https://research-methodology.net Necessary knowledge to conduct a business research Sun, 24 Jul 2022 10:21:08 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://rm-15da4.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/cropped-logoBRM-32x32.jpg https://research-methodology.net 32 32 https://research-methodology.net/plogs-tourist-motivation-model/ Sun, 24 Jul 2022 10:21:08 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=67623 Plog’s tourist motivation model (1974) is a popular framework widely referred to in tourism studies. According to the model tourists can be divided into two broad categories: allocentrics and psychocentrics. Allocentrics usually choose exotic destinations and unstructured tours and vacations they prefer to get involved with local culture to a great extent. Psychocentrics, on the other hand, choose familiar destinations and they usually engage in tourism via packaged tours in a conventional manner (Plog, 1974). The terms of allocentrics and polycentric were later replaced by Plog (1974) to the terms of venturer and dependable respectively, in order to make them more ‘reader-friendly’ (Hudson, 2008). Plog’s (1974) Psychographic Personality Types Source: Hudson (2008), adapted from Plog (1974) and Plog (2002) As it is evident from figure above, according to Plog’s tourist motivation model the majority of tourists can be classified as mid-centric, i.e. they do not belong to neither psychocentric or allocentric categories. Plog’s (1974) Psychographic Personality Types has been criticised for being difficult to be applied because individuals may travel motivated by different factors in different occasions (Hudson, 2008). In other words, an individual may choose an exotic destination for tourism and get closely involved with local culture, yet it may not be appropriate to brand the individual as allocentric because the same person may purchase a conventional tourism package the following year. References Hudson, S. (2008) “Tourism and Hospitality Marketing: A Global Perspective” SAGE Publications Plog, S.C. (1974) “Why Destination areas rise and fall in popularity” Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Quarterly, Vol.14, Issue:4 Plog, S.C. (2002) “The power of psychographics and the concept of venturesomeness” Journal of Travel Research, Vol.40  ]]> https://research-methodology.net/types-of-tourism-and-tourists/ Sun, 17 Jul 2022 12:22:44 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=67489 Different types of tourism can be specified as visiting friends and relatives, religious tourism, social tourism, cultural tourism, hedonistic tourism, special interest tourism, business tourism, health tourism, educational tourism, scenic tourism and activity tourism (Swardbrooke and Horner, 2007). Swardbrooke and Horner (2007) argue that tourism needs to be classified as activity rather than industry. However, this viewpoint can be subjected to criticism because a wide range of activities related to tourism have positive implications to national economies from financial viewpoint, therefore tourism is larger than merely being an activity. Type Numbers Adaptation to local norms Elite Rare Adapts fully Off-beat Uncommon Adapts well Unusual Occasional Adapts somewhat Incipient mass  Steady flow Seeks Western amenities Mass Continuous Expects Western amenities Charter Massive Demands Western amenities  Smith’s typology of tourists Source: Smith (1977) Alternatively, types of tourism and tourists are divided by King and Hyde (1989) into the following six psychographic type: New indulgers mark a type of tourists who try to escape stress through engaging in new tourism experiences. Tourists belonging to this category tend to be experiential to a greater extent compared to alternative type of tourists discussed below. Anti-tourists are independent, unconventional type of tourists who prefer to explore tourism destinations alone. Anti-tourists usually do not want to be associated with ‘regular’ tourists and they tend to emphasize authenticity of their tourism activities. Big spenders prefer luxury, and therefore they expected extensive and intensive services with their tourism experiences. Big spenders are the main target customer segment for many businesses in tourism industry. New enthusiasts lack experience in tourism. This particular psychographic type of tourists tends to be highly energetic, prefer socialisation and physically demanding recreational activities. Dedicated Aussies/Kiwis are reluctant to travel outside of their home countries for chauvinistic reasons, limited budget and other reasons. Sense of safety…]]> https://research-methodology.net/situational-factors-impacting-consumer-buyer-behaviour/ Sun, 17 Jul 2022 00:53:54 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3559 Generally, factors impacting consumer behaviour include motivations, culture, age and gender, social class, lifecycle, life style, and reference groups etc (Arnould et al., 2002, Agwaral, 2006, Hudson, 2008). Full range of factors impacting consumer behaviour can be divided into psychological, situational, and social categories and each of these categories is discussed in more detail further below. Figure 1. Factors Impacting Consumer Behaviour Psychological and Personal Factors Impacting Consumer Behaviour Psychological factors impacting consumer behaviour include lifestyle, interests, occasions for the use of products and services, benefits sought for the use of products and services etc (Batra and Kazmi, 2008). Personal factors affecting consumer behaviour is related to psychological factors and they include attitudes, motivations, perceptions, occupation ect. Lifestyle is one of the most important consumer variables and an important base for customer segmentation (Majumdar, 2010). Therefore, lifestyle analysis is perceived as one of the critical components of marketing research initiatives. Values and lifestyle systems (VALS) represent framework that divide population into different categories according to psychological factors that are found to be correlated with their purchase behaviour (Assael, 2004). An initial VALS or VALS1 specified eight separate psychographic groups: innovators, survivors, thinkers, makers, achievers, strivers, believers and experiencers. According to VALS framework belonging to each group is associated with specific psychological profile and certain lifestyle. According to Hudson (2008) VALS represents a valuable framework in practical level, because businesses can develop products and services that targets unique needs of individual groups within the framework. However, VALS has been criticised on the grounds of being too abstract and too general and this criticism has caused the development of VALS2 that “classifies people into segments based on whether they control abundant or minimal resources” (Arnould et al., 2002, p.126) Figure 2. VALS2 Figure adapted from Arnould et al. (2002) According to VALS2…]]> https://research-methodology.net/evolution-of-consumer-behaviour-a-brief-overview/ Sat, 16 Jul 2022 04:52:02 +0000 https://research-methodology.net/?p=67446 Consumer Behaviour can be defined as “the study of why people buy the products they do and how they make decisions” (Hudson, 2008, p.40). The study of consumer behaviour is not new with economists such as Nicholas Bernoulli, John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern initially addressing issues of consumer behaviour about 300 ago. Generally, evolution of consumer behaviour as an important area within the broad field of marketing incorporates the following stages: First stage: economic man approach. The earliest approach to consumer behaviour, economic man approach perceives consumers to be thinking logically and rationally at all times in relation to decision making. According to Arnould et al. (2002) this approach to consumer behaviour has been subjected to criticism due to neglecting irrational aspect of consumer behaviour. Second stage: psychodynamic approach. Psychodynamic approach is mainly based on the work of famous psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) and this approach views consumer behaviour as biological influence of drivers that are beyond rational thinking capabilities of individuals (Blythe, 1997). Specifically, three facets of human psychology are identified as the ID, ego, and superego. Third stage: behaviourist approach. Behaviourist approach to consumer behaviour focuses on the impact of external factors on patterns of behaviour amongst individuals (Neal and Quester, 1997). The majority of literatures discussing behaviourist approach mention experiments conducted by Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov (1849 -1936), where dogs were taught to behave in certain ways in given conditions with organising impact of the same external factor in a repeated manner. Fourth stage: cognitive approach. This approach to consumer behaviour is based on Stimulus – Organism – Response model proposed by Hebb (Bray, 2008). As illustrated in figure below, according to this model once organism is impacted by an external stimulus the response to the stimulus directly affects the nature of the final…]]> https://research-methodology.net/consumer-decision-making-process-a-detailed-analysis/ Sat, 16 Jul 2022 00:13:24 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3906 The consumer decision making process is complex and involves all the stages from problem recognition to post purchase activities. It has been noted that “the childhood and the human’s development has a crucial impact on personal decision making process” (Sokolowski, 2011, p.1) and the framework of consumer decision making process is found to be addressed by the majority of authors who have addressed the topic of consumer behaviour. All the consumers have their own needs in their daily lives and these needs make them make different decisions. These decisions can be complex depending on the consumer’s opinion about a particular product, evaluating and comparing, selecting and purchasing among the different types of product. Therefore, understanding and realizing the core issue of the process of consumer decision making and utilize the theories in practice is becoming a common view point by many companies and people. There is a common consensus among many researchers and academics that consumer purchasing theory involves a number of different stages. Depending on the different factors and findings, numerous researchers and academics developed their own theories and models over the past years. However, according to Tyagi and Kumar (2004), although these theories vary slightly from each other, they all lead to almost the same theory about the consumer purchasing theory which states that it involves the stages of search and purchase of product or service and the process of evaluation the product or service in the post-purchase product. Five Stage Model initially proposed by Cox et al. (1983) is considered to be one of the most common models of consumer decision making process and it involves five various stages. These stages are: recognition of need or problem, information search, comparing the alternatives, purchase and post-purchase evaluation. This simple model clearly illustrates and explains how the consumers make…]]> https://research-methodology.net/influence-of-social-media-on-profitability-of-hospitality-organisations/ Fri, 10 Jun 2016 10:03:24 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=7880 Introduction The 21st century has been dubbed as an information age (Bell and Blanchfower, 2011) and internet in general, and social media in particular are playing an instrumental role in facilitating the spread of information throughout the globe at a rapid speed. Moreover, increasing levels of interactivity of social media platforms is further contributing to the level of their popularity, and nowadays social media has been effectively adopted by many businesses along a wide range of industries as a highly effective marketing and communication platform. At the same time, the level of use of social media varies between various industries, as well as, individual organisations within a particular industry, and while some organisations are beginning to realise substantial opportunities offered by social media, others are already utilising these opportunities to a full extent. This essay contains a critical evaluation of the influence of social media on the popularity of a tourism destination. The essay starts with discussions about increasing influence of social media on consumer behaviour. This is followed by critical analyses of potential benefits of social media to hospitality organisations. Moreover, issues related to negative impacts of social media on the performance of hospitality organisations are also addressed in this essay. Essay is concluded by providing a set of recommendations to strategic and marketing managers of hospitality organisations in terms of benefiting from opportunities offered by social media to a maximum extent. займ онлайн 19 лет Increasing influence of social media on consumer behaviour in service sector Social media can be defined as “websites and applications that enable users to create and share or to participate in social networking” (Oxford Dictionaries, 2013) and social media has had immense impact on personal and professional lives of many people around the globe at various levels. Types of social media include personal and corporate blogs,…]]> https://research-methodology.net/role-of-marketing-research-in-impacting-consumer-behaviour/ Sun, 08 Mar 2015 00:41:35 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=6418 Marketing research can be specified as the main tool to impact consumer behaviour in order to increase the levels of consumer loyalty and achieve long-term growth of the businesses. Marketing research can be divided into the following stages: The first stage is associated with problem definition. Range of marketing research problems related to consumer behaviour may include but not limited to assessment of impacts of prices changes or re-branding initiatives on consumer attitudes, establishing the levels of brand value amongst target customer segment etc. The second stage relates to secondary data collection and analysis. Relevant data available in government publications, statistical information, as well as, findings of previously published marketing research papers can be utilised in an extensive manner during this stage. The third stage in marketing research process refers to collection of primary data. The majority of marketing researches are facilitated through primary data collection and analysis. The most popular methods of primary data collection for marketing research include surveys, focus groups, interviews, storytelling, experiments and observations. Moreover, marketing research can also be conducted with application of conjoint analysis, purchase panels, database marketing and netnography. The fourth stage involves primary data analysis. Data analysis can be qualitative, quantitative or integrated according to the nature of problems being researched. Adoption and maintenance of an objective approach plays important role at this particular stage of marketing research process. The fifth stage is devoted to formulation of recommendations. Specifically, alternative set of recommendations or inter-related recommendations can be offered to senior level management on the basis of primary data analysis. The sixth stage in marketing research process involves selection and implementation of a strategy. In most cases internal or external members of team responsible for conducting marketing research do not engage in implementation of recommendations in practical levels. Therefore, it is important…]]> https://research-methodology.net/a-brief-literature-review-on-consumer-buying-behaviour/ Thu, 05 Mar 2015 20:53:20 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3546 The topic of consumer behaviour is one of the massively studied topics by the researchers and marketers in the past and still being studied. Researchers show different reasons as to why consumer behaviour has been the topic of many academics and researchers. One of the common views is that understanding consumer behaviour has become a factor that has a direct impact on the overall performance of the businesses (Kotler and Keller, 2012). Another view suggests that understanding consumer behaviour has become crucial especially due to fierce competition in retail industry in the UK and worldwide (Lancaster et al, 2002). This chapter will introduce some other areas of research background of consumer behaviour addressing the works of researchers and marketers. Moreover, consumer decision making process, in particular, five stages of consumer decision making process will be discussed in detail.   Introduction It is worth noting that consumer buying behaviour is studied as a part of the marketing and its main objective it to learn the way how the individuals, groups or organizations choose, buy use and dispose the goods and the factors such as their previous experience, taste, price and branding on which the consumers base their purchasing decisions (Kotler and Keller, 2012). One of such studies of consumer buying behaviour has been conducted by Acebron et al (2000). The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of previous experience on buying behaviour of fresh foods, particularly mussels. In their studies the authors used structural equation model in order to identify the relationship between the habits and previous experience on the consumer buying decision. Their findings show that personal habits and previous experience on of the consumers have a direct impact on the consumers’ purchase decision in the example of purchasing fresh mussels. They also found that the image of the…]]> https://research-methodology.net/consumer-motivation-personality-and-perception/ Tue, 03 Mar 2015 16:20:43 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=6408 Motivation, personality and perception belong to the list of central themes in the area of consumer behaviour. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (1943) is one of the most significant theoretical frameworks in the area of human motivation and this theory relates to the study of consumer behaviour in a direct way. Maslow (1943) divides human needs into five layers arranged in a hierarchical manner: psychological, safety, social, and esteem needs. In simple terms, the core idea behind Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (1943) can be explained in a way that businesses need to appeal to the most immediate and urgent needs of customers in order to generate sales. For example, an individual who is yet to satisfy his or her safety needs is not motivated to purchase products and services associated with high social status, thus individuals belonging to this category should not be targeted for premium range of products and services. From this perspective, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (1943) is related to segmentation, targeting and positioning practices to a certain extent. Personality represents another important physiological variable with certain implications on consumer behaviour and personality elements or traits include self-confidence, sociability, adaptability, deference etc. In-depth knowledge about important aspects of personalities of target customer segment allows businesses to manipulate with elements of marketing mix in general and promotion element in particular in terms of making an effective appeal. For example, marketing research findings of a premium brand watch manufacturing company may indicate that the majority of representatives of target customer segment are highly ambitious individuals aspiring to top management positions in multinational corporations. This information can be used to impact consumer behaviour by engaging in product placement marketing strategy via displaying the use of the premium watch by highly successful senior managers in various media productions. High levels of subjectivity of…]]> https://research-methodology.net/approaches-to-consumer-behaviour/ Wed, 25 Feb 2015 16:00:27 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=6399 The most popular approaches to consumer behaviour can be divided into cognitive, behaviourist and psychodynamic categories. Cognitive approach to consumer behaviour focuses on information processing capabilities of consumers (Schmitt, 2003). Specifically, according to cognitive approach environment and social experiences provide individuals with abundant information to be processed, and the outcome of information processing results in individuals behaving in certain ways as consumers. For example, individuals may receive information about forecasted economic downturn in a national level and this information can serve as a stimulus to behave in certain manners. Specifically, according to cognitive approach although the forecasted economic downturn has not happened yet, nevertheless consumers may reduce levels of their spending budgets as a response to the stimulus. Behaviourist approach to consumer behaviour, on the other hand, is associated with the impact of external events. Lantos (2010) link this approach to infamous experiments of Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov and these experiments involved developing certain behavioural patterns via external factors. Practical implementation of this approach in the field of marketing can be observed in relation to Nescafe products. Specifically, integrated marketing strategy of Nescafe attempts to foster a specific pattern of behaviour amongst target customer segment whereby consumption of a cup of Nescafe coffee has to be the first thing to do in the morning. Importantly, Loudon et al. (2010) make a clear distinction between cognitive and behaviourist approaches to consumer behaviour in a way that in cognitive approach information from external sources are processed by consumers in apparent manners, whereas in behaviourist approach consumers may not be fully aware of the impact of external environment. Accordingly, Loudon et al. (2010) consider behaviourist approach to be superior compared to cognitive approach in terms of motivating perspective consumers to commit to the purchase. Lastly, psychodynamic approach “includes all theories in psychology that…]]> https://research-methodology.net/conflict-as-inevitable-feature-of-organisational-behaviour/ Wed, 17 Dec 2014 10:22:09 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=6236 Due to individual differences on the basis of cultural background, learning styles, personality etc. emergence of conflicts amongst employees in various levels is inevitable. Moreover, managerial expectations, communication breakdown and accountability issues can be specified as additional sources of conflict. Stereotyping can be mentioned as another factor that can cause conflicts in workplaces. Interestingly, the same elements that are perceived to be success factors such as team-working and communication can be sources of conflict due to reasons specified above. Constructive debates and conflicts may benefit organisation to a certain extent. To be more specific, conflicts may result in clarifications of certain issues, contribute to more effective decision-making and improve certain organisational processes. Nevertheless, managers need to ensure that occasional conflicts in organisation are limited within the boundary of work-related issues and employees do not conflict with each-other on personal grounds. Negative outcomes of conflicts may include stress, decreased employee performance, game of politics in organisation etc. Range of measures to be initiated by managers that can reduce the numbers and scope of unnecessary conflicts include fully clarifying roles and responsibilities of each individual employee, making management expectations clear, eliminating communication barriers with their subordinates and improving the overall organisational culture.]]> https://research-methodology.net/consumer-buyer-behaviour-definition/ Thu, 04 Jul 2013 04:09:50 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3899 Consumer buyer behaviour is considered to be an inseparable part of marketing and Kotler and Keller (2011) state that consumer buying behaviour is the study of the ways of buying and disposing of goods, services, ideas or experiences by the individuals, groups and organizations in order to satisfy their needs and wants. Buyer behaviour has been defined as “a process, which through inputs and their use though process and actions leads to satisfaction of needs and wants” (Enis, 1974, p.228). Consumer buying behaviour has numerous factors as a part of it which are believed to have some level of effect on the purchasing decisions of the customers. Alternatively, consumer buying behaviour “refers to the buying behaviour of final consumers, both individuals and households, who buy goods and services for personal consumption” (Kumar, 2010, p.218). From marketers’ point of view issues specific aspects of consumer behaviour that need to be studied include the reasons behind consumers making purchases, specific factors influencing the patterns of consumer purchases, analysis of changing factors within the society and others.       Authors  How to define consumer behaviour Findings Faison and Edmund (1977) “The assumption that people have series of needs which lead to drive state.”  Needs Engel, et al. (1986) “Those acts of individuals directly involved in obtaining, using, and disposing of economic goods and services, including the decision processes that precede and determine these acts” Acts, individuals Kotler   (1994) Consumer   behaviour   is   the   study   of   how   people   buy,   what they buy, when they buy and why they buy.   Solomon et al. (1995) Consumer  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”  Process, needs, individuals, group Schiffman (2007)  “the behaviour that consumers display in searching for,…]]> https://research-methodology.net/consumer-buying-behaviour-introduction/ Tue, 02 Jul 2013 01:36:21 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3541 Kotler and Keller (2011) state that the importance of studying consumer buying behaviour as an area of marketing is increasing due to several factors. In order to offer any product or service to the customers businesses must understand their customers’ culture, social group and many other factors. Understanding these factors helps businesses to draw an effective marketing plan in order to satisfy the needs and wants of their customers in more efficient way. Another reason for increase the importance of the study of customer buying behaviour is intense pace globalization. According to Nargunkar (2008), globalization has changed the way the businesses operate and target their customers. As more and more businesses are operating in more than one country, they need to understand the different cultures and characteristics of their customers. As businesses grow geographically, their customer bases change and the needs of customers in one country varies from the needs of the customers in another country. Therefore, the study of consumer buying behaviour is essential in order to target all the customers in all different geographical areas. In addition, studying the consumer buying behaviour is essential especially in conditions of fierce competition in the market. As the number of companies in the same industry which offer the similar or even the same products or services to the customers, these businesses need to target the right segment. To make this happen, it is important to understand the buying behaviour of the customers Lancaster et al (2002). Another factor leading to the importance of learning customer buying behaviour is rapid advancements in the technology. Due to the development of information technologies and IT systems, learning the customer buying behaviour has become more practical and easier. It is also stated that the large and multinational businesses are investing significantly on improvements of their…]]> https://research-methodology.net/the-model-of-goal-directed-behaviour/ Fri, 15 Feb 2013 00:17:54 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3142 The Model of Goal Directed Behaviour has been developed on the basis of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. This model “views the fundamental components of the theory of planned behaviour with respect to goals rather than behaviours” (Hagger and Chatzisarantis, 2009, p.36).   Desire plays an integral role in The Model of Goal Directed Behaviour in a way that it is perceived to be stronger predictor compared to attitudes and subjective norms (Sutton, 1998). Explaining application of the model in practical levels Erasmus et al. (2001) explain that markets need to study primary desires of their target customer segment so that product and services can be developed to satisfy this desire or give the perception of satisfaction of the desire.   References  Erasmus, A. C., Boshoff, E. and Rousseau, G.G.(2001). “Consumer decision-making models within the discipline of consumer science: a critical approach”, Journal of Family Ecology and Consumer Sciences. 2001(29) Hagger, M. & Chatzisarantis, N. (2007) “Social Psychology of Exercise and Sport” McGraw-Hill International Sutton, S. (1998) “Predicting and explaining intentions and behaviour: how well we are doing? Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28, pp. 1317-1318]]> https://research-methodology.net/the-theory-of-trying/ Thu, 14 Feb 2013 01:16:52 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3141 The Theory of Trying promoted by Bagozzi and Warsaw (1990) focuses on the assessment of trying to act. In other words, in theory of trying “an attitude toward a reasoned action is replaced by an attitude toward trying and an intention is restricted to an intention to try” (Carsrud et al., 2009, p.155). In theory of trying Bagozzi and Warsaw (1990) divide goals into two categories: intermediate and end-state goals.   In relation to this theory Gould et al. (1997) have identified two main reasons of why consumers may fail to try to consume. Firstly, consumers may fail to consider the options available to them. Secondly, consumers may consciously refrain from buying for various reasons.   References  Bagozzi, R. & Warsaw, L. (1990) “Trying to Consumer” Journal of Consumer Research 17, (2) pp. 127 – 140. Carsrud, A., Brannback, M., Elfving, J. & Brandt, K. (2009) “Motivations: The Entrepreneurial Mind and Behaviour” in Understanding the Entrepreneurial Mind: Opening the Black Box, editors Carsrud, A. & Brannback, M.]]> https://research-methodology.net/cognitive-approach-to-consumer-behaviour/ Wed, 13 Feb 2013 01:14:28 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3139 The cognitive approach to consumer behaviour perceives individuals as ‘information processors’ (Ribeaux and Poppleton, 1978) acknowledging the impact of environment and social experience in the processing of information. The development of cognitive psychology in general is credited with the introduction of Stimulus-Organism-Response model by Hebb in 1950s. According to Stimulus-Organism-Response model there is a linear relationship between the impact of stimuli on inactive organism, and as a result of the impact the organism responses in a certain manner (Cziko, 2000). However, this model has been subjected to criticism, notably by Tyagi (2004) and Kahle and Close (2006), and the criticism relates to the idea that Stimulus-Organism-Response model does not take into account the past experiences of the organism.   References  Cziko, G. (2000) “The Things We Do: Using the Lessons of Bernard and Darwin to Understand the What, How, and Why of Our Behaviour” Massachusets, MIT Press Kahle L.R. and Close, A. (2006) “Consumer Behaviour Knowledge for Effective Sports and Event Marketing”, Taylor & Francis, New York, USA]]> https://research-methodology.net/behaviourist-approach-to-consumer-behaviour/ Tue, 12 Feb 2013 01:13:51 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3138 According to behaviourist approach to human behaviour is depended to external events, and importantly, a specific pattern of behaviour can be learned because of external factors (Wiedmann et al., 2007). Advocates of behaviourist approach refer to famous behavioural experiments involving dogs and the impact of external environment on their behaviour conducted by Pavlov (1849-1936) to justify the validity of the approach.   However, Schiffman et al. (2007) argue that while to behaviourist approach to human behaviour has adequate level of relevance to modern marketplace it is not able to explain the issues of consumer behaviour thoroughly on its own.   References  Schiffman, L., Hansen H. and Kanuk L. (2007) “Consumer Behaviour: A European Outlook”, London: Pearson Education Wiedmann, K., Hennigs, N. and Siebels, A. (2007) “Measuring Luxury consumer perception: A cross-culture framework”, Academy of Marketing Science review, 2007(7)]]> https://research-methodology.net/economic-man-approach-to-consumer-behaviour/ Sun, 10 Feb 2013 01:05:53 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=3135 The economic man approach to consumer behaviour perceives consumers to be highly rational and adequate engaging in economic transactions in a beneficial manner for self-interest (Tyagi, 2004). According to this principle consumer rational behaviour includes being aware of all alternative options, as well as, having knowledge of advantages and disadvantages associated with each option (Kahle and Close, 2006).   Blackwell et al. (2006) adopt a sceptical approach to the level of applicability of economic man theory in today’s marketplace in practical levels arguing that nowadays consumers are more tempted to make ‘irrational’ purchase decisions due to the highly sophisticating levels of marketing strategies.   References  Blackwell, R., Miniard, P. and Engel, J. (2006) “Consumer behavior”, Mason: Thompson Kahle L.R. and Close, A. (2006) “Consumer Behaviour Knowledge for Effective Sports and Event Marketing”, Taylor & Francis, New York, USA Tyagi, C. and Kumar, A. (2004) “Consumer Behaviour”, Atlantic Publishers, US]]> https://research-methodology.net/multiple-stream-model-of-policy-and-its-application-to-tesco-packaging-policy/ Fri, 04 Jan 2013 01:56:01 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=2871 Multiple Stream Model developed by Kingdon (1984), on the basis of refining garbage can framework, represents an alternative approach to policy process and perceives it in terms of three different streams: a problem stream, policy stream to address the problem, and the political stream. According to this theoretical framework “the streams are usually independent, but windows of opportunity sometime open that allow for the streams to interact” (Crank, 2003, p.35). First, the problem stream relates to the source of the issue that necessitates introduction of a policy. As it has been partially discussed above, the problem stream for Tesco packaging policy is directly related to increasing status of sustainability issues in media, and consequently consumers in UK and elsewhere becoming more sensitive towards the issues related to sustainable development. Second, the policy stream involves evaluations and analysis of a wide range of policy ideas and proposals directed to the solution of the problem. In Tesco, the policy to be adopted as a response to the problem needed to balance the profitability of business operations with the creation of ‘green’ image fir the brand. In other words, Tesco strategic level management faced with the task of positioning the company as a ‘green’ in a cost effective manner. Third, the political stream includes various elements such as relevant government legislation, the influence of various non-government organisations and pressure groups and others. It is important to mention that while UK government encourages multinational business such as Tesco to behave in a socially responsible manner, there is a lack of legislation that specifies the extent of ‘greenness’ businesses need to adhere to (Horrigan, 2010). Therefore, Tesco possesses a great level of freedom in terms of government legislation when formulating its packaging policy. However, there are additional elements of political stream such as non-government organisations…]]> https://research-methodology.net/consumer-decision-making-process/ Wed, 29 Aug 2012 08:34:46 +0000 http://research-methodology.net/?p=1994 Consumer decision making process comprises five stages: need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase and post-purchase behaviour. Marketing managers attempt to influence consumer behaviour during each of these stages as it has been discussed below in a greater detail.   Need Recognition Need recognition is the first stage of consumer decision making process and it can be explained as “result of an imbalance between actual and desired needs” (Lamb et al, 2011, p.190). Interestingly, need recognition may relate to actual need of a perspective customer to a specific product or service, as well as, ‘perceived’ customer need imposed by businesses through effective marketing communication strategies. Specifically, the emergence of the latter form of customer need plays an integral role in customer impulse shopping, and accordingly retailers attempt to create a ‘need’ in customer’s mind for the products and services they are offering. For instance, ‘imposed’ needs in retail environment may include ‘need’ to be refreshed and energised by consuming a range of soft drinks and energy drinks sold by retailers, as well as, ‘need’ to follow fashion trends by purchasing specific items sold by retailers.   Information Search The second stage of consumer decision making process relates to information search. Once a need is recognised by a perspective customer, he would seek for information about the available ways to satisfy the need. It is important to stress that “the extent to which the consumer needs to search for information depends on his current information levels and the perceived value of the additional information” (Pradhan, 2009, p.123). Customers are greatly influenced by marketing strategies of retailers during this stage of the decision – making process as well. Namely, retailers communicate information about the brand through various communication channels that might include any combination of advertising, direct marketing, public relations and…]]>