Importance of the Consumer Behaviour - Essay Example

MARKETING PSYCHOLOGY due: Question The human brain, similar to other organs in the body, has evolved over the years as a result of natural selection. It receives information from the surrounding environment, processes it and produces a response in the form of behaviours that are appropriate to the current environmental conditions. Processing of information is carried out by a network of neural circuits that have evolved to solve problems related to adaption and behaviour change in humans (Cosmides & Tooby 1997, p.4). As a result, to understand certain behaviours, we have to consider the neural circuits associated with the specific behaviour, and why they evolved. Consumer behaviour can also be explained using the natural selection theory. Successful advertisements utilise the principles of natural selection in predicting consumer behaviour. They target specific areas in the lives of human beings that they know are linked to the neural circuits. The most commonly targeted neural circuits are the survival and kinship circuits. Survival encompasses all activities that make the lives of people more comfortable, regardless of whether they are aware or not. The kinship circuit, on the other hand, is involved in the humans’ tendency to create family ties and protect those who are related to them (Saad 2007, p.97). In the following sections, this essay will critically analyse the significance of natural selection in predicting consumer behaviour. Survival circuit The survival circuit solves problems associated with survival. All basic reactions across the human species emanate from this circuit. According to the natural selection theory, survival involves several adaptive mechanisms refined through experiences encountered over time. For instance, previous hardships experienced by our ancestors have contributed to behaviour change of animals, including human beings, where they function under the principle of highest returns on investment. Items such as food, clothing and other amenities are obtained based on their perceived value and the effort it takes to acquire them. Two theories – the foraging theory and central place foraging – provide insight into the human behaviour of an acquisition of utilities. They explain the tendency of humans to acquire items based on their supposed worth and the time and energy invested while acquiring them. The central foraging theory maintains that food and other items are usually gathered in a central place. Therefore, the time and effort taken to acquire them will depend on the perceived value of these items where specific goods and services highly valued will be sought from relatively long distances. Such items range from automobiles to foods. For general products such as groceries and daily utilities, most people do not need to go for long distances to acquire them. Another perspective of central foraging theory is the fact that people tend to become more specific on items the further away they are from them. This behaviour can be explained by both theories where more effort is expected to yield better results, either in terms of quality, quantity or both. However, these theories only apply in cases where the items are in ample supply. In situations of scarcity, people become less specific of quality or quantity regardless of the time and energy invested in obtaining them. Over time, the survival circuit adapts to the scarcity and prompts a change of behaviour to accept lesser quality alternatives or different items overall. This adaption of the survival explains the human tendency to prefer sugary and fatty foods. Due to the scarcity of food experienced by our ancestors, they adapted by developing a liking for high-caloric foods (sugars and fats). However, in the modern society where food is in plenty, this behaviour change is maladaptive and results to obesity. Marketers could utilise either perspective of both theories. When goods are readily available, most people will prefer them to those which are far, provided the quality and quantity remains the same. This marketing strategy has been utilised by certain companies who build production units closer to their target markets. Additionally, if the product is in diminished supply but of very high quality, sales will be high. This trend is observed in items such as sports cars, electronics and certain services where few units are sold at exorbitant prices. Kinship circuit This circuit is concerned with the issues that deal with family and relationships. The family unit is important for human beings since it facilitates the production of offspring who carry the parental genes down a generation. People, as well as animals, protect their relatives as opposed to strangers due to a behavioural adaptation as explained in the kin selection theory (Hamilton 1963, p.354; 1964, p.17; Dawkins 1976 p.100). According to modern evolutionary theory, successful reproduction is the measure for survival. Fitness is defined by the success of an organism in producing offspring as opposed to the how long it lives. Inclusive fitness of an organism is also demonstrated by the number of offspring the organism produces, in addition to the number of equivalents of its offspring it adds to the population by supporting others (Hames 1984, p.87). As far as marketing is concerned, the kinship circuit – through the formation of family units – influences consumer behaviour to a great extent. Decisions to purchase items are usually made together, or by individual members of the family (Commury & Gentry 2000, p.4). As a result, marketers can target the specific family members of the family who typically make such decisions. For instance, children are mostly targeted by certain advertisements, although it is the parents who are the real customers. Other advertisements are tailored to get the attention of certain family structures and compositions (for example family vacations and weekend getaways that have facilities for children and parents). Trends in family composition and structure also influence consumer spending such as additional costs of day-care services for single and/or working mothers. Inclusive fitness also influences consumer decisions, as Saad and Gill report (2000, p.1026) Although consumer behaviour may be explained by the kinship circuit to a large extent, the family’s influence on marketing leans mostly towards socialisation. Marketing strategies are usually tailored to target the main decision maker in the family, a responsibility dictated by culture. Different marketing strategies are used for different cultures, despite the common ancestral heritage of all human beings. Advertisements targeting children would be more applicable to families where children are allowed to make demands, but inapplicable to others where the father dictates family spending. Question 2 The product chosen is a shampoo. The shampoo advertisement will target women, utilising the behavioural changes that have developed amongst them as a result of natural selection. Sex differences have been influenced by natural selection through the reproductive circuit, which aims at maximising the chances of an organism in obtaining a suitable mate. In the case of human beings, certain qualities of the opposite sex are considered attractive. Thus people who possess them usually have higher chances of getting mates. Specifically, research has shown that men value youth and physical attractiveness in women while women consider men who are ambitious and financially stable (Buss 1989, p.1). These behaviours are manifestations of the reproductive neural circuits which have evolved over time, based on the experiences in reproduction and attracting mates. In the modern society, men increasingly pursue a better financial status while the women invest most of their efforts in maintaining their youth and enhancing their physical attractiveness. Even though the society has changed to include more women in the financial realm and increase their social power, little has changed concerning their increased attention to physical attractiveness (Burton et al. 1994, p.70) The reproductive circuit can be exploited by marketers through tailoring advertisements and other marketing strategies to be in line with the nature of women especially augmenting their physical attractiveness and maintaining their youth (Burton, Netemeyer & Lichtenstein 1994, p.60). As a result of the underlying reproductive circuit, women are more concerned about these qualities in order to attract and retain mates. The communication campaign in marketing of the shampoo will concentrate on these areas to attain popularity among the women. Emphasis on physical attractiveness as defined by modern society The labelling of the shampoo will feature several attractive women with long hair. Although the product is aimed at enhancing the look of the hair, other characteristics of the models in the label are important. The modern society typifies attractive women as those who are slim and have a large waist-to-hip ratio (Singh 1993, p.293). Therefore, the picture of the models will capture the full body, with emphasis on their long hair and waist area. Also, the models will be young women from different cultures, preferably in their mid-twenties. The emphasis on physical attractiveness will also be achieved through a description on the label that will focus on the product’s ability to enhance the looks of the woman. Also, other benefits of physical attractiveness will be communicated on the label, although there won’t be any explicit reference to sexual behaviour. In addition to the attractive label on the products, marketing will be enforced by visual advertisements through posters and videos. These strategies will also maximise on the reproductive circuit in women. Research has also shown that unlike men, women react negatively to sexual stimuli and nudity of either sex (LaTour 1990, p.65). For both the poster and video, nudity will be avoided to prevent sending the wrong message to the target consumers. However, the poster should send the message that using the shampoo increases their chances of attracting mates. To achieve this, both media will have a young woman as the centre of attraction among several eligible males, who appear to be financially stable. Depiction of association with intimate relationships Also, another study showed that women are more inclined towards intimate relationships and do not find short-term mating appealing (Symons 1979, p.96). Long-term relationships and families appeal to women more than men. As a result, an advertisement that portrays a family setting will be used alongside the other marketing strategies. The advertisement will focus on the family setting, where the father will be attracted to the woman due to her good-looking hair. Also, the young daughter can be shown to use the product, which sends the message that the product is closely associated with the family unit. The advertisement will also feature a dating scenario, typical of the contemporary culture. It will show another woman, young and attractive, on a date with a man who will be impressed with her hair. The man will go to the point of giving her a gift, as a sign that he is interested in her sexually. The gesture of gift-giving by men is translated by women to mean that the man is expressing an interest in a romantic relationship, as well as sending the message that he has resources (Saad & Gill 2000, p.1022). Associating this gesture with the product will help to enhance its image among the women. Consumer-experienced emotions Human emotions have also evolved as proposed by Tooby and Cosmides (1990, p.375) and Plutchick (1984, p.197). The authors maintain that emotions act as precursors of certain behaviour and are influenced by the environment. For instance, fear is usually generated prior to an individual’s flight or avoidance behaviour in response to a particular emotion. In the same way, positive emotions such as laughter and smiling are generated from favourable stimuli and produce feelings of happiness in humans. Emotions, therefore, can be used to maximise fitness in a different contexts or alert the individual of events that may lead to fitness minimization. In the marketing context, emotions experienced by the consumer can be manipulated to associate certain stimuli with various emotions. Marketers have successfully used this strategy in the past to discourage bad habits such as smoking and excessive drinking (Saad & Gill 2000, p.1025) In order to create a good image of the product and relate it to positive emotions, the marketing will involve positive emotions such as funny advertisements or people who are generally happy. Examples of a good strategy would be to show how the product can be used to reverse adverse effects such as unhealthy hair. Bibliography BURTON, S., NETEMEYER, R. G., & LICHTENSTEIN, D. R. (1994). Gender differences for appearance-related attitudes and behaviors: Implications for consumer welfare. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 60-75. BUSS, D. M. (1989). Sex differences in human mate preferences: Evolutionary hypotheses tested in 37 cultures. Behavioral and brain sciences, 12(01), 1-14. COMMURI, S., & GENTRY, J. W. (2000). Opportunities for family research in marketing. Marketing Department Faculty Publications, 10. COSMIDES, L., & TOOBY, J. 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