Social Class

• Social class is a division of society made up of persons possessing certain common social characteristics which are taken to quality them for inimate, equal status relations with one another, and which restricts their interaction with members of other social classes.

(Krech, Crutchfieled & Ballachey in Dubois 2000)

• Determined by a complex set of variables, including income, family background and occupation.
  

(Solomon, 2006)


























On the picture we can see an example of social class.

The man on the left:

• is wearing dirty clothes.
  
• cheap clothes.

The man on the right:

• is wearing nice, clean clothes
• the siut looks expensive plus tie what make his look elegant

By the time the social classes changed a lot. In the past there were only three classes and nowadays there are seven of them.

Before:
Tiny Upper Class
Middle Class
Majority Working and Lower Classes

Today:
Upper
Upper Middle
Middle Middle
Lower Middle
Working Class
Upper Lower Class
Poverty Class

Measuring Social Class
Great Britain

• A - upper middle class
  
• B - middle class (The majority of the population of Britain. They include industrialists, professionals, business people and shop owners)
• C1 - lower middle class
  
• C2 - skilled working class
  
• D - working class (People who are agricultural, mine and factory workers)
• E - lower class (Alsmot the same as a working class)
  

India

• Barahmins - priests and teachers
  
• Ksatriyas - warriors and rulers
  
• Vaisyas - farmers
  
• Sudras - labourers
• Untouchables - polluted labourers

What does is 'social status' ?

In sociology , social status is the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society. It may also refer to a rank or position that one holds in a group, for example son or daughter, playmate, pupil, etc.

Social status, the position or rank of a person or group within the society, can be determined two ways. One can earn their social status by their own achievements, which is known as achieved status.

Status refers to the relative rank that an individual holds; this includes attendant rights, duties, and lifestyle, in a social hierarhy based upon honor or prestige. Status has two different types that come along with it: achieved, and ascribed. The word status refers to social stratification on a vertical scale.

Income and status

Status inconsistency is a situation where an individual's social positions have both positive and negative influences on his or her social status. For example, a teacher may have a positive societal image (respect, prestige) which increases their status but may earn little money, which simultaneously decreases their status.


Both social class and income data are needed to predict behaviour with expensive and symblic products, e.g:

There is an commercial example designed for middle and upper classes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dNya-hFFqc

The music and graphic is like into middle and upper clases.

There is an example of Sainsbury's commercial which is aimed at working class individuals who are looking to save money.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dHkV84vrVI&feature=related

The Family

Families of the 21st Century come in all shapes and sizes. Divorce, remarriage, parenting out-of-wedlock and a host of other variables have turned nuclear families into the exception rather than the norm. As little as a half-century ago, children were typically raised in homes with two biological parents, and chances are, those two parents had the support of extended family members nearby. When one questioned their own parenting, they had only to turn to one of these supporters for reassurance and a confidence boost.

Modern society has done away with the fairytale, opened its eyes and cleaned the wax from its ears. In the 21st century, families are defined by much broader categories and include single parents, stepfamilies, teenage mothers and non-related carers. Find out more about the modern family and the issues they face here. [http://www.channel4.com/health/microsites/F/family/21st/index.html]

There are a few different types of families:

• Nuclear family

The term nuclear family can be defined simply as a wife/mother, a husband/father, and their children who live together.

• Extended family

A family group that consists of parents, children, and other close relatives, often living in close proximity.

• Family of orientation

It is a family which you were born into.






with my parents xx

• Family of procreation
  

It is a family founded through marriage.

The Family Life Cycle.

• It is a way of segmenting the family marekt at different stages of the life cycle to determine the products and services that people buy at each stage
• The model describes the stages which consumer in their lives as they have families
• There were significantly fewer frequent attenders among the families of the younger family life cycle phase (new parents — preschool family) and more frequent attenders among the families of the older family life cycle phase (school age — family as a launching centre and postparental — aging family phases) than among the respective control families

http://herkules.oulu.fi/isbn9514264460/html/chapter5_8.html


The cycle includes 9 different stages:

1. Bachelor

• An unmarried man
• Young, not living at home
• Low income
  
• Few financial burdens
• Usually they buy: basic kitchen equipment, basic furniture, cars etc.
  

2. Newly married

• Young people, with no children
• Short time after marriage
• Higher incomes
• They buy: cars, holidays etc.
  

3. Full Nest I

• People who has children under 6
• They have low incomes
• Low incomes - high debts
• Reliance on credit
• Child dominated household
• Spending dominated by children's needs
  

4. Full Nest II

• People who has children over 6
• Incomes imporving
• child still dominated household
• Working
  

5. Full Nest III

• Older married
• Their children are dependent from parents
• Older children at work/higher education
• school and exams dominated household
  

6. Empty Nest I

• Older married
• Parents feel unhappy because their children becaome adults and have stopped living with them
• Expenses low
• Home ownership at peak
• Interensted in travels, recreation
• Buy: luxuries, home impovements
  

7. Empty Nest II

• Older marriage
• Retired
• No children living at home with them
• Signification cut in income
• Buy medical care
• Some spending on hobbies
• Assist children
  

8. Solitary Survivior I

• They might be widower/widow
• They are still working
• Some spending on hobbies
• Worried about security and dependence
  

9. Solitary Survivior II

• Wdower/widow
  
• Reitred
• They need help, care, security, attention
• Signification cut in income

The model provides an understanding of changes in consumer buying behaviour.

Family roles and decision making

The family is a complex unit comprised of individuals with varied cognitive, emotional, and behavioral characteristics and abilities that can greatly affect family decisionmaking across an individual’s life-span. “Decision-making” describes the process by which families make choices, judgments, and ultimately come to conclusions that guide behaviors. Family decision-making implies that more than one member’s input and agreement is involved (Scanzoni & Polonko 1980). The decision-making process is centered on core communication processes involved in creating shared meaning. In the decision-making process, families can acknowledge the differences among members and negotiate their needs for closeness and independence (Baxter & Montgomery 1996).

The decision maker(s) have the power to determine issues such as:

• Whether to buy
• Which product to buy (pick-up or passenger car?)
• Which brand to buy
• Where to buy it and
  
• When to buy.

* Scanzoni, J., & Polonko, K. (1980). A conceptual approach to explicit marital negotiation.
Journal of Marriage and the Family.
* Baxter, L. A., & Montgomery, B. M. (1996). Relating: Dialogues and dialectics. New York: Guilford.

Marketing to children

For the beginning here is funny ad :)

Children are becoming a major force in persuading their parents to clean up their act when it comes to the environment. One study showed that one-third of parent have changed their shopping habits to be more environmentally conscious because of they received from their children. Solomon, 2006.


In those times marketers more often try to reach to children because they became them main aim. Nowadays kids are different than in the past. There are differences between children in Victorian Times and children in 21st century.

VICTORIAN TIMES:
The Victorians lived over 115 years ado during the reign of Queen Victoria and was a time of enormous change in this country. Most people lived in villages and worked on the land. Families were very important to Victorians. They were usually big. Children knew their place.

• children had unhappy childhood because they had to work hard to satisfy the needs of their parents because families were very poor and they didn't have money
  
• children were hard-working, working long hours
• there was no education for children from poor families

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/victorian_britain/
























21st CENTURY:
Children in 21st century are different compring to Victorian times children. Nowadays parents treat them like 'princesses'. Most of parents buy their kids what they want. They do not need to work to get anything from parents.




















Why children are called 'little princesses'?





















The answer is easy. Nowadays children do not need to work to get anything from parents. It is enough that they will ask them to buy e.g. a toy, cosmetics etc. The big influence for children have comercials. When kids see sometimes on the TV commercials they want them parents buy it. Another factor are peers at schools. When one of kids at the school has soemthing new, trendy etc. most of children want have it too. Children looks also at the celebrities. Sometimes they are trying to be similar as singers, actors etc. They want fashion cloths [which are costly], more often young girls use make-up. Nowadays children know much about life even is they are still young.
















Families in 21st century has been changed a lot. Now people get divorce, re-marry what has huge influence at children life. When at the family was more than one child they can be sepatated.
























Children undergo a process of socialization, whereby they learn how to be consumers. Some of this knowledge is instilled by parents and friends, but a lot of it comes from exposure to mass media and advertising. Since children are in some cases so easily persuaded, the ethical aspects of marketing to them are hotly debated among consumers, academics and marketing practitioners. Solomon, 2006.

Marketing to the Over 50s

The UK’s population is ageing. The over 50s are an economically powerful group of consumers. They own 80% of all financial assets and control half of consumers’ discretionary spending. This workshop provides the knowledge, tools and experience to enable marketers to engage with this most important group of consumers.

'Ten years ago it was the Sixties generation which attracted the attentions of brands. Sales of Harley-Davidsons soared as middle-aged Easy Riders whose kids had left home finally found they had the time and money to live out their fantasies.
Today, popstar Madonna is the poster girl for the new cohort of 50-somethings. Madge enters her fifth decade this August and looks as well toned as when she launched her career in 1982.
So reaching 50 does not have to mean slipping on furry slippers and curling up on the sofa with a cup of warm cocoa. There is life in the 50-pluses yet, and where there is desire and aspiration, you can bet a marketer will be lurking close at hand offering a path to salvation through consumerism.' [http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/home/marketing-to-the-over-50s/2060579.article]


Products with a particular affinity amongst the 50+ age group [example]

FOOD

1. Ice Cream
2. Sweet Biscuits
3. Bread
4. Cakes
5. Frozen Fish
6. Soups
7. Crakers

DRINKS

1. Tea
2. Milk
3. Fresh Coffee
   

FINANCE

1. Life assurance
2. Premium Bonds
3. Unit Trust

HEALTH

1. Vitamins
2. Tends to be overweight

HOLIDAYS

1. Take more holidays
2. Coach trip

Top Media [example]

TV

1. BBC News
2. Heartbeat
3. Natural World
4. Miss Marple
   

PRESS

1. Daily Mail
2. Daily Telegraph
3. You
4. Saga Magazine
5. Birds Magazine
   

RADIO

1. Classical
2. Music from 1950s-60s
3. Folk
4. Easy listening

Top Brands [example]

























There is five groups of people over 50s:

• Home is where the hears it - 3.9m
• You can't take it with you - 5.1m
• It's time to enjoy - 3.2m
• Mind, Body and Soul - 3.8m
• Secure and Sophisticated - 4m

I will describe one of them:

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS: 3.9 m People

• 'Respect for and trust in institutions, including brands'

• 'Security and reliability are important to them'

• 'Limited finances, matched with conversative outlook, mean a sedentary life'

• 'They are driven by a set of rules and principles so follow very structured way of life'

• 64% Female
• 79 retired
• Average age: 71
• 51% are married
• 33% are widowed
• Median household income: £11,500
• They more likely: play bingo, watching television
• They less likely: use the internet, eat at restuarants

Favourite Brands :

1. Today's Over 50s are a larger, more affluent and more dynamic group than any previous generation.
2. Over 50s aren't all the same.

With more than 50% of the UK predicted to be over 50 years old by the year 2020, the growth of the mature market appears to be unrelenting and poses serious questions to us as a nation. [http://www.brandrepublic.com/InDepth/Analysis/636970/Marketing-over-50s---segmentation-key/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH]

A market research says that:

• The over 50s hold 80% of the nation’s wealth
• The 55 to 64s have the highest disposable income of any age group
• The over 50s make up over one third of the population

Memory and Nostalgia

MEMORY

1. The ability to recover information about past events or knowledge
2. The process of recovering information about past events or knowledge.
3. Cognitive reconstruction. The brain engages in a remarkable reshuffling process in an attempt to extract what is general and what is particular about each passing moment.

Memory Process:





RETRIEVAL is a process whereby informations is accessed from long term memory.


NOSTALGIA























Nostalgia has been described as a bitter-sweet emotion, where the past is viewed with both sadness and longing [Solomon, 2000].


What does make me nostalgic?

• Main thing which makes me nostalgic is when I miss someone. :( Here an example is that my family live far away from me and everyday I miss them and I am thinking when I see them.

• Another reason is feeling the sadness when someone who you care about leave you and you still miss him a lot ... :(

When people feel nostalgic their mood change. They are feeling sad all the time. They do not smile, laugh, they avoid contacts with people because they prefer be alone and not to talk about this what makes them feel nostalgic. I think it is important to talk with someone about our problems, to not keep it inside because it won't make feel us better. The same is when people want stay alone. That's wrong! They need someone around and they will feel better for sure. However, they don't believe that. For example me, when I feel sad I want be alone in loud place, even if I know that I should talk with someone and not stay alone but I am so stubborn that I don't want talk with anyone.
People who are nostalgic do not want do anything. If they are doing something, they do it slow. Them tone voice is sad, sounds like they would like to cry. Some people try to hide this because they do not want anyone ask them about their problems, reasons why they are feeling not well.


Using nostalgic music in adverts has some effectivenes at people. 'For marketers, the key is finding the right music and images, which do not even need to directly relate to their products, as long as warm feelings are stirred up. It is the emotion generated from that good feeling that influences people's evaluation of the advertised offer. Recollection provides context and context impacts on how we evaluate things.

Moreover, nostalgia can make us feel that not so much time has passed between then and now, making us feel young(er) again and that we still have a long ways to go and have the time to make it "there." Nostalgia telescopes time and brings it more under our emotional orchestration.' [http://www.warc.com/Blogs/FullBlog.asp?BlogID=1034]

'Nostalgia is becoming the marketing tool of the day - or one of them, at least. Nostalgic adverts can play upon that. Often, we'll be convinced a product we loved as a child was better than it really was. You may not think you are taking much notice, but a successful advertising campaign will have lodged a brand name in your mind, so that at some level it becomes familiar. Then, when you scan rows of products on the supermarket shelves, you are more likely to buy one you recognise. For all these reasons, nostalgia can be a powerful advertising technique.' [http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/1748729.0/#].

Generational Marketing

The method of marketing to a specific generation is affecting the way that we promote and sell products and services. We are all a product of our generation. Each generation have their own characterestics, because of this as a marketing target we can usually categorize by generations by the way that we act and speak as well as our belief systems.

There are four popular generational categories that most marketers tend to focus on.

They include:

1. Millenials or Generation 2001ers, born after 1980
2. Baby Busters or Generation Xers born between 1965 and 1980
3. Baby Boomers born between 1946 and 1964
4. Mature Citizens born between 1909 and 1945

After this all we had an activity in groups. We had to do presentations about all generations. Here is description of all the generation groups:















Favourite Brands:

- Disney/Hannah Montana
- Harry Potter
- McDonald's
- Nintendo
- Nike
- Cheetos
- M&M
- H&M



Sub-culture:

• 5 to 8 years old
• They start to learn about their feelings
• They start like the opposite sex

Social Trends:

• High interest in stuff with Hannah Montana
• The coolest birthday parties

Favourite Brands:

• Harry Potter
• Twilight
• Bratz Dollz
• Crocs
  

Values:

• Optimistic
• Loyalty to friends
• Emotionally stronger

Sub-culture:

• Creation of slang
  

Self Conception:

• Aspire to be older than they are

Favourite Brands:
Teens have a lot of favourite brands, here are some examples:

• D&G
• Adidas
• Puma
• Vans
• Nivea
• L'Oreal

Value System:
All teenegers girls are unhappy with themselves. They find something in them what they don't like e.g that they are too fat/too skinny. Girls which have straight hair mostly want have curly hair and girls who have curly hair want straight hair...the same is about the colour.






















Favourites Brands:

• McDonalds
• TopShop
• Apple
• Adidas
• Nike
• H&M
• Vauxhall
• Subway
  

Values:

• Education
• Materialistic
• Conforming
• Careers

Personality:

• Alcohol
• Holidays
• Future employment

Favourite brands:

• Sainsbury's
• Marks & Spencer
• Waitrose
• BHS's
  

Value System:

• Single parent
• Equality for women at work

Personality:

• Self-reliant
• Independent
• More women are working
• Better educated than Baby Boomer

Sub-cultures:

• Punk
• Hippies
• Rock and Roll

They’ll remain employed longer, to keep sharp, earn money, and give back. Due to the changing landscape of economics, labor markets, and what’s important to them, we’ll see them right next to Generation X and the Millennials in the workplace for quite some time.

The Baby Boomers generation is the one that feels the most concerned about price. The brand matters much less. The environment, on the contrary, is very important.

Favourite Brands:

• Adidas
• H&M
• Apple
• Volkswagen
• Levi's
• Diesel
  

Favourite Brand:

• Vigor
• Giorgio Armani
• Chilis

To succeed in generation marketing you must understand how the motivation of your consumers correlate with the underlying values of their generation. When you know this you are able to customize your message to cater to the generation when it comes to your products and services. You can then present the message with your products, services, and communication to their needs and desires.

Values

VALUES
- the ideas, customs, institutions, etc. of a society toward which the people of the group have an affective regard;

- the values may be positive, as cleanliness, freedom or education or negative as cruelty, crime or blasphemy;
(dictionary.com)
- values are our ideas about what is desirable;
(Wilkie)

GOOD:

• Caring
• Loving
• Loyality

WRONG:

• Steal
• Lie
• Cheat
  

KAHLE'S LIST OF VALUES:

1. Self Respect
2. Excitement
3. Being Well Respected
4. Self-fulfilment
5. Sense of accomplishment
6. Warm relationship with others
7. Security
8. Fun & enjoyment
9. Sense of belonging


The activity which we did in our classes was to see how we think other people see us and also who we would like to be perceived.
We had four photos of: lion, parrot, dog and elephant. Each of them had some features.
We had to put the animal in a sequence. I did put them in this way:




Friendly, faithful, loyal, supportive, protective, dependable, reliable, trustful, trusting, solid, keen, hard-working, loving.
[My doggy :P x]











Lively, fun, free-spirited, sociable, amenable, popular, attractive, cheerful, passionate,
spontaneous.










Dominant, fearsome, independent, decisive, proactive, isolated, aloof, leading, critical, objective, detached, focused, fearless.














Tolerant, passive, co-operative, respected, big, strong, controlled, calm, indomitable, revered, wise.



















The animal on first place refers this how we want others to perceive us.
I hope others perceive me like this :P I think it's the way how I am.


The animal on second place refers this how we believe we are actually perceived today by others.
This one completely disagree with me. I don't think so that others perceived me as a sociable, popular, attractive, cheerful, passionate or spontaneous. :P


The animal on third place refers how we would like to be perceived by others in the future.
This one is quite right. :P


The last animal refers how we actually truly want to be.
Yes. This is completely true. However, some of those features match to me right now, e.g calm, tolerant. :)



There're a Time Lines which shows different events which happened while my and my mom life:

My Mom :).
1968 - Polish political crisis
1970 - the first American satellite and Explorer program spacecraft
1997 - Princess Diana dies
2001 - Attack at World Trade Center

Me.
1997 - Princess Diana dies
2001 - Attack at World Trade Center
2004 - Accession of Poland to the European Union


It shows how all those things happened with society, how everything changed and looked quite different than now.

Laddering Techniques:

- Laddering is a method that helps you elicit the higher or lower level abstractions of the concepts that people use to organize thei world;
- Products become a means to achieving these end states;
- People have specific terminal values and choose among alternative actions to achieve these end states;
















Here is my example:

VALS test:
- The purpose of the VALS survey is to identify the VALS type of the person taking the survey


here are my results:
Stiver/Believer



















Stiver:


Strivers are trendy and fun loving. Because they are motivated by achievement, Strivers are concerned about the opinions and approval of others. Money defines success for Strivers, who don't have enough of it to meet their desires. They favor stylish products that emulate the purchases of people with greater material wealth. Many Strivers see themselves as having a job rather than a career, and a lack of skills and focus often prevents them from moving ahead.
Strivers are active consumers because shopping is both a social activity and an opportunity to demonstrate to peers their ability to buy. As consumers, they are as impulsive as their financial circumstance will allow.

Believers:
Like Thinkers, Believers are motivated by ideals. They are conservative, conventional people with concrete beliefs based on traditional, established codes: family, religion, community, and the nation. Many Believers express moral codes that have deep roots and literal interpretation. They follow established routines, organized in large part around home, family, community, and social or religious organizations to which they belong.
As consumers, Believers are predictable; they choose familiar products and established brands. They favor U.S. products and are generally loyal customers.





Ahhh....Why when i publish blog..it makes me empty spaceee =(