Introduction
The consumer’s behavior analysis is a marketing action that deals with the decision-making process of a buyer and argues to generate a framework of his choice including the factors that influence mental and social processes. The theories of consumer’s behavior address, why a buyer would choose a particular product or brand over other substitutes, what is the process of building his choice, and how the companies practice with the knowledge to influence the consumer’s behavior. This paper would go to investigate consumer behavior for a hypothetical company Titanic. To doing so, the paper would address relevant theories of consumer behavior with empirical evidence from Titanic and provides justification of two aspects of consumer behavior that would bring competitive advantages for Titanic.
Background of the company
The consumer product is a service, a hypothetical restaurant, called Titanic. This restaurant is unique in its idea and conception with a selling point that allows it to differentiate itself. The restaurant provides a hybrid and mixes of various cultural experiences under one roof. While most restaurants are more focused on the food, Titanic will focus on the culture and ambiance of the restaurant as well as the food.
The idea is for the restaurant to form a complete experience for the consumers with three separate cultures – Arab, Indian and Mexico found under one roof. Since there is a diverse demographic the restaurant is aiming at, the segments can be very specific such as families from the countries who miss their own homeland, or people who are actually fond of a new experience. The selling point is to convince the people to see it as a whole experience of adventure rather than just-food. However, the unique idea of mixing these cultures and providing a much more dynamic and interacting experience will allow Titanic to acquire a competitive advantage.
Relevant theories of consumer behavior
Among the different theories of motivation to measure consumer behaviour which is essential issue in this paper, has been discussed as below:
- Maslow’s theories
- Freud’s theory of motivation
Maslow’s Theory
Abraham Maslow has introduced the theory of needs of people, which is known as Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory. As a psychologist, Maslow has pointed out five needs of individuals, which has shown with the help of the figure given below:
Physiological Needs
When the individual feels the need for food, drink, accommodation, sexual satisfaction, and other physical needs, these are the physiological needs. These needs are biological needs, which are derived from biogenic human needs. The feeling of discomfort, hunger, and thirst are also these kinds of needs.
As Titanic is providing the services of restaurants, like all other production industries, it also has to provide tangible services to the customers, like food, drink, shelter, physical satisfaction or meeting the demand of hunger, etc. Here, the provided services are separated from the consumption. For example, the foods, which are cooked by the special chefs of the restaurant, must be healthy and also tasty. The drinking water, or other drinks provided by it must be hygienic and pure.
Safety Needs
When the individual feels for security or protection from any harms, like physical or mental, are considering as safety needs. These needs are derived from the psychogenic needs of humans. After filling up the physiological needs, safety needs arise in an individual’s mind.
In this part, customers demand security and protection more than physical appearances. The customers of Titanic must be ensured with the protection of any kind of harm to the indoor environment of the restaurant.
Social Needs
When the individual feels the needs for liking, belongingness, acceptance, care, and friendliness, are considering as social needs. These are also psychogenic needs and are only derived when the safety needs are met up.
Titanic has to focus on affection, acceptance, and friendship with other customers. As it is seen, Titanic is mainly focused on minimizing cultural differences among Indians, Mexican, and Arabian. They are improving not only the services but also the cultural differences.
Esteem Needs
When the individual feels the needs for internal factors like, self-respect, autonomy, achievement, and some external factors like, status, recognition, and attention, are considered as esteem needs. When the social needs of any individual are fulfilled, and then he/she may feel the needs for esteemed.
Titanic is mainly focusing on the social needs of customers, not on the esteem and self-actualization needs, but not also totally ignoring these needs.
Self Actualisation Needs
It is the top and steeper level of Maslow’s Hierarchy, which is considering when an individual feels the need for becoming what he/she is capable of being in life, is self-actualization needs. When the esteem needs are fulfilled, then these needs are derived and in this stage, fewer numbers people are feeling about this need.
Freud’s Theory of Motivation
By the following figure, the theory of motivation of Sigmund Freud is given below:
Marketing Stimuli
The marketing stimuli are those factors, which are the main concern of any business to continue its operations further. Without these stimuli, the business can not continue, like products and services, which are produced and delivered to customers, the pricing of products or services, the way of distribution to provide products and services, and the way of communications between customers and personnel.
Titanic has to focus on the marketing stimuli, like products and services provided to customers, pricing differences from main competitors, the way to distribute services to the customers, and communications between customers and personnel of Titanic.
Other Stimuli
Besides the marketing stimuli, there are some other stimuli, like economical consideration of the region where the business is operating, the technological factors to improve the products or service features and to being up dated in the market, political factors; the governmental regulations and political barriers to the business, and lastly, the cultural aspects of customers, their habits and habitats according with the business.
In other stimuli, the political, economical, technological and cultural analysis is important issues according to Titanic. As Titanic focuses on the cultural aspects between customers, so, as stimuli, it can trigger it up between different customers and their cultures.
Consumer Psychology
Marketing and other stimuli is driving consumers’ psychology, like their motivation about the products and services, perception about the brand, and memory of brand recognition and recall.
In this part, consumers’ psychology according to the restaurant is main focus area on this theory. As Titanic takes culture as competitive advantages, so it can bring up consumers’ psychology by meeting up the differences between three cultures, which are Indian, Mexican and Arabian.
Consumer Characteristics
There can be three types of consumers’ characters, which are personal, social and cultural. Personal is what customers think in individual way about the products, what is family and societal impacts of the products are the social and lastly the culture of region is also considered.
All know that, consumers are driven by the culture, social and personal characteristics in any business. Titanic is focusing on the cultural characteristics rather than social and personal. To meet up the differences among cultures in consumers mind is main target area of Titanic.
Buying Decision Process
After these, consumers are taking the buying decision by completing following steps:
This part is also concerned to Titanic and Titanic would involve to influence the decision making process of its consumers through its marketing efforts.
Purchase Decision
After the buying decision, consumers are taking purchase decision by evaluating product, brand or dealer choice, purchase amount and timing, and payment methods. Here Titanic keeps its uniqueness and cost effectiveness to draw customers attention.
Justification of Consumer Behaviour for Titanic
Titanic, as a restaurant, which has main concern on solving the cultural differences among customers; here, some impacts of motivational justification previously discussed in this paper, are given with examples and brief description.
Group behaviour of Customers
Sciffman, L., & Kanuk, L., (2007) stated that a group is a combination of two or more people who interact with one another for the purpose of personal or mutual objectives. For consumer behavior analysis, reference group is a group that is used as a point of reference. The reference group of a person has non-discontinued effect on the person’s consumption patterns, attitudes and behaviors. Peter, J. P., & Olson, J. C., (2005) argued that, it happens due to the exchange of shared meanings within the reference group. They further argued that the reference group can exert both positive and negative influences on consumers. In case of Titanic restaurant, reference groups of its consumers are very important because consumers may select restaurant on the basis of their referent persons such as friends, family members.
Culture of the Target Group (Arab, Indian and Mexico)
Sciffman, L., & Kanuk, L., (2007) argued that culture is the aggregation of learnt principles, values and way of life that exerts the consumers behaviors of any particular society’s members. Usually the marketing strategies embedded with cultural shared meanings become succeed.
The contents of Arab culture include the unwillingness to self-criticism, emphasis on shame not on conscience, religion, royalty, large gap between high-class people and low class people because of income distribution etc. The titanic restaurant can target the uppermost social class as a royal service provider or the middle class as a value for money service provider.
The contents of Indian culture include the less preference for using foreign goods, self-reliance, large gap in income distribution, and paternal family etc. The Indians are usually self-reliant and savings oriented, therefore, the titanic restaurant can position itself as a cost effective in the marketplace.
The characteristics of Mexico culture include immense riches, wealth orientation, high disposable income and dual service family. Since the country has immense riches and the disposable income of its inhabitants is very high, the titanic can position itself as a high priced restaurant service provider.
Attitudes and personality
Peter, J. P., & Olson, J. C., (2005) mentioned that attitude is a learning predilection which directs to behave consistently either in support or in opposition to a given object. They further argued that the consumers in relation with any given object might possess different attitudes based on specific situation or usage. Therefore, it is required to consider the situation that would result consumers’ behavior regarding the titanic restaurant. Because the market share of this restaurant is highly depends on building positive attitudes of consumers.
Peter, J. P., & Olson, J. C., (2005) argued that personality is the combination of internal psychological characteristics of any person that exerts and reflects how the person interacts with his environment. They further expressed that the personality of consumers usually determines how consumers respond to the promotional efforts of a product and how consume the product. Though personality is enduring but it could be changed by the influence of reference groups, use situation etc. Therefore, titanic has to ensure its consistency to its consumer’s personalities by means of service offerings and promotional activities.
Social class & Cost effectiveness
Sciffman, L., & Kanuk, L., (2007) described social class as the hierarchy of social position on which every member of the society could be placed. The main consideration of social class in consumer behavior lies on status consumption. The status consumption is the consumers’ intention to increase their social outlook through noticeable consumption and chattels. In case of titanic restaurant service, the intended social class should be specific so that the target market can choose the restaurant to enhance their hierarchical value in the society.
Cost effectiveness is highly correlated with status of consumption. Because the more wants of conspicuous consumption demonstrate more spending by the consumer and should generate more revenue for Titanic. Therefore, the restaurant Titanic should determine earlier to what social class it will serve as a cost effective one.
Motivations for Buying
For Titanic, the motivations for buying services are not the quality of the foods, but the different mixture of cultures under a certain environment. This motivation derives the foreign people of the country, who are living away from their own country and enjoying the mix cultural environment.
Motivating Forces for Titanic
In the aspect of justification of consumer behaviour model, it is discussed the culture is main motivating forces for Titanic. By minimising and using cultural differences in one restaurant is a main motivating force for it.
Going to Restaurant Rather than Cooking at Home
Titanic is concerned on the culture, so the foreign people live in the region is preferred to go to Titanic rather than cooking at home, an also those who are enjoying different environment are also like to go to it.
Friends and Family would have Strong Influence
Friends and families also impact strongly on taking the services of Titanic. As, Titanic is focusing on culture, so, family members will enjoying to go to the restaurant and learning different cultural aspects. Friends are also enjoyed by going to the new and different environment.
Conclusion
Consumer behavior, the exchange aspect which relates various personal and environmental factors, is crucial in developing a service. For the characteristics of service business, determining consumer behavior is complex too. Even so, it is the indication of success factors. However, the reference group and the status consumption along with culture mainly determine consumers’ behavior. From the above discussion, it is clear that the business of Titanic restaurant should position itself in niche markets of the targeted broad markets. Essentially it would be helpful for the management to track consumers’ behavior to make the business a success.
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