Consumer behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Consumer behavior - Essay Example Bargh (2002) explains that motivations are inner forces that cause consumers to take action towards satisfying their needs. When a marketer understands the motivating factors that trigger a consumer to visit a show room or actually recognize a need to buy a car, he can get a competitive edge in the industry. Motivation is an important factor especially for Sunny Nissan as the marketing team of the car should understand the motivational factors that will cause the consumers to pay attention to the brand and actually become motivated enough to purchase the car (Nissan 2009) . However, Michael and Dann (2007) point out that recognizing these motivating factors are essential so that the marketers can use these factors in the advertisements or the sales personnel can use these motivating cues to make the consumer want the brand more and encourage him to buy the car. Folkes (1988) adds that knowing about these motivational factors will give Sunny an edge and the marketing efforts will be p roductive as they will affect the consumers. For example featuring a family in the advertisement and how a better looking car resolves family commuting issues and gives the owner a social acceptance will make the viewer relate it to his own personal needs and he may actually be motivated enough to go pout and buy the car. Motivation as Bagozzi and Dholakia (1999) describe therefore is an attempt to recognize the consumer behavior at a micro level. It is when the marketer tries to understand the consumer at an individual or personal level which is very difficult to assess and gauge. The main motivation theory is based on the need factor. With Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory, the categories of need can be recognized as physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem needs and self actualization needs. As per the theory, Bargh (2002) explains that the need for Sunny will lie under the social need category. This is