Ways of Motivating Customers and Increasing Customer Satisfaction - Assignment Example

? Interview on perceptions of a product or service and ways of motivating s and increasing satisfaction BY YOU YOUR SCHOOL INFO HEREDATE HERE Interview on perceptions of a product or service and ways of motivating customers and increasing customer satisfaction 1. Product Introduction Estee Lauder’s Future Perfect anti-wrinkle cream is a luxury skin care product commanding a higher price than many competing products, targeted at the 40-70 year old female market. Future Perfect was just recently rebranded as the new Estee Lauder Time Zone skin care line, with minor reformulation of its active ingredients. The product is intended to be utilised as a night and day-wearing product, wearable under make-up as an all-day moisturizer, designed to improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The Time Zone line contains a blend of antioxidants, Vitamin C and exclusive Cell Vector technology that assist in not only skin hydration, but to repair cellular damage. The product’s trademarked Tri-HA Cell Signalling Complex is included in the product in order to motivate skin to increase production of the natural hyaluronic acid that plumps up skin and reverse the signs of normal aging (Estee Lauder 2013). The product retails between ?70 and ?105 for a 48.19 gram product and 70.87 gram portion, respectively. This product is positioned as a luxury product on the market, backed by 67 years of competitive branding and promotion and is therefore targeted to the high resource buyer. 2. Perception, motivation and satisfaction – A review of literature Perceptions of product value impacts consumer satisfaction (Tam 2004). However, what is considered to be valuable is unique to different consumer segments based on their lifestyles, beliefs, resource availability, and assessment of how the product can provide meaning or self-expansion to the consumer. When consumers attempt to interpret marketing communications and product value, they often rely on stereotypes and the halo effect, which is where perceived value of one product offered by the marketer extends into other product brands. The halo effect involves pre-established trust in a branded product that translates into consumer perceptions that other products by the same manufacturer will be equally valuable (Schiffman and Kanuk 2010; BBC News 2005); a form of brand trust leading to brand loyalty. Estee Lauder products have been positioned as luxury products since the 1950s, with some of the first contracts for distribution established with U.S.-based high-end retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue. Celebrity endorsements have been utilised for decades illustrating endorsers sharing aspirational characteristics relevant to consumers that are motivated by credible and attractive famous figures. Thus, Estee Lauder products are generational and the brand has been a common household name in beauty enhancement, with considerable brand awareness and loyalty with certain target markets. Escalas and Bettman (2005) state that brands become symbolic especially when they are tied to celebrity involvement; taking on perceived characteristics of glitz, aspiration and charm when consumers compare the ability of the product to enhance their self-image. When attempting to understand perception, it is necessary to highlight the aspirational opportunities of certain luxury brands, especially those that influence advancement of the consumers’ social status and reference group affiliation (Kim, Forsythe, Gu and Moon 2002). In fact, O’Cass and McEwen (2004) identify the phenomenon of status consumption, in which buyers of a product select the brand as a means of showing their social status in order to achieve some form of psychological satisfaction. This is where stereotypes come into play for marketers since many luxury consumers are very concerned about their role in affiliation with important reference group figures. Estee Lauder has been able to create an aspirational brand that is perceived by many consumer segments as being viable for improving their social lives whilst also satisfying an inherent need for improving personal appearance, something necessary in some higher class social circles where affiliation is dictated by physical appearances. Therefore, by staying true to these consumer lifestyle and psychological needs, the Estee Lauder brand remains positioned as a luxury brand with significant aspirational characteristics. This is what motivates luxury consumers to purchase the product: status consumption and enhancement of one’s social environment and social belonging. Satisfaction, therefore, with certain markets is accomplished when the product is able to legitimately enhance their social lifestyles and make acceptable and visible changes to their physical appearance. Customer satisfaction is defined as the ability of a product to surpass consumer expectations (Farris, Bendle, Pfeifer and Reibstein 2010). In the case of the luxury beauty market, satisfaction would be measured against the criteria of self-improvement, the ability of the product to enhance lifestyle with an emphasis on social inclusion and approval, and to enhance reference group perceptions that one was in a higher social hierarchy. This is why Estee Lauder uses lifestyle-relevant actors in promotional materials, those with aspirational characteristics, and invests considerable research and development to come up with ingredient formulas that are proven (or at least perceived) as being superior to other skin care brands. These three combined factors, coupled with years of established luxury positioning in the beauty market, are what motivate consumers to make repurchases to fulfil the complex psychological needs for improving one’s social standing. 3. Interview findings – An analysis In order to justify the literature on consumer behaviour in the luxury beauty market, a series of five interviews were conducted with a random sample of female consumers between 35 and 65 years of age. The aim of the research study was to determine whether consumers maintained a positive perception of the Estee Lauder Time Zone anti-wrinkle cream and the factors that drive either a positive or negative perception of the product. Objectives were to focus on social status and status consumption factors, how the product might or might not provide sufficient customer satisfaction, and the role of celebrity endorsers in the promotional process as part of brand aspirational philosophy. The interview first identified the age and income demographics of the research participants as well as their preferred anti-wrinkle brands in order to illustrate the level of brand loyalty established with each market. Table 1: The Sample Demographics Respondent 1: 39 Years Old Household Income: $75,000 annually Preferred Anti-Wrinkle Brand: Lancome Respondent 2: 55 Years Old Household Income: $60,000 annually Preferred Anti-Wrinkle Brand: Olay Respondent 3: 61 Years Old Household Assets: Undisclosed Preferred Anti-Wrinkle Brand: Estee Lauder Respondent 4: 62 Years Old Household Income: $50,000 annually Preferred Anti-Wrinkle Brand: Estee Lauder Respondent 5: 57 Years Old Household Income: $100,000+ Preferred Anti-Wrinkle Brand: Estee Lauder The researcher approached female consumers entering and exiting Sainsbury, a major domestic supermarket, promoting a sample container of Estee Lauder’s Time Zone until an appropriate sampling of five respondents familiar with Time Zone had been identified. The interview discovered that the older demographics, Respondents 3 – 5, maintained established brand loyalty for Estee Lauder. Respondent 1 maintained loyalty for Lancome products, a more contemporary product with much less brand presence domestically and internationally. However, all five respondents were familiar with and had utilised the Estee Lauder Time Zone anti-wrinkle products. To avoid bias, the nature of the study was not disclosed. Four respondents indicated that Estee Lauder had a quality reputation for relevant and upscale ingredients that made observable changes in skin appearance as the primary motivation for making repurchases. Only one participant, Respondent 5, indicated a social dimension for purchase intention (the consumer with the highest reported household income). Two respondents indicated that they were concerned or upset that Estee Lauder continues to rebrand the Time Zone product, which confuses the markets. Reflective research indicated that the Time Zone line was previously called Future Perfect. None of the respondents indicated any familiarity or motivation provided by celebrity endorsement. Only one participant indicated a concern that the company uses young actors in promotion which does not reflect the needs or lifestyles of older markets. 4. Conclusion There is little evidence that Estee Lauder’s Time Zone anti-wrinkle is motivated by status consumption or the aspirational benefits of celebrity involvement. Instead, the study found that Estee Lauder was considered most valuable (with some respondents maintaining brand loyalty) because of its active ingredients. Respondent 5 indicated that they received much social accolades for the visible appearance changes which seemed to have some level of positive impact on the consumer for repurchase intention. It appears, overall, that the most primary motivation for purchase of Time Zone is the positive perception of quality that is reflected by the Estee Lauder brand. 5. Recommendations Based on the study, Estee Lauder could reduce its expenditures on high cost celebrity endorsements since there was no indication from the markets that this maintains the ability to motivate purchases; which did not justify the literature on aspirational characteristics of promotion. Estee Lauder should, instead, enhance its focus on ingredients and trademarked skin repair qualities to more substantially show the company’s dedication to research and development. Based on results, Time Zone has loyalty with the older demographic (over 60) and with the one respondent indicating a concern over not showing enough older markets in promotion would indicate that Time Zone should refocus promotional strategy utilising more seasoned actors rather than showing images of youthful individuals who are likely not in need of anti-wrinkle creams. Based on the evidence, there would be more positive market response if promotional strategy were adjusted in this fashion. However, Estee Lauder should understand that even those markets loyal to other brands believe in the quality of the Time Zone product. References BBC News. (2005). Apple shares surge on big profits. [online] Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4172211.stm (accessed 18 May 2013). Escalas, J.E. and Bettman, J.R. (2005). Self-construal, reference corps and brand meaning, Journal of Consumer Research, 32(December), pp.378-389. Estee Lauder. (2013). New Advanced Time Zone Age Reversing Line / Wrinkle Creme Broad Spectrum SPF 15. [online] Available at: http://www.esteelauder.com/product/1169/24108/Product-Catalog/Skincare/Regimens/Anti-Wrinkle/Moisturize/Advanced-Time-Zone/Age-Reversing-LineWrinkle-Creme-Broad-Spectrum-SPF-15/index.tmpl (accessed 17 May 2013). Farris, P.W., Bendle, N.T., Pfeifer, P.E. and Reibstein, D.J. (2010). Marketing metrics: the definitive guide to measuring marketing performance. Pearson Education. Kim, J., Forsythe, S., Gu, O. and Moon, S.J. (2002). Cross cultural consumer values, needs and purchase behaviour, The Journal of Consumer Marketing, 19(6), pp.481-503. O’Cass, A. and McEwen, H. (2004). Exploring consumer status and conspicuous consumption, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 4(1), pp.25-38. Tam, J.M. (2004). Customer satisfaction, service quality and perceived value: an integrative model, Journal of Marketing Management, 20, pp.897-916. Schiffman, L.G. and Kanuk, L. (2010). Consumer Behaviour. 10th ed. Prentice-Hall International Inc. Appendix A: Interview Questions 1. Could you indicate your age and household income? 2. How many times have you used Estee Lauder’s Time Zone anti-wrinkle? 3. What motivates you to make repurchases of this product? 4. Would you consider yourself loyal to the Time Zone line? Why? 5. Is there anything you would change about the Time Zone product to make it more relevant for your needs? If so, what? 6. What is your overall perception of value with Time Zone? 7. How would you say Time Zone impacts your lifestyle? 8. Please, in conclusion, tell me your perception of celebrity endorsement with the Time Zone line. Respondent 1: Mary Grossman May 15, 2013 Respondent 2: Leesa Black May 15, 2013 Respondent 3: Eleanor Haverman May 15, 2013 Respondent 4: Brenda Villachord May 15, 2013 Respondent 5: Diane C. Greene May 15, 2013 Read More