Consumer Behaviour Essay

This essay analyzes the differences in consumer behavior between British and Chinese consumers using Hofstede's cultural dimensions. It examines how these differences impact British Airways' marketing mix and strategies for expanding its customer base in the Asian market. The essay also highlights the importance of understanding cultural nuances for successful international marketing.

CONSUMER
BEHAVIOUR

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
A) Analyze difference between British and Chinese consumer behavior by using Hofstede's
model...........................................................................................................................................1
B) Marketing mix of British airlines...........................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Consumer behavior is treated as a vital aspect in field of marketing. Basically, it is an
observational activity which is conducted to study the response of customers towards a new
service or product. It is concerned with the purchasing decision of consumers in accordance with
their need, demand and affording capability. This report is written in context of British airways
which is largest airline in UK, created in 1974. It is the largest airline based in UK in terms of
international flight, international destination and fleet size (Bamossy and Solomon, 2016). This
assignment includes differences between British and Chinese consumer behavior in respect with
Hofstede's cultural dimension. It also involves strategies like marketing mix which will help
British airways to enhance their service encounters. Along with this, Benefits and opportunities
gained from enhanced customer expectation has mentioned.
TASK 1
A) Analyse difference between British and Chinese consumer behavior by using Hofstede's
model
Consumer behavior defines purchasing pattern of individual people or masses to fulfill
their needs and demands in accordance with their budget. It involves action that are taken by
consumers in marketplace along with motive behind those actions. Theory given by Hofstede
states the framework for inter-culture communication and consumer behavior. Cultural
dimensions given by Hofstede includes aspects like uncertainty avoidance, power distance,
individualism- collectivism, indulgence- restraint, long and short term orientation and
femininity- masculinity (Calder, Isaac and Malthouse, 2016). These dimensions will help British
airways in understanding the behavior of consumers in a wider extent. Differences among
attitude of people in Britain and china in accordance with Hofstede's culture is mentioned below:
Power distance: This dimension emphasize on the fact that all masses within society are
not equal. Less powerful people residing in a country when readily accepts about unequal
distribution of power, it is defined as power distance. It is based on the extent at which a country
values or not the hierarchical relationships.
Power distance score of Britain is 35 which is low as compared to the score of
china which is 80. This means that inequality and rank social estate among people in UK is
considerably low. Citizens in UK expects legal equality and hopes for rational distribution while
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working under some organisation. They have less restricted laws which results in more risky
transactions. PDI score specifies consumer behavior in UK as in-congruent. Due to less
inequality among citizens, most of the people have stable income and healthy livelihood. They
prefer to purchase good quality products and services. Masses in UK are ready to pay more if
facilities given to them are standardized and satisfy their demands. In case of china PDI score is
80 which denotes high inequality among people and they have accepted this difference as their
normal heritage. In china, subordinates and superior relationship is based on centralized decision
structure. Society in china can be divided on the basis of income where rich people are getting
more rich and poor people remains poor (Griskevicius and Kenrick, 2013). High class in china
prefer luxurious and standardized products and services irrespective of price whereas people
from low class prefer products which are affordable and carter their needs. They have a planned
budget and buy products in accordance to that only.
Individualism and collectivism: This dimension denotes the bond between people of
different communities. In individualist society, people shares weak interpersonal relations and
feel reluctant while taking responsibility for each others' action. In case of collectivist society,
masses share strong interpersonal relation and loyal towards each other.
IDV score of UK is 80 which is higher than the average score of western nations. People
in UK follows individualistic culture and respect uniqueness over harmony. They like to consider
themselves different from rest of the group to which they belong. Due to this individualism, they
prefer unique products and services which helps them in differentiating themselves from rest of
people. People in UK support innovative ideas and prefer to purchase products which involves
innovation (Gruber and Schlegelmilch, 2014). While purchasing commodities they treat their
needs and demands as priority and buy products in accordance with that only. In context with
British airlines, offers like discount on individual bookings will help them to expand their sales
and profit. By contracts, IDV score of china is 20 which means people follows their collectivist
culture. People in china treats themselves as part of group and purchase products while
considering the needs and demands of other people also. This purchasing behavior of Chinese
results in strong relationship and they prefer those products and services which serves their needs
as well as people which are connected with them.
Masculinity Vs femininity: This dimension state the roles of males and females in a
particular country. High masculinity means people focus on heroism, competition and expect
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reward for giving good performance. Low masculinity which is termed as femininity emphasize
on needs of weak members of society along with high class. They mainly focus on improving
quality of life.
In this aspect, both china and UK have same score which is 66. this is because of old
feudal hierarchy and appreciable economic development, social status of females is enhancing at
a fast rate. Even if score is same, situation is different for UK and china. At 66 score UK follows
masculine society which is highly success oriented. In UK, culture and society supports equality
between sexes (Halvorsen and et. al., 2013). Females are given equal roles and opportunities as
male. Due to which females are independents and earns their own livelihood. Their purchasing
behavior depends upon their needs. People in UK whether male and female do not depend upon
each other for activities like shopping. They like to purchase products as per their preference and
choice. Females in UK are independent and given rights to earn and buy their own livelihood.
Situation in china is different, they have male dominant society and half population of females
depends upon their counterparts for their livelihood. Women in china purchases products and
services from market in accordance with the budget allotted to them. Around sixty percent of
women doesn't work in china, they depend on others for their needs and demands. High class
women in china are free to purchase any products irrespective of price. They are willing to pay
more for luxurious facilities.
Uncertainty avoidance: It is the extent to which people of a culture avoids unknown or
ambiguous situations. According to Hofstede, nations with low UAI are ready to accept risks.
They prefer to treat competence and conflicts as natural. In case of high UAI score, rules are
made to reduce risks.
In this dimension both UK and China have low score. UAI score of UK is 35 and score of
china is 30. This means people in Britain do not care about situation they are facing. They give
less consideration to results. Population of china is more tolerant towards uncertainty as they
follow the structure and codes associated with society. Masses in UK believes in fair and true
view and respects more conformity where as response from Chinese people is ambiguous and
hard for western population to understand (Heitz-Spahn, 2013). Behavior of consumers in china
and UK is unpredictable and change with situation. Due to advancement in technology, demands
of people upgrades everyday. Companies needs to improve their quality and services in
accordance with the taste and preference of people. If people are not sure about some product,
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they will still buy that product if it carter their needs. To maintain their presence in a better way
British airlines needs to implement new techniques and facilities
Long term orientation index: This dimension laid special attention on comparing
Chinese culture with British culture. Countries having high LTO score involves long perspective
while taking any decision. These people are persistent in acquiring their goals. Nations with low
LTO score considers short term success as preference.
As per the score of UK which is 51, people there favors short term orientation. They
handle their problems in smaller part and overcome issues at a faster rate. They believe in
achieving goals quickly. Behavior of consumers in UK while purchasing commodities varies in
accordance with need. They like to purchase those products more readily which resolve and
fulfill their short term needs easily. They believe in quick results and shift towards those options
which provides them better and fast outcome. Score of China is 81 which is very high. This
means consumer in china are long term oriented. They believes in persistent and perseverance.
Masses in UK like to invest money in buying those services and products which carter their
needs for a long period of time. Behavior of consumers in china depends upon governmental
intervention also, as they trust those companies more which are influenced by government
through any means.
Indulgence: It is concerned with the ability of an individual to control its desire and
impulse behavior. Countries that have weak control are categorized under indulgence and other
nations are called as restraint.
Score acquired by china is 24 which means it is a restrained society. People in china have
tenancy towards pessimism. Masses in china give less consideration to leisure time and control
their desire to purchase services, products and facilities. Consumer their control their urge to buy
products due to restrictions form society (Holbrook and Hirschman, 2012). Organizations that
are maintaining business in china needs to avoid producing those products which are not
accepted in societal norms. Indulgence score of UK is 69 which means people there are more
liberal and independent while purchasing goods and services. They buy product as per their need
without considering society and perspective of others.
B) Marketing mix of British airlines
British airways is a leading international airline. They need to work hard so that they can
improve their marketing strategies. Bad marketing strategies results in poor impact on the growth
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of company. Enhanced marketing strategy helps in gaining maximum customer loyalty and
increased competitive advantage. In context to this, marketing mix of British airways is
discussed which will helps them to expand their clients base and profit margins to a considerable
extent:
Product: British airways provides airways services associated with premium segments.
BA is awarded a four star rating for its high class services and facilities. To maintain their
presence in marketplace, company needs to offer services which stands them out from other
airlines. BA aircraft has Luxurious interior and they offer new themes and color to their aircraft.
New aircraft has personal booths. Dream-liner have more space due to which passengers get
more privacy and enjoy their personal space (Zhang, 2015). Tickets for different section of
people are available i.e. first class, economy, premium economy and business class. All these
facilities are standardized in respect with western as well as Asian countries like china and India.
To attract more customer base BA can introduce In-flight technology products and high tech-
entertainment systems along with standardized food and staff.
Pricing: Main aim of BA is to price tickets in affordable range so that people can easily
purchase them. Tickets are available for different classes like premium economy, economy and
business. Rates of these tickets varies in accordance with destination and booking schedule.
Pricing strategy followed by British airways is to provide discounts to those customers which are
frequent fliers. To expand their influence in Asian market BA can introduce special discounts
during festive seasons which will influence consumers to buy their airline services (Juster,
2015). If their facilities and services are appreciable only then people will feel motivated to
purchase them. In UK, living standard and per capita income of people is high which means they
can afford luxuries easily but case is different in Asian countries where most of people can afford
only average rated products and services.
Place: BA serves around 410 geographical locations worldwide. At present, they are
operating 273 air crafts including Boeing 777s, 787s and 747s. Their headquarter is near London
Heathrow airport. Most of the operations are carried out at Heathrow airport and approx 40%
slots are present there only. Services provided to other countries and continent via online, phone
app and websites. To enhance their presence in Asian countries especially china, BA needs to
increase number of aircraft which are offering services in these regions. Also, they need to
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include more Asian destinations in their flight schedule. British airlines needs to adapt these
changes to enhance their image and profit revenues in Asian countries (Williams, 2014).
Promotion: Service industry associated with airlines is very competitive. To maintain
their visible presence it is must for BA to have right promotional strategy. This will helps them
to enhance their presence around the globe especially in targeted areas like Asian countries
which offers huge potential of customer base due to large population. In UK, British airlines
advertise and promote through billboards, newspaper and advertising. These promotion tactics
are sophisticated and classy but in other regions like Asian countries they need to adapt
additional promotional strategies (Li, Linn and Muehlegger, 2014). BA can promote their
services through online and digital media. Access of mobile applications in Asian region will
leads towards considerable result. British airways can partner with Asian and common wealth
games, this will helps them in advertising their services at a wider extent. Also, they can sign
influential Asian people as their brand ambassadors. Another way to promote their airline
services around globe is sponsor different sports, cultural and charitable events.
People: There are several units and department under British airlines which includes
engineering, marketing and sales, finance and customer managing departments. There is a
separate operational department which comprises of engineering executive, flight operations,
operational team and customer management. Other people are employed in departments like
investment, safety and legal. BA has around 45000 people as employees including 17000 cabin
crew and 4000 pilots and 6000 engineers. These employees are recruited through top hospitality
and academic institutes and given special training so that they can serve guests and customers in
a better way. Programs needs to be initiated by BA where crew staff is given training and
seminars related with Asian culture and preference. This will helps them to serve their Asian
customers in a more better way. If ethnocentric staff is recruited this will helps BA to connect
with their Asian and other region clients easily. This is because if people from different
originality will be recruited, this will helps BA to enhance their existence globally.
Process: BA has introduced new ticketing service i.e. e-ticketing. This allow customers
to book tickets without following hectic and long process as booking tickets online takes around
three to four minutes. But this service is available in Germany and Britain only. To increase their
influence in Asian market, they needs to introduce these services in countries like China,
Malaysia, India and other also. Airlines can initiate programs like holiday packages to different
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destinations to attract people from Asian continent. They already offer this service in UK. BA
can adapt cargo services and facilities like perishable, pets, scheduled and funeral services for
Asian customers (Mullen and Johnson, 2013). The process in BA initiates from ticket booking
and passes through stages like airport arrival, receiving boarding pass, checking luggage,
entering flight, enjoying services available throughout journey and getting luggage back. If these
process are comfortable and affordable for targeted customers i.e. Chinese consumers, this will
help them in enhancing their profits and revenues.
Physical evidence: The main motive of British airlines is to provide memorable
experience to their clients. This is considered as an intangible aspect in business. It depends on
the way in which service is offered to customers. A good example is, designing of lounges,
design of cabin, crew attendants on flight, ambiance and interior of flight, the color and theme
used forms the physical evidence. To attract travelers form Asian regions, BA can involve
aspects of Asian culture. This will helps them in influencing customers to use services and
facilities provided by British airways.
There are several factors that limits the service of customers. All these aspects if
not given proper consideration can results in negative impact on the working of British airways.
Some of these factors are specified below:
 Communication: To interact with the guest and customers in a proper way, BA needs to
focus on the communication skills of their working stage. If communication is not
effective, it will impact the working of BA (Shende, 2014). As they want to expand their
influence in Asian countries, for this there employees needs to be Familiar with Asian
culture and prominent languages. This will helps the staff of BA to understand the needs
and demands of Asian customers in a better way.
 Employee engagement: Staff at British airways needs to give their best performance in
order to enhance customer service. If they have issues and problems among themselves.
This will affects their ability to engage and provide service to clients due to
mismanagement of activities.
 Customer relationship management: To manage Comfortable relation with customers,
BA needs to initiate programs like customer relation management. If needs of customers
is not given proper consideration, this will affects the relation between company and
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clients. To maintain standardized services and long term relationship with customers
worldwide, processes like CRM are required which identifies, create and focus on several
competencies related with BA and customers.
 Customer loyalty: It describes the behavior of clients while using services and products
again. In traveling industry, reviews and good ratings to airlines have influential impact
on the choice and behavior of customers (Walker and Kent, 2013). If facilities are not
good and standardized BA will not be able to get loyalty from customers. This can result
in loss of revenue if not given proper consideration.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussed report, it has been analyzed that behavior of consumers is
different in UK and China for same services and products. There are many dimensions in
accordance with Hofstede that influences their behavior to a great extent. To extend their
services in Asian countries, BA has prepared a marketing mix which specifies the facilities and
strategies they are using to attract their clients. Also, in marketing mix some aspects are added
which will helps them in enhancing their presence in Asian countries also. Processes like loyalty
program, employee engagement, staff training and many more helps a company in increasing
their profit margins, image and revenue.
REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bamossy, G.J . and Solomon, M. R., 2016. Consumer behaviour: A European perspective.
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context-specific approach to measuring engagement: predicting consumer behavior
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52.
Griskevicius, V. and Kenrick, D. T., 2013. Fundamental motives: How evolutionary needs
influence consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Psychology. 23(3). pp.372-386.
Gruber, V. and Schlegelmilch, B. B., 2014. How techniques of neutralization legitimize norm-
and attitude-inconsistent consumer behavior. Journal of Business Ethics. 121(1). pp.29-
45.
Halvorsen, K., et. al., 2013. Can fashion blogs function as a marketing tool to influence
consumer behavior? Evidence from Norway. Journal of Global Fashion Marketing.
4(3). pp.211-224.
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Heitz-Spahn, S., 2013. Cross-channel free-riding consumer behavior in a multichannel
environment: An investigation of shopping motives, sociodemographics and product
categories. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 20(6). pp.570-578.
Holbrook, M. B. and Hirschman, E. C., 2012. The semiotics of consumption: Interpreting
symbolic consumer behavior in popular culture and works of art (Vol. 110). Walter de
Gruyter.
Juster, F. T., 2015. Anticipations and purchases: An analysis of consumer behavior. Princeton
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Li, S., Linn, J. and Muehlegger, E., 2014. Gasoline taxes and consumer behavior. American
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Mullen, B. and Johnson, C., 2013. The psychology of consumer behavior. Psychology Press.
Shende, V., 2014. Analysis of research in consumer behavior of automobile passenger car
customer. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications. 4(2). p.1.
Walker, M. and Kent, A., 2013. The roles of credibility and social consciousness in the corporate
hilanthropy-consumer behavior relationship. Journal of business ethics. 116(2).
pp.341-353.
Williams, P., 2014. Emotions and consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Research. 40(5).
pp.viii-xi.
Zhang, Y., 2015. The impact of brand image on consumer behavior: a literature review. Open
journal of business and management. 3(1).
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