How Reference Groups Exert Influence on Consumer Behavior

A reference group is any person or group that serves as a point of comparison (or reference) for an individual in forming either general or specific values, attitudes, or a specific guide for behavior. They help us understand the impact of other people on an individual’s consumption beliefs, attitudes, and behavior. It helps marketers choose their methodology to affect desired changes in consumer behavior. From a marketing perspective, reference groups are groups that serve as frames of reference for individuals in their purchase or consumption decisions. Reference groups that influence general or broadly defined values or behavior are called normative reference groups. Reference groups that serve as benchmarks for specific or narrowly defined attitudes or behavior are called comparative reference groups. A comparative reference group might be a neighboring family whose lifestyle appears to be admirable and worthy of imitation. Normative reference groups influence the development of a basic code of behavior. Comparative reference groups influence the expression of specific consumer attitudes and behavior. The meaning of “reference group” has changed over the years. Originally, reference groups were narrowly defined to include only those groups with which a person interacted on a direct basis. The concept gradually has broadened to include both direct and indirect individual and group influences. Indirect reference groups consist of those individuals or groups with whom a person does not have direct face-to-face contact, such as movie stars, sports heroes, political leaders, TV personalities, or even a well-dressed and interesting looking person on a street corner. References a person might use in evaluating his or her own general or specific attitudes or behavior vary. THE INFLUENCE OF REFERENCE GROUPS

Reference groups influence consumer behavior in two ways:
1) They set levels of aspiration for the individual, i.e. they offer clues as to what