Consumer Motivation and Personality

• Motivation represents the reasons one has for

acting or behaving in a particular way.

• Needs are circumstances or things that he

wanted or required, and they direct the
motivational forces. is the driving force that
impels people to act.
• Personality consists of the inner psychological
characteristics that both determine and reflect
how we think and act, which together form an
individual’s distinctive character. One could be
adventurous, modest, want to be superior, stylist.
• Example of personality traits: Shy, adventurous,
modern, stylish, modest, aggressive
• Brand personification occurs when consumers
attribute(assign) human traits or
characteristics to a brand. For example,
consumers often view certain brands as
“exciting,” sophisticated,” modest, caring or
“warm.”
 The Dynamics (drivers) of Motivation

Motivation drives(encourages) consumers to buy. There are different forces

which create motivation among customers , such as

1. Needs
There are two types of human needs:
 Physiological needs are innate (natural, primary) and fulfilling
them sustains biological existence. They include the need for food,
water, air, protection of the body from the outside environment (i.e.,
clothing and shelter).

 Psychological needs are learned from our parents, social

environment, and interactions with others. Among many others, they
include the needs for self-esteem, prestige, affection, power, and
achievement. Both types of needs affect our buying decisions. For
example, all individuals need shelter from the elements and therefore
buy homes. However, the kind of homes they buy is the result of
psychological, learned needs.
2. Goals : A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a
person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to
achieve .

There are two types of goals:

 Generic goals are outcomes/desire that consumers
seek/persue in order to satisfy physiological and psychological
needs.(these are general)
 Product-specific goals are outcomes that
consumers seek by using a given product or service.
For example, when a student tells his parents that
he wants to become an entrepreneur, he expresses
a generic goal. If he says he wants to earn an MBA
from Stanford, he expresses a product-specific goal.
Suppose If you plan to go out for dinner , it’s a
generic goal. but when you say that you will go to
Mcdonald for dinners is a product-specific goal.
 Systems of Needs

• Over the years, several psychologists have

developed lists of human needs, but there is no
single, comprehensive, and commonly accepted list
• Murray’s List of Psychogenic Needs
In 1938, the pioneering psychologist Henry Murray
prepared an extensive list of psychogenic needs,
which represented the first systematic approach to
the understanding of non biological human needs.
• Murray organized his needs into five groups:
1. ambition,
2. materialistic,
3. power,
4. affection, and
5. information needs
lists the definition and illustrative characteristics of several needs researched by
Murray and Edwards that are most relevant to consumer behavior.
 Maslow's hierarchy of Needs

Psychologist Abraham Maslow formulated a theory of

human motivation based on the notion that there is
a hierarchy of human needs.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs consists of five levels of
human needs, which rank in order of importance
from lower-level (biogenic) needs to higher-level
(psychogenic) needs.
 Maslow's hierarchy of Needs
• The theory states that individuals seek to
satisfy lower-level needs before higher-level
needs.
• When that need is fairly well satisfied,
the individual is motivated to fulfill a need in
the next level of the hierarchy.
 1. Physiological needs:

Maslow maintained that physiological needs are the first and

most basic level of human needs.
 These primary needs, which are required to sustain biological
life, include food, water, air, shelter, clothing, biogenic needs.
According to Maslow, physiological needs are dominant when
they are chronically unsatisfied: “For the man who is extremely
hungry, no other interest exists but food. He dreams food, he
remembers food, he thinks about food, he emotes only about
food, he perceives only food, and he wants only food
 2. Safety needs

After physiological needs have been satisfied, safety and

security needs become the driving force behind an
individual’s behavior.
 These needs are concerned not only with physical safety, but
also with order, stability, routine, familiarity, and control over
one’s life and environment.
 For example, health and the availability of health care are
important safety concerns. Savings accounts, insurance
policies, education, and vocational training are all means by
which individuals satisfy the need for security.
 3. Social needs

The third level of Maslow’s hierarchy consists

of social needs, such as love, affection,
belonging, and acceptance.
Egoistic needs
When social needs are more or less satisfied,
the fourth level of Maslow’s hierarchy
becomes operative.
 4. egoistic needs
This level includes egoistic needs, which can take
either an inward or an outward orientation:
1. Inwardly directed ego needs reflect an
individual’s need for self-acceptance, self-esteem,
success, independence, and personal satisfaction.
2. Outwardly directed ego needs include the
needs for prestige, reputation, status, and
recognition from others.
 5. Need for Self-actualization
According to Maslow, once people sufficiently
satisfy their ego needs, they move to the fifth
level. The self-actualization need refers to an
individual’s desire to fulfill his or her potential
—to become everything that he or she is
capable of becoming.
• For example, an artist may need to express
herself on canvas; a research scientist may
strive to find a new drug that eradicates cancer.
 Trio of Needs
• A Trio of Needs
Another framework for organizing human needs
is known as the trio of needs: the needs for
power, affiliation, and achievement (these needs
are reflected in Murrays list and also in Maslow’s
needs hierarchy). Individually, each of the three
needs can affect consumer motivation.
• 1. The power need is an individual’s desire to
control his or her environment. It includes the
need to control other persons and various
objects. This need appears to be closely
related to the ego need, in that many
individuals experience increased self-esteem
when they exercise power over objects
or people
2. Affiliation is a well-researched social motive that
significantly influences consumer behavior. The affiliation
need is very similar to Maslow’s social need and suggests that
behavior is strongly influenced by the desire for friendship,
acceptance, and belonging. People with high affiliation
needs tend to be socially dependent on others and often buy
goods that they feel will meet with the approval of friends.
Teenagers who hang out at malls or techies who congregate
at computer shows often do so more for the satisfactiaon of
being with others than for the purpose of making a
purchase.
 3. Individuals with a strong achievement need often
regard personal accomplishment as an end in itself.
 They are self-confident, enjoy taking calculated
risks, actively research their environments, and value
feedback, often in the form of monetary rewards.
 People with high achievement prefer situations in
which they can take personal responsibility for finding
solutions. Because of this, portraying achievement is a
useful promotional strategy for many products and
services, especially those targeting educated and
affluent consumers