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Chapter 1 What is CB and Why Should I Care?. Learning Outcomes. Understand the meaning of consumption and consumer behavior Describe how competitive marketing environments lead to better outcomes for consumers Explain the role of consumer behavior in business and society
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Learning Outcomes • Understand the meaning of consumption and consumer behavior • Describe how competitive marketing environments lead to better outcomes for consumers • Explain the role of consumer behavior in business and society • Be familiar with basic approaches to studying consumer behavior • Appreciate how dynamic the field of consumer behavior continues to be
Consumer Behavior Perspectives • Human thought and action involved in consumption • A field of study (human inquiry)
Consumer Behavior as Human Behavior • Consumer behavior- Set of value-seeking activities that take place as people go about addressing and attempting to address realized needs • A process kicks in as the consumer sets out to find ways to fill the need—thinking, feeling, behaving culminating in value
Consumption • Process by which goods, services or ideas are used and transformed into value • Marketer and the consumer interact to produce value • Consumption outcomes affect consumer well-being by affecting quality of life
Consumer Behavior as a Field of Study • CB is the science of studying how consumers seek value in an effort to address real needs • As a field of study, CB is a very young field—books on CB date from the 1960s • CB researchers continue to expand the knowledge base at a fast pace • CB field has family roots in other disciplines—economics, psychology, social psychology, marketing etc
How are Consumers Treated? • Every organization is not consumer-oriented • Some organizations can survive while treating customers little better than dirt • Others need to pamper customers just to have a chance of surviving • Organizations must determine the importance of serving customers • How competitive is the marketing environment? • How dependent is the marketer on repeat business?
Firm Orientations and Consumers • Consumer orientation - A business’s priority is consumer value and satisfaction • Market orientation - Organizational culture emphasizing consumer value • Stakeholder marketing - Recognizes that all stakeholders are involved in and/or are affected by the firm’s marketing in some way
Relationship marketing and CB • Relationship marketing - A firm’s marketing activities aimed at increasing repeat business • Touchpoints - Direct contacts between the firm and a customer • Customer–marketer relationship will continue only as long as both parties see the partnership as valuable
Why Study CB? • Input to business/marketing strategy • Force that shapes society • Input to making responsible decisions as a consumer
Resource-Advantage Theory • Explains why companies succeed or fail • Companies succeed by acquiring more resources from consumers and in turn using those resources to gain advantages in physical and intellectual capital
What do people buy? • To buy something, a consumer gives up resources in the form of time, money, and energy in return for the product • A product is a potentially valuable bundle of benefits • Emphasis lies in the value the customer receives rather than the product itself
Ways of Doing Business • Undifferentiated marketing - The same basic product is offered to all customers • Production-oriented • Differentiated marketing - Serving multiple market segments each with a unique product offering • Market-oriented • Niche marketing - Serving one market segment with particularly unique demand characteristics
CB and Society • Consumer behavior creates the society in which we live and serves as an important source of input to public policy in a free society
CB and Personal Growth • Studying CB helps consumers make better decisions by understanding: • Consequences of poor budgeting • Role of emotions • Avenues for redress • Social influences • Environmental effects
Different Approaches to Studying CB • Interpretive research - Seeks to explain the inner meanings and motivations associated with specific consumption experiences • Phenomenology: Represents the study of consumption as a “lived experience” • Ethnography: Involves analyzing the artifacts associated with consumption • Quantitative research - Addresses questions about consumer behavior using numerical measurement and analysis tools
Consumer Behavior is Dynamic • The way marketers respond to consumers is changing dramatically due to: • Internationalization • Technological changes • Changing communications • Changing demographics • Changing economy