Gratification Mode and Purchase Preference

2006 | May 18 in Marketing

By E-Myth Business Coach,

The Importance of Understanding Gratification Mode and Purchase Preference

Ask a business owner why his or her customers choose to buy their particular product or service, and you might hear a variety of answers:

• "I have no idea, but I'm lucky they do, and I hope they don't stop!"
• "I guess it's because they like what I'm selling."
• "Actually, people aren't buying from me, and I don't understand why not. I think I have a great product, and I use it myself all the time."

If those sound like your answers, perhaps you're wishing there was a system you could use that would help you to rely less on guessing and assuming, and more on producing predictable and sustainable sales and revenue results for your business.

To create a system like that, you need to know two things: (1) who is likely to buy, and (2) why they buy. This article focuses on the why – the marketing science of psychographics. If you can understand your customers' motivations – their psychographic profiles -- you can think strategically about how to appeal to those motivations through your product.

Purchase Decision Making: Shoppers think with two minds

A man shopping for a particular car stops and admires the red model on the showroom floor. Immediately his mind floods with a series of thoughts and impressions:

• "My cousin Ned once had a red car. We really had a lot of great times in that car!"
• "Wow, I imagine that even just driving to work would be exciting in a car like that! People would definitely notice me."
• "But it's going to show dirt easily. And I read somewhere that people driving red cars get a lot more speeding tickets."
• "It's a really beautiful color, though. I could just wash it every weekend so that it won't look dirty. Plus, I'm a pretty conservative driver, so it isn't likely that I will get a speeding ticket."

This simple example illustrates that every buying decision is made for both emotional reasons and rational justifications, and that every buyer engages in a split-second series of conscious and unconscious associations of attraction and avoidance. We can even diagram and tally this shopper's internal conversation:

• "My cousin Ned once had a red car" - is an example of an unconscious attraction. Our shopper associates this car with his favorite cousin, Ned, and the fun they had.
• "It's an exciting car and people will notice me" - is another example of an unconscious mind attraction. It’s attractive and thrilling!
• "It's going to show dirt easily …and I might get more speeding tickets…" - is an example of conscious mind avoidance. This car will be more work and more trouble than the same car in a different color would be.
• And finally, "It's a beautiful color, though. I'll wash it often and drive it carefully” - is an example of a conscious mind attraction, equating to “I want and can handle this car!"

The end score of this internal conversation is three attractions-to-one avoidance. Isn't it clear what this shopper is intending to do?

What Are Your Customers' Emotional and Rational Styles?

People can generally be grouped into one of three emotional styles, called "gratification modes," and one of three rational styles, called "purchase preferences." Fortunately, it's not difficult to match your customers with a particular gratification mode and purchase preference.

The gratification modes and their associated purchase preferences are:

• Interpersonal Gratification Mode / Experimental Purchase Preference - people with this buying style respond well to talking with sales people, sharing information among their friends, and trusting in recommendations from people they know or recognize. Interpersonals tend to have Experimental purchase preferences - they like new and revolutionary products.
• Objective Gratification Mode / Performance Purchase Preference - people with this buying style respond best to interaction with inanimate objects, like taking a test drive or kicking the tires. Their purchase preference is facts and figures about how the product performs, and price is typically a key factor.
• Introverted Gratification Mode / Value Purchase Preference - people with this buying style respond in a solitary fashion to their own ideas about things, like deciding to buy a Lexus because that's their personal idea of luxury, no matter what anyone says about Mercedes and BMW. Their emotional decisions are supported by perception of value, considering whether something is the best price in its class, or "worth the money."

Of course, most people can relate to all of the emotional and rational styles to a certain degree, but one gratification mode and one purchase preference will dominate over the others.

How Can You Get Started?

A good first step for you to take is to determine which percentage of your target market segment falls into which gratification mode and purchase preference segment. It’s easy to observe which mode and preference dominates an individual by observing how they spend their time, or by what occupation they choose to do for a living.

For example, real estate agents tend to be "Interpersonals" in gratification mode. They enjoy talking with people and sharing information with others. They tend to have Experimental purchase preferences, and gravitate toward trendy or innovative products.

So you may want to start by collecting information about your target market's predominant jobs and professions. Once you identify your target market’s psychographic profile, you will be well on your way to designing a marketing and sales system that will appeal to those potential buyers; both emotionally and rationally. The outcome? You will likely experience more sales, greater profit, and steady, predictable, and repeatable results.

Comments

1. Esi F. says:

   I have three strong target market segments. Does E-Myth suggest that I only pick one and concentrate on it, or can I have more? I've always been confused if you can have more than one target market. If so, how does that affect your segmented marketing campaign? Is it confusing to customers. Esi Fassi

   Submitted May 19, 2006 8:59 AM

2. Laurie V. says:

   Esi, you can have as many target markets as you want however, realistically you'd be best to focus your time and money on the most promising market (based on your initial market research). It is unlikely that a product or service would have 3 markets that each comprise exactly 33.333% of sales. Target markets are not an exact science; sometimes demand for your product or service may emerge from a group you weren't even soliciting. Sometimes a group you were sure would have potential appear to be uninterested. Your marketing campaign will not be confusing to multiple customer segments if your commitment, or main message, is consistent. You may have two very different marketing campaigns with their own look and feel that address the individual needs of each market yet your main message should always be consistent to prevent conufsion. It may simply come down to targeting the one market that will be the easiest to reach first, the one that will require the least amount of your resources (since I assume this is a new venture with little capital). I hope this helps.

   Submitted May 19, 2006 3:59 PM

3. Michael S. says:

   What if you have a product that YOU sell on a wholesale level, say to a distributor, and THEY in turn sell to a retail level. Since you not only depend on the product selling to your customers, but also it must sell to their customers in order to be successful how do you try to position it and to which customer?

   Submitted May 20, 2006 2:26 AM

4. Sally B. says:

   Any advice on an on-line business where face to face contact is minimal.

   Submitted May 20, 2006 5:02 AM

5. Jayne S. says:

   Hi Sally, what a great question. If you surf the web and look for presentation styles, you'll see that websites too can use gratification modes! A website that wants to attract interpersonals might have a live chat option, for instance, to give the technology a human touch. Another website wanting to attract introverts with experimental tastes might use the latest technology. And yet another one looking for an objective/performance market might show a price comparison chart, or a features comparison list. It an actually be fun to analyze other websites. Take a look through new eyes at Amazon, for instance. What gratification mode and purchase preference do you think they're trying to attract? So -- although you may not have face to face contact with your clients in the traditional sense, your website can be your "face," just the same way! All you have to do is think outside the box about who you want to attract, and how you can use the internet instead of a person to make the approach. Hope that helps!

   Submitted May 22, 2006 9:32 AM

6. Hasan L. says:

   Hello Michael, Thanks for your great question. In the wholesale market you are selling to two distinct buyers that share some common characteristics. The wholesale buyer is most concerned with delivering a product of value to the end user at a price that earns them a satisfactory margin. The end-user is seeking gratification from the product to fulfill a need or want. The great consumer product companies focus their efforts on understanding the unique needs of these two buyers and then setting up an experience that meets their needs. The primary focus of companies like Procter & Gamble, or Johnson & Johnson is the end-user. They spend lots of time and effort understanding the needs of their target markets (market research) and use that superior understanding to refine their products. They also use their market research to demonstrate to their channel partners that their products are uniquely positioned to meet the needs of the target market. Start with understanding the end-user, and then repurpose that understanding to better sell to your channel partners. Let us know if you have additional questions, and what next steps you are planning on taking.

   Submitted May 22, 2006 9:54 AM

7. ARIT E. says:

   I have a cybercafe and would like to know how I can apply the Gratification Mode to my customers inorder to keep them coming. Arit

   Submitted May 31, 2006 5:18 AM

8. Jacqueline T. says:

   I'm currently a Beauty Professional and am in the process of creating a hair care product line and an online marketing strategy. Since the customer can't touch or feel the product we will have to appeal through an audio and visual vehicle. Any suggestions on approach or strategy?

   Submitted Jun 9, 2006 1:34 PM

9. Rachel C. says:

   The suggestions at the end of the article are a great place for ANY business to start their own discoveries on their clients gratification modes and purchase preferences. Rachel

   Submitted Jun 12, 2006 10:00 AM

10. Derek L. says:

    I'd be interested in knowing how E-Myth came to its conclusions about what is described in the article as Gratification Mode and Purchase Preference. Is there some scienfific proof that validates this theory? Thank you

    Submitted Jul 4, 2006 10:20 PM