Consumer Needs and Motivation!

Concept of Motivation:
Motivation asks the question ‘why’? about human behaviour.
For example, why do they prefer McDonald’s hamburgers
than Nirula’s Burgers?, Why are you reading this book?, Why
he buys only from Bigjos? etc.

Very few answers to why? questions are simple and

straightforward. No one observing your behaviour know for
sure why you are behaving in a particular manner.

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“A person is said to be motivated when his or her system is

energized (aroused), made active and behaviour is directed
towards a desired goal”.

Before we go in deep, let us know the place of motivation in

Buying Behaviour. Following diagram (3.1) shows that a given
instance of buying behaviour is the result of three factors
multi plied by each other, the ability to buy something, the
opportunity to buy it and the motivation i.e. the wish, the
need or the desire to do so.

Components of Motivation are:

It is important for marketers to realize that motivation is only

one of the essential elements that contributes to buying
behaviour as given in Fig. 3.1. No amount of love or money or
other incentives could motivate the person who is not able to
walk.

Similarly, if a shopkeeper is offering sale on all the items but

he/she opens on weekdays only upto 6.00 p.m. In this case
even if people are motivated but the shopkeeper is giving very
little opportunity to act on their motivation.

Similarly, suppose a company is offering a new product line

and spending much on heavy advertisement, company is not
ensuring whether the products are available in all the outlets.
Needs, Goals and Motives:
Motivation can also be described as the driving force within
individuals that impels them to action. As shown in the figure
3.2, this driving force is the result of tension, which in turn is
because of unfulfilled needs. To reduce tension, every
individual strives for fulfilling their needs. This basically,
depends on each individual how they fulfill their needs i.e.
individual thinking and learning (experiences). Therefore,
marketers try to influence the consumer’s cognitive processes.

Needs:

Every individual has needs, they are innate and acquired.

Innate needs are also called physiological needs or primary
needs which include food, water, air, shelter or sex, etc.
Acquired needs are those needs that we learn from our
surroundings / environment or culture. These may include
need for power, for affection, for prestige, etc. These are
psychological in nature; therefore they are also called as
secondary needs.

Goals:

Goals are the end result of motivated behaviour. As in the

above diagram (3.2) every individual’s behaviour is goal-
oriented.

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From marketer point of view, there are four types of

goals:

(a) Generic goals:

General classes of goals that consumers select to fulfill their

needs. For example, need for washing hands.

(b) Product specific goals:

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For washing hands what kind of product is used. For

example, use soap, liquids etc.

(c) Brand specific goals:

For example, which soap – Lux, Pears etc., to be purchased.

(d) Store specific goals:

From where that product must be purchased.

Goal Selection:

The goals selected by individuals depend on their personal

experiences, physical capacity, goal’s accessibility in the
physical and social environment and above all the individual’s
cultural norms and values. For example, if a person has a
strong hunger need, his/her goal will depend on what is
available at that moment, in which country he is i.e., if in
India cannot eat steak, as it is against his values and beliefs.
He will have to select a substitute goal which is more
appropriate to the social environment.

An individual’s own perception of his/her also influence the

selection of the goal. The products a person owns, would like
to own, or would not like to own are often perceived in terms
of how closely they are congruent with the person’s self
image. It is seen that usually that product is selected by an
individual which has a greater possibility of being selected
than one that is not.

Needs and goals are interdependent, existence of one is

impossible without the other. For example, sometimes people
join a club but is not consciously aware of his social needs, a
woman may not be aware of her achievement needs but may
strive to have the most successful boutique in town. One
reason for this can be that individuals are more aware of their
physiological needs than they are of their psychological
needs.

Motives:

Consumer researchers have given two types of motives-

rational motives and irrational (emotional) motives. They say,
that consumers behave rationally when they consider all
alternatives and choose those that give them the greatest
utility. This is also known as economic man theory.

Marketers meaning of rationality is when consumers select

goals based on totally objective criteria such as size, weight or
price, etc. Emotional motives imply the selection of goals
according to personal or subjective criteria. For example,
desire for status, individuality, fear of owning the product
(from society), pride, affection, etc.

It is assumed that consumers always attempt to select

alternatives that in their view, serve to maximize satisfaction.
The measurement of satisfaction is a very personal process,
based on the individual’s own needs structure as well as on
past behavioural and social experiences.

It is seen that what may appear irrational to others may be

perfectly rational in consumer’s opinion. For example, if an
individual purchases a product to enhance self-image and
considers this to be a rational decision and if behaviour does
not appear rational to the person at the time of purchasing
then he would have not purchased. Therefore, it is very
difficult to distinguish between rational and emotional
consumption motives.
Can Needs be Created?
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This is a very ancient question about marketing and

motivational research can help us provide an answer to it.
Like the products ‘Hit’ spray for cockroaches and ‘Hit’ for
mosquitoes. The consumers decided for themselves that the
psychological satisfaction obtained from using the cockroach
spray was more important to them than the need for a cleaner
and more efficient product.

People say that needs are created for them by the marketer
through subliminal method. To some extent one can influence
the consumer through subliminal perception; the effects are
probably not very great or very specific. So, there is no
evidence whatsoever that anyone can create a need in a
consumer. Marketers and advertisers can only try to
stimulate an existing need or can channel consumers need in
a certain direction towards one product or brand rather than
another, but the results are unpredictable.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
Human needs tend to be diverse in content as well as in
length. Dr. Abraham Maslow has formulated a widely
accepted theory of human motivation based on hierarchy of
human needs which is universally accepted. He has stated five
basic levels of human needs which rank in order of
importance from lower level (psychological) needs to highest
level (physiological) needs.

This theory suggests that all individuals try to satisfy the

lower level needs before higher level needs emerge. The lower
level of unsatisfied needs that an individual experiences
serves to motivate his or her behavior. When this need is
satisfied, then a higher level need emerges and again tension
appears. To reduce this tension, the individual gets motivated
and fulfills it. When this need is satisfied, a new i.e., higher
need emerges and the process goes on in the life span of an
individual.

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Maslaw’s hierarchy of needs in diagrammatic form is given on

Fig.3.3.
According to this theory, however, there is some overlap
between each level, as no need is ever completely satisfied.
For this reason, though all levels of need below the dominant
level continue to motivate behaviour to some extent, the
prime motivator—the major driving force within the
individual is the lowest level of needs that remains largely
unsatisfied.

Physiological Needs:

This is the first and most basic level of needs which are called
Physiological needs. These needs are also called primary
needs, which are required for sustenance namely food, water,
air, shelter, clothing, sex (all biogenic needs). According to
Maslow, physiological needs are dominant when they are
chronically unsatisfied. For example, a man who is very
hungry, then no other thing interests him than food. He
dreams food, he remembers food and he perceives only food.

Safety Needs:

After the physiological needs are fulfilled, safety and security

needs become the driving force behind an individual’s
behaviour. These are concerned with physical safety, for
example, order, stability, familiarity, routine, control over
one’s life and environment, and certainty, etc. This means a
person will eat lunch not only that day but also every day far
into the future.

Safety means not only health-wise but individual needs, other

securities like need for saving accounts, insurance.

(1) Physiological — housing, food, drink, clothing.

(2) Safety — insurance, burglar alarms (Wesco, Auto cop), tire

alarms, cars with air bags.

(3) Self-esteem — high status brands, goods or services like

owning microwave etc.
(4) Social — greeting cards, holiday packages, team sports
equipment.

(5) Self actualization — educational services etc.

Consumer choice is very important in satisfying all these

needs, even the physiological ones is of particular importance
to marketing. We can see that how the cola companies have
replaced themselves with tap water to quench people’s thirst.
And in particular why choose Coke rather than Pepsi or vice
versa. It is also important to note that many products can be
used to satisfy several different levels of needs for example- a
car, a book, telephone etc.
Critics to Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Level:
(1) Concepts are too general:

It is said that hunger and self-esteem are considered to be

similar needs but the former is urgent and involuntary in
nature whereas latter is a conscious and voluntary type.

(2) This theory cannot be tested empirically:

This means that there is no way to measure precisely how

satisfied one need must be before the next higher need
becomes active.

Need hierarchy is also used for the basis of market

segmentation with specific advertising appeals directed to
individuals on one or more need levels. For example-
cigarette ads, soft drink ads etc., often stress a social appeal
by showing a group of young people sharing good times as
well as the product advertised. It is also used for positioning
products policies, education and vocational training etc.

Social Needs:

The third level of Maslow’s hierarchy includes such needs as

love, affection, belonging and acceptance. Advertisers of
personal care products often emphasize all these social
motives in their advertisements.

Egoistic Needs:

This is the fourth level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

According to Maslow, this becomes operative when the social
needs of a person are more or less satisfied. Egoistic needs
can be inward or outward or both oriented.

An individual with inward -directed ego needs reflect need for

self acceptance, for self-esteem, for success, independence
etc. An outward-directed ego needs includes need for
reputation, for status, for recognition from others.

Self-Actualization:

This was not coined by Maslow but was done by Gestalt

theorist called Kurt Goldstein but he popularized it. Maslow
explained the term, in brief, by saying that individual at this
stage has need to actualize or realize all of one’s unique
potential and what one can be. This need can never be
fulfilled, moreover, very few of the people reached this level.
The more self actualized people become, the more they want
to become. This is a motivation with its own inner dynamic.

Maslow did not say these five levels to form a totally rigid
hierarchy. He says that more than one level of need can be
experienced at the same time by the same person. Marketers
have generally found Maslow’s hierarchy to be conceptually
stimulating in understanding consumer motivation and for
framing out advertising strategies. Specific products are often
targeted at specific level of need, like
Dynamic Nature of Motivation:
Motivation means the driving force within individuals that
impels them to action. It is considered to be dynamic in
nature as is constantly changing in reaction to life
experiences. Needs and goals are constantly changing because
of an individual’s physical condition, social circle,
environment and other experiences.

When one goal is achieved, an individual tries to attain the

new ones. If they are unable to attain, either they keep
striving for them or finds out the substitute goal.
Psychologists have given certain reasons to support the
statement “Needs and goals are constantly changing”—

(1) An individual’s existing needs are never completely

satisfied, they continually impel them to attain or maintain
satisfaction.

(2) As one need is satisfied, the next higher level need

emerges.

(3) An individual who achieves their goals set new and higher
goals for themselves.

Needs are never fully satisfied:

Most of the human needs are never permanently satisfied.

For example, most people need continuous approval from
others to satisfy their social needs. There are various
examples in our surroundings that show temporary goal
achievement does not fully satisfy the need for power and
every individual keeps striving to satisfy the need more fully.

Some researchers say that new needs emerge as old needs are
satisfied. In motivational theories, researcher have given facts
supporting that new higher-order needs emerge as individual
fulfills his lower needs (Maslow’s hierarchy of needs).

Marketers must be aware of the changing needs. For example,

now-a-days everybody has become environment conscious, so
companies have also adapted environment friendly attitude
like using paper bags for packing or for promotional strategy.
Similarly, automobiles were considered as prestige symbol
before and therefore, marketer were promoting in the same
manner. Now, marketers stress more on safety because
consumers are going for long drives with family because of
shifting of need satisfaction reasons of people.

Success and failure influence goals:

Individuals set their new and higher goals, if they successfully

achieve the previous ones. This means they raise their levels
of aspiration. The success in the previous goals gives them
confidence for reaching higher goals. So, we can say that
success and failure of an individual also plays a major role in
goal selection.

Marketers use these effects i.e., success and failure on goal

selection for formulating strategies. Advertisement should not
promise more than the product will deliver. This means
advertisers should not create unrealistic expectations for
these products as they cause dissatisfaction among consum-
ers.

When, for one reason or another, an individual cannot attain

a specific goal then he/she will be directed to a substitute
goal. Substitute goal may not be as satisfactory as the actual
one but may try to reduce the tension. Sometimes substitute
goal may be used as a defensive tool for frustration. For
example, a women stop drinking buffalo milk as she is dieting
may actually begin to prefer skimmed milk.

Frustration is basically the outcome of inability to achieve a

goal. The barriers can be many like financial limitations or
incapability or physical or social environment. Every
individual reacts differently to these situations; some are
adaptive, find out the obstacle or go in for a substitute goal.
Others may take this as personal failure and experience
feelings of anxiety.
Defense Mechanisms:

Some people are unable to cope with frustration, so they

redefine the frustrating situation in order to protect their self
image and defend their self esteem. For example, a young
man wants to buy Opel car which he cannot afford’. The
coping individual may select a less expensive car like Maruti
Zen etc. An individual who cannot cope may react with anger
toward his boss for not paying him enough money to buy a
car. These possibilities can be categorized under aggression.

Multiplicity of Needs:

A consumer tries to fulfill two or more needs by attaining a

single goal. For example, wearing an Allen Solly shirts and
trousers can be for protection or for enhancing societal image.

Needs and Goals Vary:

This is true that the needs and goals vary from an individual
to individual. People with different needs may try to fulfill by
selecting the same goal, whereas people with same needs may
try and fulfill them by different goals. For example if women
who are actively involved in the office work may be behaving
like this because of recognition in the organization, for
promotion, or for security in the job to earn livelihood.

Similarly, these people may be driven by the same need

(example, an ego need) to seek fulfillment in different ways.
One of them may want recognition through a professional
career, other may join a health club and the other may
actively involved in the consumer active movement.

The arousal of any particular set of needs may be the outcome

of internal or external stimuli. The internal stimuli may be the
outside environment like product itself, advertisement or
other promotional activities.

Physiological:
Bodily needs at any specific moment of time are rooted in an
individual’s physiological conditions at that moment. If the
body temperature goes down the person shivers. If a person
experiences stomach contractions then the hunger need is
triggered.

Emotional:

It is believed that people who are frustrated try to visualize

themselves in a desirable situation often by daydreaming and
think the need to be satisfied.

Cognitive:

Sometimes random thoughts or personal achievements can

lead to a cognitive awareness of needs. In some ads the
reminder is provided by the marketer, which triggers instant
recognition of need, For example, the ads given by Vandana
Luthra’s Curls and Curves, Alps etc.

Environmental:

Most of the needs are activated by specific cues in the

environment. For example, the sight or smell of a cake or a
pastry, fast food commercials on the television (McDonald’s
burgers).

Sometimes when you visit your friend’s house and come

across a product, which may activate your need. These types
of cues can be given in advertisement. Because of
advertisement or other environmental cues produces a
psychological imbalance in the viewer’s mind. For example, a
working women comes across a food processor ad. on
television that simplifies the work. The ad. may make her so
unhappy that she experiences severe tension until she buys
herself new food processor model.

Two philosophies concerned with the arousal of

human motives are:
1. Stimulus- response theory:

This was given by behaviorist school; in this behavior is seen

as the response to a stimulus and elements of conscious
thoughts are ignored. For example, impulse buyer who is
largely attracted to the stimulus i.e. external environment in
buying situation.

2. Conritive Theory:

This believes that all behaviour is directed at goal

achievement. Needs and past experiences are transformed
into attitudes and beliefs that act as predispositions to
behaviour. These in turn, help individual satisfy his/her
needs.
Motivational Research:
It refers to the qualitative research designed to uncover the
consumer’s subconscious or hidden motivations. After
working on this, researchers found that consumers are not
always aware of the reasons for their actions. Through this,
they have tried to uncover underlying feelings, attitudes and
emotions related to products, service or brand to be used etc.

How Motivational Research Developed:

Sigmeud Freud’s psychoanalytical theory provided the basis

for the development of motivational research. We will study
this in detail in ‘Personality’. This theory states that
unconscious needs or drives (biological and sexual drives) are
at the heart of human motivation and personality.

Later, other researchers adopted Freud’s psychoanalytical

techniques to study consumer buying habits. Now, the
research was focused on what consumers did than why they
did it. This was done through qualitative and descriptive
studies. For example, cigarettes are bought just because of
their sexual symbolism.
Some drawbacks related to motivational research are that
because of its qualitative nature, samples taken were small
and therefore generalized findings about the market were
taken. Moreover, projective tests and in-depth interviews are
highly subjective. If the same data is analyzed by three
researchers the outcome is three different results.

Critics for Freud’s theory and other theories are:

1. This theory was specifically designed for use with disturbed

people, while behaviorists were interested in explaining the
behaviour of typical consumers.

2. Freudian theory was developed in different social context

(19th century Vienna), while motivational research was
introduced in 1960’s post-war America.

In today’s scenario, despite the criticisms or shortcomings,

motivational research is still regarded as an important tool by
marketers who want to gain deeper insight into the why’s
consumer behaviour. Research shows that unconscious mind
may understand and respond to nonverbal symbols, can form
emotional responses and also their actions can be
independent of conscious state of mind. Semiotics is the new
science field that is concerned with the conscious and
subconscious meanings of nonverbal symbols to consumers.
This is possible through motivational research.

Marketers use motivational research in developing new ideas

for promotional campaigns. That is through this, they are able
to penetrate the consumer’s conscious state of mind.
Marketers are now able to explore consumer reactions to
ideas and advertising copy at an early stage, to avoid the
financial setback later.

Now profit organizations also use motivational research so

that more and more number of people participate in their
organization.
In the end, we can say that motivational research analyzes
and usually suggests new ways for Marketers to present their
products to the public.