Marketing to American Subcultures Paper Example

The article "How to market to the millennial subculture" by Islam Shafqat on March 19, 2015, presents the views on marketing behavior on the millennial subcultures. From his work, he asserts that for 100 years, the country has experienced numerous cases of countercultures that have different behavior about the existing community members. Countercultures are "subcultures whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of the mainstream society, often in opposition to mainstream cultural mores (Islam, 2015)." In this case, some of the notable examples of these millennial subcultures are the Beat generations as well as the Hippies.

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From the author's perspective, the millennials have exhibited characteristics that are similar to the entry of a subculture into a society. With the development of technology, these individuals have adopted their regular working hours in a working environment and the other remaining time is spent doing their self-chores. In addition, this millennial trend of behavior has attracted criticism and blame in that it is directed to the recession-era that has affected the generation. The generation has become so inclined to the social feeds that have become a part of their lives. Islam (2015) quotes that the millennials have a philosophical notion that makes them believe that "if a tree falls in a forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound.?" In such a scenario, many millennials depend on social feeds to grasp and acquire information that benefits them or concerns their lives.

Therefore, with the idea of marketing on millennials, a survey was conducted to determine marketing behaviors among them. In this case, about 26% prefer buying products that their close friends and relatives use. Another "77% prefer brands with great products and 60% who said they prefer brands that fit their price point (Islam, 2015)." The main aim to carry out the survey was to generate feedback relating to marketing trends among the millennials. From the survey, it is evident that the generation does not acquire a product depending on the feedback from others about it. In addition, it revealed contrary to the interviewee's expectation that most of them admire and approve celebrity endorsements or from other popular people with the ability to change and influence their buying habits. The results depicted that a smaller percentage get products from such an "endorsement while the about 64% respond more positively to brand messages that are tailored to their unique cultural interests, be it music, sports, movies, or entertainment (Islam, 2018)." Therefore, with this description, millennials have a unique way of buying products, and thus marketers need to develop new strategies that would benefit the generation.

From the article, various conclusions can be made regarding millennials and marketing behaviors. Above all, they "they may be pushing back against the analog and sometimes linear-looking life experiences of generations that came before them, but they are asking to be treated as individuals (Islam, 2015)." In addition, the author depicts that these individuals rely on social feeds and leave valuable information regarding specific products with expectations that brand producers would address their queries. Social feeds and other platforms are the sites that determine their marketing of various products.

From the above analysis, it is evident that cultures and subcultures influence the behavior of consumers and their buying habits. A person's lifestyle is one of the critical determinants of what to purchase for consumption (Hawkins, & Mothersbaugh, 2016). Therefore, marketers have to devise quality methods to reap off from the cultures that are prevalent in the society. For instance, "when U.S marketers sell products in other countries, they must be aware of the tremendous impact specific cultures have on product purchases and use (Pride, 2016)." Different tastes and values in a given subculture and other geographical destinations call for improved and better business methods as well as different marketing mixes (Pride & Ferrell, 2010). The main reason for adopting these strategies is due to the diverse buying patterns exhibited in various subcultures.

In addition, subcultures affect how people respond to various product advertisements and their mechanism to make a buying judgment. Therefore, it is crucial for marketers to understand the influence of subcultures and their patterns towards purchasing preferences. In addition, they should be able to realize that an individual could belong to multiple subcultures. With this analysis, marketers can understand the behavioral patterns associated with each subculture and get the mechanism on how to approach their prospective customers (Pride, 2016). The United States is experiencing a growing population propagated by the increased racial and ethnic subcultures. According to this trend, after some years, half of the people in this country will be made of 'racial and ethnic minorities' (Pride, 2016). With these incoming subcultures, there is an opportunity for marketers and business promoters to advance their activities to these ethnic entities. In addition, this calls for improved marketing strategies that address the tastes and preferences of these cultures. Therefore, subcultures influence needs, patterns, consumption trends, and values of individuals on different goods.

References

Hawkins, D. I., & Mothersbaugh, D. L. (2016). Consumer behavior: Building marketing strategy. McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Islam. S. (2015, March 19). How to Market to the Millennial 'Subculture'. Retrieved from www.cmo.com/opinion/articles/2015/3/5/how_to_market_to_the.html#gs.5z0H6ik

Pride, W. M. (2016). Foundations of marketing. Cengage Learning, Inc, 2016.

Pride, W. M., & Ferrell, O. C. (2010). Marketing. Cengage Learning.