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CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

Academic Year 2013-2014 Professor Rita Coelho do Vale

1st Bimester, Sept – Oct 2013

Instructor

Professor: Rita Coelho do Vale (ritavale@ucp.pt) Biographical Note:

Rita Coelho do Vale is assistant Professor of Marketing and she is co-coordinator of the Advanced Executive Program in Marketing (PAME) at Católica-Lisbon and of LERNE-Laboratory of Experimental Research in Economics and Management, both at Católica-Lisbon.. She holds a Ph.D. in Marketing from Tilburg University (the Netherlands), an MBA from Faculdade de Economia-UNL, and a ‘Licenciatura’ in Economics- specialization in Business Administration from Faculdade de Economia- Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Her main research interests are on decision-making processes, self-regulation and its impact on choice and consumption decisions, impulsive buying behavior, and package formats. Recently, she has embraced the analysis of Private Labels’ phenomenon. She participates in several research projects sponsored by FCT, where she is responsible for the development of several research projects in the consumer behavior area. She teaches currently both in the Masters of Science, The Lisbon MBA, as in several executive education courses.

Course Objectives

This course aims to outline the importance of understanding consumers’ behavior in order to develop appropriate marketing strategies. Specific information about how consumers choose, buy, and dispose the products or services, help organizations to properly define its core market and to identify threats and opportunities for their products and brands. It is therefore of major importance to adequately analyze potential consumers, identifying its needs and wishes in order to properly offer customized solutions and be able to successfully innovate.

Additionally, marketers are currently working in an everyday more challenging environment, being fundamental that learn how to use the vast resources of marketing research techniques. In the present course, by creating a stimulating and enriching discussion environment, we will try to cover some of the most significant offline and online data bases sources that may help marketers to engage in valuable and well-grounded decision-making practices.

Specific Objectives:

� To build a strong knowledge on consumer decision processes.

� To analyze consumption decisions and its consequences on the self and others.

� To highlight the internal dynamics on consumers’ behavior, focusing on the role that the self plays in the decision-making process.

� To outline the influence of external factors on consumption decisions.

� To analyze emerging trends in the marketplace: impact of new technologies adoption

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Course Description

� Introduction to Consumer Behavior (session 1- 3 hours)

o What is Consumer Behavior?

o Consumers &Marketing

o Emerging Trends on Consumer Behavior

� Getting a Grasp on Consumers’ Behavior- Research Techniques (Session 2- 3

hours)

• Primary offline data collection methods

• The importance of experimental research

• Challenges raised by technology- online research techniques

o Case-study discussion: “TiVo”, Kellog School of Management, Ref:KEL132

� Consumers as Decision Makers (Session 3 and 4- 6 hours)

• Individual Decision Making

• Consumers as Problem Solvers

• Decision-Making Process

• Buying and Disposing

• How do external characteristics influence buying decisions

• Group Influence and Opinion Leadership

• How do “others” influence consumers’ decisions

o Case-study discussion: “Revitalizing Barbie”, ICFAI Business School, Ref: 507-053-1

o 2 Academic articles discussion

� Consumers as Individuals: the role of Product Involvement, Values, and

Culture (Session 5 and 6- 6 hours)

• Product Involvement

• Individual Values

• Cultural influences on consumer behavior

• Challenges in global marketing strategy

o Case-study discussion: “7-Eleven in Taiwan: Adaptation of Convenience Stores to New Market Environments”

o 2 Academic articles discussion

Main Readings

Compulsory Readings:

• Main Textbook: Solomon, Michael (2012), Consumer Behavior: Buying, Having and Being, 10th edition, Pearson Higher Education

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� Academic Articles (preliminar choice. Changes may happen):

o #1: Escalas, Jennifer E. and James R.Bettman (2005), “Self-Construal, Reference Groups, and Brand Meaning,” Journal of Consumer Research, 32 (December), 378-389.

o #2: Mattila, Anna and Jochen Wirtz (2001), “Congruency of Scent and Music as a driver of In-Store Evaluations and Behavior”, Journal of Retailing, 77, 273-289.

o #3: Maheswaran, Durairaj and Brian Sternthal (1990), “The Effects of Knowledge, Motivation, and Type of Message on Ad Processing and Product Judgments,” Journal of Consumer Research, 17 (June), 66-73

o #4: Holzwarth, Martin, Chris Janiszewski, and Marcus Neumann (2006), “ The Influence of Avatars on Online Consumer Shopping Behavior,” Journal of Marketing, 70(4), 19-36.

� Case Studies:

� “TiVo”, Kellog School of Management, Ref:KEL132

� “Revitalizing Barbie”, ICFAI Business School, Ref: 507-053-1.

� “7-Eleven in Taiwan: Adaptation of Convenience Stores to New Market Environments”, Ivey School of Business, Ref: 9B12A011

Additional interesting textbooks:

� Kardes, Frank , Thomas Cline and Maria Cronley(2008), Consumer Behavior: Science and Practice, International edition, South-Western.

� Wood, Natalie and Michael Solomon (2009), Virtual Social identity and Consumer Behavior, New York: Sharpe.

Teaching materials (slides, articles, work project description, etc) will be posted in the course website at ESCA (E-Serviços ao Cidadão Académico) that can be accessed from UCP webpage (www.ucp.pt).

Grading

The course will include both individual and group work:

� Written exam*: 50%

� Class participation and case discussion***: 10%

� Article presentation OR group project presentation: 15%

� Group project written report: 25%

*A minimum grade of 8.0 (scale 1-20.0) is required in order to be eligible for course approval.

**Working groups must have maximum 5 members. Assignments are due in the beginning of the class.

*** Students are expected to be prepared to take part in constructive class discussion. Class participation includes answering questions related to assigned problems, cases, or readings.

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Students that participate in the “looking into the market” challenge will receive an extra bonus in the class participation/discussion.

Note: Cases and articles need to be read and prepared in advance, before class.

Group Project

Each group of students needs to choose one company to work with. The objective is that you analyze carefully the different segments the company is focusing in with its actual strategy, trying to identify a new segment that may boost company sales. The new segment introduction needs to be properly justified with eventual market research studies/secondary data. If necessary, a proposal for the development of a new product/service to reach the new segment is welcome.

Despite the “practical” business oriented objective you need to justify carefully all your decisions and choices, using as much as possible existent knowledge (books and academic articles). See group project syllabus for more detail.

Delivery rules:

All reports need to be submitted to instructor via turn-it-in (www.turnitin.com). Students should sign in using the following information:

Class ID: XXXXXXXX

Password: XXXXXXX

Delivery of group report: XXX October 2013, until 23:59, via turnitin (digital). A printed version should be delivered to instructor.

Office Hours

By appointment (ritavale@ucp.pt),office 5302; Tuesdays 11:30-12:30.