The article that we discussed in class was about mass-production. Throughout different eras, marketers have aimed at different class of consumers. With the shift to market segmentation in the 1960s, marketers turned class differentiation from a criteria based on income towards one that emphasized lifestyle. During the 1950s and 1960s, Americans’ standard of living increased steadily; and marketers started to focus on the working class that had the potential to become a profitable market. By the 1980s, marketers had shifted their attention to upper-class consumers who earned more money and had a greater spending power.
I found this article quite interesting. I was curious to learn which county in the world is leading in consumer spending today. I read an article in the New York Times that a professor Gerth from Oxford University, who pointed out that a large volume of Chinese consumers adopt all or some aspects of middle-class lifestyles – from owning bigger homes stocked with the latest electronic appliances to private cars to modest vacations. These Chinese have begun to lead consumer lifestyles similar to Western countries. Mr. Gerth also mentioned that China’s advertising market has grown by 40 percent every year over the last two decades. Almost all Chinese, whether they are rich or poor, have access to TV programming and the advertising that comes with it. The rich and poor alike are exposed, and tempted to buy new products every time they watch TV. Currently, China is the largest growing consumer market in the world. Mr. Gerth pointed that fifteen years ago, very few people owned cars. By 2009, China surpassed the U.S as the world’s largest car market, which grew an additional 40% in 2010.
