Personality reflects individual differences that determine how people respond to their environment and can be used to segment consumers, though it also depends on social relationships and can change over time. Common personality theories include Freudian concepts of the id, ego, and superego, traits like innovativeness, and how self-image relates to brand preferences and choices that express the self. Marketers aim to understand personality to develop targeted products and appeals that relate to consumers' traits, needs, and self-perceptions.

1. Personality and
Consumer Behavior

2. What Is Personality
 The inner psychological characteristics that
determine and reflect how a person responds to his
or her environment.
 Personality is a useful concept because it permit us
to categorize consumers into different groups on
the basis of one or even several traits/Qualities.
 If each person were different in terms of all
personality traits, it would be impossible to group
consumers into segments,
 and that would be very difficult to marketers to
develop products and promotional campaigns for
targeted to particular segments.

3. The Nature of Personality

Personality reflects individual differences: No two individuals
are exactly similar. however, many individuals may be similar in terms of a single
personality characteristic but not in terms of others. Like some have willing to accept
the risk of buying new launch product on the other hand some are afraid to buy a
recently introduced products.

Personality is dependable and continuing: Marketers cannot
change consumers personalities to conform to their products, if they know which
personality characteristics influence specific consumer responses, they can just
attempt to appeal to the relevant traits inherent in their target group of consumers.

Personality can change: Under certain circumstance personalities
change. Like an individuals personality may be altered by major life events, such as
marriage, the birth of a child, the death of a parent, or a change of job/profession.
Personality is changed also as part of a gradual maturing process of body or age.

4. Theories of Personality
 Freudian theory
 Unconscious needs or drives are at the heart of
human motivation

Neo-Freudian personality theory

Social relationships are essential to the
formation and development of personality
 Trait theory
 Quantitative approach to personality as a set of
psychological traits

5. 1. Freudian Theory
 This theory was built on the basis of unconscious needs or force, especially for
sexual and other natural drives, are at the heart of human motivation and
personality

. Freud constructed his theory on the basis of patients recollections of early
childhood experiences, analysis of their dreams, and the specific nature of their
mental and physical adjustment problems.
 Human personality consists of three interacting systems the id, the superego, and
the ego.
 Id
 Warehouse of ancient needs for which individual seeks immediate
satisfaction(thirst, hunger etc)

Superego
 The superego role is to see that the individual satisfies needs in a socially
acceptable fashion or not.
 Ego

It is Individual’s conscious control that balances the unstructured demands of
the id and the sociocultural control of the superego.

6. Freudian Theory and “Product Personality”

Consumer researchers using Freud’s
personality theory just to see consumer
purchases/or consumption situations as a
reflection and an extension of the consumers
own personality.

In other words, they consider the consumers
appearance through clothing, jewellary, and
so forth –as these items reflect the
individuals personality in terms of their paying
capacity and requirement of variety of
product.

7. 2. Neo-Freudian Personality Theory

This theory believed that social relationships are basic to the
formation and development of personality. Human beings as
wants to achieve various rational goals, which he called style
of life. He also place much emphasis on the individuals
efforts to overcome feelings of inferiority.
 According to proposed that individuals be classified into three
personality groups:
1. Complaint individuals are those who move toward
others(they desire to be loved, wanted and appreciated)
2. Aggressive individuals are those who move against others
(they desire to do extremely well and win high regard)
3. Detached individuals are those who move away from
others (they desire independence, self- sufficiency, and
individualism or freedom from responsibility)

8. 3. Trait Theory
 Trait theory concerned with the construction of
personality tests that allow them to pinpoint
individual differences in terms of specific traits.
 A trait is defined as any unique, comparatively
continuing way in which one individual differs from
another.

Some traits are consumer innovativeness (how
interested a person is to new experiences),
consumer materialism(the degree of the
consumers attachment to mature possessions)
and consumer ethnocentrism (the consumers
likelihood to accept or reject foreign made
products)

9. Trait Theory
Personality traits that have been useful in determine
consumer innovators and noninnovators
 Innovativeness  The degree to which

Dogmatism consumers are
interested to new
 Social character products, new services,
 Variety-novelty seeking or new practices

10. Trait Theory
Personality traits that have been useful in determine
consumer innovators and noninnovators

Innovativeness  A personality trait that
 Dogmatism reflects the degree of
 Social character strictness a person
displays toward the

Variety-novelty seeking unfamiliar product and
information that is
different to his or her own
established beliefs

11. Trait Theory
Personality traits that have been useful in determine consumer
innovators and noninnovators
 Innovativeness  Ranges on a variety for inner-
 Dogmatism directedness to other-
directedness

Social character
 Inner-directedness

Variety-novelty seeking

rely on own values when
evaluating products

Other-directedness

look to others when evaluating
products

12. Trait Theory
Personality traits that have been useful in determine consumer
innovators and noninnovators
 Measures a consumer’s degree of variety
seeking
 Examples include:
 Exploratory Purchase Behavior( e.g.
switching brands to experience new,

Innovativeness different, and possibly better alternatives)
 Dogmatism  Use Innovativeness( e.g. without securing
information about a new or different
alternative and directly considering the
 Social character option)
Variety-novelty seeking Vicarious Exploration ( e.g. securing


information about a new or different
alternative and then consider the option)

13. Cognitive Personality Factors
 Need for cognition (NC)

Consumer who are high in NC are more likely to be responsive to
the part of an ad that is rich in product-related information or
explanation; consumers who are relatively low in NC are more likely
to be attracted to the background or peripheral aspects of an ad,
such as an attractive model or well known celebrity.

Visualizers versus verbalizers
 Consumers who preference visual information
and products that stress the visual graphics
and images.

Verbalizers prefer visual information written or
verbal information

14. Consumer Ethnocentrism
 Consumer who are highly ethnocentric are
likely to feel that it is inappropriate or wrong
to purchase foreign-made products because
of the resulting economic impact on the
domestic economy, whereas
 Nonethnocentric consumers tend to
evaluate foreign-made products- it seems
that more objectively-for their extrinsic
characteristics (e.g. how good are they?)

15. This ad is
designed to
appeal to
consumer
ethno-
centrism.

16. Brand Personality
 Personality-like traits associated with brands

Examples
 Nike and athlete
 BMW is performance driven
 Levi’s 501 jeans are reliable and rough

Brand personality which is strong and favorable will
strengthen a brand but not necessarily demand a
best price

17. A Brand Personality Framework
That framework reflects, extensive consumer research designed to pinpoint the
structure and nature of a brands personality. The framework suggests that there
are five defining dimensions of a brands personality and 15 facets of personality
that flow from the five dimensions. If we review these brand personality
dimensions and facets, it appears that this framework ends to hold the brand
personalities follow by many consumer product.

18. Marketers
often use a
untrue
location to
help with
personality.

19. The Personality-like Associations of Colors
• America’s favored color
• IBM holds the title to blue
• Associated with club soda
• Men seek products packaged in blue
BLUE Commands • Houses painted blue are avoided
respect, authority • Low-calorie, skim milk
care, newness, • Eyes register it faster
• Coffee in yellow can perceived as “weak”
temporary, heat
YELLOW • Stops traffic
• Sells a house
Secure, natural, • Good work environment
• Associated with vegetables and chewing gum
relaxed or easy-
• Canada Dry ginger sales increased when it
GREEN going, living changed sugar-free package from red to green
things and white

20. Human, exciting, • Makes food “smell” better
hot, passionate, • Coffee in a red can perceived as “rich”
RED strong • Women have a preference for bluish red
• Men have a preference for yellowish red
• Coca-Cola “owns” red
Powerful, •Draws attention quickly
ORANGE
affordable, informal
Informal and •Coffee in a dark-brown can was “too
BROWN
relaxed, masculine, strong”
nature •Men seek products packaged in brown
•Suggests reduced calories
Goodness, purity,
chastity, •Pure and wholesome food
WHITE
cleanliness, •Clean, bath products, feminine
delicacy,
refinement,
Sophistication, •Powerful clothing
BLACK formality
power, authority, •High-tech electronics
mystery
SILVER, Regal, wealthy, •Suggests premium price
Copyright 2007 by Prentice Hall
GOLD stately

21. Self and Self-Image
 A self-images, or perceptions of self, are very
closely associated with personality in that
individuals tend to buy products and services and
support retailers whose images or personalities
relate in some meaningful way to their own self-
images.
 In real meaning, consumers seek to represent
themselves in their brand choices-they have a
tendency to approach products with images that
could enhance their self concept and avoid those
products that do not.

22. This product
appeals to
a man’s
self-image.

23. The Marketing Concept
Issues Related to
Self and Self-Image

One or multiple  A single consumer will act
selves differently in different
 Makeup of the self- situations or with different
image people

We have a variety of social
 Extended self roles

Altering the self-  Marketers can target
image products to a particular
“self”

24. The Marketing Concept
Issues Related to
Self and Self-Image
 One or multiple selves

Contains traits, skills, habits,
possessions, relationships and
 Makeup of the self
way of behavior
-image 
Developed through background,

Extended self experience,and interaction with

Altering the self- others
image 
Consumers select products
matching with this image

25. Different Self-Images
Actual Self-
Ideal Self-Image
Image
Ideal Social
Social Self-Image
Self-Image
Expected
Self-Image

26. The Marketing Concept
Issues Related to
Self and Self-Image
 One or multiple  Possessions can extend self
selves in a number of ways:

Actually

Makeup of the self- 
Symbolically
image 
Conferring status or rank
 Extended self 
Bestowing feelings of
immortality

Altering the self- 
Endowing with magical
image powers

27. The Marketing Concept
Issues Related to
Self and Self-Image
 One or multiple  Consumers use self-
selves altering products to

Makeup of the self- express individualism by

Creating new self
image 
Maintaining the existing
 Extended self self

Altering the self

Extending the self

Conforming
-image