MKTG1391 Consumer Behavior Report: Influences on Ford Ranger Raptor

This report examines the external and internal influences on consumer behavior, specifically focusing on the Ford Ranger Raptor truck. External factors such as reference groups (family, friends, colleagues), situational influences (physical environment, social factors, time, buyer's mood), and cultural values (Schwartz model) are analyzed. Internal influences, including needs and motives (Maslow's hierarchy), perception, and learning (reasoning vs. operant conditioning), are also explored. The report concludes with marketing strategy recommendations for Ford, emphasizing product, price, place, and promotion to effectively target consumers and enhance their buying experience. Desklib provides a platform to explore similar solved assignments and past papers for students.

RUNNING HEAD: CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 0
Impact of Influences on Consumer Behavior
Student’s Details-
10/13/2019

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 1
Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
External Influences:.........................................................................................................................2
Group and Interpersonal Influence:.............................................................................................2
Situational Influences...................................................................................................................3
Culture and Subculture.................................................................................................................4
Internal Influences...........................................................................................................................5
Needs and Motives.......................................................................................................................5
Perception.....................................................................................................................................6
Learning.......................................................................................................................................6
Marketing Strategy..........................................................................................................................7
Product.........................................................................................................................................7
Price.............................................................................................................................................7
Place.............................................................................................................................................7
Promotion.....................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 2
Introduction
Consumer behavior is that study which is concerned with the understanding of the expectations,
preferences, lifestyle, values, beliefs and behaviors of the customers in order to produce the
products that satisfy their needs (De Mooij 2019). However, there are various influences that
affect their buying behaviors and also impact the frequency of purchase. The influences can be
external and internal that can affect that can ultimately affect buying patterns of the customers
and the recognition of these buying behaviors can be an effective approach for the company
(Rani 2014). The report is being prepared on the impact of external and internal influences on the
behavior of the customers on the chosen brand which is the Ford Ranger Raptor Truck which is
the newly launched car of Ford company ideal for the off road racing. The report will discuss the
external influences such as the reference groups that have interpersonal influence upon the
customers that are being targeted by the company. Also, the report is being discussing the
situational influences onto the consumer behavior. Schwartz ten core values are also being
illustrated to identify the impact of cultural influences. Further, an analysis of needs, motives and
perception of the customers is being identified along with the learning theory like reasoning
versus operant conditioning. Lastly, recommendation is given along with the marketing strategy
being used by the Ford.
External Influences:
External influences are individualistic and are the factors or the groups that the individual
interacts on the daily basis which have huge impact upon the buying patterns of the consumers
(Khalil & Raza 2018). Similarly, the customers of Ford Ranger Raptor Truck can be affected by
the external influence as the cars of the company is usually preferred by the people with
enhanced lifestyle and hence the reference groups, situational influences and culture of the
customers can affect the sales of Ford company.
Group and Interpersonal Influence:
Reference group affect the attitude and behavior of the customers that will actually make the
purchase of the product. Reference groups have group and interpersonal influence that have
impact upon the attitude and behavior of the customer (Fernandes & Panda 2018). Family and

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 3
close friends are the primary reference groups as the individual interacts frequently with them on
daily basis. These reference groups can significantly impact the attitude of the individual as the
perception of one individual can affect the preferences of the entire family. Similarly, the cars of
Ford Company are preferred by the customers that are being influenced by the reference groups
or the opinions that they receive after the interpersonal or the group interactions. Moreover,
when a person decides to purchase the car then the buying decision may be impacted by the
references and interpersonal interactions which can even lead to change into the brands due to
trust upon the family members.
Further, colleagues, classmates and neighbors are the secondary reference groups that can
influence the buying behavior of the customers. Individuals interact little with these reference
groups but there is huge impact of these references (Zhang, Li & Burke 2018). Similarly, the
customers of Ford Raptor are influenced by the attitude of secondary reference groups. When
any purchase is made by the peers then it not persuades them to buy the car. Any views of the
friends matters a lot to the customers and their purchasing behavior.
Situational Influences
There are various situational factors that can have impact on the consumer behavior. It involves
the decision making of the customer that can lead the customer to either buy the product or my
lead to a situation where customer does not buy anything at all (Atulkar & Kesari 2018).
Similarly, Ford Raptor Truck as the product of Ford has to deal with the situational factors which
are certainly based upon the buyer’s mood. There are factors are included into the situational
preferences of the customers of Ford Raptor and are discussed as above:
 Physical Factors: These factors include the location of the stores, geographical area and
the physical environment of the store that influences the buying decision of customers
(Sun & Yazdanifard 2015). As far as Ford Ranger Raptor is concerned, the physical
environment of the showroom may affect the customer’s decision as it is observed that
the customers who have enhanced lifestyle demand higher hospitality.
 Social Factors: Social factors pertaining to the customers can highly affect the purchase
of Ford Raptor as the people who have outdoor thrill-seeking lifestyle usually buy the

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 4
product and also the customers who want to maintain social standards strive for these cars
(Ford Media Center 2019).
 Time: Time is the next situational factor that can influence the attitude of the customer
towards buying of the product. When the customer is buying a car, the customer will
decide upon the time at which the he/she will use the car. As Ford Ranger Raptor is
precisely for weekends and fulfills the weekend driving needs of the customers, the
customer makes the decision accordingly as per the time (Ford Go Further 2019).
 Buyer’s Mood and Conditions: In the situational influences, buyer’s mood is a
contextual effect that greatly influences the behavior of the customers. It temporarily
affects the customer’s buying information and the ability to evaluate the alternatives
(Tosun, Sezgin & Uray 2018). Similarly, the customers of Ford Raptor have indifferent
moods and are unable to make the choice of the cars due to the fluctuations in mood
arising from contextual effects.
Culture and Subculture
Culture is concerned with the values, beliefs, attitude, norms and principles of the customers that
influences their behavior to buy the product. However, the culture affects the buying behavior of
customers who are intending to buy the Ranger Raptor for the fulfilment of their weekend
driving needs (Sreen, Purbey & Sadarangani 2018). Customers who follow a particular culture
may not accept the purchase of the product if it is against their core values. Further, by applying
the Schwartz model of core values which defines the ten basic values within the culture that can
affect the buying behavior.
Through the identification of these ten values within the culture, people who have self-direction,
stimulation, achievement and hedonism as the values are more likely to be the buyer of the
Ranger Raptor as these people are challenging, independent, exploring and action taking which
are the main behaviors of the customers that compels them to buy the new launched Ford range.
There are values such as security, universalism, tradition, conformity and benevolence in which
people are protective, have inclinations towards the social norms, respect religions and traditions
and believe into the welfare of all (Brodhead 2019). Thus, customers with these values are less
likely to buy the Ford Ranger Raptor as these customers may not accept the cars meeting their
values and beliefs and thereby have an indifferent attitude towards this brand of Ford company.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 5
Thus, the culture of customers affects the buying needs and attitude towards the particular
product.
Internal Influences
Internal influences are mainly individual based influences that can affect the buying behavior of
the customers. It includes, the perceptions, motives, lifestyle and learning which are defined as
the personal characteristics of the customers that influence the buying decision of the customers
(Rajagopal 2019). Similarly, internal influences can affect the attitude of the customer towards
Ford Ranger Raptor. Moreover, lifestyle is one of the internal influences that affects the buying
decision of the customers as it defines the way a person is living the activities in which the
person is involved in. However, Ford Raptor is greatly preferred by the people with enhanced
lifestyle as they have a positive attitude towards these off-road vehicles that helps the customers
in meeting the social standard. Apart from lifestyle, there are more internal influential factors
that are discussed as above:
Needs and Motives
Needs and motives are the internal influences that can affect the behavior of the customers as the
it is defined by the efforts that the customers make to satisfy their needs will exert the buying
decision (Ramya & Mohamed Ali 2016). Moreover, the needs of the customers pertaining to the
cars greatly influences the attitude of customers towards Ford Ranger Raptor. Also, when the
customers are motivated to buy the cars due to the social or psychological factor, then the
customers are more likely to have a positive attitude towards the Ford brand. By applying the
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to this factor, it can be observed that there are five basic needs that
drives a person and motivates him/her to buy the product. Moreover, Maslow’s hierarchy needs
persist upon the basic idea, that there are five basic needs and the satisfaction of one need creates
drive for another need (Acevedo 2017).
As per the Maslow’s model, the need for a car arises when the security needs are met which
means that the Ford brand satisfies the esteem needs and self-actualization needs (Bauman
2018). Moreover, the customers are motivated to purchase Ford Raptor when to fulfill their
esteem needs wherein the basic motive is to stand in a place where a person can make social
connections and create a quality of life. Thereafter, it satisfies the self-actualization needs as the

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 6
cars of Ford create standard of living and the product satisfies self-actualization needs as it
creates a sense of fulfillment, achievement and accomplishment which are considered to be the
needs of the customers and have a positive attitude towards Ford brand.
Perception
Perception is considered with the overall look out towards the product and the way the customer
sees the product greatly influences the buying behavior of the customer. The marketing activities
of a company are focused towards the influence of the perception of the customers (Vahdati,
Mousavi & Tajik 2015). Similarly, the perception of the customers towards the Ford cars can be
the crucial factor that can affect the purchase decision of the customers. However, the perception
might be different for different demographics. Also, it can be observed that people of young age
usually have positive perceptions towards Ford Ranger Raptor as these are the people who have
need for off road vehicle.
Therefore, marketers are engaged in the research of the perceptions and building the marketing
strategy that creates a positive perception in all kinds of demographics. This can be implied by
the marketers of Ford Ranger Raptor to inform their car’s features to the customers and publicize
their offering through communicative marketing messages which can create a positive perception
and thereby creating an attracting attitude towards the Ford brand.
Learning
Learning relates to the knowledge of the customers pertaining to the attributes of the product.
The customers who have prior knowledge of the products are difficult to manipulate and their
attitude affects the buying decision (Rajagopal 2019). Moreover, Ford Raptor has been affected
by the buying behavior of the customers when the customers have deep knowledge of car and car
features and also the knowledge about different ranges. This behavior of customers can lead to
sales of cars if they get impressed and if they get disappointed then they might choose to avoid
the brand for a lifetime.
Moreover, applying the learning theory of reasoning vs. operant conditioning, it can be observed
that learning is not only based according to the knowledge but it means that influencing the
customers through the creation of preferences. As per the theory, learning can be achieved
through the process of association as factors such as reinforcement or punishment are the operant

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 7
factors and are not applicable to the consumer case (Blackman 2017). Thus, marketers of Ford
company can create a fair learning process for the customers by engaging with them in the
relevant way so as to persuade their behavior affecting the decision-making process.
Marketing Strategy
Marketing strategy includes that plan of activities that the company undertakes to make the
promotion of the product and reaching the prospective target customers. Ford as in the
automobile industry makes effective marketing strategy for reaching the target customers (Zhang
& Wang 2019). For their newly launched brand Ford Ranger Raptor Truck, the company has
been using different channels to be ahead of the competitors and making the higher sales of their
cars. The marketing strategy can be understood through the following framework of marketing
mix containing of 4ps which are the recommendation for the company:
Product
Product under the marketing mix strategy is expected to be the recognition of physical attributes
of the product. This means that the product needs to be appropriate in physical appearance and is
easy to handle. For the Ford Raptor, it is being recommended that the car should be
technologically latest into the design and should be durable requiring little maintenance (Zhang
& Wang 2019).
Price
Price is the value of money that is expended in the exchange of the product. The price of the
product needs to be affordable and acceptable to the customers. Also, the marketers can keep the
prices competitive for cutting off the competitors (Nagle & Muller 2017). Moreover, Ford is
recommended to keep the prices of their cars affordable and should be in such a manner where it
reaches the profit margins.
Place
Place is concerned with the physical distribution of the product which ensures that the right
product is delivered to the right customers and at the right place. Thus, the place needs to be
geographically accessible to the customer (Clark et al. 2016). Further, Ford is recommended to

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 8
reach their target customers by the using of the strong distribution channel in order to reach the
national and international customers.
Promotion
Promotion is considered with the undertaking of the activities in the promotion and advertising
of the products. The marketers inform the customers about their products through the use of
promotion (Alexandrescu & Milandru 2018). Ford Raptor as the new range of Ford company is
however, recommended to use aggressive promotional techniques in order to make a loyal
customer base and spreading the awareness of the Ford Ranger Raptor Truck as the new
launched brand of the company.
Conclusion
To conclude, it can be said that there are various influences that can affect the buying behavior of
the customers. These influences can be external and internal. As the needs of the customers are
fluctuating and all the customers have different approaches and buying behaviors which can
ultimately affect the sales of the company. The report is successful in the understanding of the
impact of various factors that can have influence into the buying behavior of the customers of
Ford Ranger Raptor Truck which is the selected brand for this assignment. Thus, report
highlights the external influences wherein it identifies the reference groups, situational factors
and cultural factors along with the relevant theory to understand the impact of these factors on
the frequency of purchase. Also, the report is successful in the internal factors through needs,
motives, perception and learning through various learning theory which are applied to
understand the consumer behavior along with the recommendation for the company through
marketing mix framework.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 9
References
Acevedo, A 2017, 'A personalistic appraisal of Maslow’s needs theory of motivation: From
“humanistic” psychology to integral humanism', Journal of Business Ethics, vol 148, no. 4, pp.
741-763.
Alexandrescu, MB & Milandru, M 2018, 'Promotion as a form of Communication of the
Marketing Strategy', Land Forces Academy Review, vol 23, no. 4, pp. 268-274.
Atulkar, S & Kesari, B 2018, 'Role of consumer traits and situational factors on impulse buying:
does gender matter?', International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, vol 46, no. 4,
pp. 386-405.
Bauman, AA 2018, 'Online consumer trust research and Maslow's hierarchy of needs',
International Journal of Electronic Customer Relationship Management, vol 11, no. 4, pp. 315-
331.
Blackman, DE 2017, Operant conditioning: an experimental analysis of behaviour, Routledge.
Brodhead, MT 2019, 'Culture Always Matters: Some Thoughts on Rosenberg and Schwartz',
Behavior Analysis in Practice, pp. 1-5.
Clark, T, Ferrell, OC, Hartline, M, Sheth, J & Stewart, D 2016, 'Where/How Does Marketing
Fit? What Is Marketing’s Place in the Firm and Within the Family of Business Disciplines?', in
Let’s Get Engaged! Crossing the Threshold of Marketing’s Engagement Era, Springer.
De Mooij, M 2019, Consumer behavior and culture: Consequences for global marketing and
advertising, SAGE Publications Limited.
Fernandes, SF & Panda, R 2018, 'Social Reference Group Influence on Women Buying
Behaviour: A Review', Journal of Commerce & Management Thought, vol 9, no. 2a, pp. 273-
291.
Ford Go Further 2019, Explore Ranger Raptor, viewed 14 October 2019,
<https://www.ford.co.nz/performance/ranger-raptor/>.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 10
Ford Media Center 2019, new ‘bad-ass’ ford ranger raptor brings ultimate off-road pick-up
performance to europe, viewed 14 October 2019,
<https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/feu/en/news/2019/04/29/new-_bad-ass_-ford-ranger-
raptor-brings-ultimate-off-road-pick-u.html>.
Khalil, SH & Raza, A 2018, 'The influence of external stimuli on impulsive buying behaviour',
Journal of business and tourism, vol 4, no. 1, pp. 97-117.
Nagle, TT & Muller, G 2017, The strategy and tactics of pricing: A guide to growing more
profitably, Routledge.
Rajagopal 2019, 'Consumer Behavior: Internal Factors', Contemporary Marketing Strategy, pp.
3-33.
Ramya, N & Mohamed Ali, SA 2016, 'Factors affecting consumer buying behavior',
International journal of applied research, vol 2, no. 10, pp. 76-80.
Rani, P 2014, 'Factors influencing consumer behaviour', International journal of current
research and academic review, vol 2, no. 9, pp. 52-61.
Sreen, N, Purbey, S & Sadarangani, P 2018, 'Impact of culture, behavior and gender on green
purchase intention', Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, vol 41, pp. 177-189.
Sun, TR & Yazdanifard, R 2015, 'The Review of Physical Store Factors That Influence
Impulsive Buying Behavior', International Journal of Management, Accounting and Economics,
vol 2, no. 9, pp. 1048-1054.
Tosun, P, Sezgin, S & Uray, N 2018, 'mood, consumer interaction styles, and perceived risk in
consumer complaining behavior', Journal of Business Economics and Finance, vol 7, no. 1, pp.
30-43.
Vahdati, H, Mousavi, N & Tajik, ZM 2015, 'The study of consumer perception on corporate
social responsibility towards consumers attitude and purchase behavior', Asian Economic and
Financial Review, vol 5, no. 5, pp. 831-845.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR 11
Zhang, X, Li, S & Burke, RR 2018, 'Modeling the effects of dynamic group influence on shopper
zone choice, purchase conversion, and spending', Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science,
vol 46, no. 6, pp. 1089-1107.
Zhang, J & Wang, R 2019, 'Research on the Marketing Strategy of New Energy Vehicles in SL
Company', American Journal of Industrial and Business Management, vol 9, no. 2, pp. 306-314.