Climbing Maslow's Pyramid

Abraham Maslow(1908-1970), the famous American psychologist, developed an easy-to-understand model to understand human needs. He named it the Hierarchy of Needs.

Simply put, human needs are stacked in the shape of a pyramid. At the bottom, you meet physiological needs (hunger, thirst, shelter). As you climb up, you meet needs for safety (home, job, security, law, and order), love and belonging (acceptance by others, desire to fit in a group), self-esteem (achievement, status, prestige), and finally, at the top, self-actualization (seeking personal growth, realizing one’s potential).

The pyramid depicts an important truth for marketers. Lower needs are the strongest drivers of human consumption (a pyramid’s base is always larger than the tip). As a result, in the market, you find vegetables have more buyers than lifestyle-related premium products. However, Maslow also cautioned that while drawing any conclusion about human needs and related motivations, one must not forget two things.

Firstly, it is not mandatory that needs are fulfilled sequentially. A person may have a highly-paid job, great perks, office-sponsored foreign tours (self-esteem fulfilled), but he is a loner with hardly any friends or social network (belonging need unfulfilled). Secondly, multiple needs may play at the same time. During summer, a college-going youth drinking from a can of Coke is a good example. The drink can satisfy human needs at three levels. Quenching thirst (physiological need), making the drinker appear sort of ‘smart’, ‘cool’ and ‘accepted’ to peer groups who also buy the same brand (belonging need) and helping the drinker to feel good about himself as many people around him have to buy a low-cost ‘nimboo-paani’ (lemon water) when they are thirsty (self-esteem need).

Maslow’s pyramid has found many takers in advertising as it is a simple but extremely handy tool to research consumer buying motivation for different products. 

The physiological need is the easiest to understand. You are thirsty or hungry so you grab a can of Coke or head for the nearest McDonald’s outlet.

You buy a pension scheme, life insurance, home security systems. Why? To feel secure and safe, right? These products fulfill your safety need. 

Every time you log in to your Facebook or Twitter account, buy trendy clothes, browse dating sites, use Axe deodorant to attract girls, apply ‘Fair and Lovely’ cream to find the ‘suitable boy' (or girl), browse self-improvement books - you are governed by your need for belonging.

You join Talwalkar health club, buy work-out equipment for home, book a luxury car (don’t forget to pay a premium for the VIP number plate!), decide for cosmetic surgery to achieve that killer look - you guessed it right, it is Maslow’s self-esteem need in play.

Finally, self-actualization - here people are happy with themselves and need less external validation to live their life. They invest in paintings or sculptures; participate in charity, travel to exotic locations, enrolled in a new course to tap a hidden talent.

So, next time you are about to swipe your card, stop for a while and think about your real motivation for buying. You may be surprised.

Enjoy shopping!