Chapter 7 - Group Influences

opinion leader

'go-to person' for specific types of information in group; actively filter, interpret, or provide product and brand-relevant information; especially relevant for new products

reference group

a group whose presumed perspectives or values are being used by an individual as the basis for his/her current behavior

Individuals frequently purchase products thought to be used by a desired group in order to achieve actual or symbolic membership in the group. This type of group is referred to as a(n) _____.

aspiration reference group

early majority

cautious about innovations, weigh pros/cons; adopt sooner than most of their social group, but after proven successful; somewhat older, less well educated, and less mobile; middle-class

community

characterized by consciousness of kind, shared rituals and traditions, and a sense of moral responsibility

strength of social tie (reference group)

closeness and intimacy of the group linkages

evaluation (adoption process)

consumer considers trying new product; evaluation of alternatives

adoption (adoption process)

consumer decides to make regular use of product; post-purchase processes

awareness (adoption process)

consumer is aware of product but lacks info; problem recognition

interest (adoption process)

consumer seeks info about new product; information search

trial (adoption process)

consumer tries new product on a small scale; purchase

membership (reference group)

criteria of either one is a member of the group or not

attraction (reference group)

desirability of membership in a given group by individual;

type of contact (reference group)

direct/indirect contact; direct contact = face-to-face; indirect contact = NO face-to-face, online has increased it

consumption subculture

distinctive subgroup of society that self-selects on the basis of a shared commitment to a particular product class, brand, or consumption activity; ex. Star Trek fan known as 'Trekkies'

primary group (social tie)

family/friends; strong ties and frequent interaction; considerable influence wielded

asch phenomenon

in expirements, the power of groups to influence an individual to agree with the incorrect judgment of the others

word of mouth (WOM)

individuals sharing information with other individuals verbally; includes face-to-face, phone, and over the internet

reference group influence

informational, normative, and indentification

multistep flow

involves opinion leaders for a particular product area who activelhy seek revelant infomation from the mass media/other sources; opinion leaders transmit

opinion leader characteristics

knowledgeable, involved, and socially active knowledge/involvement = influence high/high = moderate influence low/high = high influence high/low = low influence low/low = moderate

laggards

locally oriented and engage in limited social interaction; dogmatic and oriented toward past; adopt only with reluctance; adopt when absolete,luddites

discontinuous innovation

major changes in behavior of significant importance to the individual/group; high degree of new learning/patterns

diffusion process

manner in which innovations spread throughout a market

types of reference groups

membership, strength of social tie, attraction, and type of contact

dynamically continuous innovation

moderate change in an important behavior/major change in a behavior of low/moderate importance to the individual; total new learning/patterns NOT required

brand community

nongeographically 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, product in use, and firm

group/consumer socialization (how do we learn from reference groups?)

observing, participating, word of mouth (WOM)

secondary group (social tie)

professional/neighborhood associations; weaker ties and less-frequent interaction

continuous (radical) innovation

relatively minor changes in behavior/behaviors that are unimportant to the consumer; no new learning/patterns

adoption process

series of distinct steps/stages when purchasing an innovation

late majority

skeptical about innovations; adopt in respose to social pressures/decrease availability of previous product; older, less social status/mobility; most of their friend have it

early adopters

tend to be opinion leaders in local reference groups; key target for new product developers; sucessful, well educated, and somewhat younger than peers; calculated risk

group

two or more individuals who shate a set of norms, values, or beliefs

direct flow

two-step flow; process of mass media/other sources passing information to individual

normative influence

utilitarian; when individual fulfills group expectations to gain a direct reward/to avoid a sanction; reward/coercive power (ex. boss giving you money/bully)

identification influence

value-expressive; when individuals have internalized the group's values/norms; referent power (ex. celebrity)

innovators

venturesome risk takers, eager to try new ideas; first to buy; younger, better educated, and more socially mobile that peers

situational determinants

visible/'public' usage, 'high'/low relevance of product to group, high/'low' individual purchase confidence, 'strong'/weak individual commitment to group, and necessary/'non-necessary' item *'( )' = higher degree of reference group influence

groupthink

when all think alike; phenomenon where people tend to agree with group decisions to avoid feeling outcast, leading errors in decision making

informational influence

when individual uses the behaviors and opinions of reference group members as potentially useful bits of information; expert power (ex. doctor)

In which of the following consumption situations will a reference group's influence be strongest?

when the use of the product or brand is visible to the group