Final Thoughts

Taking Consumer Behavior has drastically changed the way I look and analyze advertisements. Since taking my first marketing class, Marketing Principles with Prof. Ben Carr, I have been reading deeper into advertisements and marketing techniques that are used to influence consumers. However, this semester while taking Consumer Behavior, I have found myself over-analyzing commercial advertisements, store advertisements, and being more conscious of myself as a consumer. The concept that intrigued me the most was the study of rituals used to influence consumers. After learning about this chapter, I instantly became more conscious of advertisements that utilize rituals to influence consumers. As a whole this class has taught me a lot of new ideas and theories about the behaviors of consumers. I know look at the world in a new, analytical way, breaking down the deeper meaning of almost every advertisement I see.

Reference Group Influence Ad: Justin Bieber for Proactiv

Justin Bieber Proactiv Commercial

Above is the link for a Proactiv acne treatment commercial featuring Justin Bieber, a famous teeny-bopper singer. In this commercial, Bieber discusses the aspects of growing up and becoming a teenager, aspects like your feet growing and sometimes getting acne. Pre-teens (mostly girls) are part of Justin Bieber's reference group, being a fan of Bieber as an idol. Therefore when they see him on TV promoting a product, they are more apt to buy the product. Bieber uses referent power, because his followers are willing to copy the behaviors of someone they admire, which in this case is him. As a teen idol, Bieber is a great addition to the Proactiv commercial series. Proactiv is known to use celebrity testimonials in their advertisements, starring celebrities like Jessica Simpson, and Katy Perry. Overall, this commercial shows a great example of reference group influence, who's group leader uses referent power to influence his followers.

VALS Survey Results

After taking the VALS survey, my results showed that I am categorized as an Innovator and an Experiencer. After taking the VALS survey, my results showed that I am categorized as an Innovator and an Experiencer. First I will discuss being an Innovator. I feel that this can accurately depict my life as a consumer because as a young 21 year old, I am always looking for the newest technologies and newest products on the market. I can also say that I feel that I am a change leader with regards to some things. For example, my parents would have no idea about the newest cell phones out, however, with my help they are able to see the new phones and perhaps even buy one of their own. I feel as though my age is what mostly qualifies me for the category of Innovator, because I am young I am able to connect with new technologies and be able to act as a change leader.
As far as being categorized as an Experiencer, I could not agree with it more. It clearly summarizes me as a young consumer, that will buy things on impulse and reaction. As much as I hate to admit it, I do spend alot of my money on clothing, my hair and nails, and other items that are obviously not necessary to survive (haha). However, it is nice to be able to have the newest shoes or the newest hair style. Being categorized as an Experiencer hit the nail right on the head, and should probably have been my primary categorization. However, both categories definitely summarize me as a consumer.

My Claddagh Ring

Growing up, I was lucky enough to have my great-grandparents around until I was 15 years old. My great-grandparents took care of me my whole life while my parents were at work, they would take my sister and I to school and then out to lunch, and of course of the occasional shopping adventure at the mall. My great-grandparents were the same age as most of my friend's grandparents, so they were still very active and able to keep up with their great-granddaughters. Every weekend I would sit with my great-grandma and look through all of her old jewelery, and she would tell me..."now Jenni, when I'm not here anymore all of this will be yours". I would smile and say "you're not going anywhere!". When I was 14 my world came crashing down, my great-grandma had passed away unexpectedly. Out of all of her precious jewelry, the only item I truly wanted was her Claddagh ring. She had worn it on her right pinky finger for as long as I could remember. I asked my great-grandfather if I would wear her ring, and he gave it to me with love. To this day, I have my great-grandma's Claddagh ring and I can honestly say that without it I would not be complete. Not only is it a beautiful piece of jewelry, but it makes me who I am.

Priming

As a resident of North Providence, Rhode Island, I was shocked to see that Pauly DelVecchio, from Johnston, Rhode Island (my town's rival town), was going to appear on an MTV show...which I am sure you all know is "Jersey Shore". I told myself I would not let myself watch this show because not only did it make New Jersey look trashier than it already is, it would also make Rhode Island appear to be a smaller scale of Jersey. I stayed strong and can honestly say I did not watch the show for the entire first season...well maybe an episode here or there when they were on late night. However, recently, I feel like everyone around me is talking about "Jersey Shore", whether they are using the "Jersey Shore" lingo, or discussing the latest drama that has happened on the show, I feel like I cannot escape this "Jersey Shore" mania. So, two weeks ago I finally gave in. I actually sat down on a Thursday night to watch the newest episode of "Jersey Shore". It wasn't as bad as I had expected, although I found myself laughing AT the show more than WITH the show. Clearly, I was primed to watch this show based on word-of-mouth, because I know if it wasn't constantly talked about by those around me, I definitely would not have taken the time to watch "Jersey Shore" and see what all the talk was about.

Joining In/Staying Out

The brand with which I feel to be part of a community is the Blackberry brand community. Just as Walker discusses the brand loyalty and community surrounding the Apple brand, I feel that same emotional attachment to Blackberry, having had a Blackberry for about four years. The Blackberry community is held together by their phones (obviously), members of the Blackberry community understand each other's phone dilemmas, chat about the latest Blackberry phones, and most importantly use Blackberry Messanger (BBM), which is used by every teenage girl in the country with a Blackberry. This brand allows me to feel as though I am a part of a community, although only a community of cell phones.
In other words, I feel as though I am completely disconnected from the Apple iPhone world. Several of my friends own iPhones and always talk about the latest applications they've downloaded or how awesome the camera on their iPhone works. As a Blackberry owner, it seems as if their are two teams...the Team Blackberry and Team iPhone, and I am on Team Blackberry. Therefore, its almost a competition between Blackberry and iPhone owners, each will criticize the other.
It is amazing how by simply owning a product by a certain brand one can create such a sense of community and emotional attachment to that particular brand. I am proud to say I am a member of Team Blackberry.

The Pretty Good Problem

About two months ago I purchased the brand new Blackberry Curve. The Blackberry Curve is a smart phone which allows you to access the internet, download an infinite amount of applications that that range from helping you pick a restaurant to eat at to checking your horoscope, and of course, make phone calls and text at insane speeds with its full keyboard. While I was obviously sold on buying the Blackberry Curve long before I entered the AT&T store, I asked myself...why the Blackberry Curve and not any other smart phone? What makes the Blackberry Curve so remarkable? Based on Seth Godin's ideas on what is "remarkable", I have realized that although many other smart phones have the same abilities as the Blackberry Curve, it is the brand name and reputation surrounding the brand name of the Blackberry that had me sold on buying one. As far as the advertisements for the Blackberry Curve are concerned, they make the phone appear to be the best option when it comes to smart phones, utilizing very creative commercials and print ads. The media coverage of the Blackberry Curve is what made it stand out as remarkable to me, and led to my purchase of the Blackberry Curve. If I had walked into the AT&T store not having any idea what kind of smart phone I wanted to purchase, I am sure I would have looked at the Blackberries first simply because of brand recognition. This, in my opinion, surely makes the Blackberry Curve a "remarkable" product.