2012 Awards for Excellence

Citation

(2013), "2012 Awards for Excellence", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 30 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM.07730aaa.003

2012 Awards for Excellence

Article Type: 2012 Awards for Excellence From: Journal of Consumer Marketing, Volume 30, Issue 1

The following article was selected for this year's Outstanding Paper Award for Journal of Consumer Marketing

``The grey awakening: a South African perspective''

Justin Beneke, Nicole Frey, Ruth Chapman, Nontuthuzelo Mashaba, Tatum Howie
School of Management Studies, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

Purpose - This article is the culmination of an exploratory study into the mature market (defined as over the age of 55) in South Africa. The article aims to focus on the mature market's media consumption, perception of portrayal in the media, adoption of technology, and outlook on life -- all of which influence their spending patterns in their twilight years.

Design/methodology/approach - The study gained an international perspective of the mature market through the literature on the subject. Empirical analysis of the South African market was thereafter conducted through a lifestyle survey of 117 respondents living in metropolitan areas. The data were imported into - and analysed using - Statistica for descriptive and clustering purposes.

Findings - The mature market is, unsurprisingly, most in favour of traditional media channels. To this end, television, radio, magazines and newspapers still remain an effective means to communicate with this market. Use of mobile phones and the internet was observed - although in a limited sense. A negative attitude towards advertising was observed on the whole, with individuals within this cohort feeling neglected in favour of younger consumers. The variables Age, Income, living standard measure (LSM) groupings and Internet usage, when utilised in conjunction, appear to be an effective differentiator of the mature market in South Africa. Three lifestyle clusters were discovered by the study, namely: Old optimists, Young up-beats, and Younger opinionists.

Originality/value - It has been established that the mature market is a lucrative one for retailers. However, the majority of studies have been focused on developed nations such as the UK and the USA. This study brings about an emerging market perspective.

Keywords Older consumers, Consumer behaviour, Perception, Communication management, Market segmentation, South Africa

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/10.1108/07363761111115953

This article originally appeared in Volume 28 Number 2, 2011, pp. 114-24, Journal of Consumer Marketing

The following articles were selected for this year's Highly Commended Award

``Consumer effects of environmental impact in product labeling''

Norm Borin, Douglas C. Cerf, R. Krishnan

This article originally appeared in Volume 28 Number 1, 2011, Journal of Consumer Marketing

``Willingness to pay for socially responsible products: case of cotton apparel''

Jung E. Ha-Brookshire, Pamela S. Norum

This article originally appeared in Volume 28 Number 5, 2011, Journal of Consumer Marketing

``The moderator effects of perceived risk, objective knowledge and certainty in the satisfaction-loyalty relationship''

Ho Huy Tuu, Svein Ottar Olsen, Pham Thi Thuy Linh

This article originally appeared in Volume 28 Number 5, 2011, Journal of Consumer Marketing