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Consumer Behaviour

External Influences - Consumer Culture

a. Culture includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs, and any other capabilities andhabits acquired by humans as members of society.

b. How does culture affect consumer behavior? Whatever a person consumes will determine theirlevel of acceptance in their society. If someone does not act consistently with cultural

expectations, they risk not being accepted in society.

c. What happens when a company ignores culture?McDonaldsis one of the most popularrestaurants in the world. At their American based restaurants they serve beef hamburgers, but

when they decided to open restaurants in India, they used lamb meat for their hamburgers,

because the Indian people do not eat cow meat; if McDonalds had ignored this cultural

difference they would not have been successful in India! That was the problem when The WaltDisney Company opened EuroDisney outside Paris; it was almost a failure because Disney

ignored the culture. The French people drink wine at very young ages and prefer sugar on theirpopcorn, not salt, like Americans. Disney did not accommodate their theme park until they

realized that the French people were indeed their target market, so they changed the name of the

park to Disneyland Paris and made modifications to their menus and also to the wait lines in the

park.

Behavior Meaning in the US Meaning in other cultures

Consumingwine and beer

Those under the age of 21 arenot allowed to drink alcohol

In European countries it is common for childrento drink wine/beer at family meals; when in a bar

in Korea you pour drinks for your friends and

family first, then wait for them to pour your drink

Drinking

coffee

Generally adults drink it in the

morning because of the

caffeine, and giving coffee to

a child is not accepted

In Turkey, coffee is a special drink that you serve

to guests; in Italy coffee is enjoyed after a family

meal; in China tea is the drink of choice

Cooking pork

ribs

Grilled outside at a backyard

party

Jewish and Muslims do not eat pork

Kissing To express romantic feelings

about someone

In many cultures kissing is acceptable when

greeting a friend

Using thenumber 7

Lucky number Unlucky number in Kenya, Singapore and Ghana

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d. Factors that Define a Culture

i. Individual/Collective: The culture in the US is an individualistic society, where peoplegenerally look out for themselves; The Japanese culture focuses on the collective, and

people work to better society as a whole.

ii. Extended/Limited Family: In the US, families move away from each other andgenerally dont live together in the same house; In many Asian and European countries,

parents, kids, grandparents and even aunts and uncles live together in the same house.

iii. Adult/Child: Different cultures will define when someone is an adult. In the US it is18 years old, but in some South American countries it is 14 or 15 years old. In the

Hebrew culture a boy becomes a man at 13 during his Bar Mitzvah ceremony. In the

Hispanic culture a girl becomes an adult at 15th birthday party.

iv. Masculine/Feminine: Cultures define the roles of men and women differently,including their rank, and prestige in society.

v. Youth/Age: The value placed on Elders depends on the culture vi. Cleanliness: In the US, cleanliness is very important, in fact most of the products

advertised on American TV claim to improve cleaning; In other cultures showering on adaily basis is unnecessary.

vii. Tradition/Change: Some societies prefer traditions over making changes. viii. Hard work/Leisure: In some cultures hard work is valued over leisure time. ix. Postponed gratification/Immediate gratification: American culture is centered on

immediate gratification I want it now!

x. Sensual gratification/Abstinence: The Netherlands is a society that openly talks aboutand advertises sexual activity; in Muslim societies those topics are taboo, and women

who get pregnant before marriage are often shunned.