Evaluation of Consumers' Motivations and Attitude Formation towards the Purchasing of Jeans - Research Paper Example

A Critical Evaluation of Consumer’s Motivations, Perceptions, Learning, and Attitude Formation towards the Purchasing of Jeans Unit Date Introduction Customers have the reasons for having special consideration of some products over others. A myriad of intertwined factors influence the decision by a customer to purchase a given product. One of the aspects is the perception that a customer depicts against a given product; perception is a process that is capable of translating into meaning some stimulus. It is apparent that advertisements as well as the design of the product help in creating a perception of the product hence making it to be a choice to the customer or not. The selection, organization, and interpretation of stimuli are the key steps in the process of developing a perception towards a given product. Perception of the product results to formation of an attitude that is likely to traverse across many potential customers. Attitude formation ends up influencing the purchase of the product in a positive manner if it is positive and negatively for a negative attitude. Any product is meant to satisfy a range of the consumer needs; this is the reason why customers opt to purchase a certain product. Therefore, the marketer should ensure that the buyer is motivated to have the product since it is able to take into perspective their needs. In general, consumer behavior is a complex aspect that involves all the processes that are involved in the selection, purchase, and the use of goods, services, either ideas or experiences. In this paper, an evaluation of the consumer attitude formation, motivation, learning, and perceptions towards the purchase of Jeans trousers will be put into perspective. A Background of the Jeans Jeans are trousers that are made of a special material either dungaree or denim cloth. The trousers have been in use for quite a long period; initially, they were meant for miners as well as cowboys but they have been advanced over the years to take into perspective the various needs of the people. Jeans have been developed in various fashions, each having its uniqueness, and appealing to a given section of the consumers. Jeans have a strong cultural basis since they were embraced greatly by teenagers especially those of the greaser subculture that dominated the 1950s especially in parts of the United States. This culture was highly influenced by singers such as James Dean and Elvis Presley among others. This subculture made the purchase of the jeans, initially made by Levi to be quite high. Various brands of jeans exist in the market today and have continued to attract diverse groups in the population. In addition, there are a number of fits developed for the jeans over time; these includes the narrow bottom, skinny, slim, flare, low waist, and boot cut among others (Mittal & Aggarwal 2012, pg 570-576). Though jeans have been embraced across all culture, their acceptability is varied. In most cases, they have been branded as casual wear. The choice to purchase jeans is dependent on a number of consumer related needs, perceptions and attitudes as discussed later in this paper. Levi’s Jeans Levi’s is an international company that has built a brand based on its innovativeness that has fostered continued development. Started by the Strauss family around 1875, the company was focused on developing jeans made from demin that could be sole to the miners. Above the initial focus on the jeans trousers, the company has diversified into other products such as shirts and suits. Through the introduction of the Levi 501s products, the company experienced rising sales in the early 1990s. The uniqueness and the strong brand of the Levis products has greatly promoted its sales. Understanding the Jeans Market Jeans are capable of attracting customers based on the sensory attributes, which can help develop a perception towards the products. The consumers will be motivated to purchase a particular style or brand of jeans based on its attributes which appeals to their senses (Son 2007). Through vision, the aesthetics of the jeans can make the consumer to have a desire to purchase. In this case, the other aspects such as the quality of the material may be assumed yet the consumer goes ahead to have it. Though not popular for the clothes, the scent that is released by the product can also influence its purchase. No documented evidence that shows that jeans can be bought on such basis. However, through touch, the consumer can check the quality of the garment making the product. Hence approving it or disapproving it based on the prevailing texture and the feel of the material. These are the two applicable sensory aspects influence the perception of the consumer against a given product. As a result they are able to make the decision on whether to buy the product or not. Sensory attributes also acts as a motivation; especially the visual senses make the consumer to desire the product. It is apparent that the consumption of jeans trousers is based on the need to cover nakedness and the need to be appealing (look smart). To take care of both of these aspects, the consumer is obliged to use their sensory attributes in order to make a conclusive judgment. The choice to purchase a jeans product by a customer is influenced by the decision making process. The first aspect that the consumer should identify is the problem that they need to confront in the process of buying the product. Jeans are clothes perceived as either fashionable or causal depending on the country. In some other regions, they are poorly recognized. In identifying the features of the desired state of the product the customer can be influenced to go ahead to make a purchase. The problem may also be identified in the light of the presence of internal cues such as when a jeans cause discomfort, the customer will be looking for ne that is capable of improving comfort ability. In addition, through an appeal from the external cues as result of the influence of the marketers, an individual may end up making a purchase for jeans since they are stimulated to realize a problem. Upon the realization of the problem, the customer goes ahead to seek for information, which plays a key process in the consumer learning. The consumer goes ahead to seek all the available options in order to make an informed decision on the features that characterize the jeans that they choose to buy. Though the consumer can rely on advertisements and friends, their personal experiences plays a critical role in the gathering of information that will inform their decision. In order to form a concrete attitude towards the purchase of a given jeans, the consumer opts to consider the available options, so that their opinions are based on analysis of the pros and cons associated with the product. Therefore, an evaluation results to the making of the final decision. Product Differentiation Jeans are products that bear a number of characteristics, which facilitate the decision to purchase by a given customer. The attributes of a product are very important in judging it while facilitating the drawing of a comparison between other competitive products. The jeans have both intrinsic and extrinsic cues, which are very important in appealing to the customers. Some of the identifiable intrinsic cues that characterize the jeans include their fit, fabric, comfort, color, style, and quality (Ozmen 2004). These very important aspects make a customer to have a given perception towards a given pair of jeans. On the other hand, the brand name, the price and the country from which the jeans originate from among other factors makes up the extrinsic cues that attract customers to engage in purchaser of jeans trousers. An integration of all these cues results to the perception of the buyer hence the attitude developed, the result is that they learn about the benefits that come with a specific jeans product. While the intrinsic cues are the most important when marketing the product, the extrinsic ones can be adjusted accordingly to fit the prevailing customer desires. The understanding of the specific needs of a customer is a very important component of marketing. Both intrinsic and extrinsic cues provides a combination that helps the customer to rate on a given jean product hence influencing the purchase decision (Schmitt & Simonson 1997, pgs 7-10). None of the characteristic works in isolation. However, marketers use all of them to ensure that their product is able to have a wider market acceptability and hence ability to make much more sales. Both of these characteristics are the determinants of the quality of a given product in the eyes of the customers. However, the intrinsic cues are weighted more since they have the direct effects that appeal to the customers. For example, a customer will not consider the price when already they are not pleased with the color and the design of the jeans. Product differentiation is a key aspect in building the customer’s attitude and perceptions towards a given product. Some of the popular brand such as Levi has built very strong brands hence they have been able to sell their products as a result of well-designed product differentiation scheme. The release of the Levi 502 product to the market was widely accepted across the world. However, despite the wide acceptance, the cultural affiliation as well as the geographical location plays a key factor in the acceptability of the Jeans. For example, in Europe jeans are viewed as fashionable clothes while in the United States, they are treated just as casual and ordinary clothes. Product differentiation has been a key success factor for Levi; their Docker product mainly targets men while the Levi Signature product mainly targets young individuals. In order to consider the needs of the customers across the strata, jeans have been developed for the entire market; taking into concern the needs of all the customers; from the low-income population to the wealthy individuals (Wu 2005, pg 185). This causes a wide price variation; usually the Levi jeans can cost from the range of 25 to 150 euros (Chandrashekaran 2012). The price differentiation in the jeans industry ensures that all the customer needs are taken into perspective. This acts a great motivation to the customers that seek to get a product from a popular brand. In terms of age, the consumption of jeans products inclines to certain age groups; the majority of the individuals that purchase jeans are young people between 16-35 years. On the other hand, the prevalence of jean-purchase and consumption among those above 35 years is relatively low (Rahman 2011, pg 1). Through an understanding of these differential patterns, the marketer is aware of how to approach the customers. Market Targeting In decision making towards the purchase of jeans, the perception of the customer is paramount. Perception towards the purchase of jeans is influenced by three components; the selection process, organization of information and interpretation of information (Ross & Harradine 2010, pg 6). In order to develop a perception exposure is very vital; this makes individuals to make purchases based on experiences; whether personal or from other people. A given stimulus helps an individual to begin thinking in a manner that is inclined to what the stimulus relates to. It is obvious that an individual in need of a jean will consider some of the stimuli and reject others. What matters is the strength of the stimulus as relates to the prevailing need for the jean. A stimuli is interpreted hence it relates to a specified meaning, which helps in the construction of the consumer’s perception and attitude. Having a positive perception coupled with an underlying need for a product is a major contribution to the desire to purchase the desired jeans. The consumers’ perception may be based on a variety of factors including the intrinsic and extrinsic cues of a given product. However, aspects such as culture and personality are very important in influencing the perceptions towards the purchase of jean products. Some culture has low opinions of jeans while others perceive them as the most preferable casual wears. In other areas, even individuals handling official matters have used jeans. Some companies have developed working environments that have allowed the use of jeans despite it being a casual wear in most areas. This indicates that such organizations have positive perceptions towards jeans. The motivation for the purchase of jeans can be attributed to factors that the consumers find appealing to them based on their perceptions and experiences. The style, brand name, comfort, design, discounts, and the availability of the jeans plays a very critical role in motivating the consumers in getting their preferred jeans. The brand is a very important consideration when making the decision to buy; brands such as Levi’s have been embraced widely despite some of the prices being relatively high (Padariya n.d, pg. 3). Apart from the influence of the price in motivating the consumer, the brand has far-reaching implications on the acceptability of the jeans. One of the most brands is Levi, Wang, Pepe, Killer, Denim, and Fuel among others. This means that being in possession of popular brands makes consumers to desire to purchase. The functionality of the jeans also acts as the motivation to purchase especially among the young people. Low-rise denim jeans have been preferred in many circumstances due to the motivation that they are more comfortable and highly fashionable. In addition, they have been reported to be more appealing to the waist. Contrarily, the motivation towards high-rise jeans is low because they have been considered less fashionable (Herbst & Burger 2002, pg 2). This creates the perception that these clothes are old-fashioned and are only fit for the old people. Considering that majority of the jeans consumers are young people, such trousers do not have adequate customers since even the old people prefer them. Generally, the aesthetics of the jeans is a key motivating factor towards the desire to purchase a given jeans product (Bell 2008, pg 5). In addition, the ability to wear as well as the appealing nature of the jeans provides for increased chances of purchase of the product. Customer motivation is something that is influenced by both intrinsic as well as the extrinsic cues hence making the ability to purchase a complex scenario. In making a purchase, the consumers appeal to a number of values that helps them capable of meeting their tastes as well as desires. It can therefore be argued that the motivation to the purchase of jeans is contributed by the interplay of emotional factors, utilitarianism, aesthetics, pleasurable experiences, as well as self-relevancy. The purchase of jeans is affected by the ability by the consumers to have a full realization of what exactly they want. Through experience, a customer is able to determine the qualities that they want in jeans. Consumer learning is a contribution of both the acquisition of information or through experience. Jeans are of different sizes, shapes, quality of material, designs among other factors. The customer will always learn from one experience to another until they are able to find the quality of jeans that they prefer. Sometimes, it is difficult to satisfy this need hence the continuous development of new products. As per the behavior learning theories, the connections between events provide the opportunity for learning. Each of the events is very important in the learning process hence capable of influencing the propensity of a consumer to purchase a jeans product. Through environmental observations, consumers experience cognitive learning. Through this form of learning, they are able to identify what is pleasant to them. For example, when an individual notices another on a certain type of jeans, they may love it; this can go further where the wearer gives more information about it. This may result to some learning concerning the jeans hence attracting the interested party to purchase. Through a connection of new ideas, the consumer may be provoked to make a purchase. In addition, through an observation of things in the environment, a consumer is likely to be influenced to make a decision to purchase particular jeans (Escalas & Bettman 2005, pg 380). The consumer’s developed attitude plays a critical role on the purchase of jeans. In some countries and cultures such as in the United States, jeans are considered to be casual wears. In most cases, they are worn during the weekends when one is not on official duties. On the other hand, there are regions where there is a thin line between official wear and casual (Khan 2005, pg 372). Therefore, the prevalence of consumption is quite different in such regions. As a result of these aspects, the society develops a certain attitude towards jeans. For example, a person that engages in white-collar job may not buy many jeans because they are aware that they will be on them on limited occasions. On the other hand, in regions where no official wear is decided upon, the people develop a freewill mentality hence they are at a position of buying their favorite clothes. Jeans are highly preferred by the young people hence most of them would choose to be in jeans. Three aspects of attitude; the affect, cognition and the behavior influence the purchase of jeans. When there is a given trend of consumption, many people are attracted to the behavior hence they are able to develop an attitude against a given piece of jeans. The cognition also plays a critical role in the determination of the attitude that is developed by the consumer towards a given jeans. Consumer awareness has influence over the decisions to buy that is made by the consumer. Each segment of the consumers have varied needs; traversing from the gender, age and geographical location, certain jeans are more popular and more acceptable in certain demographics as opposed to others. Age is a key factor that is a direct influence on the purchase of jeans. In most cases, the chase for fashionable jeans has kept the industry on its toes in an endeavor to meet the evolving customer needs. The awareness by a section of customers that there is another product, more superior that the prevailing product is likely to reduce the purchase of the product getting out of fashion (Sharan 2000, pg 2). A fashionable jean is a blend of design, fit, shape, and color among other parameters. It is also apparent the jeans are customized for females as well as for males. Conclusion In conclusion, the desire to purchase jeans is influenced by interrelated factors, which are learnt from individual experiences as well as through other learning processes. Both aesthetic and sensory appeals influenced by the intrinsic and the extrinsic cues of jeans products play a great role in convincing customers to purchase. The perception created based on these interrelated factors causes the customer to develop the motivation to purchase jeans. References Bell, M.M. 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