Herd behavior is often a useful tool in
marketing and, if used properly, can lead to increases in sales and changes to the
structure of society. Whilst it has been shown that financial incentives cause action in large numbers of people, herd mentality often wins out in a case of "Keeping up with the Joneses".
Brand and product success Communications technologies have contributed to the proliferation to
consumer choice and "the power of crowds", Consumers increasingly have more access to opinions and information from both
opinion leaders and formers on platforms that have largely
user-generated content, and thus have more tools with which to complete any
decision-making process.
Popularity is seen as an indication of better quality, and consumers will use the opinions of others posted on these platforms as a powerful compass to guide them towards products and brands that align with their preconceptions and the decisions of others in their
peer groups. Taking into account differences in needs and their position in the
socialization process, Lessig & Park examined groups of students and housewives and the influence that these reference groups have on one another. By way of herd mentality, students tended to encourage each other towards beer, hamburger and cigarettes, whilst
housewives tended to encourage each other towards furniture and detergent. Whilst this particular study was done in 1977, one cannot discount its findings in today's society. A study done by Burke, Leykin, Li and Zhang in 2014 on the
social influence on shopper behavior shows that shoppers are influenced by direct interactions with companions, and as a group size grows, herd behavior becomes more apparent. Discussions that create excitement and interest have greater impact on touch frequency and purchase likelihood grows with greater involvement caused by a large group. Shoppers in this Midwestern American shopping outlet were monitored and their purchases noted, and it was found up to a point, potential customers preferred to be in stores which had moderate levels of traffic. The other people in the store not only served as company, but also provided an inference point on which potential customers could model their behavior and make
purchase decisions, as with any reference group or community.
Social media can also be a powerful tool in perpetuating herd behavior. Its immeasurable amount of user-generated content serves as a platform for opinion leaders to take the stage and influence purchase decisions, and recommendations from peers and evidence of positive online experience all serve to help consumers make purchasing decisions. Gunawan and Huarng's 2015 study concluded that social influence is essential in
framing attitudes towards brands, which in turn leads to purchase intention. Influencers form norms which their peers are found to follow, and targeting
extroverted personalities increases chances of purchase even further. Many brands have begun to realize the importance of brand ambassadors and influencers, and it is being shown more clearly that herd behavior can be used to drive sales and profits exponentially in favor of any brand through examination of these instances.
Social marketing Marketing can easily transcend beyond commercial roots, in that it can be used to encourage
action to do with health,
environmentalism and general society. Herd mentality often takes a front seat when it comes to
social marketing, paving the way for
campaigns such as
Earth Day, and the variety of anti-smoking and anti-obesity campaigns seen in every country. Within cultures and communities, marketers must aim to influence opinion leaders who in turn influence each other, as it is the herd mentality of any group of people that ensures a social campaign's success. A campaign run by Som la Pera in Spain to combat teenage obesity found that campaigns run in schools are more effective due to influence of teachers and peers, and students' high visibility, and their interaction with one another. Opinion leaders in schools created the logo and branding for the campaign, built content for social media and led in-school presentations to engage audience interaction. It was thus concluded that the success of the campaign was rooted in the fact that its means of communication was the audience itself, giving the target audience a sense of ownership and empowerment. As mentioned previously, students exert a high level of influence over one another, and by encouraging stronger personalities to lead opinions, the organizers of the campaign were able to secure the attention of other students who identified with the reference group. Herd behavior not only applies to students in schools where they are highly visible, but also amongst communities where perceived action plays a strong role. Between 2003 and 2004, California State University carried out a study to measure household
conservation of energy, and motivations for doing so. It was found that factors like saving the environment, saving money or
social responsibility did not have as great an impact on each household as the perceived behavior of their neighbours did. Although the financial incentives of saving money, closely followed by moral incentives of protecting the environment, are often thought of as being a community's greatest guiding compass, more households responded to the encouragement to save energy when they were told that 77% of their neighbours were using fans instead of air conditioning, proving that communities are more likely to engage in a behavior if they think that everyone else is already taking part. Herd behaviors shown in the two examples exemplify that it can be a powerful tool in social marketing, and if harnessed correctly, has the potential to achieve great change. It is clear that opinion leaders and their influence achieve huge reach among their reference groups and thus can be used as the loudest voices to encourage others in any collective direction. ==See also==