Consumer Behaviour Solved Case Study Matin Khan

Project/Slides/Presentation Transcript

These are Consumer behaviour solved case studies from matin khan`s consumer behaviour – CASE 1 & 4

Consumer Behaviour Solved Case Study Matin Khan  – Case I

Explanation of the case study:

Martin Incorporation was involved in the cosmetics and perfume business. The company was following the product concept of marketing and catered only to their existing customers, while paying no attention to the changing needs and demands of the consumers.

A marketing graduate, named Ash, joined the company and advised the company about necessary changes that must be made in the product on the basis of changing taste and preferences of consumers to successfully sell the company`s products.

Mr Ash modernised the products and spent about 30 lakhs on packaging etc. on the basis of relevant income and social factors that affect the consumers.

The product manager and assistant manager were not happy with the efforts made by Mr Ash as even after 6 months of implementation of suggested changes the company was not able to achieve effective growth in sales.

The product manager and Assistant manager were of the opinion that although some progress was made by Mr Ash, yet many important factors affecting consumer behaviour were also neglected by him.

Consumer behaviour Solved Case Study: 

Focus: New Product Development to increase sales of cosmetics and perfume products

Yes, I agree with the product manager and assistant manager that efforts were made in the right direction, but many factors affecting consumer behaviour were ignored. The reasons being the following:

The company was using the product concept of marketing which is out dated in today`s era as now producers manufacture products that match consumer`s demand, tastes and preferences. Therefore, Mr Ash should have focused on the Marketing concept to produce and market products accordingly.

The target audience was limited to the existing customers of the company. Various new markets must be explored to increase sales. Effective target marketing is essential to promote and position the product effectively in the market. For example:

• Grooming products for men
• Safe and chemical free cosmetics for babies
• Organic and herbal cosmetics for women

The market for cosmetics was not effectively segmented by Mr Ash. Cosmetics market can be segmented effectively by dividing the market into groups which are homogenous within and heterogeneous among themselves on the basis of their age, gender, occupation etc. For e.g. Market can be segmented into:

• Working women, Housewife, Teenage girls
• Daily consumers, Beauty Parlours, Film Industry
• Rich people, Middle class people, Low income group

While attention was paid to income and social factors many personal factors such as Age, Occupation, Lifestyle, personality of a consumer were neglected. For e.g.

• Age: Working women, elderly women, Teenage girls all have different needs.
• Income: The rich pay more attention to how they look than people with less income.
• Occupation: A Housewife has simple beauty needs as she stays at home most of the time while a working lady has more intensive beauty needs as she goes out of the home every day and has to look presentable in the office.
• Personality: Traditional women and Modern women both have different needs. Some prefer expensive perfumes while some use natural fragrances like ‘itra’.
• Attitude: People have different attitude towards chemicals in beauty products. Some prefer it while some dislike it and prefer herbal and organic products.
• Lifestyle: While urban people make use of deodorants and perfumes to smell good, rural population prefers use of soaps, sandalwood and itr to smell good.

Keeping the income factors in mind no changes were made in product quantities i.e. small units of previous products. Keeping in mind the social factors no efforts were made to use opinion leaders like celebrities or doctors which would have been more effective in influencing sales than change in product packaging.

Existing products were modernised while no attention was paid to new product development for new potential markets in cosmetics industries. For e.g. Grooming products for men

No efforts were made to advertise the products to targeted audience or re-position the brand according to the changing customer taste and preferences. No offers, discounts or sales promotion activities were carried out by Mr Ash to boost sales.  

Consumer behaviour Solved Case Study

Other Factors that should have been considered are:

Age – Babies, Teenagers, Middle aged people and elderly all have different needs and requirements related to cosmetics and beauty products. Therefore the target audience could have been segmented on the basis of age of consumers.

Occupation – Working ladies v/s Housewife, Clerical staff v/s Top management, Daily consumer v/s consumers from Fashion Industry

While a housewife, a normal clerk and daily consumer may have nominal needs and demand basic products, working ladies, Directors and CEO`s of a company, make-up artists, beauticians, film stars may have specific needs and high demand for beauty products. Products could have been designed and developed for one or few segments on the basis of their occupation.

Standard of Living – Rural v/s Urban People, Low income group v/s High income group

While rural people and low income groups may make use of soaps and traditional products, urban people and the high income group are more inclined towards expensive beauty products. Different products could have been developed for both the segments and different pricing strategies could have been followed.

Perception & Attitude – Chemicals v/s Organic/Herbal products

While some people perceive beauty products negatively due to chemical ingredients in them some people recommend them. Market share for both chemicals and organic products could have been analysed and the more profitable market could have been targeted.

Involvement – Normal consumers v/s Film Industry

Consumer segments like make-up artists, beauticians, film starts will have a high involvement in buying beauty products than normal consumers. Therefore depending upon the target market packaging and labelling strategies should have been made.

Culture – Due to different cultural norms regarding appearances laid down by different religions, men and women of a particular religion dress up and make use of specific cosmetic products. For e.g. Hindu, Jain and Bengali women use ‘sindoor’ and ‘Bindi’ while Muslim women do not, Sikh men don’t use shaving products as they are not allowed to cut hair, Many Jain men and women use white tikka.

Opinion Leaders – Celebrities and Doctors act as effective opinion leaders for cosmetics and beauty products which could have been used and their impact on the sales, brand value and price could have been analysed.

Personality and Self-concept – Alpha Males v/s Passive males, Feminine v/s Tomboyish girls

While alpha males and feminine girls may use and encourage use of beauty products while passive males and tomboyish girls may like to stay raw and refrain from using beauty products. 

This Consumer Behaviour solved Case Study has been taken from Consumer Behaviour solved Case Study – Matin Khan – Case I

Consumer Behaviour Solved Case Study Matin Khan  – Case IV

Explanation of the case study:

A company in the food industry wants to formulate an effective marketing strategy to attract health conscious consumers. For this purpose a survey was conducted as more and more consumers are becoming health conscious and prefer to consume foods that are healthy and nutritious. The goal of the survey was to collect information about food habits and attitude of the consumers towards different food items.

On the basis of the survey the consumers were divided into three categories:-

• Old Consumers (elderly people)
• Young Consumers (teenagers, unmarried, working singles)
• Middle Aged Consumers (Big Families, Married Couples)

And the following information was found:

Old Consumers: They were health conscious, Brand loyal and highly involved in buying food items. This is due to their medical considerations, restricted choice of food and fixed eating schedules. They do not prefer to eat outside and are very cautious while buying new products.

Young Consumers: They are less health conscious and less brand loyal than older people and have less involvement in buying food items. They prefer food on-the-go and like convenience/fast food more than cooking for themselves. They are more influenced by product appeals than the brand name or price of the product.

Families and Households: They are moderately health conscious, moderate brand loyal and are very particular about their purchases of food items. They prefer to cook their own food and their purchases are restricted by a fixed budget. They focus more on the brand, quality, quantity and price of a product rather than product appeals. This segment usually consists of big families and married couples with kids who look for value of money products. 

Consumer behaviour Solved Case Study: Answer 1

Focus: Effective Marketing Strategy for Healthy food products

The following points can be inferred from the study:

• Consumers are more aware now, they do not simply buy what is available but demand specific products
• The user may not always be the buyer
• Different consumers may perceive the same products differently
• Different Consumers adopt the same product at different stages of product life-cycle

FACTS ABOUT ELDERLY CONSUMERS:

• Older people are more health conscious due to medical and health considerations
• They have a restricted diet and they do not change their taste and preference towards food frequently
• They are more brand conscious and brand loyal than other segments
• Older people have high involvement in buying food products as some food may be harmful to them therefore they check all product attributes before buying
• They are regular consumers and will prefer home delivery than purchasing food from outside
• They are Late Majority and Laggards in the product life-cycle stage, rarely try new products
• They have a negative attitude towards canned/packed food and fast-food
• The user may not be the actual buyer

FACTS ABOUT YOUNG CONSUMERS:

• Young consumers are less health conscious than other segments and prefer outside food
• They are less involved in buying food products as they have a hectic work schedule and dynamic lifestyle and like to try new products
• They are early adopters therefore they can be used as innovators and opinion leaders to influence the early and late majority consumers
• They prefer to eat outside and shop outside
• They are impulsive buyers and buy at convenience, their purchase decision is highly influenced by attractiveness of the product
• They are less brand loyal and focus more on product appeals than price or brand of the product
• The user is the actual buyer

 FACTS ABOUT MIDDLE-AGED CONSUMERS:

• They are less brand loyal but very health conscious
• This segment usually consists of big families, Married people with kids
• They too like elderly have a negative attitude towards canned/packed food and are sceptical towards outside food
• They resort to traditional products and do not try new and innovative products
• They lie in the late majority and laggards i.e. they only buy a product when it is successful in the market
• Due to large number of end users (family members) they have a restricted budget and they like to store product in large quantities
• The user may not be the actual buyer

Consumer behaviour Solved Case Study: Answer 2

The above information can be used in the following ways to formulate an effective marketing strategy –

• On the basis of the above information Older and Middle aged segment can prove to be a better market than young consumers. Therefore marketing efforts must be directed towards elderly people, big and small families and married couples.
• Health conscious consumers will prefer healthy products like fresh and toned milk, clean chicken, fresh vegetables, healthy oil rather than packed products which are healthy like healthy biscuits, healthy chocolates, canned energy drinks etc. as they like to cook their own food.
• Consumers of Healthy food products will focus more on Brand name and Price of the product then fancy product appeals. Therefore efforts must be made to position the products as high performing and authentic food products.
• Value for money pricing must be used to attract customers as both the elderly and middle aged people have a restricted budget. Most elderly people are either dependant on their children or live on their pension. The buyer for Big and small families has a limited budget due large number of end users. Therefore Value for money pricing must be used to attract customers as both the elderly and middle aged people have a restricted budget.
• Consumers of Healthy food products are highly involved in buying food products. Therefore products attributes such as freshness, health benefits, high calorie, low fat, zero sugar, zero cholesterol etc. must be clearly showcased through efficient product packaging and labelling.
• Celebrities and Doctors must be used for advertising to influence early purchases at the initial stage. Housewife and Head of the Family must be used as opinion leaders at the subsequent stages to influence the late majority and laggards.
• As both the elderly and middle aged like to store products. Therefore discounts on bulk buying of products must be offered and sturdy and big containers must be used for packaging.
• The products must be readily available at all small and big retail stored with a Home delivery option. Street vending must be avoided as it will have a negative impact on brand value of the product.
• Free samples must be used to attract the elderly and middle aged as both customer segments are sceptical towards new products and rarely try them at early stages of its product lifecycle.
• Elderly people may not frequently visit stored while middle aged usually shop at small and big retail stores. Therefore Door to Door sales for the elderly and Point of sale promotion efforts for the middle aged must be used.     

Consumer behaviour Solved Case Study: Answer 3

Information on the following points can be used to make an effective marketing strategy for healthy and nutritious food products:

Market Share and Market Size of each category/segment – Information about the market share and size of each segment namely older consumers, middle aged consumers and young consumers will help the marketer to streamline the target audience and select the most potential market for healthy products.

For e.g. Older and middle aged consumers are more health conscious than younger consumers and are therefore inclined towards buying healthy products. Therefore they are profitable segment and have more potential than young consumers in case of health products.

Perception and Attitude of different consumer segments towards existing and new proposed products of the company – Perception of different consumer segments towards existing and new products of the company will help the marketer to estimate the brand value and loyalty of customers towards company`s products and understand how consumers perceive their products. Consumer`s perceptions can be used to make improvements in the new products to be developed.

For e.g. Retaining existing consumers is easier than making new one. Therefore by understanding the needs of the existing customers and gathering their opinions on company`s products will provide valuable insights regarding what is to be made.

 Perception and Attitude towards competitor`s products – Understanding consumer`s perception and attitude towards competitor`s products will help a marketer to determine what is demanded in the market?, what products are successful? How do competitors tackle this demand and where their weaknesses lie? And what is liked and disliked by consumers. This information will help him to formulate effective strategies to tackle the competition and create synergies.

For e.g. Efforts must be made to fill the gap left by major players in the industry and develop unique selling points for the company`s products.

Type of Media each segment is susceptible to/influenced by – By understanding how different consumers respond to different media the marketer will be able to use an effective mix of print, radio, t.v., internet to target potential consumers and influence trials or purchases.  

For e.g. If consumers respond positively to opinion leaders such as celebrities and doctors, they must be used to promote the products. Ineffective media channels must be avoided and popular channels such as health blogs, T.V. ads with celebrities and doctors must be used.

Product attributes that health conscious people look for: Freshness, Health effects, calories – By understanding the product attributes that health conscious consumers look for the marketer will be able to develop better products and showcase the demanded product attributes through effective packaging and labelling techniques.

For e.g. Health conscious consumers can be influenced by boasting specific traits of the product such as freshness, health benefits, high calorie, Low fat, zero cholesterol etc. 

 Who buys, Where do they Buy and How much do they buy: Gym, Parks, Big or Small retail stores – These basic questions will help the marketer to formulate effective marketing strategies. The marketer will know who the actual buyer of the product is. By knowing where and how much do consumers buy, better packaging and distribution strategies can be formulated for the products.

For e.g. If the user is not the actual buyer marketing efforts must be directed towards the actual buyer. (Housewife in case of middle aged people)

Gyms, parks, fitness centres are the best places to attract health conscious consumers.

If product is purchased in huge quantities, sturdy and big containers must be used for packaging but if the product is purchased in small quantities, mini packs and easily disposable packaging options must be explored. 

What do health conscious people eat daily/frequently (eating habits of the consumers) – By knowing the eating habits of the consumers, new products suiting their daily needs can be produced. This will help the marketer to determine what is considered healthy by its target audience.

For e.g. While some people consider milk, chicken, fruits as healthy food, some consider healthy biscuits, healthy oil, fresh vegetables as healthy food. Both are different segments and demand differently.

This Consumer Behaviour solved Case Study has been taken from Consumer Behaviour solved Case Study – Matin Khan – Case IV