tailieunhanh - Intuitive Evolutionary Perspectives in Marketing Practices

Firms spend considerable sums of money on marketing, and they continue to do so because marketing works. However, marketing can only work if marketers have a reasonably accurate view of human nature. It is argued that many consumer products and advertisements reflect an accurate view of human nature, a view that is compatible with the tenets of evolutionary psychology. Implicit theories of human nature that are out of synch with reality sell few products. An overview of an evolutionary perspective on marketing is provided here, and connections between marketing practices and evolved adaptations, including kin selection, prestige seeking, preferences for salt, sweets, and fat, and savanna-like landscapes are examined. Adaptations that. | Intuitive Evolutionary Perspectives in Marketing Practices1 Stephen M. Colarelli and Joseph R. Dettmann Central Michigan University ABSTRACT Firms spend considerable sums of money on marketing and they continue to do so because marketing works. However marketing can only work if marketers have a reasonably accurate view of human nature. It is argued that many consumer products and advertisements reflect an accurate view of human nature a view that is compatible with the tenets of evolutionary psychology. Implicit theories of human nature that are out of synch with reality sell few products. An overview of an evolutionary perspective on marketing is provided here and connections between marketing practices and evolved adaptations including kin selection prestige seeking preferences for salt sweets and fat and savanna-like landscapes are examined. Adaptations that differ by sex and how they are mirrored in marketing are also examined. Finally some marketing practices that reflect evolutionary principles of variation are discussed. 2003 Wiley Periodicals Inc. Although the relationship between academic psychology and marketing has a long and mutually beneficial history DiClemente Hantula 2000 the practice of marketing particularly advertising and product development suggests a curious paradox. For most of the 20th century an evolutionary perspective was almost absent in academic psychology yet during the same period many consumer products and appeals used 1 Portions of this article are from Colarelli 2003 and Colarelli Alampay and Canali 2002 . Psychology Marketing Vol. 20 9 837-865 September 2003 Published online in Wiley InterScience 2003 Wiley Periodicals Inc. DOI 837 in advertising reflected an implicit view of human nature similar to that articulated by evolutionary psychology which emerged only recently. The purpose of this article is to draw attention to connections between an evolutionary perspective and marketing .