Marketing Intelligence Assignment 1

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Marketing Intelligence
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Assignment 1
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9/9/2015

Ha Hung Minh


Contents
Introduction: ............................................................................................................................ 2
1.1

Describe the main stages of the purchase decision-making process ................................ 3

5 main stages of the purchase decision-making process ........................................................ 3
Apply on Ress Pub ................................................................................................................ 6
1.2

Explain theories of buyer behavior in terms of individuals and markets ........................... 7

Black box model ................................................................................................................... 7
Personal variable models ...................................................................................................... 8
Diffusion of innovation models ............................................................................................. 9
1.3

Explain the factors that affect buyer behavior............................................................... 12

Psychological factors .......................................................................................................... 12
Motivation:..................................................................................................................... 12
Perception: ..................................................................................................................... 13
Learning: ........................................................................................................................ 15
Beliefs and attitudes: ...................................................................................................... 15
Social factors ...................................................................................................................... 16
Reference groups and membership groups :.................................................................... 16
Family: ........................................................................................................................... 17
Social roles and status:.................................................................................................... 18
Cultural factors ................................................................................................................... 18
Culture and societal environment: .................................................................................. 19
Sub-cultures: .................................................................................................................. 19
Social classes: ................................................................................................................. 20
Cultural trends:............................................................................................................... 21
Economic factors ................................................................................................................ 21
Personal Income: ............................................................................................................ 21
Family income: ............................................................................................................... 22
Income Expectations: ...................................................................................................... 22

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1.4 Evaluate the relationship between brand loyalties, corporate image and repeat
purchasing ............................................................................................................................. 22
Apply on Ress Pub .............................................................................................................. 23
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 24
Appendix:............................................................................................................................... 25
Interview............................................................................................................................ 25
References: ............................................................................................................................ 26

Introduction:
The author has an order to run a marketing research from a client who is CEO of Services and
Entertainment NNC Company. This company opened a public house named Ress Pub and they
ask me to do research about buying behavior of targeted customer. In this article, the author
will have detail analysis about buying behavior in order to help CEO have overview about
targeted customer’s buying behavior. To serve the research, the author will choose 10 random
customers in pub and create an interview.

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1.1 Describe the main stages of the purchase decisionmaking process

Ress pub was built by businessman Pham Viet Trung –CEO of Services and Entertainment NNC
Company- and opened in May, 2015. The aim was to create a place where hipsters and
teenagers have a good time to relax. Ress pub offer a range of beer, cocktail, mock tail, wines,
spirits, foods and DJ, live music. Targeted customers of Ress pub are hipsters and teenagers;
they need to find a good place to relax, entertaining after stressful work hours. Because of new
pub, Ress pub has problems about marketing. The author will give recommendation about
buying behavior through all the models and theories in marketing intelligence; it’s very

important to get the attention of targeted customers.

5 main stages of the purchase decision-making process
The author will explain 5 main stages of the purchase decision-making process, and then the
author will describe the purchase decision-making process through interviewers.
1. Need recognition/ Problems recognition

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The need recognition is the first and most important step in the buying process. Needs
recognition leads to motivation. If there is no need, there is no purchase. This recognition
happens when there is a lag between the consumer’s actual situation and the ideal and desired
one. Based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, needs have 5 types: physiological needs, safety
needs, need of love and belonging, need of esteem (for oneself and from the others), need of
self-actualization. A need can be triggered by internal and external stimuli. Internal stimuli refer
to a personal perception experienced such as hunger, thirst, knowledge, lifestyle, attitudes and
so on. External stimuli are based on outside influences such as advertising, social network,
situation, family, culture. For example, when a person feels thirsty (internal stimuli) and he sees
advertising about beverage on TV programs (external stimuli), the need recognition will appears
to resolve the problem. He needs to buy a soft drink.
2. Information search
Once the need is identified, it’s time for the consumer to find information about solutions to fix
the problem. They will search more or less information depending on the complexity of the
choices to be made but also their level of involvement. There are 2 main level of involvement:
low involvement (inexpensive) and high involvement (expensive). For example, when
consumers want to buy a pizza (low involvement), they need to find less information than by a
car. Then consumer will seek to make their opinion to guide their choice and their decision
making process with:
Internal information: this information is already present in the consumer’s memory. It comes

from previous experiences they had with a product or brand and the opinion they may have of
the brand. In consumer’s memory constitute previous experiences about product such as
exposure, attention, comprehension, acceptance, retention. For example, a consumer had buy
a bag of Converse and he feel satisfy with quality as well as the design of Converse’s bag. So, he
had a good experience of converse’s brand. Therefore, he wants to buy a shoes and he trust
about the brand of Converse. And he decide buy shoe of Converse.

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External information: This is information on a product or brand received from and obtained by
friends or family, by reviews from other consumers or from the press. There are 2 types of
external information: personal (friend, family,..) and impersonal (social network, magazines,
advertise). For example, when a consumer search information to by a car, he need to get the
suggestion of the expert person who know many brand of car and have knowledge about car.
After that, consumer will find more information on car magazines or internet.
3. Alternative evaluation
Once the information collected, consumers will be able to evaluate the different alternatives
that offer to them, evaluate the most suitable to their need and choose the one they think it’s
best for them. This evaluation process may lead to changes in beliefs, regarding the brand
which, in turn, leads to changes in attitudes and intentions to purchase. The consumer arrives
at attitudes toward different brands through some evaluation procedure. How consumers go
about evaluating purchase alternatives depends on the individual consumer and the specific
buying situation. In some cases, consumers use careful calculations and logical thinking. At
other times, the same consumers do little or no evaluating; instead they buy on impulse and
rely on intuition. Sometimes consumers make buying decisions on their own; sometimes they
turn to friends, online reviews, or salespeople for buying advice. For example,
4. Purchase decision
Now that consumer have evaluated the different solutions and products available for respond
to their need, they will be able to choose the product or brand that seems most appropriate to

their need. Then proceed to the actual purchase itself.
Consumer’s decision will depend on the information and the selection made in the previous
step or affected by such things as their previous shopping experience.
The decision also affect by unexpected situational. The consumer may form a purchase
intention based on factors such as expected income, expected price, and expected product
benefits. However, unexpected events may change the purchase intention. For example, the

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economy might take a turn for the worse; a close competitor might drop its price. Thus,
preferences and even purchase intentions do not always result in actual purchase choice.
5. Post-purchase behavior
Once the product is purchased and used, consumers will evaluate the adequacy with their
expectation original needs (those who caused the buying behavior). Whether they have made
the right choice in buying this product or not; they will feel either a sense of satisfaction for the
product (and the choice). If the product has brought satisfaction to consumers, they will
minimize stages of information search and alternative evaluation for their next purchases.

Apply on Ress Pub
Stage 1 – Need recognition: In a Saturday night, some teenagers need to hang out in order to
meet friend and relax with a cup of beer (internal stimuli, lifestyle). Another people need to find
a place because of heavy rain when they are going on the street (external stimuli, situation).
Some kind of people just feeling hungry but they are run out of money and they need to find a
free meal (physiological needs in Maslow’s hierarchy)
Stage 2 – Information search: Teenagers already have known a pub in Ta Hien Street and they
went to this pub last week (internal information). However, a friend recommended Ress Pub
because he wants to find a new place to entertaining (external information from environment).
People who need shelter because of heavy rain just find first place that they can see. People
who are hungry known Ress Pub have event Free BBQ on Saturday (knowledge)

Stage 3 – Alternative evaluation: Group of teenagers has bad opinions of the pub in Ta Hien
Street because music and beer were not good. As for the Ress Pub, it got good reviews. People
who are shelter because of heavy rain have not another choice. People who are hungry
evaluate Ress Pub is the best choice.
Stage 4 – Purchase decision: After evaluating the possibilities, all group decided to choose the
Ress Pub. However, if rains are not heavy, people who are shelters will not go to Ress Pub.

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Stage 5 – Post-purchase behavior: Teenagers group and people who are hungry had a good
time with friends and they really love fresh beer, free meals of Ress Pub. They will choose Ress
Pub for the next Saturday (next purchase behavior). They also rate high-score for Ress pub on
Facebook, its mean they are volunteer to advertising Ress Pub to another people. However,
people who need to shelter were uncomfortable, they did not like the style of Ress Pub and
music was so noisy.

1.2 Explain theories of buyer behavior in terms of
individuals and markets
Black box model
The black box model of consumer behavior identifies the stimuli responsible for buyer behavior.
The black box model shows the interaction of stimuli, consumer characteristics, decision
process and consumer responses.
It can be distinguished between interpersonal stimuli (between people) or intrapersonal
stimuli (within people).
The black box model is related to the black box theory of behaviorism, where the focus is not
set on the processes inside a consumer, but the relation between the stimuli and the response
of the consumer. The marketing stimuli are planned and processed by the companies, whereas
the environmental stimuli are given by social factors, based on the economic, political and
cultural circumstances of a society. The buyer's black box contains the buyer characteristics and

the decision process, which determines the buyer's response.
The black box model considers the buyer's response as a result of a conscious, rational decision
process, in which it is assumed that the buyer has recognized the problem. However, in reality
many decisions are not made in awareness of a determined problem by the consumer.

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Personal variable models
Unlike the black box model, where external stimuli are the main focus, the personal variable
model is internal factors affect consumer behavior and purchasing decisions. This model
specifically ignores external stimuli, such as marketing techniques, and concentrates on internal
psychological variables. These variables include lifestyle, motivations, and personality. It also
looks at individual decision-making processes, such as problem recognition, alternative
evaluation, as well as post-purchase behavior.
Examples of personal variable models:
Compensatory or trade-off model: When faced with a choice between products
composed or certain attributes or benefits in different proportions, a consumer will
compromise on his image of the ideal product, and accept less of one attribute in return
for more of another. This is a judgment about which combination of attributes offers the
highest overall utility, or value.
The threshold model: For each perceived attribute of a product, there is a perceived
threshold of acceptability, below which product will be rejected. Each attribute is
assessed, until the product falls short on one (usually price) and is discarded.

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Diffusion of innovation models

Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over
time among the members of a social system. Diffusion is a special type of communication
concerned with the spread of messages that are perceived as new ideas.
An innovation, simply put, is “an idea perceived as new by the individual.” An innovation is an
idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new by an individual or other unit of adoption. The
characteristics of an innovation, as perceived by the members of a social system, determine its
rate of adoption.
The four main elements in the diffusion of new ideas are: The characteristics of the
innovation; the channels of communication used; the social system within which
communication takes place; the stages of the adoption process reached by members of the
social system
The characteristics of the innovation
The innovation, to spread and be adopted should show:
The characteristics which determine an innovation's rate of adoption are:

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Relative advantage: is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as better than the idea it
supersedes. The degree of relative advantage may be measured in economic terms, but social
prestige, convenience, and satisfaction are also important factors. It does not matter so much if
an innovation has a great deal of objective advantage. What does matter is whether an
individual perceives the innovation as advantageous. The greater the perceived relative
advantage of an innovation, the more rapid its rate of adoption will be.
Compatibility: is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as being consistent with the
existing values, past experiences, and needs of potential adopters. An idea that is incompatible
with the values and norms of a social system will not be adopted as rapidly as an innovation
that is compatible. The adoption of an incompatible innovation often requires the prior
adoption of a new value system, which is a relatively slow process.
Complexity: is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as difficult to understand and

use. Some innovations are readily understood by most members of a social system; others are
more complicated and will be adopted more slowly. New ideas that are simpler to understand
are adopted more rapidly than innovations that require the adopter to develop new skills and
understandings.
Trial ability: is the degree to which an innovation may be experimented with on a limited basis.
New ideas that can be tried on the installment plan will generally be adopted more quickly than
innovations that are not divisible. An innovation that is trial able represents less uncertainty to
the individual who is considering it for adoption, who can learn by doing.
The channels of communication used
Communication is the process by which participants create and share information with one
another in order to reach a mutual understanding. A communication channel is the means by
which messages get from one individual to another. Mass media channels are more effective in
creating knowledge of innovations, whereas interpersonal channels are more effective in
forming and changing attitudes toward a new idea, and thus in influencing the decision to
adopt or reject a new idea. Most individuals evaluate an innovation, not on the basis of

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scientific research by experts, but through the subjective evaluations of near-peers who have
adopted the innovation.
The social system within which communication takes place
The third main element in the diffusion of new ideas is the social system. A social system is
defined as a set of interrelated units that are engaged in joint problem-solving to accomplish a
common goal. The members or units of a social system may be individuals, informal groups,
organizations, and/or subsystems. The social system constitutes a boundary within which an
innovation diffuses. How the system's social structure affects diffusion has been studied. A
second area of research involved how norms affect diffusion. Norms are the established
behavior patterns for the members of a social system. A third area of research has had to do
with opinion leadership, the degree to which an individual is able to influence informally other

individuals' attitudes or overt behavior in a desired way with relative frequency. A change agent
is an individual who attempts to influence clients' innovation-decisions in a direction that is
deemed desirable by a change agency.
The stages of the adoption process reached by members of the social system
There are five adopter categories, or classifications of the members of a social system on the
basis on their innovativeness:
Innovators – 2.5% are the first 2.5 percent of the individuals in a system to adopt an
innovation. This interest in new ideas leads them out of a local circle of peer networks and into
more cosmopolite social relationships. Communication patterns and friendships among a clique
of innovators are common, even though the geographical distance between the innovators may
be considerable. Thus, the innovator plays a gatekeeping role in the flow of new ideas into a
system.
Early adopters – 13.5% are a more integrated part of the local system than are innovators.
Whereas innovators are cosmopolites, early adopters are localities. This adopter category,
more than any other, has the greatest degree of opinion leadership in most systems. The early

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adopter decreases uncertainty about a new idea by adopting it, and then conveying a subjective
evaluation of the innovation to near-peers through interpersonal networks.
Early majority – 34% the early majority adopt new ideas just before the average member of a
system. The early majority interacts frequently with their peers, but seldom holds positions of
opinion leadership in a system. The early majority's unique position between the very early and
the relatively late to adopt makes them an important link in the diffusion process. They follow
with deliberate willingness in adopting innovations, but seldom lead.
Late majority – 34% the late majority adopt new ideas just after the average member of a
system. Like the early majority, the late majority make up one-third of the members of a
system. Their relatively scarce resources mean that most of the uncertainty about a new idea
must be removed before the late majority feel that it is safe to adopt.

Laggards – 16% Laggards are the most locality in their outlook of all adopter categories; many
are near isolates in the social networks of their system. . The point of reference for the laggard
is the past.

1.3 Explain the factors that affect buyer behavior
Psychological factors
Among the factors influencing consumer behavior, psychological factors can be divided into 4
categories: motivation, perception, learning as well as beliefs and attitudes.
Motivation:
Motivation is what will drive consumers to develop a purchasing behavior. It is the expression
of a need is which became pressing enough to lead the consumer to want to satisfy it. It is
usually working at a subconscious level and is often difficult to measure.
Motivation is directly related to the need and is expressed in the same type of classification as
defined in the stages of the consumer buying decision process.

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To increase sales and encourage consumers to purchase, brands should try to create, make
conscious or reinforce a need in the consumer’s mind so that he develops a purchase
motivation. He will be much more interested in considering and buy their products.
They must also, according to research, the type of product they sell and the consumers they
target, pick out the motivation and the need to which their product respond in order to make
them appear as the solution to the consumers’ need.
Perception:
Perception is the process through which an individual selects, organizes and interprets the
information he receives in order to do something that makes sense. The perception of a
situation at a given time may decide if and how the person will act.
Depending to his experiences, beliefs and personal characteristics, an individual will have a
different perception from another.

Each person faces every day tens of thousands of sensory stimuli (visual, auditory, kinesthetic,
olfactory and gustatory). It would be impossible for the brain to process all consciously. That is
why it focuses only on some of them.
The perception mechanism of an individual is organized around three processes:
Selective Attention:
The individual focuses only on a few details or stimulus to which he is subjected. The type of
information or stimuli to which an individual is more sensitive depends on the person.
For brands and advertisers successfully capture and retain the attention of consumers is
increasingly difficult. For example, many users no longer pay any attention, unconsciously, to
banner ads on the Internet. This kind of process is called Banner Blindness.
Consumers will also be much more attentive to stimuli related to a need. For example, a
consumer who wishes to buy a new car will pay more attention to car manufacturers’ ads.
While neglecting those for computers.

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Lastly, people are more likely to be attentive to stimuli that are new or out of the ordinary. For
example, an innovative advertising or a marketing message (Unique Value Proposition) widely
different from its competitors is more likely to be remembered by consumers.
Selective Distortion:
In many situations, two people are not going to interpret information or a stimulus in the same
way. Each individual will have a different perception based on his experience, state of mind,
beliefs and attitudes. Selective distortion leads people to interpret situations in order to make
them consistent with their beliefs and values.
For brands, it means that the message they communicate will never be perceived exactly in the
same way by consumers. And that everyone may have a different perception of it. That’s why
it’s important to regularly ask consumers in order to know their actual brand perception.
Selective distortion often benefits to strong and popular brands. Studies have shown that the
perception and brand image plays a key role in the way consumers perceived and judged the

product.
Several experiments have shown that even if we give them the same product, consumers find
that the product is or tastes better when they’ve been told that it’s from a brand they like than
when they’ve been told it’s a generic brand. While it is exactly the same product!
Similarly, consumers will tend to appreciate even less a product if it comes from a brand for
which they have a negative perception.
Selective Retention: People do not retain all the information and stimuli they have been
exposed to. Selective retention means what the individual will store and retain from a given
situation or a particular stimulus. As for selective distortion, individuals tend to memorize
information that will fit with their existing beliefs and perceptions.
For example, consumers will remember especially the benefits of a brand or product they like
and will “forget” the drawbacks or competing products’ advantages.

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Selective retention is also what explains why brands and advertisers use so much repetition in
their advertising campaigns and why they are so broadcasted. So that the selective retention
can help the brand to become a “top of mind” brand in the consumer’s mind.
Learning:
Learning is through action. When we act, we learn. It implies a change in the behavior resulting
from the experience. The learning changes the behavior of an individual as he acquires
information and experience.
For example, if you are sick after drinking milk, you had a negative experience, you associate
the milk with this state of discomfort and you “learn” that you should not drink milk. Therefore,
you don’t buy milk anymore.
Rather, if you had a good experience with the product, you will have much more desire to buy it
again next time.
The learning theories can be used in marketing by brands. As the theory of operant
conditioning which states that you can build a good image and high demand for a product by

associating it with a positive reinforcement (or rather a bad image with a negative
reinforcement).
Beliefs and attitudes:
A belief is a conviction that an individual has on something. Through the experience he
acquires, his learning and his external influences (family, friends, etc..), he will develop beliefs
that will influence his buying behavior.
Beliefs as well as attitudes are generally well-anchored in the individual’s mind and are difficult
to change. For many people, their beliefs and attitudes are part of their personality and of who
they are.
However, it is important to understand, identify and analyze the positive attitudes and beliefs
but also the negative ones that consumers can have on a brand or product. To change the

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brand’s marketing message or adjust it’s positioning in order to get consumers to change their
brand perception.

Social factors
Social factors are among the factors influencing consumer behavior significantly. They fall into
three categories: reference groups, family and social roles and status.
Reference groups and membership groups :
The membership groups of an individual are social groups to which he belongs and which will
influence him. The membership groups are usually related to its social origin, age, place of
residence, work, hobbies, leisure, etc..
The understanding of the specific features (mindset, values, lifestyle, etc..) of each group allows
brands to better target their advertising message.
More generally, reference groups are defined as those that provide to the individual some
points of comparison more or less direct about his behavior, lifestyle, desires or consumer
habits. They influence the image that the individual has of himself as well as his behavior.

Whether, it is a membership group or a non-membership group.
For example, even if he doesn’t need it yet, a surfing beginner may want to buy “advanced”
brands or products used by experienced surfers (aspirational group) in order to get closer to
this group. While a teen may want the shoe model or smartphone used by the group of
“popular guys” from his high school (aspirational group) in order to be accepted by this group.
Some brands have understood this very well and communicate, implicitly or not, on the “social
benefit” provided by their products.
Within a reference group that influences the consumer buying behavior, several roles have
been identified:
The initiator: the person who suggests buying a product or service

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The influencer: the person whose point of view or advice will influence the buying decision. It
may be a person outside the group (singer, athlete, actor, etc..) but on which group members
rely on.
The decision-maker: the person who will choose which product to buy. In general, it’s the
consumer but in some cases it may be another person. For example, the “leader” of a soccer
supporters’ group (membership group) that will define, for the whole group, which supporter’s
scarf buy and bear during the next game.
The buyer: the person who will buy the product. Generally, this will be the final consumer.
Many brands look to target opinion leaders (initiator or influencer) to spread the use and
purchase of their product in a social group. Either through an internal person of the group when
it comes to a small social group. Or through a sponsorship or a partnership with a reference
leader (celebrity, actor, musician, athlete, etc..) for larger groups.
Family:
The family is maybe the most influencing factor for an individual. It forms an environment of
socialization in which an individual will evolve, shape his personality, acquire values. But also
develop attitudes and opinions on various subjects such as politics, society, social relations or

himself and his desires.
But also on his consumer habits, his perception of brands and the products he buys.
We all kept, for many of us and for some products and brands, the same buying habits and
consumption patterns that the ones we had known in our family.
Perceptions and family habits generally have a strong influence on the consumer buying
behavior. People will tend to keep the same as those acquired with their families.
For example, if you have never drunk Coke during your childhood and your parents have
described it as a product “full of sugar and not good for health”. There is far less chance that
you are going to buy it when you will grow up that someone who drinks Coke since childhood.

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For brands – especially for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) or Consumer Packaged Goods
(CPG) – successfully “integrate” the family is both a real challenge and an opportunity to
develop a strong consumer loyalty among all the family members.
That’s why it’s important for brands to be seen as a family brand in order to become a
consumer habit for parents and children when they will become adults.
Social roles and status:
The position of an individual within his family, his work, his country club, his group of friends,
etc.. – All this can be defined in terms of role and social status.
A social role is a set of attitudes and activities that an individual is supposed to have and do
according to his profession and his position at work, his position in the family, his gender, etc.. –
and expectations of the people around him.
Social status meanwhile reflects the rank and the importance of this role in society or in social
groups. Some are more valued than others.
For example, a consumer may buy a Ferrari or a Porsche for the quality of the car but also for
the external signs of social success that this kind of cars represents. Moreover, it is likely that a
CEO driving a small car like a Ford Fiesta or a Volkswagen Golf would be taken less seriously by
its customers and business partners than if he is driving a germen luxury car.

And this kind of behaviors and influences can be found at every level and for every role and
social status.
Again, many brands have understood it by creating an image associated with their products
reflecting an important social role or status.

Cultural factors
Cultural factors are coming from the different components related to culture or cultural
environment from which the consumer belongs.

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Culture and societal environment:
Culture is crucial when it comes to understanding the needs and behaviors of an individual.
Throughout his existence, an individual will be influenced by his family, his friends, his cultural
environment or society that will “teach” him values, preferences as well as common behaviors
to their own culture.
For a brand, it is important to understand and take into account the cultural factors inherent to
each market or to each situation in order to adapt its product and its marketing strategy. As
these will play a role in the perception, habits, behavior or expectations of consumers.
For example, in the West, it is common to invite colleagues or friends at home for a drink or
dinner. In Japan, on the contrary, invite someone home does not usually fit into the local
customs. It is preferable to do that this kind of outing with friends or colleagues in restaurant.

While if a Japanese offer you a gift, the courtesy is to offer him an equivalent gift in return.
Sub-cultures:
A society is composed of several sub-cultures in which people can identify. Subcultures are
groups of people who share the same values based on a common experience or a similar
lifestyle in general.
Subcultures are the nationalities, religions, ethnic groups, age groups, gender of the individual,

etc..
The subcultures are often considered by the brands for the segmentation of a market in order
to adapt a product or a communication strategy to the values or the specific needs of this
segment.
For example in recent years, the segment of “ethnic” cosmetics has greatly expanded. These
are products more suited to non-Caucasian populations and to types of skin pigmentation for
African, Arab or Indian populations for example.
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It’s a real brand positioning with a well-defined target in a sector that only offered makeup
products to a Caucasian target until now (with the exception of niche brands) and was then
receiving critics from consumers of different origin.
Brands often communicate in different ways, sometimes even create specific products
(sometimes without significant intrinsic difference) for the same type of product in order to
specifically target an age group, a gender or a specific sub-culture.
Consumers are usually more receptive to products and marketing strategies that specifically
target them.
Social classes:
Social classes are defined as groups more or less homogenous and ranked against each other
according to a form of social hierarchy. Even if it’s very large groups, we usually find similar
values, lifestyles, interests and behaviors in individuals belonging to the same social class.
We often assume three general categories among social classes : lower class, middle class and
upper class.
People from different social classes tend to have different desires and consumption patterns.
Disparities resulting from the difference in their purchasing power, but not only. According to
some researchers, behavior and buying habits would also be a way of identification and
belonging to its social class.
Beyond a common foundation to the whole population and taking into account that many
counterexample naturally exist, they usually do not always buy the same products, do not

choose the same kind of vacation, do not always watch the same TV shows, do not always read
the same magazines, do not have the same hobbies and do not always go in the same types of
retailers and stores.
For example, consumers from the middle class and upper class generally consume more
balanced and healthy food products than those from the lower class.

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They don’t go in the same stores either. If some retailers are, of course, patronized by
everyone, some are more specifically targeted to upper classes such as The Fresh Market,
Whole Foods Market, Barneys New York or Nordstrom. While others, such as discount
supermarkets, attract more consumers from the lower class.
Cultural trends:
Cultural trends or “Bandwagon effect” are defined as trends widely followed by people and
which are amplified by their mere popularity and by conformity or compliance with social
pressure. The more people follow a trend, the more others will want to follow it.
They affect behavior and shopping habits of consumers and may be related to the release of
new products or become a source of innovation for brands.
By social pressure, desire to conformity or belonging to a group, desire to “follow fashion
trends” or simply due to the high visibility provided by media, consumers will be influenced,
consciously or unconsciously, by these trends.
For example, Facebook has become a cultural trend. The social network has widely grew to the
point of becoming a must have, especially among young people.
It is the same with the growth of the tablet market. Tablets such as iPad or Galaxy Tab have
become a global cultural trend leading many consumers to buy one. Even if they had never
specially felt the need before.

Economic factors
Consumer behavior is influenced largely by economic factors. Economic factors that influence

consumer behavior are: Personal Income, Family income, Income expectations, Savings, Liquid
assets of the Consumer, Consumer credit, Other economic factors.
Personal Income:
The personal income of a person is determinant of his buying behavior. The gross personal
income of a person consists of disposable income and discretionary income. The disposable
personal income refers to the actual income (i.e. money balance) remaining at the disposal of a
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person after deducting taxes and compulsorily deductible items from the gross income. An
increase in the disposable income leads to an increase in the expenditure on various items. A
fall in the disposable income, on the other hand, leads to a fall in the expenditure on various
items.
The discretionary personal income refers to the balance remaining after meeting basic
necessaries of life. This income is available for the purchase of shopping goods, durable goods
and luxuries. An increase in the discretionary income leads to an increase in the expenditure on
shopping goods, luxuries etc. which improves the standard of living of a person.
Family income:
Family income refers to the aggregate income of all the members of a family.
Family income influences the buying behavior of the family. The surplus family income,
remaining after the expenditure on the basic needs of the family, is made available for buying
shopping goods, durables and luxuries.
Income Expectations:
Income expectations are one of the important determinants of the buying behaviour of an
individual. If he expects any increase in his income, he is tempted to spend more on shopping
goods, durable goods and luxuries. On the other hand, if he expects any fall in his future
income, he will curtail his expenditure on comforts and luxuries and restrict his expenditure to
bare necessities.

1.4 Evaluate the relationship between brand loyalties,

corporate image and repeat purchasing
Relationship between brand loyalty, corporate image and repeat purchase Brand loyalty
represents the dedication and loyalty of the customer with respect to the brand. It shows the
desire of the customer to buy that particular brand. The customer is purely involved in brands
they like and what they are proffering. When a customer strongly likes a brand and its offerings,
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he or she does neither consider other brand nor does he or she wish to buy some other brand.
Corporate image represents the psychological picture of the brand in the mind of the
widespread community. The company endeavors to makes a certain image of its brand in the
market which it then attempts to sustain and progress so that the customers are drawn
towards them. Repeat purchasing represents when the consumer purchases a product or
service for the first time, is pleased with it and afterwards purchases and uses the same product
or service again. The three notions of brand loyalty, corporate image and repeat purchase are
interrelated with one another. The company employs various creative and effective marketing
techniques to build an affirmative corporate image in the minds of the widespread community.
The customer gets drawn towards the brand and buys it. The first buy is the test of the product
or brand. If the brand is successful in satisfying the needs of consumer, he or she buys the
product or brand again and also recommend it to other people around him. The repeat
purchase carries on and gradually brings brand loyalty. The product must fulfill the needs and
specifications as needed by the customer to make sure that they go back to buy that product
and recommend it to other people associated with them.

Apply on Ress Pub
We can see the close relationship between brand loyalty, corporative image and repeat
purchasing. Ress Pub in present period time is going to build corporative image so they need to
focus on business strategies, value and brands. As other brands, Ress Pub also tries to find
potential customer and then keep relationship with customer buy promotion activities. For
example they keep contact of customer and then when have any promotion they will send

message to cell phone of customer. Moreover to build a brand loyalty, Ress Pub also sends the
thanks and wish to the buyer. Ress Pub is a new brand in the market, surely that it is not the
strong brand to make customer repeat purchasing; however, as time goes by in the consumers’
minds, the new images can make them attention. Ress Pub needs to have good brand loyalty
and corporative image in order to the opportunity of repeat purchasing is higher. So to have
loyal customer, Ress Pub need to improve their brand as well as their image to attract

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customer. Because this is entertainment industry which asks for the changing fast and adapting
quickly, Ress Pub still face with a lot of challenging and strong competitor.

Conclusion

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