Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books Saylor.org
Your personality describes your disposition as other people see it. Market researchers believe people buy
products to enhance how they feel about themselves. Your gender also affects what you buy and how you
shop. Women shop differently than men. However, there’s some evidence that this is changing. Younger men
and women are beginning to shop more alike. People buy different things based on their ages and life stages.
A person’s cognitive age is how old he “feels” himself to be. To further understand consumers and connect
with them, companies have begun looking more closely at their lifestyles (what they do, how they spend their
time, what their priorities and values are, and how they see the world).
REVIEW QUESTIONS
- Explain how someone’s personality differs from his or her self-concept. How does the person’s ideal self
come into play in a consumer-behavior context? - Describe the buying patterns women exhibit versus men.
- Why are companies interested in consumers’ cognitive ages?
- What are some of the consumer lifestyle factors firms examine?
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[1] Cheryl B. Ward and Tran Thuhang, “Consumer Gifting Behaviors: One for You, One for Me?” Services Marketing
Quarterly 29, no. 2 (2007): 1–17.
[2] Genevieve Schmitt, “Hunters and Gatherers,” Dealernews 44, no. 8 (2008): 72. The article references the 2006
Behavioral Tracking Study by Miller Brewing Company.
[3] Jeanne Hill and Susan K. Harmon, “Male Gender Role Beliefs, Coupon Use and Bargain Hunting,” Academy of
Marketing Studies Journal 11, no. 2 (2007): 107 –21.
[4] “Designing Cars for the Elderly: A Design
Story,”http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2008/gb2008056_154197.htm(accessed April 13,
2012).
[5] Sarah Saffian, “Dreamers: The Making of Not Your Daughter’s Jeans,” Reader’s Digest, March 2009, 53 –55.