A bit over 2 years ago, I recall going to my favorite clothing store Forever 21. I was interested in finding an outfit to wear for my sister's graduation. I went around the store about five times, when I then noticed a dress with only 3 of the same kind. Immediately I fell in love with it. The only problem was they were all 2 sizes too big .I was disappointed because there weren't many big Forever 21 stores in Miami. Then, my friend reminded me of something. They have all the clothing online. I got online once I got home They had it in the size i needed it! Perfect!. Luckily they had a coupon sale code posted on their website, and got the dress I wanted for 25% percent off.
I began my purchasing process with the need/ desire recognition state. I knew i needed an outfit to wear for the big event, being that at the time it was one of my main problems.
I decided that I wanted it to be a dress, preferably a bright bold color, and I wanted it from either of my favorite stores Forever 21 or Charlotte Russe. I recognized the nearest location (Dolphin Mall)., and searched and decided on a different channel (online) for my choice. This was my Need/Desire Development stage.
I then ordered it, received it, and was extremely satisfied with my purchase ( Need/Desire Fulfillment) . It was the perfect dress for the perfect night.
Everything we purchase goes through this process. Some take longer than others like car purchases, or even when deciding what food to eat when we are on an empty stomach. Many factors we are exposed to also dictate our decisions now more than ever.
One thing that I notice is that what we are exposed to usually influences our decisions. I have seen that something that interests me as well as many of my young college friends(since we are many times usually low on cash) are promotions, deals, and coupons. The latest thing that I use is mobile coupon promotions and text messages in regards to the places I most go to. For example, as mentioned before, one of my favorite stores (Charlotte Russe) sends me a couple messages a week, sometimes coupon codes, other times specials that they are having in stores during the week. This instantly catches my attention and makes me decide to consider shopping. Believe it or not, this is grabbing a hold of people and somehow reminds us of things we might have not thought about like we had before.
Although coupons have been around for quite some time, most people had to take the time to sit down and look through the newspaper ads, etc. Now, we can use them by looking online on websites, through emails and even through text messages.
Due to the fact that technology is a big part of most of our lives, people usually have their cell phones or access to internet . Many of the restaurants and places I tend to go to send me messages at least two to three times a week. Many companies are going with this because it is extremely cost efficient and they can easily convey their promotions instantly with a simple code.
Several companies like Yowza!!, as mentioned in the article,which I actually use ,are making it easy for people to share coupons with friends and have a wide array of coupons to pick from.
In my case, shopping now for me has become a matter of what store has a promotion going on. Now I know because of my constant updates. I actually have to shop for my graduation outfit soon. I have to check what store is having a big sale!
Till the next one ,
Aileen
References
http://www.forever21.com/Default.asp
http://www.charlotterusse.com/home/index.jsp
http://dolphinmall.com/
http://www.naa.org/Resources/Articles/Digital-Media-Moving-To-Mobile-Advertising-2/Digital-Media-Moving-To-Mobile-Advertising-2.aspx
http://www.pbs.org/nbr/blog/2009/10/moving_towards_mobile_coupons.html
http://www.getyowza.com/
It sounds like the dating process.
ReplyDelete1. Decide you need a boyfriend/girlfriend.
2. Look around to see who's available.
3. Find out more and meet those who look promising.
4. Make a decision.
5. Keep them or through them back
E-marketing has definitely taken a road of it’s own. It’s amazing how you can see something in a store that is not available and you can just go online and make a purchase or vice-versa. Funny enough that you mention the text messages. I get about 3 messages a week from 3 different company’s. These marketers are definitely taking full advantage of their reminder tools. E-marketing has presented consumers with new convenient ways to make a purchase and reminds you that you need to do so. I think e-marketing is brilliant, because it is cost effective and just plain effective. You would think because some of the ways they are reaching their consumers is impersonal it would not have so much success but it is actually the complete opposite. I look forward to what new form of e-marketing will launch.
ReplyDeleteI do the same thing you do when I want to buy something and I cannot find it in the store, I find it online. I do also get weekly ads from stores that I like and get discounts as well. Unlike you, I hate shopping or buying stuff that I have to wait in line for; from movie tickets that I can get online or with my iPhone to buying books for school to avoid the lines every university have. However, sometimes I do get a lot of emails from the stores that I have purchased stuff from. After a while all those emails stop being e-mail advertisement and turned to spam. It changes my interest of buying stuff from that company since they are going to harassed me after I make a purchase with them.
ReplyDeleteThat’s the truth,
Mauricio