Consumer Behaviour

Consumer Behaviour and Its Peculiarities

Consumption behaviour is intention and actions of buyers in the rialto of outgrowths, which ultimately lead to a decision to buy a product, to refuse an acquisition, or to postpone it. It should have a certain incentive, without which the buyer leaves the rialto zone and falls into the sphere of non-commodity consumption (gift, criminal ways of receiving benefits). The consumer behavior essay changes significantly depending on what kind of outgrowths he buys. The more difficult it is to make an acquisition decision, the more participants are required and the more cautiously the consumer behaves.

Consumer Behaviour Stages

There are four types of buying behavior. It is necessary to study consumer behaviour since the most profitable marketing strategy can be chosen on its basis.

• Complex purchasing behavior. It is observed in a situation where a high degree of consumer partaking is accompanied by significant residuals amid different badges of outgrowths. Usually, this happens when the offspring is expensive, and its acquisition is associated with a risk. For example, when buying a computer, consumers tend to get as much information as possible about the characteristics of outgrowths in this category. A high degree of partaking is manifested in the fact that the buyer needs to form his own opinion. Only after that, he can make the final choice. Marketers dealing with outgrowths requiring a high degree of customer partaking should understand the consumer psychology collecting information and formulating estimates. The marketer should tell consumers about the properties of the offspring and about the residuals amid badges. It is necessary to differentiate the properties of each badge, explain what advantages the consumer will receive if he uses the services of this particular company.
• Uncertain buying behavior is observed in situations with a high level of partaking, when the outgrowths are expensive, the acquisition is risky and the difference amid the outgrowths of different badges is small. This situation can be observed when buying things that serve as a means of self-expression. These acquisitions are characterized by a high degree of partaking. Since the characteristics of the outgrowths are almost identical, the buyer will make the final decision quickly, although he will spend a considerable amount of time searching. When making a decision, the buyer relies on his own subjective opinion. He can prefer one offspring to another because of a slightly lower price or because a certain offspring will seem to him more beautiful. Due to the fact that there are no obvious residuals amid the outgrowths of a certain category, the buyer may have a feeling of dissatisfaction with the acquisition if he sees any shortcomings in the purchased offspring or hears positive responses about the offspring of the badge he could buy. How to prevent this situation? The marketer must provide information after the acquisition to confirm the correctness of the choice.
• Search buying behavior is manifested in a situation where a low degree of partaking is accompanied by tangible residuals amid different badges of outgrowths. In this case, consumers tend to change badges easily and often. This is not due to customer dissatisfaction, but because the rialto has a large selection of offsprings and the customer wants to try something new or just for the sake of diversity. Companies claiming leadership should encourage search behavior of consumers by offering lower prices, discounts and free trial offsprings.
• The usual buying behavior manifests itself under the condition of low consumer partaking and a small difference amid the outgrowths. For example, the consumer almost does not care what kind of salt to buy; he just goes to the store and takes the first bundle. If he always buys salt of the same badge, it does not mean his adherence to a certain badge, but rather it’s just a habit. When it comes to cheap outgrowths, which we often buy, we rarely think long before choosing a particular product. Because of the lack of a strong commitment to a particular badge, marketers are using lower prices and sales to stimulate demand.  For rialto leaders, it is necessary to encourage habitual buying behavior and to strive for offsprings to occupy the best places on the shelves.

Consumer behavior attempts to describe how people come up sometimes with individual decisions to buy a particular type of a product. It addresses several questions such as why do you thing you usually buy? How did you decide to move into the new house you leave in? Do you buy products of the same brand multiple times? Do you frequently eat at the same restaurant? Marketing professionals who can answer these questions are considered to be in a better position to communicating, creation, delivering goods that are value added and services that people may want to buy and this is what consumer theory is all about.

Consumer behavior may be affected by marketing actions and strategies deployed to produce, to communicate about, and deliver services and products which is affected by the current events that arise each day. Use of social media has enable both the youth and the adults be updated with the current events relating to marketing and other aspects of life. Social media is the currently dominating means of marketing for instance, business people who own businesses like salons and restaurants use social networks such as snapchat, Facebook, instagram, Twitter, etc. to post their services and products to customers both locally and worldwide.

The most captivating aspect of consumer behavior is the use of social media for marketing and getting response from customers. For instance, the recently launched quick promote on Twitter that is a new feature where small and medium-size businesses faster and easily share their with their twitter followers from all over the country. SMEs can also use celebrities to promote their product by allowing them post snapshots of them and the business premises then post them on the social network account e.g. snapchat and instagram. Based on consumer behavior, all the followers will see the promotion and give their response about the product hence boosting their image and competitive power in the market.

Consumer behavior is vastly intertwined with marketing in that the changing trends in marketing sector have significantly influenced both customer behavior and research methodology. The current events in marketing that are happening such as the use of quick promote tools on Twitter, use of instagram to promote an item, and other trending real-time social network sites have impacted consumers cognitive abilities in that the decision they make before performing buying a product is influenced by the online promotions.

Consumer behavior links with legal and ethical issues in that; the marketing functions pertains persuading and manipulating the consumer behavior that is underlined by moral values. To ensure legal and ethical issues are conserved, advertising goods on social networks requires stricter laws and code of conduct regarding style, delivery method and the content of the advertisement in order to convey accurate information to customers. Consumer decision-making is influenced by the intense promotion done by a company. For instance, the currently used quick promote on Twitter enables a business to reach vast number of customers and persuade them to buy their product or to come for their services.

Consumers evaluate the alternatives with respect to the benefits they offer and thus a marketing organization should understand the benefits consumers seek in order to raise the chances of consumers choosing their product or brand. It is done posting their products and offers online in order inform customers of the benefits they provide. With this, a company make a decision on the improvements they should make to advance their goods and services in order to meet customer expectation.

We review ND make recommendations to you if you bring your resume in to ensure your resume reflects your skills and abilities. We provide you websites for recruitment of federal, non-federal and contract positions and walk you through the process when you come in for one-on-one counseling by appointment. We also give you our inappropriate funds applications packet and provide guidance on how to submit and apply for NAP positions. In addition, we offer quarterly Job Search Workshops that bring you In contact with employers who have Job openings.

We teach a quarterly Resume Writing Workshop that assists you In creating your resume and vomiting your resume Into the federal databases (COOP, JACOBS, and DEAF). Question: Who do I call to get information about activities available on and off post? Answer: Army Community Service has an information line, 531-1941 , that is answered Monday – Friday, from 8 a. M. -4:30 p. M. The intake specialist has information about on-post and offset activities and resource agencies. ACS has a website on the CRT and Fort Polk Home Page, http://WV. CRT-Polk. Army. Mil/ACS/index. Tm, which includes the ACS Monthly Calendar, program information, and the Community Action Council slides with on-post and off-post activities. The CRT and Fort Polk Home Page has a link to community events: http://YMMV. Crackpot. Army. Ml/Calendar/ FEB.._MAR_2011 . PDF. ACS has Information on the Morale, Welfare and Recreation web site and an ACS link from the MR.. Site. Question: Why are there so few items for sale in the (Golf Course) Pro Shop? Answer: With a customer’s ability to purchase items online and the smaller facility, management has decided to carry essential items at a very low cost.

Pro Shop staff has the ability to order whatever a patron would like or needs and generally have it o them within 72 hours. Question: Why have there only been country-western singers for the large post events? Answer: All performers are evaluated to ensure the performance venue Is conducive to Family type entertainment and availability. Price Is also a major factor. Question: How do I register my children for Child, Youth and School Services? Answer: Parents wishing to register their children with Child, Youth and School Service can Youth & School (SYS) Services/Parent Central Services link.

You will find all the forms that you will need to register your child, as well as additional information that will be deed when you come in to complete the registration. Call 337-531-1955 to make an appointment. If you were previously enrolled in an Army SYS Services program, you can have your information transferred to our office by calling the previous SYS Services or speaking with our administrative staff. They can assist you in having this information transferred. The Army Family Covenant pledge will cover all registration fee costs.

There is no monetary cost to register your children. Your time and information is the only thing needed to get your child registered with SYS Services. Question: My child is registered for SYS Services; what programs are available? Answer: By visiting the website you can get up-to-day information on programs offered, as well as enroll your child in the programs. By clicking on the WEBSTER button you can register your child for programs offered and make any necessary payments. This is a huge timeserver as it is available 24 hours” days a week.

Once you have registered, the Parent Central Services admit will get the information, complete the process or contact you for additional information needed. Within 24 to 48 hours you will receive confirmation that the process has been completed. If information is entered during a federal holiday, post closure, or weekend it may take a little longer. Question: How do I conduct a home-based business on post? Answer: Fort Polk Soldiers or Family members wanting to conduct business ventures on Fort Polk or in military Family housing must obtain a solicitor’s permit from the Directorate of Family Morale, Welfare and Recreation.

The process entails completing an application to solicit. The application will indicate the product to be sold and the process for soliciting on Fort Polk. The application must be notarized prior to benison and must receive concurrence from Picture Military Housing (obtained by DEFORM). For information regarding home-based businesses call 337-531-7421. Question: How do I find out about the NAP sale? Answer: Individuals interested in participating in a NAP sale must register to view the property up for bid. Once registered, they are allowed to view the property and place a bid.

Bids are opened at the end of auction and the highest bidder wins. The winner will pay for and pick up the property purchased. Property not picked up or declined by the winner will go to the next highest bidder. All NAP sales are publicized in the coal papers, all users email, and the Guardian. For information, call 337-531-8765. Question: What is happening with the open classroom concept at South Polk Elementary? Answer: The open classrooms at South Polk Elementary are expected to be renovated to enclose classrooms beginning in the fall 2011.

Question: How are the hours of operation at the access control points determined? Answer: By reviewing the Directorate of Emergency Service’s annual traffic study, it was determined the traffic flow at all Caps decreased dramatically, but it is no longer cost effective to keep Caps 2, 5 and 6 open 24 hours. Closing these Caps also allowed the redistribution of security personnel to our peak traffic hours in the morning and points? Answer: CAP 1 (main gate at Louisiana Eve. ): Open 24 hours per day, seven days a week; CAP 2 (University Parkway, La. Why 467 North): Open from 5 a. . -9 p. M. Seven days a week; CAP 3 (Mill Creek Road adjacent to the Ammunition Supply Point): Closed; CAP 4 (Entrance Road and La. Why 10): 5 a. M. -6 p. M. Seven days per week; CAP 5 (La. Why 457 South and La. Why 10): 5 a. M. -9 p. M. , seven days per week; CAP 6 (Chaffed Road, adjacent to North Fort housing): 5 a. M. 9 p. M. Seven days per week; CAP 7 (K Avenue and Alligator Lake): Open 24 hours per day, seven days per week); CAP 8 (Artillery Road and K Avenue into box – rotational traffic only, open 24 hours a day, seven days per week during rotations.

Question: What can be done about the congestion at the access control points? Answer: Personnel entering Fort Polk make it a habit of entering the installation at the same time each morning. You would be surprised at what a difference 15 minutes will make. Try varying your access times and make sure that you have all the required information and avoid commonly used access points, like the main gate. Question: How is my billing for electricity calculated?

Answer: The manner in which the billing for the electric utility is devised, in accordance with the Department of Defense Go Army Green program, is that all like homes are placed into groupings and an average is calculated each month for each grouping based on the average consumption of the fully occupied homes in each grouping. The groupings are defined by three factors: the size of home in square feet, age of home by the date it was built, and type of home such as a townhouse. All of the homes in these groupings contribute to the floating average each month.

The looting average is determined by the amount of electricity each home uses in the grouping. The top and bottom 10% of homes in each group are eliminated, as are homes that are not rented for the full month. Once this average is figured for each of the 48 groupings of homes, a 10% buffer is added above the baseline to offset any anomalies that may occur. Once this floating average is determined a family that is above the 10% adjusted baseline by $15. 00 will receive a bill for the difference between the adjusted baseline and their actual consumption.

Inversely any family that falls below the adjusted baseline by $15. 0 will receive a refund check for the difference between the adjusted baseline and their actual consumption. No bill or refund will be sent to a family until they exceed a fifteen dollar trigger and any balance less than fifteen dollars will be tracked until the account is closed or the amount exceeds the fifteen dollar trigger. Question: Is Fort Polk the only military installation with the Resident Responsibility Program? How did the program originate?

Answer: Across the Department of Defense, energy conservation programs are underway with a goal to reduce our overall energy consumption in the United States y 20%. Picture Military Housing has looked at every aspect of this Congressionally- mandated, Department of Defense Utility Conservation Program and the way it’s managed at Fort Polk. This is not a program in which all current homes would be required to be updated into energy efficient homes. The basis of the program is to family housing. Question: How is the wait list for housing derived? Answer: Picture Military Housings published wait times are estimated.

They can vary week to week depending on the availability and need for these homes by both incoming families and families who have outgrown their current home. Question: Can the Garrison provide a shuttle service to the airport? Answer: A shuttle service for airport support would be limited to official use travel and have to fall within the funding capabilities of the garrison. Military can present taxi drivers with a copy of their orders (to/from Alexandria Airport) and pay no charge. Travel to and from the airport for civilians travel on orders is an authorized expense that is claimed with their travel voucher.

An award is something given to a person or a group of people to recognise excellence in a certain field, a certificate of excellence. Awards are often signified by trophies, titles, certificates, commemorative plaques, medals, badges, pins, or ribbons. Each person on this earth yearns for appreciation, recognition and affirmation. Some hanker for the recognition from their loved ones, some want to be recognised by their boss, organisation want to be recognised by consumers, some aim at appreciation from the masses or their peers in general and usually, organisations aim for affirmation (For example, ISO or Cast Trust awards).

Marketers in this case had used the consumer-driven approach, consumer wants are the drivers of all strategic marketing decisions. Every aspect of a market offering, including the nature of the product itself, is driven by the needs of potential consumers. Concept There are some types of relationships a person may have with a product. Trophies, medals and awards have given the consumers relationships of self-concept attachment, nostalgic attachment and love. They help to establish the user’s identity, serve as a link with a self past and elicit emotional bonds of warmth, passion or other strong emotion.

Our perception is an approximation of reality. Our brain attempts to make sense out of the stimuli to which we are exposed. Several sequential factors influence our perception. Trophies, medals and awards have given consumers the perception of vision and touch. Vision Marketers reply heavily on visual elements in advertising, store design, and packaging. They communicate meanings on the visual channel through a product’s colour, size and styling. Colours may even influence our emotions more directly. Evidence suggests that some colours create feelings of arousal and stimulate appetite, and others create more relaxing feelings.

Others reactions are a result of biological and culture differences. We know that perceptions of colour depend on both its physical wavelength and how the mind responds to that stimulus. Touch This sensory channel is relatively important even though scientists have done little research on the effects of tactile stilulation on consumer behaviour. Sensation that reach our skin, whether from a luxurious massage or the bite of a winter wind, stimulate or relax. Researchers even have shown that touch can influence sales interactions, they are starting to identify the important role the haptic (touch) sense plays in consumer behaviour.

Haptic senses appear to moderate the relationship between product experience and judgement confidence, confirming the common sense notion that we are more sure about what we have preceive when we touch it. Motivation Motivation refers to the process that lead people to behave as they do. It occurs when a need is aroused that the consumer wishes to satisfy. The need creates a state of tension that drives the consumer to attempt to reduce or eliminate. The desired end state is the consumers’s goal. Marketers try to create products and services that will provide the desired benefits and permit the consumer to reduce this tention.

When trophies, medals or awards are given to people or organization, it acts as a form of appreciation, recognition and affirmation. It becomes a very strong motivating factor to do more and be better. On the other hand, the absence of timely appreciation acts as a powerful de-motivator, and sometimes even pushes people to destructive behavior. The use of awards trophies and awards plaques can be used as an exceptionally potent way to express appreciation, recognition and affirmation at all levels, at home, at the work place and even globally. Values

Researchers had identified four dominant of values, freedom, belongingness, excellence and connection. Classifying Consumer Needs Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is one of the consumer needs theory. People need to engage themselves to gain recognition and have an activity or activities that give the person a sense of contribution, to feel accepted and self-valued, be it in a profession or hobby. Maslow’s concept of self-actualisation relates directly to the present day challenges and opportunities for people, employers and organisations to provide real meaning, purpose and true personal development.

Self-Concept The self-concept is composed of relatively permanent self-assessments, such as personality attributes, knowledge of one’s skills and abilities, one’s occupation and hobbies, and awareness of one’s physical attributes. The self-concept is not restricted to the present. It includes past selves and future selves. Future selves or “possible selves” represent individuals’ ideas of what they might become, what they would like to become, and what they are afraid of becoming. They correspond to hopes, fears, standards, goals, and threats.

Possible selves may function as incentives for future behavior and they also provide an evaluative and interpretive context for the current view of self. Self-Esteem Self-esteem reflects a person’s overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth. People with high self-esteem expect that they will perform very well and people with low self-esteem will try to avoid embarrassment, failure or rejection. Marketers communication can influence a consumer’s self-esteem. A process of social comparison, where the person tries to evaluate himself/herself by comparing it to the person these artificial images depict.

Examples The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to recognise excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. The formal ceremony at which the awards are presented is one of the most prominent film award ceremonies in the world. Generally, it has been seen that the award of such trophies can be powerful motivators for all people. This is basically because most people crave appreciation, recognition and affirmation for their efforts, whether they work at home or in an office.

These awards need not be expensive or grand, as long as they are tailor made for the recipient. 1248 words References http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Trophy http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Medal https://www. amazines. com/article_detail. cfm/725101? articleid=725101 http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Consumer_behaviour http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/International_Organization_for_Standardization http://www. consumerpsychologist. com/cb_Perception. html http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Self-concept http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Academy_Awards Michael R. Solomon,_ Consumer Behaviour_, 8e Pearson Education, Inc.

The value system for the subculture (Mexican-Americans) is for the most part consistent with the consumption of Lopez Supermarket since they all share the traditions and beliefs, Hipic race, Spanish language, and nationality background. Average family size for this segment is of 3. 5, and spends 15 to 20 percent more of disposable income on groceries than the national average. They view their family and friends as an important part of their life, and value their opinions when making decisions such as where to shop for groceries. Customers of Lopez are generally those living close to the store.

In general they are low-income Mexican/Hipics with limited resources, strong values, high ties to family and tradition and the majority practice the Catholic religion. Is our product appropriate for male or female consumption? Will ongoing gender-role changes affect who consumes our product or how it is consumed? Lopez Supermarket is appropriate for both male and female consumption. Even though, according to the Census Bureau, 17. 4% of households are made up of female householder, and 45. 8% without husband presence and with children, products sold at Lopez can be bought by either male or female.

The ongoing gender-role (assuming that is from the same culture and subculture) would not change as to who buys at Lopez, but it could affect how it is consumed. Meaning, men, just as women, shop at Lopez, but men would not shop as much or buy the same products as women. Do ethnic, social, regional, or religious subcultures have different consumption patterns relevant to our product? Ethnic and social subculture, for the most part, might have a different consumption patterns. Some might like to go to Lopez to make use of their rebate coupons they offer. Some might shop on a daily basis, while others might shop once a week.

It all depends on the amount of income and time they have to make their shopping. For the most part, Lopez is directed to a Mexican-American region culture. If Lopez were to locate somewhere where Mexican-American population is very low, Lopez’ current environment might not be as appreciated due a difference in values and believes other segments might have. Do various demographic or social-strata groups (age, gender, urban/suburban/rural, occupation, income, education) differ in their consumption of our product? Mexican-American is one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the U. S. (in Brownsville, they totaled 103. 297). Geography is an advantage for Lopez, since stores are located on the border of U. S. and Mexico. Demographic and social-strata groups (age, gender, urban/suburban/rural, occupation, income, education) might have different motive for shopping at Lopez Supermarket. For example, in an age group, kids might go to buy candy or they could be sent by their mothers to buy immediate products (tortillas, milk, soda) that they might need at home. Meanwhile adults might go to buy groceries in high amounts and items such as beer and cigarettes.

Other segments might not buy their groceries at Lopez, but they might go for the “fresh meat” or “barbacoa” they sell. Geographically, if Lopez is not close by, consumer might look for alternatives and buy groceries either at a gas station or at another grocery store. Is our product particularly appropriate for consumers with relatively high (or low) incomes compared to others in their occupational group (ROCI)? Based on Silvia Rico’s report, class structure for this segment is Lower-Middle who strives to become part of the Upper Class. This segment view food as an abundance of wealth, so they usually give food gifts.

They have many status symbols, such as jewelry, new car, home decor, etc. In their leisure time the go to the beach, and spend time with family. High income might prefer an alternative. Can our product be particularly appropriate for specific roles, such as students or professional women? In general, anyone can shop at Lopez, but it is most appropriate for district level, low-middle income consumers whose role are of a household provider. If customers are playing the role of a professional businessperson, for example, they definitely will not find items they might need (suitcases, high quality pens, etc. , since Lopez is meant for groceries. A student, might find pen, paper, pencil, and notebooks, but in very small amounts, and a higher price than specialized stores. Would it be useful to focus on specific adopter categories? Not necessarily. Focusing on specific adopter categories (The ranking into which adopters of a new product fall according to their willingness and speed to embrace a new product; adopter categories are normally listed as innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards) will not help much, since Lopez sells products people are already familiar with.

An alternative would be to subgroup the current marketing segment even further (such those women who work and those who don’t) in order to target them better, since this subgroups share similar purchasing behaviors. This group of single young women with children can be subdivided based on the people that live with them (alone with own children, and with extended family), their number of working hours (part-time, and full-time), and based on their children’s age (under 6 yrs. , and from 6 to 17 yrs. ). Targeting per segment Women living alone with their own children:

This sub-segment is influenced greatly by their children, they may go to shop at Lopez because their children had great experiences from the store. Children are a strong influence that guides these women to shop there, but also they also have influence in the products they buy. This segment may spend great part of their income in shopping products their children like, depending on their age. Small children may influence them to buy candies, and products that contain attractive animations. Older children may influence their overall product selection based on their tastes and preferences.

These children may also influence their mothers to buy high quality, and name branded products. Women living with extended family: These women are more likely to be influenced by their relatives living with them, specially the older ones that are thought to be the wisest ones. This segment tries to comply with society, and with their own family. They want to be approved by others, and make their purchases according to the way others expected them to act. They choose Lopez as their store for their food supplies, because it is the family tradition store.

They are high self-monitoring, since these women tend to evaluate products consumed in public in terms of the impressions they make on others. They may also cash their checks, and pay some bills at Lopez, because that is the family tradition way to do this activity. Another reason for them to cash their checks is because they are low-Income and usually they do not have a bank account, because they tend to save the money that is left (if any) in their houses. They learned these activities from their parents or relatives living with them.

Women living with extended family and not working: This segment relies on the extended family (or federal aid such as food stamps) for financial support. They might be the ones purchasing immediate items for their children (such as cereal, milk, cookies) but leave the large purchase decisions to a secondary person. This segment has more time to shop and look around, and does not go to Lopez alone. They usually go at least twice a week (if not more) with their kids, and the extended family member with the purchase decision in the household.

They rely on their family and friends for their immediate purchase decision, and try to save as money as much as possible since they don’t have sufficient income. Women working full-time: This sub-segment is very busy, they value their time, and buy at Lopez because of the store location, the relative small store size (comparing it with HEB, and El Globo), and because they are very familiar with the store, and they cash their checks at Lopez when they go shopping in order to save time. These women know where are products located within the store, they know products prices, people working there, and people shopping there.

Women within this segment, go to Lopez once a week, or once every two weeks, depending on the way they get paid. They will usually go to the store on weekends, especially on Friday because is when they may cash their wage checks. On weekends they can buy groceries for all the week, since buying food supplies is a priority for them, and whatever money is left, they will spend it in clothes or save it. This segment usually goes to shop alone, and make their purchases according their own opinion, and neither relatives nor children influence their consumer behavior.

These women are very important for Lopez because these women buy high-volume when they go to Lopez. They buy huge quantities because they do not have time to go other day in the week. Their purchases may not be well planned, they may buy their necessary products, and other products with discounts. Products strategic point-of-display is very important to influence this segment to buy. Women working part-time: This women have more time to analyze and plan their shopping, they may look more detailed the products they will buy. They may go to Lopez at an average rate of three times per week.

Since they earn less money than full-timers, they will buy products at discount, and are well informed of the products that are going to be on sale any specific day. These women are very familiar with the store, and usually they have great relationships with store employees, and seek for their advice when making their purchases. This segment go to shop with their children, or other relatives, so their purchases are influenced by the people that go with them. They shop at Lopez because it is the store for groceries they know best, and because their relatives advice them to.

They are more likely to be influenced by advertising (specially coupons), than full-timers, since they have more time to read adds, look for coupons, cut and use them. Women with children under 6 years old: This group of women with children under 6 years old, represents 8. 6% of the female householder with no husband present, according to the U. S. Census Bureau (Census 2000) of Cameron County. This segment in heavily influenced by their children preferences. They will look for products that will be accepted and that will cause a positive attitude in their children.

Children are a strong influence that guides their consumer behavior; thus influencing the type of products they buy. This segment may spend great part of their income in children-related products, such as candies, chocolates, cereals with cartoon animations, products that include small toys and others that are attractive to children. Mothers will usually go to Lopez accompanied by their children, because children make pressure to go with them. Children under 6 years old like to be with their mothers, and enjoy going to shop with them.

These children influence mothers to buy seasonal products, especially adornments to their houses, and also food that include seasonal animation in its package. This segment may end up buying unexpected items, and spending more money than planned because of their children influence. Women with children from 6 to 17 years old: These children have strong influence in product brand selection. This group represents 35. 3% of the female householder with no husband present, according to the U. S. Census Bureau (Census 2000) of Cameron County.

They may influence their mothers to buy the brands that are most common, and are preferred by their friends. These children may not go to shop with their mothers, since they are at an age where they like to be seen as independent individuals. They do not participate actively in the purchase itself; they just influence their mothers to buy what they said. Mothers seek the approval of their children, so their purchases may be strongly influenced by their children. This segment wants to create a positive attitude towards the products they buy.

These women are willing to buy more expensive items to satisfy their children’s preferences. They are willing to buy more products at a higher price, and sacrifice other goods, as possible to comply with children’s desires. For this segment, their children are seen as young adults with valuable opinion about products. Since many of this children go to school, and are the most knowledgeable and educated in the family, their judgment about certain products are taken as valid, and may cause changes in the products bought.

Do groups in different stages of the household life cycle have different consumption patterns for our product? Who in the household is involved in the purchase process? In this case, single women might just buy the basic items (milk, cereal, eggs). If they live with their parents, their parents might be the ones doing the groceries. Younger kids might also play a role, meaning they might be the ones asking what type of products to buy at Lopez (specific brand of cereal or soft drink). B. Internal influences Can our product satisfy different needs or motives in different people?

What needs are involved? What characterizes individuals with differing motives? Yes. Customers might go to buy groceries, and at the same time take advantage of paying their bills, cashing a check, or sending mail. Those who go on a daily basis might also want to know what kinds of savings they might find. Kids might want to go to buy candy. Others might need to buy food for a birthday party, or to get ready for Friday’s barbeque. Is our product uniquely suited for particular personality types? Self-concepts? Lopez is focused more for the lower-middle income people.

This means that people who have relatives and shop at Lopez might do so as well just to not feel left out, as mentioned by Silvia. High-income people might not shop there simply because they might want to be compared or identified with the low-middle income people (of course there are exceptions but this goes for the majority of the high-income class. ) For the most part, Lopez is directed toward a Mexican-American environment and to the other segments that accept this. What emotions, if any, are affected by the purchase and/or consumption of this product?

Realizing that they are known and treated on a friendly matter influence them to go to Lopez. Also having family, neighbors, or friends who might work or go there, might affect this as well. Is our product appropriate for one or more distinct lifestyles? For the most part, is for those who prefer to go to Lopez for convenience and to save money. Young single Mexican-American mothers might go there because their concern is their family and their heritage traditions. Other with a different lifestyle (those who might like to spend a lot of money, for example) might not consider Lopez as an option.

As Silvia Rico mentioned, self-monitoring is also affected here because their choices are influenced by their estimates of how Lopez is perceived by their family and friends. If a person was told that shopping at Lopez is only for the poor, then that person might be embarrassed to go or be seen there. A birth of a child or departure of an older one, may affect the lifestyle of the consumer and they way they buy. For the birth of a child, they might need to buy baby products, while for the departure of a child, they might consume less.

Do different groups have different attitudes about an ideal version of our product? Yes. Some might prefer a “nice looking and cleaner” store. Others might compare Lopez to H. E. B. and might perceive Lopez as a small, local store compared to H. E. B. Others might not want to shop at Lopez because of the smell (meat) it emits. There are also those who believe that Lopez is fine the way it is. C. Situational influences Can our product be appropriate for specific types of situations instead of (or in addition to) specific types of people? Yes.

In case of an emergency (a hurricane, for example), people might go to Lopez to buy items such as candles, flashlights, can food, batteries, or anything else they might need. A family birthday party or special celebration might require buying the meat and even decorations such as balloons. Barbeque on Friday, as Silvia pointed out, is another example. D. Decision-process influences Do different individuals use different evaluative criteria in selecting the product? Yes. Family could influence some individuals (worrying about what their family might think of them if they were to shop at another store).

Others might select distance or convenience as a way to measure going to Lopez (how far it takes to go to Lopez compared to going to a gas station). Do potential customers differ in their loyalty to existing products/brands? Some of the products sold at Lopez might not be sold at other stores and vice-versa. (Hill Country products are only sold at H. E. B. ). Some products are well known to them since they are the products their parents and grandparents used. Others might not be as loyal to the brands as they are to the store itself.

Executive Summary

The tenacity of the report is to acknowledge segmentation approaches and profile consumers that would be likely to purchase the Sony Xperia smartphone, as well as look at one segmented group that would suffice as a primary target market to promote the Xperia to. Sony is a large producer and distributer of electronic goods and have large product lines in relation to mobile phones, televisions and computers. Sony released it Xperia smartphone early in 2012 and has continued to excel in sales for the smartphone. The research for this report was conducted using Journal articles, Sony’s company website and the textbook Consumer Behaviour. It was found that there were four main segmented consumer groups who would all have a vested interest in the purchase of the Sony Xperia however with the use of segmentation bases it was found that the segmented group, referred to as the Career crazies were the best primary target audience when segmenting this product and profiling consumers. It was also established that Contactual and Aspirational reference groups played a significant role in the purchase decisions of consumers when buying the Xperia. It was concluded that Sony should target the career crazies as well as use celebrity endorsements to promote the Xperia smartphone.

Introduction

The purpose of this report is to develop a market segmentation for the Sony Xperia and profile four consumer group, who will be targeted when advertising and promoting the Smartphone. The chosen product, the Sony Xperia mobile phone is an android smartphone which includes features such as 23 hours of battery life, 4.3 scratch-resistant TFT Touchscreen with wet finger tracking, a 12.1 Megapixel camera, 1.5 GHz Dual Core processor and is light weight and available in black, white, yellow and pink (Sony, 2012). Sony is a leading producer of electronic goods and distributes many product types such as televisions, personal computers and even medical equipment. Sony is well known by many consumers as a front-runner in quality, affordability and product longevity and they have positioned the Xperia smartphone as a functional and compact solution that has many features to offer to its users, as well as a product that is likely to last and is in conjunction with the astounding standard that is associated with the Sony brand. Sony has also marketed the Xperia so that it promotes great value for money by advertising all the great quality characteristics for a practical price. Using this Xperia smartphone, it will be determined how Sony targets the market in order to achieve maximum sales as well as using the product to segment the market and attract consumers with the specialised features of the smartphone.

Background Information

Current market tends for mobile phones show a dramatic increase in volume growth of 23% of sales, wholeheartedly due to a 91% increase in volume growth for smartphones, with these products reaching a dominant share of 52% in unit volume in 2010 and 84% of value share due to their higher unit price (Euromonitor international, 2011). Current trends predict an expected increase in sales to young consumers under the age of 16 as they are expected to have an increase in interest in owning such a product and also have a growing financial strength. It is also anticipated that young consumers will play and important role in consumption of smart phones as the price declines in years to come (Euromonitor international, 2011).

This study was formed over a four week time period with extensive research gained from the Sony website, as well as arguments formed in academic journals. Business reports will also be exploited to form the bases of current consumer trends regarding sales growth and predicted sales growth in years to come.

The Textbook Consumer Behaviour (Schiffman, O’Cass, Paladino, D’Alessandro, & Bednall, 2010) will also be utilised to form the bases of the segmentation and provide information regarding means-end theory. Given the above material. The following assumptions and limitations were made when writing this report. The scope of this study was limited to one specific product and was confined to a short time frame. Limitations were also placed on consumer opinion. It was assumed that the chosen target market was best profiled to suit the consumers that would be likely to represent the most common user of the Sony Xperia. It was also assumed that the level of influence that a reference group holds over the consumers purchase decision is largely dependent on the nature of the individual and the product itself.

The data used to complete this report included several journal articles, organisation websites and the Consumer Behaviour Textbook (Schiffman et al., 2010). The study was accomplished by accessing the needs of a consumer for a chosen product, then profiling specific categories of consumers who would most likely purchase the chosen product. It was then decided the main target market based on the segmented profiles and shown how that particular group would be best suited to the product at hand. Lastly it was analyzed the ways in which the purchase decisions of the target group could be influenced by reference groups.

Consumer Analysis

The means-end theory sustains that a hierarchical model of three interconnected levels can represent the way consumers relate to products. (Leao, André Luiz M. de Souza, & Mello, Sergio C. Benício de, 2007). The first, being product attributes, which are best described as the characteristics of a product such as size, durability or quality. Secondly is the benefits sought, which refers to the remunerations requested in a product, such as convenience, professionalism or capability, and lastly is the lifestyle values of the product. This denotes the personal values judged by the consumer that are important to attain from the benefits sought. The following diagram conveys a means-end chain, which is described as a boundary between culture and consumer Behaviour. The means are the vehicle for achieving lifestyle values with the consumption of goals as an intermediary between them (Schiffman et al., 2010).

Diagram One:

Market Segmentation

Market segmentation is the “process of dividing a potential market into distinct subsets of consumers and selecting one or more segments as a target market to be reached with a distinct marketing mix” (Schiffman et al., 2010. Pg. 20). The following four profiles were identified as consumer groups who are most likely to take an interest in purchasing the Sony Xperia. The first profile depicts the Social Butterflies, who are young women/ teenagers that are highly sociable and enjoy communal networking. This group of young women is strongly influenced by their peers and would conform when making highly involved purchase decision such as the Xperia smartphone. The second profile is the Gadget Geeks. This group is identified as being young males who have a love for all things technology.

This group of consumers is up to date with the current technology in today’s world and enjoys the specification and functions of the Sony Xperia. The third profiled consumer group is the Golden Oldies. This group of consumers is acknowledged as being at a stage in their life cycle where they need a product that will help them in an emergency situation, as they are more susceptible to illness or injury. They are also recognized as having a need for the Sony Xperia as they need an effective form or communication to stay in touch with their families and grandchildren in particular. It was also documented that this consumer group is highly influenced by their younger family members when it comes to product purchases and the Xperia might be recommended by family members, due to its significant level of flexibility. The Last consumer group profiled is the career crazies. This cluster of consumers is observed as being career driven and has a need for high quality products that will assist them in their path to success. This group may be a good candidate for the Sony Xperia as it provides a high level of professionalism and is a leading piece of technology in today’s business world (Sony, 2012). This category is also influenced by a need for uniqueness, as they need a competitive advantage over co-workers to excel in their current occupation.

The use of segmentation variables when profiling consumers into segmented groups is high regarded. Segmentation bases such as Benefits sought, Demographics, Purchase Behaviour and personality, lifestyle and socio-cultural values help to identify and profile these groups of consumers by assessing the needs and wants of a consumer, their current situation and many other factors. Demographic factors include variables like age, gender, income and education level and occupation.

These factors can help marketers determine if a certain category of people are best suited to the product, can afford the product and would be interested in purchasing the product (Lawson, R. W., 1988). Benefits sought refers to the remunerations gained from purchasing a product and can help marketers distinguish how best to promote the product based on the product attributes as well as gain an insight into what consumers these days are looking for in a smartphone, as well as giving producers a basis for product construction. Like benefits sought, Purchase behavior can also tell a marketer many things, such as how often a consumer users a product or a function on a specific product. This could be helpful in determining how best to improve a previous product or how best to create the next best smartphone in todays society, for example the previous model of Xperia created by Sony has many of the similar functions to the latest Xperia, this shows that the usage rate of the similar functions could be high as they were seen to be worthy to reusing int he current model.

Purchase behavior can also largely assist product adaptation. Personality, lifestyle and socio-cultural values also play an important role in the understanding of consumers as they give marketers an insight into their current situation, what they need in a product and what matters most to them. This is a useful segmentation bases as it can also help build a product, as the producers of the Xperia will only include features that are useful to consumers and that are wanted by consumers. For examples the Xperia smartphone has a built in camera which could prove useful to a consumer who enjoys photography in their leisure time, or the built in MP3 player which is an important feature for the social butterflies as they enjoy product entertainment. It is event in the diagrams below that every aspect of the segmentation bases play a significant role in building the segmentation groups, and help form the bases of the best attributes of the target market.

Diagram Two:
Social Butterflies:

Diagram three:
Gadget Geeks:

Diagram Four:
Golden Oldies:

Diagram Five:
Career Crazies:

Based on the above segmentation variables for each consumer group, it is likely to conclude that the most effective primary target audience would be the Career crazies as their needs best match the benefits and attributes of the Sony Xperia. The career crazies are the most sizable consumer group as they consist of enough consumers to make targeting the Xperia profitable. They are also the most stable consumer group as they have a steady lifestyle and are likely to grow larger and more viable in the future in relation to consumption patterns. They are also regarded as a good primary target market as they easily identifiable, and accessible, meaning marketers can reach the career crazies in an efficient and economical way. They may reach the career crazies through means of business magazines, or television channels that a targeted at people with a high interest in the business world or through social media. Lastly it is evident that the Career crazies would be the most viable option for a primary target audience as not only do they meet the four preceding criteria when effectively targeting consumers they also value almost every benefit sought offered by the Xperia, such as the advanced Quality, interactive abilities of the Xperia and the capabilities and professionalism that comes with purchasing the Sony Xperia.

Decision making influences

Reference groups are defined as “any person or group that serves as a point of comparison for an individual in forming either general or specific values, attitudes or a specific guide for behavior” (Schiffman et al., 2010. Pg. 265). These reference groups have a significant influence over the purchase decisions of the consumers (Bearden, W. O., & Etzel, M. J., 1982) and in particular the Career crazies. There are four main categories of consumer reference groups, which can be represented by either Contactual, Aspirational, Disclaimant and Avoidance groups. The most relevant reference groups that have the most substantial influence of consumer purchase decision of the Sony Xperia are Contactual and Aspirational reference groups. Contactual reference groups are those that are direct and values have an encouraging influence. This group could include the consumer’s family, close friends or even work colleagues. This reference group could hold a significant influence of the Career crazies as family members can persuade the consumer to buy or not to buy the Xperia. Family members opinions hold a heavyweight to high involvement decisions and generally consumers listen to their family members judgments towards many products before making the decision to purchase them. Friends and co-workers also play an important role in positive product influences as if they own the product themselves it could motivate the Career crazies to want to purchase the product.

The other reference group that may hold a momentous influence over the Career crazies when deciding to purchase Sony Xperia is the Aspirational reference group. This group is indirect and values have a positive influence. This group is very similar to the Contactual reference group however it differs in that it has gradually broadened to include both direct individuals and groups and also indirect groups, such as celebrities or political leaders, people whom the consumer does not come in direct contact with. The Aspirational reference group like the Contactual reference group may also hold a high weight to purchase decisions regarding the Sony Xperia as if the Career crazies have a need for high status products and a need for conformity then they will be likely to purchase the product if they see a favorite celebrity using one or a promotional advertisement with a well know celebrity endorsing the product.

Conclusion

This report focuses on the Sony Xperia smartphone and the importance of market segmentation and consumer profiling. The use of four segmentation bases, were utilized to distinguish between each profile. Demographics, Purchase behavior, benefits sought and personality, lifestyles and socio-cultural variables were used to conclude the needs, wants and values of specific consumer groups. Four consumer segments were produced using the segmentation bases and were assessed in order to reach the most plausible target audience for the Xperia in order to best market the product. It was found that the consumer group, the Career crazies were the most likely to be the main target market for the Xperia as the main functions and values created by the Xperia were alignment with that of the outlined consumer type in the Career crazies. It was also found in the report that Career crazies are largely influenced by mainly, Contactual and Aspirational reference groups and the opinions of the direct and indirect individuals within the reference groups, are held high by the consumers in the Career crazies. Sony should target the Career crazies as they are identifiable, sizable, accessible and stable compared to the other identified consumer groups, such as the social butterflies or the golden oldies.

Recommendations

It is recommended that Sony should target the Career crazies segmented group as the benefits sought by this consumer group best matches the product attributes.

Sony should also use social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter to promote the Xperia as it could help widen the accessibility to consumers as most young adults use these social channels. Using social media could also help Sony achieve a larger cliental base as it opens up pathways to faster and cost effective advertising.

It is also recommended that Sony focus on promoting the Xperia using celebrity endorsers as the primary targeted audience; the Career crazies are largely influenced by Aspirational reference groups and are more likely to purchase a product if a celebrity is promoting it.

Sony should also promote the Xperia through the use of business magazines as it has been identified as a way to reach the career crazies and promote the product through effective advertising, or product reviews.

CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY ————————————————- A report on internal and external influences on consumer behaviour in Lacoste Student ID: 11464575 Student Name: LuanTruong NGUYEN MKT 510 Assignment 2 Lecturer: A. Bull JAN 27 2011 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY There are three main aims of this report. It aims to provide a better understanding about the impact of internal and external factors on consumer behaviour. In so doing, Lacose, which produces apparel, was chosen for this.

At first, it will examine the segmentation and identify target market for the company. The second purpose is to explain the role of internal and external factors affecting consumer purchasing decision on Lacoste. Due to space limit, only three factors will be considered: two internal factors of perception and motivation and one external factor of lifestyle. Another aim is to make the recommendations for establishing market strategies. Research for this report included a review of current marketing literature and some effective strategies for the future of Lacoste.

The results of the analysis are: * The market segmentation by the Lacoste company are 45-50 year old people, belonging to the high society and the young people from suburbs * The target market for the company is young people with luxury lifestyle * Internal and external factors have a significant impact on consumer behaviour which has been proven in the success in marketing strategy of Lacoste It is clear that Lacoste has got some success from its knowledge about internal and external factor.

However, Lacoste must take consideration to some recommendations below to have the better marketing strategy: * More promotions and a beautiful website should be used to increase perception of consumer * Increasing price can have a positive impact on motivation and demand for lifestyle TABLE OF CONTENTpage 1. Introduction1 2. 1. Background of the report1 2. 2. Aims1 2. Lacoste and opportunity1 3. 3. History1 3. 4. Opportunity2 3. Market segmentation2 4. Internal factors3 5. 5. Perception of consumer3 5. 6. 1. Exposure3 5. 6. 2. Attention4 . 6. 3. Interpretation5 5. 6. Motivation5 5. External factor (lifestyle)7 6. Recommendations7 7. Conclusion8 References9 1. Introduction 2. 1. Background of the report Over the decades, understanding consumer behaviour has become extremely important to achieve success for a company. Consumer behaviour is strongly influenced by both internal and external factors. Therefore, researching the internal and external factors is indispensable when the company want to set up a better marketing strategy for consumer behaviour. According to Chester et al. 2007), internal factors include perception, emotion, motivation, learning, memory, personality and attitude while external factor include demographics, lifestyles, household, group influence and culture. Among these factor, perception and motivation for internal factors and lifestyle for external factor has been choose to describe in this report. In the fashion world, Lacoste is one of the most famous brand name with over 50 million products that had been sold in 110 countries in 2005 (Wiki, 2007). This success results from the understanding of Lacoste about the external and internal factors which has a great impact on consumer behavior.

The marketing campaigns of Lacoste have crucial influence on consumer perception (Moosmayer , 2010). Moreover, Lacoste attempt to position itself on luxury brands of clothes because consumers have much motivations in purchasing luxury products (Husic, 2007). This report will investigate to how Lacoste uses knowledge about internal and external factors in establishing its strategies and identify some limitations of these strategies. 2. 2. Aims This report explores to what extent: – Specific aims are to find out the segmentation and target market of Lacoste. How internal and external factors impact on Lacoste strategies. – Making some recommendations to improve these strategies. 2. Lacoste and opportunity 3. 3. History of Lacoste Lacoste is global apparel licensee which was established in 1933 by Rene Lacoste and Andre Gillier. The crocodile logo comes from Rene Lacoste who wore a shirt with crocodile image on the chest during the final match of Davis Cup in 1925. The significant growth had appeared under Bernard’s management who took over the management form his father Rene. Lacoste had become popular in US during 1970s and 300000 product had been sold every year.

Range of lacoste product became more diversify with perfume, sunglasses, tennis shoes, walking shoes, watches, and various leather goods. Lacoste have spread throughout the world by licensing its trademark to various companies. Until recently Devanlay owned the exclusive worldwide clothing license, though today Lacoste Polo Shirts are also manufactured under licence in Thailand by ICC and also in China. Pentland Group has the exclusive worldwide license to produce Lacoste footwear, Procter & Gamble owns the exclusive worldwide license to produce fragrance, and Samsonite holds the worldwide license to produce Lacoste bags and small eather goods. 3. 4. Opportunity When economy is developing, demand for higher social status is also increase especially young people. One of ways to show social status is shopping. With a luxury brand like Lacoste, owning product can satisfy that demand. In addition, need for sport are raising because level of stress was higher over the years. For that reason, Lacose can look for a brilliant future with a sport style brand name. 3. Market segmentation The notion of market segmentation has been emerged for more than 50 years (Smith 1956).

Market segmentation, which is a crucial tool to enhance the competition of a company, used widely across business sectors to manage diverse customer needs and to target marketing resources (Weinstein 2004; LaPlaca 1997; McDonald and Dunbar 2004). Consumer orientation is the main function of market segmentation because company must keep in touch closely with consumer to ensure more efficient resource allocation and resulting in marketing programs which are better attuned to customer needs (Albert 2003; Beane and Ennis 1987; Freytag and Clarke 2001).

Realize the role of market segment, In the past, the brand from Paris more like the Americans do the job: dull, formal, middle-class style, men’s Polo shirt style monotonous, even more terrifying is the diehard fans who love it The average age of close to 40 years. Unsurprisingly, Lacoste has been concentrate on the target consumer who is 45-50 year old people, belonging to the high society. They are seen to be loyal, classical, and to strongly share the brand values. In addition, their sensibility to price is low; they look for quality and comfort, easiness of maintenance.

What they look for in the brand, is the possibility to relax in sport or during week-ends far from towns, through casual, sportswear. However, in recent years, the market began to change and reasons for consumer bought the products changed too. A new potential market appeared: the young people from suburbs. Therefore, a new approach for this market area can’t be ignored. For this segment, to own a prestigious brand, and moreover wear it, must be a distinctive sign of social ascension or a sign of success. At least concerning clothes, they are finally on the same step of equality with young rich people.

Furthermore, we can add that by feeling to be apart from this rich sign of recognition, they logically want to be more a member of the community. They just want to show that they also can wear Lacoste clothes, that they own enough money for it, and to prove that these wears are not reserved to elite. In fact, even if this segment can’t be compare with the traditional segment about brand identity and reputation, it also brings a lot of money. For this reason, Lacoste considered this kind of consumer as a target market.

Form that, lacoste built a new fashion trend, now this is not only the old sport brand with a Polo shirt but it is also gradually developing a versatile range of clothing. Lacoste brand owners to look younger looking, Lacoste tender over the world began to taste the sweetness of fashion. 4. Internal factors 5. 5. Perception of consumer Perception is a critical part of the human brain’s information process system. This system involves a series of interlinked activities by which stimuli are transformed into information and stored (Quester et al. , 2007).

The process of perception can be divided into several main stages: exposure, attention, and interpretation 5. 6. 1. Exposure People see thousands of brand images in an average day. Given how ubiquitous brands have become in people’s everyday lives. Lacoste is one of most famous brand name in clothing industry so they is easy to exposure to consumers when they see the crocodile logo. The first exposure of Lacoste comes to consumer when Rene Lacoste won the final Davis cup with the Lacoste shirt. Lacoste is the first brand has logo embroidered on the chest.

In a recent paper, Skinner and Stephens (2003) noted the vast complexity of the 21st-century media environment, and the heavy volume of advertising to which consumers are exposed, they must decide which advertisements to screen out and which to process and something they choose to avoid exposure and attention to marketing communications messages. Therefore, Lacoste advertisements always focus on the simplicity, pleasure and fresh style which are easier to keep watcher staying in front of TVs. In addition, billboards also play a significant role in advertising strategies.

Taylor et al. (2006) has suggested that for a billboard to be effective, it must communicate a relevant message in a clear, interesting, and readable manner to the appropriate audience. Base on that, Lacoste has design the billboards containing fresh and active messages and built at advantageous places to create effective exposure to consumer. For instance, Lacoste dominate the island of Manhattan via tunnels, bridges and interior roadways with billboards and walls. In the design, LACOSTE Men’s and Women have been in place for younger approach, tinted youthful.

Lacoste brands, countless self-confidence, have excellent taste to wear choice However, the layout of retail shops is not enough colourful and especial to exposure to consumer. Decoration inside shops did not create the elegance and warmth as well as a mobility of shelves in order to lead to a diversity viewing for consumers. 5. 6. 2. Attention According to Quester et al. (2007), attention occurs when a stimulus activates one or more sensory receptor nerves and the resulting sensations go to the brain for processing. In fact, consumers don’t attend to everything they see or hear of touch and they focus on something while ignore others.

For this reason, some companies go to great length to try to assure that their target consumers will attend to their advertising message. To make attention, Lacoste has created promotional strategy. Lacoste understand that movie has a great influence on the fashion choice of young people so they emphasized product placement in popular movies and TV shows. For example, the US Lacoste established a special division called Propaganda Entertainment Marketing in Los Angeles which support to Lacoste product can appear on Hollywood movies.

That is easy to realize the Lacoste brand worn by Gwyneth Paltrow in the movie The Royal Tenenbaums, Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls, Mathew Broderick in The Stepford Wives and Lacoste also provide free clothing to celebrities. On the other hand, Lacoste must confront to counterfeit. Counterfeiting has become a significant economic phenomenon in the last two decades (Bian and Moutinho, 2009). The numbers of fake logos are increasing that cost a lot for company not only in core value as quality and authenticity but it is also brand image and consumer intention.

Beside, the Lacoste has still not focus on advertising on TV and magazine when the number of advertisement is still a few. 5. 6. 3. Interpretation As a brand, Lacoste always go together with sport clothes. When consumers watch Lacoste advertisements, they can fell the relaxation, freshness. Because messages form Lacoste always aim to a personal state. Lacoste usually display to consumer affecttionale of fresh styles and color. Over the years, consumer realized lacoste as a brand which commonly provide product with fine workmanship, high quality and noble.

Lacoste products contain combination of fashion and personality which can be recognized throughout the shoe, polo shirt. 5. 6. Motivation Motivation is defined as the activation of internal desires, needs and concerns which energize behavior and send the organism in a particular direction aimed at satisfaction of the motivational issues that gave rise to the increased energy (Pittman, 1998a, b). In shopping for clothes, people make decisions that directly affect their appearance. The clothes they select become a means for communicating and enhancing personality, attractiveness, and social roles (Lurie, 1981).

How a person shops depend on that motivation in the shopping situation. Primary motives for shopping for clothes are demand for traveling to shop and buying clothes. However, Lacoste is classified into luxury product so motives for buying is not only basic demand but it also include needs for personal and social orientation. During the 1980s, Lacoste was consider as a cheap brand because it is its over-exposure in the market available in non-luxury retailer store. When Siegel came, he intended to reposition Lacoste as a luxury brand.

Most importantly, he planted to Lacoste products were sold only at upscale department stores and specialty boutiques. While economic is developing, demand for self-esteem of people is also increasing. Therefore, when Lacoste reposition as a luxury brand and sportstyle, it mean needs for buying Lacoste product are also raising. In fact, with the global growth in disposable and discretionary incomes, young middle- and lower-class consumers aspiring to the lifestyle of the wealthy have become valuable target segments for luxury goods marketers (Truong. 2008).

Some studies have indicated that consumers ready to pay more may serve to generate considerably more status for the users than any direct utility (Mason 2001), and a price premium may paradoxically have positive effects on consumers’ decision-making processes. Individuals who engage in conspicuous consumption often do so in order to emulate the consumption patterns of the group of people socially situated either directly or considerably above them (Ericksen 1996; Mason 1998). Form that, there is a fact that Lacoste will gain more market share when it consolidate itself as a top brand name.

Some surveys have indicate that high proportion of luxury products were bought by young consumers. Social emulation as reflected in the desire to gain higher status through conspicuous consumption still seems to shape preferences for products and services that are noticed by others (Corneo & Jeanne 1997; Trigg 2001; Dholakia & Talukdar 2004). However, not every consumer practises conspicuous consumption – some are motivated by such non-conspicuous benefits such as the quality of the product (Vigneron & Johnson 1999, 2004).

Twenty years after the publication of Veblen’s still influential text, Mencken (1919) counter-argued that consumers’ willingness to pay extra for luxury goods could be attributed to the search for quality rather than to social aspiration. Superior product quality is in fact commonly accepted as one driver of apparent conspicuous consumption, especially among those who can afford to value quality over status demonstration (Dubois et al. 2005; Luxury Institute 2007).

Moreover, Silverstein and Fiske (2003, 2005) argue that a large proportion of luxury consumers who trade up are motivated mainly by self-directed pleasure – that is, they buy luxury goods to treat themselves, with little or no desire to signal status or wealth. Understanding those aspects, Lacoste not only focus on brand but it is also aim to raising quality. Lacoste clothing always provides ease and generally accepted by majority of consumer class. It is used the method which inject creativity and style in Lacoste products collection.

To do that, lacoste has chosen great designer who can keep the originality and quality of products while new tendency is still created. For example the company has chosen to modernize the colour of its collection which will focus on acidulous colours for summer and develop more than 55 nuances per season. This creation will provide a wide range chance for target consumer- young rich persons. Moreover, the quality and style of these products were made even more stronger with the coming of Christophe Lemaire, a French designer who had been contributing his efforts and time in creating the best fashion lines of Lacoste.

Beside, as a tool to contact with up-market, lacoste used defiles including one in New York that exited classical look and laid emphasis on stretched polo shirts. That way, such a defile provided luxury associations to the customers’ minds. However, Lacoste is still not attract much people for high class because the price of Lacoste is moderate and lack of press on luxury. In addition, Lacoste can increase value by reduce sale point and focus on quality. 5. External factor (Lifestyle) The lifestyle concept is one of the most widely used in modern marketing activities.

According to Chester et al. (2007), life style is the expression of the individual’s situation, life experiences, values, attitudes and expectation. It provides a way to understand consumers’ everyday needs and wants and a mechanism to allow a product or service to be positioned in terms of how it will allow a person to pursue a desired lifestyle (Michman and Mazze, 2009). . Luxury lifestyle is becoming common, owing to the rise in disposable income (Twitchell, 2001) of the middle classes.

In addition, Silverstein et al. highlight how the middle-market consumer selectively trades up to better products and services and trades down in others to pay for his or her premium purchases As mentions above, nowadays, people have more motivation in buying luxury product which is not only to satisfy basic demand but it is also provide social identity. For this motive, consumers choose products not only on basis of products’ attribute but also to create and maintain a personal lifestyle.

In that regard, brands are often view as an important means to communicate facets of one’s identify and to interact with other people (Belk, 1988; Fournier, 1998; Muniz and O’Guinn, 2001). Therefore, the young rich persons will pay attention to high brand product because it plays an important role in building a personal lifestyle and a desired social identify. On the other hand, luxury lifestyle is not only to show the social status but it also come from demand for self-directed pleasure (Silverstein and Fiske, 2003, 2005).

Therefore, people always want to try new sight form product which will be satisfied buy Lacoste. Lacoste with the continuous innovation campaign and developing product thought every season will constantly attract consumer. Nowadays, when competition between businesses is increasing, stress and obesity are also emerge problems. Therefore, sport lifestyle, which is a part of Lacoste brand, can be a target for a numbers of consumers. For example, Sportswear label is launching a new ‘Sports Lifestyle’ range of shoes. The new collection draws back from the brand’s core values of authenticity and elegance.

Using premium materials, rich finishes and luxury combinations of leather and Suede, these styles offer a versatile alternative to classic sports-inspired shoes. The shoes offer a European mix of styling, with flashes of colour and rich fabric combinations. The Sports Lifestyle collection gives a nod to 80s classic sports styling wearable throughout the day. 6. Recommendations Colour of shop has a important impact on consumer behavior so black and white should be concerned for assuring meaning. In addition, the elegant and warmth can come from wooden furniture with circular form.

To provide a clear and attractive vision for consumer, the shops windows can be change monthly and mannequins will be placed faced to the street and separated maximum one meter. Price should be increased to attract wealthy people because increasing price is not mean that a reducing in demand in up-market. Moreover, they can sell product further to suburbs with more expensive price with purpose expand market and not devaluate brand. E-shopping is growing worldwide, having topped US$100 billions in the US by 2006 (Seock and Bailey 2008). There is a major opportunity for e-retailers to combine social networking with e-shopping.

In fact, internet is a good tool to conquest the target market (18-35) because this market is easy to expose to new teachnology. Therefore, Lacoste should launch the website with various visuals and animations. Lacoste should increase in advertising to exposure to more consumers. In addition, sponsorship and celebrity endorsement is also a great way to raising brand name. Company should push up this activity by sponsorship for more players and it will be preferable for brand to sponsor some young player in golf and sail because this is another favourites market of Lacoste 7. Conclusion

This case study report intends to identify the important of understanding consumer behaviour, which was influenced by internal and external factor. Main finding indicate that Lacoste was defined on fashion world as a luxury sport brand and target market is the young rich person. In marketing strategy, Lacoste has used advertising and some sponsorship to create perception in the mind of consumer. Lacoste has position itself as a luxury brand which created a motivation for consumer about self esteem or social status. Motivations come from lifestyle so luxury lifestyle is the root for uxury aspiration. Lacoste seem to be quite successful when it developed strategies base on knowledge about consumer behaviour. However, lacoste should consider some recommendation about improving consumer perception ( advertising, store layout, and e shopping) and create more motivations (increasing price) References: Anonymous. (2007) “Young women dominate the UK net scene”, BBC News Technology, retrieved 22/1/11 from http://news. bbc. co. uk/1/hi/technology/6662469. stm Belk, R. W. (1988), “Possessions and the extended self”, Journal of Consumer Research, 15 ( 3), 139-68.

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