research_proposal on brand consciousness
TRANSCRIPT
High status depicted from the usage of well-known brands
Table of Contents
Acknowledgement …………………………………………………………………………….02
Chapter One
Introduction …………………………………………………………………………..04
Pakistan’s consumer market ………………………………………………………….05
Abstract ………………………………………………………………………………05
Definition of variables ………………………………………………………………..05
Aims and Objectives…………………………………………………………………..05
Significance of the study……………………………………………………………....06
Chapter Two
Literature review………………………………………………………………………08
Hypothesis …………………………………………………………………………….12
Chapter Three
Research Design……………………………………………………………………….14
Type of research ………………………………………………………………………14
Population of research ………………………………………………………………..14
Sample size……………………………………………………………………………14
Sampling Technique………..…………………………………………………………14
Chapter Four
Data collection technique....................…………………………………….………….16
Advantages of self-administered questionnaires….………………………….……….16
Data Processes and Analysis…………………………………………………………..16
Dummy Table ………………………………………………………………….……..16
Time schedule………………………………………………………........................................17
Estimated cost ………………………………………………………………………….……..17
References.................................................................................................................................18
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Acknowledgement
We are thankful to Almighty Allah who enabled us to make effective use of our potential and
efforts to accomplish the task assign to us. We wouldn’t have done justice in presenting this
project without mentioning the people around us to have been immense help for us. The prayers
of our beloved parents and the knowledge imparted to us by our respected teacher Ms. Nighat
Ansari was vital source of the implementation of our learning.
It’s primarily the result of her hard work and devotion with which she delivered knowledge to us
and motivated us to achieve wonders.
With the consent of Allah we will try our level best to use this learning throughout our life
whenever it will be required.
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Chapter One
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INTRODUCTION
Brands are everywhere. There is no denying that corporations have taken the marketing of brand
names very seriously. Billions of dollars have been spent trying to impress consumers while
aiming to increase brand loyalty and recognition. Branding seems to be the key ingredient of
every design; a company with a great brand reflects a great identity. In today's brand conscious
society, a company's logo and brand styling are more important than ever. They are the interface
between a business and its clients, and speak volumes to potential new customers. A logo can
have one brief opportunity to make an impact and deliver its message, and can make all the
difference in creating and sustaining customer confidence, and developing brand strength. Brand
consciousness is awareness of a brand as a distinct product separate from others. It is about
image and perception. If we need to define brand consciousness it would be like the consumer is
aware that Coca-Cola is a cola, and we could say, they have a positive impression of the brand.
Brand consciousness is more than simply an awareness or preference for brand. There are
differences in the level of brand consciousness. Self-conscious individuals are especially
concerned about the impression they make on others. They are more likely to be concerned about
physical appearances and fashion. They are also more compliant with standards in the society
and are more sensitive to interpersonal rejections. Thus there is a difference in brand
consciousness between self-conscious teens who more highly value peer approval, than those
who do not. Self-conscious consumers who are brand conscious will most likely have a negative
attitude towards counterfeits of luxury brands. Building a campaign around a well-known
product like Lifebuoy can be effective precisely because even the world’s poorest citizens can be
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“brand conscious".
PAKISTAN’S CONSUMER MARKET
Pakistan’s per capita income is 1000 $ annually and is the eighth most populous country in the
world (Asian Development Bank, 2002).
It has highest per capita income in the whole south asian region (Asian Development Bank,
2002).
Pakistan has consumption-oriented society and people tend to spend more on rituals and social
engagements. Thus it can be inferred that in order to show their status and style, Pakistani
consumers spend considerable amount of money on their clothing. Thus it is a lucrative market
for multinational apparel firms. (Burki & Muhammad, 2008).
ABSTRACT
This study is going to be conducted to investigate the relationship of level of brand
consciousness with social status among the youngsters of Lahore. A sample of 100 youngsters
will be selected from the educational institutions and branded outlets. Out of 100 youngsters 50
will be male and 50 female. Data will be collected through self-administered questionnaires.
DEFINITION OF VARIABLES
The independent variable is the variable we manipulate or which varies for other reasons, which
is “brand consciousness” in our research. The dependent variable is the variable we observe or
measure and here “high status symbol” is the dependent variable.
AIMS & OBJECTIVES
The main objective of the research study is to ascertain about the market position of branded
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products, see whether people are buying them or not and if yes then what main reasons are
forcing them to buy branded products instead of the others. This research aims to study factors
affecting Pakistan’s youth purchase intention towards well-known brands. Youngsters have a
desire to bolster their image and to look “cool”.
The purpose of this research is to determine:
The factors influencing consumers to buy well-known brands rather than others. The Pakistani
consumer buying behavior patterns, attitudes towards well-known brands and other brands and
the preference for well-known brands. How other businesses can improve their products in terms
of quality, durability and reliability to compete with well-known brands. To see how gender and
income level of consumers affect their buying decision.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Pakistan is a developing country and is considered as one of emerging economies of the world
after China, Russia & India. As more & more foreign Retailers are coming to Pakistan, they are
faced with tough competition from national and other foreign fashion brands. The findings of
this paper will help us to identify the main reason why do specifically youngsters of Pakistan
prefer well known foreign brands over lesser known goods and it will serve as a guide to such
foreign apparel retailers who have limited knowledge of Pakistan’s brand consumer. This will
help them to formulate marketing strategies to gain from Pakistan’s branded markets. This
research will also help National brands to reflect on their marketing strategies and compete
effectively in the cutthroat competition that exists in industry. This research will also be fruitful
to the new emerging fashion designers, who in near future are in search of such a platform which
can brand them so they can use this research to make optimum decisions. Other organization
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who used analyze trends in different countries can also get benefit from this research paper.
Chapter Two
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LITERATURE REVIEW
Successful global brands must anticipate cultural trends, styles and evolving consumer values in
order to appeal to customers across international boundaries; a product's relevance to its
customers dictates its global potential. Brands which have a large disparity in consumer regard
and image are not as likely to find a standardized global positioning to become a global brand.
Successful multicultural advertisers have secured brand loyalty from culturally diverse
consumers by tailoring the brand's image to reflect individual cultures. (Omelia, 1995).
“Clothing choice criteria are defined as the intrinsic (inherent to the product) and extrinsic
(product-related but not part of the physical product) product attributes that associated with
desired benefits or incurred costs as consumers make buying decision among various
alternatives. Intrinsic product attributes are those which cannot be changed without altering the
physical characteristics of the product, for example, style, color, design, appearance, safety,
comfort etc. While extrinsic ones are those that are exerted by manufacturers or retailers and do
not form the component parts of the product. For example, price, brand, country of origin,
warranty etc. (Davis, Hatch & Roberts, 1985).
What is happening in the world of fashion and what are the current fashions trends is one of the
factor which consumers consider when buying products and which results in their change of
taste. Brands convey a certain fashion image or social status better than non-branded ones. The
social identification implies the sense of belonging to certain groups or organizations. The brand
consciousness and perfectionism consciousness are directly related to fashion consciousness of
consumers. These are combined to form a new factor named “brand and fashion consciousness”
in this study. Consumers with this style are more likely to purchase expensive International
brands. (Ashforth and Mael, 1989, Aaker, J, 1999, Kim, Han and Park, 2001)
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The status-conscious market is more likely to be affected by the representative characteristics of
a brand; feelings aroused by the brand; and by the degree of agreement between the brand-user's
opinion and the brand's image itself. Results also show that the higher the symbolic or
representative characteristics, the stronger the positive feelings, and the greater the congruency
between the consumer and brand image, the greater the chance of the brand being perceived as
possessing high status elements. Past researchers have developed a greater understanding of the
relationship between international branded products and status consciousness of consumers, how
consumers are most likely to use status conscious approach in their lives and the status that
comes from displaying one's self though branded products (Eastman, 1999; Mason, 1992;
Motameni & Shahrokhi, 1998; O'Shaughnessy, 1992; Schitovsky, 1992).
one important factor considered by consumers during the purchase decision is the ‘Quality
Signal’. Consumers watch the fierce battles that transnational companies wage over quality and
are impressed by the victors. A focus-group participant in Russia told us: “The more people who
buy a brand, the better quality it is.” A Spanish consumer agreed: “I like global brands because
they usually offer more quality and better guarantees than other products.” (Holt.D.B,
Quelch.J.A & Taylor.E.L, 2004)
Celebrity endorsers have been found to produce more positive responses towards advertising and
greater purchase intentions than a non-celebrity endorser. Stars are loved and adored by their
fans, so advertisers use stars to capitalize on these feelings to sway the fans towards their brand.
Some stars have a universal appeal and therefore prove to be a good bet to generate interest
among the masses. For example, L’Oreal hired Beyonce Knowles and Natalie as their
spokesperson. (Atkin & Block, 1983; Petty & Cacioppo, 1983)
At least two-dozen international brand outlets are doing robust business in the city with their
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summer collections, and the trend is expected to attract another five international brands to invest
in the city, owners of brand outlets told Daily Times.The outlets are mostly situated on MM
Alam Road, Gulberg Main Boulevard and in the Defence Housing Authority (DHA).The
shopkeepers told Daily Times that the country’s economic slump did not affect them much
because their number of customers had not fallen. They said that because they sold branded
items, their ‘brand-conscious’ customers always returned. “Lahoris are very brand conscious,”
said Farhan Nadeem, the manager of a Slazenger outlet on MM Alam Road. He said buying
branded items gave people the satisfaction of buying good-quality products. Since most brands
had become status symbols, the status-conscious always bought branded products, he added.
“Branded products have become part of their lives and they cannot go anywhere without them,”
he said. “We have lot of expensive products and people buy them without caring how much they
cost. They prefer comfort and satisfaction over the cost,” said Farrukh. “Women, particularly
employed women, buy very expensive handbags,” said Muhammad Azeem, the manager of the
Ammar Belal designer wear outlet. He said young men mostly bought expensive cufflinks and
glasses, elderly men went for watches, ties and shoes, while women’s favorite buys included
shoes and handbags.Amina Ahmad, a shopper in Gulberg, said, “I buy branded shoes and bags
because they are of the best quality and are most comfortable.” Arsalan, a young boy buying
Nike, said, “I buy branded products because I don’t get satisfaction from buying unbranded
things.”Fashion designer Taufiq Hussain said brand-consciousness came from self-awareness.
He said that people who want good quality products always go for the best products available.
Fashion designer Bee Gee, a pioneer of designer fashion in Lahore, said that people buy branded
products because such products help them maintain a high status in society. Shazia Khalid, a
psychologist at Punjab University, said that people who wanted to keep their ‘status’ above the
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rest chose branded items to convey a message without having to say it out loud. She said that this
trend had created a brand new community of people who bought only branded items, especially
apparel. (Daily times, 2008).
What’s in name? Does the name on the product label make a difference? To answer this question
one needs to know more about the person buying a product. Unfortunately, previous research has
found little relation between personality variables and brand preferences. Kassarjian (1971)
proposed three reasons that researchers have not found such a relation between personality and
consumer behavior. First the personality scales used in past research have low reliability and
validity. Second, scales that were originally developed to measure gross personality
characteristics (e.g., emotionality or activity) have been used to predict specific consumer
behaviors (e.g., the brand of toothpaste chosen). Third, most researchers have been used a
shotgun approach and have not offered specific hypothesis or theoretical justification. In the
present study we attempt to overcome these criticisms.
Over 100 years ago, William James (1890) discussed the consciousness of the self. James
suggested that the empirical self, or the self that is known to be person, can be divided into three
constituents: the material self, the social self, and the spiritual self. The material self consists of
all the material possessions that form the basis of one’s identity, including one’s body, clothes,
immediate family, home, and personal property. The social self consists of the recognition and
attention one receives from others. James (1890) suggested that a person “has as many social
selves as there are distinct groups of persons about whose opinion he cares. He generally shows a
different side of himself to each of these different groups” (p.294).
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HYPOTHESIS
H1: Pakistani youngsters who have higher level of brand consciousness will perceive well-known
brands to have higher status symbol.
H0: Pakistani youngsters who have higher level of brand consciousness will not perceive well-
known brands to have higher status symbol
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Chapter Three
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TYPE OF RESEARCHThe type of research is a descriptive study in order to identify, determine and analyze the reasons
why consumers prefer well-known brands to other brands when purchasing consumer goods. The
main focus is to study the relationship between brand consciousness and high status symbol.
WHY TO USE DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH?
We are using descriptive research because we are having two variables one independent (brand
consciousness) and the other dependent (high status symbol), this would easily enable us to
describe how they are related to each other. It is a less expensive research technique and provides
with a lot of information for detailed studying. It would also be useful in identifying further areas
of research. The subject is being observed in a completely natural and unchanged natural
environment. Descriptive research is often used as a pre-cursor to more quantitatively research
design.
POPULATION OF RESEARCH
The targeted population is all the youngsters of Lahore age from 15 to 25.
SAMPLE SIZE
The sample for this research will be drawn from the youngsters of Lahore.
For selecting a sample size we have chosen cost basis approach. The sample size for the study
will be 100 consumers which include only the youngsters of city. We will take 50 males and 50
females for this research.
SAMPLING TECHNIQUE
Simple random sampling will be preferred for this descriptive research study because it avoids
bias in the data and it also ensures the representation of the entire segment.
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Chapter Four
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DATA PROCESSES AND ANALYSIS
DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUE
The tools which we will use in the collection of our data are survey research and in survey
research more specifically self-administered questionnaire. It will be a structured questionnaire.
We will go to educational institutions and branded shops to fill out the questionnaires from our
target population.
ADVANTAGES OF SELF-ADMINISTERED QUESTIONNAIRES INCLUDE
They are less expensive than interviews. They do not require a large staff of skilled interviewers.
They can be administered in large numbers all at one place and time. Anonymity and privacy
encourage more candidate and honest responses. There is a lack of interviewer bias. Speed of
administration and analysis. Suitable for computer based research methods. There is a less
pressure on respondents. It is a relatively cost-effective research method to administer
Self-administered questionnaires require careful attention to layout and working of questions so
as to avoid ambiguity. It is a relatively cost-effective research method to administer since the
once the layout wording and order of the questions is determined the questionnaire can be
distributed massively. In this method we can use open ended and as well as close ended
questions. In the open ended questions the respondents own opinion is taken where as in the
close ended he/she is restricted to choose among the options available.
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DATA PROCESSES & ANALYSIS
We will use bi-variate analysis because we have to find the association between two variables
i.e. high social status and brand consciousness.
With bi-variate analysis, we are testing hypotheses of "association". In its simplest form,
association simply refers to the extent to which it becomes easier to know/predict a value for the
Dependent variable if we know a case's value on the independent variable. Measure of
association helps us to understand this relationship. These measures of association relate to how
much better this prediction becomes with knowledge of the Independent Variable or how well an
independent variable relates to the dependent variable.
DUMMY TABLE
LEVEL OF BRAND
CONSCIOUSNESS
STATUS SYMBOL
UPPER MIDDLE LOWER
HIGH PRICED 75% 20% 4%
MEDIUM PRICED 17% 68% 30%
LOW PRICED 8% 12% 50%
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ESTIMATION OF COST AND TIME
Although self-administered questionnaires are not as much costly as other survey methods.
ESTIMATED TIME
Visiting Places Number of questionnaires to be filled
Estimated time consumed
Branded outlets 25 1 dayLUMS 25 1 day
Choiefat 25 1 day
University of the Punjab
25 1 day
ESTIMATED COST
Printing cost of questionnaires 500RsPrinting cost of report 250RsTraveling cost 1500RsTotal 2250Rs
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REFERENCES
Aaker, J.L. (1999), "The malleable self: the role of self-expression in persuasion", Journal of Marketing Research, 45-58.
Ashforth, B.E., Mael, F. (1989), "Social identity theory and the organization", Academy of Management Review,20-39.
Atkin, Charles and Martin Block (1983), "Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsers," Journal of Advertising Research, 23 (February/March), 57-61.
International Brands Woo Status-Conscious Lahoris (2008).Daily times,5
Davis, L.L. (1985), “Effects of physical quality and brand labeling on perceptions of product quality”, Journal of Consumer Studies and Home Economics Eastman, J.K., Goldsmith, R.E., Flynn, L.R. (1999), "Status consumption in consumer behaviour: scale development and validation", Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice
Hatch, K. and Roberts, J.A. (1985), “Use of intrinsic and extrinsic cues to assess textile clothing quality”, Perceptual and Motor Skills, 671-677.
Holt.D.B, Quelch.J.A & Taylor.E.L (2004) Managing the Global Brand A Typology of Consumer Perceptions. Jossey Bass, A Willey Imprint.
Kim, C.K., Han, D., Park, S. (2001), "The effect of brand personality and brand identification on brand loyalty: applying the theory of social identification", Japanese Psychological Research, 195-206.
Mason, R.S. (1981), Conspicuous Consumption: A Study of Exceptional Consumer Behavior
Motameni, R., Shahrokhi, M. (1998), "Brand equity: a global perspective", Journal of Product & Brand Management, 275-90.
O’Shaughnessy, J. (1992), Explaining Buyer Behavior, Oxford University Press, New York, NY., . r, St Martin’s Press,41-51.
Omellia, Johanna (1995), "The essence of global branding,” Drug & Cosmetic Industry, 50-55.
Petty, Richard E. and John T. Cacioppo (1986), Communication and Persuasion: Central and Peripheral Routes to Attitude Change
Schitovsky, T. (1992), The Joyless Economy, rev. ed., Oxford University Press
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Burki, B.H., Mohammed, S.(2008), “Mobilizing Savings from the Urban Poor in Pakistan”- an Initial Inquiry, Research paper for Shore Bank International Ltd
Asian Development Bank, “Country strategy Programme (2002-2006)”, 10-11
James, W. (1890). The principles of psychology. Holt
Kassarjian, H.H. (1971). “Personality and consumer behavior”, Journal of Marketing Research,8, 409-418.
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