What is the most important thing a marketing practitioner can learn from maslows theory?

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Design/methodology/approach
Originality/value
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Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Potential Marketing Implications of Maslow's Theory
Practical Applications of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Things to Consider
What theory of motivation is related to the idea that customers desire?
Which theory suggests that consumer expectations of achieving desirable outcomes motivate behavior?
Which of the following needs from Maslow's hierarchy is addressed by the US Army's advertising slogan?
Which marketing philosophy emphasizes interacting with customers on a regular basis and giving them reasons to maintain a bond with a company's brands over time?

Kelly Dye (Fred C. Manning School of Business Administration, Acadia University, Wolfville, Canada)

Terrance Weatherbee (Fred C. Manning School of Business Administration, Acadia University, Wolfville, Canada)

Abstract

Purpose

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This paper aims to build on recent work in the field of management and historiography that argues that management theorizing needs to be understood in its historical context.

Design/methodology/approach

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First, the paper attempts to show how a steady filtering of management theory and of the selection and work of management theorists lends itself to a narrowly focused, managerialist, and functionalist perspective. Second, the paper attempts to show how not only left‐wing ideas, but also even the rich complexity of mainstream ideas, have been “written out” of management accounts. The paper explores these points through an examination of the treatment of Abraham Maslow in management texts over time.

Findings

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The paper's conclusion is a simple one: management theory – whether mainstream or critical – does a disservice to the potential of the field when it oversimplifies to a point where a given theory or theorist is misread because sufficient context, history, and reflection are missing from the presentation/dissemination.

Originality/value

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This paper highlights the importance of reading the original texts, rather than second or third person accounts, and the importance of reading management theory in the context in which it was/is derived.

Keywords

Management history
Gender
Culture

Citation

Dye, K., Mills, A.J. and Weatherbee, T. (2005), "Maslow: man interrupted: reading management theory in context", Management Decision, Vol. 43 No. 10, pp. 1375-1395. https://doi.org/10.1108/00251740510634921

Publisher

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Successful marketing persuades a prospective client to purchase the product or service you are selling. One of the most effective ways to accomplish this is to appeal directly to one or more of his basic needs. Many business students are taught to view Maslow's hierarchy of needs as a guideline against which to target marketing efforts, arguing that success depends on meeting one of Maslow's identified needs. Although other needs theories also have relevance, Maslow's needs hierarchy remains the foundation for many fruitful psychological approaches to marketing.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

In the most basic sense, Maslow's hierarchy identifies five primary areas of needs experienced by most humans. Beginning with physiological, or basic life survival, needs, the model progresses in subsequent steps through safety and security, love and belongingness, self-esteem and finally self-actualization. Maslow postulated that as man meets the needs at the first level, he moves toward the next, then the next and so on. More recent studies have added levels to the needs hierarchy and refined the categories, but marketing classes throughout the country continue to use Maslow's needs hierarchy as a reasonable focus for modern marketing efforts.

Potential Marketing Implications of Maslow's Theory

Maslow posited that human behavior and decision-making are motivated by one of the five need levels in his hierarchy. Applied to marketing theory, your ability to effectively appeal to one of these motivational drivers is a key determinant of your potential success. Non-essential services – massage treatments or custom tailoring, for example – may be marketed successfully to those in the fourth or fifth level of Maslow's hierarchy because those people are driven by the needs for increased self-esteem and realizing their full potential.

The same marketing campaign is unlikely to appeal to those on the first level, as they are driven by the most basic of human needs: food, water and other elements of survival.

Practical Applications of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

A prospective customer driven by Maslow's second needs level, safety and security, might be enticed to buy a new car if you convince him that it is safe for his family, reliable and well-rated in consumer studies. Someone driven by the need for self-esteem, in needs level four, is looking for recognition and validation, so you might tailor your marketing to convince her that acquiring and implementing your accounting methods will bring accolades from her peers or make her look good to her boss.

Things to Consider

Maslow's basic principles linking marketing to human psychology remain valid. You connect best with prospective customers if you appeal to their needs in a relevant, meaningful way. Consider the level of need your customer is trying to meet, and market your product in such a way as to convince him that it will fulfill exactly that need. Perform periodic evaluations of your marketing techniques because your target audience may not remain static.

Always be aware of where on Maslow's needs hierarchy your customer base is and where your product fits in. The more these two dovetail, the more effective your marketing efforts are.

Chapter 4 Introduction to Consumer Behavior.

Which theory suggests that consumer expectations of achieving desirable outcomes motivate behavior?

Expectancy theory contributes to the understanding of motivation. An individual's expectations are affected by the certainty they feel that their actions will result in their expected reward or goal. There is an immediate relationship between exertion and accomplishment.

Which of the following needs from Maslow's hierarchy is addressed by the US Army's advertising slogan?

Consumer Behavior.

Which marketing philosophy emphasizes interacting with customers on a regular basis and giving them reasons to maintain a bond with a company's brands over time?

Relationship marketing is a facet of customer relationship management (CRM) that focuses on customer loyalty and long-term customer engagement rather than shorter-term goals like customer acquisition and individual sales.