The Role of Motivation in Consumer Behaviour: Comprehensive Analysis

This essay provides an in-depth analysis of the role of motivation in consumer behavior, defining consumer behavior and motivation, and then exploring their relationship. It discusses how motivation serves as a driving force behind consumer perceptions and purchase decisions, influenced by factors like needs, safety concerns, cultural background, and marketing activities. The essay references Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to analyze consumer needs and behavior, highlighting the dynamic nature of motivation and the conflicts that arise from cognitive dissonance. It also touches upon the influence of social and physical surroundings, time, mood, and mindset on consumer decisions, as well as various theories of motivation, including psychoanalytic, gestalt, and cognitive theories. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of understanding consumer behavior for marketers to create suitable products and services, and that Desklib provides solved assignments for students.

Running head: ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Introduction
Consumer behaviour can be defined as the study that of the individuals, the groups or
the organizations and all the activities that are related to the purchase of services and goods.
The study also includes the analysis of the mental, emotional, behavioural responses that are
related to the purchasing activities of the consumers. The study of consumer behaviour blends
elements from various fields like, sociology, psychology, ethnography, behavioural
economics and economics. The concept of consumer behaviour thereby examines the ways
by which the attitudes, emotions and the preferences of the consumers affect their buying
behaviour. Motivation on the other hand can be defined as the activated state which leads to
the goal directed type of behaviour of the individuals (Borgardt, 2017). The process of
motivation thereby determines the ways by which the people are led to the ways by which
they behave in the industry towards the different types of products. The needs that are related
to the high levels of motivation are utilitarian need and hedonic need. Goal is further related
to the end state that is desired by the consumers.
The essay will be based on the analysis of the effects that motivation has on the
behaviour of the consumers towards the various products that are offered to them. Motivation
plays an important role in the ways by which the consumers behave in the industry. The
levels of motivation help them to decide the products or the services that they wish to
purchase.
Analysis of the relationship between motivation and consumer behaviour
The role that is played by motivation in the behaviour of the consumers is well-
established in the industry. Motivation is considered to be a driving force behind the
perception of the consumers regarding various services and products. The motivation related
perspective is however not incorporated in the brand management related activities of the

2
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
organizations. Motivation is considered to be a driving force behind the various activities that
are conducted by the consumers regarding the purchase of services or products (Solomon et
al., 2014). The concept of motivation is considered to be the energization or activation of
goal-oriented behaviour. Motivation can be rooted within the basic needs of the consumers.
Positive motivation can lead to the type of behaviour that is depicted by the consumers and
the ways by which they respond to the services or the products offered by the organizations.
Motivation has a dynamic nature as the needs are never satisfied fully, new needs are
developed when the old needs are fulfilled successfully (Parsons, Maclaran & Chatzidakis,
2017). The people are also able to achieve the goals and they set new goals. Motivation is
considered to be an inner drive which reflects that goal-directed arousal or behaviour of the
consumers. The model of Maslow’s Need of Hierarchy can be implemented for the purpose
of analysing the needs of the consumers and their behaviour as well. The core needs of the
consumers can be analysed with the help of this model (East et al., 2016).
The marketers and the various advertising agencies spend a lot of time in the
determination of the ways by which they can motivate the consumers and change their
behaviour. The motivation levels of the individual customers are quite different from each
other. However, there some common factors that are able to affect the levels of motivation
that can be provided to the customers of the organizations. The safety related issues of the
products or the services that are offered by the companies can affect the levels of motivation
and ways by which the consumers behave towards the product. For example, the consumers
who are thinking of purchasing various food products are highly concerned about the safety
issues of the products (Rani, 2014). The conscious and the unconscious choices made by the
consumers are related to the motivation levels. The unconscious choice of the consumers is
exploited by the marketers with the help of manipulative elements that are present in the
marketing related activities. The unconscious drives of the employees and the conscious

3
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
awareness of the price of the products, the product quality are exploited by the marketers in
an effective manner. The culture, upbringing and the background of the employees also affect
the behaviour of the consumers (Finney, 2014). The cultures that are followed by the
consumers are self-enforcing motivators and this factor is related to the choice of products
made by the consumers. The marketing related activities of the organizations also play a
major role in the product choice of the consumers. The advertisements that are formulated by
the various organizations are straightforward demonstration of the products that are the
company aims to offer to the consumers. The behaviour of the consumers is largely affected
by the advertisements of the brands and the products (Gunter & Furnham, 2014).
Motivation of the consumers is related to the inner drive which reflects the goal-
directed arousal. In the context related to consumer behaviour the results are related to their
desire for a service, product or an experience. This is further related to the drive which
satisfies the wants and the needs, which can be psychological and physiological through
purchase and usage of the services and products. The five stages of motivation process are,
latent need, drive, desire or want, goal and behaviour. The behavioural models of the
motivation is based on the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Javornik, 2016). The five types of
needs according to the Maslow’s model are as follows,
The physiological needs are based on the basic needs of water, air, food, shelter and
clothing. In the other words, the physiological needs are related to basic amenities that are
required for life. The behaviour of the consumers are also based on the fulfilment of these
needs by the organizations.
The safety related needs include, environment, physical and emotional protection and
safety. These needs to be fulfilled by the organizations so that they are able to influence the
behaviour of the consumers (Moschis, 2017).

4
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
The next level refers to the needs of the people related to affection, love, care,
friendship and belongingness. The social needs should be fulfilled by the marketers and the
organizations so that their behaviour can be influenced in an effective manner.
Self-esteem needs are mainly of two types internal esteem needs and the external
esteem needs. The internal needs include, self-respect, competence, confidence, freedom and
the achievement. The external needs include, power, recognition, attention, status and
admiration. This level of needs should also be fulfilled by the marketers of the organization
so that they are able to increase the customer base (Srivastava & Chopra, 2016).
Self-actualization needs – These needs include the urge for becoming what a person is
capable to become. The potential of the people is mainly recognised with the help of this
level of needs. The desire to gain higher levels of knowledge is also related to the social-
service and creativity of the people. The self-actualization needs should also be fulfilled by
the marketers of various organizations. These needs of the consumers however continue to
change with time (Dootson et al., 2016).
The conflicts related to motivation are also based on the behaviour of the consumers
with respect to the ways by which they react towards the products. The theory of cognitive
dissonance is a state of tension which occurs when the beliefs or the behaviours conflict with
each other. The cognitive dissonance reduction refers to the process with which the people
are motivated so that they are able to reduce the tension that exists between the behaviours or
the beliefs. These conflicts need to be considered by the marketers before they plan to offer a
particular type of product to the consumers (Ulph, Panzone & Hilton, 2017).
The decision and behaviour of the consumers are also influenced by the factors like,
social surroundings, physical surroundings, time, mood and mind set. The motivation levels
of these consumers are thereby influenced highly by these factors. The consumers tend to

5
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
take the decision related to the purchase of the product based on the external environment in
which they live.
The two classes of cognitive needs that are identified by Maslow are, the desire to
understand and know which refers to process of searching for a meaning in the various things
around the consumers (Chintakayala & Young, 2017). This is considered to be a precondition
to satisfaction of the basic needs. The aesthetic needs of the consumers were also defined by
Maslow which is related to the need for beauty or presentation of the products to the
consumers in such a manner so that it can appeal to them.
The various theories of motivation which are interrelated to the behaviour of the
consumers in an organization are, psychoanalytic theory, the gestalt theory, the cognitive
theory (Grace, Lee & Sirgy, 2016).
The psychoanalytic theory of motivation is related to the irrational people who lack
over their behaviour. This theory is mainly related to the disturbed minds which are mainly
dominated by three different forces which are, Id, Superego and ego. Id is related to the free
mechanism which is present in the minds of the humans from their birth. This force thereby
prompts the individuals to take aggressive types of actions. The superego on the other hand
leads to the individual performing all the duties that are related to the norms or the moral
standards that are followed by them (Thakur, 2016). The third force is the ego which creates a
balance between the two extreme forces and leads to the rational behaviour that is depicted
by these people. The consumers will be thereby influenced by the levels of ego or superego
that is present in them Grace, Lee & Sirgy, 2016).
Subconscious motivation also plays an important role in the behaviour that is depicted
by the consumers. The consumers try to use the various defence mechanisms to resolve the
various conflicts that can occur that are explained by the psychoanalytic theory. The

6
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
consumers in this case can use four different types of defence mechanisms which are,
displacement, regression, identification and progression (Torelli & Rodas, 2016).
The greatest steps that are related to finding out the ways by which the consumers can
behave are made with the help of motivational research. The research into the motivation of
consumers thereby lets the marketers to analyse major motives which can influence the
consumers which leads to take the purchase related decisions. The motives that are related to
the subconscious minds of the consumers cannot be measured by the marketers of the
organizations (Yan & Ke, 2015). The marketers thereby cannot reveal the motives of the
consumers by just asking questions. The marketers need to undertake structured research
related to the motives of the consumers. The marketing executives are not always able to
infer motivation from the behaviour of the consumers in a direct manner.
The behaviour of the consumers towards the products that are offered by the
organizations is important for the purpose of analysing the needs and the demands for these
products. The consumer behaviour based study helps the managers or the marketers to create
services and products that are suitable for the operations of the company (Wiese & Kruger,
2016).
The behaviour of the consumers is important to the managers of the organizations in
the modern business environment. The consideration of the likes and the dislikes of the
consumers is important for the success of the services and the products that are offered to
them. The marketers therefore need to study the behaviour of the consumers as individuals or
as groups (Torelli & Rodas, 2016). The trends that are followed by the customers and the
ways by which they tend to share their experience is related to the appropriate study of their
behaviour by the marketers. Motivation plays an important role in this case which is provided
to the customers by the marketers of the organizations (Yan & Ke, 2015). The ways by which

7
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
the marketers are able to motivate the customers to take their purchase related decision helps
in building the revenues of the company in an effective manner.
The marketers of the 21st century need to be aware of the ways by which they are able
to understand the behaviour of the consumers in an effective manner. The marketers can
determine the behaviour of the consumers with the help of some of consumer behaviour
models (Wiese & Kruger, 2016).
The theory of reasoned action is one such model which helps in determining the
importance of the previous attitudes of the consumers for the purpose of determining the
decision-making process. The core of this theory suggests that the consumers act on a type of
behaviour which is based on the intention for creating or receiving some outcome. The factor
related to specificity is important for the decision making process of the consumers related to
the products or the services that are provided to them. The Engel, Kollet, Blackwell Model
further states that the various steps by which the consumers are able to absorb the marketing
material (Shareef, Dwivedi & Kumar, 2016). The first step is related to the ways by which
the consumers absorb the marketing based materials. The consumer collet data related to the
products and then the decisions are taken related to purchase. The Need Theory based on
motivation that has been suggested by Maslow is also used by the marketers to understand
the needs of the customers based on a five steps framework. The motivation theory is thereby
directly linked to the needs and the wants of the customers and the purchase related decisions
that are taken by them (Onel & Mukherjee, 2015).
Conclusion
The essay has helped in the analysis of the relationship that is developed between the
behaviour of the consumers and the motivation levels of the organizations. The ways by
which the organizations are able to motivate and influence the decisions of the consumers are

8
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
analysed in the essay. The various need based theories that are used by the marketers of the
organizations to understand the needs and the demands of the consumers are discussed in the
analysis. The ways by which motivation can help in the decision making process of the
consumers is analysed in the essay in an effective manner. The various factors that influence
the decisions of the consumers related to the purchase of the services and the products are
discussed in the essay in detail with the help of various motivation theories. The discussion in
the essay has proved that motivation plays a significant role in providing the highest level of
motivation to the consumers. The decisions that are made by the consumers are affected by
the various motivation related factors. These factors help in deciding the ways by which the
marketers can further plan to influence the buyers and to take their decisions accordingly.
The theories related consumer behaviour are able to decide the buying pattern and the ways
by which the consumers react to the services that are offered to them. This helps the
marketers to offer the consumers with the best possible products.

9
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
References
Borgardt, E. (2017). Motivation and Consumer Behaviour. Konsumpcja i Rozwój, (4 (21)), 5-
22.
Chintakayala, P. K., & Young, C. W. (2017). Using big data to understand consumer
behaviour on ethical issues. Journal of Consumer Ethics, 1(1), 43-47.
Dootson, P., Johnston, K. A., Beatson, A., & Lings, I. (2016). Where do consumers draw the
line? Factors informing perceptions and justifications of deviant consumer
behaviour. Journal of Marketing Management, 32(7-8), 750-776.
East, R., Singh, J., Wright, M., & Vanhuele, M. (2016). Consumer behaviour: Applications
in marketing. Sage.
Finney, S. L. (2014). Encouraging sustainable consumption: An exploration of consumer
behaviour. The Marketing Review, 14(2), 189-203.
Grace, B. Y., Lee, D. J., & Sirgy, M. J. (2016). Revisiting self-congruity theory in consumer
behaviour: Making sense of the research so far. In Routledge international handbook
of consumer psychology (pp. 203-219). Routledge.
Gunter, B., & Furnham, A. (2014). Consumer Profiles (RLE Consumer Behaviour): An
Introduction to Psychographics(Vol. 5). Routledge.
Javornik, A. (2016). Augmented reality: Research agenda for studying the impact of its media
characteristics on consumer behaviour. Journal of Retailing and Consumer
Services, 30, 252-261.

10
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Moschis, G. P. (2017). Research frontiers on the dark side of consumer behaviour: The case
of materialism and compulsive buying. Journal of Marketing Management, 33(15-
16), 1384-1401.
Onel, N., & Mukherjee, A. (2015). Understanding environmentally sensitive consumer
behaviour: an integrative research perspective. World Journal of Entrepreneurship,
Management and Sustainable Development, 11(1), 2-16.
Parsons, E., Maclaran, P., & Chatzidakis, A. (2017). Contemporary issues in marketing and
consumer behaviour. Routledge.
Rani, P. (2014). Factors influencing consumer behaviour. International journal of current
research and academic review, 2(9), 52-61.
Shareef, M. A., Dwivedi, Y. K., & Kumar, V. (2016). Exploring multichannel design:
Strategy and consumer behaviour. The Marketing Review, 16(3), 235-263.
Solomon, M. R., Dahl, D. W., White, K., Zaichkowsky, J. L., & Polegato, R.
(2014). Consumer behavior: Buying, having, and being (Vol. 10). Pearson.
Srivastava, A., & Chopra, K. (2016). Impact of Online Marketing in Molding Consumer
Behaviour. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research
(IJEMR), 6(1), 478-486.
Thakur, M. (2016). IMPACT OF GREEN MARKETING ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
IN MODERN WORLD–A CASE STUDY WITH REFERENCE TO RETAIL AND
CONSUMER DURABLES. Int. J. HIT. TRANSC: ECCN. Vol, 2(2A), 77-84.

11
ROLE OF MOTIVATION IN CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
Torelli, C. J., & Rodas, M. (2016). Globalization, branding and multicultural consumer
behaviour. Routledge international handbook of consumer psychology. New York,
NY: Taylor & Francis.
Ulph, A., Panzone, L. A., & Hilton, D. (2017). A Dynamic Self-Regulation Model of
Sustainable Consumer Behaviour.
Wiese, M., & Kruger, L. (2016). Parental influence on consumer and purchase behaviour of
Generation Y. Journal of Consumer Sciences, 44.
Yan, B., & Ke, C. (2015). Two strategies for dynamic perishable product pricing to consider
in strategic consumer behaviour. International Journal of Production Research, 1-16.