All students must complete a major project that is due at the end of the term. The purpose of this project is to provide you with an opportunity to:

ü Examine a consumer behavior-related issue and/or problem in detail and first-hand,
ü Gain experience analyzing a consumer behavior issue/problem that is not “pre-digested” or well laid out for you (e.g., you are not presented with all the relevant information in a tidy case format),
ü Design and analyze primary market research that you have collected,
ü Apply some of the important concepts and knowledge you have acquired in the course, and
ü Combine your conceptual, theoretical, and analytic knowledge and skills with your creativity

For the project, each student should select a real-world marketing issue in which consumer behavior plays a critical role (some examples are listed below). This issue can be one that a company or organization that you have access to is grappling with or one that you can acquire information about by reading business or other publications.

Some examples of consumer behavior issues include:
1. How do marketers shape young consumers’ self-concept?
2. What kinds of consumers collect certain products (e.g., beanie babies, precious moments sculptures) and why?
3. Depiction of men in advertising and how it’s changed over the decades?
4. Understanding the psychology and consumption behavior of teens?
5. Experiential marketing and appealing to consumers’ senses (color, taste, sounds, scents, etc.)
6. How effective is social media in influencing purchase decisions?