Social Dimensions of Consumer Distinctiveness: The Influence of Social Status on Group Identity and Advertising Persuasion

Abstract

Consumer research using distinctiveness theory implies that targeted advertisements are most effective in contexts in which the targeted group is a numeric minority. The authors investigate the influence of group social status in addition to numeric status in a study of South African consumers. Results demonstrate that when social dimensions are incorporated, targeted advertisements can be effective even in contexts in which the targeted group is a numeric majority. Results also illustrate how consumer distinctiveness may exist at multiple levels of analysis. The authors discuss the implications of the results for understanding the influence of social context on consumer distinctiveness and responses to targeted marketing efforts.

“Does race really matter?” Consumer identity and advertising effectiveness in post-apartheid South Africa

“…Finally, respondents' racial group was measured by the emic self-report method of ethnic identification, i.e. participants ticked the racial group to which they belong, or wrote in one that was not listed (Grier & Deshpandé, 2001). …”

“…A literature search reveals only three advertising studies examining the South African context (Orpen, 1975;Grier & Brumbaugh, 2007;Grier & Deshpandé, 2001). Orpen (1975) shows that coloured viewers are not influenced by a model's racial group (coloured versus white), whereas Grier and colleagues (Grier & Brumbaugh, 2007;Grier & Deshpandé, 2001) find that black and coloured viewers (relative to white viewers) give higher ratings to advertising regardless of the model's race. However, none of these studies has taken into consideration the socioeconomic position occupied by the model in the advertisement.…”

“…Extant studies show that the racial group of a model has little to no effect on advertising effectiveness (Orpen, 1975;Grier & Brumbaugh, 2007;Grier & Deshpandé, 2001). Yet these studies overlook other social identities such as gender, marital status, and/or socioeconomic position as possible predictors of advertising effectiveness.…”

Una revisión del constructo consumo simbólico desde la perspectiva de la experiencia turística

“…Congruencia del objeto consumido con la identidad del consumidor Giddens, 1991;Fournier, 1998;Forehand y Deshpande, 2001;Grier y Deshpande, 2001;Forehand et al, 2002;Reed y Forehand, 2003;Edson y Bettman, 2005;Park, et al 2010;Lee, 2013. Influencia social en la identidad de los individuos y el consumo Diener, 1984;Deaux y Major, 1987;Tajfel y Turner, 1986;Markus y Kitayama, 1991;Banaji y Prentice, 1994;Walsh y Banaji, 1997;Steele, 1988;Tesser, 1988;Pelham y Swann, 1989;Andersen et al, 1997;Cleveland et al, 2013. La búsqueda de aprobación social y su influencia en el consumo Crowne y Marlowe, 1960, 1964Baumeister, 1982Baumeister, , 1987Leary y Kowalski, 1990;Lindbeck, 1997;Rege y Telle, 2004;Hoek et al, 2012. El apoyo social percibido y su influencia en el consumo Russell et al 1980;Shumaker y Brownell, 1984;Steinberg y Silverberg, 1986Wigfield y Eccles, 1992Sedikides y Skowronski, 1991;Higgins, 1990; North y Fiske, 2013.…”

“…A partir del Siglo XXI, los académicos han logrado un gran avance en la investigación de la percepción psicológica que tienen los individuos sobre sí mismos, y las consecuencias en el comportamiento de los consumidores (Forehand y Deshpande, 2001;Grier y Deshpande, 2001;Forehand et al, 2002;Reed y Forehand, 2003;Edson y Bettman, 2005;Park, et al 2010). Dichos estudios abren un amplio abanico de análisis de la identidad personal, y la identidad social, donde los estereotipos juegan un papel esencial.…”