Sales Management: Products and Services. Dr Jae K Shim

according to the circumstances and needs of each customer.

      3.True. Although there is no general agreement about buying motives, it is believed that at least three are basic: physiological (needs of the body), psychological (such as pride and fear), and sociological (the need to belong).

      4.True. Consumer behavior is influenced by the product itself (design, color, size, price, package, and so on), by the type of product (convenience, shopping, or specialty good), and by the information provided by the salesperson.

Positive versus negative motives

      When the salesperson emphasizes benefits or satisfactions that will be obtained from buying the product, she is emphasizing the positive approach. On the other hand, if she refers to a problem which the consumer wants to eliminate or avoid, she is using a negative approach. In selling life insurance, the salesperson can emphasize the retirement benefits -- this would be positive motivation. Or, she could emphasize the negative approach by referring to the financial difficulties a widow would have if her husband died and were inadequately insured. In selling a tire, the salesperson can emphasize the positive by referring to its trouble-free qualities and the long mileage it will give. Or she can emphasize the negative by pointing out the dangers of traveling at high speed and having a blowout. The negative approach is based on problems and fears. Both approaches are effective, depending upon the product or service being sold and the consumer’s particular circumstances. However, recent research has revealed that a person generally responds more favorably to a positive appeal than to a negative one.

Basic versus acquired wants

      Motivation can also be analyzed from the standpoint of basic versus acquired wants. Almost everyone has the same basic wants, and they are generally uniform for all human beings. Psychologists differ as to the number of basic wants they identify, and the following ones are representative of those most frequently mentioned.

Love

      Each of us has a basic need to love and to be loved by others. The urge to appeal to the opposite sex plays a major role in our lives and influences our actions as consumers. A person also is concerned about the welfare of those she loves and usually assumes the responsibility for caring, protecting, and providing for them. Many parents not only provide a home for their children, but also labor to put them through college and even “help them out” in later life.

Food and shelter

      Food and shelter are absolute essentials for living. There is a great range of differences in these needs varying from a dish of rice to a sirloin steak and from a simple hut to a stately manor. Nonetheless, we need food to live and work, and shelter to protect us from the elements.

Safety and security

      A person wishes to avoid or eliminate anything that endangers or threatens her life. This basic urge manifests itself by her purchasing all forms of insurance, and in protecting herself and others through laws, support for police and fire protection, and other governmental services.

Achieve and accomplish

      Most people strive to achieve and be recognized for something. They desire to be proud of what they do or accomplish. Attention, praise, and prestige are important motivating factors in our lives. In all things she undertakes, a person basically wants to succeed rather than fail. She constantly seeks new challenges and is motivated by a strong desire to master them. Climbing a mountain, conquering space, breaking records, and fulfilling one’s ambitions are common examples of this basic want.

Approval and acceptance

      It is common for all of us to seek approval and acceptance by others. We generally try to avoid criticism and ridicule. Our need for approval, therefore, causes us to conform and imitate, rather than to deviate from social convention.

Leisure and relaxation

      In addition to working and achieving, a person also seeks rest, relaxation, pleasure, and fun. The increase in her leisure time and increased pressures of living have greatly influenced this need. Hundreds of recreational and vocational opportunities are available to her including golfing, fishing, hunting, surfing, skiing, reading, watching sports events, gardening, and many other activities.

Need for health and survival

      Maintaining good health is a major concern of a person, and she will normally do everything in her power to avoid death. She also seeks to be free from fear, frustration, and pain. Millions of dollars are spent each year to research to find cures for common diseases and to lengthen her life. To live a long and happy life is a wished goal of almost everyone.

      Acquired or learned wants are further refined, and therefore become secondary or selective wants that vary with the person’s background and cultural environment. Every individual has the basic need for play and recreation, but the specific form it takes will vary considerably. For example, one person may fulfill this want by staying at home and reading a book. Another may attend a baseball or football game, and still another may fulfill this want by going on a lion hunt in Africa. Hence, the basic wants are common to all people, but the acquired wants will be different.

Emotional versus rational motives

      As discussed in connection with product motives, consumer behavior can be viewed as being either emotional or economic or rational. Emotional motives are generally those which are based on feelings, are impulsive, and are not carefully planned in advance. Rational or economic motives, on the other hand, are more likely to be based on objective analysis and carefully planned. Examples of emotional motives would be those based on satisfaction of the senses, preservation of the species, love, pride, fear, emulation, sociability, acceptance, curiosity, and so on. Examples of rational motives would be those based on factors such as economy, efficiency in operation, durability, dependability, and others.

Difficulties in analyzing motives

      In order to sell effectively, the salesperson usually must be able to determine the motives of her potential customers. Sometimes this is relatively easy to do, but at other times it may be extremely difficult. For example, a person may not be aware of the true reasons why he is interested in purchasing a particular product or service. A buyer may tell himself and the salesperson that he wishes to buy a new car because his old one is costing him too much for repairs. However, the real reason may be that he feels inferior and wishes to impress a certain young lady by buying a new car. The salesperson must realize that stated reasons are not always the real reasons. A person may sometimes believe he knows why he is interested in buying a particular product or service, but actually he is unaware of his true motives; or in some cases he may be aware of his true motives, but is unwilling to disclose them. How many women would admit that they were buying a new dress in order to attract the attention of men? Or how many men would admit that they use a certain product in order to give them more masculinity? Thus, the salesperson must understand human behavior and be careful in interpreting what the buyer says.

      Finally, the salesperson should remember that it is often a combination of motives with varying priorities that motivate people to buy. Two housewives will buy a vacuum cleaner to keep their homes clean. However, in addition to this basic need, one bought the cleaner because it was like the one her mother had, and she also liked the salesperson because he reminded her of her own son. The other woman bought the cleaner because it was easy to handle, and it was also a better one than her neighbor had. Buying motives can vary greatly, and often no two people will buy a particular product or service for identical reasons. The salesperson should be constantly aware of this and should adapt her presentation to the prospect’s particular motives whenever possible.

Theories of motivation

      There are three basic theories of buyer motivations. The first is the “mental-states” theory,