Group Influence (CH10) Flashcards
Reference Groups
An individual or group with particular relevance for an individual’s evaluations, aspirations, or behaviour. (Sauder, BTS “Army”, Canucks)
Brand communities
Set of consumers who share a set of social relationships based on usage of or interest in product or brand.
Why are brand communities important?
Loyalty (ignore competitors better products)
Spread positive word of mouth
Makes brand extension strategies & brand ecosystems easier (Apple)
Group cohesiveness
degree to which members of a group are attracted to each other and value their group membership.
How to increase group cohesiveness?
Smaller group
Membership restriction/scarcity
Symbols
Defined limits between ingroup and outgroup
Injunctive Norms
What people should do
Descriptive Norms
What people actually do
Why do people people conform with the group?
Informational conformity: the majority must be “right”
Normative conformity
What drives normative conformity
The need to be liked
The willingness to avoid conflict
The fear of being rejected
Anti-conformity
Defiance of the group. Need for uniqueness
Reactance
Unpleasant feeling when something feels forced or imposed by an authority or by a social norm. Leads people to do exactly the opposite.
What is the concept related to why restaurants include a fixed gratuity for large groups?
Social loafing: individuals do not devote as much effort to a task when their contribution is part of a larger group effort (e.g., restaurant patrons tip less in a group, people cheer and clap less at a concert when there are more people).
Diffusion of responsibility: Individuals feel less accountable for the outcome of a decision when many people are involved
Bystander effect
Individuals won’t help a person in need when other people are present. It’s a form of diffusion of responsibility.
What is the paradox of Mark Granovetter’s theory of strength of weak ties?
It is the people who we are least connected who offer us the most opportunities.
what is buzz marketing?
activities undertaken by marketers to encourage consumers to spread WOM
What are some tactics to create/sustain buzz?
- Focus more on people and less on product: know your target psychographics. There is associated risk that people won’t know your product
- Influencer Marketing: Identify aspirational groups risk: reporting bias
- Scarcity principle (limited editions, flash sales)
- Inform about the success of the campaign to establish normative influence (number of likes)
What are the three ways reference groups influence consumers?
Informational, utilitarian, and value expressive
Informational influence
This individual seeks information about various brands from a reliable source that they think is trustworthy (friends who use the product, experts, professionals who use product)
Utilitarian influence
Individuals’ decision to purchase a particular brand is reliant on their surrounding environment. Influenced by her co-workers or any people she has social interaction with.
Value-expressive influence
The individual feels that the purchase or use of a particular brand will enhance the image others have of him or her. Very much about controlling perception of individual through purchasing certain brands.
formal groups
has a recognized structure, complete with a charter, regular meeting times, and officers. Marketers tend to be more successful at influencing formal than informal groups bc they are easier to identify and access.
informal groups
Group of friends or students living in a student residence. Usually, informal groups exert a powerful influence on individual consumers. High in normative influence from the group being apart of individuals day to day life.
Reference group effects are more robust for purchases that are…
- Luxuries rather than necessities
- items that are socially conspicuous or visible to others
Social power
Capacity to alter the actions of others
