Consumer Behavior, Marketing and Semiotics - Dissertation Example

Consumer behavior, marketing and semiotics: Semiotics is very useful in understanding consumer behavior. Semiotics mainly constitutes the linguistic turn in the sciences that discuss human nature and behavior. Semiotics is a particularly very powerful tool for uncovering concealed meanings of human activities and human behavior and hence it is fundamental part to be considered at the time of designing any marketing campaign. Due to the fact that marketing involves symbols, such as written words and pictures, it is very necessary to ensure that those symbols match real-world human behavior. In this case, semiotics comes to great help. In addition, semiotics examines how people constitute perceptions that are the products of the surrounding culture in which people live and participate. Culture, as far as semiotics is concerned, stands for the way through which people communicate, consciously as well as unconsciously, through various cultural aspects, including visual images and language. Understanding the implicit meaning of such elements, allows marketers to create informed decisions and communicate the messages more efficiently to potential consumers (Lawes, 2002). Theory of Consumer behavior: Theories of consumer behavior constitute a wide area in the field of Microeconomic. Microeconomics discusses behavior of individual agent of an economy, like an individual, a family, a firm etc. Consumers Behavior which is considered to be a major part of Microeconomics discusses how a rational consumer behaves under different circumstances. While discussing a consumer’s behavioral pattern at some particular time under a particular situation theories of consumer behavior take into account elements from a wide range of areas including psychology of a rational consumer, sociological perspectives, anthropology and finally economics. Theories of consumer behavior actually aim at providing rigorous understanding of the decision making process of a ration buyer in a market economy. It also tries to find out impacts on a consumer’s choice of certain things of several actors like family environment, preference pattern of friends, and behavioral pattern of the socio-cultural group he/she belongs to. In the studies on consumer behavior, examination of a consumer’s behavior is mainly based on his/her buying behavior where a consumer is assumed to play the roles of the user of a commodity, the payer of price of the commodity as well as the buyer of the commodity. (Solomon et al. 2006) Consumer behaviour is partly unpredictable, though in some cases the type of marketing strategies might affect the purchasing behaviour of the consumer. There are different sections of consumer in a society formed according to the basis of monthly household income for example lower income class, higher income class etc. (Earl and Kemp, 2002; Solomon et al. 2006) The purchasing behaviour of a consumer partly depends on Consumer Psychology. A purchase decision confronts the consumer with a host of potential changes. Most important is the problem structuring that occurs prior to taking any decision: becoming aware of the need or availability of a new product or service, collecting information of alternatives, and thinking about the future circumstances relevant to the purchase decision & also considering the possible outcomes contingent to the decision. Now these types of action vary within the different sections of consumers. In this context the marketing of the product has a quite influence on the consumer purchasing behaviour. (Earl and Kemp, 2002; Zaichkowsky, 2006) At this point of time one question is evident to be raised- is it product marketing that makes people buy products? In the 21st century effects of marketing on consumers’ purchasing behaviour can not be ignored. In fact it has become a prime factor that determines how a consumer would behave towards a product. In the present world, marketing has become an important phenomenon. Marketing refers to the persuade people in purchasing of the product that is supposed to fulfill a subconscious desire of human being. To have a better understanding of this phenomenon Abraham Maslow’s (1954) famous theory of human motivation can be explored. Maslow introduced a hierarchy of human needs. This hierarchy includes deficiency needs as well as growth needs of consumers. According to this theory, within the category of deficiency needs, when a consumer is moving upwards in the hierarchy deficiency needs at each lower level have to be met before moving on to the next level and if a deficiency need is detected in future then the consumer is bound to act to remove the deficiency. Deficiency needs include different aspects including psychological, safety, love and self esteem. All these aspects are discussed below in order to find out how brand names affect consumers’ buying behaviour. (Earl and Kemp, 2002; Zaichkowsky, 2006) What is meant of marketing strategies? The main key to success for any firm is the application of appropriate business strategy. To ensure high customer base along with substantial growth in business, a firm needs to devise several strategies regarding the production process, marketing, distribution etc. and efficiently implement them. Among all these strategies, proper planning regarding marketing of the products is very crucial for creating demand in the markets. Unless an appropriate marketing technique is adopted by a firm, it would not be able to attract customers towards its products and business would automatically fail. Now marketing is quite a broad area which embraces various aspects like price, place, promotion and product. These four aspects form a marketing mix of a firm. As far as the issue of marketing communications is concerned, it actually refers to the area of ‘promotion’ in a marketing mix. In most of the business organizations, marketing communication strategies are found to be in integrated form in the sense that it combines several aspects together. Just like has the broad area of marketing itself, marketing communication also has a mix. Under a marketing communications mix, different elements of communications are incorporated in different quantities to form a campaign. A marketing communications mix comprises of elements like sales promotion, publicity, advertising, direct marketing, e-marketing, branding, and sponsorships and so on. All these elements are generally referred to as marketing communications tools. (Moore, n.d.) Over time marketing communications is getting more interrelated, and hence it would be quite interesting to conduct a comprehensive study of different marketing communications strategy applied by the firms in today’s internationalized world where intensity of competition has increased significantly and hence to survive in the market excellent communication strategies are needed to be undertaken. This paper attempts to conduct a case study of a well known firm in the international fashion world, Zara, to analyze its current communication marketing strategies and to provide a marketing communications plan that would help the firm in enhancing its promotional capabilities and help attracting more customers to its stores across the world. However, before moving into the case study analysis, it would be beneficial to provide a brief discussion on different communication theories and various marketing communications tools to enhance the understanding of this marketing issue. (Moore, n.d.) What is Semiotics and its importance in marketing: According to Umberto Eco anything which can be perceived as signs are related to semiotics. These consist of spoken and printed words, sounds, images, gestures, objects and sounds. People interpret these signs as signifying something. Pierce narrated about this as no signs can be interpreted as a sign unless it is reflected on people’s mind as a sign. This reflection, or in other words, such interpretation of signs occur through conventions which are familiar and similar and therefore these signs and signals become a part of interactions collectively organized and hence do not have any existence out of this collective bundle. These signs perform their actions on people’s mind as codes and they trigger experiences which were the particular individual previously had. This was the interpretation of Cobley and Jansz in the year 2000. In other words we can say human beings act as homo significans, which means they play a vital role in interpreting meanings of signs whenever used during information when receive, understand or conveyed. Semiotic elements have become major components of advertisements. Proper marketing techniques need the use of proper messages and then to forward them adequately to targeted people. Semiotics are quite helpful in designing proper marketing campaign. (Solomon et al. 2006; Tsotra and Juson, 2004) Some of the signs are there which needs physical elements of objective existence for its interpretation and understanding. For example, the American Stop Sign which is a very common understanding to stop a vehicle. All these types of common understandings are derived usually from rules and norms which are socially accepted and understood. Therefore, the hexagonal American stop sign has been perceived by all as a part of everyday reality and is one of the social norms which are a part of the system of connotations. (Solomon et al. 2006; Tsotra and Juson, 2004) From the above study, it can be concluded that semiotics and hermeneutics are quite similar to each other as both aims at creating fruitful meanings. But though it has been reflected in their respective definitions that semiotics and hermeneutics are quite similar to each other but there are different other perspectives on which they differ. Hermeneutics, as per Ricoeur, is based on the theory of operations of understanding in their relation to the interpretation of texts. Also Noth in the year 1990, pointed out that Hermeneutics is one of the earliest methods of text interpretation as a result it can be said that Hermeneutics is the precursor of the present day Semiotic theory. According to Floch in the year 2001, Semiotic theory studies the system of signs which include written texts, logos, films or any other forms of behavior. Therefore, as text and graphs are widely used by internet marketing, Semiotic Theory was the proper method of this analysis. In regard to online environments, Semiotic theory has widely helped consumers to perceive online elements which were not thoroughly examined in the Information Systems literature. In short, it can be said that by studying signs, Semiotic theory deals with the maintenance and construction of reality so as to avoid reverting to a set of mere physical artifacts – solely described in terms if rules, forms, shapes, sounds and colors. In addition to this, Semiotic theory enables an altering everyday reality by adding subjective understanding which would be accepted universally. (Solomon et al. 2006; Tsotra and Juson, 2004) A Model of Semiotics: In the year 1965, De Saussure proposed a model of Semiotics in the form of diad, which comprises of a signifier and signified. The signified relates to the concept in someone’s mind where in other hand, the signifier, consist of actual objects such as background or lines. As Chandler, in 2002, the distinction between the signifier and signified can also be interpreted in terms of form and content. The combination of a particular signifier and signified does not exist in isolation but needs to be combined with other signs in order to have a proper definitive understanding of what actually the signifier and signified is. In the year 1965, De Saussure proposed for a structural Semiotic model. These ideas were exemplified by a stop sign where the sign includes a hexagon, white letters and red background as signifiers, where in other hand, the driver acts as the signified in the form of obligation to stop the vehicle. (Solomon et al. 2006; Tsotra and Juson, 2004 ; Chandler, 2002) Levi-Strauss in 1983 introduced the concept which has been applied in the Semiotic model under the name of bricolage. Bricolage represents the process of creation with the help of materials which are not best adapted to the task in hand. Instead bricolage consists of eclectic dialogue among available materials, thus adaptive courses of action were suggested whereby the initiator of bricolage might even modify his or her initial aim. In term of Semiotics, Bricolage is the process of interpreting signs and symbols using cultural aspects which are available. According to Floch in 2001, if the required aspects are not available, then people adjust or modify with the existing ones. In case of constructing new arrangements, the bricoleur works with signs by adopting signifieds as signifiers, which are already existing, and then choosing from the limited bundle of possibilities. In other words, a bricoleur is someone who adopts by using tools not for their designed purpose but for the purpose which seems to be fitted in. In addition, the bricoleur always includes his or herself when facing the choice of material to be used for modification, reinterpretation, and adjustment to his or her way of thinking. In this context of interpretation, semantic nihilism cannot exist if the interpreter properly adopts and accepts the role of establishing new meanings of one or more signs which are clearly understood and initiated by all individuals. (Solomon et al. 2006; Tsotra and Juson, 2004) Semiotic analysis of marketing examples: It would be now quite interesting to conduct semiotic analysis of different marketing examples. Here, three ad campaigns will be analyzed- they are advertisement of Nokia of Finland, of Eriksson of Sweden and of Virgin Airlines. All the three chosen companies are among the best performers in their respective field of operation. All these ads were published online as well as in the physical world in their classic ad forms. All these advertisements will be analyzed using semiotic principles. Let us first analyze the Nokia advertisement. The advertisement contains some major features including the image of the actual physical object, i.e. the Nokia phone, an image showing two hands that extend towards each other and the name of the brand. The brand name appears twice in the advertisement. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) The advertisement by Ericsson has the following features: first of all there is the actual image Ericsson phone, secondly, there is an image on the phone’s screen stating “welcome home 12-June 19:03,” and thirdly, the brand name on the phone’s screen. Apart from these, the advertisement features contain a wooden table with a cutting board on it. On the table there are images of tomatoes, bread, a metal object, along with a yellow object in the right hand that looks like a bottle containing oil. These items stand for concrete reality as all of them are used in everyday life and are easily recognizable and identifiable. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) As far as the objects and people portrayed on the advertisemnet image of Virgin are concerned, there are images of four people on the advert, three of which having white complexion, and apparently in their early or middle thirties. Threr is s woman who is portrayed in full-length at the centre of the picture. The image of the women contains a couple of passionaante kissing at her back. The absence of any member of the boarding crew that is far from being accidental provides a direct message regarding the main protagonist in Virgin’s flights. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) An in-depth semiotic analysis of advertisements mainly focuses on the advertisements’ images, background and colors. The Nokia advertisement makes the attempt to forward the image of the phone in favor of its background. A close and in depth look at the two hands would be able to read the inherent meaning of it. The image is suggestive of the hand of a parent reaching out to his or her child. In short, these elements have been included for drawing attention to the stated mission of the company which is “connecting people” and presumably families. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) The Ericsson advertisement, on the other hand, makes its effort to show the time as three minutes after seven in the evening, the date as June 12, and goes on to state “welcome home.” The time and the statement “welcome home” stand for the end of the working day when the members of a family return home for dinner. Moreover, by stating “June 12,” the advertisement mainly draws attention to summer that justifies the presence of the two apparently fresh tomatoes on advert image. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) As far as the existence of background of the advert images is concerned, it is found that the Nokia advertisement usually lacks accurate background, yet one may consider the white color to work as the background of the advertisement’s image. One of the features of white is that this color is always not perceived as a color; rather it helps other chromatic components of the advertisement to be more prominent to the eye of the targeted customers. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) The Ericsson advertisement, however, has a set of objects that compose background of the advertisement. These elements mainly showcase preparation of a energetic meal that contains healthy ingredients. In case of the Nokia advertisement, the cold blue color has been made prominent against white background. In the Nokia advertisement, the outstretched hands depict the individuals of a white race. Overall, the use of a white background and a cold color seem to create a cold, even ascetic ambiance. The Ericsson advertisement, on the other hand, mostly uses yellow and red colors. Red helps in attracting attention of people and, along with yellow; they both create a wonderful atmosphere. Furthermore, the dark-colored phone appears featured in the advert is very much prominent as it is portrayed against vibrant colors and also because it is mirrored on the silver metal object. Overall, the Ericsson advertisement has been able to create a warm impression. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) In case of the advertisemnet of Virtgin airlines, the picture has been shot using quite bright and powerful colours. The picture features a warm palette that keeps on changing from bright red magenta in the foreground to a soft purple at the background. The scene of the advertisemnet is actually located in a Virgin airplane where background and frame have been darkened to such an extent that they help in enhancing the appeali of the intimate atmosphere of Virgin airplane. While in one hand, the reddish shade of the whole image helps in createing a hot and sexual ambience, the purple gradation helps the the Virgin brand to appeal to an exclusive audience, as this colour traditionally stands for a symbol of royalty, wealthyness and mistery. The mixture of vibrant colours create a quite modern and glamorous environrmnt as a branding feature of Virgin airplanes,. The ambience is closer to a disco-pub than that of a conventional airplane, and very importantly, it configures the target audience. Because of the arrangement and position of the sensul women at the centre of the picture, the woman, colours aside, bears the core message of the advertisement. Her face has been lightened for distinguishing her from the rest of the picture. Her beauty has been highlightened and thus a captivating effect hsd been created upon the reader. The woman wears an airy, shiny and very sexy dress that Moreover, the man’s smart spiky shoes and jeans, the clothing showing in the image stand for the customers who are young, modern and have quitw high purxchasing power. This advertismnet will thus attract young and rich customers to a large extent. (Tsotra and Juson, 2004) On the basis of the above analysis, it can be concluded that all the three exampoles of advertisements have been made in such a way that they can forward the inherent meaasages of the advertisemnets to the targeted customers. All the advertisemnets have been made keeping in mind the nature of the targeted customers. The use of colors, backgrounds, objects and images suggests that companies mainly focus on creating such an ambience in their advetisements that they can get attention from their trgetted customers. References: 1. Earl, P. E. and Kemp, S. 2002. The Elgar Companion to Consumer Research and Economic Psychology. Edward Elgar Publishing 2. Zaichkowsky, J. L. 2006. The psychology behind trademark infringement and counterfeiting. Routledge. 3. Moore, K. G. n.d. Integrated Marketing Communications - 5 Primary Communication Tools. available at http://ezinearticles.com/?Integrated-Marketing-Communications---5-Primary-Communication-Tools&id=2177059 [accessed 15th July, 2009]. 4. Lawes, R. 2002. Demystifying semiotics: Some key questions answered, International Journal of Market Research, 44, 3, 251-264. 5. Solomon, M. & Bamossy, G. & Askegaard, S. & Hogg, M. 2006. Consumer Behaviour -European Perspective. Pearson Hall. 6. Chandler, D. 2002. Semiotics: The Basics, London, UK: Routledge. 7. Tsotra, D. and Juson, M. 2004. Marketing on the Internet: A Semiotic Analysis. Proceedings of the Tenth Americas Conference on Information Systems, New York, New York. Read More