Learn and Study, How to Group Influence on the Consumer Behavior?
Each consumer in society is a member of different groups depending on their culture, various subcultures or even social class can influence their consumer purchase. A group can be formed when two or more individuals share a set of norms and beliefs. A group becomes a reference group when an individual recognizes with the group and takes on many of the values, attitudes or personal standards of group members and use it as the base of his/her day to day behavior. A reference group is defined as having significant relevance upon an ‘individual’s evaluations, aspirations or behavior influencing the consumer. Also learned, Power of Dreams, How to Group Influence on the Consumer Behavior?
The nature of reference group influence can take three forms, this is because some groups and individuals are able to influence greater than others and affect a range of consumption.
#Informational influence:
This is when the reference group is used as a knowledgeable source in the different parts of the buyer’s decision process. This type of influence emerges when an individual or the member uses the behaviors and beliefs of the reference group as dependable sources. This influence is based either on the similarity of the buyer’s desires with the ones of the group members. For example in the biker subculture, the members all share similar desires for purchasing Harley Davidson products therefore influencing the individual decision process in selecting certain products. The members in baby boomer subculture are also likely to purchase similar latest fashion products.
#Normative influence known as (utilitarian influence):
The reference group creates a level of values and norms of an individual, in the process of purchasing brands or products. For example, both the Harley Davidson biker subculture and baby boomer subculture will have an influence on the member’s decisions on which types of products to a consumer to fit in with the values and attitudes of the subculture. Harley Davidson subculture values can affect the characteristics of the member’s lives such as their ‘social, political and spiritual’ aspects.
#Identification influence known as (value-expressive influence):
The reference group is used to confirm the consumer’s attitudes, norms and actual behavior. The individual behaves reliable with the group’s norms and beliefs because the individual’s and the group’s norms, attitudes and beliefs are the same. For example, this can be seen in Harley Davidson subculture in which the members view the subculture as a ‘religious icon’ sharing the same values and norms as other members.
The group’s power of influence on consumer’s behavior will depend on a number of factors. For example degree of visibility of the product or trademark used by the group members. The group’s power of influence is higher for the products used visibly such as shoes, cars and fashion products compared to non-visibly products. In the Harley Davidson subculture, their power to influence other members is through visible displays such as tattoos and motorcycle customization, this is done to emphasize the commitment to the group. The product’s degree of necessity for example the group’s power of influence is higher for the luxury products such as jewels, fashion etc and lower for necessity products. For example, the baby boomers subcultures are likely to influence other members in purchasing luxury products than necessity products.
The group’s power of influence will depend on the individual’s degree of involvement for example if an individual is reliant to a group; it is more likely to conform to the group. The group’s influence will depend on the degree of confident of the buyer during the buying process. The group influence is noticeable when there are specialized products such as PC sets or mobiles. These are the products for which the buyer depends on the expert knowledge of the reference group. The influence of the reference groups is not influential for all types of products or services that consumers purchase.
For example, products that are not complex, that are low in perceived risk are unlikely to be influenced by the reference groups. The impact of the reference groups can vary. Reference group might determine the choosing of a certain kind of product instead of others. It can further influence the option of a brand or trademark of a product such as Iphone or Blackberry. An individual will want to belong to a group because of their significance and position they obtain. They will want to be associated with groups that have an attractive social position. Due to the unique characteristics, certain groups are seen to have a greater social power influence than other groups.
Groups have power due to their ability to influence individuals to become members. The group’s ability to influence the behavior of various individuals that are members or non-members of the group is called social power and can have a number of types. These social powers can influence the consumer behavior in buying certain products and brands. Research found that reference groups are very important for marketers. This is because they can influence and inform members to purchase specific products and brands. It can provide the members with factors to compare with their own values, with the values and behavior of the group. This can therefore influence the members to adopt the groups’ values and attitudes
Group influence is “non controllable” by the marketer but must be taken into consideration when designing new products. The marketer will need to seek out to understand all the group influences that affect consumers so that the marketing mix can be adjusted to give the maximum effect. Consumer behavior is greatly influenced by cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors. Culture is the most fundamental determinant of a person’s wants and behavior. Culture contains smaller subcultures or groups of people with shared values systems based on common life experiences and situations. These subcultures can influence the consumer behavior. Subcultures include nationalities, religions, racial groups and geographic regions.
Age subculture (age cohort) is an example of how consumers cultural bond with each other. This is because these consumers are more likely to face similar experiences and share common memories by growing up and living in the same time frame. Many subcultures make up important market segments and marketers often need to design products and marketing programmers’ tailored to their needs and want. For example the automobile industry are taking on the baby boomer subculture market and dealing with boomers changing needs in the industry. Toyota’s campaign of the redesign of the new Avalon was to provide a youthful image that reminds the baby boomers of the late 1960s.
