CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

Using Maslows Hierarchy of Needs to promote Golds Gym

Vineet Abraham,01 Trinolda Colaco,11 Bhavya Sharma,43

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

It was in 1943 a Psychologist Mr. Abraham Harold Maslow suggested his Theory of Human Motivation. His theory is one popular and extensively cited theory of motivation. Maslow's theory is based on the Hierarchy of Human Needs. According to Maslow, human behavior is related to his needs. It is adjusted as per the nature of needs to be satisfied. In hierarchy of needs theory, Maslow identified five types / sets of human need arranged in a hierarchy of their importance and priority. He concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied, it ceases to be a motivating factor. Thereafter, the next set of needs in the hierarchy order takes its place. These needs in hierarchy can be compared to a pyramid. At the lowest level, there will be first set of needs which can be described as basic needs and are universal in character. This will be followed by other sets of needs. The Maslow's Pyramid of Human Needs is explained below : Physiological Needs : Physiological needs are the basic needs for sustaining human life. These needs include food, shelter, clothing, rest, air, water, sleep and sexual satisfaction. These basic human needs (also called biological needs) lie at the lowest level in the hierarchy of needs as they have priority over all other needs. Unless and until these basic physiological needs are satisfied to the required extent, other needs do not motivate an employee. A hungry person, for example, is just not in a position to think of anything else except his hunger or food Security / Safety Needs : These are the needs connected with the protection from physical danger, security of job, pension for old age, insurance cover for life, etc. The safety needs come after meeting the physiological needs. Such physiological needs lose their motivational potential when they are satisfied. As a result, safety needs replace them. Social Needs: A human being is rightly treated as a social animal. He desires to stay in group. He feels that he should belong to one or the other group and the member of the group should accept him with love and affection. Every person desires to be affiliated to such groups. This is treated as basic social need of an individual. He also feels that he should be loved by the other members. He needs friends and interaction with his friends and superiors of the group such as fellow employees or superiors. Social needs occupy third position in the hierarchy of needs. Esteem Needs: This category of needs include the need to be respected by others, need to be appreciated by others, need to have power and finally prestigious position. Once the previous needs are satisfied, a person feels to be held in esteem both by himself and also by others. Thus, esteem needs are two fold in nature. Self esteem needs include those for self confidence, self-respect, competence, etc. The second groups of esteem needs are those related to one's status, reputation, recognition and appreciation by others. This is a type of personal ego which needs to be satisfied. Self-actualisation Needs : This is the highest among the needs in the hierarchy of needs advocated by Maslow. Self actualisation is the desire to become what one is capable of becoming. It is a 'growth' need. A worker must work efficiently if he is to be ultimately happy. Here, a person feels that he should accomplish something in his life. He wants to utilize his potentials to the maximum extent and desires to become what one is capable of becoming. A person desires to have challenges and achieves something special in his life

or in the area of his specialization. Though every one is capable of self-actualization, many do not reach this stage. This need is fully satisfied rarely.

Golds Gym
Golds Gym first started in Venice, California in 1965. It was always perceived as a place for serious workout. Muscle Beach bodybuilders named it The Mecca of Bodybuilding. It has since then been the hotbed for the development of training techniques, equipment and nutritional concepts that form the foundation for the modern fitness revolution. The gym received international attention when it was feature in the major motion picture, Pumping

Iron
Golds Gym targets the upper middle class and the business class. Its pricing reflects the same. It has till date maintained its status in the fitness industry and has been true to its reputation. It currently has 680 facilities.

Physiological Needs: Consumer Profile

The Physiological needs of food, shelter, sex, sleep, health cut across all age groups. They are basic needs that consumers strive for everyday. If these needs are not fulfilled, the individual cannot move on to the next levels of needs. Taking these needs into consideration, the kind of age group one could target to advertise Golds Gym is quite wide. Therefore, the consumers we are targeting are students and working professionals between the age group of 18 to 40 years. They live in the urban and semi-urban areas in Mumbai. They live a fast paced life and juggle various activities at the same time. These people may be experiencers, strivers or even achievers. They are well educated and ambitious. These people live busy lives, eat fast food, dont sleep that well and are stressed very often. All of this is to achieve a set of personal and professional goals that they set for themselves. However, they neglect their health in pursuit of these goals. They are aware of the fact that their health is deteriorating, but they ignore the implications of it. They live very mechanic and stressful lives which in many cases takes a toll on their mental and physical health. This set of people forms a large chunk of Mumbais population.

Core Communication:
The core communication of the media campaign for this age group is Health is wealth. Through the advertising campaign we want to communicate to the audience that although you are investing everyday of your life to pursue your goals, you shouldnt put your health on the line. It is important to stay healthy, strong and fit if you want achieve your dreams. We are simply telling them that you need to be healthy to enjoy the benefits of your efforts and that Golds Gym is going to help you do the same. It has flexible timings, affordable fees, various outlets, qualified fitness instructors and a whole set of fitness regimens from aerobics to yoga.

Media Strategy:
A host of media can be used to promote Golds Gym amongst this age group. Newspapers: English Dailies like TOI, HT and Economic Times can be used to run print ads for this campaign. Working professionals tend to go through newspapers daily. Magazines: Common magazines like India Today, Outlook, Femina, Filmfare, Social Media: Using Facebook and Twitter to promote the brand, its offers, various facts about health and fitness, recipes for healthy foods etc. Celebrity Blogs: Getting celebrities like Salman Khan who use Golds Gym to blog about it. Celebrities serve as opinion leaders and can help change public opinion. Outdoor Print Ads: These could be placed along railway and bus stations, in suburbs like Lower Parel and Bandra where a large number of corporate offices are located. To target the younger lot of the group, ads could be placed near Marine Drive, near movie theatres and places like Colaba and Bandra that attract the younger crowd. TVCs: Considering the fact that we are targeting students and working professionals who are more focused on their goals and are tech savvy, there should ideally be limited investment in TV slots. We could advertise on youth channels like MTV or the Star Network primarily in the evening slots between 7 pm to 11 pm.

Safety Needs: Consumer Profile

Once the physiological needs have been satisfied, we move on to satisfy the next set of needs, which are the safety needs. Golds Gym could be advertised to female students and working women in the age group of 16 to 26 years by using safety needs as a motivational factor. These are women who live alone in the city, who commute alone to work/college or work late. Mumbai is increasingly becoming unsafe for women and hence the need to develop a strong system of defense skills, a sense of confidence and self reliance. These women are located in urban and semi urban areas. They may or may not be single. They live in hostels or as paying guests or have their own apartments.

Core Communication:
The core communication through the advertising message for this media campaign would emphasize on the need to be able to defend oneself in the big city.The fact that a woman has to live alone all by herself can be scary, but at the same time challenging. Golds Gym simply tries to help these women face this challenge. To be fit ,alert, healthy and strong enough to live a fast paced life and protect oneself from any danger.

Media Strategy:
Magazines: Print ads could be run in womens magazines like Femina, Elle, Cosmopolitan etc. Radio: We could run a radio spot on Radio Mirchi ,Radio city or Fever 104. Internet: It is widely used by set of people. Social media can be used to its full potential to promote the brand amongst women. Ads on YouTube and blogging websites can be used as well.Female role models like Saina Nehwal, Mary Kom etc can be used by way of celebrity blogging, so that they emphasize on the need to develop defence skills. TVCs: TVCs could be positioned in the weekday evening slots between 8pm to 11pm. Golds Gym could also tie up with hostels and colleges to organize workshops as a promotional strategy for this campaign.

Social Needs: Consumer Profile

A person in this stage feels that he should belong to one or the other group and the member of the group should accept him with love and affection. Every person desires to be affiliated to such groups. Once the basic needs of physical and safety needs have been satisfied, we go on to needs which are more social. The people in this profile that we will be targeting will be professionals age 30 above to 50 years. These people are mostly settled in life and have built up a comfortable lifestyle which is born out of routine. As they settle, they realize that they need association in the form of people of their own and also love and support in the social structure.

Core Communication
The core communication for this consumer would be Gym, a communal place. Through the media campaign we will depict the fact that Golds Gym is a place where numerous people with the same objectives come together and so you will feel part of a group as well as support. We can offer a Group Discount, introduce Group activities like Aerobics and so forth.

Media Strategy:
Print: Bussiness publications, Journals, Magazines like GQ. As these are read by the people who are consolidating their professional lives as well as personal lives like the target group. Outdoor: The best medium for this kind of core communication. Ads, would be placed in crowded places, and mostly communal places. TVC: Timeslots targeted would be weekend slots, sports, awards. Anything more likely to be watched by people with other people. Social Media: Blogs, Twitter and Facebook to get people to come together and feel like they are part of the social group and get them together with other people with same motivations.

Esteem Needs: Consumer Profile

At this stage the person feels to be held in esteem both by himself and also by others. The consumers at this stage are people who are above the age of 40. They are not strivers as they have already achieved in terms of money, housing and even to an extent social groups. But they are looking for recognition in terms of their works in life. They also need to feel that they have good standing in the groups and the society that they are in. Their egos need to satisfied now.

Core Communication
The core communication for this consumer would be Body, a reflection of dicipline. Through the media campaign we will depict the fact that the body needs to be in tune and a well kept body at a mature age means years of discipline and will reflect the hard work and achievements of the person.

Media Strategy:
Print: Newspaper dailies, Magazines like The Week, India Today, Time Magazine. TVC: Ads will be shown in Discovery, National Geographic, News Channels. Celebrity Ads: Celebs who have maintained over time, Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan.

Self Actualization Needs: Consumer Profile

The final need that we seek to fulfill is self actualization. Golds gym can target upper middle class and above men and women of age 50 yrs and above. These are people who have achieved each of the above needs and gave now reached a point of restlessness. They seek higher goals of personal fulfillment and attempt to grow beyond what they currently are. They want to achieve their highest potential, not only in terms of their career but their health too- a reflection of the standard of their life. They also are now concerned about old age and being fit is a priority. A lot of them may often believe it is too late for them to bring any drastic changes. Golds Gym, through its advertising campaign can help rid their minds of this myth and encourage them to attain the health and the physique they always desired.

Media Strategy
Magazines: Advertisements can be printed in health and fitness themed magazines like Health, Prevention and also similar sections in other magazines. Radio: Radio Spots targeting our target group on major channels Internet: Business related sites and sites that talk about health issues related to this age group. TVCs: Aired on all major channels like Zee, Sony, News Channels, TLC Publicity: Sponsor events like Gladrags, film awards where celebrities can promote the Gym. Direct Mailers: Since this age group may underestimate how much they are capable of improving their fitness, it is important to inform them in detail. Using Direct mailers is a good way of doing this