CDI College Consumer Behavior Management Paper.docx

(Mt) – CDI College Consumer Behavior Management Paper
www.acetxt.com www.acetxt.com Seventh Canadian Edition Consumer Behaviour Buying,
Having, Being www.acetxt.com This page intentionally left blank www.acetxt.com Seventh
Canadian Edition Consumer Behaviour Buying, Having, Being Michael Solomon Saint
Joseph’s Univesity and the University Of Manchester (UK) Katherine White University of
British Columbia DarRen W. Dahl University of British Columbia With Contributions from
JUDITH LYNNE ZAICHKOWSKY, SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY AND ROSEMARY POLEGATO,
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publication. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 V0C0 Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in
Publication Solomon, Michael R., author Consumer behaviour : buying, having, being /
Michael Solomon, Katherine White, Darren W. Dahl. — Seventh Canadian edition. Includes
index. ISBN 978-0-13-395809-6 (bound) 1. Consumer behavior—Textbooks. I. Dahl,
Darren W. (Darren William), 1968–, author II. White, Katherine, 1974–, author III. Title.

HF5415.32.S64 2015 658.8’342 C2015-906355-8 ISBN 978-0-13-395809-6
www.acetxt.com Brief Contents Section 1 Consumers in the Marketplace Chapter 1 An
Introduction to Consumer Behaviour 1 Section 2 Consumers as Individuals Chapter 2
Perception 33 Chapter 3 Learning and Memory 61 Chapter 4 Motivation and Affect 93
Chapter 5 The Self 120 Chapter 6 Personality, Lifestyles, and Values 150 Section 3 Attitude
Change and Decision Making Chapter 7 Attitudes 183 Chapter 8 Attitude Change and
Interactive Communications 209 Chapter 9 Individual Decision Making 242 Chapter 10
Buying and Disposing 277 Section 4 Consumers in Their Social and Cultural Settings
Chapter 11 Group Influence and Social Media 309 Chapter 12 Income, Social Class, and
Family Structure 341 Chapter 13 Subcultures 376 Chapter 14 Cultural Influences on
Consumer Behaviour 410 Chapter 15 The Creation and Diffusion of Culture 441
www.acetxt.com Contents About the Authors Preface xiii Acknowledgments Sensory
Marketing: Harnessing Perception for a Competitive Advantage 35 xi Sight 35 Smell 39
Hearing 40 Touch 41 Taste 42 xvi Section 1 Consumers in the Marketplace Exposure
Chapter 1 An Introduction to Consumer Behaviour 1 Introduction Segmenting Consumers
Interpretation Marketing and Culture 9 The Meaning of Consumption 10 The Global
Consumer 10 Marketing Ethics and Public Policy 4 9 12 Needs and Wants: Do Marketers
Manipulate Consumers? Do Marketers Create Artificial Needs? 15 Are Advertising and
Marketing Necessary? 15 Public Policy and Consumerism 15 Consumer Activism and Its
Impact on Marketing The Dark Side of Consumer Behaviour Learning and Memory 17 The
Learning Process 18 23 Taking It from Here: The Plan of the Book Chapter Summary 27 Key
Terms 27 Review Questions 28 Consumer Behaviour Challenge 28 Case Study:
Marketing in Practice 29 Notes 30 Section 2 Consumers as Individuals Perception 33 33
Sensory Systems 34 25 61 61 Behavioural Learning Theories How Do We Find Out about
Consumers? The Role of Consumer Research 23 Chapter 2 14 Chapter Summary 55 Key
Marketing in Practice 57 Notes 58 Chapter 3 Addictive Consumption 19 Compulsive
Consumption 20 Illegal Activities 20 Primary Research 51 Stimulus Organization 52
Perceptual Positioning 54 4 Marketing’s Impact on Consumers 47 Personal Selection
Factors 49 Stimulus Selection Factors 50 2 Consumers’ Impact on Marketing Strategy
Introduction Attention 1 Consumer Behaviour: People in the Marketplace What Is
Consumer Behaviour? 3 44 Sensory Thresholds 45 Subliminal Perception 46 62 Classical
Conditioning 62 Associative Learning 63 Marketing Applications of Conditioning 65
Instrumental Conditioning 67 Four Types of Learning Schedules 69 Applications of
Instrumental Conditioning Principles 70 Cognitive Learning Theory 71 Is Learning
Conscious or Not? 72 Observational Learning 72 Applications of Cognitive Learning
Principles The Role of Memory in Learning 73 74 Encoding of Information for Later
Retrieval 75 Memory Systems 76 Storing Information in Memory 77 Analogical Learning 79
Retrieving Information for Purchase Decisions 80 Products as Memory Markers 82
Measuring Memory for Marketing Stimuli 84 Chapter Summary 85 Key Terms 86 Review
Questions 87 Consumer Behaviour Challenge 87 www.acetxt.com Contents Case Study:
Marketing in Practice Notes 90 88 Key Terms 144 Review Questions 144 Consumer
Behaviour Challenge 144 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 145 Notes 147 Chapter 4

Motivation and Affect Introduction 93 93 The Motivation Process Drive Theory 95
Expectancy Theory Chapter 6 93 Motivational Strength Personality, Lifestyles, and Values
150 94 Personality 95 Motivational Direction Consumer Involvement 95 Brand Personality
105 111 Values Chapter Summary 115 Key Terms 115 Review Questions 115
consumer behaviour challenge 116 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 116 Notes 117
Chapter Summary 177 Key Terms 177 Review Questions 178 Consumer Behaviour
Challenge 178 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 179 Notes 180 120 120 Does the Self
Exist? 120 Self-Concept 121 Multiple Selves 122 Self-Consciousness 124 Consumption and
Self-Concept 124 Self–Product Congruence 125 The Extended Self 126 The Digital Self 128
Wearable Computing 128 Gender Roles 129 Androgyny 131 Female Roles 132 Male Roles
133 Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) Consumers Body Image 135 Body
Cathexis 135 Ideals of Beauty 136 Working on the Body 140 Chapter Summary 143 172
Core Values 173 How Values Link to Consumer Behaviour 174 Ways to Classify Values 174
Conscientious Consumerism: A New Core Value? 174 Materialism: “He Who Dies with the
Most Toys Wins” 176 Chapter 5 Perspectives on the Self 163 Lifestyle: Who We Are, What
We Do 163 Products Are the Building Blocks of Lifestyles 166 Psychographics 167
Conducting a Psychographic Analysis 168 AIOs 169 Uses of Psychographic Segmentation
170 Psychographic Segmentation Typologies 171 VALS™ 171 Geodemography 172 109 The
Self 160 Lifestyles and Psychographics Levels of Involvement: From Inertia to Passion The
Many Faces of Involvement 106 Segmenting by Involvement Levels 107 Strategies to
Increase Involvement 108 151 158 Personality of Positioning 104 Types of Affective
Responses 109 How Social Media Taps into Our Emotions Discrete Emotions 112 150
Consumer Behaviour on the Couch: Freudian Theory Motivational Research 152 Trait
Theories 154 Needs versus Wants 95 Types of Needs 96 Motivational Conflicts 96
Classifying Consumer Needs 99 Motivation and Goal Fulfillment 101 Affect vii Section 3
Attitude Change and Decision Making Chapter 7 Attitudes 183 The Power of Attitudes 183
The Functions of Attitudes 183 The ABC Model of Attitudes 185 Product Attitudes Don’t Tell
the Whole Story 133 Forming Attitudes 189 Not All Attitudes Are Created Equal 189 Levels
of Commitment to an Attitude 190 The Consistency Principle 190 Attitude Models 195
Multi-attribute Attitude Models 195 187 www.acetxt.com viii Contents Using Attitudes to
Predict Behaviour 199 Evaluation of Alternatives The Extended Fishbein Model 199
Obstacles to Predicting Behaviour in the Theory of Reasoned Action Types of Normative
Influence 202 Chapter Summary 204 Key Terms 204 Review Questions 205 Consumer
Behaviour Challenge 205 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 206 Notes 207 Chapter 8
Attitude Change and Interactive Communications 209 Changing Attitudes through
Communication Decisions, Decisions: Tactical Communications Options The Elements of
Communication 210 The Source 209 Chapter 10 Buying and Disposing 211 218 222 Sending
the Message 222 Constructing the Argument 224 Types of Message Appeals 226 The
Message as Art Form: Metaphors Be with You Postpurchase Satisfaction 231 The Source
versus the Message: Sell the Steak or the Sizzle? 232 232 Problem Recognition Information
Search 247 248 How Much Search Occurs? 253 298 242 242 Section 4 Consumers in Their
Social and Cultural Settings 244 Stages in Consumer Decision Making 245 296 Chapter
Summary 301 Key Terms 302 Review Questions 302 Consumer Behaviour Challenge

302 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 304 Notes 305 Individual Decision Making Types of
Consumer Decisions 284 Disposal Options 298 Lateral Cycling 300 Chapter 9 Perspectives
on Decision Making 278 293 Perceptions of Product Quality 294 Acting on Dissatisfaction
295 The Real Value of Happy Customers 296 Total Quality Management: Going to the
Gemba The Evolution of Product Ownership 297 Product Disposal Chapter Summary 235
Key Terms 235 Review Questions 236 Consumer Behaviour Challenge 236 Case Study:
Marketing in Practice 237 Notes 238 Consumers as Problem Solvers 277 Physical and
Social Surroundings 279 Temporal Factors 280 Antecedent States: If It Feels Good, Buy It . . .
Shopping: A Job or an Adventure? 285 E-commerce: Clicks versus Bricks 286 Retailing as
Theatre 287 Store Image 288 In-Store Decision Making 290 The Salesperson 292 215 The
Elaboration Likelihood Model Support for the ELM Model 234 Introduction 277 Situational
Effects on Consumer Behaviour 213 Source Credibility 216 Hype versus Buzz: The
Corporate Paradox Source Attractiveness 219 The Message Chapter Summary 270 Key
Marketing in Practice 273 Notes 274 210 An Updated View: Interactive Communications
Consumer Interactivity 212 The Increasing Role of the Consumer New Message Formats
214 Levels of Interactive Response 214 201 256 Identifying Alternatives 256 How Do We
Put Products into Categories? 257 Product Choice: Selecting among Alternatives 261
Evaluative Criteria 262 Cybermediaries 263 Heuristics: Mental Shortcuts 264 Choosing
Familiar Brand Names: Loyalty or Habit? 267 Decision Rules 267 244 Chapter 11 Group
Influence and Social Media 309 Reference Groups 309 Types of Reference Groups 310
www.acetxt.com Contents When Reference Groups Are Important The Power of Reference
Groups 316 Conformity 318 Social Comparison 320 Resisting Conformity 323 Opinion
Leadership Case Study: Marketing in Practice Notes 372 314 Subcultures 326 328 Age and
Consumer Identity 328 Social Media and Consumer Behaviour Online Social Networks and
Online Communities Digital Opinion Leaders 333 331 332 Regional Subcultures Chapter 12
Income, Social Class, and Family Structure 341 Social Class 377 391 Ethnic Subcultures and
Consumer Identity 341 Income Patterns 341 To Spend or Not to Spend: That Is the Question
Consumer Confidence 345 376 Age Cohorts 378 Children: Consumers in Training 379 The
Youth Market 380 Gen Z 382 Gen Y 382 Gen X 386 The Mature Market 386 Baby Boomers
387 The Grey Market 388 Grey Power: Seniors’ Economic Clout 388 Chapter Summary 334
Marketing in Practice 337 Notes 338 It’s Not Just Money 376 Subcultures, Microcultures,
and Consumer Identity Word-of-Mouth Communication Factors Encouraging WOM
Negative WOM 329 Buzz Building 329 371 Chapter 13 323 Identifying Opinion Leaders ix
342 Ethnicity and Marketing Strategies 395 Ethnic Groups in Canada 396 The Effect of
Immigration on Canadian Diversity Ethnic Stereotypes 402 394 400 Chapter Summary 403
Marketing in Practice 405 Notes 406 346 Picking a Pecking Order 346 Social Mobility 347
Components of Social Class 353 Chapter 14 How Social Class Affects Purchase Decisions 354
Class Differences in World View 354 “What Do You Use That Fork For?” Taste Cultures,
Codes, and Cultural Capital 357 Online Social Capital Status Symbols 358 361 Problems with
Measures of Social Class 362 Problems with Social Class Segmentation: A Summary Family

Structure Chapter Summary 369 Key Terms 370 Review Questions 370 Consumer
Behaviour Challenge 371 Aspects of Culture 410 411 Factors That Differ Across Cultures
363 411 426 Marketing Across Cultures: Think Globally or Act Locally? 430 Adopting a
Standardized Strategy 430 Adopting a Localized Strategy 431 When Does Global Marketing
Work Best? 363 Household Structure 364 Family Age 365 Family Size 365 Non-traditional
Household and Family Structures The Family Life Cycle 367 Understanding Culture Values
and Norms 411 Myths and Rituals 415 Sacred and Profane Consumption Language and
Symbols 428 357 How Do We Measure Social Class? Cultural Influences on Consumer
Behaviour 410 433 The Diffusion of Consumer Culture Across Cultures 366 Chapter
Summary 436 Key Terms 436 Review Questions 436 Consumer Behaviour Challenge
437 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 437 Notes 438 434 x Contents Chapter 15 The
Creation and Diffusion of Culture 441 Cultural Selection 441 How Do We Know What’s “In”?
441 Culture Production Systems 443 High Culture and Popular Culture 446 Product
Placement 448 The Diffusion of Innovations 450 How Do We Decide to Adopt an
Innovation? Types of Innovations 453 The Fashion System 451 455 Cultural Categories 455
Behavioural Science Perspectives on Fashion 456 A “Medical” Model of Fashion 458 Cycles
of Fashion Adoption 459 Chapter Summary 462 Key Terms 462 Review Questions 463
Consumer Behaviour Challenge 463 Case Study: Marketing in Practice 464 Notes 465
Appendix I: Sources of Secondary Data (available online) Appendix II: Careers in Consumer
Research Glossary 469 Product, Services, Corporate, and Celebrity Index Subject Index 493
467 479 About the Authors Michael R. Solomon, Ph.D., is Professor of Marketing in the Haub
School of Business at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Before joining the Saint
Joseph’s faculty in the fall of 2006, he was the Human Sciences Professor of Consumer
Behavior at Auburn University. Before moving to Auburn in 1995, he was chair of the
Department of Marketing in the School of Business at Rutgers University, New Brunswick,
New Jersey. Professor Solomon began his academic career in the Graduate School of
Business Administration at New York University (NYU), where he also served as Associate
Director of NYU’s Institute of Retail Management. He earned his B.A. degrees in psychology
and sociology magna cum laude at Brandeis University and a Ph.D. in social psychology at
the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 1996 he was awarded the Fulbright/FLAD
Chair in Market Globalization by the U.S. Fulbright Commission and the Government of
Portugal, and he served as Distinguished Lecturer in Marketing at the Technical University
of Lisbon. He held an appointment as Professor of Consumer Behaviour at the University of
Manchester (United Kingdom) from 2007 to 2013. Professor Solomon’s primary research
interests include consumer behavior and lifestyle issues; branding strategy; the symbolic
aspects of products; the psychology of fashion, decoration, and image; services marketing;
marketing in virtual worlds; and the development of visually oriented online research
methodologies. He has published numerous articles on these and related topics in academic
journals, and he has delivered invited lectures on these subjects in Europe, Australia, Asia,
and Latin America. His research has been funded by the American Academy of Advertising,
the American Marketing Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the International
Council of Shopping Centers, and the U.S. Department of Commerce. He currently sits on the
editorial or advisory boards of The Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Journal of Marketing

Theory and Practice, Critical Studies in Fashion and Beauty, and Journal for Advancement of
Marketing Education, and he served an elected six-year term on the Board of Governors of
the Academy of Marketing Science. Professor Solomon has been recognized as one of the 15
most widely cited scholars in the academic behavioral sciences/fashion literature, and as
one of the 10 most productive scholars in the field of advertising and marketing
communications. Professor Solomon is a frequent contributor to mass media. His feature
articles have appeared in such magazines as Psychology Today, Gentleman’s Quarterly, and
Savvy. He has been quoted in numerous national magazines and newspapers, including
Advertising Age, Adweek, Allure, Elle, Glamour, Mademoiselle, Mirabella, Newsweek, the
New York Times, Self, Time, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal. He frequently appears
on television and speaks on radio to comment on consumer behavior issues, including
appearances on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Inside Edition, Newsweek on the
Air, the Entrepreneur Sales and Marketing Show, CNBC, Channel One, the Wall Street
Journal Radio Network, the WOR Radio -Network, and National Public Radio. He acts as
consultant to numerous companies on consumer behavior and marketing strategy issues
and often speaks to business groups throughout the United States and overseas. In addition
to this text, Professor Solomon is coauthor of the widely used textbook Marketing: Real
People, Real Choices. He has three children, Amanda, Zachary, and Alexandra; a son-in-law,
Orly; and three granddaughters, Rose, Evey, and Arya. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife
Gail and their “other child,” a pug named Kelbie Rae. xii Ab o u t t h e A u t h o r s Katherine
(Kate) White is professor of marketing and behavioural science at the Sauder School of
Business, University of British Columbia. She holds a Professorship in Consumer Insights,
Prosocial Consumption, and Sustainability. Kate is trained as a social psychologist and she
completed her Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia, her M.A. at the University of
Waterloo, and her B.A. at Simon Fraser University. Kate teaches courses in consumer
behaviour, consumer insights, marketing strategy, and sustainability marketing at the
undergraduate, graduate, and executive levels. She has also consulted on various marketing
and behaviour change projects with clients such as the City of Calgary, My Sustainable
Canada, DDB Canada, and Big Rock Brewery. Kate’s research is focused on the application of
social psychology to understanding consumer behaviour. In particular, her research
interests focus on social influence, social marketing, and sustainability marketing. Her
published work has appeared in top-tier journals including Journal of Marketing, Journal of
Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology,
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin,
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, and Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology. In
addition, her work has been presented at over 50 national and international conferences.
Kate recently received the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Scholar and has been identified as
a “Young Scholar” by the Marketing Science Institute. This latter honour is given to young
academics identified as potential leaders of the next generation of marketing researchers.
Kate is associate editor at the Journal of Marketing Research and is on the editorial boards
of Journal of Consumer Research and Journal of C-onsumer Psychology. She has been
ranked number 15 worldwide for publications in the A-level marketing journals by the
American Marketing Association. Kate is mother of twin daughters, and in their spare time

they like to travel. When the girls were two they went on Semester at Sea, a program run
through the University of Virginia. They spent a semester at sea and travelled to Spain,
Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Mauritius, India, Singapore, Vietnam, China, and Japan.
Follow Kate on Twitter @White_K8 Darren Dahl is the senior associate dean of Faculty,
director of the Robert H. Lee Graduate School, and BC Innovation Council Professor at the
University of British Columbia. Darren completed his Ph.D. at the University of British
Columbia and his B.Comm. at the University of Alberta. Darren’s research interests are in
the areas of new product design and development, creativity, consumer product adoption,
the role of social influence in consumer behaviour, and understanding the role of self-
conscious emotions in consumption. His research has been presented at numerous national
and international conferences, and published in various texts and such journals as the
Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research,
Management Science, and Journal of Consumer Psychology. He is currently editor in chief of
the Journal of Consumer Research and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of
Marketing Research, Journal of Marketing, and International Journal of Research in
Marketing. He has been ranked number one worldwide for publications in the A-level
marketing journals by the American Marketing Association. Darren teaches courses in
consumer behaviour, marketing research, and strategic marketing analysis at the
undergraduate, MBA, and executive education levels. He has won awards for both his
research (e.g., Marketing Science Institute Young Scholar) and his teaching (e.g., 3M Award
for Excellence in Teaching) efforts. Before coming to UBC he held a faculty appointment at
the University of Manitoba for four years and has been a visiting professor at Stanford,
Columbia University, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and Thammasat
University in Thailand. Darren has consulted and organized education programs for a
number of nonprofit and for-profit organizations, such as Cathay Pacific, Procter & Gamble,
Xerox, General Electric, Vancouver Public Health, Teekay Shipping, Lululemon Athletica,
Earls Restaurants, Agent Provocateur, Daehong Advertising–Korea, and LIC India. Preface
This is the seventh Canadian edition of Consumer Behaviour. The changes over all these
editions have really made this a unique text that captures the Canadian identity. The
textbook still carries Michael R. Solomon’s trademark of vastly interesting examples and
issues. We have tried not to interfere with his winning style, but have definitely added our
own twist. Chapters 12 and 13 are presented with a distinctly -Canadian focus. Throughout,
we have integrated successful Canadian stories. In a ddition, the “As I See It” boxes, which
present the point of view of consumer researchers, are all from scholars at Canadian
universities. The cases presented at the end of each chapter all represent real companies
and issues that have a distinctly Canadian focus. THE “BUYING, HAVING, BEING” APPROACH
AND OBJECTIVE As the book’s subtitle, “Buying, Having, Being,” suggests, our version of this
field goes beyond looking at the act of buying to having and being as well. Consumer
behaviour is more than buying things; it also embraces the study of how having (or not
having) things affects our lives and how our possessions influence the way we feel about
ourselves and about each other—our state of being. In addition to understanding why
people buy things, we try to appreciate how products, services, and consumption activities
contribute to the broader social world we experience. Whether shopping, cooking, cleaning,

playing basketball, hanging out at the beach, or even looking at ourselves in the mirror, our
lives are touched by the marketing system. And, as if these experiences weren’t complex
enough, the task of understanding the consumer multiplies dramatically when a
multicultural perspective is taken. In addition to the numerous examples of marketing and
consumer practices relating to consumers and companies, chapters contain boxes called
“Consumers in Focus” that highlight ways in which consumption impacts us as individual
consumers. The book also emphasizes the importance of understanding consumers in
formulating marketing strategy. Many (if not most) of the fundamental concepts in
marketing are based on the practitioner’s ability to know people. After all, if we don’t
understand why people behave as they do, how can we identify their needs? If we can’t
identify their needs, how can we satisfy those needs? To illustrate the potential of consumer
research to inform marketing strategy, the text contains numerous examples of specific
applications of consumer behaviour concepts by marketing practitioners, as well as
examples of windows of opportunity where such concepts might be used—perhaps by alert
strategists after taking this course! Many of these possibilities are highlighted in special
features called “Marketing Insight.” FEATURES OF THE SEVENTH CANADIAN EDITION The
seventh Canadian edition of Consumer Behaviour retains and updates the best elements of
the previous edition. As I See It: We have asked fellow researchers to share their current
work and explain how it relates to the various theories of consumer behaviour. End-of-
Chapter Cases: These cases highlight current real-world marketing and consumer issues
and have a distinctly Canadian focus. The questions at the end of each case ask students to
use concepts they learned in the chapter to address real-world questions and problems. xiv
p r e fa c e Consumers in Focus: These examples highlight implications for marketing and
consumption on individual consumers. Marketing Insight: These examples help to highlight
how principles of consumer behaviour are relevant in real-world marketing contexts.
Learner objectives: Learner objectives at the start of every chapter help students focus on
key skills and topics as they make their way through the chapter material. Full-colour
figures, photographs, advertisements, and illustrations: Throughout each chapter, key
concepts and applications are illustrated with strong, full-colour visual materials. Chapter
Summary: This feature provides a concise review of the chapter’s key topics. Key Terms:
Key terms are bolded within the text and listed at the end of each chapter with page
references. All of the key terms are collected together in the glossary at the back of the book,
and are boldfaced with their page references in the subject index. Review Questions: These
straightforward questions draw attention to key concepts and theories in each chapter.
Consumer Behaviour Challenge: Each chapter contains two sets of questions that challenge
the student to apply the key issues covered. Discussion Questions encourage dialogue about
important issues in consumer behaviour. Experiential Exercises connect learners directly to
the marketplace and communities that provide the contexts for consumer behaviour. Many
new questions have been added for this edition. Indexes: A subject index and a product,
service, corporate, and celebrity index reference all information and examples in the book.
ADDITIONAL LEARNING AIDS Ne w to th is E dit io n MyMarketingLab Resources
MyMarketingLab delivers proven results in helping individual students succeed. It provides
engaging experiences that personalize, stimulate, and measure learning for each student.

MyMarketingLab includes powerful learning resources, including online simulations to help
students work through and master key business topics, a Study Plan for student self-study,
and a wealth of engaging assessment and teaching aids to help students and instructors
explore unique learning pathways. MyMarketingLab online resources include: • Study Plan.
MyMarketingLab offers students an engaging and focused self-study experience that is
driven by a powerful new Study Plan. Students work through assessments in each chapter
to gauge their understanding and target the topics that require additional practice. Along
the way, they are recognized for their mastery of each topic and guided toward resources in
areas that they might be struggling to understand. • Decision-Making Simulations. Decision
Making Mini-Simulations walk students through key business decision-making scenarios to
help them understand how marketing decisions are made. Students are asked to make
important decisions relating to core marketing concepts. At each point, students receive
feedback to help them understand the implications of their choices in the marketing
environment. These simulations can now be assigned by instructors and graded directly
through MyMarketingLab. • Business Today Video Database. Business Today is a dynamic
and expanding database of videos that covers the disciplines of business, marketing,
management, and more. In addition to the videos that are specifically correlated to this text,
you will find new videos posted regularly. Check back often to see up-to-date video
examples that are perfect for classroom use. P r e fa c e • Writing Assignments. Each
assisted-graded writing assignment is based on a question from the text and provides the
perfect framework for instructors to efficiently assign, review, and grade students’ written
work. Questions are accompanied by a clickable rubric that allows instructors to review
written work, provide immediate feedback, and assign a grade quickly and consistently. •
Learning Catalytics. Learning Catalytics is a “bring your own device” student engagement,
assessment, and classroom intelligence system. It allows instructors to engage students in
class with a variety of questions types designed to gauge student understanding. • Glossary
Flashcards. These provide a targeted review of the Key Terms in each chapter. The Glossary
Flashcards allow learners to select the specific terms and chapters that they would like to
study. The cards can also be sorted by Key Term or by definition to give students greater
flexibility when studying. • Pearson eText. The Pearson eText gives students access to their
textbook anytime, anywhere. In addition to note taking, highlighting, and bookmarking, the
Pearson eText offers interactive and sharing features. Rich media options may include
videos, animations, interactive figures, and built-in assessments, all embedded in the text.
Instructors can share their comments or highlights, and students can add their own,
creating a tight community of learners within the class. The Pearson eText may include a
responsive design for easy viewing on smartphones and tablets. Many of our eTexts now
have configurable reading settings, including resizable type and night reading mode.
Supplements This edition of Consumer Behaviour is accompanied by a complete
supplements package. For Instructors Computerized Test Bank: Pearson’s computerized
test banks allow instructors to filter and select questions to create quizzes, tests, or
homework. Instructors can revise questions or add their own, and may be able to choose
print or online options. These questions are also available in Microsoft Word format.
Instructor’s Resource Manual with Video Guide: The Instructor’s Resource Manual with

Business Today Video Guide contains lecture notes, field project ideas, and answers to the
questions in each Consumer Behaviour Challenge. Learning Solutions Managers: Pearson’s
Learning Solutions Managers work with faculty and campus course designers to ensure that
Pearson technology products, assessment tools, and online course materials are tailored to
meet your specific needs. This highly qualified team is dedicated to helping schools take full
advantage of a wide range of educational resources by assisting in the integration of a
variety of instructional materials and media formats. Your local Pearson Education sales
representative can provide you with more details on this service program. PowerPoint
Slides: More than 150 slides highlighting key concepts featured in the text are available
electronically in PowerPoint. Image PowerPoint: The Image PowerPoint contains all the
advertisements featured in this edition, as well as all the figures and tables. xv
Acknowledgments The Canadian authors would like to thank Michael R. Solomon for
continuing to provide updated, relevant material and interesting revisions. We also owe
much to our colleagues who wrote many interesting articles that were incorporated into
this edition, including David Hardisty and Lindsey Boyle. We may have missed many
additional important papers and hope our colleagues will point out to us where these can be
added to the text for future editions. We especially thank all our colleagues who contributed
to the As I See It boxes: Tandy Chalmers Thomas, Queen’s University Peter Darke, York
University Robert Fisher, University of Alberta Gerald Häubl, University of Alberta Scott
Hawkins, University of Toronto Bonnie Simpson, Western University Brent McFerran,
Simon Fraser University Annamma Joy, University of British Columbia, Okanagan Steven
Kates, Simon Fraser University Sandra Laporte, HEC Montreal Anne M. Lavack, Simon
Fraser University Kelley Main, University of Manitoba Antonia Mantanakis, Brock University
Mehdi Mourali, University of Calgary Monica Popa, University of Saskatchewan Malcolm C.
Smith, University of Manitoba Sarah J.S. Wilner, Wilfrid Laurier University We also thank the
following colleagues who provided reviews of the seventh edition: Dr. Mark Cleveland,
Western University Magdalena Cismaru, University of Regina Steven M. Kates, Simon Fraser
University Duane Weaver, Vancouver Island University Pat Browne, Kwantlen Polytechnic
University We appreciate the work of the staff at Pearson Canada, including Carolin Sweig,
Karen Townsend, Keriann McGoogan, Jessica Hellen, Monika Schurmann, and Joanne Tang.
The authors also wish to thank Judith Lynne Zaichkowsky and Rosemary Polegato for their
excellent work on the first five Canadian editions of this work. Michael R. Solomon
Katherine White Darren W. Dahl C HAPTER 1 An Introduction to Consumer Behaviour
Chapter Objectives When you finish reading this chapter you will: 1 Understand that
consumer behaviour is a process. 2 Be aware that marketers need to understand the wants
and needs of different consumer segments. 3 Understand that popular culture is both a
product of and an inspiration for marketers. 4 Understand that the Internet has changed
patterns of consumer behaviour. 5 Understand that there are many ethical issues to
consider in the domain of marketing and consumer behaviour. 6 Understand that various
behaviours can have negative impacts on consumers and society, and these are sometimes
referred to as the “dark side” of consumer behaviour. 7 Understand that many different
research methodologies can be used to understand consumer behaviour. Introduction Gail
has some time to kill before her accounting class, so she pulls out her iPhone to see what’s

going on in her social networks. Between studying for her accounting and marketing exams,
she hasn’t checked out anything interesting in days—even her Facebook friends around
campus have been quiet. Enough of the serious stuff, she decides. It’s time for some really
educational surfing. So, where to go first? Gail goes straight to Pinterest to see if anyone has
pinned any new styles on her Shoe-aholic board. She’s just about to jump to Gen Y Girl when
she gets a text from Jewelmint.com to notify her that the site has a new jewellery option for
her that’s based on the profile she filled out when she registered. Sweet—it’s a bracelet
recommended by actress Allison Williams from Girls. With her PayPal account, it doesn’t
take Gail long to throw the pendant in her cart and order it—and to share a photo of her
haul on Facebook. On a whim, Gail opens the Tinder app on her phone—yes, as usual, plenty
of guys want to meet up if she “swipes right.” Not happening with these dweebs— a flurry of
left swipes and she’s done. As Gail glances at the clock, she realizes she’d better come back
to the real world or she’ll miss her exam. Okay, enough time for one quick post before she
runs to catch the campus shuttle: Gail logs on to RateMyProfessors.com and writes a quick
but glowing paragraph about how great her Consumer Behaviour professor has been this
semester . . . not to mention that awesome textbook the class has been using. 2 S E C T I O N I
Consumers in the Marketplace Consumer Behaviour: People in the Marketplace This book is
about people like Gail—and you. It concerns the products and services we buy and use, and
the ways these fit into our lives. This introductory chapter describes some important
aspects of the field of consumer behaviour and some reasons why it’s essential to
understand how people interact with the marketing system. For now, though, let’s return to
one “typical” consumer: Gail, the business major. The preceding vignette allows us to
highlight some of the aspects of consumer behaviour we will cover in the rest of the book.
Gail is a consumer; let’s compare her to other consumers. • For some purposes, marketers
find it useful to categorize her in terms of her age, gender, income, or occupation. These are
descriptive characteristics of a population, or demographics. In other cases, marketers
would rather know something about Gail’s psychographics, which can include aspects of a
person’s lifestyle, interests, attitudes, values, and personality. These could include her
interests in clothing or music, or the way she spends her leisure time. Knowledge of
consumer characteristics plays an extremely important role in many marketing
applications, such as when a manufacturer defines the market for a product or an
advertising agency decides upon the appropriate techniques to employ when it targets a
certain group of consumers. • Gail’s friends strongly influence her purchase decisions. The
conversations we have with others transmit a lot of product information, as well as
recommendations to use or avoid particular brands; this content often is more influential
than what we see on television commercials, magazines, or billboards. The growth of the
Web has created thousands of online consumption communities, where members share
opinions and recommendations about anything from Barbie dolls to baseball fantasy league
team lineups to iPhone apps. Gail forms bonds with fellow group members because they use
the same products. There is also pressure on each group member to buy things that will
meet with the group’s approval. • As members of a large society, such as Canada, people
share certain cultural values, or strongly held beliefs, about the way the world should
function. Members of subcultures, or smaller groups within the culture, also share values;

these groups include teens, French Canadians, or “prairie people,” and even hipsters who
listen to Arcade Fire, wear Band of Outsiders clothing, and eat vegan tacos. • Every day, Gail
comes into contact with information about many competing brands. Some don’t capture her
attention at all, whereas others are just a turnoff because they don’t relate to “looks,”
people, or ideas with which she identifies. The use of market segmentation strategies means
that an organization targets its product, service, or idea only to specific groups of
consumers rather than to everybody—even if it means that other consumers who don’t
belong to this target market aren’t attracted to it. That’s why they make chocolate and
vanilla ice cream (and even candied bacon flavour!). • Brands often have clearly defined
images, or “personalities,” that advertising, packaging, branding, and other marketing
elements help to shape. Even the choice of a favourite website is very much a lifestyle
statement: It says a lot about a person’s interests, as well as something about the type of
person she would like to be. People often purchase a product because they like its image or
because they feel its “personality” somehow corresponds to their own. Moreover, a
consumer may believe that if she buys and uses the product or service, its desirable
qualities will “magically” rub off on her. When a product or service succeeds in satisfying
our specific needs or desires, we may reward it with many years of brand loyalty, a bond
between product and consumer that is very difficult for competitors to break. • The
appearance, taste, texture, or smell of the item influences our evaluations of products. A
good website helps people to feel, taste, and smell with their eyes. We may be swayed by the
shape and colour of a package on the store shelf, as well as C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction
to Consumer Behaviour by more subtle factors, such as the symbolism in a brand name, in
an advertisement, or even in the choice of a cover model for a magazine. These judgments
are affected by—and often reflect—how a society feels people should define themselves at
that point in time. Many product meanings lurk below the surface of the packaging and
advertising; we’ll discuss some of the methods marketers and social scientists use to
discover or apply these meanings. What Is Consumer Behaviour? CO 1 The field of
consumer behaviour covers a lot of ground: It is the study of the processes involved when
individuals or groups select, purchase, use, or dispose of products, services, ideas, or
experiences to satisfy needs and desires. Consumers take many forms, ranging from an
eight-year-old child who begs her mother for a Frozen Elsa doll to an executive in a large
corporation who helps to decide on a multimillion-dollar computer system. The items we
consume include anything from canned peas to a massage, democracy, Juicy jeans, Reggae
music, or a celebrity like Taylor Swift. Needs and desires to be satisfied range from hunger
and thirst to love, status, or even spiritual fulfillment. And, as we’ll see throughout this book,
people can get passionate about a broad range of products. Co nsum e r Be h av i o u r Is a P
roc e s s In its early stages of development, the field of consumer behaviour was often
referred to as buyer behaviour, reflecting an emphasis on the interaction between
consumers and producers at the time of purchase. Marketers now recognize that consumer
behaviour is an ongoing process, not merely what happens at the moment a consumer
hands over money or a credit card and in turn receives a good or service. The exchange, in
which two or more organizations or people give and receive something of value, is an
integral part of marketing.1 Although exchange is an important part of consumer behaviour,

the expanded view emphasizes the entire consumption process, which includes the issues
that influence the consumer before, during, and after a purchase. Figure 1–1 illustrates
some of the issues addressed during each stage of the consumption process. FIGURE 1–1
Some Issues That Arise during Stages in the Consumption Process CONSUMER’S
PERSPECTIVE MARKETER’S PERSPECTIVE PREPURCHASE ISSUES How does a consumer
decide that he or she needs a product? What are the best sources of information to learn
more about alternative choices? How are consumer attitudes toward products formed and
changed? What cues do consumers use to infer which products are superior to others?
PURCHASE ISSUES Is acquiring a product a stressful or pleasant experience? What does the
purchase say about the consumer? How do situational factors, such as time pressure or
store displays, affect the consumer’s purchase decision? POSTPURCHASE ISSUES Does the
product provide pleasure or perform its intended function? How is the product eventually
disposed of, and what are the environmental consequences of this act? What determines
whether a consumer will be satisfied with a product and whether he or she will buy it
again? Does this person tell others about his or her experiences with the product and affect
their purchase decisions? 3 4 S E C T I O N I Consumers in the Marketplace CO 2 Goodwill:
Understanding Consumer and Business Buyer Behavior Marketing Insight Successful
companies understand that needs are a moving target. No organization—no matter how
renowned for its marketing prowess—can afford to rest on its laurels. Everyone needs to
keep innovating to stay ahead of changing customers and the marketplace. BMW is a great
example. No one (not even rivals like Audi or Mercedes-Benz) would deny that the German
automaker knows how to make a good car (though they may not agree with the company’s
claim to be “the ultimate driving machine”). Still, BMW’s engineers and designers know they
have to understand how drivers’ needs will change in the future—even those loyal owners
who love the cars they own today. The company is highly sensitive to such key trends as the
following: • A desire for environmentally friendly products • Increasingly congested
roadways and the movement by some cities such as London to impose fees on vehicles in
central areas • N ew business models that encourage consumers to rent products only while
they need them rather than buying them outright BMW’s response: The company
committed more than $1 billion to develop electric models like its new i3 commuter car and
i8 sports car. These futuristic-looking vehicles are largely made from lightweight carbon
fibre to maximize the distance they can go between battery charges, and 25 percent of the
interior plastic comes from recycled or renewable raw materials.2 In addition, BMW
launched a car-sharing service called DriveNow, which started in Germany and is now
available in San Francisco.3 Drivers use a computer chip in their licences to hire a car and
leave it wherever they are when they no longer need it. That’s forward thinking. The
Benjamin Hotel in New York City offers a “Dream Dog” program that pampers not only
guests, but also their dogs. The hotel is segmenting based on both income and lifestyles, and
is appealing to higher-income consumers who enjoy travelling with their pets. © Design
Pics Inc/Alamy Consumers’ Impact on Marketing Strategy Why should managers,
advertisers, and other marketing professionals bother to learn about consumer behaviour?
Very simply, understanding consumer behaviour is good business. A basic marketing
concept states that firms exist to satisfy consumers’ needs. These needs can be satisfied only

to the extent that marketers understand the people or organizations that will use the
products and services they are trying to sell—and do so better than their competitors.
Consumer response is the ultimate test of whether a marketing strategy will succeed. Thus,
knowledge about consumers is incorporated into virtually every facet of a successful
marketing plan. Data about consumers help marketers define the market and identify
threats to a brand and opportunities for it. And, in the world of marketing, nothing is
forever. This knowledge also helps ensure that the product continues to appeal to its core
market. The purpose of understanding consumer behaviour is to predict the future. Anyone
can see what is happening at present, but in consumer behaviour we are also focused on
tomorrow. Throughout this book, we will highlight takeaways from consumer behaviour for
marketers in boxes entitled “Marketing Insight.” Segmenting Consumers The process of
marketing segmentation identifies groups of consumers who are similar to one another in
one or more ways and then devises marketing strategies that appeal to one or more groups.
As our society evolves from a mass culture in which many consumers share the same
preferences to a diverse one in which we have almost an infinite number of choices, it’s
more important than ever to identify distinct market segments and to take care in
developing a marketing mix that resonates with each of these segments. As we’ll see later,
building loyalty to a brand is a very smart marketing strategy, so sometimes companies
define market segments by identifying their most faithful customers or heavy users. As a
rule of thumb, marketers use the 80/20 Rule: 20 percent of users account for 80 percent of
sales. This guideline often holds up well but varies by product category. At the very least, it
is relevant for the marketer to be aware of who the heavy users of the product category are.
As we’ve already seen, demographics are statistics that measure observable aspects of a
population, such as birth rate, age distribution, and income. Statistics Canada is a major
source of demographic data on families. This information is a- vailable C H A P T E R 1 An
Introduction to Consumer Behaviour TABLE 1–1 A Statistical Picture of the Average or
Typical Canadian Consumer • The typical Canadian is a woman who is 39.9 years old. • The
average Canadian worked approximately 36.6 hours per week in 2012. • The median annual
income of a Canadian was approximately $31 320 in 2012. • In 2013, the average Canadian
household spent $16 387 on shelter. • In 2013, the average household spent $1229 on
personal care. • In 2013, the average household spent $3550 on clothing and accessories. •
In 2013, the average Canadian spent $2407 on health care. • The average household spent
$3922 on recreation in 2013. Sources: Statistics Canada, Individuals by total income level,
by province and territory (Canada) (CANSIM Table 111-0008). Ottawa: Statistics Canada,
2015, www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/famil105a-eng.htm; and
Statistics Canada, Average household expenditure, by province (Canada) (CANSIM Table
203-0021 and Catalogue no. 62F0026M), Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 2015. All computations,
use, and interpretation of these data are entirely that of the authors. at www.statcan.gc.ca.
The changes and trends revealed in demographic studies are of great interest to marketers,
because the data can be used to locate and predict the sizes of markets for many products,
ranging from home mortgages to brooms and can openers. Imagine trying to sell baby food
to a single male, or an around-the-world vacation to a couple making $35 000 a year! Table
1–1 provides a statistical snapshot of the “typical” Canadian consumer, based on data

compiled from Statistics Canada. As you go down this list, you will quickly see that many
characteristics do not apply directly to you. How different are you from this consumer? In
this book, we’ll explore many of the important demographic variables that make consumers
the same as or different from others. We’ll also consider other important characteristics
that are not so easy to measure, such as psychographics— differences in consumers’
personalities, attitudes, values, and lifestyles. For now, let’s summarize a few of the most
important demographic dimensions, each of which will be developed in more detail in later
chapters. Ag e Consumers of different age groups obviously have very different needs and
wants. Although people who belong to the same age group differ in many other ways, they
tend to share a set of values and common cultural experiences that they carry throughout
life.4 In some cases marketers initially develop a product to attract one age group and then
try to broaden its appeal later on. That’s what the energy drink Red Bull has done. Red Bull
was originally introduced in bars, nightclubs, and gyms to the product’s core audience of
young people. Over time, the drink became popular in other contexts, and now the company
is sponsoring the PGA European Tour to broaden its reach to older individuals. It’s also
handing out free cans to commuters, cab drivers, and car-rental agencies to market the
drink as a way to stay alert on the road.5 Ge nd e r Many products, from fragrances to
footwear, are targeted at either men or women. Differentiating by gender starts at a very
early age—even diapers are sold in pink versions for girls and blue for boys. Many brands
that initially appeal to only one gender eventually seek to expand their market share by
appealing to the other gender, too. Take, for example, Lululemon, originally a women’s
clothing brand that now actively targets the male market.6 5 6 S E C T I O N I Consumers in
the Marketplace Fa mily S t r uctu r e an d Lif e Stag e A person’s family structure and
marital status are two other important demographic variables, because they have a big
impact on a consumer’s spending priorities. Young singles and newlyweds are the most
likely to exercise; go to bars, concerts, and movies; and consume alcohol. Families with
young children are big purchasers of health foods and fruit juices, while single-parent
households and those with older children buy more junk food. Home maintenance services
are most likely to be used by older couples and dual-career couples. S o cia l C l ass an d In
co me People grouped within the same social class are approximately equal in terms of their
incomes and social standing in the community. They work in roughly similar occupations,
and they tend to have similar tastes in music, clothing, art, and so on. They also tend to
socialize with one another and share many ideas and values regarding the way life should
be lived.7 The distribution of wealth is of great interest to marketers because it determines
which groups have the greatest buying power and market potential. Et h nicit y
Multiculturalism and Canada go hand in hand. This country comprises immigrants from all
over the globe. Canada accepts nearly 1 million immigrants and refugees every four years,
by far the highest per capita rate of immigration in the world.8 We are diverse in our
languages and in the cultural consumption that stems from our different ethnicities. For
example, English is now a minority language in Vancouver. The growth of the Asian market
in Canada has led to trilingual labelling of some products. Since Canadians blend together
from many different racial and cultural backgrounds, we also blend together in our
consumption heritage, as signified by food. As a culture, we are just as likely to enjoy eating

sushi as pyrohy (a.k.a. perogies) or lasagna. Ge o g r ap h y The climate changes drastically
from region to region in Canada, which makes segmenting some products by region a
profitable strategy. For example, while more snow blowers and fur coats are sold east of the
Rocky Mountains, more umbrellas and raincoats in the west. Humidifiers and dehumidifiers
are a must in regions around the Great Lakes. On the Prairies, it is not unusual for people to
have two or more freezers in their basements; many people who live in farming regions
preserve the food they produce for winter and year-round consumption. Within regions,
there are some different cultural pockets and hence differences in food tastes. New
Brunswick has the highest consumption of sliced white bread, while Alberta leads in
bubblegum sales. Most corn flakes are sold on the Prairies, and linguini has its highest sales
in Toronto. Quebecers consume the least amount of frozen french fries, preferring the real
thing.9 Life sty l e s Consumers also have very different lifestyles, even if they share other
characteristics such as gender or age. The way we feel about ourselves, the things we value,
the things we like to do in our spare time—all of these factors help determine which
products will push our buttons, or even those that will make us feel better. As one example,
the car company VW decided to market to consumers who followed the program Pimp My
Ride and enjoyed the activities involved in restoring cars into tricked-out street machines.
To do so, it released a series of online viral ad videos featuring a German engineer and his
assistant “unpimping” autos belonging to those who enjoy this specific lifestyle. By poking
fun, the VW brand attracted individuals to watch the ad and pass it along to others with
similar interests. Se mg me nti n g b y Relati o nsh ips an d Bi g Data Marketers are carefully
defining customer segments and listening to people in their markets as never before. Many
of them have realized that a key to success is building C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to
Consumer Behaviour relationships that will last a lifetime between brands and customers.
Relationship marketing involves making an effort to interact with customers on a regular
basis, giving them reasons to maintain a bond with the company over time. The cosmetics
brand Sephora practises the notion of relationship marketing by providing its most loyal
customers with product rewards, personalized beauty recommendations, and even a special
gift when it is their birthday. One way marketers attempt to create relationships with
consumers is through database marketing, which tracks specific consumers’ buying habits
very closely and crafts products and messages tailored precisely to people’s wants and
needs based on this information. Walmart stores massive amounts of information on the
100 million people who visit its stores each week, and the company uses these data to fine-
tune its offerings. We all generate massive amounts of information that hold tremendous
value for marketers. You may not see it, but we are practically buried by data that come
from many sources—sensors that collect climate information, the comments you and your
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Communications 7 8 S E C T I O N I Consumers in the Marketplace friends make to your
favourite social media sites, the credit card transactions we authorize, and even the GPS
signals in our smartphones that let organizations know where most of us are pretty much
anytime, day or night. This incredible amount of information has created a new field that
causes tremendous excitement among marketing analysts (and other math geeks). The
collection and analysis of extremely large datasets is called big data, and you’ll be hearing a
lot more about it in the next few years. Hint: If you have aptitude or interest in quantitative
topics, this will be a very desirable career path for you. Here are some of the types of
relationships a person might have with a product: • Self-concept : The product helps to
establish the user’s identity. • Nostalgic : The product serves as a link with a past self. •
B:9.25” Interdependence: The product is a part of the user’s daily routine. • Love: The
product elicits emotional S:7” bonds of warmth, passion, or other strong positive feelings.
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H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to Consumer Behaviour 9 Marketing’s Impact on Consumers
Does marketing imitate life or vice versa? After the movie The Hangover became a big hit,
consumers indicated an interest in replicating the same experiences as the characters in the
film, including trying to get on the roof of Caesar’s Palace!10 For better or for worse, we all
live in a world that the actions of marketers and the media significantly influence.
Throughout this book, we will highlight the ways in which marketers influence consumers
in boxes entitled “Consumers in Focus.” We are surrounded by marketing stimuli in the
form of advertisements, stores, and products competing for our attention and our dollars.
Marketers filter much of what we learn about the world, whether through the affluence they
depict in glamorous magazines or the roles actors play in commercials. Ads show us how we
should act with regard to recycling, alcohol consumption, and even the types of houses and
cars we wish to own. In many ways we are also “at the mercy” of marketers, since we rely
on them to sell us products that are safe and that perform as promised, to tell us the truth
about what they are selling, and to price and distribute these products fairly. Marketing and
Culture CO 3 Popular culture, consisting of the music, movies, sports, books, celebrities, and
other forms of entertainment consumed by the mass market, is both a product of and an
inspiration for marketers. Our lives are also affected in far-reaching ways, ranging from how
we acknowledge cultural events such as marriage, death, or holidays to how we view social
issues such as air pollution, gambling, and addiction. The Stanley Cup, Boxing Day shopping,

federal elections, container recycling, and tweeting are all examples of products and
activities that touch many lives. This cultural influence is difficult to overlook, although
many people do not seem to realize how much their views of the world around them—their
movie and musical heroes, the latest fashions, food and decorating choices, and even the
physical features they find attractive or ugly in men and women—are affected by
marketers. For example, consider the product icons that marketers use to create an identity
for their products. Various mythical creatures and personalities—from the Pillsbury
Doughboy to Sasquatch—have been at one time or another central figures in popular
culture. In fact, it is likely that more consumers could recognize such characters than could
identify past prime ministers, business leaders, or artists. Although the characters never
really existed, many of us feel as if we “know” them, and they certainly are effective “spokes
characters” for the products they represent. Consumer-generated content, in which
consumers themselves voice their opinions about products, brands, and companies on
blogs, podcasts, and social networking sites such as Facebook, and even film their own
commercials that thousands view on In an example of consumer-generated content, this
“Pug Goes For the Chips” Doritos tortilla chip advertisement (made by a consumer) tied
with a corporate-funded Bud Light commercial for first place for Super Bowl
Advertisements in the USA Today Ratings. Used with permission of Frito-Lay North
America, Inc. 10 S E C T I O N I Consumers in the Marketplace sites such as YouTube, is also
an important part of marketing’s influence on culture. Doritos has utilized consumer-
generated ads in its Super Bowl advertising since 2006, and these ads often score top
honours as the ad that the most viewers remember.11 Videos like the one for Rebecca
Black’s song “Friday” have shown that anyone can produce content that, even if strongly
disliked by the majority of consumers, finds its way into the broader North American
culture. The Meaning of Consumption One of the fundamental premises of the modern field
of consumer behaviour is that people often buy products not for what they do but for what
they mean. This principle does not imply that a product’s basic function is unimportant, but
rather that the roles products play in our lives go well beyond the tasks they perform. And
the deeper meanings of a product may help it to stand out from other, similar goods and
services. Other things being equal, a person will choose the brand that has an image (or
even a personality!) consistent with his or her underlying needs. For example, although
most people probably couldn’t run faster or jump higher if they were wearing Under
Armour as opposed to Nike athletic gear, many diehard loyalists swear by their favourite
brand. These arch-rivals are largely marketed in terms of their images—meanings carefully
crafted with the help of legions of rock stars, athletes, and slickly produced commercials—
and many millions of dollars. So when you buy a Nike “swoosh,” you may be doing more
than choosing athletic wear; you may also be making a lifestyle statement about the type of
person you are or want to be. Our allegiances to particular sneakers, musicians, or soft
drinks help us define our place in modern society, and these choices also help us form
bonds with others who share similar preferences. This comment by a participant in a focus
group captures the curious bonding that can be caused by consumption choices: “I was at a
Stanley Cup party, and I picked up an obscure drink. Somebody else across the room went
‘Yo!’ because he had the same thing. People feel a connection when you’re drinking the same

thing.”12 The Global Consumer One way the consumer experience has changed in the past
10 years is that, ever-- increasingly, consumers can connect with other consumers and have
similar experiences with other consumers around the globe. Increases in social media usage
and e-commerce have made it so that consumers can not only find information about
products and events around the globe, they can also purchase them (through
internationally accessible websites) and experience them (through media such as
YouTube). This has given rise to a global consumer culture, in which people around the
world are united by their common devotion to brand-name consumer goods, movie stars,
and celebrities.13 For example, Beyoncé has seen global success with international album
sales and concert tours that sell out worldwide. Likewise, football star Messi, who plays for
FC Barcelona, has been an effective spokesperson for Samsung products around the world.
We owe much of this interconnectedness to developments in technology that allow us to
link with companies—and with each other—regardless of our physical location. U-
commerce is the use of ubiquitous networks, whether in the form of wearable technology or
customized advertisements beamed to us on our cell phones (“Hey, you’re walking by
McDonald’s. Come on in for today’s burger special”), that enable real-time connections in
business and consumption behaviour.14 The rise of global marketing means that even
smaller companies are looking to expand overseas—and this increases the pressure to
understand how customers in other countries are the same as or different from the
customers in the host country. In the restaurant industry, for example, Shakey’s pizza
restaurants are mushrooming in the Philippines, and food from the International House of
Pancakes is selling like hotcakes in Tokyo. This book pays special attention to the good and
bad aspects of this cultural homogenization. C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to Consumer
Behaviour V irt u a l C on su mp tio n Electronic marketing increases convenience by
breaking down many of the barriers caused by time and location. You can shop 24 hours a
day without leaving home and you can find a product online at an e-tailer in another
country and order it for delivery—whether you are at home or somewhere else around the
globe. And it’s not all about businesses selling to consumers (B2C commerce). In addition,
virtual consumption has greatly facilitated consumer-to-consumer activity (C2C commerce).
Just as e-consumers are not limited to local retail outlets in their shopping, they are not
limited to their local communities when looking for friends. An excellent example of this is
the e-commerce website Etsy, where consumers can market their products, from jewellery
to baby toys, to other consumers. Picture a small group of local collectors who meet once a
month at a local diner to discuss their shared interests over coffee. Now multiply that group
by thousands, and include people from all over the world with a shared passion for sports
memorabilia, Barbie dolls, Harley-Davidson motorcycles, refrigerator magnets, or massively
multiplayer online games (MMOGs) such as League of Legends. These are examples of
virtual brand communities. League of Legends alone has 27 million people playing each
day.15 The Web also provides an easy way for consumers around the world to exchange
information about their experiences. Sites like Yelp, Amazon.com, and
RateMyProfessors.com enable consumers to share their thoughts and feelings on everything
from restaurants, to books, to the professor they had last semester. If you’re a typical
student, you probably can’t recall a time when the Internet was just a static, one-way

platform that transmitted text and a few sketchy images. Today the Internet is exploding in
terms of possibilities and is the backbone of our society. Widespread access to devices like
personal computers and smartphones ensures that consumers of practically any age and
living in virtually any part of the world can create and share content. But information
doesn’t just flow from big companies or governments down to the people; today each of us
can communicate with huge numbers of people by a click on a keypad, so information flows
across people as well. This type of information flow across people has been referred to as a
horizontal revolution. This horizontal revolution is characterized in part by the prevalence
of social media. Social media are the online means of communication, conveyance,
collaboration, and cultivation among interconnected and interdependent networks of
people, communities, and organizations enhanced by technological capabilities and
mobility. There is little doubt that the digital revolution is one of the most significant
influences on consumer behaviour, and the impact of the Web will continue to expand as
more and more people around the world log in. Many of us are avid Web surfers, and it is
hard to imagine a time when texting, tweeting, Facebooking, or pinning favourite items on
Pinterest were not an accepted part of daily life—not to mention those who compulsively
check in on FourSquare at their local Starbucks 10 times a day! Facebook, the largest social
media platform, offers synchronous interactions (ones that occur in real time, as when you
text back and forth with a friend) and asynchronous interactions (ones that don’t require all
participants to respond immediately, as when you text a friend and get an answer the next
day), photo sharing, games, applications, groups, e-retailing, and more, and currently has
more than 1.3 billion active users.16 And people aren’t just joining social communities; they
are contributing, too! YouTube users upload more than 100 hours of video every minute of
every day. That’s roughly equivalent to 504 000 full-length movies uploaded weekly.
Consider these mind-boggling social media stats:17 • If you were paid $1 for every time an
edit was made on Wikipedia, you would earn $360 per hour. • It took radio 38 years to
reach 50 million listeners. TV took 13 years to reach 50 million users. The Internet took four
years to reach 50 million people. In under nine months, Facebook added 100 million users. •
Social media activity has overtaken porn as the number-one online activity. CO 4 11 12 S E C
T I O N I Consumers in the Marketplace Social media has not only changed the way in which
consumers interact with each other, but also how they interact with and think about brands.
© Twin Design/Shutterstock • If Facebook were a country, it would be the third largest
country in the world, bigger than the United States and Indonesia. • Eighty percent of
companies use LinkedIn as their primary recruiting tool. • 23 percent of teens consider
Instagram their favourite social network. • 80 percent of Pinterest users are female, and 92
percent of Pinterest posts are pinned by women. • Six billion hours per month are spent
watching YouTube videos. • There are 400 million Snapchat snaps being sent every day.
This is all exciting stuff, especially because social media platforms enable a culture of
participation—a belief in democracy; the ability to freely interact with other people,
companies, and organizations; open access to venues that allows users to share content,
from simple comments to reviews, ratings, photos, stories, and more; and the power to
build on the content of others from one’s own unique point of view. Of course, just as with
democracy in the real world, we have to take the bitter with the sweet. There are plenty of

unsavoury things going on in cyberspace, and the hours people spend on Facebook, on
online gambling sites, or in virtual worlds such as Second Life have led to divorce,
bankruptcy, or jail in the real world. The Internet is also changing how we interact with
products themselves. The term “the Internet of things” has been used to refer to the
growing number of smart, connected, and interactive products available to consumers
today.18 For example, the market for wearable technology is expanding, and home audio
providers such as Sonos are taking advantage of cloud technology to allow greater
convenience and access to music.19 In another example, Google has purchased Nest, a
smart thermostat system that programs itself around the user’s behavioural patterns. The
purchase of Nest by Google indicates that the company has an interest in moving beyond its
core competencies toward smart, connected product offerings as well.20 CO 5 Ethics
Marketing Ethics and Public Policy In business, conflicts often arise between the goal of
succeeding in the marketplace and the desire to conduct business honestly and to maximize
the well-being of consumers by providing them with safe and effective products and
services. Accordingly, many universities and corporations are now focusing very intently on
teaching and reinforcing ethical behaviour. C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to Consumer
Behaviour Busine ss Eth ics Business ethics are essentially rules of conduct that guide
actions in the marketplace— the standards against which most people in a marketplace
judge what is right, wrong, good, or bad. These universal values include honesty,
trustworthiness, fairness, respect, justice, integrity, concern for others, accountability, and
loyalty. Ethical business is good business. Consumers think better of products made by
firms they feel are behaving ethically.21 But just what is ethical behaviour? Sometimes it’s
not so easy to tell. For example, when you download songs from musicsharing sites such as
Pirate Bay, are you stealing? The film and recording industries think you are!22 Notions of
right and wrong do differ across people, organizations, and cultures. Some businesses, for
example, believe it is all right for salespeople to persuade customers to buy even if it means
giving them false information, while other firms feel that anything less than total honesty
with customers is terribly wrong. Because every culture has its own set of values, beliefs,
and customs, ethical business behaviours are defined quite differently around the world.
For example, one recent study found that because of differences in values (more on this in
Chapter 6), Mexican firms are less likely to have formal codes of ethics and more likely to
bribe public officials than are American or Canadian companies. On the other hand,
different attitudes about work and interpersonal relationships mean that Mexican
companies are also more likely to treat lower-level employees better than do their NAFTA
partners to the north.23 These cultural differences certainly influence whether business
practices such as bribery are acceptable. In Japan, it’s called kuroi kiri (black mist); in
Germany, it’s schmiergeld (grease money); Mexicans refer to la mordida (the bite); the
French say pot-de-vin (jug of wine); and Italians speak of the bustarella (little envelope).
They’re all talking about baksheesh, the Middle Eastern term for a “tip” to grease the wheels
of a transaction. Giving “gifts” in exchange for getting business from suppliers or customers
is common and acceptable in many countries, even though this practice may be frowned
upon in Canada. Recently, more than 800 business experts were asked to identify the
countries where this practice is most flagrant. Russia and China emerged at the top of the

list, with Taiwan and South Korea close behind. The “cleanest” countries were Australia,
Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, and Canada.24 Pr e scr ib i ng Et hic a l S ta n da r ds o f Co n d
uct Professional organizations often devise a code of ethics for their members. For example,
the American Marketing Association’s Code of Ethics (see www.marketingpower. com)
provides guidelines for conduct in many areas of marketing practice, some of which are as
follows:25 • Disclosure of all substantial risks associated with a product or service •
Identification of added features that will increase the cost • Avoidance of false or misleading
advertising • Rejection of high-pressure or misleading sales tactics • Prohibition of selling
or fundraising under the guise of conducting market research Intentionally or not, some
marketers do violate their bond of trust with consumers. In some cases these actions are
actually illegal, as when a manufacturer deliberately mislabels the contents of a package, or
when a retailer adopts a bait-and-switch strategy, whereby consumers are lured into the
store with promises of inexpensive products with the sole intent of getting them to switch
to higher-priced ones. Industry is increasingly coming to realize that ethical behaviour is
good business in the long run, since consumer trust and satisfaction translates into years of
loyalty. However, many problems remain. Sometimes consumers’ buying behaviour is not
consistent with their positive attitudes about ethical products. In a survey 13 14 S E C T I O
N I Consumers in the Marketplace The Canadian Code of Advertising Standards helps to
ensure that the ads you see and hear are truthful, accurate, and fair. Reproduced with
permission of Advertising Standards Canada. Marketing Insight One of the biggest ethical
issues facing many marketers today relates to how much they can—or should—know about
their customers. Virtually anyone who surfs the Web or carries a smartphone shares reams
of personal information with all sorts of companies (whether he or she knows it or not).
Social network sites such as Facebook and major companies such as Apple have come under
fire for their privacy policies. Still, it’s unclear whether many “digital natives” (i.e., those
born and raised during the age of digital technology, who are highly comfortable and
familiar with computers from an early age) are that concerned about whether others know
where they are or what they buy. Some online data and tracking firms are concerned about
what gets shared—and they want to preempt any consumer backlash that might prevent
them from gathering valuable data. Several major firms are banding together to form the
Open Data Partnership, which will allow consumers to edit the interests, demographics, and
other profile information collected about them. It will also allow people to choose to not be
tracked at all.27 ASC helps protect Canadians from false messaging in advertising. Because
among all the pretty words and pictures – truth matters. Advertising Standards Canada
adstandards.ca designed to measure people’s willingness to pay for fair-trade coffee,
researchers 100% of Final Size Cossette ASC to pay an average price found that most coffee
drinkers were willing premium of 10 7.875” x 10.75” Speak the Truth Mag Ads x 10.25” 27
percent percent. Only 10 percent of respondents were willing to pay the7.375” current
105071-1_ASC_CHE_DRE_4C_E.indd 7.875” x 10.75” 105071-1 26 4C 11” price premium. the
xpractice of mar105071 Throughout this book, ethical issues related to 8.125” Cyan None
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Needs and Wants: Do Marketers 3 Manipulate Consumers? 100% One of the most common

and stinging criticisms of marketing is that marketing techniques (especially advertising)
are responsible for convincing consumers that they “need” many material things and that
they will be unhappy and somehow inferior C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to Consumer
Behaviour people if they do not have these “necessities.” The issue is a complex one and is
certainly worth considering: Do marketers give people what they want, or do they tell
people what they should want? Do Marketers Create Artificial Needs? The marketing system
has come under fire from both ends of the political spectrum. On the one hand, some believe
that advertising contributes to the moral breakdown of society by presenting images of
hedonistic pleasure, thus encouraging the pursuit of secular humanism. On the other hand,
some argue that the same deceitful promises of material pleasure function to buy off people
who would otherwise be revolutionaries working to change the system.28 Through
advertising, the system creates demand that only its products can satisfy. One response to
this argument is that a need is a basic biological motive, while a want represents one way
society has taught us to satisfy that need. For example, while thirst is biologically based, we
are taught to want Coca-Cola to satisfy that thirst rather than, say, goat’s milk. Thus, the
need is already there; marketers simply recommend ways to satisfy it. A basic objective of
advertising is to create awareness that these needs exist, rather than to create the needs.
Are Advertising and Marketing Necessary? As social critic Vance Packard wrote, “Large-
scale efforts are being made, often with impressive success, to channel our unthinking
habits, our purchasing decisions, and our thought processes by the use of insights gleaned
from psychiatry and the social sciences.”29 This criticism may be even more relevant to
online communications, where a simple click delivers a world of information to us. Goods
are arbitrarily linked to desirable social attributes. One influential critic even argued that
the problem is that we are not materialistic enough; that is, we do not sufficiently value
goods for the utilitarian functions they deliver but instead focus on the irrational value of
goods for what they symbolize. According to this view, for example, “Beer would be enough
for us, without the additional promise that in drinking it we show ourselves to be manly,
young at heart, or neighbourly.”30 As we saw above, one response to this particular
argument is that products are designed to meet existing needs, and advertising merely
helps to communicate the products’ availability. According to the economics-of-
information perspective, advertising is an important source of consumer information.31
This view emphasizes the -economic cost of the time spent searching for products, arguing
that consumers are -willing to pay for advertising because the information it provides
reduces search time. Public Policy and Consumerism The welfare of the consumer is
protected by many laws at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels. Regulations put
forth by these governmental agencies sometimes overlap and are constantly changing. The
main thrust of regulation is to protect the consumer from unfair business practices and to
protect the broad interests of society. Laws that involve “cooling-off” periods for signing
purchase agreements try to protect average consumers from getting into things they later
regret. Other laws, such as the labelling of harmful products (e.g., cigarettes), are meant to
protect the health of -Canadians. Some of the various laws are outlined in Table 1–2. The
field of consumer behaviour can play an important role in improving our lives as
consumers.32 Many researchers assist in formulating or evaluating public policies such as

those that ensure that products are labelled accurately, that people can understand
important information presented in advertising, or that children are not exploited by
program-length toy commercials masquerading as TV shows. 15 16 S E C T I O N I
Consumers in the Marketplace TABLE 1–2 Examples of Federal Government Legislation
Intended to Enhance Consumers’ Welfare Year 1949 Act Purpose National Trademark and
True Sets out who is authorized to use the national trademark “Canada Standards” and how
Labelling Act it is to be used. The act also empowers the governor in council to regulate how
the content and quality of goods are required to be labelled or described when advertised.
1953 Food and Drugs Act Protects consumers from purchasing food, cosmetics, drugs, and
therapeutic devices that are passed off in a deceptive or misleading manner or pose a risk to
human health. 1969 Hazardous Products Act Fosters consumer safety through the banning
of products that pose unacceptable hazards to the consumer. Products that have a limited
potential to harm individuals because of improper care or use are required to be affixed
with labels warning consumers of the nature of the danger. 1970 Establishes minimum
safety standards for motor vehicles and their components through Motor Vehicle Safety Act
the setting of specific design and performance requirements. 1970 1970 Consumer
Packaging and Sets out regulations for the packaging, labelling, and sale of prepackaged
goods to Labelling Act consumers. Textile Labelling Act Requires all textile products that are
offered for sale to consumers to bear labels attesting to the amount and types of generic
fibres contained within the product. The act also places conditions on the importation,
advertising, and sale of these types of products. 1971 Establishes standardized forms of
measurement for use in trade in Canada and assures Weights and Measures Act the
accuracy and correct use of all equipment used for this purpose. 1973 Precious Metals
Marketing Act Sets the quality and grading standards to be followed in the identification
and marking of precious-metal items. 1986 Competition Act Prohibits misleading
advertising and deceptive marketing practices in promoting the supply or use of a product
or service or any business interest. 2000 Personal Information Protection Offers consumers
the opportunity to know what information is being collected about and Electronic
Documents Act them by regulated businesses, to opt out of businesses’ information-
collection practices, and to correct inaccurate information. 2003 Physical Activity and Sport
Act The objectives of this act are to encourage, promote, and develop physical activity and
sport in Canada. 2010 Canada Consumer Product Safety The purpose of this act is to protect
the public by addressing or preventing dangers to Act human health or safety that are posed
by consumer products in Canada, including those that circulate within Canada and those
that are imported. Sources: Based on Revised Statutes of Canada (Ottawa: Queen’s Printer
for Canada, 1985), © Queen’s Printer for Canada; Department of Consumer and Corporate
Affairs, “Federal Legislation and Programs Relating to Consumer Protection,” March 1973,
rev. February 1975; Department of Justice Canada, “2012 Annual Statutes,” rev. April 2012,
http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/AnnualStatutes/index2012.html. Of course, to a large
degree consumers depend on their governments to regulate and police safety and
environmental standards. Protecting consumers is more problematic this century as the
majority of manufacturing has moved offshore. Millions of -Chinese-made toys are regularly
pulled off shelves because of lead paint or basic design flaws.33 MEGA Brands used to be a

darling of the Canadian stock exchange, but financial losses from product recalls of poorly
manufactured and designed toys hurt the company for a period of time. These problems are
not limited to hard goods. A major Chinese supermarket chain in Canada had to pull a
possibly tainted baby milk formula after 6000 babies were sickened in China. The Chinese-
made brands were suspected of containing melamine, a chemical that makes the product
appear to have higher protein levels than it actually does.34 C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction
to Consumer Behaviour 17 Consumer Activism and Its Impact on Marketing Adbusters is a
not-for-profit organization that advocates for “the new social activist movement of the
information age.”35 Adbusters sponsors numerous initiatives, including Buy Nothing Day
and TV Turnoff Week, intended to discourage rampant commercialism. These efforts, along
with biting ads and commercials that lampoon advertising messages, are part and parcel of
a strategy called culture jamming that aims to disrupt efforts by the corporate world to
dominate our cultural landscape. The Culture -Jammers Manifesto proclaims opposition to
the so-called mind-polluters: “On the rubble of the old culture, we will build a new one with
a non-commercial heart and soul.”36 Indeed, Adbusters was at the forefront in starting the
Occupy movement seen in 2011 in a number of North American cities. Firms themselves are
becoming increasingly interested in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), by which they
voluntarily choose to protect or enhance their positive social and environmental impacts as
they go about their business activities. This is often driven by consumer demand, as
companies attempt to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. Companies such as Lush,
the Body Shop, and American Apparel have successfully differentiated themselves on ethical
attributes. While some marketers donate their own money to good causes (corporate
giving), others promise donations to charity as purchase incentives (a form of cause-related
marketing).37 Other firms have taken a green marketing approach in which marketers offer
products in ways that are less harmful to the environment and position their brand on the
basis of sustainable attributes. Some firms have focused their efforts on reducing wasteful
packaging. For example, Unilever recently committed to an ambitious plan for reducing by
one half the waste associated with the packaging and disposal of its products by 2020.38
Other companies, such as Patagonia and Seventh Generation, have been very successful in
positioning their offers on the basis of sustainable attributes. Some consumers are skeptical
of green marketing efforts as a result of greenwashing, which occurs when companies make
false or exaggerated claims about how environmentally friendly their products are.39 Social
marketing refers to using marketing techniques normally employed to sell beer or
detergent to encourage positive behaviours such as increased literacy or to discourage
negative activities such as drunk driving.40 A Swedish project aimed at curbing adolescent
drinking illustrates social marketing at work. The Swedish -Brewers Association invested
10 million Skr (about $7.5 million) in a cooperative effort with the Swedish Non-Violence
Project to change teens’ attitudes about alcohol consumption. Consumer researchers
working on the project discovered that Swedish adolescents freely admitted that they
“drink in order to get drunk” and enjoyed the feeling of being intoxicated, so trying to
persuade them to give up alcohol would be a formidable task. However, the teens reported
they were also afraid of HELP SEND EVEN MORE KIDS TO CAMP BUY A COFFEE
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3 © Tim Hortons, 2015 Tim Hortons uses cause-related marketing to

support sending kids in need to camp. All Tim Hortons trademarks referenced herein are
owned by Tim Hortons. Used with permission. 18 S E C T I O N I Consumers in the
Marketplace FrogBox is a Canadian company that offers consumers eco-friendly, reusable
moving boxes. The company is a great example of a successful green marketing enterprise,
and it also engages in cause-related marketing by donating 1 percent of gross revenues to
frog habitat restoration. Courtesy of www.frogbox.com losing control over their own
behaviour, especially if there was a risk of being exposed to violence. And, while worries
about the long-term health effects of drinking didn’t concern this group (after all, at this age
many teens believe they will live forever), female adolescents reported a fear of becoming
less attractive as a result of prolonged alcohol consumption. Indeed, some consumer
researchers are themselves organizing to not only study but to rectify what they see as
pressing social problems in the marketplace. This perspective is called Transformative
Consumer Research (TCR). It promotes research projects that include the goal of helping
people or bringing about social change. Consumers are not objects of research, but
collaborators who work with the researchers to realize this change. Adherents of TCR work
with at-risk populations, such as children, the disadvantaged, and the disabled, or on such
topics as materialism, consumption of dangerous products, and compulsive consumption.41
CO 6 The Dark Side of Consumer Behaviour In late 2008, a crowd waiting to take advantage
of a big holiday sale at a Walmart store in New York trampled a temporary worker to death
as people rushed to grab discounted merchandise off the store’s shelves. A lawsuit filed on
behalf of the man’s family claimed that in addition to providing inadequate security, the
retailer “engaged in specific marketing and advertising techniques to specifically attract a
large crowd and create an environment of frenzy and mayhem.”42 Just how far will people
go to secure a bargain? C H A P T E R 1 An Introduction to Consumer Behaviour Despite the
best efforts of researchers, government regulators, and concerned industry people,
consumers’ worst enemies are sometimes themselves. Individuals are often depicted as
rational decision makers, calmly doing their best to obtain products and services that will
maximize the health and well-being of themselves, their families, and society. In reality,
however, consumers’ desires, choices, and actions often result in negative consequences to
the individual or the society in which he or she lives. Some consumer activities stem from
social pressures, such as excessive drinking or cigarette smoking, and the cultural value put
upon money can encourage such activities as shoplifting or insurance fraud. Exposure to
unattainable media ideals of beauty and success can create dissatisfaction with the self.
Many of these issues will be touched upon later in the book, but for now let’s review some
dimensions of what has been called the “dark side” of consumer behaviour. Addictive
Consumption Consumer addiction is a physiological or psychological dependency on
products or services. This type of addiction includes addiction to alcohol, drugs, and
cigarettes, and many companies profit from selling addictive products or by selling
solutions to addiction. Although most people equate addiction with drugs, virtually any
product or service can be seen as relieving some problem or satisfying some need to the
point that reliance on it becomes extreme. This advertisement from Mothers Against Drunk
Driving (MADD) highlights some of the negative consequences of alcohol consumption.
Courtesy of MADD 19 20 S E C T I O N I Consumers in the Marketplace Consumers in Focus

Yik Yak is a hugely popular social app that has invaded numerous high schools and college
and university campuses. The downside is that it fosters cyber-bullying because it does not
require users to post a profile, so they remain anonymous. It sorts messages only by
geographic location and only posts within a 1.5-mile radius, so it’s ideal for a school
environment. Offensive “yaks” that derogate students by name, encourage violence, or make
sexually suggestive comments appear more often than they should. It’s like a graffitidefaced
bathroom wall at the student union— but on digital steroids. Psychologists have compared
social media addiction to chemical dependency, to the point where it induces symptoms of
withdrawal when users are deprived of their fix. As one noted, “Everyone is a potential
addict—they’re just waiting for their drug of choice to come along, whether heroin, running,
junk food or social media.”43 Indeed, a survey reported one in three smartphone owners
would rather give up sex than their phones!44 And as many of us realize, this fixation grows
by the “enablers” around us as they exhibit the same behaviour. Indeed, one study
documented that college students were much more likely to pull out their phones when
someone they were sitting with had just done so.45 Compulsive Consumption For some
consumers, the expression “born to shop” is quite literal. These consumers shop because
they feel compelled to do so rather than because s…

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