Ch.6 Consumer Decision Making

Consumer Behavior- "process a consumer uses to make purchase decisions , as well as to use and dispose of purchased goods or services; also includes factors that influence purchase decisions and product use".Understanding how consumers make purchase decisions can help marketing managers make decisions to create a proper marketing mix and compete in its market.When making a decision of whether to buy,or not to buy, and what to buy the consumer generally follows the consumer decision-making process; which is a five step process used by consumers when buying goods or services. (1)need recognition,(2)information research, (3)evaluation of alternatives, (4) purchase, (5) postpurchase behavior.

The first step is need recognition, occurs when cosumers are faced with an imbalance between actual and desired states that arouses and activates the consumer decision-making process. A want is the new that a consumer goes about addressing a need.Need recognition is triggered when a consumer is when exposed to either an internal or an external stimulus.Internal stimuli are occurrences you experience such as hunger or thrist. for example when you may hear your stomach grow or have a dry throat and realize you are hungry or thristy. External stimuli are influences from an outside source such as someone's recommandationof a particular brand or advertisment on television or the radio, in case of Red Bull in places such as clubs, educational universities and billboards. Red Bull is something that consumers want and not necessarily need, A marketing manager's objective is to get consumers to recognize an imbalance between their present status and thier preferred status. Red Bull began a research project which helped the Red Bull brand create wants on the part of the consumer.

Red Bull's Logo Alone Can Affect Your Behavior

Even if you don't drink a drop, Red Bull’s logo alone can "give you wings" says a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology by two Boston College professors. They found that consumers exposed to the brand displayed characteristics associated with it.

Here's how it worked: Researchers had volunteers play a car racing video game with nearly identical race cars. The only difference was each car was decorated with a different brand logo and color scheme.

The other cars represented Guinness, Tropicana, and Coca Cola.

Players controlling the Red Bull car displayed characteristics often attributed to the brand – speed, power, and risk-taking – and the results were both positive and negative. In some cases, the drivers sped around the course faster than other cars. In others, their recklessness caused them to crash and lose valuable time.

This behavior is known as “non-conscious brand priming,” according to professors S. Adam Brasel and James Gips, which means the personality of a brand can unconsciously “push” or “nudge” a consumer to act in ways consistent with that personality when exposed to brand imagery.

Red Bull has built its brand identity around sponsored promotions such as cliff diving, street luge contests, car racing, and a full-contact ice-skating obstacle course known as “Crashed Ice.”

The researchers also point to search results on the website brandtags.net, where users enter words or phrases they associate with brands. 9 of the 40 most commonly occurring terms for Red Bull deal with speed and power and four pertain to risk-taking and recklessness. In comparison, the 14 other most popular drink brands at brandtags.net average less than one speed or power associated word per brand and almost zero risk-taking or recklessness associated words per brand.

After recognizing a need or want consumers will search for information about the product.There are many ways a consumer may search for information. The information search can be external, internal, or both. Internal info search is the process of recalling past informtion stored in the memmory. External info search is the proceess of seeking info in the outside environment. Red Bull consumers can be provided with info about the product externally. Thier are two basic types of externa info sou rces; non-marketing controlled and marketing-controlled. In non-markeitng source there is no association with marketers promoting a product.These info sources include personal expericences,and acquantances who may recommand a product or service. Red Bull uses it's innovative 'viral markting techniques' to send out 'normal citizens' who happen to leave a red bull can hear or there in places where consumers are bound to need a drink; or at a area where the product is sold and have empolyees indulge premeditated public conversation about how red bull is a great and a must have product. A marketing-controlled info source is biased toward a specific product becuase it originates with marketers promoting that product. This includes mass media advertising( radio, newspaper, television, and magazones), sales promotion (contest, displays,and premiums), salespeople,product labels and packaging and the internet. Nowadays Red Bull is found every where in today's society due to the fact that it is the top energy drink producer in the market; if you didnt know what the Red Bull logo was you wouldnt have a hard time to find out, the brands logo is on billboards internationally, thier are sport franchises with Red Bull as a sponser, and Red Bulll even has it's own
magazine with everything Red Bull from product improvent to coustomer evaluation.

After getting info and the consumer is ready to make a decision. A consumer will use the info stored in memory and obtained from outside sources to develop a set of criteria which brings s to the next step in process evaluation of alternatives and purchase. The environment,internal and external info help consumers evaluate and compare alternatives. In order for Red Bulll to differ from other products it states many of its positive affects through advertisment and studies.

Positive effects of Red Bull® Energy Drink on driving performance during prolonged driving

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

The purpose of this study was to examine if Red Bull Energy Drink can counteract sleepiness and driving impairment during prolonged driving.

METHODS:

Twenty-four healthy volunteers participated in this double-blind placebo-controlled crossover study. After 2 h of highway driving in the STISIM driving simulator, subjects had a 15-min break and consumed Red Bull® Energy Drink (250 ml) or placebo (Red Bull® Energy Drink without the functional ingredients: caffeine, taurine, glucuronolactone, B vitamins (niacin, pantothenic acid, B6, B12), and inositol) before driving for two additional hours. A third condition comprised 4 h of uninterrupted driving. Primary parameter was the standard deviation of lateral position (SDLP), i.e., the weaving of the car. Secondary parameters included SD speed, subjective driving quality, sleepiness, and mental effort to perform the test.

RESULTS:

No significant differences were observed during the first 2 h of driving. Red Bull® Energy Drink significantly improved driving relative to placebo: SDLP was significantly reduced during the 3rd (p < 0.046) and 4th hour of driving (p < 0.011). Red Bull Energy Drink significantly reduced the standard deviation of speed (p < 0.004), improved subjective driving quality (p < 0.0001), and reduced mental effort to perform the test (p < 0.024) during the 3rd hour of driving. Subjective sleepiness was significantly decreased during both the 3rd and 4th hour of driving after Red Bull Energy Drink (p < 0.001 and p < 0.009, respectively). Relative to uninterrupted driving, Red Bull Energy Drink significantly improved each parameter.

CONCLUSION:

Red Bull Energy Drink significantly improves driving performance and reduces driver sleepiness during prolonged highway driving.

 Red Bull is not just an energy drink it is primarily a utility drink to be taken against mental or physical weariness or exhaustion. It’s use helps to increase endurance and heighten alertness as well as reactions and generally spoken the use of Red Bull helps to cope with the challenges of every day life, which includes work, leisure and sports. As previously stated in my previous blog (CH.4) marketing environment.


Finally comes the purchase and postpurchase behavior steps. Ultimately a consumer has to decide whether to buy the product or not to buy;And if thier expectations where met with the purchased product. I believe Red Bull's numbers speak fort themselves in this particular area;
A total of 4,204 billion cans of Red Bull were sold worldwide in 2010, representing an increase of 7.6% against 2009. Owing to currency and price factors, however, company turnover increased by 15.8% from EUR 3.268 billion to EUR 3.785 billion.
Sales, revenues, productivity and operating profit not only matched 2007 levels, they significantly exceeded them to such an extent that the figures recorded were the best in the company's history so far.The main reasons for such positive figures include outstanding sales in the Red Bull markets in Turkey (+86%), Japan (+80%), Brazil (+32%), Germany (+13%) and the USA (+11%), combined with efficient cost management and ongoing brand investment even in the challenging economic climate of recent years