Consumer Behavior & Research

Lecture 3

COMT 492/592

Overview

Researching your audience Product - Perceived benefits Price – Perceived costs Promotion – Channels

Other concerns Publics – Pertinent groups Partnerships Policy Purse strings – Your budget

Product

If motivating people to change health & social behavior were as easy as convincing them to switch toothpaste brands, then there would be no difference between social & commercial marketing.

But social marketing requires affecting a complex set of emotional & psychological decisions.

Product

The “product” is the behavior you want to promote.

Perceived susceptibility & perceived severity To be viable, people must feel they have a genuine

problem. Influenced by…?

Perceived benefits The behavior must be seen as offering a good

solution. Response efficacy

Self-efficacy

Perceived susceptibility & severity

If audience does not see themselves at risk, then you may have to: Build awareness of the problem or risk

Present facts (e.g. Tobacco-related deaths) Portray the problem or health threat as personally

relevant to target audience Present identifiable role models who have suffered Present facts relevant to target audience (e.g., Tobacco

deaths among adults who started as teens) Present perceived cons that are relevant to target audience

(e.g., peer disapproval, bad breath, getting fat, etc.)

Perceived susceptibility & severity

Research questions Are you aware of the problem?

(e.g. how serious smoking is, or how prevalent cancer deaths due to tobacco are)

Do you personally feel at risk? If so, why? (e.g., find example argument) If not, why not? (e.g., figure out where you need to debunk

myths) Do you care?

Friends, subculture may frown on changing behavior More benefits of continuing risky behavior

Perceived benefits & barriers

Benefits of product must outweigh barriers: Make sure product is available & accessible (e.g.,

Family planning clinic must be within walking distance, or open after work hours)

Product must be portrayed as appealing “Positioning” - Show how product is better than

alternatives (e.g. Healthy life vs. smoking) “Create niche” - Show how product is good for

specific types of people Identify attributes that position product in minds of

target audience

Perceived benefits

Research questions Find out what audience values

“So what?” – Find out why they value what they do “What’s in it for me?” What’s the value they currently get from not

practicing the behavior? By determining what audience truly deems as

important, you can find out more effective ways to appeal to them

Perceived benefits: Exercise

Attribute Benefit Benefit Benefit

Increases heart rate

Lose weight

Look better Be sexier

Increases LPD

Lowers risk of heart attack

Live longer Watch grand-children

Produces endorphins

Lowers stress

Feel energetic

Get more done

Price: Perceived barriers (costs)

The negatives of taking on the new behavior and of giving up an old practice are very real.

They may include: Discomfort Change Loss of peer group support Effort Embarrassment Financial cost

Price: Perceived costs

Research questions What’s the worst thing that might happen if

you stopped smoking? What’s the hardest part about becoming a

non-smoker? What are your barriers to quitting? Identify the specific perceived costs that the

audience feels towards the specific behavior