How the Internet and related technologies improve marketing transactions by adding value that benefits marketers and/or customers
The three examples that demonstrate how internet and related technologies add value to marketing transactions and benefit marketers and customers espouse creation of a platform where customers and marketers interact and understand their divergent needs. Furthermore, development of a platform where customers can easily present their ideas, opinions, and suggestions to marketers is another example of how the internet and technology has resulted in added benefits to customers and marketers.
Michaelidou and Sally assert that by creating a platform where marketers and consumers exchange ideas successfully, internet and related technologies lead to creation of products that match consumer expectations, are high in relation to quality, and enhance consumer loyalty (85). The result of increased loyalty from consumers is an increase in products that a given organization produces and sells, and as such, an eventual advancement in the scale of revenues.
How customization can be effective
The three conditions, which customization is most likely to be effective include customer self-customization, product customization, and market customization. These conditions are critical in determining the extent of revenues that an organization earns and the level of satisfaction that consumers derive from a particular product. Organizations usually have offerings that include services or goods.
While self-customization depends on consumer suggestions or what they expect from the society, product customization emphasizes on value and quality. Consequently, market customization focuses on the market requirements and encourages organizations to design products that meet these requirements. Goods and services are offerings that an organization can customize in line with the provided criteria and successfully satisfy its target clients.
In terms of expectations, when is a customer not satisfied, satisfied, and delighted?
According to Dobre, Dragomir, and Preda, when customers provide positive reviews, engage in repeat visits, and consume company’s products, they indeed demonstrate satisfaction (32). Conversely, when consumers provide negative reviews about a company or a product and do not engage in repeat visits, they demonstrate some kind of dissatisfaction. Satisfaction of consumers usually depends on the extent to which products meet their expectations. When the offerings of an organization do not match client expectations, it is likely that consumers will not be satisfied or delighted.
The reasons for which small reductions in customer defections produce significant increases in profits
Increased sales and enhanced consumer loyalty are some of the reasons that take place when companies undertake initiatives, which minimize small reductions in customer defections. Essentially, when companies understand the defections in their offerings and undertake initiatives to minimize the defects, consumer loyalty rises and leads to increased sales. As such, it is evident that when companies engage in initiatives, which focus on consumer needs and defects demonstrated by clients using platforms such as the internet, the results in profits are significant.
The two interrelated forms of customer engagement with marketers
Online and offline engagements are the two major types of engagements where customers and marketers relate. The two types are interrelated and crucial in a given company. While online engagement takes place in online platforms such as facebook, twitter, and YouTube, offline engagement concerns the use of offline platforms like word-of-mouth and personal correspondence.
The five criteria that make market segments effective targets
For market segments to be effective targets they should be sizeable, match the marketer’s interest, accessible, and identifiable. Moreover, the segments should be easily accessible and should be growing (Rajab, Paim, Yasmin, and Yousefi 47). When market segments are substantial in relation to size, easy to identify, and are in line with the interests of marketers, they become perfect segmentation targets.
Positioning of a health club offering to one of the VALS segments
Workout or exercise is one of the offerings provided by a health club. In relation to the VAL’s segment, individuals can engage in the workout offering with the intention of improving their health and status before their peers. By working out so that they can impress their peers, these individuals engage in achievement-motivated category of VAL’s segment. Practically, motivation, level of resources, level of innovativeness, values, and consumption patterns dictate the scale of engagement in the offerings.
What steps are involved in the positioning process?
Market, consumer, and product definition, identification of consumer requirements, and research of consumer perceptions in relation to competing brands are the steps involved in the positioning process. Additionally, establishment of a list that encompasses preferred attributes, development of a concept that includes the attributes, and communication of the concept using a positioning statement are also among the steps involved in the process.
Commonly used positioning strategies
There are three main strategies used in positioning, which espouse positioning against the competitor, key attribute, and premier positioning. According to Mandler, ‘Avis Rental Cars’ is a good example that employs against the competitor positioning strategy (88). When a company decides to position itself against the competitor, its main objective is usually to draw attention from consumers so that they can focus on its products and eventually purchase them. Consequently, key attribute type of positioning takes place when organizations develop products and focus on the superior qualities that differentiate them from others in the market. Premier positioning is another strategy of positioning that emphasizes on the uniqueness of a brand in relation to those offered by competitors in the market.
Factors that determine customer satisfaction with online websites and merchants while shopping online
Quality, price, product packaging, promotion, and customer relations are the five factors that determine customer satisfaction. Fundamentally, the factors are universal, and as such, affect online clients and merchants in need of goods or services offered by a particular company. The factors determine the willingness to purchase and the amount of products that clients buy from a company.
The four tiers of the customer pyramid
According to Michaelidou and Sally, the four tiers of the customer pyramid comprise platinum, gold, iron, and lead consumers (82). While platinum consumers promote the company’s products at a very high scale, gold clients consume the products at a scale, which is lower than that of platinum consumers. Iron consumers enable the company create a good market for its products. However, lead consumers are a segment that financial institutions need to minimize or promote because they affect the cost of production.
The three components of the decision-making process
Extensive, limited, and routinized problem solving are among the three components of the decision making process. For individuals, who are in the market for a new television, extensive stage implies that they will need lots of information concerning the product, whereas routinized state comprise little information because the consumers already understand the product. Limited problem solving stage transpires when the individuals have an understanding of the product, and thus, they only need limited information about the television.
How do motivations drive consumer behavior?
Motivations are unfulfilled needs that individuals feel satisfied after achieving them. The implication that transpires when individuals pursue needs is a dictation of individual character and behavior in a manner that match the set of needs that they intend to achieve (Mandler 35). Therefore, the individuals pursue goals that lead to achievements of the desired needs.
A generic goal and a product-specific goal
A Smartphone is an example of a generic goal, whereas an example of a product-specific goal is an Apple Smartphone. The distinction between generic and product–specific goal occasions because, while any Smartphone serves the interest of consumers, some consumers are specific and need smartphones designed by Apple Company.
The theory that Abraham Maslow formulated with regard to human needs
Maslow hierarchy of needs theory explains the various needs that people demonstrate in different levels. Some of the advantages that the theory has include its ability to present various needs that individuals have in different levels. The fact that the theory is useful in development of products that match consumer needs is another advantage that enhances its importance. Conversely, the theory has disadvantages that include simplicity, culture bound, and inability to be a subject of empirical test.
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality explains that individual behavior is a result of experiences that people cannot recall. In the assertion of Fayek, Freud uses the ID, ego, and the superego as the three systems that interact and dictate the character of an individual (67). While the ID drives individuals to satisfy certain needs such as food and thirst, ego and the superego help the person act in a moral and acceptable manner.
What is consumer innovativeness, and how does it relate to personality and consumer behavior?
The willingness of a consumer to purchase a product in its early stages without prior word-of-mouth or affirmation from peers and ability to tolerate small defects of a product is customer innovativeness. In effect, customer innovativeness is highly dependent on the behavior and personality of clients. People, who demonstrate high levels of innovation, are likely to demonstrate innovativeness in the manner in which they purchase their products.
What are some general characteristics of materialistic people?
Materialistic individuals are consumers, who are trendy and love purchasing products that match their dynamic and fashion oriented requirements. Moreover, materialistic consumers focus on quality and place little emphasis on product prices.
What is consumer ethnocentrism?
Consumers, who often view their products as superior and high in quality as opposed to those from other regions or countries are ethnocentric consumers.
Self-images recognized in consumer behavior
The four kinds of self-image that consumers demonstrate include ideal, actual, ideal social-self, and social self. The actual self-image concerns the way consumers think about themselves, whereas ideal self-image regards what they would like to be. Consequently, ideal social self relates to what consumers expect others in the society to look at them, while social self refers to what the society thinks about the consumers.
Weber’s law in the context of the differential threshold
Weber law states that a difference in perception is equivalent to the stimuli causing the differentiation. Therefore, the threshold of differentiation is directly proportional to the causative agent and the magnitude of the stimuli. In practice, marketers use it to initiate changes on products so that consumers can feel the changes and purchase these products.
What is subliminal perception? How does it relate to marketing?
Subliminal perception is the threshold at which individuals perceive stimuli (Mandler 40). In marketing, it relates with the responsiveness of consumers to a change in product quality. The rate, which consumers react towards a change in product price or quality, can be useful in establishing their subliminal perceptions.
Basic principles of perceptual organization that relate to consumer behavior
Good continuation, proximity, and appearance are among the basic principles of perceptual organization. These principles relate to the perception of individuals about the components that they see. In marketing, the principles can be very useful in market segmentation. By applying the principles, marketers can easily segment their clients in relation to the characteristics that they demonstrate.
The dimensions on which this SERVQUAL scale is based
The dimensions that form the basis of the SERVQUAL scale are service quality, consumer expectations, and marketing environment. These dimensions are practical because the scale aims at development of products that match consumer expectations, while increasing the amount of returns earned by a subject organization.
Intrinsic cues vs. extrinsic cues
Intrinsic cues include the aroma, color, appearance, and the physical features that influence the willingness of a potential buyer. Contrastingly, extrinsic cues concern the price, brand name, place of origin, and the manufacturer (Dobre, Dragomir, and Preda 28). For instance, a Toyota Lexus has intrinsic and extrinsic cues that influence buyers to either purchase it or opt for another car that has their preferred features.
What are the types of perceived risk consumers have to deal with?
Financial, psychological, time, social, and functional risks are some of the risks that contemporary consumers have to deal with as they purchase their products.
The ways consumers handle risk
Due diligence, continuous research, and making purchases from authentic outlets are among the many ways that consumers can employ to minimize these perceived risks.
What is the theory of classical conditioning?
Classical theory studies the behavior of humans. According to McEvoy, the theory explains that repeated pairings lead to development of stimuli that is associated with the causative agent (35). For instance, when a child hears a bell every time before meals, the child develops a conditioning and each time a bell rings, the child expects a meal.
How do some marketers make use of the concept of stimulus generalization?
Since stimuli generalization is a concept where individuals associate subjects of similar features with previous interactions with similar subjects, marketers can utilize the concept and market their products using similar characteristics held by products that elicited positive reviews. The basis of the concept is on the fact when consumers enjoy a certain product they are most likely to purchase products that have similar characteristics.
What is licensing? What is the principle behind its success?
Fundamentally, licensing is an agreement that permits one to engage in a certain activity over a given period until the validity of the license expires. In marketing, companies and business outlets receive license from the state. The reason behind its success emanates from the essence of regulating businesses that operate within a certain state.
What are the three types of reinforcement schedules used by marketers to reward customers?
The three types of reinforcement schedules include positive reinforcements, negative reinforcements, and punishment. In effect, marketers usually employ the types of reinforcement schedules in their businesses. For example, when marketers want to increase the performance of their human resources, they engage in positive reinforcements and award those, who are performing better. Effective utilization of reinforcement schedules can lead to production of high-end services or goods, which match consumer expectations.
When and why do marketers use massed or distributed learning schedules?
Marketers use massed or distributed learning schedules so that they can achieve their target markets. Since massed learning schedule utilizes minimal time and is intensive, marketers can employ it in instances when the time is minimal and the scale of work is high. However, when marketers have adequate time, they can utilize distributed learning schedule that requires a substantial amount of time and yields rewarding results.
High-involvement purchases vs. low-involvement purchases
While high-involvement purchases comprise purchase of products that require a great deal of information and are costly, low involvement purchases center on products that are less costly and usually need limited or very little information before one makes a purchase. Cars and houses are among the products that require high-involvement whereas food and beverages are some of the low-involvement products.
The difference between behavioral and attitudinal brand loyalty
Behavioral loyalty entails frequent visits to certain shopping outlets so that clients can make their purchases. Although the consumers may not like the outlets, the outlets may be close or convenient for them. Conversely, attitudinal loyalty incorporates the act of providing a positive review about an outlet without making a purchase from the shop. Although attitudinal loyalty has the word-of-mouth advantage, it is less productive because several attitudinal consumers do not purchase the products from the outlet.
The differences between the three components of the tri-component attitude model
The differences that are present in the three components of the tri-component attitude model concern their roles. These components are different and have various roles. While the affect concerns the emotions and the attitude, cognition concerns the thoughts of an individual. On the other hand, behavior is the component that regards the character of an individual.
The attitude-toward-behavior model
Attitude-toward-behavior model explains that a person develops a certain behavior concerning a product in relation to the specific outcome associated with the product. For instance, if a client receives a bad service from a particular facility or restaurant, the client then develops a behavior based on the attitude that transpired during the service delivery.
The four functions that serve as motivators under the functional approach
Working climate, leadership style, structure of work, and reward system are the four functions that serve as motivators under the functional approach in an organization. When the working climate of a company is relevant to the nature of work done, then employees and the management relate positively, a factor that advances the quality of products. In addition, the structure of work and the leadership styles are crucial in ensuring that employees and employers address issues and engage in initiatives that satisfy clients. It is imperative to note that when employees receive rewards, their morale rises, the quality of work advances, and production goes up.
How can marketers utilize the knowledge function to influence the basic motivational function?
Marketers can use their knowledge and encourage their human resources to develop products that are appealing, eye-catching, and tempting before potential consumers. By designing products in this manner, marketers successfully influence the basic motivational function of potential consumers.
What is cognitive dissonance and when does it happen?
Cognitive dissonance is a form of anxiety, which takes place when a consumer becomes a subject of new information or has to make a choice between two or more different values and views.
How individuals analyze self-attributions
Practically, people analyze self-attributions using the outcomes that transpire after a certain event or activity. If the aftermath of an event is not satisfying, then individuals refrain from the act. However, if the outcome is encouraging, then individuals are likely to repeat the event or activity. For instance, if consumers receive a superb service in a facility, the outcome encourages them to continue visiting the facility.
Works Cited
Dobre, Costinel, Anca Dragomir, and Gheorghe Preda. “Consumer Innovativeness: A Marketing Approach.” Management & Marketing 4. 2 (2009): 19-34. Print.
Fayek, Ahmed. Freud’s Other Theory of Psychoanalysis: The Replacement for the Indelible Theory of Catharsis. 2013. Print.
Mandler, George. Consciousness Recovered Psychological Functions and Origins of Conscious Thought. Amsterdam: Benjamins Pub, 2002. Print.
McEvoy, Paul. Classical Theory. San Francisco: Microanalytix, 2002. Print.
Michaelidou, Nina, and Dibb Sally. “ Consumer Involvement: A New Perspective.” Marketing Review 8.1 (2008): 83–99. Print.
Rajab, Seyed, Laily Paim, Farzana Yasmin, and Abdolaziz Yousefi. “Critical Factors in Determining Customer Satisfaction toward Internet Shopping In Malaysia.” International Journal of Business and Management Invention 2.1 (2013): 44-51. Print.