1. Consumer Needs and Motivation
“A person is said to be motivated when his or her system is
energized (aroused), made active and behaviour is directed
towards a desired goal”.
Before we go in deep, let us know the place of motivation in
Buying Behaviour. Following diagram (3.1) shows that a given
instance of buying behaviour is the result of three factors multi
plied by each other, the ability to buy something, the
opportunity to buy it and the motivation i.e. the wish, the need
or the desire to do so.
2. It is important for marketers to realize that motivation is only one of
the essential elements that contributes to buying behaviour as given
in Fig. 3.1. No amount of love or money or other incentives could
motivate the person who is not able to walk.
Similarly, if a shopkeeper is offering sale on all the items but he/she
opens on weekdays only upto 6.00 p.m. In this case even if people
are motivated but the shopkeeper is giving very little opportunity to
act on their motivation.
Similarly, suppose a company is offering a new product line and
spending much on heavy advertisement, company is not ensuring
whether the products are available in all the outlets.
3. Needs, Goals and Motives:
Motivation can also be described as the driving force within individuals that impels
them to action. As shown in the figure 3.2, this driving force is the result of
tension, which in turn is because of unfulfilled needs. To reduce tension, every
individual strives for fulfilling their needs. This basically, depends on each
individual how they fulfill their needs i.e. individual thinking and learning
(experiences). Therefore, marketers try to influence the consumer’s cognitive
processes.
4. Needs:
Every individual has needs, they are innate and acquired. Innate
needs are also called physiological needs or primary needs which
include food, water, air, shelter or sex, etc. Acquired needs are
those needs that we learn from our surroundings / environment or
culture. These may include need for power, for affection, for
prestige, etc. These are psychological in nature; therefore they are
also called as secondary needs.
Needs:
Every individual has needs, they are innate and acquired. Innate
needs are also called physiological needs or primary needs which
include food, water, air, shelter or sex, etc. Acquired needs are
those needs that we learn from our surroundings / environment or
culture. These may include need for power, for affection, for
prestige, etc. These are psychological in nature; therefore they are
also called as secondary needs.
5. From marketer point of view, there are four types of goals:
(a) Generic goals:
General classes of goals that consumers select to fulfill their needs.
For example, need for washing hands.
(b) Product specific goals:
or washing hands what kind of product is used. For example, use
soap, liquids etc.
(c) Brand specific goals:
For example, which soap – Lux, Pears etc., to be purchased.
(d) Store specific goals:
From where that product must be purchased.
6. Goal Selection:
The goals selected by individuals depend on their personal
experiences, physical capacity, goal’s accessibility in the physical and
social environment and above all the individual’s cultural norms and
values. For example, if a person has a strong hunger need, his/her
goal will depend on what is available at that moment, in which
country he is i.e., if in India cannot eat steak, as it is against his
values and beliefs. He will have to select a substitute goal which is
more appropriate to the social environment.
An individual’s own perception of his/her also influence the
selection of the goal. The products a person owns, would like to
own, or would not like to own are often perceived in terms of how
closely they are congruent with the person’s self image. It is seen
that usually that product is selected by an individual which has a
greater possibility of being selected than one that is not.
7. Motives:
Consumer researchers have given two types of motives-
rational motives and irrational (emotional) motives. They
say, that consumers behave rationally when they
consider all alternatives and choose those that give them
the greatest utility. This is also known as economic man
theory.
Marketers meaning of rationality is when consumers
select goals based on totally objective criteria such as
size, weight or price, etc. Emotional motives imply the
selection of goals according to personal or subjective
criteria. For example, desire for status, individuality, fear
of owning the product (from society), pride, affection,
etc.
8. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
Human needs tend to be diverse in content as well as in length. Dr.
Abraham Maslow has formulated a widely accepted theory of
human motivation based on hierarchy of human needs which is
universally accepted. He has stated five basic levels of human
needs which rank in order of importance from lower level
(psychological) needs to highest level (physiological) needs.
This theory suggests that all individuals try to satisfy the lower
level needs before higher level needs emerge. The lower level of
unsatisfied needs that an individual experiences serves to
motivate his or her behavior. When this need is satisfied, then a
higher level need emerges and again tension appears. To reduce
this tension, the individual gets motivated and fulfills it. When this
need is satisfied, a new i.e., higher need emerges and the process
goes on in the life span of an individual.
9.
10. Physiological Needs:
This is the first and most basic level of needs which are called
Physiological needs. These needs are also called primary needs,
which are required for sustenance namely food, water, air, shelter,
clothing, sex (all biogenic needs). According to Maslow,
physiological needs are dominant when they are chronically
unsatisfied. For example, a man who is very hungry, then no other
thing interests him than food. He dreams food, he remembers
food and he perceives only food.
Safety Needs:
After the physiological needs are fulfilled, safety and security
needs become the driving force behind an individual’s behaviour.
These are concerned with physical safety, for example, order,
stability, familiarity, routine, control over one’s life and
environment, and certainty, etc. This means a person will eat
lunch not only that day but also every day far into the future.
11. (1) Physiological — housing, food, drink, clothing.
(2) Safety — insurance, burglar alarms (Wesco, Auto cop), Fire
alarms, cars with air bags.
(3) Self-esteem — high status brands, goods or services like owning
microwave etc.
(4) Social — greeting cards, holiday packages, team sports
equipment.
(5) Self actualization — educational services etc.
Consumer choice is very important in satisfying all these needs,
even the physiological ones is of particular importance to marketing.
We can see that how the cola companies have replaced themselves
with tap water to quench people’s thirst. And in particular why
choose Coke rather than Pepsi or vice versa. It is also important to
note that many products can be used to satisfy several different
levels of needs for example- a car, a book, telephone etc.
12. Critics to Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Level:
(1) Concepts are too general:
It is said that hunger and self-esteem are considered to be similar
needs but the former is urgent and involuntary in nature whereas
latter is a conscious and voluntary type.
(2) This theory cannot be tested empirically:
This means that there is no way to measure precisely how satisfied
one need must be before the next higher need becomes active.
Need hierarchy is also used for the basis of market segmentation
with specific advertising appeals directed to individuals on one or
more need levels. For example- cigarette ads, soft drink ads etc.,
often stress a social appeal by showing a group of young people
sharing good times as well as the product advertised. It is also used
for positioning products policies, education and vocational training
etc.
13. Social Needs:
he third level of Maslow’s hierarchy includes such needs as love, affection, belonging and
acceptance. Advertisers of personal care products often emphasize all these social motives
in their advertisements.
Egoistic Needs:
This is the fourth level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. According to Maslow, this becomes
operative when the social needs of a person are more or less satisfied. Egoistic needs can
be inward or outward or both oriented.
Self-Actualization:
This was not coined by Maslow but was done by Gestalt theorist called Kurt Goldstein but
he popularized it. Maslow explained the term, in brief, by saying that individual at this
stage has need to actualize or realize all of one’s unique potential and what one can be.
This need can never be fulfilled, moreover, very few of the people reached this level. The
more self actualized people become, the more they want to become. This is a motivation
with its own inner dynamic.
