11 May EXPLAIN HOW EACH CHARACTERISTIC AFFECTS THE RATE OF ADOPTION.
Cultural factors exert a broad and deep influence on
consumer behavior. The marketer needs to understand the role played by the
buyers culture, subculture, and social class. Compare the roles of culture,
subculture, and social class.
Culture is the most
basic cause of a persons wants and behavior. Each culture contains smaller
subcultures, or groups of people with shared value systems based on common life
experiences and situations. Subcultures include nationalities, religions,
racial groups, and geographic regions. Many subcultures make up important
markets. Social classes are societys relatively permanent and ordered
divisions whose members share similar values, interests, and behaviors. Unlike
nationality or ethnic subculture, social class is determined by a combination
of many variables, such as occupation, income, education, and wealth. Social
scientists have identified seven social classes within the American culture,
ranging from upper class to lower class.
2.
Many subcultures make up important market segments.
Examples of four such important subculture groups include Hispanics, African
Americans, Asian Americans, and mature consumers. Describe the characteristics
of each of these groups.
Hispanic consumers tend
to buy more branded, higher-quality productsgenerics do not sell well to
Hispanics. Perhaps more important, Hispanics are very brand loyal, and they
favor companies who show special interest in them. African American consumers
are more price-conscious than other segments; they are also strongly motivated
by quality and selection. African Americans seem to enjoy shopping more than
other ethnic groups and are also more fashion conscious. Asian American
consumers are the most affluent U.S.
demographic segment and are the second-fastest-growing population subculture,
after Hispanics. Asian American consumers are very tech-savvy and are the most
brand conscious of all the ethnic groups. Mature consumers are better off
financially than are younger consumer groups. They are an ideal market for
exotic travel, restaurants, high-tech home entertainment products, leisure
goods and services, designer furniture and fashions, financial services, and
healthcare services.
3.
A consumers behavior is influenced by social factors,
such as the consumers small groups, family, and social roles and status.
Explain the differences among these social factors.
Small groups to which a
person belongs have a direct influence on what a person buys. Reference groups
serve as direct or indirect points of comparison or reference in forming a
persons attitudes or behaviors. An aspirational group is one to which the
individual wishes to belong. Reference groups expose a person to new behaviors
and lifestyles, influence a persons attitudes and self-concept, and create
pressures to conform that may affect the persons product and brand choices.
Opinion leaders are also included in reference groups. The group closest to
consumers is the family, the most important consumer buying organization in
society. Marketers are interested in the changing roles and influence of each
family member, particularly as male and female purchasing roles evolve and
children wield more purchasing influence. Within groups, including families,
the position of an individual is defined by role and status. A role consists of
the activities people are expected to perform according to the persons around
them, while status is the general esteem given to that role. People tend to
choose products that fit with their roles and status.
4.
Each persons distinct personality influences his or her
buying behavior. Personality is usually described in terms of traits. What are
these traits, and how do they affect the way people purchase items? Give at
least one example.
Personality is described
in terms of traits such as self-confidence, dominance, sociability, autonomy,
defensiveness, adaptability, and aggressiveness. Personality can be useful in
analyzing behavior for certain products. Consumers are likely to choose brands
with personalities that match their own. For example, someone with a sophisticated
personality might be attracted to a more sophisticated product, such as a BMW,
while someone with a more rugged personality might be attracted to a more
rugged product, such as a Jeep.
5.
Explain Maslows needs hierarchy.
Maslow suggested that
our unfulfilled needs motivate us and that our needs are arranged in a
hierarchy. The hierarchy of needs includes: physiological, safety, social,
self-esteem, and self-actualization. Maslow suggested that we fill the
bottom-level, basic needs first before moving up the hierarchy. Until more
important, basic needs such as safety are fulfilled, an individual has little
interest in higher-level needs such as esteem and self-actualization.
6.
Identify and describe the stages in the adoption
process.
In the awareness stage,
consumers become aware of the new product but lack information about it. Then,
consumers seek information about the new product in the interest stage. In the evaluation
stage, consumers consider whether trying the new product makes sense. Consumers
try the product on a limited basis in the trial stage. Finally, consumers
decide to make full use of the product in the adoption stage.
7.
Identify the product characteristics that influence the
rate of adoption. Explain how each characteristic affects the rate of adoption.
The five most
important product characteristics that influence the rate of a products
adoption are relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, divisibility, and
communicability. Relative advantage is the degree to which an innovation
appears superior to existing products; the greater the perceived relative
advantage, the sooner the product will be adopted. Compatibility is the degree
to which the innovation fits the values and experiences of potential consumers;
high compatibility leads to quick adoption. Complexity is the degree to which
the innovation is difficult to understand or use; the greater the complexity,
the slower the adoption rate. Divisibility is the degree to which the
innovation may be tried on a limited basis; the higher the divisibility, the
slower the rate of adoption. Finally, communicability is the degree to which
the results of using the innovation can be observed or described to others;
high communicability lends itself to a higher rate of adoption.
8.
Explain how business demand is derived demand.
The demand for
business purchases is determined by the demand for consumer goods. If consumer
demand for an end product drops, business demand for all of the components used
in that product will also drop. Similarly, when consumer demand for a product
increases, business demand for all of the components of that product also
increases.
9.
Explain how the decision process in the business market
and consumer market differ.
Business buyers
usually face more complex buying decisions than do consumer buyers, as business
purchases more often involve large sums of money, complex technical and
economic considerations, and interactions among many people at many levels of
the buyers organization. Because the purchases are more complex, business
buyers may take longer to make their decisions and are likely to use a more
formalized buying process. In the business buying process, the buyer and seller
are often much more dependent on each other.
10.
What is the buying center concept? Explain why this
concept presents a major marketing challenge.
The buying
center is the decision-making unit of a buying organization. The buying center
is composed of all the individuals and units that play a role in the business
purchase decision-making process, including the actual users of the product or
service, those who make the buying decision, those who influence the buying
decision, those who do the actual buying, and those who control buying
information. The buying center is not a fixed and formally identified unit
within the buying organization. Instead, it is a set of buying roles assumed by
different people for different purchases. Within the organization, the size and
makeup of the buying center varies for different products and buying
situations. The variable nature of the buying center makes it a major marketing
challenge. The business marketer must learn who participates in each decision,
each participants relative influence, and what evaluation criteria each
decision participant uses. Sometimes identifying the decision maker is
difficult or even impossible, as no one single person may make the purchasing
decision.
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