher education and has little appreciation for the arts or cultural activities. Her spare time is spent watching TV. To make these distilled profiles even more useful for segmenting markets for specific products aimed at women, the researchers then portrayed these segments in terms of an index of product usage. To illustrate, the following data on use of cosmetics by the above female psychographic segment reveal very interesting information. Combining these various pieces of information we can infer that Thelma-the traditionalist is most likely to use hair colouring, but least likely to use make-up. In contrast a marketer of a P a g e | 10
leading line of cosmetics, say Lakme in India is likely to prefer a target women like Eleanor. Such women are predisposed to using cologne, lipstick, hairspray, nailpolish and various other forms of expensive make-up. SIMILARLY THE SUGGESTED MALE LIFESTYLE TYPES ARE 1. Ben-the self made businessman. (Reminiscent of Gavaskar in Dinesh advertisement?) 2. Scott-the successful professional. (Shekhar Kapur in the Digjam advertisement?) 3. Dale-the devoted family man. (Zafer Lalji in the Cadbury advertisement?) 4. Fred-the frustrated factory worker. (Ramu in the Nirodh advertisement?) 5. Herman the retiring homebody. (Dadaji in the Dabur Chyavanprash advertisement?) LIFESTYLE PROFILES IN INDIAN CONTEXT In India, one of the agencies is trying to create a psychographic profile of the Indian child based on a sample of over 4463 in 8 metros and mini-metros. Advertisements are featuring children in advertisements for varied products and marketers feel that this makes the whole family involved and is consistent with our life experience. As an outcome of these studies the emerging profiles of the Indian children are given below: 1. 6-7 years: A fun seeker, heavily influenced by the family and by teachers. 2. 8-10 years: A role player, influenced primarily by school and by friends. 3. 11-15 years: An emulator, influenced by the peer group. At this stage, gradual non- acceptance of the family begins. 4. 16-18 years: Young adults, almost entirely conforming to the group. SOME OF THE INTERESTING FINDINGS OF THIS SURVEY ARE
Children love to see commercials on TV.
They have their favourite actors and cricketers.
Most of them are adventurous and like trying out new brands.
Children feel savings are necessary.
A very large percentage of children visit religious places.
Another major study using psychographic approach carried out by pathfinders, a marketing research agency in India covering 10303 working and non-working women aged between 18-45 years with family income of more than Rs. 350/- p.m. in 36 towns and cities across the country has come up with 8 identifiable types of Indian housewives. The gregarious hedonist: Found predominantly in the east, she is most likely to speak Bengali and is intensely extroverted and liberal. She does not believe in sacrificing her life just to keep her family happy. Self-indulgent and willing to spend money on new products, she is a marketing man's dream.
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The contemporary housewife: She is on the threshold of change. While she has not given up many traditional values, she aspires for modernity and is least likely to be living in north India. Though she is happier than she was five years ago. She feels the need to do something more meaningful besides housekeeping. She is fashion-conscious, but still uses fairness skin creames and her idea of trendy clothes does not go beyond the sari. The affluent sophisticate: She lives mainly in the west zone, and seems to live by the motto: "Have money, will spend". She is the highest user of all kinds of consumer products and indulges more in activitieseven simple ones like writing a cheque or using a telephone-which are out of reach of most housewives. She is comfortable talking to men outside her family circle, and would not mind if her children marry outside the community. One out of three do some form of exercise and are careful about their figures. The tight-fisted traditionalist: Leading a sheltered life, she prefers to follow the film stars in her dress habits but is particular about prices. She restricts her circle of friends to within her community and believes that girls should be educated especially to enable them to get good husbands. A majority live in north India. The troubled homebody: Neither a leader nor an emulator, she is largely illiterate and is least exposed to the media. Her three prized possessions are watches, transistors and bicycles. Fashion takes a back seat and the fate, according to her, is written in the stars The anxious rebel: Less likely to be found in the south, she would much rather be working than staying at home. She is anxious, thrifty but discerning in her shopping, though quite willing to try out new food recipes, and loves to spend on her children and guests. The contented conservative: She is extremely confident and probably the most efficient householder of all. She is a great optimist, is very conscious of the family's health and is, by and large, the advertising man's dream she believes that ads are a great source of information. The above study confirms the view that the Indian housewife sees herself basically as a traditional provider. The survey also reveals that an increasing number of urban women are beginning to see themselves in a more modern context.
Vals System Of Classification Another widely used lifestyle classification system is the Values and Lifestyle classification developed by Arnold Mitchell. The VALS system of classification classifies adults (18 +) in the US into distinctive lifestyle groups. Each group is based on inner psychological needs (values) and behaviour response patterns (lifestyles) which their values predict. The psychological theory used in VALS draws heavily on Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy, on Needs. The VALS theory and database were first applied to markets in 1978. VALS provides a dynamic framework of values and lifestyles; which helps to explain why people act as they do as social groups and as consumers. VALS, unlike some other approaches, waves together:
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1. Demographics, 2. Attitudes, 3. Activities, 4. Consumption patterns, 5. Brand preferences. 6. Media graphics. The VALS study leads to the identification of four major groups i.e. the need driven (the poor and uneducated), the outer directed (the middle or upper income class consumer whoselifestyle is directed by external criteria) and the inner directed (people who are motivated more by inner needs than by the expectations of others. The fourth segment, called integrated represents individuals who have been able to combine the best of both outer directed and inner directed values. The model given below covers all four major types. These groups, in turn, are divided into nine specific VALS segments. Among the need driven there are survivors and sustainers. In the case of survivors the purchase motivation is found to be price dominant. They are also not very knowledgeable' shoppers. The sustainers are motivated by brand names, guarantees and are generally impulse buyers. The outer directed belongers go for proven popularity of products. They are brand loyal and careful shoppers. The outer directed emulators buy products to impress other people and use products to announce status. The achievers buy high tech items. They want original, top of the line products. They are brand conscious and very loyal. The. inner directed IAM-ME's go after fads and do not mind being avantgarde. The inner directed experimental buy products for the sake of experimenting. They get tremendous amount of satisfaction from the purchase process itself. The inner directed societally conscious customer wants value for money. He is a simple, frugal person, who seeks information and reads labels carefully. Apart from the purchase motivations described above, the characteristics of the nine VALS segments identified by the SRI international study can be summarised as follows: 1. SURVIVORS: are disadvantaged people who tend to be despairing, depressed and withdrawn. 2. SUSTAINERS: are disadvantaged people who are struggling to get out of poverty. 3. BELONGERS: are people who are conventional, conservative and unexperimental; who would rather fit in than stand out. 4. EMULATORS: are upwardly mobile and status conscious; they want to make it big in life. 5. ACHIEVERS: are leaders who make things happen, work within the system and enjoy the good life. 6. "I-AM-ME”: are people who are typically young, self-engrossed and are given to whims. 7. EXPERIMENTALS: are people who pursue a rich inner life and want to directly experience what life has to offer. 27 Consumer Behaviour and Lifestyle Marketing 8. SOCIETALLY CONSCIOUS PEOPLE: have a high sense of social responsibility and want to improve conditions in society. 9. INTEGRATEDS: are people who have fully matured psychologically and who combine the best elements of inner directedness and outer directedness. P a g e | 13
Vals-2 Classification In a more recent development on lifestyle and value system. SRI now offers findings from a very comprehensive study, termed the VALS 2. The VALS 2 typology draws heavily on Maslow's need hierarchy and tries to explain the lifestyle orientation of the various segments based on the values sought by each of them in their life. VALS 2 typology classifies the American population into 3major consumer groups-the principle oriented, the status oriented, and the action oriented. These are then further sub-divided into eight distinctive lifestyle segments. Figure 3 below shows the VALS 2 segmentation segments. The three major segments as noted above are defined in terms of self orientations of people. The principles oriented represent consumers whose choices are governed by their beliefs rather than their need for other peoples, approval. The choices of status oriented consumers, on the other hand, are directed by the action, approval and opinion of other people. The action oriented consumers are those who are motivated by a need for social or physical activity, variety and risk bearing. The eight sub-divisions that these major self orientations have been divided into also differ in terms of their resources. Resources in this typology have been defined as physical, psychological, and demographical factors that become enabling variables in consumer's choice making behaviour. A description of the lifestyles and brief socio-economic profile of all the eight sub-segments of VALS 2 is given below.* The principle oriented people have been divided into 2 classes, the fulfilleds and the believers. Believers are conservative, conventional people with concrete beliefs and strong attachments to traditional institutions: family, church, community, and the nation. Many Believers possess moral codes that are deeply rooted and literally interpreted. They follow established routines, organized in large part around their families. and the social or religious organizations to which they belong. As consumers, they are conservative and predictable, favoring American products and established brands. Their education, income. and energy are modest but sufficient to meet their needs. Fulfilleds are mature, satisfied, comfortable, reflective people who value order, knowledge. and responsibility. Most are well educated, and in (or recently retired from) professional occupations. They are well-informed about world and national events and are alert to opportunities to broaden their knowledge. Content with their careers. families. and station in life, their leisure activities tend to center on their homes. F'u11illech have a moderate respect for the status quo, institutions of authority, and social decorum, but are open-minded about new ideas and social change. Fulfilleds tend to base their decisions on strongly held principles and consequently appear calm and self-assured. Although their incomes allow them many choices, Fulfilleds & are conservative, practical consumers: they are concerned about functionality, value, and durability in the products they buy.. The status oriented people have been further subdivided into 4 classes, the actualizers, the achievers the strivers and the strugglers. Actualizers are successful, sophisticated, active, "take-charge" people tenth high self-esteem and abundant resources. They are interested in growth and seek to develop, explore, and express themselves in a variety of ways-sometimes guided by principle, and sometimes by a desire to have an effect to make a change. Image is important to Actualizers, not as evidence of status or power, but as an expression of taste, independence, and character. P a g e | 14
Actualizers are among the established and emerging loaders in business and government, yet they continue to seek challenges. They have a wide range of interests, are concerned with social issues, and are open to change. Their lives are characterized by richness and diversity. Their possessions and recreation reflect a cultivated taste for the finer things in life. Achievers are successful career and work-oriented people who like to-and generally do-noel in control of their lives. They value structure. predictability, and stability of over risk, intimacy, and self-discovery. They are deeply committed to their work and their families. Work provides them with a sense of duty, material rewards, and prestige. Their social lives reflect this focus and are structured around family, church, and business. Achievers live conventional lives, are politically conservative, and respect authority and the status quo. Image is important to them. As consumers, they favor established products and services that demonstrate their success to their peers. Strivers seek motivation, self-definition, and approval from the world around them. They are striving to find a secure place in life. Unsure of themselves and low on economic, social, and psychological resources. Strivers are deeply concerned about the opinions and approval of others. Money defines success for 5'trirer, who don't hate enough of it and often feel that life has given them a raw deal. Strivers arc easily bored and impulsive Many of them seek to be stylish. They emulate those who have more impresses e possessions, but what they wish to obtain is generally beyond their reach. Strugglers' lives are constricted. Chronically poor, ill-educated. Ion-skilled, without Strong social bonds, aging, and concerned about their health they arc often despairing and passive. Because they are so limited, they show no evidence of a strong self-orientation, but are focussed on meeting the urgent needs of the present moment. Their chief concerns are for security and safety. Strugglers are cautious consumers. They represent a very modest market for most, products and services but are loyal to favorite brands. The action oriented segment comprises of two subsegments of Experiencers and Makers. Experiences are young, vital, enthusiastic, impulsive, and rebellious. They seek variety and excitement, savoring the new, the offbeat, and the risky. Still in the process of formulating life values and patterns of behavior, they quickly become enthusiastic about new possibilities but are equally quick to cool. At this stage in their lives, they are politically uncommitted, uninformed, and highly ambivalent about what they believe. Experiences combine an abstract disdain for conformity and authority with an outsider's awe of others' wealth, prestige, and power. Their energy finds an outlet in exercise, sports, outdoor recreation, and social activities. Experiencers are avid consumers and spend much of their income on clothing, fast food, music, movies, and video. Makers are practical people who have constructive skills and value self-sufficiency. They live in a traditional context of family, practical work, and physical recreation, and have little interest in what lies outside that context. Makers experience the work by working on it-building a house, raising children, fixing a car, or canning vegetables-and have sufficient skill, income, and energy to carry out their projects successfully. Makers are politically conservative, suspicious of new ideas, respectful of government authority and organized labor. but resentful of government intrusion on individual rights. They are unimpressed by material possessions other than those with a practical or functional purpose (e.g. tools, pickup trucks, or fishing equipment). P a g e | 15
Applications Of Vals Classification Marketers have put to good use this concept which is based on the idea that individuals pass through a number of developmental stages" with each stage affecting the person's attitudes, behaviour and psychological needs. As the preceding portraits have revealed, VALS can be used to 1. Identify target market characteristics and usage. 2. Guide executional and strategic approaches. 3. Identify key media for target groups. 4. Guide merchandising efforts. The new advertising appeals being tried for products in India and the convenience oriented retailing emerging in the country namely fast food restaurants, speciality shops for apparel as well as other products, etc. are representative of the marketing thrust resulting from targeting at selected lifestyle groups for nichemanship. Applications Of Lifestyled Marketing The most striking uses of lifestyle concept and allied research have been made in positioning of new products, repositioning of existing products, developing new product concepts and creating new product opportunities in specific fields. In congruence to the product concept chosen, lifestyle research is utilised for selecting media, formulating media and promotion strategies and improving retail performance. Lifestyle concept is also utilised as a framework for presenting research recommendations, since it is capable of offering to the marketers, potraits of target group expressed in an uncomplicated manner. Positioning Of New Products Positioning comprises finding the most profitable niche for a new product in terms of target: market. Lifestyle research, for example, an AIO portrait, of heavy users for any given consumer product not only tells us how old they are, where they live and to what socio-economic group they belong, it also tells us what products are they likely to buy, what their interests and opinions are. This provides an unusually rich body of data for use in marketing decisions related to the positioning of a new product. Decisions concerning the precise target group at which the product is to be aimed, the product image to be designed, the media vehicle and the type of promotion strategy to be taken so that the complete product package is in conformity with a particular lifestyle/styles. Repositioning An Old/Existing Product Sometimes existing products may sell well below their forecast potential or the company may discover a new, more profitable niche, nearer to the core market where it may now want to position the P a g e | 16
product. Repositioning is often a contingency planned for in the new product development process, primarily as a remedial measure. Generally in markets where the competitive activity is high, the need while positioning the product for the fixed time is to get a foot hold in the market. After gaining market penetration, establishing distribution and creating a certain degree of market acceptability, the manufacturer may, through repositioning, or a series of repositionings move the product closer to the core market. Lifestyle marketing strategies help considerably in reducing the amount of `market grouping' that repositioning may entail. Further in case of existing products, the market offering is physical instead of merely conceptual. The physical attributes are difficult to change completely, the development and original positioning costs have already become sunk costs. Repositioning then becomes a good strategy. Lifestyle repositioning would involve moving the product closer, to the psycho graphic profile of the core market segment, by altering its image or some of its attributes to suit the lifestyle of the core segment. Recent examples of repositioning the product have been the efforts of Johnson and Johnson Ltd., to move their baby shampoos and lotions to the adult market by changing the promotional and packaging strategy of the product to appeal to the growing "natural healthy look" lifestyle. Mahindra & Mahindra are currently repositioning their Jeep, by aiming it at the lifestyle of the successful professional who prefers a rugged lifestyle instead of a sophisticated one, is the outdoor type and values his comfort. Developing New Product Concepts Study of existing market segments and analysis of their needs have typically been used to conceptualise on new product opportunities. Traditionally, demographic segmentation, or standard consumer classification of major groups like the educated youth, the young collegiate, the urban housewife etc. have been used to define and study the segments. Lifestyle studies on the other hand can be used to complement the demographic studies in terms of market needs, customer and non-customer attitudes, the opinions related to product usage and the interests of the target customers, to be able to define the product attributes which may be congenial to certain lifestyles. For example users of fluoride toothpaste may have different expectations from it. Some use it as a medicinal aid to oral hygiene; others feel it should give cosmetic benefit. Even among these who use it as a medicine, there are two sets of expectations, some believing that a medicine ought to taste like a medicine while others strongly feel that just because the fluoride toothpaste has a medicinal ingredient, it need not taste like one. In developing the concept of a new fluoride toothpaste, you will find that a complete inventory of Attitudes, Interests and Opinions of the consumers will help you in defining the attributes of the final product, as you can define the requirements of the different lifestyle segment and then conceptualize as to which segment you wish to aim the product at.
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Creating Promotional Strategies Lifestyle information is helpful in developing promotional strategies in a number of ways. It gives the decision maker a much more complete profile of the type of consumer who will be at the receiving end of the communication. Lifestyle data suggests the style of language, the tone of voice and even the appeal that may be utilized to reach that kind of consumer. Further, lifestyle information indicates how the product or service fits into people’s lives, how they feel about it and how they may be using the product or service to communicate with others. This information can be utilized by the marketer to decide upon the kind of image he wants to imbue the product with. The Indian marketing scenario, especially for consumer durables, is becoming fiercely competitive. Hence companies are realizing that merely highlighting the attributes of their product or of the company in terms of demographic or geographic dimensions is not enough to be successful in the market place. Marketers have come to appreciate that buying behaviour is influenced by the consumer's lifestyle. Companies dealing in cosmetics, apparel, packaged food etc. are seeking opportunities in lifestyle segmentation. Stores, especially those dealing in apparel, have started keeping merchandise which goes with a particular lifestyle. The Bata-North star advertisement aiming at the “Young, western oriented, fun loving crowd” is an example of this approach. Further, the fact that Bata Ltd. has expanded its product range to and also a full range of active sports wear under "Power", bring out their attempt at lifestyle marketing. The growing westernization of youth in our country and the resulting change in lifestyle is responsible for the ever increasing demand for jeans in the country. Denim as a lifestyle-fabric is fast gaining acceptance in the country, transcending demographic segments and marketers are making use of this phenomenon.
CONCLUSION Consumer behaviour is still a young discipline and most of the research now available has been generalised only during the past fifteen years or so. Innovations such as the lifestyle concept and AIO research represent ways to move the study of consumers away from isolated, often unrelated projects towards broader integrated systems and research techniques.
Post-purchase decision Processes and Behaviour Once the buyer makes a decision to purchase a value proposition, there can be several types of additional behaviour associated with that decision. Four activities are of primary importance: 1.
Where to purchase (store choice)
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2.
How to pay (e.g. credit card/store credit/cash)
3.
Decisions on delivery and installation
4.
Decisions on additional products/value acquisitions (products related to the item purchased).
Shopping Decisions
Fully Planned Purchase
Partially Planned Purchase.
(NB the Purchase may in fact also have been unplanned at the time of purchase)
The Shopping Experience
The Social Experience of Shopping – Shopping with others
The Shopping Situation
Physical and Social Surrounds
The Status Experience
The Thrill of the Chase
Sharing Common Interests
A Meeting Location
Shopping as Participative Theatre Role Playing
The Heroes
The Cast/Performance Team – Characters to see
The Stage
Mall/Shopping Centre Image
Store Image – Atmosphere
The Performance
Diversion
Social Activity
Learning
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One of the post decision is how the acquisition will be financed. Potential options include:
Lay-by
Credit card
Cheque
Lease
Hire purchase
Rental
Store credit
Bank loan
Each is a potentially an important decision which may affect the buyers overall purchase choice
Decisions on Value Acquisition Two important post-purchase decisions to be made relate to delivery and installation.Not all products require these sort of decisions and some do not offer the options.
Delivery 1.
Can the buyer take immediate possession and take it home?
2.
Can delivery be organised by the seller?
3.
When can delivery occur?
Installation The value proposition must be made ready for the buyer to use. Televisions, hi-fi units, and air conditioners, for example, all must be carefully set up if the consumer is to find satisfaction from their use. Another element of value acquisition set-up and use concerns instructions
Marketing Implications It is also important for the marketer to understand the user’s consumption system, that is, the manner in which the consumer performs the total task of whatever he or she is trying to accomplish when using the value acquisition, whether it is washing clothes or cooking a meal.
Decisions on Additional (Related) Products/Value Acquisitions A buyer of one item becomes a candidate for all sorts of options and related value acquisitions. Retailers have learned that the profits are often in the optional extras that a buyer purchases, rather than in the original product itself.
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Post-Purchase Behaviour Post Purchase Behaviour is what occurs after the value proposition becomes the Value acquisition.When the buyer become the user/consumer.Some important marketing implications flow from buyers post-purchase decisions.
Post-Purchase Behavior PPB deals with actual rather than potential customers It has an impact on future sales.Information learned can be used to improve products and services, undertake better targeted promotions, and design more effective strategies to keep actual customers and attract new ones.
Product Consumption Consumption is the possession and/or use of goods and services and the benefits they deliver Consumption situation
Physical context: time and place of consumption
Social context: the presence of others
Consumption episode: the set of items belonging to the same event and occurring in temporal proximity
Consumption system: a bundle of goods and services that are consumed over time in multiple episodes.
How is the product used?
How much is consumed at any one time?
Post-purchase Dissonance Consumers may become dissonant over a purchase decision. Cognitive dissonance occurs as a result of a discrepancy between a consumer’s decision and the consumer’s prior evaluation. This theory was derived from two basic principles: (1) dissonance is uncomfortable and will motivate the person to reduce it and (2) individuals experiencing dissonance will avoid situations that produce more dissonance.
Assessment Results From Dissonance Dissonance is doubt or inconsistency between the buyer’s perception of the state he or she wants to exist and the state that actually exists. We purchase something and we expect it to work over a reasonable period of time. If it does not, then we have doubts about our purchase. Dissonance disrupts the buyer’s equilibrium with this doubt causing the person to seek relief. This relief is assessment, and it is the direct result of dissonance.
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Dissonance is a mental state because the doubt exists in the mind. There is no question that dissonance occurs in a great many, if not all, buying situations. We consider dissonance to be normal after a decision or product selection – but not inevitable. It may occur for no other reason than that the buyer wants to check the results of the decision to be sure.
Factors That Cause Dissonance There are several factors that make dissonance highly likely both before and after the purchase.
First, there is price or total payment cost.
Second, there is psychological importance.
Third, there is product performance.
Fourth, there is the number of rejected alternatives.
Fifth is the perceived performance of alternatives rejected.
Sixth, the credibility of the source of new information affects the amount of dissonance it causes.
Purchase-Associated Cognitive Dissonance It occurs at “time of commitment”. It is the feeling of uncertainty about whether the right choice is being made. There is no finite time of possession or use requirement for it to occur.
Factors that Affect Cognitive Dissonance
Importance of the purchase decision
Consumer’s tendency toward anxiety
Finality of the purchase decision
Clarity of the final purchase choice
Conditions Leading to Dissonance Dissonance is likely to occur under the following conditions: 1.
Once a minimum threshold of dissonance tolerance is passed.
2.
The action is irrevocable
3.
Unselected alternatives have desirable features.
4.
There are several desirable alternatives.
5.
Available alternatives are quite dissimilar in their qualities (there is little “cognitive overlap”).
6.
The buyer is committed to his decision because it has psychological significance.
7.
There is no pressure applied to the consumer to make the decision.
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Types of Consumption Situations Extensive marketer control Limited marketer control No marketer control Consumption Norms Consumption Rituals
Types of Consumption Situations Ritual Consumption Special and Ordinary Consumption Special consumption
Ordinary consumption Types of Consumption Situations Compulsive Consumption
Post-purchase Evaluation
There are several functions which this stage serves.
First, it serves to broaden the consumer’s set of experiences stored in memory.
Second, it provides a check on how well he is doing as a consumer in selecting value acquisitions, stores, and so on.
Third, the feedback that the consumer receives from this stage helps to make adjustments in future purchasing strategies.
Positive Post-purchase Behaviour Positive evaluation Loyalty develops over time through positive market experiences
Loyalty phases: Cognitive (based on beliefs only) Affective (like, based on repeated satisfying use) Conative (behavioral intention loyalty) Action (strong readiness to act)
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Buyer/Consumer Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction Satisfaction is an important element in the evaluation stage. Satisfaction refers to the buyer’s state of being adequately rewarded in a buying situation for the sacrifice he or she has made. Adequacy of satisfaction Satisfaction/dissatisfaction isn’t an emotion,
Expectation and Satisfaction Product experiences can be classified into three types based on the degree to which consumer expectations are fulfilled (confirmation) or not (expectancy disconfirmation): Simple confirmation: Positive disconfirmation: Negative disconfirmation:
Buyer/Consumer Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction If satisfaction perceptions are less than expected, then negative disconfirmation is said to have occurred.
Satisfaction Versus Dissatisfaction The level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction we experience depends upon how well the product’s performance meets our expectations A finite time period of possession is necessary to determine satisfaction
Satisfaction is not easily measured because:
It means different things to different people
The level of satisfaction can change over time
Satisfaction can change when consumer needs and preferences change
Satisfaction may include a social dimension (the experience of others may add or subtract from our own satisfaction)
Categories of Satisfactory Performance Ideal: Equitable: Expected:
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Relationship Between Performance and Satisfaction Aspects of performance related to satisfaction: Objective performance Affective
Expectations Consumers form certain expectations prior to the purchase. These expectations may be about: 5.
the nature and performance of the product (
6.
the costs and efforts to be expended before obtaining the direct value acquisition benefits, and
7.
the social benefits or costs accruing to the consumer as a result of the purchase.
Disconfirmation of Expectations Instead, a modifying variable known as “disconfirmation of expectations” Such disconfirmation can be of two varieties: a)
a positive disconfirmation,
b) a negative disconfirmation.
Confirming Expectations When the purchase confirms the consumer’s expectations, reinforcement takes place. When expectations are not confirmed, however, cognitive inconsistency develops and the consumer will likely reduce the dissonance by evaluating the product (or store) somewhat negatively.
Unrealistic Expectations Consumer expectations may be set unrealistically high, with resultant dissatisfaction when they are not fulfilled, as when the product breaks down for some reason. In order to reduce this occurrence, products should be carefully developed with the consumer in mind. A clear understanding of how the value acquisition will be used and how it fits into the consumer’s lifestyle is necessary.
Managing Expectations Expectations are formed by many uncontrollable factors, from the experience of customers with other companies and their advertising to a customer’s psychological state at the time he or she receives service.
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Strictly speaking, what customers expect is as diverse as their backgrounds, education, values, and experiences.
Managing Expectations Customer expectations are dynamic and shift over time.” Over-promising and under-delivering will result in dissatisfaction. Customers want the product to be delivered as promised – explicitly, as in a tender submission, or less explicitly via mass media advertising or promotion material.
Zone of Indifference Discussing customer satisfaction issues would be incomplete without reference to the zone of indifference.The extent to which customers are willing to accept some degree of variation is referred to as the zone of indifference
Expectation Types
Desired (or- ideal) expectations
Equitable or deserved expectation
Predictive expectations
Adequate (or minimum tolerable) expectations
Fuzzy expectations
Explicit expectations
Implicit expectations
Closing the Gap Between Expectation and Performance Marketers must understand consumer expectations and the extent to which purchases satisfy them. Marketers must match product benefits to consumer needs:
Needs of target market and the benefits of the product must be a good fit.
Communication must clearly describe both the product’s benefits and the way it is to be used
Do not raise consumer expectations beyond the actual benefits that the product offers.
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Normative Standard Definition This is evaluating satisfaction on the basis of whether or not the customers believed that they were treated in accordance with how they believe they should be treated. Some people have higher expectations of treatment in any given service situation.
Normative Deficit Definition Procedural Fairness Definition Measuring Customer Satisfaction The most common means of measuring client satisfaction: * asking customers; * investigating complaints; * evaluating service attributes; * asking customers what will increase their satisfaction; * asking what is wrong or could be improved.
The difficulty that researchers have with measuring client satisfaction is that customers are not always able to define their satisfaction levels. Moreover, customers more often than not do not know if they are satisfied. They can assume that they are satisfied because they use the service frequently, but this may not be the case.
Reducing Dissonance What consumers do: Try to find ways to reinforce the desirability of the choice made Try to make the “losing” choices look weaker Try to lessen the importance of the choice decision than they had originally thought
What marketers must do: Match their products with the appropriate target consumers Offer clear communication, return policies, warranties, in-store demonstrations Make salespeople available to answer questions
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Negative Post-Purchase Behaviour Passive: Active:
Types of negative post-purchase behaviour:
Negative word-of-mouth
Rumour
Complaint behavior (no action, private action, public action)
Marketers Often Create Dissonance That is to try and suggest to a prospect that something could be better
Dissonance Reduction There are several major ways in which the consumer strives to reduce dissonance. He or she may: 1.
change his or her valuation of the alternative,
2.
seek new information to support his or her choice, or
3.
change his or her attitudes.
4. Changing Value Acquisition Evaluations 5. Seek New Information 6. Change His Or Her Attitudes 7. Individual Responses to Dissatisfaction The individual buyer is not helpless when dealing with frustrations toward organisations.
The Buyer Can Engage In Three Types Of Behaviour When Dissatisfied. These actions can be summarised as: Take no action. Trade elsewhere. Contact organisation representatives. Take legal action
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Take No Action A dissatisfied buyer may choose to take no action against the offending firm, simply deciding that confronting the firm would not be worthwhile.
Trade Elsewhere A problem with this course of action is that it seldom works for individuals. Few businesses miss one or two customers. Even so, buyers may obtain considerable satisfaction from withdrawing their trade.
Contact Organisation Or Representatives Typically, customers take their complaints either to the salesperson or department manager where the dissatisfaction occurred. If the problem is a defective product, discourteous salespeople, or something similar, this is a good place to begin.
Final Actions Take the matter up with Government Departments Take the Matter to Interested Media Take Legal Action If all else fails, the customer has the right to take legal action against the firm.
Selling Misery To Others Some buyers use the technique of selling their own misery to others as a means of reducing dissonance.
Marketer Actions to Reduce Dissatisfaction
Build realistic expectations
Demonstrate or explain product use
Stand behind the product
Encourage customer feedback
Periodically make contact with customers
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