MKTG Chapter 5 & 6 – Analyzing the Marketing Environment ; Consumer Behavior

Company, competitors, corporate partners, physical environment

The components of the immediate environment.

Analyze competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, and responses to their strategies

How competitors influence marketing strategy.

Corporate partners

Other businesses that help a firm succeed (e.g., suppliers, manufacturers).

Influences product use and sustainability; includes trends like green marketing and greenwashing

How the physical environment impacts marketing.

Culture, demographics, social trends, technology, economic situation, political/legal environment

The six key macroenvironmental factors.

Country culture vs regional culture

Country culture involves national traditions, language, and customs; regional culture focuses on local preferences within a country.

Generational cohorts

Groups of people from the same generation with similar buying behaviors.

Gen Z, Gen Y (Millennials), Gen X, Baby Boomers

The four main generational cohorts with distinct characteristics.

Determines purchasing power and target market strategies

How income affects marketing.

Higher education leads to higher income which results in greater purchasing power

How education impacts spending power.

Brands must be gender-sensitive and inclusive as roles shift

Why gender is important in marketing.

Minorities will make up 50% of the U.S. population by 2050; Hispanic population will be 23%.

The projected ethnic makeup of the U.S. by 2050.

Sustainability, health & wellness, efficient food utilization

The major social trends shaping marketing.

Aligning with UN Sustainable Development Goals

How sustainability impacts marketing.

Focus on fitness, healthy eating, mobile health apps

Marketing trends driven by health and wellness.

Reducing food waste and promoting diet-related products

How food utilization is changing in marketing.

Impacts product innovation, communication, and retail trends

How technology affects marketing.

AI, Internet of Things (IoT), robotics

Three cutting-edge technologies in marketing.

Data protection and compliance with laws like GDPR & CCPA

A major privacy concern in marketing.

Determines how people spend based on inflation, interest rates, and currency value

How the economy influences consumer behavior.

Inflation, foreign currency fluctuations, interest rates

Key economic factors to monitor.

Sherman Antitrust Act, Clayton Act, Federal Trade Commission Act, Robinson-Patman Act

Key legal acts that impact marketing.

Responding quickly, accurately, and sensitively to consumer needs

How marketers can succeed in a changing environment.

Need recognition, search for information, evaluation of alternatives, purchase & consumption, postpurchase outcomes

The five stages of the consumer decision process.

A need is necessary for survival; a want is a desire for something not essential

The difference between a need and a want.

Functional vs. psychological needs

Functional needs are based on product performance; psychological needs are based on personal satisfaction.

Internal uses personal memory, external seeks outside information

The difference between internal and external search.

Internal locus believes in personal control, external locus relies on fate

How locus of control affects search behavior.

Performance, financial, social, physiological, psychological

Types of perceived risk.

Universal, retrieval, and evoked sets

Different sets of choices in evaluation of alternatives.

Evaluative criteria are general features; determinant attributes make a choice stand out

The difference between evaluative criteria and determinant attributes.

Compensatory weighs multiple factors; noncompensatory focuses on one key factor

Difference between compensatory and noncompensatory decision rules.

Impulse products are bought without planning

What are impulse products?

Choice architecture influences decision-making

What is choice architecture?

A pre-set choice (e.g., auto-renewal on a subscription)

What is a default option?

Set realistic expectations, provide product support, offer return policies, stay engaged with customers

Ways companies can increase postpurchase satisfaction.

Buyer’s remorse after purchase, especially for high-risk items

What is cognitive dissonance?

Thank-you emails, follow-up messages, easy return policies

Ways firms can reduce cognitive dissonance.

The likelihood of repeat purchases; tracked by CRM systems

What is customer loyalty?

When unhappy customers share bad experiences online or in person

What is negative word of mouth?

Physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualization

The five levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Cognitive, affective, behavioral

The three components of attitude.

Perception shapes how consumers interpret marketing messages

How does perception affect consumer behavior?

Past experiences influence future decisions

The role of learning and memory in consumer behavior.

Families make joint decisions based on group needs

How families influence purchasing decisions.

Groups that influence consumer choices (friends, celebrities, coworkers)

What are reference groups?

Shared values and customs shape consumer preferences

How does culture impact buying behavior?

Purchase situation, sensory situation, temporal state

Situational influences on consumer decisions.

The level of interest and effort put into making a purchase

What is consumer involvement?

High involvement leads to deep processing, low involvement relies on surface cues

How high- vs. low-involvement consumers process ads.

Extended problem solving, limited problem solving, impulse buying, habitual decision-making

The four types of buying decisions.