User talk:Erickmas

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a theory, developed by psychologist Abraham Maslow, to describe human needs (which include desires as well). This theory uses a pyramid for the theoretical model, which shows the order and extent of the importance for each variable in the model. The model begins at the bottom (or base) of the pyramid, by noting the simple, indispensable needs that people have. As the model progresses, it moves towards the top of the pyramid, where the more complex and difficult to achieve needs (some arguably being more desires than necessities) are located.

The first level of needs is at the base of the pyramid, which covers physiological needs that people have. This includes the need for food, water, and sleep, among others that are necessary to stay alive. This is the easiest level of needs to satisfy, as many of the activities required to satisfy these needs are carried out by pure instinct. The second level of needs – safety – is also relatively easily achieved. Here people seek to secure their physical and financial well-being via such things as clothing, shelter, jobs, insurance, etc.

The last three levels of needs in Maslow's hierarchy may be considered progressively less important for physical well-being and survival, but are still quite significant for the psychological health of an individual. This makes the following needs more complex and significantly more difficult to achieve. Love and belonging is the third level of needs, and includes the need to be – to some extent – involved in a social environment among friends, family, and significant others. Self-actualization includes the need of an individual to meet their full potential; feeling creative, independent, accepted by outsiders, and more importantly accepting themselves. Esteem is the last and most difficult level of the pyramid to achieve. This includes the feeling of confidence, and respecting and being respected by others.

How people satisfy these different needs is an important topic for many social scientists, including marketers, as this provides a basis for how people both 1) identify and 2) satisfy said needs via the purchase and consumption of products (i.e. some good or service). The following describes the aforementioned needs in the context of the marketing practice.

PHYSIOLOGICAL

Physiological needs, such as thirst or hunger, can be very easily and internally identified by consumers, as the human body naturally sends signals to the brain to indicate a lack of food or drink. Once identified, the need can be satisfied by consumers, by purchasing a product at a supermarket, restaurant, vending machine, etc. This very basic need can be satisfied simply by eating. Thus, a meal at a fancy restaurant goes much further than simply satisfying physiological needs, as we discuss further on.

SAFETY

The need for safety often requires some external influence to identify the need. We may identify the need for shelter after experiencing weather conditions, or the need for employment when other identified needs require money in order to be satisfied. For example: you need a job to earn money, in order to purchase food (which meets physiological needs) and shelter (which meets other safety needs).

LOVE & BELONGING

Love and belonging needs are mainly identified internally, as we tend to feel some level of emotional distress when we do not have loved ones to spend time with. While marketers cannot directly help to satisfy this need, they can sell consumers products to be consumed with loved ones. This takes us back to the example of the meal at a fancy restaurant, in which the meal portion of the restaurant satisfies physiological needs, while the experience of being seated and sharing a meal with loved ones satisfies the need for love and belonging.

ESTEEM

The need for esteem is more difficult for consumers to identify, and may often be misinterpreted for another need. For example an individual may feel that they are not respected in their social circle and believe that this is because their job does not pay well enough or hold enough prestige. However, this could be due to a lack of projected self-confidence that others within the social circle exploit. Thus, marketers often attempt to assist in the identification of the need for esteem by demonstrating how their products would help to improve self-image. One such product may be a clothing brand that makes a person feel better about themselves, because of how the brand is perceived as socially desirable among peers. An individual's need for esteem can only be satisfied if they themselves feel pleased with the benefits of the product usage. However, the product itself cannot satisfy these needs, rather it is the consumer's perception of the outcome of the product usage and how this influences their self-image and sense of achievement that causes the satisfaction of the need for esteem. In the fancy restaurant example, if an individual is able to cover the expense of a dinner for their loved ones, this may create a sense of achievement for them; hence satisfying this need for esteem.

SELF-ACTUALIZATION

The need for self-actualization, much like the need for esteem, is more difficult to identify. This need is often misinterpreted and may require the input of the marketer to uncover intrinsic or underlying needs of the consumer. The need to achieve one's full potential in terms of talents, creativity, independence, etc., cannot be satisfied by the consumption of any single product. However, the product consumption may partially contribute to the need satisfaction. Returning to the example of the fancy restaurant, the food itself provides satisfaction of physiological needs, and spending time with loved ones provides satisfaction of the need for love and belonging. The financial ability to pay for the meal covers the need for esteem. Lastly, if loved ones are most important to the individual: planning out a surprise dinner for friends and family, and taking pleasure in seeing their happiness enjoying the meal experience can take part in satisfying the need for self-actualization. Of course, the extent to which this need for self-actualization is met depends on the individual's aspirations and perception of what their full potential is. It is important to note that while the consumption of this single product (the dinner event) may contribute to a feelings of esteem and self-actualization, no single product usage can completely fulfill these complex sets of needs, which rely more heavily on the individual’s state of mind than product consumption.

2601:3:4400:4DB:41CD:906:14EE:78B1 (talk) 16:06, 30 March 2015 (UTC)