A Semester in Review

Over the last semester I feel as though I have learned a lot of information in my Consumer Behavior class. To be honest I never really retain information through many courses, but for some reason I was able to retain a good amount of information.

In terms of marketing I have pulled out a lot of information that I know I will continue to remember throughout further years. The most important part of this semester is the fact that all the information taught was relevant to real life experiences and real life lessons that almost all of us go through or will go through everyday. Now when I travel and I see advertisements all over the area I tend to think "who is this ad targeting?" "is this a reference group?" and many more questions.

Overall the most beneficial aspect of Consumer Behavior for me is now understanding why people buy the things that they buy; hence the name of the book "What We Buy, and Who We Are." This book allowed for an in depth understand about the things that we buy and the background information as to why we buy those certain items. I enjoy now knowing that when I pick up a CD that is on the end of an aisle, and purchase it, that is because I am an impulse shopper.

Consumer Behavior is important to classifying what type of consumer every person is and how marketers have the ability to target those consumers.

Is ProActive a reference group?

Ever thought ProActive could be used as a reference group. When you watch their commercials, you would never think that by watching people wash acne off there face, you are using them as a reference.

Reference groups are anything that people can use as a reference. In the case of the ProActive commercials, many teenagers watch the commercials and think to themselves, "I wish my face could look that clean." By saying and thinking that, the viewer is automatically using the people in the commercials as reference groups . The teenagers are setting the actors as references to which they will stand by and think that is the teenager in the ad can do that, then so should I.

Many advertisers try to get this message across so that people will buy their products in hopes that they will experience the same effect that the actors experienced.

Here is the proactive commercial that I recently viewed portraying reference groups and how they are used to make the consumer/viewer believe "If I use that product I will have the same results as Kelly Clarkson."

Kelly Clarkson - ProActive Infomercial

Experiencer / Achiever

After taking the VALS Survey I received results that I fit perfectly within the life-style of an achiever or an experiencer. While reading through the information I was confused as to why I fit into this category, and then I remembered and thought about all of the things that surround me in my everyday life and realized I fit. Also, I thought more specifically in regards to the way I live my life instead of only the things that are within my surrounding environment and I began to pull out specific examples of why it's a perfect fit for me to be in both of these categories.

EXPERIENCER - From the VALS Survey I interpretted the experiencer category with an inpulse consumer and someone that takes risk when making purchases. The survey results were proven correct with me and to prove it I'll give an example. I never usually buy movies, but the other day while I was in Target I noticed the movie Iron Man 2 on one of the movie stands int he entertainment section. Usually I will walk right by and just take a glance at it, but I remembered how much I liked the movie in theaters and just bought it right about. It was weird but I just bought it. No reason, it was jsut inpulse.

As for the risk factor I usually do not buy anything that is very expensive and I always second second my purchases. I did buy an expensive pair of sneaker the other day when a 20 dollar pair from Wal-Mart could've done the job just as well. Although I knew I wanted these shoes and did not have a problem purchasing them. Kind of a risk, but when payday happened Friday, I knew I was all set and could purchase them.

ACHIEVER - As an achiever I find myself commited to not only my life, self, and long term goals but to my family. I think this statement just about hits the nail on the head when I think about myself. Everyday I talk to my family and fill them in on new things happening in my life and they tell my about theirs. Every weekend I go to either my brother's Football game or my sister's Rugby game, or both, to support them, and every holiday I spend it with both sides of my family to have fun and catch up on everyone's lives. Family surrounds me everyday and I don't think I would change that for the world.

More information about an achiver states that they set long term goals for themselves. I thought hard about this and thought that I didn't fit this category very well cause I make plans revolving around things I need to get done that day, but then I remembered back to Freshman year. During my first semester of my Freshman year I planned out my entire college schedule as to what classes I would take each semester. Since then I have revised my schedule, but not until I decided to add my second major this year.

Life needs to be planned out but spontanteity is always a good thing to have. I think that the results from the VALS Survey are pretty accurate, and I fit perfectly within the categories "Experiencer and Achiever."

Why didn't I write about this the first time...

09 - Big Fish, Small Pond

The first time I looked at PRIZM's I never thought you could associate myself with the "Big Fish, Small Pond" PRIZM because one of the major things they talk about, is that people who are associated with this PRIZM typically live without children. I always dismissed myself and my family from fitting within this category because there are three children within my household.

After thinking about it, I realized that currently, only my parents are living at my house because all of my siblings and myself are away at college. Then reading through the description it pretty much described my parents and the way my household is now. Buying stuff from LL Bean, Upscale, my parents' ages are within the description, and they are homeowners.

The only reason I disregarded  this was for the lack of children within the household but after thoroughly thinking through it I realized there was more to the PRIZM than just that. I just didn't take the time to think through it.

PRIZM Cluster

What's my PRIZM look like....

Town and Country - I would say my family and myself are definitely part of the Town and Country part of America, in that we live no where near a city.

To descirbe which PRIZM I belong to, I used a lot of information from my mom. Since all of my siblings and I are in college I did not know whether to call my home an "empty-nest" or not. In the end I spoke with my mom and she told me that yes it is an empty-nest but there isn't a week that goes by where my parents do not see one of us. In that case, I chose to say that my PRIZM is either Kids & Cul-de-Sacs or Fast Track Families.

Mostly I related my family to Fast Track Families because we are always on the go. It says that parents are now leaning towards "buying the latest technology with impunity." Just recently I talked with my mom and she was telling me all about her iPad that she just bought, and the Roomba Vacuum that cleans the house on it's on. Then my dad said that they just installed a new irrigation system in our yard and they are looking to buy new cars. It's amazing that once your youngest child goes to college they spend more time with electronics, but when we asked them to play games with us in prior years they would say "no electronics run peoples lives." Funny how that turned out Mom and Dad.

Aside from that I have also classified ourselves at the Young Accomodators. This is the second tier on the cake where you are not the wealthy snob at the top that flaunts their money, nor the less affluent tiers on the bottom two levels. It's a good median point, and proves to satisfy my PRIZM perfectly.

This exercise was interesting, but I did not enjoy it so much. It gets a little too personal and I find it difficult to want to put information about my family on here that proves our family status and economic status.

Thinking outside the box today?

Ever own a pair of Crocs? Don't diss them unless you have. Coming to college I had owned a pair of Crocs, but I did not want to wear them because I was afraid of what people might say. Ya, they talked shit about them, but once I began wearing them everywhere people began noticing them as a possession that identified me.

At first my dad was the one to be the most against them. That is until he owned a pair himself and now you'll never go two days without seeing us wear our Crocs. Everyday I put my Crocs on to walk down the hall or go the bathroom or even go to meetings and to class. Of course I know when to not wear them and when it is necessary to wear them.

I will admit that they do look stupid, but they are the most comfortable pair of shoes I have ever own. Not only so I have to original pair of Crocs that look like half shoes with holes in them, but I also have a pari of Croc flip flops that I wear as shower shoes and a pair of Croc boots that have never EVER let my feet get wet or cold in the winter.

It's not like I walk around telling people that I wear Crocs, but they are so absurd that everyone seems to notice them everytime I wear them and they call me out on it. Since I have had them more than two years now I laugh when people make fun of me for them, but my feet have never smelled and they have always been comfortable. Even when it rains my feet don't get wet unless I blantantly step into a puddle.

So the next time you pass someone and they are wearing Crocs, acknowledge them and make them know you saw their Crocs. We wear them for attention and because they are different. You know how I know they're different. Let me tell you a little story. Last year I went to do homework and watch TV in GHH and there happened to be many people in the room. Croc came on a commercial and a whole big discussion started. Unbeknownst to myself, I was wearing a pair of Crocs and a girl in the room freaked out. She got so excited and ended up taking a picture with my Crocs. Her professor that she had earlier that day got in a heated discussion with a student, stating that there is not a single person on this campus that wears Crocs because we are all afraid to be individualists. To tell you the truth, I have not seen one other person to wear Crocs and it makes me just that much more proud to wear my Crocies everyday. In the end the girl got extra credit on her exam and it was all because I wasn't afraid to do something outside the box and wear my Crocs.

To this day I will swear by my Crocs and say they are the most comfortable pair of shoes I've ever own. So if anyone is thinking about wearing a pair of Crocs, let me know. I'll back you up in a heartbeat and wear them with you to help you out.

Framing - they always get me

Ever though about the effects a discount can have on you. Ever purchase something because you got a coupon at the door at the store? Many questions like these pop into my head when I think about framing and how companies frame prices to make them look better and more "convenient" for the consumer.

Recently I had to finish up a little shopping for my apartment and was walking through all the major stores that you can think of along a strip. Wal-Mart, Target, Stop & Shop, Job Lot, etc. Normally I wouldn't go into both Target and Wal-Mart, but since Wal-Mart didn't have the right product I was looking for I thought Target might. The only thing I was looking for at this point was a coffee table or something like it to put in the living room. So that was it .... a coffee table.

When I walked into Target, a salseperson immediately approached me and gave me a coupon telling me to try this new type of coffee they had for sale and it was buy 2 get one free. I was too excited to not purchase them so I didn't even look for my coffee table and bought the coffee instead. Thing is though ... the coffee cost $12.00 / pound. Kinda seemed reasonable and since I was getting this fantastic new product that had very cool packaging. Turns out I was only paying for the packaging.

Later I found out that I can purchase Dunkin Donuts coffee for $7.99 / pound, which is much more tasteful than this crap that I spent way to much money on.

What impulsed me to purchase this new product instead of my everyday Dunkins? Framing.

Target reeled me in with this, what looked to be, a great coupon for a crappy product. When they framed the product to making it look like I could get "more for less" I cracked and thought I would venture into purchasing it. From now on I make sure to look past the "flashiness" of new products and framed products and rather, use what I know to judge how I will purchase something.

Better luck next time Dave!

Joining In / Staying Out

To start this blog off, I wanted to be a little different. Check out the latest moto Jeep has created in their commercials; "I Live, I Ride, I Am ... Jeep." This video is located in another blog called "Sunchasers."

Jeep.

Just your average four wheel drive car that has the ability to go off-terrain. Although it may not be the most luxurious drive you will ever have, it is one of the most exciting.

People who have Jeeps know the feeling when they drive down the street. The feeling of every pot hole that you hit and every bump that does not get absorbed into the shocks of the car. To be honest though, when we purchased our Jeep's, we knew what we were paying for. Not luxury but excitment, and although I do not have the Jeep Wrangler, I have a Jeep and still feel obligated to beep at every other person driving a Jeep, simply because of the logo. Although there is nothing special about this logo, it still is a symbol that holds many drivers together. I do not know half of the people, more like seventy-five percent of the people who I wave to when I drive my Jeep, but I don't care. And neither do they.

Having a Jeep is different becuase it is more of an outdoorsy type of car and that's why I like it. I cannot say that I am much of an outdoors person because I am not one to just go outside and spend the majority of my time hiking or playing in the woods, but in my Jeep I feel like I am and it takes me away from the reality of everyday life of class and work.

To those of you who drive a Jeep you know the feeling. Sadly, I sold my 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee this evening, but with a little help from my parents, we are looking to buy another Jeep in the near future.

"I Live, I Ride, I Am ... Jeep."

Sunchasers

The Pretty Good Problem...

Everyone knows there is a certain way people dress when they come from Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Martha's Vineyard. In my case, I find that many of my friends like to pick on some of the clothes I wear. Recently I made a purchase from Vineyard Vines, a Martha's Vineyard store that is known for their "preppy" like clothing that always makes people turn their heads when someone wears them.

This purchase was similar to many purchases I had made before but the thing that was different was the location that I would be wearing them. It was a bathing suit that was bright orange with sailboats on them. Sounds ordinary, until you wear them off Cape and here at school. While wearing these shorts, I felt the "purple cow" factor and realized that what made my shorts remarkable, was the fact that no one else was wearing them and they were different from what students here considered "normal."

I like my shorts and although they are different from what other people wear, knowing Seth Godin's criterion about "remarkable" makes it easier to know that they are not only different but they are remarkable.

And then it made me think...huh?

The other day I was home watching some tv with my mom, when she read the most interesting article to me. "Did you hear about the flying car?" was how she started. I knew this was going to be an interesting conversation and an interesting article so I knew I should listen to her.

As she read the article and told me all about the interesting new "flying car," I couldn't help but think "Huh? Is this what the world has come too?"

Everyone has always dreamed of flying their own car or going into space and everyday, new advancements into the technology world allow us to gain more access to these things. The article about the flying car was interesting but made me think about the possibility of actually owning one of these cars. First of all, there are restrictions and special rules to the car. Do you have to have your pilots license? Do you have to have experience flying before? Can you take off and avoid traffic? All these questions came to mind and only the third one was answered within the article.

You can not just take off and avoid traffic. You need a physical airline runway. How ridiculous is that? You actually need to take-off in your car in order to avoid 30 minutes of traffic. Let's see...spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to save yourself 30 minutes in traffic and risk your life, or spend 30 grand on a car that will make you sit in traffic, but you know you can't fall from the sky. I'll save the money thanks!

If you want to read the article, take a look at it here...Flying Car!!

When I bought my phone...

When asked to write about a time I purchased something, I think the most memorable purchases come from the times I purchased things on eBay.com. About two months ago I purchased a new phone off of eBay, my Blackberry Curve 8520. Although this is one of themost expensive purchases I have ever made on this website, it turned out to be not that bad.

While dealing with eBay you really have to look at the credibility of the buyer and thoroughly analyze the description of the item before you place your bid. Sometimes when you think you like the item, it turns out you have not read the small print. Most of the items sold on eBay are credible and accurately described but occassionally you will get an idiot who forgets to add some important functions on the phone that have been tampered with or broken, or they purposefully forgot to put it in the description. If an item seems to good to be true, I make sure to ask the seller a question and wait for their response before I send my bid their way. If the buyer is looking to sell the item quickly they will provide you with the information you are looking for as well as other information you may want to know, prior to you asking them.

With the purchase of my newest BlackBerry I made sure I performed a thorough investigation on the item and really REALLY looked at the information in the description. Although the item cost nearly $175, I felt comfortable paying the price. Within the weeks prior to purchasing the phone, I sold six items that came out to nearly $230. Thus when I purchased my phone it felt as though I did not have to pay for it and instead I was getting the phone and about fifty bucks at the same time.

From the time I purchased the phone until know I have been pleased with my purchase and I continue to use eBay for many purchases. I have also started selling more and more items on eBay which are giving me a little extra cash. Being a college student, receiving money is always good.

September the 2nd

So here it is. That first blog that everyone is anxiously awaiting the arrival of. Personally I do not see the point of writing a blog, but it is a nice time to just "brain dump" some of the days activities and try to make yourself seem a little "normal." Even though we all know that does not happen.

For the first blog, I thought I would offer y'all a little information about myself to get yourselves acquainted with me. My name is David, I am originally from Cape Cod, Bourne to be exact, but throughout the school year I reside in good old Bristol, RI. I can't really complain about the places I've lived simply because I have never left the ocean. Roger Williams is the first choice of school for myself simply because of how much it reminded me of being home. Having this feeling is what kept me returning each year. I am currently a junior, double majoring in Marketing and Mathematics. Math has started to get tedious and sometimes too time-consuming so I don't think I will keep it a major, but for the time being it is there.

Marketing struck me as interesting only because it is a way to get away from the number crunching that Math provides on a daily basis. There is a nice balance between the two which makes life interesting and as long as there is new information for me to find and work with, I'll be all set.

School plays a large role in my life and when I am not in class, and the weather is nice, I like to revert back to home and relax "Capeside," right on the beach.

That's all I have for you know, but check back later and I should have a little more information for you that might strike you as interesting. Not promising anything though.

See ya!