Onsumer behaviour and decision making Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Onsumer behaviour and decision making - Essay Example It is only a few decades back that consumer behavior emerged as a highly specialized area under marketing. â€Å"Consumer Behaviour is a branch which deals with the various stages a consumer goes through before purchasing products or services for his end use.† (Management Study Guide, 2012) There wasn’t the concept of consumer behavior when Ford started making their cars on assembly line. The only color that the customers could get then on the car was black. But as and when industrialization happened and more and more products came into the market, companies started focusing on the desire and need of the customers. This became more important with the beginning of globalization and when companies started cross border business. The concepts that the marketers were focusing on was market segmentation, targeting and positioning. But in the recent years, the marketing practitioners are puzzled about these concepts. They are doubtful whether these traditional concepts are val id for current marketing environment. The objective of this essay is to analyse the situation in the light of these concepts in the current environment and advise the marketers for the best way to approach customers. Traditional Marketing Practices Segmentation, targeting and positioning are three core concepts of traditional marketing practices. Marketers have been focusing on these concepts to the core of understanding the consumer behaviour and introducing products that the customers want. Segmentation: Market segmentation is the process of identifying and targeting the right customers. â€Å"It is about identifying the specific needs and wants of customer groups and then using those insights into providing products and services which meet customer needs.† (Riley, 2010) Marketers segment the market because the needs and wants differ from one customer to the other. But there definitely can be a group with common characteristics which is in other words called a segment. The most common kinds of segmentation are geographic, demographic, behavioural and psychographic. Geographic segmentation groups customers based on customer location and region. Demographic segmentation does it based on age, gender, occupation, and other demographic factors. Behavioural segmentation divides customers based on the customer behaviours and psychographic segmentation does it based on the personality and lifestyle of the customers. Debates have emerged recently regarding the relevance of market segmentation in the modern marketing environment. The behavioral aspects of customers are changing in such a way that they are not limited by the demographic, lifestyle, or other segmentation factors. An example for this is the initial failure of the world’s cheapest car Tata Nano. Tata segmented the market and targeted the Nano car to the common man. Least importance was given to value of the product. But when the car was actually launched in the market, it made terrible low s ales. When the company made a post launch market study, it was understood that the customers does not want a car that is of least value and the one that is tagged as a cheapest car. The company now revamped the car and entirely changed its marketing strategy and experienced success. (Cleveland, 2011) Targeting: Targeting is the activity that follows segmentation. Targeting is the process of aiming the market that has been identified through the segmentation process. â€Å"Target Marketing refers to a concept in marketing which

Target market of wine coolesrs in argentina Essay

Target market of wine coolesrs in argentina - Essay Example They are the teenagers who like to drink such wine coolers so that they can look cool, trendy and hip. It is essentially a style statement that they like to carry with them so that they can be taken as lively and attractive at all times. The focus for the wine cooler business should therefore rest on individuals who like to move ahead with life on the go. They are exploring new things, finding novel pathways and understanding the intricacies related with style and comfort. Within Argentina, the target market would include both male and female drinkers since they are within the teenager category. They like to drink such wine coolers so that they can be considered ‘in’ and trendy more than any other opinion that can be made out of them. The target market therefore is very essential to estimate before the business can be opened up and the people are offered the wine coolers for their purchase. If the primary target market is analyzed and locked upon properly within Argentina, it is always easier to know what the secondary and tertiary target markets would be for the sake of the wine cooler business. Since the wine coolers do not fall essentially under the category of the wine itself, they can be drunk by individuals who are not into hard drinks. This is the reason why people who are not into drinking can be taken as the right target market, and hence all out efforts could be made to sell the wine cooler products towards them (Author Unknown, 2011). The business would then be narrowed down in terms of finding and then sending the wine coolers to the exact target audiences. There would be minimal wastage which is any business’ dream in this day and age. In the past as well, wine coolers have been made at home so the element of starting a new business could be seen as something that can take place at a very low level. The important thing is to know the exact target market so that the wine

Euthanasia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Euthanasia - Essay Example According to my survey, it is apparent that quite a number of people have little understanding of euthanasia and are adamant to embrace the practice. In an attempt to elucidate the opinion of the people and evaluate their propositions about euthanasia, a survey was done. The survey targeted twenty respondents who were required to answer fifteen questions based on the topic of euthanasia. To prevent any inconveniences to the respondents, the survey took approximately ten to fifteen minutes per respondent. The questions were framed in such a manner that one question led to a more deeper and specific question. The responses were brief, most of them having yes/no questions, while some required some brief explanations. No personal data was supposed to be provided in the survey forms in order to protect their confidentiality. The questions were brief, simple and clear so that the respondent clearly understands what the questions involved. Majority of the people interviewed have some basic understanding of euthanasia. Fourteen out of the twenty respondents could distinguish euthanasia and assisted suicide. The reasons given by the respondents about the differences were justifiable, a situation that demonstrated that they understood some aspects of the practice. The basis of assisted suicide as revealed by most of the respondents relates to a person wishing to die. In addition, it is not done to escape a painful and incurable situation. True to the fact that euthanasia is a controversial issue, most of the respondents believe that the practice is not ethically justifiable, nobody among the group stood for the ethical justification. However, lack of experience in having people who were willing to be euthanized among majority of the respondents revealed that, they didn’t really comprehend the magnitude of the situation facing these people. Only two among the twenty had an experience with an individual willing to be euthanized. Euthanasia is one of the practices th at are common in the media. A whooping majority, seventeen out of twenty respondents confessed having never heard or read about the practice in the media. This presents the situation as minor, because if it were a major issue many would have read about euthanasia in the print media and heard through the electronic media. Euthanasia does not appear to be one of the emerging issues neither is it a problem that has been given a lot of attention. However, the fact that a few individuals have heard and read about the practice is enough evidence to reveal that Euthanasia is not any strange around us. Death and pain are resented aspects according the findings of the survey. The majority of the people was of the opinion that life is extremely important and should be protected at all costs. A substantial majority of the people said they would prefer having a person who helps another in committing suicide be prosecuted. In addition, they would not support a death sentence for such an offender but they supported the argument of the legal system handling the case appropriately. However, considering the sensitivity of the cases presented, a majority are of the opinion that euthanasia should be made legal in some cases. This proves the understanding of the people about euthanasia and the opinion they have towards unbearable pain and