Consumer Behaviour

Chapter 2:- Types of Appeal

Advertising Appeal

Rational Emotional Moral

 Rational Appeal
• Rational appeals are those who focuses on audience self-interest and are directed at the thinking
aspect of decision-making process.
• They are particularly relevant to industrial buyers who choose products according to some
criteria.
• Rational appeals are price, quality, features, value and performance of the product.
• It emphasizes on the functional needs of the customers.
• When the customers want to buy some expensive products they gather information and consider
benefits. So the appeal in advertisements has to be logical and should also focus on the
suitability.
• In rational appeal, there are different types of appeals like feature appeal, which focuses on the
attributes, and traits of the product, it carries lot of information and is normally used for the
technical and high involvement products.
• Then we have competitive advantage appeal which compares the product features with those of
the competitor’s product.
• News appeal is used for the new developments in the products.
• All these appeal focus on the unique features of the product. Message of advertising combines
both aspects of appeal – emotional as well as rational.
 Emotional Appeal

• Earlier in advertisements only the product was shown to the customers in order to increase the
sale of the company.
• In today’s scenario there is a complete transformation, competition has increased, companies
have started understanding the psychology of the customers, their emotions, their feelings and
sentiments to get success in the market.
• Advertising is all about persuading and changing the attitude and behaviour of a person in favour
of the product.
• If positive emotions are being used in the advertising, they can persuade the customers to buy a
particular product.
• Emotions, which are used in the advertisement, should be able to associate it with the brand to
have a high impact on the customer’s psyche.
• Emotional advertisements have impact on the memory of the customers. Commercials which
use emotional appeal, are able to generate positive vibes among the customers.
• These appeals can also influence the usage of the products. When emotional appeal is used in
advertisng a product, it is easier for the consumer to relate to the product.
• Morever, such an appeal breaks the monotony of commercials and creates excitement and
curiosity among the viewers.
 Emotional Appeal

Sex Appeal
(it can be +ve or –ve)
Positive
Negative Depends on culture
Humor, Love, Joy
Fear, Guilt, Shame of the audience
and Price
for example:-
Axe deodrant
• Humor Appeal :-
• Humour generates feelings of amusement and pleasure. Humour can also affect information
processing by attract icing attention, improving brand name recall, creating a pleasant mood.
• Many marketers use humorous appeals in the belief that humor will increase the acceptance
and persuasiveness of their advertising communications.
• Humor is more effective for promoting low involvement products and when the audience
have positive attitude towards the product.
• If humor is used properly and the advertiser is able to relate humor with the brand then it has
positive impact.
• Humor appeal is more used in television and radio advertisements as compared to print
advertising.
• It is used in advertising of products like soft drinks, chocolates.
• This type of advertising is often seen in Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) rather than
consumer durables.
• Marketers believe that younger, better-educated, upscale, and professional people tend to
be receptive audiences for humorous messages.
• The positive side of the humour ads are
• Attracts attention
• Help to increase ad message retention
• Source credibility can be enhanced
• Audience attitude towards ad can be enhanced
• It can diminish the chances of counter arguments.

• Love Appeal :-
• It is used to sell perfumes and cosmetics for example:- Lakme.
• It works in automobile sector. This feature is used for attracting opposite gender.
• Features of the product are also highlighted in the advertisement. For example:- TVS
Scooty has baseline as first love and in this advertisement 10 reasons are also mentioned
why it is better than a girl friend. It is related to first love because first love happens when the
person is young and the person never forgets it for the entire life. This product is advertised
for youngsters and at their age this love word entices them and lures them. It is also been
used by the Hyundai Santro car where it is said that wife of a person is very important so
special person should be gifted special thing and make a memorable experience.
• Joy and Feature Appeal for household products:-
• They are related to the family where they have a kind of bonding among the family
members.
• By using joy appeal, a kind of trust can be developed towards the product.
• Here joy appeal is used because customers always remember happy moments, which they
spent with their family and for their lifetime.
• They are very emotional towards their family members.
• Apart from the emotional aspect, customers are also interested in features of the product.
• This first emotional bond is created and then unique features are demonstrated to increase
its effectiveness.
• Even the positive emotions are remembered for the longer time period. So, impact of joy
appeal will be higher on the customers.
• For example:- Kodak uses this appeal for their cameras and its baseline says “share
moments – share life”. Happy moments are always good to share, so camera is very useful
for sharing the joy and happiness.
• Hindustan Unilever Limited also uses the same appeal in their advertisement of Surf Excel.
Their baseline says Daag Masti Hai – Daag Achche Hain. It means that the dirt is good,
enjoy it! Don’t worry about the stains as Surf Excel is there is to take care of them.
• Joy appeal is used in the food products. As the customers eats a product the person feels
good and enjoys while eating. For example:- Dpmino’s Pizza, Monaco biscuits etc.,
• Fear Appeal :-
• It is an effective appeal often used in marketing communications.
• Some researchers have found a negative relationship between the intensity of fear appeals
and their ability to persuade, so that strong fear appeals tend to be less effective than mild
fear appeals.
• Fear appeals is also used in advertisements. The message tries to evoke anxiety or fear in
the mind of customers that if they are unable to use the advertised product then there can
be loss in terms f money, prestige, health etc.,
• It stimulates the customers for a favourable behaviour. Use of fear appeal depends upon
the nature of product, mindset of the target audience and the extent of the fear used in the
advertisement. For example, Onida company use it for its television advertisement it it has
been successful. Even the toothpaste company also uses it and warns the customers about
the tooth decay.
• Women are more responsive than men when fear appeal is used. For example, Garnier
also uses this appeal. When this appeal is to be used for men then it has to be strong
enough to influence them.
• Fear is a powerful motivator. But only upto a point. Ad messages using fear appeals have
bene used to promote social causes as well, such as wearing helmets while driving two-
wheeler autos, safe driving, paying taxes, dangers of smoking and AIDS etc.,
• The nature of the fear is such that as a stimulus it tends to create negative emotions, but
may stimulate positive drive among target audience.
• Sex Appeal :-
• Using sex appeal the advertiser must be sure that the product, the ad, the target consumer
and the sexual message team and other elements are match up if sex is relevant to the
product, it can be extremely strong copy theme. For example:- Kohinoor and Kamasutra
Premium Condoms are good example for using sex appeal in relation to the product and
their functionality.
• The responses of men and women are totally different towards sex appeal in advertising.
The perception of women for example about sexiness of an ad depend upon the degree of
nudity shown.
• Message theme related to sex may attract audience’s attention but they rarely generate
curiosity about the product being advertised. if sex appeal has no relevant to the advertised
product it completely fails in creating percussive impression on the target audience.
• It is very difficult to predict the audience response to ads with sexual appeals but the
advertisers still use it. The reasons are obvious. There are few appeals in advertising that
probably can equal the attention – arresting magic of sex appeals.
• Many psychologists are of the opinion that proper manipulation of sex appeals can trigger
subconscious human desires that result in the purchase of products or services.
• Readership studies reveal that sex stimulates immediate interest of both genders.
• Demand for personal care products have increased in the market. Customers have become
more beauty conscious. So in the advertisement of personal care product sex and value
appeal is considered. For example AXE deodorant acts with the caption “used by men and
enjoyed by women”. Similarly Clinic All Clear uses this appeal and its headline says
“Confidence to get close”
 Moral Appeal

• Moral appeals draw audience attention to what is “right”.

• They are generally used to urge people to support social causes such as environmental
concerns, population explosion, donating money to help victims etc.,
 Persuasion
• Central and Peripheral route of Persuasion:-
• This illustrates the concept of extensive and limited problem solving for high and low
involvement purchase situation.
• The major premises of this theory is that consumers are more likely to carefully evaluate the
merits and weakness of a product when the purchase is of high relevant to them.
• For high involvement purchases, the central route of persuasion which requires considered
thought and cognitive processing is likely to be the most effective marketing strategy.
• For low involvement purchases the peripheral route to persuasion is likely to be more
effective. Because, the consumer is less motivated to exert cognitive effort, learning is more
likely through repetition, the passive processing of visual cues and holistic perception.

• ELM Model :-
• This model suggest that there can be two routes to persuade consumers.
• One is the central route or the issue relevant route. The central route has the focus on
product attributes or core functional benefits. It primarily seems readily applicable to the
consumer durables as they are likely to commit the cognitive responses of consumers ( i.e.
high involvement products). The consumer is highly involved in processing the
advertisement.

• The peripheral route is the non issue relevant route. It is oriented towards non-attribute
aspects like celebrity and are background used in the advertisement excellent packaging or
free samples. In case of peripheral route of persuasion, the message receiver is used as
less involved, lacking the motivation or the ability and is unlikely to engage in detailed
cognitive processing. Instead of deeply considering and evaluating the message
arguments, the consumer take cognitive short cuts and concludes that the brand is superior
or inferior. Favourable attribute may be formed because the brand endorser is viewed as an
expert or attractive.
 The Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion
Exposure to Advertisement

Central route to persuasion Peripheral route to persuasion

Higher involvement with product or message Low involvement with product or message

Strong attention focus on “peripheral” product- Limited attention focus on “peripheral” product –
related information related information

Comprehension Comprehension
•Deeper thoughts about product attributes and •Shallow thoughts about non-product information
consequences •Low elaboration
•More elaboration
Persuasion Persuasion
•Product beliefs •Non-product beliefs
•Brand attitude •Attitude towards ad
•Purchase intention (Behavioural response) •Purchase intention (Behavioural response)
• Central processing can predict behaviour better than attitudes formed by peripheral processing.

• Attitudes formed by perhipheral processing can still determine choice when information available
through central route does not help much in making a choice.

• When both motivation and ability to process information are high, consumers are most likely to
engage in central processing.

• When the either of two is low, peripheral processing is more likely to occur. For example,
Comparative advertisements get consumers more motivated to use central route to persuasion,
compared with non-comparative ads.
 Culture & Sub-culture
• Culture Definition :-
• Characteristics feature:-
• Culture is invented
• Culture is learnt
• Culture is shared
• Culture satisfies needs
• Culture are similar but different
• Culture is not static

• Elements of culture :-
• Heroes :- Sachin Tendulkar has accepted as a bundle of energy. For example:- Boost
• Language and symbols:-
• Customs
• Rituals
• Value

• Sub Culture :- It is a social group within the national culture. Some of the major sub cultures are as
follows:-
• Social Class :- Upper, Middle, Lower
• Religion :- Hindu, Muslim,
• Geographic Region :- North, South, East, West
• Language :- Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi
• Age :- Children, Teens, Adult
• Gender :- Male, Female
• Occupation:- Doctor, Engineer
• The influence of sub culture on consumer behaviour depends on factors such as :-

• Sub-cultural distinctiveness:- i.e. when a sub-culture strives harder to maintain a separate

identity, its potential influence is more. For example Indians settled in many countries have
maintained their language and religious practices as a means of cultural identify

• Sub-cultural homogeneity:- A sub-culture with homogeneous values is more likely to exert

influence on its members.

• Sub-cultural exclusion:- At times sub-cultures are excluded by society. Exclusion tends to

strengthen the influence of sub-culture and encourages the maintenance of sub-cultural
norms and values. For example:- SC
 Social Class
• Concept
• Relatively permanent and homogeneous group / strata in society which differ from one
another in their status, wealth, education, possessions, values, beliefs and attitudes etc.,
• Exhibits status difference (Prestige, power and privileges)
• Status demands – befitting behaviour including consumption behaviour

• Classification
• Upper upper class – wealthy, aristocratic, landed class. Acts as a reference group for the
other social classes. Size is very small. It gives scope for niche marketing. For example:-
Mercedes.
• Lower upper class :- These are the people we find nouvae rich consisting of those who
have attained success and earned wealth. Professionals like Doctos, lawyers and first
generation successful entrepreneur. These provide market for specilized luxury goods. For
example:- Luxaflex
• Upper middle class :- Moderately successful people who have attained reasonable heights
in their careers. They believe in good things of life and indulge in conspicuous consumption.
- Citibank loan
• Lower middle class :- The so called common man comprises this class. Small self
employed business people, non marginal workers etc., They are not very highly educated,
they buy bulk of mass marketed goods. For example Bajaj Scooter / Hero Honda
• Working class:- Skilled and semi skilled workers. Have sufficient money for basic
consumer products again buying cheap mass produced items.
 Influence of social class on purchase behaviour / Lifestyle
patterns purchases of social classes

Social Class Lifestyle Orientation Purchasing tendencies

Upper class Good taste; graceful living; appreciates

good things in life; interest in art & Quality merchandise; expensive hobby
culture and recreation equipment; art, books
and travel purchases

Middle class Respectability; Conformity; Propriety; Fashion items, goods for self
Social esteem enhancement, nice neighbourhood;
home, clothing…

Working class Fun oriented; parochial; Newest appliances; novelty items; sports
unsophisticated taste; focus on and other entertainment events
possessions

Lower class Close family relationships; no interest Status symbols; products enhancing self
in world affairs; seek immediate esteem; pseudo symbols of prosperity
gratification. such as used two wheelers
Contd….

• People’s buying behaviour is strongly influenced by the social class

to which they belong

• Class differences are distinctly symbolized by consumption

difference.

• Upper class has access to prosperity, prestige and power. Income

of this class offers attractive opportunities to the marketers of
designer clothing, local and foreign vacations, leisure related items,
etc.,

• The aim of the lower class on the other hand is to imitate the
sophisticated living style of the upper upper class. So they
consume luxury goods.
 Social classes, their characteristics and buys
Class Distinguishing characteristics
Upper Upper Elites of society (aristocrats, top industrialists,
etc.,) ; inherited wealth; well known family
background, spend money lavishly but discreetly
& in a conservative manner
Lower Upper Top professional / businessmen who have
earned rather than inheriting money; style and
taste is conspicuous; flamboyant; seek
possessions that will reflect their status
Upper Middle ‘Professional careerists’ coming form the middle
class with basically middle class values of
respectable living, conformity; emphasis on good
education, style is gracious and careful
Lower Middle While collar workers (office goers, petty
businessmen / traders), they value neatness and
cleanliness and want their homes and
possessions to reflect this
Upper Lower Poorly educated, semiskilled factory workers; the
largest social class segment; their major
motivations in security; purchase decision is
often impulsive but exhibits a light degree of
brand loyalty
Lower Lower Often uneducate,d at the bottom of the society
and working as unskilled labour, live on day to
day basis with little planning for future
Dominant consumption pattern
Spending on property, homes, best education for
children foreign vacations, jewellery, custom built
cars, etc.,
Spend on large homes with flashy and
expensive décor, best education for children;
imported cars; latest household gadgets, five
star hotels…
Spend on buying ‘quality’ products, quality being
most important factor, consumers of CTV, DVD
players, personal computers, Santro / Zen type
cars.
Spend a good deal of time shopping around for
the best bargain; they buy consumer durables
like two wheelers, CTV, fridge etc.,
Black and White TV, 2-in-1, gas stove, fans,
purchases on credit, if available; not very brand
conscious
Can buy only basic necessities of life, usually
buy loose and unbranded products; don’t
comprehend brand value.
• Marketers can appeal to the consumer’s aspirations for upward
mobility by positioning the offering as one that inrease one’s social
standing.

• Thus, many products and services are designed to help consumers

become more culturally sophisticated (say books / CDs on classical
music).

• A marketer can increasingly target the middle class with products /

services typically reserved for the upper class, such as credit card
or even opening of a bank account in a foreign bank.

• Finally, products and services can be positioned as evidence that

the customer has ‘arrived’ – ads for cars, expensive suiting, etc.,
 Family
• Definition
• Family is very predominant in its influence over consumer behaviour.
• The family is both primary group and reference group
• The family operates as an economic unit, earning and spending money.
• The family members establish individual and collective consumption priorities, decide on
products and brands that fulfill their needs and also decide where these items are to be
bought and how they are also to be used in furthering the goals of the family members.
• Consumer’s attitudes towards spending and saving and even the brands and products
purchased are moulded to a large extent by the families they grow up in.

• Functions of the family

• Economic well-being – example:- Limca
• Emotional support – example:- Wagnor R
• Suitable family lifestyles – example:-
• Socialization of family members

• Household purchasing decisions:- There are five roles that frequently occur in household decision
making. Individuals play various roles for different decisions.
• Information gatherer
• Influencer
• Gatekeepers
• Decision maker
• Purchaser
 Various roles in family

Influencers
(Children)

Communication
targeted Decision Makers Purchasers Consumers
at children (Parents / Children (Parents) (Children)
(taste, image)

Communic
ations
targeted at Information
parents gatherers
(nutrition) (parents)
• Household purchasing decisions can be examined from four perspectives:-
• Role structure
• Instrumental and expressive role – example:- Philips
• Purchase process roles
• Role of an initiator
• Role of an influencer
• Role of information gatherer
• Role of a decision maker
• Role of purchaser or buyer

• Role load

• Power structure
• Purchase influence Pattern (Power relation within the family)
• Automatic
• Husband dominant
• Wife dominant
• joint
 Family Life Cycle

Traditional family life cycle (FLC)

Stage 1 Bacherlorhood Young single adult living apart from parents

Stage 2 Honeymooners Young married couple with no children

Stage 3 Parenthood Married couple with at least one child at home.

Stage 4 Postparenthood An oler married couple with no children living at home

Stage 5 Dissolution One surviving spouse

 Stage 1:- Bachelor hood

Bachelor Hood

Those who live apart from their parents.

They are independent single.
Those who live with their parents
Have more financial obligations.
Young single adults living at home.
Majoriity of their income on rent, purchase
They spent most of their income on
and maintenance
entertainment, clothes, personal care items
of automobiles,
travel and entertainment.
 Stage 2 :- Honeymooners
• After the couple gets married and it continues till
the first child of the couple is born.
• Joint decisions and shared roles in household
responsibilities are new experience.
• Savings household furnishing major appliances,
utensils, accessory items, are the priority areas.
• They spent more on movie tickets, expensive
clothes, vacations, restaurants meals and
alcoholic beverages
 Stage 3:- Parent hood (Addition of the
child)
Full nest one
1. After the first child born
Wife stop working
2. There is a reduction
in family income
3. New purchases like
baby clothes, furniture,
food, health care products.
4. Life styles are altered
5. The choice of vacations,
restaurants, automobiles
are made to accommodate
young children
Full nest Two
Financial position improves
due to career advancement
of husband and
wife back to work
New product orientation
They tend to be less influenced
by advertisement
Full nest Three
1. Family income continues
to grow
2. Children are employed
3. Expenditure for durable
goods
4. Purchase new more
tasteful furniture, luxury
appliances and cars
5. Vacation also play
a major component
 Stage 4:- Post Parent Hood

Post Parent Hood

(Children have left home, Traumatic stage)

Empty Nest 1 Empty Nest 2

Satisfactory financial position for the family Couple income is drastically cut
Spending pattern emphasis on They spent more on medical care,
gift, vacation and luxuries products that help their health,
sleep and digestion
 Stage 5:- Dissolution
• Death of one spouse
• Follow simple pattern of consumption
• Economical
Non-Traditional Family Lifecycle
Single
Unmarried

Couple Traditional
unmarried Family
Lifecycle

Couple Non-traditional
Married Family Cycle

SingleMarried
(Divorced/dec
eased
Spouse)

No Children Dependent Independent

Children Children
 Key Family Roles in Decision Making
Family decision Role Description Example
phase

Problem or need Initiator Family member(s) who In a family of six (grandparents,

recognition express the need for a parents and children), children express
product or service the need for an audio-music system

Information search Influencer Family member(s) The Father and grandfather start
and evaluation of whose views carry some looking at various related ads in
alternatives weight various media. They also make a
quick scan of all the electronic shops
in the area to know more about
discounts, price, warranty, schemes,
brands, product features, etc.,
Purchase decision Decider Father, mother and grandfather
together take the decisions to buy a
Sony

Buyer Whole family goes to buy the audio-

music system decided upon

Post purchase User Children play rock music on it, parents

behaviour play old movie songs, and
grandparents play devotional songs
 Household decisions
• It can be of two types
– Consensual purchase decision – the need is satisfied with the approval of all the family members.
– Accommodative purchase decision – in this family members have different opinions and preferences and
cannot agree on a single product. This leads to conflict.
 Household decision making
Structure of
household unit
Stage of the
household life Household Marketing
cycle purchase and Strategy
Household consumption
decision behavior
Process
 Family decision-making for children’s
products
Grandparents
(Parents)

Communicatio
n Targeting
Parents Initiators
(Parents, Decision Buyers Ushers
Children) Makers (Parents) (Children)
Communicatio (Parents)
ns targeting
Children

Influencer
(Children)
 Joint Decision Roles

Initiator Gatekeeper Influencer Decision Buyer User

(Need (Information (Evaluation of maker (Purchase) (Consumption
recognition) search) alternatives) (Decision to & evaluation
buy)
 The consumer decision making process
• Consumer buying decision and consumption process of produces or services always
take place in the context of some specific situation.
• From a marketer’s point of view, it is extremely important to understand how situation
and internal and external sources of influence affect the purchase decision process.
• Depending on the circumstances consumer’s behaviour may take any number of
directions.
• There are three types of consumer decisions
• Habitual decision making – refers to us nominal decision making, which occurs
where there is a low purchase involvement. For example:- Toothpaste, Fruit
Juice etc., In this consumer does not even consider the other alternatives. It
can be segregated as brand loyal and repeat purchases.
• Limited decision making – in this process the consumer evaluates the limited
alternatives and make a choice based more in internal information search and
some external information search. The external information is done keeping in
mind the criteria like price, brand etc., and the sources are friends, mass media,
POP.
• The consumer often follows certain decision roles i.e. always buy the cheapest
product; or always buying the best quality which also helps in less evaluation of
alternatives.
• Extended decision making – consumers evaluate a large number of alternatives
after conducting an extensive information search for both internal and external
sources. Due to the large number of alternatives to choose from and over all
high purchase involvement it is generally associated with high product
involvement like real estate, electronic gadgets etc.,
Steps in consumer decision process

Problem
recognition

Information
search

Evaluation of alternatives
and selection

Outlet selection and purchase

Post purchase action

 Problem recognition
• Problem recognition is the first stage in consumer decision process.
• It occurs whenever the consumer perceives a difference of sufficient magnitude between what is
perceived as the desired state of affairs and what is the current state of affairs enough to arose
and activate the decision process to achieve the desire or ideal state.
• The current state is a way a consumer perceives his / her feelings and situation to be at the
present time.
• The desired state refers to the way a consumer wants to feel or be at the present time.
• Marketers develop product and services to help consumers solve problems.
• They also attempt to help the consumer, anticipate and recognize the problem sometime well in
advance of their occurrence.
• The process of problem recognition combines some highly relevant consumer behaviour
concepts such as information processing and the motivation process.
• First of all, consumers must become aware of the problem through information processing which
is arising as a result of internal / external stimuli . This leads to motivating consumers.
• Secondly, the importance of the problem for the concerned consumer
• Types of consumer problem and their recognition:-
• The problems of which the consumers are aware or will become aware shortly are referred
as active problems.
• The one in which consumers are not at all aware are called in active problems
• This leads to several types of problem recognition process. Del I.Hawkins, Kenneth A.
Coney and Roger J. Best have discussed one such approach. They developed a
classification system of situations based on the factions of immediacy of required solution
and whether or not the problem was expected.

•
Cntd….
• Four types of problems are shown:-
• Routine – where the difference between actual and desired state is expected to be felt and
would call for immediate solution.
• Emergency – these problems are possible but are unexpected and necessarily need
immediate solutions. For example:- purchase of Vehicle
• Planning – it occurs when a problem is expected in the future but an immediate solution is
not called. For example:- buying home
• Evolving situations- this arise when the problem is unexpected and there is no immediate
solution for example:- Fashion adoption

• Situations that can cause problem recognition

• There are quite a large number of situations that can create a discrepancy that influence
consumer desires, perception of the existing state or both.
• These include non-marketing factors and marketer initiated activities that can trigger the
process of a consumer’s problem recognition.
• Non-marketing factors such as age, sex, geographic reasons, consumers past decision and
consumers individual skills
• Marketing efforts are controlled by marketers and play a key role in problem recognition.
• There are four relevant issues faced by marketers in this regard
• To identify the problems consumers are facing – do the research
• To formulate the perfect marketing mix to solve consumer’s problems – for example:-
ATM card
• To aid consumers’ in recognizing problems –for example:- Bislery Water
• To suppress problem recognition – for example:- Tobacco, Cigarette marketers
 Marketing strategy and problem recognition
• Marketers use a variety of approaches to determine consumer's problems such as:-
• Activity analysis :- focus on particular activity such as cleaning the house, preparing meals
etc.,
• Product analysis:- focus on examining the purchase and / or use of a particular product /
service / brand.
• Problem analysis:- list of problem identify
• Human factors research :- identify consumer functional problem of which they are not aware.
• Emotional research:- To determine consumers emotions associated to a particular product.

• Problem recognition depends on the importance and magnitude of discrepancy between the
desired state and the current state.
• Thus, marketers can seek to influence the degree of discrepancy by altering consumers’ desired
state or the perceptions about the current state, or influence the perception about the importance
of an existing discrepancy.
• Marketers also attempt to influence the desired state by advertising the attributes and benefits of
products or services and hope that consumers will be influenced, to a degree, that they will desire
these benefits.
• Marketers also attempt to influence consumers’ perceptions about their existing state. For
example :- personal care products
• Marketers must be sure about the appropriateness of their approach as individuals and product
categories both vary in their responsiveness to ads that attempt to change desired or perceived
current states.
 Information Search
• The process of information search refers to what the consumer surveys in his / her environment
for appropriate information to make a reasonable purchase decision.
• Consumers may deliberately search for information even in the absence of problem recognition.
On going research activities are undertaken without the recognition of any immediate purchase
problem.
• After problem recognition, the first stage is recalling and reviewing relevant information stored in
the long term memory. To determine if a satisfactory solution is known or what are the
alternative solutions.
• The recall may be immediate or may occur slowly to bring the information to mind. This process
is known as internal research. When it fails the consumer focuses his attention on external
research.
• For example:-
• Previously stored information resolves many problems. To get relief from headache the
consumer recalls the brand Disprin. This type of purchase decision is known as nominal
decision making.
• Consumer attention towards in-store display about a new product and buys the new brand.
The consumer does not seek additional information but reads only product attributes.
Another possibility is enquiring in different stores. Here, the decision is based on internal
and external information which represent limited decision making.
• Extended decision making represents significantly more involving purchase situation.
Importance to external information. External decision making refers to
• The opinions, beliefs, attitudes, behaviours and feelings of relatives, friends,
neighbours and strangers contacted on the Internet.
• Professional information contained in handouts, pamphlets, articles, magazines,
journals, books, the Internet and provided by personal professional contacts.
• Direct expensive with the product or service through trial, inspection or observation.
• Marketer – initiate information included in advertisement's displays, websites and by
sales personnel.
Evaluation of alternatives and selection
Outlet selection and purchase
 Groups
• Reference group
• Influence factors
• Consumer related reference group
• Reference group appeal
 Definition – Group
• Collection of individual group
 Reference group
• Set of people with whom individual compare themselves to shape their attitudes, values, knowledge and
behaviour ( including buying behaviour)
• Sets levels of aspirations offering cues as to what life style and related purchasing patterns an individual
should strive to achieve.
• It helps to define the actual product / services considered acceptance for displaying these aspiration –
(kind of housing, clothing, car)
• Example:- Saching Tendulkar appeared in Paulo Sport care advertisement and Amithabh Bachhan
endorsed the BPL Brand
•
• Group influence on individual buying behaviour depends on three factors
• Attitude towards the group
• The nature of the group
• The nature of the product

• The buying behaviour of a consumer is more likely to be influenced by the group if the individual
• View the reference group as a credible source of information about the product / services
• Values the views and reactions of the group members with regard to buying decisions
• Accepts the rewards and sanctions allotted out by the group for proper or improper behaviour.

• Types of reference group

• Membership group
• An individual can be a member of a reference group such as the family and could be set to be
a part of it. It has two types :- Formal & Informal :-
• Aspiration group
• Consumer admires and likes to emulate but of which he / she is not a member. It can be
called as a secondary group. It does not have face to face contact with this group.
• Non membership group with a positive attraction and exert a strong influence.
Contd….
• There are two types :-
• Anticipatory aspiration group :- These are groups that an individual anticipates to
join at some future time – Direct contact with such groups. Marketers appeal to the
desire of such individual to increase their position by moving to a higher aspiration
group and frequently advertise clothing, autos, liquors, and other products in relation
to business success and prestige. For example:- The ad of Johnie Walker t.e the
ad appeals focuses on anticipation of ultimately reaching the top in the business
organization.
• symbolic aspiration group:- The individual admires these groups but unlikely to join
them despite acceptance of group belief and attitude. For example:- Marketer’s use
certain celebrities to advertise the product

• Disclaimant group
• Is one to which an individual may belong to or join and then reject the group values.

• Disassociative group
• An individual may regard the membership in a specific group as something undesireable
and to be avoided.

• Membership groups and aspiration groups are viewed positively.

• Disclaimant and disassociative groups are viewed negatively.

• Nature of reference group:- Reference group establishes certain norms, roll, status,
socialization and power. These characters exert their influence on cosumers.

• Norms are generally defined rules and standards of behaviour that the group establishes (Such
as eating habits, brands of cosmetics)
• Values :- They are shared belief among group members regarding what behaviours are
appropriate or inappropriate.
Contd….
• Role refers to the functions that an individual assumes For example:- in a group buying
behaviour such as family marketers can identify specific roles that the individual assume

• Status is the achieved or ascribed position that the individual occupies within the group
hierarchy.
• Consumers purchases or services sometimes demonstrates status to match the wealth and
implied superiority. For example:- elegant dresses, expensive watches etc., are considered
as symbols of status.

• Socialization :- refers to the process by which the new member learns the group system and
expected behaviour patterns.

• A group influence on its member’s behaviour is closely related to its power. There are four
sources of power which is relevant in the context of consumer behaviour
• Reward power – which refers to group ability to reward the individual for examples the
clothes or shoes
• Coercive – relates to the power of group to use disapproval withholding rewards or
even punishing the individual.
• Expert power – influences the results from which they experience, expertise and
knowledge of the individual group
• Referent power – It flows from the feeling of identification that the individual has with
the members of the group.
• The greater the similarities of the belief and attitudes between the individual and the
group members, the greater the referent power of the group
 Reference group influences on consumers
• Reference groups have been found to exert influence on a wide range of consumption behaviour.

• The group exert

• Informational Influence
• Comparative Influence
• Normative Influence

• Informational Influence:-
• Reference groups and other influence sources can exert informational influence by
offering information to help make decisions. For example:- Chat groups
• The consumer accepts information as a credible form. For example:- Ad campaign
enhance product awareness
• Information influence is based on the similarity of the group members. For example:-
Several members of a given group using a particular brand.
• Consumers are most inclined to see expert advise from personal source than marketer
controlled sources
• Information influence is likely to be more important when consumer perceives financial
social or performance risk in buying a product.
• It is important when the consumer’s objective is to seek knowledge, the source
creditability is accepted. The source is viewed as expert and finally the behaviour is
acceptance of influence.

• Advertising often make use of information influence through expert’s spoke person who
communicate information about produce features and performance. One approach employed is to
use a character posing as an expert such as a doctor for commonly used remedies or the engineer
for technical product. Another approach is to use the real celebrity who has expertise the product
for example Agasse in Nike tennis apparel
• Comparative Influence :-

• Consumers tend to constantly compare their attitudes with reference to those of members of
important groups.
• They serve as a benchmark and the individual’s urge is to seek support to her / his attitudes
and behaviour
• To accomplish this, individuals are inclined to associate with groups with which they agree
and stay away from groups with which they disagree.
• As a result of this, the process of comparing oneself to other members of the group and
evaluating whether the group would be supportive becomes the basis for comparative
influence.
• The consumer’s objective is self-maintenance and enrichment in accepting the comparative
influence.
• To enhance his / her self-concept, the individual associates with groups that have similar
attitudes and behaviour. This provides reinforcement and ego gratification
• The source of power is referent power and the individual identifies herself / himself with the
group.
• Individuals who are influenced by comparative influences should have similar characteristics
to those whose influence is being accepted.
• Consumers are likely to seek information from those friends that they believe are similar to
them and regarded as credible.
• The implication for advertisers is that they should use spoke persons perceived by
consumers as being similar to them (Lalitaji in the ads of Surf is viewed as a typical middle
class housewife).

• Advertising applies comparative influence by using either an actual referent in the form of a
“typical consumer” or use a celebrity as a symbolic referent with whom consumers identify
because she / he is likeable or attractive. The “typical consumer” is a reference because she / he
mentioned the common problems faced by the consumers.
• Normative influence
• It is also called utilitarian influence.
• It refers to social pressure
• Designed to encourage conformity to the expectation of other
• To gain a direct reward or to avoid any sanctions

• Marketers frequently use normative influence approach by showing group approval in ads for a
particular brand. Commercials of Coke, Pepsi, Tajmahal Tea are example of advertising
simulation of social approval.

• Normative influence also exerted through fear appeals that attempt to show the potential results
of not using the product. Example:- Anti-dandruff shampoos, deodorants and several other
products use this approach.
 Important reference group and appeals
• Important reference group and appeals
• Friends :- major influences – informal group example:- Maggi 2 minute noodles
• Shopping Groups – people who accompany consumers while they go out for shopping
• Work Groups – people who are at work place i.e. peer group
• Virtual Communities - internet
• Brand Communities – it consist of people who are the users of the particular brand
• Consumer Action Groups – They support to a common cause such as AIDS awareness, anti-
drugs campaign
• Marketer’s use specific reference group appeals based on their knowledge of their target market
and the nature of the product. Such reference group appeals are Celebrities, Expert, common
man, executive and employee’s spoke person, spokes character,
• Celebrities:- they are favorities for promoting products as far as marketers are concerned. The
celebrity is chosen with a particular target segment in mind, like a young, fresh for eg, preity Zinta
for maggie noodles, lays, Hyundai. Etc.
• The expert: uses expert in a particular product to endorse the brand. This kind of reference
group appeal not only brings immense credibility but also is quite inexpensive as compared to
celebrity appeals. For eg. Sanjeev Kapoor ( a master chef from India) endorsing Tata Salt.
• The Common Man; it uses an ordinary individual product or brand experience. Consumers relate
better to this person just like them and who has had a positive experience with the brand. For
example:- Dove soap from HLL. This has used the testimonials from satisfied women who had
used Dove. Some other examples are Crocin Pain Relief, Vicks Vaporub, Junior Horlicks, Airtel.
• The executive and employee spokesperson :- The executive and employee promotoers can
effectively communicate their faith in the brand to the consumers. Narayan Murthy for Infosys
and Bill Gates for Microsoft.
• Spokes character:- Spokes character is a fictional person created by the marketer that closely resembles
the brand personality or just helps deliver the brand message with great effectiveness. It can be a person
or an animated character or a well-known cartoon character. For example:- Onida’s Devil, Ronald of
McDonalds, 7 up Ad

• Opinion Leaders:-
• Once the marketer has identified the reference group it may be possible for to identify a special
source whose influence is potentially profound on the customer.
• He acts as an information broker between the mass media and the opinions and behaviour of an
individual / group.
• Opinion leaders are people whose position, experience and knowledge renders them particularly
suitable for providing relevant and credible information.
• Opinion leaders could be personally known people like friends etc., or these could be people like
reviewers, critics etc.,
• They develop first hand experience with products and communicate their reactions to consumers
subsequently.

• Opinion Leadership is product specific :-

• An opinion leader for one product category may become an opinion follower for another.
• Moreover, the knowledge acquisition itself is a function of interest
• They do not seem to be capable of being experts in so many areas
• They are referred as a market mavens i.e. it provide significant amounts of information to others
across a wide array of products including durables and non-durables services and stores to shop.
• They provide information on product quality, sales, price, product availability and other features of
relevance to consumers.
• Market mavens are demographically similar to others; but they have unique media habits. They are
extensive users of media, particularly magazines. They also watch television more and listen to the
radio more than others. These media patterns provide an avenue for marketers to communicate with
this important group.
• Opinion leaders are a part of general category of gatekeepers:-
• Gatekeepers have special influence or power in offering information about any offering to a
market. For example when Sushma Swaraj was the Minister of Information and Broadcasting,
she almost banned Fashion TV Channel. Besides, she made Videocon, Wrangler and some
other brands drop / modify some of their ads which she found offensive enough.

• Profile of an Opinion leader:-

• Regular subscriber of special – interest media
• Willingness to talk and share information and experiences
• Knowledgeable
• High product category involvement
• Willingness to try new products
• Socially active
• Innovative communications
• Highly confident

• The opinion leadership process happens due to the following underlying motives of both parties – the
opinion leader and opinion seeker and receiver.

• The four main motives behind the role of opinion leaders are :-
• Self-involvement
• Product-involvement
• Social involvement
• Message involvement
 • Self-involvement – giving advice to others. Provides big gratification.
• Product-involvement – they feel the necessity to talk to others about the product whether it
is good or bad.
• Social involvement – like to share their product experience with the people in general
• Message involvement - with an increase in number of advertisement being targeted these
advertisement becomes the topic of discussion.

• The opinion seeker and receiver:-

• To reduce perceived risk associated with the product purchase
• Reduces the task of searching for information through other sources.
• It provides a lot of new or existing product knowledge as well as information related to their
purchase use etc.,

• Types of opinion leader

• Generalized opinion leader – Masters of various subjects and are very hard to find – high
involvement

• Market Mavens – belong to special category of opinion leaders who have market
involvement

• Surrogate buyer – it is a term used for the professionals hired by actual purchasers to filter
the huge amount of store, product and brand information available, evaluate the product
options available and make recommendations. They play a wide variety of roles. For
example:- like tax consultant, stock broker,

• Purchase pals – they are the people who accompany an individual on shopping tips. They
are considered to be a quite influential opinion leaders at the point of purchase consumer
decisions. It will help to reduce the stress, anxiety an individual experiences while making
the purchase. They also provide like better product knowledge, better bargaining skill etc.,
 Characteristics of Opinion Leaders
• Opinion leaders have the same social class position as non-leaders, although they may have higher
social status within the class

• Opinion leaders have greater exposure to mass media that are relevant to their area of interest.
Exposure to relevant mass media provides them with information useful in enhancing their leadership
potential.

• Opinion leaders have greater interest and knowledge of the area of interest than non leaders

• Opinion leaders are more gregarious than non leaders. This is because opinion leaders have to
interact with those they have to influence. Thus, opinion leaders are generally more sociable.

• Opinion leaders have more innovativeness than do non leaders. He is not necessarily an innovator,
but one who defines and endorses standards.

• Opinion leaders are more familiar with and loyal to group standards and values than are non leaders.

• Opinion leaders exhibit the trait of public individuation, which is a state in which they feel
differentiated to some degree from other people and choose to act differently from them. People who
are individuated are expected to show high confidence, high self-esteem, ability to withstand criticism
and rejection, and the need to be unique.
 Situation in which opinion leadership occurs

• When some individual seeks information

from the opinion leader
• When the opinion leader volunteers
information on his own
• The advice may come about as a by-
product of normal group interaction where
an opinion leader is present.
 Celebrities
• A celebrity has a glamour and / or Karishma to trigger and sustain a following from using the
emotional power of identification. Depending upon the product like cycle and the category, the
prime purpose could be to ensure that the brand gets instant attention. The celebrities can be
from the film star, spoke person etc., for example:- Ravi Shastri for Vimal shootings ; Shah Rukh
Khan endorsing Pepsi, Airtel.

• The reasons for employing the celebrities are as follows:-

• Drawing quick site i.e. they can build brand image at the same time create awareness
• Positive affirmation :- i.e. the commercial has to be sensible and convey a practical solution.
For Example:- Sachin Tendulkar for Adidas

• New dimensions:- By employing a star it gives you a new star at the same time credibility to
the brand.

• Guarantee:- i.e. it adds guarantee for the brand. For example Amir Khan for Coke after its
controversy.

• Demographic marketing :- As India is a country with several languages and cultures, the
markets were able to target the group with the demographic segmentation. For example
Shah Rukh Khan endorse Pepsi for Hindi Viewers but it is Pavan Kalyan for Tollywood and
Vijay for Kollywood.

• Celebrities appeal imparts to a brand believability, better recall, recognition, a positive attitude
toward the brand, and profitability.
• Factors to be considered in Celebrity usage:-
• Importance of the Target Segment:- The target segment is one of the basic consideration
which a brand should take into account.

• Celebrity cluster in the category:- There is a need for marketers to review the product
category for analyzing the number and nature of the celebrities to be used in the category.
Cola is a category which experienced celebrity cluster. This had a strong impact on the
category itself.

• Celebrities and attention – getting aspects:- There may be a need to use celebrity to hold
the attention of the target segment.

• Celebrities can be used by giving testimonials:- example:- Amitabh Bachhan for Dabur
Chavanprakash

• Through endorsement:- promoting a product / brand in which they may / may not be
experts by lending their name and appearing in the commercials example:- Sachin
Tendulkar for TVS

• As a spokes person :- i.e. Brand representative or ambassador for Aishwarya Rai for
Longiness Watches
 Dimensions of Celebrity Usage
Need
Brand Awareness
Top-of-the-mind recall
FMCG – lifestyle orientation
Product benefit Boost (drink)
Relaunch
Established brand appealing to
the rural segment
Preserving a habit against
changing trends
Reinforcing brand personality
Brand Celebrity Usage Benefits
Santro (Cars) Created awareness in a market
in which the brand was
unknown
Cema (bulbs) Improved brand recall in a low-
involvement category
Pepsi (cola) Attrated youth population
Lux (soaps) benefits Cine stars endorse brand
Colgate Total (toothpastes) Conveyed the benefit (12 hour
protection) through the celebrity
BPL (Durables) Celebrity enhanced the
credibility of the brand
Parker (Pens) Celebrity endorsed a global
brand and also retriggered the
basic interest in using pens in a
digital era
Rajdoot (early eighties) The rugged celebrity
association reinforced the brand
personlaity.
 Selecting a Celebrity

Objective
Need
Based

Target Benefits
Celebrity
segment of using
Association
psychographics a celebrity

Long term
impact
on brand
associations
will it affect
the
brand
personality