The college consumer is one many choose to target. The continuous lack of money and the needs of the average college student are always one of interest as a target market of advertisers. Being the college student that advertisers often use as a target consumer I decided to track my purchases throught our first SNOW DAY. This is my story ...
It was the blizzard of the century in Baton Rouge, LA. Schools closed and roads were shut down. How could I survive? What was I going to do? LSU was closed and there was no telling when life would return to normal.
I woke up that cold winter morning and could feel the chill in my room. With no heater in the house I needed to get out. I needed to escape and take a drive to enjoy the warmth of my truck heater. I decided to go out and make the trecherous drive to the grocery store to collect the snow day essentials which would get me through the next few days of cold that lie ahead.
I made my way ... very slowly ... to the wonderous Albertsons grocery store in order to collect what I needed. This thing people from further up north call snow and ice was everywhere. I had finally made it. I jumped out of the truck and ran for my life to the doors of Albertsons. After making it inside I had no idea where to start so I grabbed a basket and began to making my way around the store, just happy to be out of the cold.
First stop ... canned goods!!!! I began looking around the endless items on the shelves and couldn't seem to make a decision. What was going to satisfy my stomach during these cold winter days? Then all of the sudden there is was ... Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli. The ultimate easy to make meal that any college student would enjoy. Scouped up two and tossed them in the basket, YEP couldn't have been happier. But wait, what's that sitting right next to it .... a 4-pack of Cheesy Made Easy Macaroni and Cheese. How could I be the man that I am and just let it sit there? Someone needed to enjoy its warm cheesy goodness, might as well be me. Grabbed that 4-pack ... which I will say was a steal and tossed it in the basket. After picking up my delicious meal choices for the next couple of days, I made my way on throught the endless isles of Albertson's. What was next ..........?
Yep, that it. You guessed it. The cereal isle and all of its wonders. I began gazing at the endless cereal choices and couldn't seem to make a decision. There were so many choices. I had to stop and think ....
I turned around to get my bearings and Oh My Gosh!!! It was like heaven. It looked as if it was glowing ... It was the FRUIT SNACKS SECTION. Full of delicious gummies which would make anyone a happy happy happy person. The thought of grabbing a box of cereal had completely escaped my mind. But how could I choose? They all looked so good. The Spiderman gummies looked delcious, but the traditional fruit snacks did too. Then I saw it, that beautiful little tag sitting under the Kellogg's Harvest Acres Fruit Snacks, "BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE." HA, YEP. Sounds like a steal. Grabbed my two boxes and went on my way. Never once looking back at the 20 yard long, 10 foot high side of the isle with endless cereal choices. Then I turned the corner ......
There it was in all its glory, the JUICE ISLE!!! I had finally made it to the promised land. Orange juice, apple juice, cranberry juice, juice with 97 different flavors all in one, energy drinks, arnold palmer, and that nasty juice that is actually vegetables but tastes like fruit ... I was right were I needed to be. Personally, I'm an apple juice guy. A cold swig of apple juice right out of the bottle to start your day is a feeling you just can't pass up. I found the small designated area for apple juice and then it was time to decide. After stepping back and thinking about it, apple juice it apple juice so why spend the extra money. Essential Everyday 100% Apple Juice was staring me in the face at a solid price of $1.49. OH YEAH! I made the grab and tossed it in the basket. On to the next isle ...
I had apple juice which was great, but I really needed something to quench my thirst when enjoying a nice meal. Then it hit me ... Dr. Pepper. One of the worlds greatest beverages ... with oh yeah, thats right ... 23 FLAVORS which make one amazing creation. Finally found the softdrink isle and made it down to the Dr. Pepper. Do you know how outrageously priced Dr. Pepper is? Yeah its not even fair. I can't afford that. I'm not made of money. I already had a basket full of amazing items, so I turned and ran. However, I didn't make it far. Maybe about 4 feet when I saw it ... a 12-pack of Super Chill Dr. Chill ... the off-brand. About half the price. Now that I can do. I didn't even hesitate. I grabbed that Dr. Chill and headed to the register ...
It was a beautiful thing. The clerk began to ring up my haul and the price began to add up, but then suddenly ... it stopped. $20 ... YEP. Best $20 I have ever spent. I grabbed my bags and jumped into the truck to hurry home ... well hurry in a slow manor, ice covered roads freak me out.
I made it home, grabbed a raviolli and a Dr.Chill, and just relaxed. Then wrapped myself under my warm covers and took a nap. What else could this day bring on?
I woke up from my nap with a missed call. It was my buddies and it was time to join forces on this snow day. You can't just spend all of that time alone. So I got myself up, got ready and headed out once again to face the cold winter conditions.
Next stop ... Gas station. It was time to hangout and that could not be done without a few beers. I'm in college. It's like my life line. It gets me through the days. The Shell Station was the closest so off I went. The typical broke college students would normally make the same ordinary cheap choices ... Keystone? Natty Light? Maybe Busch if you're really tight on cash? But ohhhh no! Not me! I may be poor but you have to have your priorities in line. To me you don't just buy beer cause it's cheap. You have to atleast be able to enjoy it ..... Coors Light. The taste of greatness thats as cold as the Rockies. It's a beautiful thing. A higher price tag, but still ..... a beautiful thing. I made it back to the truck and then it hit like a ton of bricks. Hunger had set in. What does one do on this cold winter snow day when a majority of places are closed .................?
Well, if you are an LSU student you know the next step. Where better to go then Nine Dragon. A local LSU to-go chinese food favorite with a cheap price tag, delicious taste, and huge potion size was a must. That place never closes. Hurricane? HA ... we're open. Nuclear attack? HA .... we're open. I made the call and placed my order then got back on the road to make the track to Nine Dragon. This is where things got tricky. The bridges providing the shortest route to Nine Dragon were closed. However, with my MacGyver like driving abilities, a little curb hopping, and drives through parking lots ... I made it. I ran inside and grabbed that General Tso Chicken Combo ... with Egg Roll. Nine Dragon had that smell of victory when I got it back to my truck.
It was back to the house to enjoy this delicious food and crack a beer with my buddies. I had conqured my day and made purchases of a lifetime in one short span of time.
***location provided below for all of those looking for a good chinese spot***
Conclusion: We all have particular purchase behaviors and each individual can be placed into a particular taget market. The decision to purchase off brand apple juice and off brand Dr. Pepper was made simply because of the fact I can get equal satisfaction regarless of price. I chose the fruit snacks because I got them buy one get one free (what a deal). The decision to stop at Nine Dragon was because I weighed satisfaction with price and portion size. My purchase decisions were driven by price and discounts offered, not much else. Advertisers can use this data in order to target a product or service to a particular target market. In this case a college aged market.
Purchase decisions are also driven by product placement. Who's to say I would have even purchased the Easy Mac had it not been located right next to the Chef Boyardee. The placement of products next to similar products creates a buyers choice. Which does he/she choose or does he/she just choose both. The placement of products guides consumers through the stores and drives the consumer to the final purchase.
The minor fluctuation in a large data pool would be the fact that I chose to purchase the more expensive Coors Light over a case of Natural Light or Keystone. I weighed out the fact that my satisfaction of drinking a more expensive beer was worth it compared to purchasing a less expensive, horrible tasting beer.
Collection of similar date for all target markets is cruicel for advertisers. Without this data you would advertise cheap chinese food to Mr. Richie Rich and a $100 average check restraunt to the college student with $2.15 in his/her bank account (I have been there quiet a few times, but who's counting). This data allows for advertisers to get the most return from their advertising dollars by choosing the correct target market for a product or service.
