Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy 13th Edition by Delbert Hawkins, David Mothersbaugh

Exercise 37

Consumption Meaning and Motivation
Consumer behavior is the study of why consumers buy. Understanding consumer behavior is at the heart of marketing strategy and a major focus of this text. Government agencies must "sell" ideas and services (e.g., The Affordable Care Act, tax increases) to citizens. Nonprofits must convince consumers to contribute to their organizations (e.g., Salvation Army). Companies must persuade consumers to buy their products and services. Some products and services are essential. However, much of consumption is not need-based, at least in a functional sense. Many companies spend considerable money and effort convincing consumers to buy products, services, or brands they don't really need. And consumers often want products and services they cannot afford, which, if acted on, can lead to negative financial consequences such as crushing credit card debt. In this insight we explore some of the factors driving consumer purchases that drive at the deeper meaning of consumption beyond mere function and necessity.
Meaning in the mundane -Sometimes consumers know what they want-from simple and relatively inexpensive everyday things like milk, bread, and socks, which require little decision effort, to more expensive items such as cars, TVs, and homes, which require considerable decision effort. Even in these situations where products meet basic needs, there can be far more meaning in the objects purchased than might meet the eye. Cars and homes can take on important meanings over time when they are associated with major events such as a first date, a child's first step, and so on. Even truly mundane products can attain heightened meaning if associated with important events or people in one's life. Chapter 12 deals with this idea of products becoming a part of the extended self and as a consequence taking on much deeper meanings than might initially seem possible.
Meaning in avoidance -Consumers often know what they don't want-at least at the broadest level-and make consumption choices accordingly. Consumers don't want fear of physical harm in their lives-so they buy cars with safety enhancements and products such as smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors to reduce physical risk. Consumers don't want financial risk in their lives-so they buy insurance and extended warranties, and hire financial planners. Risk and risk avoidance are an important part of consumer behavior and decision making, as discussed in Chapter 3 and Chapter 16.
Meaning in innovative brands -The iPhone is unquestionably a marketing success. It has helped to make Apple one of the most profitable companies in the world. 20 Consumers willingly wait in long lines for hours to have the chance to buy a new version of the iPhone. And yet, consumers didn't know they wanted that product until it already existed. The iPhone is clearly more than just a phone. It has many meanings to consumers-including innovative, cutting-edge, sophisticated, intellectual-that consumers buy as much or more than the phone. In fact, a brand's personality can be as much a driver of purchase as how well it meets functional requirements, as discussed in Chapter 10.
The more radical the innovation, the more marketers must be able to see the match between customer core needs and the possibilities created by emerging technology. Below are a few quotes about the challenges of innovating ahead of the customer.
You can't just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they'll want something new. 21
-Steve Jobs
It's really hard to design products by focus groups. A lot of times, people don't know what they want until you show it to them. 22
-Steve Jobs
The iPhone is a marketer's dream. However, most new products do not succeed. Why this is so and how marketers can adapt their strategies is a key aspect of Chapter 7.
Meaning beyond function -Women's hair removal is highly popular in the United States and has led to a thriving industry including razors, chemical depilatories, and electrolysis. However, women in other parts of the world-France, Italy, China-do not shave. 23 Crest's introduction of "Whitestrips" in 2001 created a new over-the-counter product to whiten teeth that has since grown to a multimillion-dollar market. 24 Such examples highlight the fact that "needs" come in various forms. While being hair-free under one's arms or having whiter teeth may not improve one's physical well-being, in many countries and cultures, such attributes are related to the need to belong or to be respected, as discussed in Chapter 10. Some consumer groups argue that marketers create unnecessary needs on the part of the consumer and worry about their consequences for both the individual and society, as discussed in Chapter 20.
Can you see any potential negative consequences to marketing attempts to encourage purchases of products consumers don't need