Marketing policy Mk 32003: The means-end theory and converse

Résumé du document

The consumer's behaviour is something complex to define and to understand. In fact, various reasons influence the consumer's choices, like his personal values, education, product attributes and its benefits. Therefore, in order to help and to organise this complex attitude, some authors established a theoretical framework, called Means-End Theory. According to Gutman (1, 1982), means-end theory "identifies three levels of abstraction: attributes, consequences, and values associated with the use of products, representing the process by which physical attributes of products gain personal meaning for users" (Subramony, Deepak Prem, 2, 2002). To give precise details about the Means-End Theory concept, the "means" can be define as the product's intrinsic and/or extrinsic attributes, and the "end" as the subsequent consequences for the consumer associated with his personal values. By the way, we can understand consumer's way of thinking about product choice and even predict it, by linking the means with the ends.

Extraits

[...] Yet, some values are generally applicable and reflect Converse brand. For overall people, wearing Converse shoes is the mirror of a good look and it favours the social acceptance, namely the belonging basis. This idea corresponds to the image brand, parallel to the quality image. So to speak, Converse can target its consumers according to its values, and can keep an adapted segmentation, very important to be efficient. To follow this idea, this Means-End Theory permits to Converse to understand consumer's behaviour and to keep his competitive advantage. [...]

[...] Segmentation is important because tendency consumers changes. And if a brand wants to follow trend, it has to know new needs customers and their new lifestyles, and this thanks to M.E.T. Once segmentation is efficient, companies can precisely target its market. They know who will be able to purchase their range of products. So, thanks to M.E.T., firms possess some information about customers and thus, they can communicate more easily about their competitive advantage on their target. Therefore, from a concrete tool like M.E.T., companies can segment and target their potential market according to their positioning. [...]

[...] These future recommendations could allow to Converse to maintain his prestigious image, and to be efficient in his segmentation. Conclusion To define and analyse a brand image, its segmentation, its competitive advantage, its target, using Means-End Theory is very relevant and can give a good and clear view of this. The Means-End Theory can give off some values able to define the consumer. After applying it to Converse, it is possible to understand the needs to anticipate the future, and in this way to keep the competitive advantage. [...]

[...] Therefore, brands can precisely focus on consumers needs using process like HMV because it is based on consumer's ways of thinking about product choice. For instance, if electronics products consumers are looking for innovation, electronics consumers' manufacturers have to advertise about their brand by showing how innovative they are. This use of advertising is in agreement with the brand image but also with the M.E.T. so as to link the positioning wanted by the company and the positioning perceived by consumers. Indeed, M.E.T allows having an opinion about the customer perception of the brand, as this theory aims to know customers opinions. [...]

[...] These tree levels are the basis of the laddering process, which is the principal methodological manifestation of means-end theory. Thanks to this process, we can establish the Hierarchical Value Map which represents the linkages between attribute and consequences, and then consequences and values. The Means-End-Theory and the brand management As everybody knows, it's essential for a brand to meet consumers' needs in order to satisfy them when they purchase an item. That's why Means- End-Theory constitutes one of the most important contributions to brand management, brand development and also brand loyalty. [...]