Transcript Document

GCSE Home Economics Teachers’ Conference
‘Barriers’ and ‘Influences’
Affecting Consumer
Behaviour
Philippa McKeown
Senior Consumer Affairs Officer
Consumer Council
Barriers
I went to the market but I didn’t buy…
• disability
• age
• ethnicity
• knowledge
• resources (time, money, location)
Disability
• Physical barriers
• Perceived barriers
• Hidden disabilities
• Socially isolated
BBC Learning Zone Clip:
“disabled people
have a fear of
complaining
which is related to
their low levels of
confidence”
Quote from Consumer
Proficiency research1
http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningzone/clips/6034.bb.wmv
1.Consumer Knowledge well, what do you know? March 2004
Age – Older Consumers
Those who can’t
jump into a car are
losing out and are at
the mercy of family
and friends, home
help or deliveries.
Those ‘buy
one get one
free’ are no
good for me
because by
the time I use
one, the other
is out of date.
Cooking information
is usually small and
virtually unreadable,
very difficult to
compare like with
like.
Quotes from: Silver Service? Are supermarkets meeting the needs of older
consumers? Consumer Council in partnership with Age Concern, November 2007
Age – Older Consumers
• Older people in Northern Ireland are the least
likely to shop online.
• Elsewhere in the UK, the number of over 55’s
buying online has more than doubled in the years
2004 – 2006 from 1.4. million to 3.4 million (Verdict,
UK e-Retail 2007).
Source: Well, what do consumers know now? A Consumer Council
Progress Report on Consumer Proficiency 2003 – 2007, March
2008
Age –Younger Consumers
 Young people are less well informed about their rights
(57 per cent compared to 63 per cent average)
 They are least likely to take further action if unhappy
about goods or service (55 per cent compared to 64
per cent)
 Young people were the least likely to be satisfied with
the way their complaint was handled.
Source: Well, what do consumers know
now? A Consumer Council Progress
Report on Consumer Proficiency,
March 2008
Age –Younger Consumers
Three quarters of young people and adults believe shops
treat young people differently to adults
One in four felt that shop staff did not act in a respectful
way to young people
Source: Consumer Council Children Shopping Research, 2006
Ethnicity
• Language barriers
• Prejudice
• Cultural differences
• Social isolation
Knowledge
In general, consumer skills remain less well
developed among:
• young people (15-24)
• older people (55+)
• those living on a low income
Source: Well, what do consumers know now? A Consumer
Council Progress Report on Consumer Proficiency 2003 - 2007
Knowledge
Consumers in rural areas tend to be less confident about
expressing their consumer rights and taking further action and
were less aware of where to go to for help and advice1.
Research in 20032 also showed consumers from minority,
ethnic and disability groups and those living in areas of social
need having fewer consumer skills.
1.
Well, what do consumers know now? A Consumer Council Progress
Report on Consumer Proficiency 2003 – 2007, March 2008
2.
Consumer Knowledge well, what do you know? March 2004
Other barriers
1 in 4 people of working age have low literacy
levels.
Source: Adult literacy in Northern Ireland,
NISRA, 1998
Resources
Time
Working
hours
Money
Low
income
Location
Rural
Dependents Access to
credit
Food deserts
Lack of time Financial
to do
capability
‘research’
Transport
Quote from Consumer Council Disability Panel member
N.B This list
is not
exhaustive!
Shopping
around is a
luxury that
some can’t
afford
7 Consumer Tests
 Access: can people get the goods or services they need or want?
 Choice: is there any?
 Safety: are the goods or services dangerous to health or welfare?
 Information: is it available, accurate, accessible and useful?
 Fairness: are some consumers unfairly discriminated against?
 Redress: if things go wrong, is there a system for putting them right?
 Representation: do consumers have a say in how goods or services
are provided?
Impact of Marketing
“Advertising is the art of convincing people to
spend money they don’t have for something
they don’t need.” Will Rogers
“ I have always believed that writing
advertisements is the second most profitable
form of writing. The first of course is ransom
notes…” Philip Dusenberry
Targeting Young Consumers
“advertising at its best is making people feel that without their
product, you’re a loser. Kids are very sensitive to that. If you
tell them to buy something, they are resistant. But, if you tell them
that they’ll be a dork if they don’t, you’ve got their attention.
You open up emotional vulnerabilities…”
Nancy Shalek, Shalek Agency, cited in Juliet. B. Schor’s Born to Buy: the
commercialised child and the new consumer culture, Scribner, 2004
Social Psychology of Food
“Parents struggle hard to protect their children from
bullying – and make sure that their children’s
lunchboxes are as full as their classmates. In this way,
snacks like crisps or chocolate are not seen as luxuries
but a way for their children to participate in
conventional behaviour…”
Middleton, S., Ashworth, K. and Walker, R., Family Fortunes: pressures on parents and children in the
1990s, Child Poverty Action Group, 1994
Influencing Factors
 Cultural
 Economic
 Environmental and ethical
 Personal
 Physiological
 Psychological and
 Social
Influencing Factors
 Cultural
Someone of Chinese origin might shop for
specific ingredients at an Asian
supermarket
Influencing Factors
 Economic
A person living on a tight budget would be
unlikely to buy luxury items as part of their
weekly food shop.
Influencing Factors
 Environmental and ethical
A shopper opposed to animal cruelty may
choose not to buy products that have been
tested on animals.
Influencing Factors
 Personal
A teenager might feel more comfortable
ordering a CD online, whereas an older
consumer might prefer to go to a high-street
music store.
Influencing Factors
 Physiological
Someone who is trying to lose weight may
wish to avoid fast food and high sugar
snacks.
Influencing Factors
 Psychological
Some shops play music designed to make
consumers feel good, stay longer and buy
more.
Influencing Factors
 Social
Some consumers are influenced by trends
and want the latest ‘must-have’ toys,
fashion items or technology.
You Were Spotted! Activity
 Cultural
 Economic
 Environmental and
ethical
 Personal
 Physiological
 Psychological and
 Social
You Were Spotted! Activity
1. Spotted…shopping for chilies,
sausages and sweet potatoes at
Saturday’s Farmers’ Market.
2. Spotted…buying fresh haddock
reduced to £1 because it’s nearing
its use-by date.
3. Spotted…disposing of used
plastic carrier bags at the
supermarket collection bin.
5. Spotted…loading a trolley with
half price bedding plants and
compost.
4. Spotted…coming back from the
sales, trying to juggle several
shopping bags whilst chatting on
the mobile.
6. Spotted…at the till,
filling a rucksack with
shopping essentials.
8. Spotted…at the electrical counter
in Tesco discussing the merits of a
camera phone with the salesperson.
10. Spotted…at the cinema with a
home-made picnic of sandwiches,
crisps and fruit juices.
7. Spotted…queuing at a
late night Spar to buy
milk.
9. Spotted…taking
delivery of shopping
which was ordered
online.
Recap on resources
Lesson Plans
 Being a consumer
 What influences consumer behaviour
 What type of yoghurt are you?
Multimedia
 BBC Learning Zone Clip – disability
 Silver Service DVD - older consumers
 Buy Rights – Have Your Say – young consumers