Environmental influence

Types of influences

Cultural

Social

Personal

Family

Situational

Values : Values are shared beliefs or group norms internalized by individuals

Norms: Norms are beliefs held by consensus of a group concerning the
behaviour rules for individual members
Socialisation: The process by which people develop their values, motivation
and habitual activity.
Consumer socialisation is the acquisition of consumption related cognitions,
attitude and behaviour
What is culture?:

A set of values , ideas and other meaningful symbols that help individuals
communicate, interpret and evaluate as members of society

Provides people with a sense of identity and an understanding of

acceptable behaviour within society.

Cultural Influence:

Relationships

Values and norms

Beliefs and attitudes

Mental processes and learning

Work habits and practices

Sense of self and space

Communication and language

Dress and appearance

Food and feeding habits

Time and time consciousness

How is culture propagated?

Culture is learned through imitation or by observing the process of

reward and punishment in a society of members who adhere to or deviate
from group norms.

Culture is inculcated through family, religion and schools

Culture rewards socially gratifying responses. When norms no longer

provide gratification in a society, the norms are extinguished

Culture is adaptive

Culture affects consumer behavior

Function

Form

Meaning

Impact of culture on consumption

A nations culture determines what suppliers can offer, the way products can be
marketed and the degree to which consumers are allowed to act on their
preferences
How core values affect Marketing?

Defines how products are used in society

Provide +ve or ve valences for brands and communication programmes

Define acceptable market relationships

Define ethical behavior

Changing Institutions

Declining family influence

Changing religious influence

Changing education institutions

Intergenerational Motivating factors

Consumers are products of their environment. People strive as adults to achieve
what they believe they were deprived of in early stages of life. Cohort analysis
helps us to understand the differences between different groups and their m
otivations
Social Influence
Behaviour can also be influenced depending on social class
What is social class?
It is defined as relatively permanent and homogeneous divisions in a society into
which individuals or families sharing similar values, lifestyles, interests and
behaviour can be categorised
Social stratification

When a large group of families are approximately equal in rank to each

other and clearly differentiated from other families, they form a social
class

pecking order

Determined by class, status and caste

What determines social class?

Economic occupation, income, wealth

Interaction personal prestige, association, socialisation

Political power, class consciousness, mobility

How to measure social class?

Objective

Subjective

Interpretive

Do social classes change?

Men inherit the class of their father.

Women can change class with marriage. Similarly women can lose status
after divorce

Types of personal influence

Reference group Normative, Comparative

WOM

Models of Personal Influence

Trickle down theory

Two step flow

Multi-stage interaction

Types of reference groups

Primary vs secondary

Aspirational vs dissociative

Formal vs informal

Forms of reference group influence

Normative influence when people conform and comply through pressure

from reference group behaviour

Value expressive influence identification or enhanced image in the eyes

of others

Informational Influence When assessment of products or services are

difficult, people turn to others who have had or claim satisfaction with this
product Principle of social proof.

Word of Mouth

For WOM to spread it requires an opinion leader

There has to be some motivations for spreading WOM

When will WOM be useful?

Consumer lacks sufficient information to make an informed choice

Product is complex and difficult to evaluate using objective criteria

Consumer lacks the ability to evaluate the product or service

Other sources are perceived to be less credible

An influential person is more accessible and can be consulted saving time

and effort

Strong social ties are present between transmittee and receiver

High need for social approval

Identifying influentials

Sociometric

Key informant

Self-designation

Motivations for WOM

Involvement

Self enhancement

Concern for others

Message intrigue

Dissonance reduction

Impact of WOM communication

Source vs seeker initiated conversation

-ve vs +ve information

Verbal vs visual information

Marketing implications

Creating influentials

Targeting influentials

Stimulating +ve WOM

Family Influence
Buying decisions of individuals may be heavily influenced by other members of
the family or household
Household
All persons related or otherwise occupying the same dwelling unit.
Non-family units would come under this category eg, singles, elderly people,
POSSLQ, divorcees
Families can comprise of

Nuclear

Extended

How do families function?

Cohesion

Adaptability

Communication

Individual role in a buying centre

Gatekeeper

Initiator

Influencer

Decider

Buyer

User

Spousal Buying roles

Autonomic

Husband dominant

Wife dominant

Syncratic (joint)

Behaviour changes related to Family Life cycle (FLC)

Single-Newly Married Full Nest I Full Nest II Empty Nest I Empty Nest
II Solitary Survivor Retired Solitary Survivor

Nature of products

Priorities accorded to expenditure

Habits and preferences

Parenting styles

Authoritarian

Negligent

Democratic

Permissive

Situation Influences
Arising from factors that are particular to a specific time and place that are
independent of consumer and object characteristics
Types of consumer situations

Communication situations

Purchase situations

Usage situations

Communication Situations
Those settings where the consumer is exposed to either personal or
nonpersonal communications.
Purchase Situations
Those settings in which consumers acquire products and services

Information environment availability, load, format, form

Retail environment atmospherics, music, layout, colours, POPs,

salespeople, crowding

Time

Usage Situations
Those settings in which consumption occurs

Location is same

Location is different

Used differently

Different social situations

Time of the day

Person-Situation Interaction
Behaviour can also change depending on the type of consumers for the same
situation