Chapter 6
Personality and Lifestyles
CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR, 8e
Michael Solomon
Chapter Objectives
When you finish this chapter you should understand
why:
• A consumer’s personality influences the way he
responds to marketing stimuli, but efforts to use this
information in marketing contexts meet with mixed
results.
• Consumers’ lifestyles are key to many marketing
strategies.
• Psychographics go beyond simple demographics in
helping marketers understand and reach different
consumer segments.
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Chapter Objectives (cont.)
• Identifying patterns of consumption can be superior
to knowledge of individual purchases when crafting
a lifestyle marketing strategy.
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Personality
• Personality: a person’s unique psychological
makeup and how it consistently influences the way
a person responds to his/her environment
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Freudian Systems
Personality = conflict between
gratification and
responsibility
• Id: pleasure principle
• Superego: our conscience
• Ego: mediates between id
and superego
• Reality principle: ego gratifies
the id in such a way that the
outside world will find
acceptable
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Freudian Systems (cont.)
Marketing Implications
• Unconscious motives
underlying purchases
• Symbolism in products to
compromise id and
superego
• Sports car as sexual
gratification for men
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Symbolism in products
• Ego relies on the symbolism in products to compromise between
the demands of Id and prohibition of superego,
• The person channels his/her unacceptable desire into acceptable
outlets by using product symbolism and MOTIVATION.
• Symbolism in products to compromise id & superego
• E.g. Ice cream to feel like a kid again
• Freudian ideas unlock deeper product & advertisement
meanings
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Motivational Research
• To unlock deeper product and advertisement
meanings
• Consumer depth interviews
• Latent motives for purchases
• Examples of Dichter’s motives (Table 6.1)
• Bowling, electric trains, power tools = power
• Ice cream, beauty products = social acceptance
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Table 6.1 (abridged)
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Motivational Research (cont.)
• Criticisms
• Invalid or works too well
• Too sexually-based
• Appeal
• Less expensive than large-scale surveys
• Powerful hook for promotional strategy
• Intuitively plausible findings (after the fact)
• Enhanced validity with other techniques
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Neo-Freudian Theories
• Karen Horney
• Compliant versus detached versus aggressive
• Alfred Adler
• Motivation to overcome inferiority
• Harry Stack Sullivan
• Personality evolves to reduce anxiety
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Neo-Freudian Theories: Jung
• Carl Jung: analytical psychology (psychotherapy)
• Collective unconscious
• People are shaped by the cumulative
•
experiences of past generations. (afraid of
the dark!)
Archetypes: Shared memory of ancestral past.
• Archetypes in advertising (old wise man, earth
mother, etc.)
• BrandAsset® Archetypes model
• BAV® Brand Health measures
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BrandAsset Valuator Archetypes
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Figure 6.1 (part 1 of 2)
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BrandAsset Valuator Archetypes (cont.)
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Figure 6.1 (part 2 of 2)
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BrandAsset® Archetypes + BAV® Brand
Health
• Archetypes across cultures and time
• Archetypes telegraph instantly
• Strong evidence of achieving business objectives
with this model
• “Early warning” signal of brand trouble
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Trait Theory
• Personality traits: identifiable characteristics that define a
person
• Traits relevant to consumer behavior:
• Innovativeness
•
•
• The degree to which a person likes to try new things
Materialism
• Amount of emphasis placed on acquiring and owning products
Self-consciousness
• The degree to which a person deliberately monitors and controls
the image of the self that is projected to others
• Need for cognition
• The degree to which a person likes to think about things (i.e.,
expend the necessary effort to process brand information)
• Frugality
• Deny short-term purchasing whims and resourcefully use what
one already owns
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Discussion
• This classic ad starts off
with the line: “The Datsun
240-Z is not exactly what
you would call a common
site.”
• What consumer personality
trait is this ad appealing to?
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Are You an Innie or an Outie?
Idiocentrics
Allocentrics
(individualist orientation)
(group orientation)
Contentment
More satisfied with current
life
Less satisfied with current
life
Health
Consciousness
Less likely to avoid unhealthy
foods
More likely to avoid
unhealthy foods
Food Preparation
Spend less time preparing
food
Love kitchen; spend more
time preparing food
Workaholics
More likely to work hard and
stay late at work
Less likely to work hard
Travel and
Entertainment
More interested in traveling to
other cultures
Visit library and read more
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Problems with Trait Theory
• Prediction of product choices using traits of
consumers is mixed at best
• Scales not valid/reliable
• Tests borrow scales used for the mentally ill
• Inappropriate testing conditions
• Ad hoc instrument changes
• Use of global measures to predict specific brand
purchases
• “Shotgun approach” (no thought of scale
application)
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Brand Personality
• Brand personality: set of traits people attribute to a
product as if it were a person
• Brand equity: extent to which a consumer holds
strong, favorable, and unique associations with a
brand in memory—and the extent to which s/he is
willing to pay more for the branded version of a
product than for a nonbranded (generic) version
• Extensive consumer research goes into brand
campaigns
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Animism
• Animism:
• The practice found in many cultures whereby inanimate
objects are given qualities that make them somehow alive
• Two types of animism:
• Level 1: People believe the object is possessed by the soul
of the being (e.g. celebrity spokespersons)
• Level 2: Objects are anthropomorphized, or given human
characteristics. (e.g. Charlie the Tuna, Keebler Elves, or the
Michelin Man)
• Positioning/repositioning strategies describing brands as
people
• E.g. “Lust, envy, jealousy. The dangers of
Volvo.”
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Brand Behaviors and Personality Trait
Inferences
Brand Action
Trait Inference
Brand is repositioned several times or changes
slogan repeatedly
Flighty, schizophrenic
Brand uses continuing character in advertising
Familiar, comfortable
Brand charges high prices and uses exclusive
distribution
Snobbish, sophisticated
Brand frequently available on deal
Cheap, uncultured
Brand offers many line extensions
Versatile, adaptable
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Table 6.2 (abridged)
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Lifestyles
• Lifestyle: patterns of consumption reflecting a
person’s choices of how one spends time and
money
• Lifestyle marketing perspective: people sort
themselves into groups on the basis of:
• What they like to do
• How they spend leisure time
• How they spend disposable income
• Example: Magazines targeting specific lifestyles:
WWF Magazine, 4 Wheel & Off Road, Reader’s
Digest
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Lifestyles as Group Identities
• Forms of expressive symbolism
• Self-definition of group members = common symbol
system
• Terms include lifestyle, taste public, consumer
group, symbolic community, status culture
• Each person provides a unique “twist” to be an
“individual”
• Tastes/preferences evolve over time
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Products as Building Blocks of Lifestyles
• Product usage in desirable social settings
• Consumption style
• Patterns of behavior
• Co-branding strategies: brands team up with other companies to
promote their products understand this (Porsche-Fairmont hotel)
• Product complementarity: symbolic meanings of different
products relate to one another
• Consumption constellations: define, communicate, and perform
social roles
• Sets of complementary products used to define,
communicate and perform social roles (e.g. Yuppie)
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Linking Products to Lifestyles
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Figure 6.2
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Product complementarity
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Discussion
• What consumption
constellation might
characterize you and your
friends today?
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Psychographics
• Psychographics: use of psychological, sociological,
and anthropological factors to:
• Determine market segments
• Determine their reasons for choosing products
• Fine-tune offerings to meet needs of different
segments
• Consumers can share the same demographics and still be very
different!
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Best Buy Psychographic Segments
• “Jill:” busy suburban mom who buys electronics for
family
• “Buzz:” focused, active younger male interested in
buying latest gadgets
• “Ray:” family man who likes his technology practical
• “BB4B (Best Buy for Business):” small employer
• “Barry:” affluent professional male who’ll drop tens
of thousands of dollars on a home theater system
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Lifestyle/Personality Variables for Soup
Lifestyle
Personality
Active Lifestyle (Vegetable):
I am: outdoorsy, physically fit,
workaholic, socially active
Mentally Alert (Clam Chowder):
I am: intellectual, sophisticated,
creative, detail-oriented, witty,
nutrition conscious
Family Spirited (Chicken Noodle):
I am: family-oriented, churchgoer,
traditional
Social (Chili):
I am: fun at parties, outgoing,
spontaneous, trendsetter
Homebody (Tomato):
I am: a homebody, good cook, pet
lover; I enjoy spending time alone
Athletic (Cream Soups):
I am: athletic, competitive,
adventurous
Intellectually Stimulated Pastimes
(French Onion):
I am: a technology whiz, world
traveler, book lover
Carefree (Minestrone):
I am: down-to-earth, affectionate,
fun loving, optimistic
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Table 6.3
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Doing a Psychographic Analysis
• Lifestyle profile: differentiates between users and
nonusers of a product
• Product-specific profile: identifies a target group and
profiles consumers based on product-related
dimensions
• General lifestyle segmentation: places a large
sample of respondents into homogeneous groups
based on similarities of preferences
• Product-specific segmentation: tailors questions to a
product category
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AIOs
• Grouping consumers according to:
• Activities
• Interests
• Opinions
• 80/20 Rule: lifestyle segments that produce the bulk
of customers
• Heavy users and the benefits they derive from
product
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Lifestyle Dimensions
Activities
Interests
Opinions
Demographics
Work
Family
Themselves
Age
Hobbies
Home
Social issues
Education
Social events
Job
Politics
Income
Vacation
Community
Business
Occupation
Entertainment
Recreation
Economics
Family size
Club membership
Fashion
Education
Dwelling
Community
Food
Products
Geography
Shopping
Media
Future
City size
Sports
Achievements
Culture
Stage in life cycle
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Table 6.4
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Psychographic Segmentation Uses
•
•
•
•
•
•
To define target market
To create new view of market
To position product
To better communicate product attributes
To develop overall strategy
To market social/political issues
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VALS2TM
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Figure 6.3
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Discussion
• Construct separate advertising executions for a
cosmetics product targeted to the Belonger,
Achiever, Experiencer, and Maker VALS types.
• How would the basic appeal differ for each group?
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Global Psychographic Typologies
• Global MOSAIC
• Identifies segments across 19 countries
• RISC
• Lifestyles/sociocultural change in 40+ countries
• Divides population into 10 segments using 3 axis:
• Exploration/Stability
• Social/Individual
• Global/Local
• 40 measured “trends” (e.g., “spirituality”,
“blurring of the sexes”, “Environment”,
“Uncertainty”, “social participation”…etc)
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Discussion
• Extreme sports. Day trading. Blogging.
Vegetarianism. Can you predict what will be “hot” in
the near future?
• Identify a lifestyle trend that is just surfacing in your
universe.
• Describe this trend in detail, and justify your
prediction.
• What specific styles and/or products are part of this
trend?
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Ten Risk Segments
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Figure 6.4
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Geodemography
• Consumer expenditures/socioeconomic factors +
geographic information
• “Birds of a feature flock together”
• Can be reached more economically (e.g., 90277
zip code in Redondo Beach, CA)
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Discussion
• Geodemographic techniques assume that people
who live in the same neighborhood have other
things in common as well.
• Why do they make this assumption, and how
accurate is it?
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Food Cultures
• Food culture: pattern of food and beverage
consumption that reflects the values of a social
group
• Differences in international food cultures:
• In China, milk chocolate has less milk
• In United States, Campbell’s soup is saltier than
•
in Mexico
In Germany, food must be healthier
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PRIZM by Claritas, Inc.
• PRIZM (Potential Rating Index by Zip Market) combines
demographic, consumer behavior, and geographic
data to help marketers identify, understand and
target their customers and prospects
• 66 clusters of U.S. zip codes
• Example: “Young Influential,” “Money and
•
Brains,” “Kids and Cul-de-Sacs”
Ranked by income, home value, and occupation
• Maximize effectiveness, cost-efficiency, and impact
of marketing communications
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Click to access
Mybestsegments.com
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Comparison of Two PRIZM Clusters
Furs and Station Wagons
Tobacco Roads
New money, parents in 40s and 50s
Racially mixed farm town in South
Newly built subdivisions with tennis courts,
swimming pools, gardens
Small downtowns with thrift shops, diners,
and laundromats; shanty-type homes without
indoor plumbing
High Usage
Country clubs
Wine by the case
Lawn furniture
Gourmet magazine
BMW 5 Series
Rye bread
Natural cold cereal
High Usage
Travel by bus
Asthma medicine
Malt liquors
Grit magazine
Pregnancy tests
Pontiac Bonneville
Shortening
Low Usage
Motorcycles
Laxatives
Nonfilter cigarettes
Chewing tobacco
Hunting magazine
Chevrolet Chevette
Canned stews
Low Usage
Knitting
Live theater
Smoke detectors
Ms. Magazine
Ferraris
Whole-wheat bread
Mexican foods
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Table 6.5
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