The marketers study the behaviour of consumer to mold it in favour of their product and sometimes make fancy claims and use objectionable techniques. They also take the help to produce and market such products which have no utility. In many cases consumers are exploited by sexy or otherwise attractive advertisements through the media.
They take full advantage of weaknesses of consumers to mold it in their favour whether it is scheme of exchange, gifts, lotteries or otherwise. All over the world consumers have been exploited by sales promotion schemes and campaigns. For instance producers certain producers claim that use of their tooth paste will guard against germs and cavity.
Producers of medicines claim cure of certain diseases. Producers of hair oils claim that it will stop falling of hairs and/or new hairs will start growing. Slim centres claim to reduce weight in magic speedy manner. Someone claims that baldness can be cured by replanting of new hairs in short period. Someone claims regeneration of vitality even in old person.
Any number of examples can be given but such claims sometimes even by big companies are only partially true. High priced products are introduced to take advantage of consumers weakness just by changing shape, packing etc. Customers are attracted by gifts, lotteries, exchange schemes, etc.
In such cases often claims are exaggerated and benefits in the form of sales promotion scheme is only to seller and not to buyer. The government in most of the countries has found that though consumer is the king he is exploited. Hence most of countries have framed and enacted many acts and regulations to safe guard the interest of consumers.
In India also there are a large number of laws in this direction like Monopoly and Restrictive Trade Practices Act (MRTP)., Essential Commodities Act., Consumer Protection Act, compulsory printing of maximum retail price on each packing, weights and Measures Act and Code of Advertising.
Individualistic Perspective
The primary approach to consumer behavior studies involves looking at choices of individuals or specific groups of individuals. According to a 1985 paper by Julia Bristol of the University of Michigan, though this advances knowledge extensively from one perspective, it’s essentially the only perspective consumer behaviorists research. External social and circumstantial factors are completely neglected in favor of psychological and sociological theories of personal and group choices.
Cultural Bias
Current consumer behavior research perspectives are formed within context of a Judeo-Christian cultural framework. American and Western countries have developed and driven the majority of consumer behavior research and the associated perspectives, and therefore carry these in their approaches. While the biases are perhaps unintended, they are also impossible to separate out of the work itself. This most common shows in the premise of consumer behavior as a function of individual choice.
Learning Perspectives
One consumer behavior perspective involves the idea that people operate in certain, predictable ways of learning and deciding. Using these principles, theorists feel that they can predict consumer choices as they change their external and situation variables, such as environment, options or even time of day. These perspectives rely on behavioral theories of learning, the family life cycle, role theories, and reference group theory. However, this approach then reduces consumer behavior to hunting for the right variables because it assumes human decisions are made on a very fixed set of principles. Studies do not always confirm the validity of this perspective.
Non-Sequential Approaches
Some consumer behavior researchers approach their work from the perspective that consumer behavior is random and stems from non-sequential thought processes that aren’t so easily predicted. In fact, some theorists believe that behaviors can stem from consumer decisions rather than the more mainstream assumption that decisions stem from consumer behavior. However, this theory presents difficulties because it is very difficult to construct scientific research that adequately backs it. As a result, it often isn’t pursued by academics and those seeking to derive marketing strategies.
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