Chapter 14 Consumption to Satisfaction End of Chapter Material Discussion Questions (*) Indicates material on prep cards. Which part of the basic consumption process takes place after purchase? Explain how it comes to be. Answer: Value is the final part of the consumption process and takes place after costs and benefits are weighed and a choice is made in the form of a purchase. Value culminates the process because it is the result of consumption. *Distinguish durable and nondurable goods. Provide an example of each. How do you think the post-consumption processes may vary based on this distinction? Answer: A durable good is consumed over a long period of time so the value likewise is extracted over a long period of time. A nondurable good is typically consumed very quickly and the value extracted over a short period. An automobile is a durable good. An ice cream cone is a nondurable good. The post-consumption process is typically more involved, complex and extended for durable goods. Define authenticity. How might authenticity play a role in affecting the degree to which a consumer is satisfied with some experience? Answer: Authenticity means something (including an experience) is real, genuine, unique, and has a history or tradition. The consumption of authentic things adds value over the consumption of synthetic experiences particularly when the consumption environment contains high degrees of symbolism or consumers are highly involved in some activity. Things that are supposed to be authentic generate specific expectations in a consumer’s mind. These expectations provide a basis of comparison that forms the potential for disconfirmation and differing degrees of satisfaction or dissatisfaction. How does cultural meaning influence the consumption process? Answer: Meaning transference begins with culture. Value is affected largely by the meaning of goods, services, and experiences. These meanings are culturally laden. Important cultural ideals or values are transferred onto products by marketing efforts, such as advertising, and by word-of-mouth that occurs between consumers. What is consumer satisfaction? Answer: Consumer satisfaction is a mild, positive emotional state resulting from a favorable appraisal of a consumption outcome. Is Walmart’s success due to high customer satisfaction? Take a stance and explain your response. Answer: The case that Walmart’s success is due to relatively high average customer satisfaction is hard to make. They appear in the lower portion of the ACSI scores. Thus, their success must be due to something else. It’s easier to make the case that relatively high utilitarian value is a key to success. What is the ACSI? Answer: The ACSI is the American Consumer Satisfaction Index. It provides results of surveys charting American consumer average satisfaction scores for many well-known marketing firms. Students should be encouraged to visit the website and check out scores for familiar companies. What is the definition of dissatisfaction? Is it likely to cause a drastic reaction by a consumer? Explain by using a situation in which some emotion other than satisfaction motivated your behavior following a purchase. Answer: Satisfaction is a mild, positive, affective reaction to a favorable consumption appraisal. Dissatisfaction is a mild, negative, affective reaction to an unfavorable consumption appraisal. Although people often use satisfaction as a colloquialism for everything that happens after a consumer buys something, many other things, including other emotions, may also occur post consumption. Among the other important post-consumption reactions that can be overlooked are specific emotions, including delight, disgust, surprise, exhilaration, and even anger. These particular emotions are often much more frequently linked to behavior, because although they are also emotional reactions to appraisals, they are often much stronger. Students should have little difficulty thinking of situations when they were angry and reacted quickly to that emotion. Otherwise, if they feel a strong emotion like anger, despair or exhilaration, they can probably relate to how much the emotion controls behavior. How does the expectancy/disconfirmation process work? Answer: The basic disconfirmation model proposes that consumers enter into a consumption experience with predetermined cognitive expectations of consumption. These expectations provide a benchmark against which actual performance perceptions are judged. Disconfirmation becomes central in explaining consumer satisfaction. When performance perceptions are more positive than what was expected, positive disconfirmation occurs. Positive disconfirmation leads to consumer satisfaction. When performance perceptions do not meet expectations, meaning that performance is less than expected, negative disconfirmation occurs. Negative disconfirmation leads to dissatisfaction. Finally, if performance perceptions exactly match what was expected, confirmation is said to occur. How does the equity theory approach to satisfaction differ from the expectancy/ disconfirmation approach? Answer: The equity theory approach differs in that the expectations that are relevant for equity theory deal with perceptions of equity or fairness. In other words, consumers expect to be treated at least as well as other consumers seeking similar service. When this belief is not matched, consumers will tend to have a negative consumption experience and probably some degree of consumer dissatisfaction. What are the key elements of a consumer’s attribution? Answer: The three key elements of a consumer’s attribution are locus, control, and stability. * Explain the way confirmatory bias may work in post-purchase processes. Answer: Confirmatory bias works when a consumer looks for evidence to confirm pre-purchase expectations. If a consumer suspects some experience is going to be bad, he or she may very well look for evidence to support this expectation! *What are the problems associated with measuring consumer satisfaction? Answer: Typically, satisfaction measures produce left-skewed data, meaning that results tend to report many consumers with the highest or near the highest level of satisfaction. This problem is exacerbated because typical satisfaction measures rely on only a single item with too few scale points to allow variance in responses to be shown. When variance is suppressed, satisfaction measures do not relate highly to other outcomes of interest. In what major ways can consumers dispose of products? Answer: The major ways in which consumers can dispose of products include trashing, recycling, trading, donating, and reselling. What role does hope play in creating satisfaction or dissatisfaction? Can you think of an instance when you felt a lot of hope prior to trying some product? How did it turn out? Answer: Here is an opportunity for students to integrate a lot of information from the entire chapter. Expectations cause feelings of hope. This may heighten the fall if negative disconfirmation occurs. However, if the feelings of hope are strong, and the product falls just below expectations, some assimilation may occur and contribute to satisfaction directly. The students may have other thoughts along these lines that may show an ability to extend the information presented in the chapter. Exhibit 14.3 could be useful in framing a response. Group Activity *Get together in groups of four. Individually visit either Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest to look for comments from consumers that you believe illustrate some of the concepts in this chapter. Make notes of and/or print some of the evidence. Discuss the findings with your group to find the best illustrations and present those in class. Answer: The answers can range over a wide degree of phenomena. But, social media sites are inundated with consumer stories, consumer complaints and consumer advice. This should be easy to find examples of emotions influencing value or illustrations of equity theory or the disconfirmation theory. 1. Brand Loyalty: Look for comments where consumers express strong allegiance or loyalty to a particular brand, highlighting why they prefer it over competitors. These comments might include personal anecdotes, emotional connections, or endorsements of the brand's values. 2. Customer Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction: Search for comments where consumers share their experiences with products or services, either praising them for meeting expectations or criticizing them for falling short. These comments might provide insights into factors influencing customer satisfaction, such as product quality, customer service, or pricing. 3. Influence of Social Proof: Identify comments where consumers reference recommendations or endorsements from friends, influencers, or other users when making purchasing decisions. These comments can illustrate the impact of social proof on consumer behavior and highlight the role of peer influence in shaping preferences. 4. Brand Engagement: Look for examples of consumers actively engaging with brands on social media, such as tagging them in posts, sharing branded content, or participating in contests or challenges. These interactions demonstrate the effectiveness of brands' social media strategies in fostering engagement and building relationships with consumers. 5. Product Reviews and Recommendations: Search for comments where consumers provide reviews or recommendations of products they have purchased or used. These comments can offer valuable insights into product performance, features, and usability, helping other consumers make informed decisions. 6. Brand Advocacy: Identify comments where consumers go beyond mere satisfaction to actively promote and advocate for a brand or its products. These comments might include testimonials, user-generated content, or endorsements that showcase the enthusiasm and loyalty of brand advocates. By analyzing and discussing these types of consumer comments within their groups, students can gain a deeper understanding of how marketing concepts manifest in real-world consumer behavior on social media platforms. They can then select the most compelling illustrations to present in class, providing valuable insights and perspectives for further discussion. Assignments Team up with another student. Compare birthdays and have the younger person play the role of interviewer and the older person play the role of consumer. Interviewer: Ask the consumer to describe a recent, highly involving consumption experience. Make sure to probe the consumer on the emotions that the consumer experienced during each stage of the consumption process. Consumer: Provide the interview and try to describe your inner feelings. Together, make up a chart that shows how emotions influenced value through different stages of the process. Answer: Encourage the students to use Exhibit 14.2 to help in developing an answer. A student might explain an involving situation like a round of golf on an expensive course like Pebble Beach. Anticipation of the event brings emotions such as hope to have a good round and/or anxiety in that the weather may not cooperate, one could play very poorly, or the playing partners could spoil the experience. Those emotions affect the overall value of the experience directly. During the event, the excitement and disappointments of the round shape value directly and influence what the consumer thinks about during the evaluation. Afterwards, the evaluation causes emotions like satisfaction or other emotions. Think about the restaurants that you are most satisfied with. Visit the ACSI on the web. Explore the site and locate the satisfaction scores for restaurants. Do you agree with the scores reported by the ACSI? Comment on the exercise. Answer: 1. Visit the ACSI Website: Start by visiting the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) website. This organization regularly publishes satisfaction scores for various industries, including restaurants. 2. Locate the Satisfaction Scores for Restaurants: Once on the ACSI website, navigate to the section that provides satisfaction scores for restaurants. You may find scores for specific restaurant chains or categories (such as fast food, casual dining, etc.). 3. Compare Scores with Your Experience: Review the satisfaction scores provided by the ACSI and compare them with your personal experiences. Reflect on whether the scores align with your own satisfaction levels when dining at those restaurants. 4. Comment on the Exercise: In your assignment, provide your thoughts on the ACSI scores. Do you agree with them? Were there any surprises? Discuss any discrepancies between the reported scores and your personal experiences. Additionally, consider factors that may influence satisfaction beyond what is captured in the scores, such as service quality, menu variety, cleanliness, and value for money. 5. Provide Recommendations: Based on your analysis, offer recommendations for improving customer satisfaction at the restaurants you evaluated. Consider areas where they excel and areas where there is room for improvement. 6. Conclude with Insights: Conclude your assignment by summarizing your findings and insights. Discuss the importance of customer satisfaction for restaurants and how organizations can use feedback from sources like the ACSI to enhance their offerings and customer experience. Remember to cite any sources you use, including the ACSI website, and present your analysis clearly and logically. * What is a “packrat?” Ask three friends permission to take a photo of their rooms. Which do you think is the biggest packrat? Prepare a brief report explaining your conclusion. Answer: Packrats possess a lifestyle trait leading to a strong tendency toward retaining consumption-related possessions. Packrats also are likely to visit garage sales, swap meets, and flea markets to purchase products that serve no immediate need. If your friends only have a few mementoes or nostalgic pieces, they are likely representative of a lifestyle strongly oriented toward retaining stuff. If they seem to keep everything, then they could even be compulsive. The question should lead to interesting discussion. Visit a major consumer website such as www.jdpower.com. What types of ratings do they include? What descriptions do they give of their measurement process? If possible, take a survey on the website. What types of surveys do they offer? Answer: Students may find the JD Power website surprising because it actually focuses on the quality ratings of major automobile manufacturers. The point here is to have students examine different consumer sites to see what is available. Most other sites do not contain a great deal of detail on the methodology of rating scales. The ACSI may be an exception. This exercise is worthwhile to illustrate whether the techniques used in these websites are appropriate to obtain useful satisfaction scores. J.D. Power typically includes various types of ratings on their website, covering different aspects of products and services. Some common types of ratings they provide include: 1. Overall Satisfaction Ratings: These ratings provide an overall measure of customer satisfaction with a particular product, service, or brand. They often encompass various factors, such as performance, reliability, customer service, and value for money. 2. Quality and Reliability Ratings: J.D. Power evaluates the quality and reliability of products and services based on factors like durability, performance consistency, and frequency of problems or issues reported by customers. 3. Customer Service Ratings: These ratings assess the quality of customer service provided by companies across different touchpoints, such as phone support, online assistance, and in-person interactions. 4. Product Performance Ratings: J.D. Power evaluates the performance of products based on objective measures and customer feedback, considering factors like speed, efficiency, accuracy, and ease of use. 5. Brand Reputation Ratings: These ratings gauge the overall reputation and perception of brands within specific industries or categories, taking into account factors like brand awareness, trustworthiness, and customer loyalty. In terms of their measurement process, J.D. Power typically provides descriptions of their research methodologies and data collection techniques on their website. They often use a combination of surveys, interviews, data analysis, and statistical modeling to gather insights and generate ratings. Their methodologies may vary depending on the industry or type of product/service being evaluated, but they generally strive to ensure rigor, objectivity, and reliability in their research process. As for surveys offered on the website, J.D. Power may provide various types of surveys tailored to specific industries or topics. These surveys could include: 1. Customer Satisfaction Surveys: These surveys measure customer satisfaction with specific products, services, or brands, gathering feedback on various aspects of the customer experience. 2. Product Usage Surveys: These surveys collect information about how customers use and interact with particular products, including frequency of use, features utilized, and overall satisfaction with product performance. 3. Brand Perception Surveys: These surveys assess consumers' perceptions and attitudes toward different brands within a particular industry, exploring factors like brand awareness, reputation, and purchase intent. Overall, J.D. Power aims to provide consumers with valuable insights and ratings to help them make informed purchasing decisions, while also providing companies with actionable feedback to improve their products and services. Chapter Video Summary To view the video case Sephora Retailing for Success, go to the CB companion website login.cengage.com to select this video. Sephora Retailing for Success At Sephora, shopping is all about experiencing products. When the French cosmetics retailer came to America in the late 1990s, it immediately opened its counters to free trials of makeup, fragrances, and skin care items. The try-before-you-buy concept is a hit with female customers, and sales associates at Sephora are always willing to help and educate customers. The company’s loyalty program ensures that satisfied customers keep coming back for more. Ask your students: 1. Visit the Sephora website and browse the online store. How does Sephora use the online environment to promote its products without the advantage of letting customers try before they buy? Answer: www.sephora.com has a flash banner that promises three free samples with every online order plus easy returns. Their online store has special articles, tips, contests and videos, all kinds of “interactive” or engaging features to keep an online shopper interested. 2. Sephora is working out the details of a new loyalty program and they have asked you to give your input and advice. What do you tell them? How should they integrate this new program with the retailing mix they have already adopted? Answer: Some students may want to advise Sephora to study other successful retail, fashion, fragrance, or body shop’s loyalty programs. Students may agree with the ideas presented in the video to offer incentives to frequent shoppers, special gift incentives, customized mailings and offers, etc. Other students may advise Sephora against the loyalty program because it may complicate inventory or change the democratic atmosphere of the open sale, non-commissioned sales staff, etc. For Sephora's new loyalty program, I would recommend the following: 1. Tiered Membership Levels: Implement a tiered membership structure to incentivize customers to spend more and engage with the brand regularly. Offer perks and rewards that increase in value as customers move up through the tiers, such as exclusive discounts, early access to sales, birthday gifts, and personalized beauty consultations. 2. Points-Based Rewards System: Utilize a points-based rewards system where customers earn points for every purchase they make, with the ability to redeem points for free products, deluxe samples, or discounts on future purchases. Offer bonus points opportunities for specific actions, such as writing reviews, attending events, or referring friends to the program. 3. Personalized Recommendations: Leverage customer data and purchase history to provide personalized product recommendations and offers tailored to each member's preferences and beauty profile. Use algorithms and machine learning to analyze data and deliver targeted marketing messages that resonate with individual customers. 4. Exclusive Events and Experiences: Host exclusive events and experiences for loyalty program members, such as beauty workshops, masterclasses with industry experts, and VIP shopping nights. Offer early access to new product launches and limited-edition collections, creating a sense of excitement and exclusivity for members. 5. Mobile App Integration: Develop a mobile app that serves as a central hub for the loyalty program, allowing members to track their points, access exclusive content, and shop seamlessly from their smartphones. Incorporate features like augmented reality makeup try-on, virtual consultations, and in-store navigation to enhance the overall shopping experience. 6. Community Engagement: Foster a sense of community and belonging among loyalty program members by encouraging them to share their beauty tips, tricks, and product recommendations with each other. Create online forums, social media groups, and user-generated content campaigns where members can connect, interact, and support one another. Integrating this new loyalty program with Sephora's existing retailing mix would involve aligning it with the brand's core values, customer experience, and omnichannel strategy. This could include: 1. In-Store Experience: Train store associates to promote the loyalty program and educate customers about its benefits. Display signage and promotional materials throughout the store to encourage sign-ups and participation. Offer in-store exclusives and events for loyalty program members to drive foot traffic and sales. 2. Online Presence: Feature the loyalty program prominently on Sephora's website and mobile app, with clear messaging and calls-to-action to join or log in. Use targeted email campaigns, push notifications, and social media posts to communicate program updates, rewards, and special offers to members. 3. Omnichannel Integration: Ensure a seamless omnichannel experience for loyalty program members, allowing them to earn and redeem rewards whether they shop in-store, online, or via the mobile app. Enable features like buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) and reserve online, try in-store (ROTS) to bridge the gap between digital and physical channels. 4. Data Analytics: Leverage data analytics and customer insights to continually refine and optimize the loyalty program, identifying trends, preferences, and opportunities for personalization. Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) such as member acquisition, engagement, retention, and lifetime value to measure the program's success and ROI. By integrating these strategies with Sephora's existing retailing mix, the new loyalty program can drive customer loyalty, increase repeat purchases, and ultimately enhance the overall shopping experience for beauty enthusiasts. CB Scenario Video A batch of shrimps is sizzling over a flame. Two customers look over the menu of a restaurant, Mezzaluna. The menu is displayed on a board with a list of the dishes and their prices. Inside the restaurant, customers chat and drink as they wait for their orders to be served. Ask your students: As a connoisseur of seafood, what kind of service must the restaurant offer to lead to value and satisfaction? Answer: The value and satisfaction need not do with the meal per se; it could be the association of happy memories of seafood meals consumed during childhood. As a consumer, how would you make a choice of eating at a restaurant? Answer: Somebody might recommend it or you might read about it in a magazine or a newspaper or an advertisement. As a consumer, making a choice of eating at a restaurant involves considering several factors to ensure a satisfying dining experience. Here are some questions students can consider when making their choice: 1. Cuisine and Menu Variety: Does the restaurant offer the type of cuisine I'm in the mood for? Is there a good variety of dishes on the menu to cater to different preferences and dietary restrictions? 2. Quality of Food: Have I heard good reviews about the quality of food at this restaurant? Is the food freshly prepared using high-quality ingredients? 3. Price and Value for Money: Is the pricing reasonable for the quality and portion sizes offered? Do I feel like I'm getting value for my money? 4. Ambiance and Atmosphere: What is the ambiance like? Is it suitable for the occasion (e.g., casual dining, fine dining, date night)? Is the noise level comfortable for conversation? 5. Location and Convenience: How far is the restaurant from my location? Is it easy to access by public transportation or car? Is there parking available? 6. Service Quality: Have I had good experiences with the service at this restaurant in the past? Are the staff friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable about the menu? 7. Hygiene and Cleanliness: Does the restaurant maintain high standards of cleanliness and hygiene? Are there visible signs of cleanliness in the dining area and restrooms? 8. Special Features or Offers: Does the restaurant offer any unique features or special offers that appeal to me, such as outdoor seating, live music, happy hour specials, or loyalty programs? 9. Online Reviews and Recommendations: Have I read any reviews or received recommendations from friends or family about this restaurant? What do others say about their experiences? 10. Ethical and Sustainability Considerations: Does the restaurant source ingredients ethically and support sustainable practices? Does it align with my values regarding food production and environmental impact? By considering these factors and possibly others that are important to them personally, consumers can make informed decisions when choosing a restaurant to dine at. Solution Manual for CB Consumer Behaviour Barry J. Babin, Eric G. Harris 9781305403222, 9781305577244
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