What are MECS in consumer Behaviour

The associations in the mind of the consumer between A’s, C’s and V’s are labelled means-end chains (MEC). These chains are often seen as a representation of the basic drive that motivates consumer behaviour. Numerous studies have shown that techniques using MEC are suitable for a wide range of marketing applications.

What is the means-end chain?

A means-end chain, therefore, is a structure that connects product or service attributes to consequences produced by these and the latter to values (Mulvey et al., 1994; Reynolds & Gutman, 1988). For example, the attribute quality can lead to a consequence of optimizing time, which can also lead to the value security.

What is the means-end chain analysis?

Means-end chain analysis refers to a set of techniques for interviewing individual consumers about the reasons for their product choice and interpreting consumers’ responses in terms of generalizable linkages between outcomes (Olson & Reynolds, 2001).

What is the means-end chain in marketing?

Mean end chain theory is a marketing research technique where the researcher generally tries to probe the mind of the customer in order to bring out the nuances of consumer behaviour. It is a combination of both qualitative and quantitative research method to bring out the latent need of the customers.

What is end chain model?

The means- end chain model is a conceptual tool which allows you to understand how consumers perceive the self-relevant outcomes of product use and consumption (Grunert and Grunert, 1995; Pieters et al.

How can marketers use means-end chain analysis?

The Means-end Approach Using Laddering. It is used to uncover the underlying emotions, consequences, and personal values that drive consumer choice. … Market researchers use the approach to understand consumer choices, and design advertising and communications messaging to influence them to choose their product or brand.

What are the 6 components of the mean end chain?

… has been argued that the means-end method consists of six aspects or levels of a hierarchy: concrete attributes, abstract attributes, functional consequences, psychosocial consequences, instrumental values and terminal values as described by many researchers (Gutman, 1982(Gutman, , 1997Mulvey et al., 1994;Olson and …

What is the laddering technique?

Laddering is a qualitative marketing research technique, which seeks to understand why people buy and use products and services. You find out which product features are important to product users and end with users’ emotional benefits. … They describe product attributes, consequences, and values.

Why is means end chain important?

Means-End Chain Theory has been developed in order to understand how consumers link attributes (A) of products with particular consequences (C), and how these consequences satisfy their personal values (V). … These chains are often seen as a representation of the basic drive that motivates consumer behaviour.

What is meccas model?

MECCAS model provides a framework that allows marketers to use as a feedback loop to conduct consumer research and build a brand policy consecutively. The MECCAS model is based on the Means- End theory which states that consumers have abstract ideals that guide their purchasing decisions.

Article first time published on

What is a means to an end?

Definition of a means to an end : something done only to produce a desired result For her, marrying a rich man was just a means to an end. All she really cared about was money.

What factors do you consider the most important when attempting to influence consumer behavior?

– Age. It is undoubtedly an essential factor. …
– Culture. This is another essential factor. …
– The socio-economic level. …
– Perception. …
– Attitude. …
– Trends. …
– Personality. …
– Experience.

What is factors influencing consumer behavior?

Psychological (motivation, perception, learning, beliefs and attitudes) Personal (age and life-cycle stage, occupation, economic circumstances, lifestyle, personality and self concept) Social (reference groups, family, roles and status) Cultural (culture, subculture, social class system).

What is hierarchical value map?

The hierarchical value map (HVM), shown as a graphic description of a laddering interview in Figure 1, consists of attributes, consequences, and values. … On Maslow’s hierarchy, values would be on a higher echelon of human needs in comparison to product attributes and consequences.

What are product attributes?

Product attributes are the properties that describe a product. They include details that are tangible and intangible, subjective and objective. All of this information enables shoppers to find, compare, and choose products.

What is the hierarchy of effects model?

The hierarchy-of-effects theory is a model of how advertising influences a consumer’s decision to purchase or not purchase a product or service. The hierarchy represents the progression of learning and decision-making consumer experiences as a result of advertising.

What is the level of involvement?

What is Level of Involvement? Level of involvement is the degree of information processing and the amount of importance a consumer attaches to a product while purchasing it. In other words, it shows how involved the customer is towards a product personally, socially and economically.

Who is the proposer of the concept of means and ends in decision making?

Decision-making is defined by Harold Koontz as—”Decision-making is the selection of a course of action among alternative, it is the core of planning.” George or terry says— “Decision-making is a selection based on certain criteria from two or more alternatives”.

What do you understand by consumer decision making?

Consumer Decision Making refers to the process under which consumers go through in deciding what to purchase, including problem recognition, information searching, evaluation of alternatives, making the decision and post-purchase evaluation.

What does laddering mean in marketing?

Laddering in market research is a term used in marketing which takes steps to move participants from understanding the features, to why they choose a product or service, all the way down to the root motivational and emotional cause. … Laddering is a bit like root-cause analysis or peeling back the proverbial onion.

How does perception influence consumer decision making process?

Perception. Perception can have various meanings but in marketing, it is often described as a process by which a consumer identifies, organizes, and interprets information to create meaning. A consumer will selectively perceive what they will ultimately classify as their needs and wants.

What is the brand ladder?

Brand ladder refers to the marketing tool used by marketers, to communicate all the benefits of a brand to the end customer. … Brand ladder is generally known to connect product and brand attributes to the personal and social factors of customers lifestyle.

What is laddering in agriculture?

laddering (countable and uncountable, plural ladderings) (agriculture, countable) A process of soil compaction that serves to break up clods and level a field.

What are advantages of laddering?

The first advantage of laddering is that it can allow investors to gain from increases in interest rates since the investor is able to reinvest a portion of his or her capital each year at market rates. Second, the diversification inherent in laddering can help stabilize the investor’s income stream.

What is laddering in project management?

Laddering is a technique where we break down certain tasks into smaller units and try to fit them into the Project Plan. Laddering is possible if an activity can be broken down into two or more sub-activities and a succeeding activity is similarly broken down into the same number of sub-activities as its predecessor.

What do you understand by term advertising?

Definition: Advertising is a means of communication with the users of a product or service. Advertisements are messages paid for by those who send them and are intended to inform or influence people who receive them, as defined by the Advertising Association of the UK.

How technology is a means to an end?

One says: Technology is a means to an end. … Technology itself is a contrivance, or, in Latin, an instrumentum. The current conception of technology, according to which it is a means and a human activity, can therefore be called the instrumental and anthropological definition of technology.

What is at the end means?

: finished and completed The battle was at an end. We would like to see this matter at an end.

What is a means to an end activity?

A means to an end is an activity or process done in order to accomplish a goal. Often, the activity itself is not enjoyable or considered important. The phrase means to an end is used to describe things that a person considers to be necessary to suffer through in order to accomplish their real goals.