Free Management Dissertations - The Consumer Is Also Greatly Influenced By Earning Money, Status, Success,
The consumer is also greatly influenced by earning money, status, success, possessions, and such transitory wants. As a result there has developed a continual process of "search, purchase, savouring, using and finally replacing goods" (O'Shaughnessy and O'Shaughnessy 2002). Authors like Gottdiener (1990) is of the opinion that consumption has social meaning as individuals tend to consume goods with the view to create social bonds and create social integration. The possession and display of status, power and friendship through certain commodities often motivate individuals to seek product membership and thereby through it social acceptance. For this reason they are always in search of the latest "trend" and goods that communicate certain social messages (Schudson 1984). For instance consumers who buy products from The Body Shop communicate certain environmental message. Through their purchase they identify with the environmentally conscious group. Not only this but The Body Shop consumers exude money, status and power to change the world. Or is it The Body Shop's marketing strategy?
Theorists are of the opinion that consumerism has bred a new trend in which consumers link self-identity with possessions. Self identity in today's environment is thus self-created and often marketed to position at the level the consumers desire it to be. This movement has begun a trend in material symbolism and identity. The expressive symbols may be a reflection of identity of gender, social status, association, class or group of specific beliefs or the socioeconomic powers over the others (Cartwright 2001). The basic premise for following such a trend has been to dissociate from the assembly-line mass production that would allow individuals to attain distinctiveness and uniqueness (Belk 1988). It has been through this trend which has motivated corporations to generate the new technique of niche marketing, whereby marketers seek this desire for uniqueness and differentiation to capitalize on consumer buying habits. Corporations have been greatly influenced in helping consumers realize their fantasies, dreams and the penchant to reach certain social stage. Marketing efforts have been directed towards niche marketing so as to capture particular groups of consumers and spend millions in research and development to create products to appeal to these niche groups. It has also been for this reason that marketers have come to use culturally symbolic images to influence and enhance the uniqueness of their brands by associating with the individuals' perception. For example an HSBC (Hong-Kong Shanghai Bank Corp.) advertisement includes different blend of cultures yet diversified and spread out to various corners to the world denoting glocalism (think global, act local). HSBC's niche marketing had been focussed on cultural identity.
