Friday 13 December 2013
TrivialTrivia: GEEKY CULINARY DELIGHT
TrivialTrivia: GEEKY CULINARY DELIGHT: How would you like to have meat for your scrumptious homemade kebabs coming from a lab instead of meat market? Sounds gross or electrifyin...
Neuromarketing! Peeping
into Consumers’ Minds
What if I say our brains are being trifled by the marketers
to make us buy only their brands? Some of you might simply say, “No, I am a
learned customer, marketers may influence my choice but they can’t actually
make me buy something”.
You are rather wrong!
Accurately understanding customer perception about buying has
been a herculean task for marketers. There has always been a hunt for mediums
that smartly meet communication purpose rightly,targeting customer’s needs in
no time. For this, Neuromarketing is good news. Neuromarketing is the activity
of recruiting functional magnetic resonance to analyze brain’s reaction to
certain tasks or stimuli. Marketing researchers can now use the imaging tools
to observe the areas of the brain that respond positively to the brands,
campaigns, and taglines. Neuromarketing tools observe how the brain reacts to
print ads, TVCs, packaging, and logos. In United States, about $1 billion is
spent on the focus group activities to understand human psychology towards
brand. Currently, Coca Cola has taken this initiative to use Neuromarketing in
all its performance and quantitative projects by employing facial coding
survey. Frito lays seconds this run and made the most of the Neuromarketing
research services to remain abreast in understanding customers well. Hyundai recently adopted brand image resonance
services and conducted focus groups to track electrical activity in human brain. The purpose was to understand consumer’s product
choice for Hyundai in comparison with the competitors' brands. Although the concept
of Neuromarketing is not new, it is only recently that the brands have begun understanding
the true potential of this idea. By knowing what exactly drives the customers,
the researchers and the marketers can have a better knowledge of what really motivates
the purchase decisions. Let’s hope that science can predict our buying behavior
and perceptions better than before, but would we call it intrusin in our very personal purchase decisions? This is yet to be answered!
Wednesday 9 October 2013
The Brand Contagion
Caution
There must have been times when you regretted buying a product or availing a service; likewise there must have been instances when you were overwhelmed by the idea of your association with a particular brand. Whatsoever, we all play the role of "consumer" infinite times in a lifetime. This post is about how fixated it is being a consumer today. This fixation might be with the brands, or with fads, and yet there are those who find it effortless to be a consumer. These reviews are totally impartial and solely depend on the individual experiences, so you have your due right to agree or disagree with me :)
*********************************************************************************
“Oh I bought this shirt for Rs 5000 from the New exclusive couture line (ABC), have you heard of it? How cool is that”? Said my friend, 25 years old. “But I bought the same from the mall next to my place for 2500”, it’s the same material and design,” said I convincingly. “But it’s branded”, said she triumphantly!
It was obvious she did not feel any remorse for Rs 2500 extra paid for the exactly same item I bought, so what is this brand fever which has been taking its toll more than forever now! Let’s see!
For few consumers, all that matters is the convenience to shop at a less crowded place (the exclusive boutiques and stores) than at a common marketplace, for few, it is the peer pressure which compels them to go after brands, and for others, quality of branded items is way better than the unbranded products. However, the most significant trend is that, brands were never as invasive in Pakistan as they are today. The all so well set and happening integrated marketing is etching the significance of being branded in consumers’ minds. It is always worthy to be recognized as the girl who wears "Chanel" or the guy who owns a dozen "Mango" shirts. For example, a twenty three year old working lady says,“mostly I shop at Khaadi, Ego or Generations; the clothes are expensive yet pretty, but most of all, they fulfill my desire to wear designer outfit”. A thirty year old housewife says, "everything is branded today? what and how much will you avoid? besides, brands provide me a sense of promise and value". However, not all the consumers replicate the above view,
“Why would I pay for the brand, if I can find the similar item at low price, said a twenty four year old working lady”! A twenty year old student says, “It doesn't really matter if the clothes are branded, I buy what I like, it’s simple I guess!
So, there still are consumers who never have complex of not buying branded products.
Well, to succinct in, the feeling of buying a brand is proud and satiating but sometimes consumers become prey to excessive prices, and low product quality in the brand run and cannot really determine if what they are paying for is worth buying. This is true, the charisma of brands can never be undermined. At some time point all of us want a “me” fondness which is well fulfilled by brands, but don’t we become victims of brand blindness sometimes and feel remorse afterwards? Have you ever?
There must have been times when you regretted buying a product or availing a service; likewise there must have been instances when you were overwhelmed by the idea of your association with a particular brand. Whatsoever, we all play the role of "consumer" infinite times in a lifetime. This post is about how fixated it is being a consumer today. This fixation might be with the brands, or with fads, and yet there are those who find it effortless to be a consumer. These reviews are totally impartial and solely depend on the individual experiences, so you have your due right to agree or disagree with me :)
*********************************************************************************
“Oh I bought this shirt for Rs 5000 from the New exclusive couture line (ABC), have you heard of it? How cool is that”? Said my friend, 25 years old. “But I bought the same from the mall next to my place for 2500”, it’s the same material and design,” said I convincingly. “But it’s branded”, said she triumphantly!
It was obvious she did not feel any remorse for Rs 2500 extra paid for the exactly same item I bought, so what is this brand fever which has been taking its toll more than forever now! Let’s see!
For few consumers, all that matters is the convenience to shop at a less crowded place (the exclusive boutiques and stores) than at a common marketplace, for few, it is the peer pressure which compels them to go after brands, and for others, quality of branded items is way better than the unbranded products. However, the most significant trend is that, brands were never as invasive in Pakistan as they are today. The all so well set and happening integrated marketing is etching the significance of being branded in consumers’ minds. It is always worthy to be recognized as the girl who wears "Chanel" or the guy who owns a dozen "Mango" shirts. For example, a twenty three year old working lady says,“mostly I shop at Khaadi, Ego or Generations; the clothes are expensive yet pretty, but most of all, they fulfill my desire to wear designer outfit”. A thirty year old housewife says, "everything is branded today? what and how much will you avoid? besides, brands provide me a sense of promise and value". However, not all the consumers replicate the above view,
“Why would I pay for the brand, if I can find the similar item at low price, said a twenty four year old working lady”! A twenty year old student says, “It doesn't really matter if the clothes are branded, I buy what I like, it’s simple I guess!
So, there still are consumers who never have complex of not buying branded products.
Well, to succinct in, the feeling of buying a brand is proud and satiating but sometimes consumers become prey to excessive prices, and low product quality in the brand run and cannot really determine if what they are paying for is worth buying. This is true, the charisma of brands can never be undermined. At some time point all of us want a “me” fondness which is well fulfilled by brands, but don’t we become victims of brand blindness sometimes and feel remorse afterwards? Have you ever?
Monday 7 October 2013
GEEKY CULINARY DELIGHT
How would you like to
have meat for your scrumptious homemade kebabs coming from a lab instead of meat
market? Sounds gross or electrifying? A little of both to me.
Well, this may happen
in the near future. The news just struck me today that a team of Dutch scientist
successfully produced meat in a Petri dish. The process goes on like this:
From the animal muscle
tissues, stem cells are collected which are then fed nutrients to help them
grow. The already tripled millions of these cells are then contained into a Petri
dish where they are turned into small pieces of muscles and finally into frozen
pellets. After having enough quantity, these muscles are deforested and
compacted into a petty to be cooked.
Here you go! Bon appétit Iron free, protein free and fat free meat, which must be good news for half of self inflicted fat deprived us.courtesy, http://www.washingtonpost.com, 2013, (blog)
The aim of scientist seems
undoubtedly simple, that is: achieving the good of environment and economy,
where rearing and slaughtering of animals is costly. Besides, the current
worldwide meat production is on the verge of achieving its maximum capacity and
standing in need of alternatives. However, it will still take twenty more years
to have lab meat available at supermarket shelves. Right now, we can only anticipate
if the morsels of this cultured meat are actually socially and economically approved
of in both Eastern and Western societies.
Till then, savor your mouths with “nature made” meat as much as you can (no
offense to those on diet)! And me? I think I just lost appétit; for meat at
least, for a while!
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