Consumer Behavior

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Consumer Behavior

• Marketing
• Ms. Alexander

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Whats Your Favorite Flavor?

• Several years ago, Edys Grand Ice Cream, a
  national manufacturer of ice cream, commissioned
  a study to determine how ice cream flavor
  preferences relate to personality. The study,
  conducted by Dr. Alan Hirsch, Neurological
  Director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and
  Research Foundation in Chicago, determined that
  distinct personality traits correspond with a
  preference for certain ice cream flavors.

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Whats Your Favorite Flavor?

• Is this for real??? Apparently it is, according
  to Dr. Hirsch. Yes! The researchers examined
  personality profiles for a significant
  cross-section of people, then and correlated the
  results with each persons ice-cream-flavor
  preference.
• Whats your favorite flavor?
• Vanilla
• Chocolate
• Butter pecan
• Banana
• Strawberry
• Chocolate chip

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Whats Your Favorite Flavor?

• Whats your favorite flavor?
• Vanilla You are a flamboyant, impulsive,
  risk-taker, with close family relationships.
• Chocolate You are lively and flirtatious, the
  life of the party, but you do get easily bored.
• Butter pecan You are a take-charge perfectionist
  with very high standards and strong integrity.
• Banana You are kind, empathetic, understanding,
  generous, and easy-goingan excellent spouse or
  parent.
• Strawberry You are shy, skeptical, and
  detail-oriented, and you tend to be pessimistic.
• Chocolate chip You are success-driven,
  competitive, and achievement oriented, but also
  generous and charming.

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• Interestingly, when Edys published their
  flavorology report, they gave the personality
  profiles a more positive spin, leaving out
  potentially problematic descriptions, such as
  being pessimistic or, and flirtatious. A company
  spokesperson explained We are in the ice cream
  business to make people happy. This is supposed
  to be fun, not upsetting. Also, Dr. Hirsch noted
  that while the correlations were scientifically
  reliable, he could not account for the reasons
  behind them. So you can assume that switching
  favorite flavors wont change your personality.

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Whats Your Favorite Flavor?

• How could a marketer capitalize on a link between
  personality and product preference?
• Do you think this type of research is a
  worthwhile investment? Why or why not?
• www.angelfire.com/ga/sweetgeorgiapeach/icecream.ht
  ml