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Summary Marketing and Consumer Well-Being
Lecture 1 (week 46)
Consumption is essential at a basic level (air, water, food, shelter). Without it, life ceases. At the same
time, consumption is a critical determinant of consumer well-being in many Western societies.
Overconsumption = Consumption beyond what is needed, which can harm health and the environment.
Examples shown include larger portion sizes over time and wider societal impacts. Marketing can also
lead to bad outcomes such as overconsumption and obesity, and that some industries may profit from
the consequences later. We need consumption to survive, but overconsumption is bad for health and
the environment.
Planetary boundaries = Limits of what the planet can handle in areas such as water use, climate change,
and ozone, and it should be clear which boundaries have already been crossed.
There needs to be a solution, and marketing can be used to do better.
UN Sustainable Development Goals = UN defined targets that provide concrete goals to work towards,
and businesses and universities also work with these goals.
, 2
SDG progress in 2023: Halfway in 2023, yet not on track, meaning many goals face major or significant
challenges, some are stagnating, and only a subset is on track or achieved. A note on the slide states
that more action is needed.
Course objectives
Upon completion of the course the student is able to:
• Define and describe the historical perspective and contextual understanding of the role of marketing
in improving societal and consumer well being, while also acknowledging and identifying practices that
negatively contributed to societal and consumer well being.
• Explain why and how marketing is an effective discipline to help improve societal and consumer well
being, while at the same time contributing to the firm’s bottom line.
• Apply theoretical insights to develop and test strategies and tactics that offer win win solutions for the
firm and consumers.
Central proposition = Marketers who take the well being of consumers at heart can improve their own
financial well being as well as the well being of consumers.
, 3
Marketing = Business activities involved in the flow of goods and services from production to
consumption. (American Marketing Association, 1937) → What comes after consumption, and the
consumer is missing in this definition. Pure business perspective: take it or leave it.
Marketing = The activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and
exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. (American
Marketing Association, 2007) → Over time the definition has expanded to this the consumer is
mentioned and society at large
Consumer behavior = Anything related to acquisition, purchase, consumption, and disposal, across
contexts such as home, stores, work, school, and restaurants.
You can consume products anywhere; consumer behavior also includes what happens after consuming,
such as packaging and storage.
Consumer well being = A broad concept with two perspectives (Ryan and Deci, 2001)
Hedonic perspective = Focuses on happiness and defines consumer well being in terms of pleasure
attainment and pain avoidance. So, maximize the happiness of consumers or avoid pain. Products like
chocolate.
Tony’s Chocolonely example linked to ethics and health communication: they stand behind their basic
standpoint (being against slavery in supply chains), they supported the sugar tax (which makes products
more expensive), and they also ran a campaign showing that chocolate is not good for you.
Eudaimonic perspective = Focuses on the actualization of human potentials and defines consumer well
being in terms of the degree to which people are realizing their true nature. So helping people get the
most out of themselves, their own goals, and their own identities. Example note: “I want to pursue a
healthy lifestyle, I like running, these running shoes help me achieve this goal.”
Who is to blame for the negative consequences of overconsumption?
Critiques of marketing linked to overconsumption
1. Marketing gets consumers to want and spend more than they can afford, for example via credit
cards and loans.
2. Marketers are skilled at creating brand differentiation among products that are essentially
homogeneous.
3. Marketers want to produce and sell more goods without considering resource and
environmental costs.
4. Marketing did not pay enough attention to product safety until people like Ralph Nader
appeared.
5. Marketers favor giving the public what it wants, whether it is good or bad for them.
6. Marketers promote a materialistic mindset.
7. Marketers rarely talk about sane consumption.
, 4
8. Marketers are increasing their information about each of us.
Marketers can make you purchase ideas, goods, or services that you do not want or need?
Why do we buy Apple products? Because it looks cool, status, sustainability (MacBook stays alive), but a
lot is not in the product. We buy because of others; social acceptance is a large part of driving
consumption. We want acceptance by others, but buy another color to stand out still (pink MacBook).
This is what we focus on in marketing: we cannot make people buy anything, but we can influence them.
But protect the people under 18 years and after 70 years to protect them!
Positive view on marketing and consumption
1. Marketers have raised the standard of living and helped build the middle class, for example,
through household appliances such as microwaves, refrigerators, stoves, washing machines, and
dryers, making cooking, cleaning clothes, and managing the home easier.
2. Consider the power of computers, the internet, tablets, smartphones, and social media.
Marketers figured out which consumers' wants and needs can be satisfied with these items,
making lives easier and more satisfying.
Means End Chain Theory = A framework linking what a product is, to what it does for the consumer, and
why that ultimately matters, moving from attributes to consequences to values. The model shows what
drives people; why do you want to live a long and happy life? Most of the time you dont know why you
want or buy certain products. We mimic people, but also want to be different.
Product knowledge and consumer self-knowledge connect through concrete attributes, abstract
attributes, functional consequences, psychological consequences, instrumental values, and terminal
values.
The laddering map with the Means End Chain Theory, this visual structure helps to be able to create
ladders on your own
Exampl
e: Whole milk yogurt (Denmark)
The slide provides a means end map where consumers link product-related elements (such as whole
milk, smooth texture, no additives, good quality and taste, easy to handle and use) to higher-level
outcomes like enjoyment and healthiness, and ultimately to values such as happiness and inner
Summary Marketing and Consumer Well-Being
Lecture 1 (week 46)
Consumption is essential at a basic level (air, water, food, shelter). Without it, life ceases. At the same
time, consumption is a critical determinant of consumer well-being in many Western societies.
Overconsumption = Consumption beyond what is needed, which can harm health and the environment.
Examples shown include larger portion sizes over time and wider societal impacts. Marketing can also
lead to bad outcomes such as overconsumption and obesity, and that some industries may profit from
the consequences later. We need consumption to survive, but overconsumption is bad for health and
the environment.
Planetary boundaries = Limits of what the planet can handle in areas such as water use, climate change,
and ozone, and it should be clear which boundaries have already been crossed.
There needs to be a solution, and marketing can be used to do better.
UN Sustainable Development Goals = UN defined targets that provide concrete goals to work towards,
and businesses and universities also work with these goals.
, 2
SDG progress in 2023: Halfway in 2023, yet not on track, meaning many goals face major or significant
challenges, some are stagnating, and only a subset is on track or achieved. A note on the slide states
that more action is needed.
Course objectives
Upon completion of the course the student is able to:
• Define and describe the historical perspective and contextual understanding of the role of marketing
in improving societal and consumer well being, while also acknowledging and identifying practices that
negatively contributed to societal and consumer well being.
• Explain why and how marketing is an effective discipline to help improve societal and consumer well
being, while at the same time contributing to the firm’s bottom line.
• Apply theoretical insights to develop and test strategies and tactics that offer win win solutions for the
firm and consumers.
Central proposition = Marketers who take the well being of consumers at heart can improve their own
financial well being as well as the well being of consumers.
, 3
Marketing = Business activities involved in the flow of goods and services from production to
consumption. (American Marketing Association, 1937) → What comes after consumption, and the
consumer is missing in this definition. Pure business perspective: take it or leave it.
Marketing = The activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and
exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. (American
Marketing Association, 2007) → Over time the definition has expanded to this the consumer is
mentioned and society at large
Consumer behavior = Anything related to acquisition, purchase, consumption, and disposal, across
contexts such as home, stores, work, school, and restaurants.
You can consume products anywhere; consumer behavior also includes what happens after consuming,
such as packaging and storage.
Consumer well being = A broad concept with two perspectives (Ryan and Deci, 2001)
Hedonic perspective = Focuses on happiness and defines consumer well being in terms of pleasure
attainment and pain avoidance. So, maximize the happiness of consumers or avoid pain. Products like
chocolate.
Tony’s Chocolonely example linked to ethics and health communication: they stand behind their basic
standpoint (being against slavery in supply chains), they supported the sugar tax (which makes products
more expensive), and they also ran a campaign showing that chocolate is not good for you.
Eudaimonic perspective = Focuses on the actualization of human potentials and defines consumer well
being in terms of the degree to which people are realizing their true nature. So helping people get the
most out of themselves, their own goals, and their own identities. Example note: “I want to pursue a
healthy lifestyle, I like running, these running shoes help me achieve this goal.”
Who is to blame for the negative consequences of overconsumption?
Critiques of marketing linked to overconsumption
1. Marketing gets consumers to want and spend more than they can afford, for example via credit
cards and loans.
2. Marketers are skilled at creating brand differentiation among products that are essentially
homogeneous.
3. Marketers want to produce and sell more goods without considering resource and
environmental costs.
4. Marketing did not pay enough attention to product safety until people like Ralph Nader
appeared.
5. Marketers favor giving the public what it wants, whether it is good or bad for them.
6. Marketers promote a materialistic mindset.
7. Marketers rarely talk about sane consumption.
, 4
8. Marketers are increasing their information about each of us.
Marketers can make you purchase ideas, goods, or services that you do not want or need?
Why do we buy Apple products? Because it looks cool, status, sustainability (MacBook stays alive), but a
lot is not in the product. We buy because of others; social acceptance is a large part of driving
consumption. We want acceptance by others, but buy another color to stand out still (pink MacBook).
This is what we focus on in marketing: we cannot make people buy anything, but we can influence them.
But protect the people under 18 years and after 70 years to protect them!
Positive view on marketing and consumption
1. Marketers have raised the standard of living and helped build the middle class, for example,
through household appliances such as microwaves, refrigerators, stoves, washing machines, and
dryers, making cooking, cleaning clothes, and managing the home easier.
2. Consider the power of computers, the internet, tablets, smartphones, and social media.
Marketers figured out which consumers' wants and needs can be satisfied with these items,
making lives easier and more satisfying.
Means End Chain Theory = A framework linking what a product is, to what it does for the consumer, and
why that ultimately matters, moving from attributes to consequences to values. The model shows what
drives people; why do you want to live a long and happy life? Most of the time you dont know why you
want or buy certain products. We mimic people, but also want to be different.
Product knowledge and consumer self-knowledge connect through concrete attributes, abstract
attributes, functional consequences, psychological consequences, instrumental values, and terminal
values.
The laddering map with the Means End Chain Theory, this visual structure helps to be able to create
ladders on your own
Exampl
e: Whole milk yogurt (Denmark)
The slide provides a means end map where consumers link product-related elements (such as whole
milk, smooth texture, no additives, good quality and taste, easy to handle and use) to higher-level
outcomes like enjoyment and healthiness, and ultimately to values such as happiness and inner
