Consumer Behavior #7

brand community

- A brand community is a non-geographically bound community, based on a structured set of social relationships among owners of a brand and the psychological relationship they have with the brand itself, the product in use, and the firm. - A community is characterized by consciousness of kind, shared rituals and traditions, and a sense of moral responsibility.

What is a consumption-based group or a consumption subculture? What are the characteristics of such a group? How can marketers develop strategy based on consumption subcultures?

- A consumption subculture is a distinctive subgroup of society that self-selects on the basis of a shared commitment to a particular product class, brand, or consumption activity. - These subcultures also have (1) an identifiable, hierarchical social structure; (2) a set of shared beliefs or values; and (3) unique jargons, rituals, and modes of symbolic expression. - these subcultures are reference groups for their members as well as those who aspire to join or avoid them. - For product-based groups, the firm must market the subculture itself as well as, or even instead of, the product. - While these subcultures adopt consumption patterns in large part to affirm their unique identity, the larger market often appropriates all or parts of their symbols at least for a time.

How does a group differ from a reference group?

- A group is two or more individuals who share a set of norms, values, and beliefs and have certain implicitly or explicitly defined relations to one another such that their behavior is interdependent. - A reference group is that group whose presumed perspectives or values are being used by an individual as the basis for his or her current behavior

dissociative reference group

- A group that serves as a negative (unattractive) reference point. - The degree of desirability of group membership is negative. - They influence behavior by the negative association they give to products and activities they embrace. - That is, one tends to avoid products and activities used by dissociative reference groups.

What is an online social network site? What are the guidelines for marketers operating in online communities and social networking sites?

- An online social network site is a web-based service that allows individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system. - Guidelines for marketers include (1) transparency as it is critical that companies identify themselves and any posted content as such, to avoid the risk of being "found out" and subjected to criticism from the community; (2) to be part of the community, not just market to it; and (3) take advantage of the unique capabilities of each venue

What is an opinion leader? How does an opinion leader relate to the multistep flow of communication?

- An opinion leader is the person who filters, interprets, or provides information on various subjects to the group members. - The opinion leader acts as an information middleman between the marketer and the consumer (group member) in the multistep flow of communication.

What are the various categories of innovations? How do they differ?

- Continuous, dynamically continuous, and discontinuous. - They differ by degree and importance of behavior/attitude change required if they are adopted, with continuous requiring very little change and discontinuous requiring radical change

How can a marketer use knowledge of reference group influences to develop advertising strategies?

- Marketers can and do use all three types of reference group influence (informational, identification, and normative) when developing ads. - Informational influence is used in ads to show members of a group using product, with the implication that "these types of people find this brand to be the best; if you are like them, you will too." - Identification influence is used in ads to demonstrate that a given product is consistent with the group's, and therefore the individual's, beliefs. - Normative influence is not used in ads as often as in the past, due to ethical concerns of its use of implicit and explicit suggestions that using, or not using, the brand will result in members of a group you belong to or wish to join rewarding, or punishing, you.

aspiration reference group

- Nonmembership groups with a positive attraction. - They exert a strong influence on product aspirations because ownership of products used by the aspiration reference group makes one more like that group and may even be a prerequisite for membership.

How can marketing managers identify opinion leaders?

- Offline, opinion leaders can be targeted through specialized media sources. - Online, opinion leaders such as high-profile bloggers can often be identified in terms of their activity and influence in a given arena.

How can a marketer use knowledge of adopter categories to develop marketing strategy?

- Once defined, the marketing mix can be designed with the characteristics of each group in mind. - Thus, when a product is introduced messages should use themes and media appropriate for innovators and soon for early adopters, then early majority, and so forth.

What characterizes an opinion leader?

- Opinion leaders have greater knowledge of and interest in the product category in question. - They are exposed to more mass media, and are more gregarious and outgoing. - However, they tend to have the same demographic characteristics as their followers.

Explain the role of enduring involvement in driving opinion leadership?

- Opinion leaders possess the characteristic of having a greater long-term involvement with a given product category than others in the group (known as enduring involvement), which leads to enhanced knowledge about and experience with the product category or activity. - This knowledge and experience makes opinion leadership possible.

How can a marketer foster a brand community?

- Research finds that certain practices or activities can enhance value for members of brand communities. - These practices cluster around four categories, 1. namely social networking, 2. community engagement, 3. brand use, and 4. impression management. - From the firm's perspective, building a brand community involves establishing relationships with the owner and helping owners establish relationships with each other both online and offline.

Compare and contrast Twitter and Snapchat

- Snapchat is a platform that allows users to message others privately by sending pictures or short videos that uniquely disappear a few seconds upon viewing the message. - Twitter is a micro-blogging tool that allows users to communicate with others through short messages. - Compare: Both are online communication platforms. Brands use both tools to connect with customers, especially younger consumers (e.g., Millennials). - Contrast: Snapchat messages are temporary, whereas Twitter messages do not expire. Snapchat messages are one-on-one (private) communications, whereas Twitter messages, in general, are seen by all of the sender's followers.

How can marketers utilize opinion leaders?

- The first task is to identify opinion leaders for a particular product or service. - Then a portion of the marketing effort can be directed at those opinion leaders who will in turn influence other consumers. - Opinion leaders play an important role in word-of-mouth communication. - Thus, to the degree that marketers can positively influence opinion leaders, they are indirectly influencing many other consumers.

What is the diffusion process? What pattern does the diffusion process appear to follow over time?

- The process by which innovations spread to the members of a social system. - Over time, there is a period of relatively slow growth, followed by a period of rapid growth, followed by a final period of slower growth.

How does a market maven differ from an opinion leader?

- The term market maven is used to describe individuals who are opinion leaders about the shopping process in general. - An opinion leader is a specialist who possesses a high level of knowledge for a given product or class of products.

What determines the likelihood that a consumer will seek information from an opinion leader?

- The two factors that influence the likelihood that a consumer will seek information from an opinion leader are 1. product/purchase involvement and 2. product knowledge.

Describe the factors that affect the diffusion rate for an innovation. How can these factors be utilized in developing marketing strategy?

- Type of group. Some groups are more accepting of change than others. - In general, young, affluent, and highly educated groups accept change, including new products, readily. - Type of decision. The fewer individuals involved in the decision, the more rapidly the innovation will spread. - Marketing effort. The rate of diffusion is heavily influenced by the extent of marketing effort involved. - Fulfillment of felt need. The stronger the need that the innovation satisfies, the faster the diffusion. - Compatibility. The more the purchase and use of the innovation is consistent with the individual's and group's values or beliefs, the more rapid the diffusion. - Relative advantage. The better the innovation is perceived to meet the relevant need compared to existing methods, the more rapid the diffusion. - Complexity. The more difficult the innovation is to understand and use, the slower the diffusion. The key to this dimension is ease of use, not complexity of product. Complexity involves both attribute complexity and trade-off complexity. - Observability. The more easily consumers can observe the positive effects of adopting an innovation, the more rapid its diffusion will be. - Trialability. The easier it is to have a low-cost or low-risk trial of the innovation, the more rapid its diffusion. - Perceived risk. The more risk associated with trying an innovation, the slower the diffusion. Risk can be financial, physical, or social. Marketers need to analyze new products on each dimension and develop strategies to overcome or minimize any weaknesses.

What types of group influence exist? Why must a marketing manager be aware of these separate types of group influence?

-Informational influence, -identification influence, and - normative influence. - The manager needs to be aware of which conformity type exists because it will affect the marketing strategy required.

What five factors determine the strength of reference group influence in a situation?

1. Product or brand use visibility to the reference group, 2. the necessity/nonnecessity nature of the product, 3. the level of commitment to the group, 4. the relevance of the behavior/product to the group, and 5. the individual's confidence in his/her ability to make a sound decision.

What is the Asch phenomenon and how do marketers utilize it?

An example of the fact that people will conform to a group opinion even when there is clear, objective evidence that the group is wrong

What is an innovation? Who determines whether a given product is an innovation?

An innovation is any idea, practice, or material artifact perceived by the potential market to be new.

What criteria are used by marketers to classify groups?

Marketers find four criteria useful: (1) membership, (2) strength of social tie, (3) type of contact (4) attraction.

Early Majority:

cautious with respect to innovations. Socially active, but seldom leaders. Older, less well educated, and less mobile.

Laggards

locally oriented and engage in limited social interaction. Relatively dogmatic and oriented toward the past.

Early Adopters

opinion leaders in local reference groups. Successful and well educated

Late Majority:

skeptical about innovations. Older, less social status and mobility.

Innovators:

venturesome risk takers. Younger, better education and more socially mobile