The thesis is submitted to the Auckland University of Technology In partial fulfilment of the degree of Master of Arts (Art and Design) Visual communication design strategies: Multidisciplinary human-centred approach In branding and marketing Jenny Yu 2006 Attestation of Authorship I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it contains no material previously published or written by another person nor material which to a substantial extent has been accepted for the qualification of any other degree or diploma of a university or other institution of higher learning, except where due acknowledgement is made in the acknowledgments. _____________________________________________ Jenny Yu 2006 2 Ethics Approval This project has obtained ethic approval 05/68 from the Auckland University of Technology Ethics Committee on 13th May 2005 3 Abstract This research study is focused on the buying behaviour of modern consumers. The literature indicates that modern consumers are sophisticated, discerning and are less loyal to a particular brand than they used to be. Consumers today are more concerned with buying a product that not only meets their needs but also provides them with pleasurable experiences. There are many ways to explain buyer behaviour; however for this thesis storytelling, dream theory, and “Lovemarks” have been used to examine the usefulness of the selected theories to the visual communication design industry. The research has focussed on an homogeneous product (bottled water) as a vehicle to establish whether all the plans and strategies in recently published literature can be trusted and be used for design strategies for planning a marketing campaign. The reason for doing this is to establish some new knowledge that could contribute to the design industry in terms of criteria for branding, marketing and design strategy in visual communication design. An extensive secondary research of the literature has been made to inform this study. Primary information has also been gathered by using carefully designed and comprehensive materials involving professional interviews, and a major case study of bottled water has been conducted, which includes a field study, focus groups and surveys. Information and raw data generated by the research have been analysed either quantitatively or qualitatively. The result generated by this study is not conclusive, however, pointing to the fact that the buying behaviour of consumers is complex and variable. There was also little agreement among the professional interviewees in terms of the role of human behaviour and its application in the design campaign. 4 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisors Professor Leong Yap and Peter Gilderdale for their guidance and wisdom during the past two years. Without them both, I would not have been able to complete the Masters programme. I would like to share this thesis with my dearest husband Hogan Chen and my aunt Mei-Ying Wong, for their mental, emotional and physical support. Thank you for enduring, and encouraging me during the Masters programme. I would like to thank Stuart Young who has guided me in analysing the statistical data. I also like to thank Elizabeth Ardley and John Barnett in proofreading my thesis. I am grateful to my parents who have looked after my new-born son during my thesis writing. Lastly, special thanks to all my friends who have prayed for me and those others who have contributed their time and assistance to my studies. 5 Table of Contents Table of Contents ATTESTATION OF AUTHORSHIP ........................................................................................................2 ETHICS APPROVAL ................................................................................................................................3 ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.......................................................................................................................5 TABLE OF CONTENTS ...........................................................................................................................6 CHAPTER 1 .............................................................................................................................................10 CHAPTER 2 .............................................................................................................................................14 2.1. PROPOSED RESEARCH ................................................................................................................14 2.2. VISUAL COMMUNICATION DESIGN INDUSTRY............................................................................15 2.3. STORYTELLING ..........................................................................................................................17 2.4. DREAM THEORY ........................................................................................................................21 2.4.1. “Dream Society”..............................................................................................................21 2.4.2. Selling Dreams .................................................................................................................26 2.5. NEW CONSUMERS......................................................................................................................28 2.6. LOVEMARKS ..............................................................................................................................32 6 Table of Contents 2.7. A WHOLE NEW MIND ................................................................................................................35 2.8. SUMMARIES ...............................................................................................................................37 CHAPTER 3 .............................................................................................................................................39 3.1. RESEARCH DESIGN ....................................................................................................................39 3.2. INTERVIEWS WITH PROFESSIONALS............................................................................................40 3.3. CASE STUDY..............................................................................................................................42 3.3.1. Research Planning ...........................................................................................................43 3.4. SUMMARIES ...............................................................................................................................46 CHAPTER 4 .............................................................................................................................................47 4.1. PART I – INTERVIEWS WITH PROFESSIONALS................................................................47 4.1.1. Background of interviewees .............................................................................................47 4.1.2. Sample Interview Questions.............................................................................................48 4.1.3. Interview Results ..............................................................................................................50 4.1.4. Interview Summaries........................................................................................................60 4.2. PART 2 – CASE STUDY ..........................................................................................................64 4.2.1. Field Study........................................................................................................................64 4.2.2. Focus Group.....................................................................................................................89 7 Table of Contents 4.2.3. Survey............................................................................................................................. 111 CHAPTER 5 ...........................................................................................................................................145 5.1. RESEARCH PROJECT.................................................................................................................145 5.2. DISCUSSION .............................................................................................................................146 5.2.1. Changes in the design industry ......................................................................................146 5.2.2. Effective ways of promoting products or services ..........................................................147 5.2.3. The Existence of dream theory and “Lovemark”...........................................................150 5.2.4. The future of the design industry....................................................................................152 5.2.5. Summaries......................................................................................................................153 5.3. ISSUES ARISING FROM THE RESEARCH....................................................................................153 5.3.1. Issues with Interviews.....................................................................................................153 5.3.2. Issues with Focus Groups...............................................................................................154