Integrated Marketing Communication — Chapter 3: Buyer Behaviors Examine the following websites. What type of information is provided? Which component of attitude is the site designed to influence: cognitive, affective, or conative? Explain why. Kenneth Cole (http://www.kennethcole.com) Starbucks (http://www.starbucks.com) Cadillac (http://www.cadillac.com) IKEA (http://www.ikea.com) Review the trends in the consumer buying environment. Examine each of the following websites. Which trend or trends does each website seem to utilize on its website? Use screen shots to justify your thoughts. Chipotle Mexican Grill (http://chipotle.com) Visit South Walton (www.visitsouthwalton.com) Ralph Lauren (www.ralphlauren.com) d. Scott + Cooner (http://scottcooner.com A member of the buying center has been asked to gather information about possible shipping companies for international shipments. Visit the following websites. What companies have the most appealing websites? Beyond online materials, what additional information do they need to supply to the buying center in order to win the contract? ABC India Limited (www.abcindia.com) SR International Logistics, Inc. (www.srinternational.com) Allison Shipping International (www.allisonshipping.com) Shipping International (www.shippinginternational.com) Chapter 3 covers both consumer and business-to-business buyer behaviors. Understanding how and why consumers and businesses make purchases is important in developing integrated marketing communications. 1 2 3 Nescafe instant coffee has been the market leader for nearly two decades, but coffee consumption was primarily an urban activity. In rural China, consumption was less than 5 cups of coffee per year. The goal was to change this routine, from tea to coffee. The campaign focused on the Internet, ecommerce, and social media. Using the microblogging service Weibo, Nescafe launched a campaign around White Valentine’s Day, in which women gave gifts to men. The goal was to generate discussions on line in the social media, with a contest as a complementary piece of the campaign. 4 Chapter 3 begins with an overview of the consumer purchasing process and the consumer buying environment. Both are important in designing marketing communications. The next part of the chapter addresses current trends in consumer behavior. The last part of the chapter examines business-tobusiness buying behaviors. The buying center is an important part of the buying process. Often, products are introduced in the B-to-B market, then later marketed to consumers. Dual channel marketing involves marketing to both consumers and businesses. 5 The consumer decision-making process involves five steps. The first step is problem recognition. It involves a consumer recognizing he/she needs something, has run out of something, or has an interest in something. Step two is information search. Consumers will first search internally for information. If they have enough information already stored in memory, then they will move to the next step. If not, then the consumer will conduct an external search. For high involvement and high dollar purchases, most consumers will conduct an external search. Step three is evaluation of alternatives. This may take only a few minutes for low cost, low involvement decisions to several months for high involvement decisions. After alternatives are evaluated, consumers will move to the next step, the purchase decision. While consumers will normally purchase the brand they intended to buy, sometimes in-store signage or deals will alter the purchase decision. The last step in the process is postpurchase evaluation. Consumers will determine the level of satisfaction with the purchase, which will impact their next purchase decision for that product. 6 The first step in the consumer decision-making process is the recognition of a need or want. It can be a physical need or want, such as thirst or hunger. It can be a social need or want, such as seeing a friend with the latest cell phone or a new car. It can be a psychological need or want, such as purchasing a new outfit to wear to feel good about themselves, or because they are depressed and buying something lifts their spirits. Many purchases are triggered by running out of something, such as groceries, food, and beverages. But, advertising can also trigger a need or want. This advertisement for Skyjacker can trigger a desire for a lift kit for a vehicle. The desire can be reinforced through seeing someone else’s vehicle with one installed, or the reverse can occur. 7 Once a problem, need, or want has been recognized, consumers move to the next stage of the process, information search. Understanding information search is important for marketing communications. There are two types of information search, internal and external. 8 The internal search for information is a mental activity. Consumers search their memories for information. They think about brands they have purchased in the past. If the brand met their needs and the experience was good, it is very likely they will buy the same brand again. If not, they will conduct a longer internal search or move to the external search for additional information. Past experience is an important part of an internal search and how long the individual thinks about various brands. Consumers typically reduce the number of options quickly and concentrate on only a couple or small set of options. With internal search, brand awareness and brand equity are important. If a consumer is not aware of a brand, such as Kraft, then it will not be considered as a purchase option unless the search process moves to an external search. The higher the level of brand equity, the more likely the brand will be purchased with little mental effort and no additional consideration of other brands. 9 The external search for information normally occurs under three conditions. First, the consumer was not happy with the last purchase experience and wants another brand or product. Second, it is a high-involvement decision, and the consumer wants more information. Third, it is a socially visible product ,and the consumer wants to make sure others will approve or be impressed with the purchase decision. The amount of time consumers spend searching for information depends on 1) their ability to search for information, 2) their level of motivation to search for information, and 3) the perceived cost of searching versus the perceived benefit of searching. 10 The ability to search for information determines the extent of the information search process. Ability consists of a person’s educational level combined with their knowledge of the product and brands. Educated individuals tend to search for more information and spend more time searching than individuals with less education. Knowledge of products and brands has an inverted Ushape curve. Individuals with little knowledge of a product category or brands tend not to search for information, primarily because they do not know where or how to search for information. They don’t know the product category well enough to know what to look for. At the other extreme, individuals with a great deal of knowledge spend less time searching since they already possess the knowledge. The group that spends the most time searching is in the middle. They have some knowledge, so they have an idea of what to look for and what to ask, but not enough knowledge to make a decision. 11 The level of motivation has an impact on the amount of time spent in external search. Motivation is determined by involvement, cognition, and shopping enthusiasm. The higher the level of involvement, the more time a consumer will spend in searching for additional information. The need for cognition is the level of mental activity a person enjoys. People who have a high need for cognition, that is they want to think about options before making a decision, will spend more time searching for information. Some people want to weigh every option and make sure they are right, so this need to consider all angles will lengthen the search process. The last motivating factor is the person’s enthusiasm for shopping. Individuals who enjoy shopping and comparing brands will spend more time than individuals who dislike shopping. 12 Consumers will weigh the cost versus the benefits of an external search. There are the actual costs to search, such as driving to the mall to look at various brands. Then there is the cost of the product. If a particular brand is purchased and the consumer doesn’t like it, that money is basically lost. So for high cost items, there is more pressure to search to make sure the right decision is made. Then there are subjective costs, the amount of time spent and the anxiety involved. For most people, time is valuable. Yet, if the purchase decision causes anxiety, then spending more time searching for information is worth it to reduce the anxiety and ensure the right decision is made. The last consideration is opportunity cost. Once the purchase is made, the consumer forgoes the alternatives. The higher the perceived costs to search for information, the less consumers will search. Alternatively, the higher the perceived benefit in gathering additional information, the more time a person will spend searching. 13 Consumer attitude can be impacted by effective marketing communications. Attitude is the mental position a person takes towards a topic, person, or an event that influences an individual’s feelings, perceptions, learning processes, and behaviors. Attitude consists of three components. Affective is the feeling and emotional part of attitude. Cognitive is the individual’s knowledge, understanding, and interpretation of a topic, person, or thing. Conative is an individual’s intentions, actions, or behavior. 14 In terms of influencing or changing consumer attitudes, marketers have three options. The most common sequence is to first impact a person’s cognitive beliefs and knowledge about a product, then develop emotions and feelings for the brand, which then results in purchasing the product. The second sequence begins with affective, the feelings and emotions. The marketing message is designed to elicit an emotional response followed by the purchase action. Then once the person has tried the product, he/she will make judgments about it. The third sequence begins with the conative. The idea is to get the person to try it. Food items and other low cost products often use this approach. After trying a product, a person will develop thoughts about it and then decide if he/she likes it or not. Feelings follow the knowledge. The sequence determines the content and how an ad is designed. Ads aimed at the affective component will look different than ads designed to impact the cognitive or conative component of attitude. 15 Attitudes reflects an individual’s personal values. Values are strongly held beliefs about various topics and concepts. Values frame attitudes and guide personal actions. This is a list of some of the primary values individuals hold. The strength of the value will determine a person’s attitude and actions. Individuals who value and crave excitement will have different attitudes and make different purchase decisions than people who value mature love, wisdom, or personal accomplishment. In designing marketing messages, creatives need to consider personal values and how products can help an individual obtain the values being sought. 16 The table shows the results of a survey of 4,500 consumers who were asked to rate the most patriotic brands. The study was conducted by Brand Keys. Jeep had the highest patriotic emotional engagement score, but was followed closely by Hershey and Coca-Cola. 17 Cognitive maps are simulations of the knowledge structure and memories embedded in an individual’s brain. These structures contain a person’s assumptions, beliefs, interpretations of facts, feelings, and attitudes about the world around them. These thoughts interpret new information and determine a response to fresh information or a novel situation. This map is a crude illustration of the structure of the brain and the many linkages that are present. This represents one individual’s cognitive map of Ruby Tuesday. Ideas connected to Ruby Tuesday are restaurants, dine-in, excellent service, and slow. When the person thinks of slow, they immediately think of Mel’s Diner. When the person thinks of restaurants, fast foods come to mind, then pizza, then Pizza Hut and Little Caesar’s. It is easy to see from this illustration how concepts, thoughts, and ideas are all interconnected in our brains. 18 Cognitive mapping serves a number of functions. It provides an idea of how the brain contains many linkages at a number of levels. Cognitive maps allow individuals to deal with new information in one of three ways. New information that is consistent with current information will strengthen linkages that already exist. If no linkage is there, then the consumer may develop a new linkage between the concepts. On the other hand, the person may determine the new information is not consistent with current linkages and dismiss it immediately. It is these linkages that allow consumers to retain information in long-term memory. Unless it is connected in some manner in the cognitive map, the information will not be stored for future use. 19 Marketing messages have three roles when it comes to cognitive mapping. First, the message may be designed to strengthen current linkages. Second, it may be designed to modify current linkages. Third, it may create new linkages. Adding new linkages or modifying current linkages is more difficult than strengthening current linkages. 20 Cognitive mapping helps explain how consumers process information and how messages are moved from short-term memory to long-term memory. Most persuasive messages reinforce current linkages, which is the easiest task for marketers. Establishing new linkages is more difficult. It requires repetition. Just like repeating a phone number several times helps move the number from short-term to long-term memory, seeing an advertisement message a number of times helps establish new linkages. It is difficult to modify and create new linkages. It takes time. 21 The third stage of the consumer decision-making process is the evaluation of alternatives. Understanding how consumers evaluate brands and products is important for creating effective marketing messages. Three models illustrate the nature of evaluation of alternatives: evoked set, multiattribute, and affect referral. 22 The evoked set consists of brands that an individual considers in making a purchase decision. Evoked sets are often generated internally during the information search stage of the process. It consists of brands the consumer is aware of and would consider purchasing, often brands that the consumer has used in the past. Two other sets of interest to marketers are the inept and inert sets. The inept set are the brands the consumer will not purchase, either because of a bad personal experience or information received from another source. It may be something someone told them. The inert set are brands the consumer does not know anything about or has so little information a judgment cannot be made. If a brand is in a consumer’s inert set, the goal is to transfer it to the evoked set because in most purchase situations only brands in the evoked set will be considered. For instance, if a consumer decides to dine-out, in most cases, only brands in the evoked set will be considered. 23 If consumers are not likely to conduct an external search for information, then being in the evoked set becomes more important. Also, for lower involvement type products, being part of the evoked set is important because consumers will not spend a great deal of time evaluating alternatives. The less time spent in the evaluation of alternatives, the more important it is to be part of the evoked set. Also, if a brand wants to develop a high level of brand equity with consumers, it starts with being in the evoked sets of individuals. Answers will vary among students on how important the evoked set would be for these brands. Certainly, for an attorney and neurosurgeon, being part of the evoked set is not too important since people will very likely do a more extensive search for information. 24 The multiattribute approach is used for high-involvement purchases, such as vehicles. With the multiattribute approach, the evaluation is based on two dimensions: 1) the brand’s performance on product or brand attributes and 2) the importance of each attribute. The higher that a brand rates on attributes that are important to consumers, the more likely the brand will be chosen. It would be extremely rare for a brand to score the highest on all attributes. Instead, there are trade offs. In purchasing a car, not one single automobile is likely to have every feature the consumer wants, especially if the auto is being purchased from a dealer’s lot and not being ordered. The same is true for purchasing a home. Consumers must make tradeoffs. The final choice comes down to the brand that offers the most features desired by consumers. While consumers aren’t likely to do this mathematically on paper, they will conduct a simulated approach by mentally comparing one brand against another on various attributes. 25 Affect is the third part of attitude. It deals with emotions and feelings. With the affect referral method, consumers purchase the brand they like the best. There may not even be a strong reason they like the brand, they just do, or they may have a strong emotional attachment to the brand for some reason. It may have been a brand their parents used, so they developed an emotional attachment. The affect referral method saves energy. Consumers don’t have to think about the other brands or consider other alternatives, they just purchase the brand they like. It’s possible that the multiattribute approach was used in the past to determine the best brand, so the process does not have to be repeated. The experience with the brand was positive, so consumers continue buying it and over time develop a stronger emotional bond with it. In this ad, Oscar Mayer wanted to tap into the affective component of attitude and encourage consumers that with Oscar Mayer hotdogs “it doesn’t get better than this.” 26 Consumer behavior is a moving target and always changing because people change and culture changes. The environment and economy changes, forcing changes in the way consumers purchase products. These trends have impacted consumer behavior in recent years and are expected to modify future buyer behaviors. Age complexity refers to children growing up at a much faster rate and becoming involved in purchasing products which in the past were for teenagers and adults. At the other end of the spectrum, older consumers refuse to get old, purchasing products of younger generations. Gender complexity refers to the merging of the gender roles in occupations, products, and family relationships. Individualism refers to consumer desires to be treated as individuals and wanting products that are made specifically for them. They don’t want to be like everyone else. Today’s consumers lead active and busy lifestyles and want goods and services that cater to that lifestyle. Cocooning refers to the desire to stay at home, to build relationships with family and friends. With the pressures of life, there is a trend for people to enjoy an occasional pleasure pursuit as a reward. Finally, with an aging population there has been a growing emphasis on health and products that promote good health and that treat health problems. 27 Understanding consumer buyer behavior trends is important. Companies need to respond to these changes in buying behaviors. The first step is to monitor the consumer environment and note especially any changes in patterns of behavior. The second step is to create goods and services that are compatible with these changes. Third, marketing messages that reflect these changes should be designed. This ad for St. Francis North Hospital focuses on the emphasis people now place on health. 28 The Kraft ad on the left targets the “busy lifestyle” trend by providing a quicker, easier-to-use solution to preparing food. The ad for Community Trust Bank highlights the communication revolution trend by emphasizing a mobile app for banking. 29 In the business-to-business sector, people still make purchase decisions. The process that is used is different, which means marketers will have to use a different approach. Often more than one person is involved in the decision. Further, corporate policies can restrict decisions and decision rules can affect purchase activities. Factors such as costs, quality, and profit margins will also influence the decision. 30 In many business purchase decisions, a buying center concept is present. It usually is not an official group, but individuals play various roles in the buying center. Each role can have more than one person, and one person can serve in more than one role. Users are the members of the organization that actually use the good or service. Buyers are the individuals who have formal responsibility for making the purchase. Influencers are individuals who shape the decision by providing information or criteria used in the decision process. Deciders are people who authorize purchase decisions. Gatekeepers control the flow of information to members of the buying center. Marketing to a business involves understanding these roles and locating the individuals within a business organization that have these roles. 31 Because members of the buying center are people, there are a number of individual factors that influence the buying process. The buying center becomes a very complex social organization when a number of people become involved in buying decisions. Personalities, ambitions, and personal agendas may cause conflict and tension. When individuals’ jobs are affected, they tend to become more involved. 32 The personality of individuals will affect the purchase decision and the buying center. A decisive person will be more involved and direct. An extrovert will spend more time talking, while an introvert will be too timid to speak. The roles people have within the organization will impact the buying center. Roles are socially constructed and also influenced by a person’s age, heredity, ethnicity, gender, and cultural membership. A person’s degree of motivation depends on the match between the individual’s personal goals and the goals of the organization. Goals to succeed within an organization usually translate into greater involvement. 33 People derive their level of power from official and unofficial roles within an organization. The more power an individual has, the more he/she will be involved. Roles may be defined by the buying center and the impact the decision has on an individual’s personal performance. Risk and the attitude towards risk is important. A risk aversive person will seek a safe path and may want to stay with the current vendor. Levels of involvement will vary. The higher the level of involvement, the more questions individuals will ask and the more active they will be in the process. Individuals who have a high level of cognition will spend more time asking questions and talking. The last factor is personal objectives. Individuals may act within a buying center in such a way that will promote individual objectives over company objectives, but in a way that is not noticed by others. 34 Buying decisions can be classified into three categories: straight rebuy, modified rebuy, and new task. With a straight rebuy, the current vendor is contacted and a new order is placed. Alternatives are not considered. With a modified rebuy, a company is open to new vendors and will evaluate the current vendor as well as new possibilities. A new task is when a company is making a purchase with little or no experience. It does not occur frequently, so often the vendors help in the process. 35 Modified rebuys occur for four different reasons. The company already has a current vendor, but has chosen to look at additional vendors and solutions. Reasons for moving from a straight rebuy to a modified rebuy include the following. 1) The company is dissatisfied with the current vendor. 2) Another vendor has made some type of attractive offer and members of the buying center feel it is worth looking at again. It may be a lower price, better quality, or some other factor that makes the buying center open it up for evaluation again. 3) Companies will often take bids at the end of contracts with vendors. They may stay with the current vendor, or they may not. 4) The individuals making the decision have little or no experience and rather than stay with the current vendor they want to see what other vendors can offer. There may be features the current vendor is not supplying. 36 The first step in the b-to-b buying process is the identification of needs. It may be a need for raw materials, or a new vehicle, or even new land. Step 2 is to establish objectives. It is important to do this before vendors are contacted to ensure the decision is unbiased. Step 3 involves identifying possible vendors or sending out a request for proposals. Once vendors have submitted bids, evaluation begins. Members of the buying center will screen out vendors who do meet the specifications. Depending on the size of the bid, this process of evaluation may take just a few hours to several weeks. Once the vendor has been selected, terms are negotiated. Evaluation of the vendor then occurs after the purchase. With business purchases, it often becomes a continuous process with repeat orders, the straight rebuy situation. 37 The business-to-business buying process is very similar to the individual buying process. Both have a problem recognition that starts the process. Information search for individuals is similar to establishing objectives and identifying vendors in the b-to-b. Both processes involve an evaluation of alternatives. The purchase decision in the consumer process is split into vendor selection and purchase negotiations for businesses. Finally, both involve a postpurchase evaluation stage. 38 Dual channel marketing involves selling products to both consumer and business markets. The process often begins with the B-to-B market. Individuals like a brand they are using at work and purchase the brand for personal use, which is spin-off sales. It may be the brand of computer, vehicle, or cell phone. The challenge for marketers is should they market both channels the same way, or should they be different? There are also image issues to consider. 39 Dual channel marketing requires one of three approaches based on how the product is purchased and used. 1) The same brand is sold in both markets, but the communication messages are different. This often requires having different marketing plans. 2) A second approach is to create different brand names and a different marketing plan for each brand. With this approach involves two totally separate approaches and is motivated by the idea that the consumer and business markets are not compatible. 3) With the last approach multiple or different channels of distribution are used for the consumer market and b-to-b market. In most cases, this approach involves different brands as well. 40 Buyer behaviors vary widely around the world. A cultural assimilator is a valuable person to have on staff to assist in marketing plans for other countries. It is important to understand the purchase process. The way products are purchased in the U.S. is not the same as it is in Japan, Brazil, or other parts of the world. Having a strong brand name helps with global expansion. Even for B-to-B markets, global brands are important. 41 th edition 8 Integrated Advertising, Promotion, and Marketing Communications Kenneth E. Clow Donald Baack P Pearson Purchase answer to see full attachment Explanation & Answer: 6 Pages Tags: marketing integrated Buyer Behaviors User generated content is uploaded by users for the purposes of learning and should be used following Studypool’s honor code & terms of service.