Chapter Three

Consumer Needs and Motivation

3.1 Introduction
Psychologists and consumer behaviorists agree that most people tend to experience
the same kinds of needs and motives; they simply express these motives in different
ways. For this reason, an understanding of human motives is very important to
marketers; it enables them to understand and to predict human behavior in the market
place.
Human needs-consumer needs- are the basis of all modern marketing. Needs are the
essence of the marketing concept. The key to company’s survival, profitability, and
growth in a competitive market is its ability to identify and satisfy unfulfilled
consumer needs.

3.2 Concept of Motivation and Motives

Motivation may be defined as psychological forces that determine thedirection of
person’s behaviour, a person’s level of effort, and a person’slevel of persistence in the
face of obstacles. In another words,motivation is the process that account for an
individual intensity,direction, and persistence of effort towards attaining a goal.
Motivation is the reason for behavior. A motive is a construct representing an
unobservable inner force that stimulates and compels a behavioral response and

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provides specific direction to that response. A motive is why an individual does
something. The terms need and motivation are often used interchangeably. This is
because when a consumer feels a gap between a desired state and his or her actual
current state, a need is recognized and experienced as a drive state referred to as
motivation. Needs and motives influence what consumers perceive as relevant and
also influence their feelings and emotions. For example, a consumer who feels hungry
is motivated to satisfy that need, will view food and ads for food as personally
relevant, and will experience negative emotions prior to eating and positive emotions
after eating.
3.3 Motivational Strength
The degree to which a person is willing to expend energy to reach one goal as
opposedto another reflects his or her underlying motivation to attain that goal. Many
theorieshave been advanced to explain why people behave the way they do. Most
share the basicidea that people have some finite amount of energy that must be
directed towardscertain goals.
Biological vs. learned needs
Early work on motivation ascribed behaviour to instinct, the innate patterns of
behaviourthat are universal in a species. This view is now largely discredited. For one
thing, theexistence of an instinct is difficult to prove or disprove. The instinct is
inferred from thebehaviour it is supposed to explain (this type of circular explanation
is called a tautology).
It is like saying that a consumer buys products that are status symbols becausehe or
she is motivated to attain status, which is hardly a satisfying explanation.
Drive theory
Drive theoryfocuses on biological needs that produce unpleasant states of arousal
(e.g.your stomach grumbles during the first lecture of the day – you missed breakfast).
Weare motivated to reduce the tension caused by this arousal. Tension reduction has
beenproposed as a basic mechanism governing human behaviour.
In a marketing context, tension refers to the unpleasant state that exists if a
person’sconsumption needs are not fulfilled. A person may be grumpy or unable to
concentratevery well if she hasn’t eaten, or someone may be dejected or angry if he
cannotafford that new car he wants. This state activates goal-oriented behaviour,
whichattempts to reduce or eliminate this unpleasant state and return to a balanced
one calledhomeostasis.

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Those behaviors that are successful in reducing the drive by satisfying the
underlyingneed are strengthened and tend to be repeated. Your motivation to leave
class early to grab a snack wouldbe greater if you hadn’t eaten in 24 hours than if you
had eaten breakfast only two hoursearlier. If you did sneak out and got indigestion
after, say, wolfing down a packet ofcrisps, you would be less likely to repeat this
behaviour the next time you wanted asnack. One’s degree of motivation, then,
depends on the distance between one’s presentstate and the goal.
Drive theory, however, runs into difficulties when it tries to explain some facets
ofhuman behaviour that run counter to its predictions. People often do things that
increasea drive state rather than decrease it. For example, people may delay
gratification. Ifyou know you are going out for a five-course dinner, you might decide
to forgo a snackearlier in the day even though you are hungry at that time. And, as we
shall see inthe discussion of desire, the most rewarding thing may often be the tension
of the drivestate itself rather than its satisfaction. It’s not the kill, it’s the thrill of the
chase.
Expectancy theory
Most current explanations of motivation focus on cognitive factors rather than
biologicalones to understand what drives behaviour. Expectancy theorysuggests that
behaviouris largely pulled by expectations of achieving desirable outcomes – positive
incentives –rather than pushed from within. We choose one product over another
because we expectthis choice to have more positive consequences for us. Thus the
term drive is used heremore loosely to refer to both physical and cognitive, i.e.
learned, processes.
3.4 Motivational Direction
Motives have direction as well as strength. They are goal oriented in that they drive
usto satisfy a specific need. Most goals can be reached by a number of routes, and the
objectiveof a company is to convince consumers that the alternative it offers provides
the bestchance to attain the goal. For example, a consumer who decides that she needs
a pair ofjeans to help her reach her goal of being accepted by others can choose
among Levi’s,Wranglers, Diesel, Calvin Klein and many other alternatives, each of
which promises todeliver certain benefits.

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Needs vs. wants
The specific way a need is satisfied depends on the individual’s unique history,
learningexperiences and his or her cultural environment. The particular form of
consumptionused to satisfy a need is termed a want. For example, two classmates may
feel theirstomachs rumbling during a lunchtime lecture. If neither person has eaten
since thenight before, the strength of their respective needs (hunger) would be about
the same.
However, the way each person goes about satisfying this need might be quite
different.The first person may be a vegetarian like Tessel who fantasizes about
gulping down a bigbowl of salad, whereas the second person like Jez might be equally
aroused by theprospect of a large plateful of bacon and eggs.
Types of needs
There are numerous types of needs, and many of them offeruseful insights for the
marketing manager. This section describesMaslow’s hierarchy of needs &
McGuireapproach to understanding consumermotivation.
A start to the discussion of needs and wants can best be illustrated by considering
twobasic types of need. People are born with a need for certain elements necessary to
maintainlife, such as food, water, air and shelter. These are called biogenic needs.
People havemany other needs, however, that are not innate. We acquire psychogenic
needs as webecome members of a specific culture. These include the need for status,
power, affiliation,and so on. Psychogenic needs reflect the priorities of a culture, and
their effect onbehaviour will vary in different environments. For example, an Italian
consumer may bedriven to devote a good chunk of his income to products that permit
him to display hisindividuality, whereas his Scandinavian counterpart may work
equally hard to ensurethat he does not stand out from his group.
This distinction is revealing because it shows how difficult it is to distinguish
needsfrom wants. How can we tell what part of the motivation is a psychogenic need
and whatpart is a want? Both are profoundly formed by culture, so the distinction is
problematicat best. As for the biogenic needs, we know from anthropology that
satisfaction of theseneeds leads to some of the most symbolically rich and culturally
based activities ofhumankind. The ways we want to eat, dress, drink and provide
shelter are far moreinteresting to marketers than our need to do so. And, in fact,
human beings need verylittle in the strict sense of the word. Charles Darwin was
astonished to see the native
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Americans of Tierra del Fuego sleep naked in the snow. Hence, the idea of
satisfaction ofbiogenic needs is more or less a given thing for marketing and
consumer researchbecause it is on the most basic level nothing more than a simple
prerequisite for us to behere. Beyond that level, and of much greater interest (and
challenge!) to marketers, is aconcept embedded in culture such as wants.8
As we have seen, another traditional distinction is between the motivations to
satisfyeither utilitarian or hedonic needs. The satisfaction of utilitarian needs implies
that consumerswill emphasize the objective, tangible attributes of products, such as
fuel economyin a car; the amount of fat, calories, and protein in a cheeseburger; and
the durabilityof a pair of blue jeans. Hedonic needs are subjective and experiential.
Here, consumersmight rely on a product to meet their needs for excitement, self-
confidence, fantasy, andso on. Of course, consumers can be motivated to purchase a
product because it providesboth types of benefits. For example, a mink coat might be
bought because it feels softagainst the skin, because it keeps one warm through the
long cold winters of NorthernEurope, and because it has a luxurious image. But again
the distinction tends to hidemore than it reveals, because functionality can bring great
pleasure to people and is animportant value in the modern world.
I )Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Fig 3.2

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Abraham Maslow organized five major types of human needs into ahierarchy. The
need hierarchy illustrates Maslow's conception of peoplesatisfying their needs in a
specified order, from bottom to top. The need,in ascending order are; physiological
needs (Food, Water, Sex andShelter), Safety needs (Protection against threat and
deprivation),Belongingness needs (Friendship, Affection, Affiliation and
Love),Esteem needs (Independence, Achievement, recognition, Self
respect,Accomplishment and Freedom), Self-Actualization (Realizing one’s
fullpotential or Self Fulfillment).
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs approach is based on four premises
• All human acquire a similar set of motives through geneticendowment and social
interaction.
• Some motive are more basic or critical than others
• The more basic motives must be satisfied to a minimum level beforeother motives
are activated
• As the basic motive become satisfied, more advanced motives comeinto play.
Marketing Strategy and Maslow’s Motive Hierarchy
i. PHYSIOLOGICAL: Food, water, sleeps, and, to an extent, sex, are
physiological motives.
Product Health foods, medicines, sports drinks, low-cholesterolfoods, and
exercise equipment.
ii. SAFETY: Seeking physical safety and security, stability, familiar
surroundings, and so forth are manifestations of safety needs.
Product: Smoke detectors, preventive medicines, insurance,retirement
investments, seat belts, burglar alarms, and sunscreen.
iii. BELONGINGNESS: Belongingness motives are reflected in a desire for love,
friendship, affiliation, and group acceptance
Products: Personal grooming, foods, entertainment, clothing, andmany others.
iv. ESTEEM: Desires for, superiority, self-respect, and prestige are examples of
esteem needs. The needs relate to the individual’s feelings of usefulness and
accomplishment.
Products Clothing, furniture, liquors, hobbies, stores, and carsamongst others.
v. SELF-ACTUALIZATION: This involves the desire for self fulfillment, to
become all that one is capable of becoming.
Products: Education, hobbies, sports, some vacations, museums.

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II) McGuire’s motives
McGuire has developed a motive classification system that is morespecific in
understanding consumer behavior. McGuire’s motives thatare of most use to
marketing are briefly described in the followingsections.
Need for Consistency: A basic desire is to have all facets or parts ofone consistent
with each other. These facets include attitudes, behaviors,opinions, self-images, views
of others, and so forth. Marketers use thisin several ways. First, it makes clear the
need for a consistent marketingmix. The second area of marketing interest with
consistency is calledcognitive dissonance. This refers to a tendency of consumers to
worryabout the wisdom of major purchases after they have been made. Oftenmaking a
major purchase is not consistent with the need to save moneyor to make other
purchase.
Need to Attribute Causation: This set of motives deals with our needto determine
who or what causes the things that happen to us. Do weattribute the cause of a
favorable or unfavorable outcome to ourselves orto some outside force? Attributing
cause is part of the foundation for theuse of rhetorical theory to understand
consumers’ responses topersuasive messages.
Need to Categorize: we have a need to categorize and organizeinformation and
experiences in some meaningful yet manageable way.So we establish categories or
mental partitions that allow us to processlarge quantities of information.
Need for Cues: These motives reflect needs for observable cues orsymbols that
enable us to infer what we feel and know. Impressions,feelings, and attitudes are
subtly established by viewing our ownbehavior and that of others and drawing
inferences as to what we feeland think. In many instances, clothing plays an important
role inpresenting the subtle meaning of a desired image and consumer lifestyle.
Need for Independence: The need for independence and individualityis a
characteristic of some culture. It is likely that all individuals in allcultures have this
need at some level. Americans are taught that it isproper and even essential to express
and fulfill this need. In contrast, incountries such as Japan, fulfillment of this need is
discouraged, whilefulfillment of the need for affiliation is socially acceptable. Owning
orusing products and services that are unique is one way consumersexpress their
independence.
Need for Self-Expression: This motive deals with the need to expressone’s identity
to others. We feel the need to let others know by ouractions (which include the
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purchase and display of goods) who we areand what we are. The purchase of many
products such as clothing andautomobiles allows consumers to express their identity
to others, sincethese products have symbolic or expressive meanings.
Need for Ego-Defense: The need to defend our identities or egos isanother important
motive. When our identity is threatened, we aremotivated to protect our self-concept
and utilize defensive behaviors andattitudes. Many products can provide ego-defense.
A consumer whofeels insecure may rely on well-known brands for socially
visibleproducts to avoid any chance of making a socially incorrect purchase.
Need for Reinforcement: We are often motivated to act in certain waysbecause we
are rewarded for doing so. Products designed to be used inpublic situations (clothing,
furniture, and artwork) are frequently sold onthe basis of the amount and type of
reinforcement that will be received.
Need for Affiliation: Affiliation is the need to develop mutually helpfuland satisfying
relationship with others. Marketers frequently use suchaffiliation-based themes as
“Your kids will love you for it” inadvertisements.
Need for Modeling: The need for modeling reflects a tendency to basebehavior on
that of others. Modeling is a major means by which childrenlearn to become
consumers. The tendency to model explains some of theconformity that occurs within
reference groups. Marketers utilize thismotive by showing desirable types of
individuals using their brands.
Need for Novelty: We often seek variety and difference simply out of aneed for
novelty. Marketers refer to the outcome of this motive asvariety-seeking behavior.
This may be a prime reason for brandswitching and some so-called impulse
purchasing. The need for noveltyis curvilinear and changes over time. That is,
individuals experiencingrapid change generally become satiated and desire stability,
whileindividuals in stable environments become “bored” and desire change.
Need for Assertion: The need for assertion reflects a consumer’s needfor engaging in
those types of activities that will bring about an increasein self-esteem as well as
esteem in the eyes of others. Individuals with astrong need for assertion are more
likely to complain when dissatisfiedwith a purchase.

3.5 Role of Motives

The role of motives is to arouse and direct the behavior of consumers.

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The arousal component activates bodily energy so that it can be used formental and
physical activity. In their directive role, motives have severalimportant functions for
guiding behavior. These are discussed below:
Defining Basic Strivings: Motives influence consumers to develop andidentify their
basic strivings. Included among basic strivings are verygeneral goals such as safety,
affiliation, achievement, or other desiredstates which consumers seek to achieve.
They serve to guide behavior ina general way across a wide variety of decisions and
activities.
Identifying Goal Objects: Although there are exceptions, people oftenview products
or services as means by which they can satisfy theirmotives. In fact, consumers often
go one step further and think ofproducts as their actual goals, without realizing that
they actuallyrepresent ways of satisfying motives. This motivational push
thatinfluences consumers to identify products as goal objects is of greatinterest to
marketers, particularly since it appears that it can beinfluenced. Certainly, the features
designed into a product can affect thedegree to which consumers may accept it as a
goal or means forachieving some goal.
Influencing Choice Criteria: Motives also guide consumers indeveloping criteria for
evaluating products. Thus, for a car buyerstrongly influenced by the convenience
motive, features such aselectronic speed control and automatic driver-seat adjustments
wouldbecome more important choice criteria than would style or mileage.
Directing Other Influences:Motives affect the individual determinantsof perception,
learning, personality, attitudes, and how people processinformation. This also results
in directional influences on behavior. Forexample, motives influence information
processing, which in turnregulates how we interpret and respond to our environment.
3.6 Motives Arousal
A variety of mechanisms can trigger the arousal of motivates andenergize consumers.
The following may work alone or in combinationto activate behavior.
Physiological Conditions: This source of arousal acts to satisfy ourbiological needs
for food, water, and other life-sustaining necessities.
Depriving such a bodily need generates an uncomfortable state oftension. When this
tension is sufficiently strong, arousal occurs toprovide energy necessary to satisfy the
need. The consumer’s previousexperience and present situation will strongly
influence the directionsany heightened activity will take.

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Cognitive Activity: Humans engage in considerable cognitive activity(thinking and
reasoning) even when the objects of their thoughts are notphysically present. This
thinking, considered by some to bedaydreaming or fantasy, can also act as a motive
trigger. One way thisoccurs is when consumers deliberate about unsatisfied wants.
Situational Conditions: The particular situation confronting consumersmay also
trigger arousal. This can occur when the situation drawsattention to an existing
physiological condition, for example anadvertisement for Coca-cola suddenly makes
you aware of being thirsty.
Here, the need for liquids may have been present, but not yet strongenough to trigger
arousal. Seeing the advertisement draws attention tothe condition and leads to
activity. Situational conditions can also workalone to generate motive arousal. This
appears to occur whencircumstances draw consumers’ attention to the disparity
between theirpresent state and something viewed as a better condition.
Stimulus Properties: Certain properties of external stimuli themselvesalso seem to
have the power to generate arousal. These collativeproperties include the
characteristics of novelty, surprising ness,ambiguity, and uncertainty. Stimuli
possessing and sufficient amount ofthese properties have the potential of drawing
attention to themselves byarousing an individual’s curiosity or desire for exploration.
As such,they represent a special type of situational condition. Stimuli witharousal
potential are important for marketers because they can be used toattract and focus
consumers’ attention.
3.7 Definition of Involvement
Involvement is a reflection of strong motivation in the form of highperceived personal
relevance of a product or service in a particularcontext. Depending upon the perceived
linkage between the individual’smotivating influences and the benefits offered by the
object, it is acontinuum ranging from low to high. It becomes activated as
feltinvolvement when intrinsic personal characteristics (needs, values, andself-
concept) are confronted with appropriate marketing stimuli within agiven situation.
In other words, involvement consists of differences in the intensity ofinterest with
which consumers approach their dealings with themarketplace.

3.7.1 Dimensions of Involvement

The concept of involvement is multifaceted in that it appears to have anumber of
important dimensions. Some of these dimensions aredescribed as follows:

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Antecedents: A variety of variables are thought to precede involvementand influence
its nature and extent. These so-called antecedents can beviewed as bases or sources
that interact with each other to generate thedegree of involvement the consumer will
experience at any particulartime. These variables include person, stimulus/object, and
situationalcategories.
Involvement Properties: Involvement may be thought of as an internalstate that the
consumer experiences. As mentioned earlier, this internalstate has arousal properties
and, like motivation, it also has a directionalinfluence on how consumers will behave.
As an internal state,involvement may be viewed as having three main properties:
intensity,direction, and a level of persistence.
Response Factor: The response dimension characterizes how aconsumer behaves
under different involvement conditions. That is, itdescribes the mental and physical
actions or reactions the consumerengages in. Therefore, the response dimension is a
function of the typeof involvement generated and the situations confronted.
3.7.2 Types of Involvement and Marketing Implications
Involvement can include heightened thinking and processinginformation about the
goal object, referred to as cognitive involvement.
Involvement can also include heightened feelings and emotional energy,referred to as
affective involvement. Marketing can stimulate one or theother or both types of
involvement. Advertisements that encouragepeople to experience the feelings and
sensations associated with aproduct are stimulating affective involvement.
Advertisements thatprovide a detailed enumeration of information about a product
orwebsites that include comprehensive brand comparisons appeal tocognitive
involvement.
3.8Motivational Conflicts
A goal has valence, which means that it can be positive or negative. A positively
valuedgoal is one towards which consumers direct their behaviour; they are motivated
toapproach the goal and will seek out products that will help them to reach it.
However, notall behaviour is motivated by the desire to approach a goal.
As we saw in the previouschapter’s discussion of negative reinforcement, consumers
may instead be motivated toavoid a negative outcome. They will structure their
purchases or consumption activitiesto reduce the chances of attaining this end result.
For example, many consumers workhard to avoid rejection, a negative goal. They will

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stay away from products that theyassociate with social disapproval. Products such as
deodorants and mouthwash frequentlyrely on consumers’ negative motivation by
depicting the onerous social consequencesof underarm odor or bad breath.
Because a purchase decision can involve more than one source of motivation,
consumersoften find themselves in situations where different motives, both
positiveand negative, conflict with one another. Because marketers are attempting to
satisfyconsumers’ needs, they can also be helpful by providing possible solutions to
thesedilemmas. As shown in Figure 4.1, three general types of conflicts can occur:
approach–approach; approach–avoidance and avoidance–avoidance.
Approach–approach conflict
In an approach–approach conflict, a person must choose between two desirable
alternatives.
A student might be torn between going home for the holidays or going on a skiingtrip
with friends. Or, she might have to choose between two CDs.
The theory of cognitive dissonanceis based on the premise that people have a
needfor order and consistency in their lives and that a state of tension is created when
beliefsor behaviors conflict with one another. The conflict that arises when choosing
betweentwo alternatives may be resolved through a process of cognitive dissonance
reduction,where people are motivated to reduce this inconsistency (or dissonance) and
thuseliminate unpleasant tension.
A state of dissonance occurs when there is a psychological inconsistency between
twoor more beliefs or behaviors. It often occurs when a consumer must make a
choicebetween two products, where both alternatives usually possess both good and
bad qualities.
By choosing one product and not the other, the person gets the bad qualities of
thechosen product and loses out on the good qualities of the one not chosen.
This loss creates an unpleasant, dissonant state that the person is motivated to reduce.
People tend to convince themselves, after the fact, that the choice they made was the
rightone by finding additional reasons to support the alternative they chose, or
perhaps by‘discovering’ flaws with the option they did not choose. A marketer can
resolve anapproach–approach conflict by bundling several benefits together.
For example, manylow calorie products claim that they have ‘all the taste’ and ‘half
the calories’, allowingthe consumer to avoid having to choose between better taste
and fewer calories.
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Approach–avoidance conflict
Many of the products and services we desire have negative consequences attached
tothem as well. We may feel guilty or ostentatious when buying a status-laden
productsuch as a fur coat, or we might feel like a glutton when contemplating a box of
chocolates.
When we desire a goal but wish to avoid it at the same time, an approach–avoidance
conflictexists. Some solutions to these conflicts include the proliferation of fake
furs,which eliminate guilt about harming animals to make a fashion statement, and
thesuccess of low calorie and diet foods, such as those produced by Weight Watchers,
thatpromise good food without the calories (weight-watchers.com). Some marketers
counterconsumer resistance to overconsumption and spending by promising more
(benefits)from less, as in an Audi advertisement (in 2000), whereas other marketers
try to overcomeguilt by convincing consumers that they deserve luxuries (such as
when the modelfor L'Oreal cosmetics claims ‘Because I’m worth it!’).
Sometimes consumers go outsidethe conventional marketplace to satisfy their needs,
want and desires, for instance dragracingin Moscow where young Russian car fanatics
fulfill their drive for thrill-seekingoutside the law.
Avoidance–avoidance conflict
Sometimes consumers find themselves ‘caught between a rock and a hard place’.
Theymay face a choice with two undesirable alternatives, for instance the option of
eitherthrowing more money into an old car or buying a new one. Marketers frequently
addressan avoidance-avoidance conflictwith messages that stress the unforeseen
benefits ofchoosing one option (e.g. by emphasizing special credit plans to ease the
pain of new carpayments).

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