What is the Self????

The Self Concept

People's product consumption is often determined by the way someone feel about their self and the way they strive to fulfill society's expectation of how someone should look and act. 

The Self-Concept is how a person evaluates his self based on his own beliefs and attributes. Carl Rogers (1959) believes that the self concept has three different components one of them is the ideal self.

1.Ideal self is what hat you wish you were really like.



An example of an Ideal self advert is the Fitness Center Campaign by Arseniy Laskaris Encourages Getting in Shape. This campaign is showing a powerful message by displaying a woman working hard to achieve her ideal weight goal, which is projected in the mirror in front of her.

2. Actual self refers to a person's realistic evaluation of the qualities they have and they don't have. Actual self-image is how consumers see themselves—their personal identity.

Self- Esteem refers to the extent to which a person like to accept or approve and value their-self. People with low self esteem are anxious with their performance therefore they would try and avoid failing, rejection and embarrassment.

Due to ideal self advertising many people are questioning whether beauty products actually works. Most advertisement these days focused on trying to influence the audience to copy the model on the adverts. For example Victoria Secrets models are known for being thin and sexy they are the ideal self for almost every women. However, Dove Real  Beauty campaign convey the message that real is beautiful that they don't have to change anything to reach an ideal standards. This encourages young and older women to love their body and love themselves the way they are. Dove plays up the concept of self-esteem and tries to improve individual self-esteem.

Multiple Selves is when a person has many selves due to having different social roles. Their self is defined by their position. For example a woman can have a professional self at work and a femme fatale at a bar. The self a person holds at that time also affects the product choices they make and marketers pitch products to these different selves that they have.

In 1998 Bacardi launches a $15 million advertising campaign under the theme "Bacardi by night." "We know our consumers do something each day -- they work, they have responsibilities. But at night they let off steam," This add is targeted for audiences that has multiple selves. The ad is sending a message to the audience that they understood that some people have different self whether is work related and that they can have the chance to be someone else by the help of Bacardi.

The Looking-Glass Self 



In 1902, Charles Horton Cooley created the theory of the looking-glass self, which examined how identity is formed. According to him a person's self grows out of society's interpersonal interactions and the perceptions of others. The term refers to people shaping themselves based on what other people perceive and confirm other people's opinion of themselves.

John Lewis' virtual dressing room is a marketing example of how marketers tap into the concept of the looking glass self. The idea of virtual dress is it allows customers to try on dress without physically doing it. Some clothing stores allows people to try on dress virtually and the camera broadcast live image of you wearing it online and your friends can log in to instant message and tell you what they think and the comments shows on the side of the mirror. They can also choose items for you to try on.This is what the sociologist call the process of imagining others' reaction by taking the role of others. 

Marketers take advantage of the self concept theory in designing and promoting their product and services. For example they provide products and services that would provide remedy for customers with low self esteem.

Reference


Young, M. (2016). Ideal Body Projection Ads : Fitness Center Campaign. TrendHunter.com. Retrieved 16 April 2016, from http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/fitness-center-campaign

Sirgy, M. (1982). Self-Concept in Consumer Behavior: A Critical Review. J CONSUM RES, 9(3), 287. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/208924

McLeod, S. (2016). Self Concept | Simply Psychology. Simplypsychology.org. Retrieved 16 April 2016, from http://www.simplypsychology.org/self-concept.html

NEW BACARDI ADS REVEL IN NIGHT LIFE TO SKEW YOUNGER: $15 MIL LIFESTYLE CAMPAIGN SET FOR WIDE RANGE OF MAGAZINES. (2016). Adage.com. Retrieved 16 April 2016, from http://adage.com/article/news/bacardi-ads-revel-night-life-skew-younger-15-mil-lifestyle-campaign-set-wide-range-magazines/65599/

Source: Boundless. “Cooley.” Boundless Sociology. Boundless, 30 Mar. 2016. Retrieved 17 Apr. 2016 from https://www.boundless.com/sociology/textbooks/boundless-sociology-textbook/socialization-4/theories-of-socialization-44/cooley-274-8258/

John Lewis' virtual dressing room technology in action. (2016). V3.co.uk. Retrieved 17 April 2016, from http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/v3-co-uk-labs-blog/2170834/john-lewis-virtual-dressing-technology-action

Consumer Motivation

The Motivation Process

Motivation is the reason why people behave in a particular manner. It occurs when a need is awaken and the consumer wishes to satisfy it. Once the need is triggered a state of strain occurs which push consumers to diminish or mitigate the need. In order to reduce this tension marketers try and create products and services that will provide benefits for customers. Motivation may be intrinsic or extrinsic. It is used theoretically to describe animals but also generally applies to human being.
According to various theories, motivation may be rooted in the basic need to minimize physical pain and maximize pleasure, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting, or a desired object, hobby, goal, state of being, ideal, or it may be attributed to less-apparent reasons such as altruism, morality, or avoiding mortality.

Needs are the principle of the marketing theory Although marketers does not create needs they try and create products and services that will provide benefits for customers. When a need is acknowledge by the consumer it could be for utilitarian need (e.g. a need that would result to a functional or practical benefit, as when a person needs a pair of shoes), or it may be hedonic need (e.g. experiential need that would involve emotional feedback, as a person buys a shoes for a game of football).

Goal is the desired end state of the consumer. A goal or objective is a projected state of affairs that a person or a system plans or intends to achieve—a personal or organizational desired end-point in some sort of assumed development. It is the sought-after results of motivated behavior.

Types of goals:

· Generic goals: are general categories of goals that consumers see as a way to fulfill their needs. 

· Product-specific goals: Are specifically branded products or services that consumers select as their goals

For example A person need to loose weight therefore their main goal is to exercise to achieve that. That is a generic goals but if the person use a specific gym or equipment to achieve that goal that becomes a product specific goal. 

Motivational Strength  is the degree to which a person is willing to expend energy to reach one goal as opposed to another. Biological vs. Learned Needs (innate instinct vs. learned behavior). Motives have direction as well as strength. Motivation can be described in terms of: strength of which how strong the pull it exerts on the consumer and is direction is the particular way the consumer attempts to reduce motivational force.

Marketers tap into this using a marketing campaign to motivate consumer to attain a goal. For example this particular ad of Soloflex for exercise equipment shows an ideal body and suggesting a solution to achieve it is through purchasing their equipment. This way although the marketers do not create the need but what they did is create an advert that would have enough motivational strength that would pull consumer to achieve a goal which is how the guy looked like on the picture.  

Classifying Needs

Need for Achievement is the products that say success.

Need for Power is the products that show control over environment

Need for Affiliation is the products that show need to be in company of others

Need for Uniqueness is the products that assert individual identity

Marketers tap into this by designing a marketing campaign of a product and target audience for each needs. An example of a marketing advertisement that targets the need for achievement and need for power is the Adidas advert. The brightness surrounding the Adidas sneaker symbolizes the strength and confidence that the buyer is going to achieve. Strength and confidence are the two components that energize a person who feels a desire to buy the Adidas sneakers.The need to dominate is also a significant appeal that the sneaker in the Adidas advertisement communicated. The sole of the Adidas sneaker exposed in the advertisement is also an example that reflects the need to dominate in this ad. The sole of the sneaker shown in the advertisement looks extremely thick and strong. This indestructible characteristic of the sneaker creates a sense of domination in the audience. The item’s bottom part looks so unbreakable that it initiates a desire for power. Another example of marketing strategy using the need for uniqueness is the advert from Cachet perfume claiming to be as an individual as you are. This advertisement is targeted for people who has the need to be unique.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

An approach to motivation to understand personal growth and how people achieve spiritual peak experience. Marketers adapt to this to understand consumer motivation. Marketers grasp the perspective of how hierarchical structure suggest that the order of development is fixed and in order to achieve certain level before activating a need for the next the higher one. They have certain specific types of product benefits that people look for, depending on their stage of mental or spiritual development or their economic circumstance. 

1. SELF ACTUALIZATION example:"Be all you can be" Army (hobbies, education, travel, lottery winner) Be All You can Be 1994 Army http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDbNtFL2TUI

• EGO NEEDS Esteem: prestige, status (cars, furniture, credit cards) Rolls Royce and Grey Poupon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmannAYiwh0

• Belongingness "You're in the Pepsi Generation" (clothing,cosmetics, clubs, drinks) 
• MichaelJacksonPepsiGeneration http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po0jY4WvCIc

• SAFETY (Insurance, alarm system, investments) "You're in good hands"Tire Co.baby in Tire Michelin Baby http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdPLf3FoInE
  
  
  
  
  

• PHYSIOLOGICAL (water, sleep, food, medicine,
  needed items, generics) Anacin commercial 60s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeas5jtffpM
  

Reference

Solomon, M. (2011). Consumer behavior. [S.l.]: Prentice Hall.
Pepsi Pulse. (2016). Pepsi. Retrieved 14 April 2016, from http://www.pepsi.com/en-gb/d
Security Systems & Intruder Alarms in Manchester & Northwest UK | Mono Alarms. (2016). Mono Alarms. Retrieved 14 April 2016, from http://www.monoalarms.co.uk/

Memory and Marketing

Memory is the process of gaining information and storing it over time so that it will be available when needed. Approaches to studying memory utilize an information - processing approach. Whereby they reckon that the mind is some form of computer. Memory plays an important role in the decision-making processes of consumers by affecting their perception and recall of marketing information. Consumers knowingly and unknowingly use information stored in memory to make a myriad of decisions ranging from what brand and flavor of gum to purchase to what make and model of car to buy (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2007). Thus, the ability of consumers to recall marketing generated information has a major impact on their purchasing decisions.

 The Memory Process

Encoding is where the data enters in a way the system will recognize.The storage is where the information is stored.  Finally retrieval is the stage of where retained information in memory is needed. This process is how people remember a memory due the way people mentally program information and associate it with a stimuli that would trigger people to remember it. Therefore the unique the memory the better. Marketers tap into this the most successful marketing strategy associated with memory is the association of Santa Claus and Coca Cola. Coca Cola is always associated Santa Claus specially during Christmas. Saint Nick initially wore green however Coca Cola revamp the image and turned it into red. Now no one even remember the green Santa Claus.

Types of Memory System

According to the information-processing perspective there are three distinct types of memory sensory memory, short term and long term memory. Sensory memory permits storage of the information we receive from our senses. This storage is very temporary it only lasts a couple of seconds. If information is retained for further processing, it passes through an attention gate and is transferred to short-term memory (STM). For example when you see an ad on TV for a mail order product you might like to buy, you only keep the phone number in memory until you have dialed it. Long-term memory is the system that allows us to retain information for a long period of time. Catchy slogans or jingles often help in this area. A cognitive process called elaborative rehearsal allows information to move from short-term memory to long-term memory. Each plays a role in processing brand related information.

Activation Models 

The further it takes for people to process information the more possible the information get transferred into long term memory. For example Sport Life gum adverts. 

A linguistic meaning like the message this Dutch adverts for a chewing gum is broadcasting is more complicated and require audience to think about the message.

Associative Networks

This is where information related to brands, manufacturers and stores are stored in people's memory. When consumer determine future consumption and decision making. They access this network/structure and for and evoke set.  

For example, in the US, the color red makes people eat 25% more, therefore most restaurants and fast food outlets such as McDonald's and  KFC use red as their main color. This is due to people seein red color and associate it with food which then trigger hunger.

Spreading Activation 

This is a marketing message which may activate memory of a brand directly when it shows up of which activates nodes of information collected together to create a form of propositions or beliefs. The information is combined, reinforced and becomes more powerful, This is called level of knowledge. For example Burberry is a popular brand and perceived to be luxury. Therefore when seeing an advert for Burberry it would automatically trigger perceptive information stored in your memory about the brand.

The Marketing Power of Nostalgia

In the world of marketing, nostalgia can be a powerful tool. From music and imagery, to branding and celebrity endorsements, there are many ways companies can leverage the past in order to elicit an emotional response. Just think about Coca-Cola, a brand that is nearly synonymous with “nostalgia." The red Spencerian script, the contoured plastic bottles that mimic the style of the old glass ones.

Nostalgia describes a bittersweet emotion where people view the past with both sadness and longing  Solomon, (2011) However, some might argue that nostalgia is a reliving happy memories from the past that can help you feel better in the present. And since these happy memories often involve people you're close to, nostalgia reminds you that people care about you and love you, re instilling the notion that you're part of a bigger social sphere. For example old Coca Cola advert showing everyone gathered together on top of the hill singing about buying the world a coke. That was just a figure of speech but Coca Cola revamp that advert and made it possible using that memory and the same concept but possible.

I’D LIKE TO BUY THE WORLD A COKE: 

"Project Re: Brief | Coca-Cola | Mobile Ad Demo"

From a marketing perspective, leveraging nostalgia now makes a whole lot of sense. If your content can get people feeling nostalgic, it will also get them feeling good by extension. And when it comes to growing a loyal following of folks who love your business, creating content that makes them feel good seems like a winning strategy.

Reference

Schiffman, L.G. & L.L. Kanuk (2007). Consumer Behavior (Ninth Edition). Upper Saddle River, NY: Prentice Hall.

Us, C., Us, A., Us, A., Business, O., People, O., & Partnerships, O. et al. (2016). Coca-Cola and Father Christmas: The Sundblom Santa story | Coca-Cola GB. Coca-cola.co.uk. Retrieved 13 April 2016, from http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/stories/history/advertising/coca-cola-and-father-christmas-the-sundblom-santa-story/

Learning and Memory--Consumer Behavior. (2016). Consumerpsychologist.com. Retrieved 13 April 2016, from http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/cb_Learning_and_Memory.html

Us, C., Us, A., Us, A., Business, O., People, O., & Partnerships, O. et al. (2016). I would Like to Buy The World A Coke Advert | Coca-Cola GB. Coca-cola.co.uk. Retrieved 13 April 2016, from http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/blog/id-like-to-buy-the-world-a-coke/