1. Consumer Behavior Mamta Mohan

2. Opinion Leadership The process by which one person (the opinion leader ) informally influences the consumption actions or attitudes of others who may be opinion seekers or opinion recipients. Strong /weak tie source

3. What is Opinion Leadership? Opinion Leader Opinion Receiver Opinion Seeker

8. Word-of-Mouth in Action % of respondents that used a referral to make one of thse purchases over the past year

10. Measuring Opinion Leadership SELF-DESIGNATING METHOD “ Do you influence other people in their selection of products?” Each respondent is asked a series of questions to determine the degree to which he or she perceives himself or herself to be an opinion leader. OPINION LEADERSHIP MEASUREMENT METHOD SAMPLE QUESTIONS ASKED DESCRIPTION OF METHOD SOCIOMETRIC METHOD Members of a social system are asked to identify to whom they give advice and to whom they go for advice. “ Whom do you ask?”“Who asks you for info about that product category?”

11. continued OPINION LEADERSHIP MEASUREMENT METHOD SAMPLE QUESTIONS ASKED DESCRIPTION OF METHOD KEY INFORMANT METHOD “ Who are the most influential people in the group?” Carefully selected key informants in a social system are asked to designate opinion leaders. Artificially places individuals in a position to act as opinion leaders and measures results of their efforts. “ Have you tried the product? OBJECTIVE METHOD

14. Diffusion Process The process by which the acceptance of an innovation is spread by communication to members of social system over a period of time. Marketer generated info’n sources. Websites , chat room e.g i-pod

15. Adoption Process The stages through which an individual consumer passes in arriving at a decision to try (or not to try), to continue using (or discontinue using) a new product.

18. Telephone Innovations Telephone Cell Phone Fax Machine Telephone answering machines Call forwarding Call waiting Caller ID Banking by telephone Call-prompting systems Hold button Line-in-use indicator Redial button Auto dialing feature Touch-tone service 800 Numbers 900 Numbers Ability to send/receive email Incorporate PDA functions Calendar/Phonebook Voice-activated dialing Switch from analog to digital Include camera Ringer styles Play games Fax modem Mobile fax machines Home office systems (combined fax, copier, computer printer) Plain paper fax Speed dial buttons Delayed send Copy function Paper cutter Discontinuous Innovations Dynamically Continuous Innovations Continuous Innovations

20. Table 15.7 Characteristics That Influence Diffusion CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLES Relative Advantage Air travel over train travel, cordless phones over corded telephones Compatibility Gillette MACH3 over disposable razors, digital telephone answering machines ov e r machines using tape Complexity Electric shavers, instant puddings

21. continued CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLES Trialability Trial size jars and bottles of new products, free trials of software, free samples, cents-off coupons Observability Clothing, such as a new Tommy Hilfiger jacket, a car, wristwatches, eyeglasses

23. Adopter Categories A sequence of categories that describes how early (or late) a consumer adopts a new product in relation to other adopters.

26. Adopter Categories Innovators 2.5% Early Adopters 13.5% Laggards 16% Percentage of Adopters by Category Sequence Early Majority 34% Late Majority 34%

29. Stages in Adoption Process NAME OF STAGE WHAT HAPPENS DURING THIS STAGE EXAMPLE Awareness Consumer is first exposed to the product innovation. Janet sees an ad for a new MP3 player in the magazine she is reading. Interest Consumer is interested in the product and searches for additional information. Janet reads about the MP3 player on the manufacturer’s Web site and then goes to an electronics store near her apartment and has a salesperson show her a unit. Evaluation Consumer decides whether or not to believe that this product or service will satisfy the need--a kind of “mental trial.” After talking to a knowledgeable friend, Janet decides that this MP3 player will allow her to easily download the MP3 files that she has on her computer. She also feels that the unit’s size is small enough to easily fit into her beltpack.

30. Table 15.11 Stages in Adoption Process Trial Consumer uses the product on a limited basis Since an MP3 player cannot be “tried” like a small tube of toothpaste, Janet buys the MP3 player online from Amazon.com, which offers a 30-day full refund policy. Adoption (Rejection) If trial is favorable, consumer decides to use the product on a full, rather than a limited basis--if unfavorable, the consumer decides to reject it. Janet finds that the MP3 player is easy to use and that the sound quality is excellent. She keeps the MP3 player. NAME OF STAGE WHAT HAPPENS DURING THIS STAGE EXAMPLE