Viewing the Haagen-Dazs’ Advertising from the Consumer Decision-making Process

    1155082031 CHEN Ye (Amanda)

   
    Haagen-Dazs was founded in 1961, and its first store was opened in 1976 in New York. From the very beginning, the brand founder, Reuben Mattus, focused on the high-end market, providing luxury ice-cream of high quality and high price. Nowadays, talking about luxury ice-cream, “Haagen-Dazs” will come to many people’s mind immediately. This essay is aimed to analyze Haagen-Dazs’ advertising strategy, which has earned itself high brand awareness, from the aspect of consumer decision-making process. 

   1. Consumers’ needs/want 

• Fit in consumers’ needs/want - Consideration of the brand name

    The name “Haagen-Dazs” comes from Danish. When Mattus decided to start the business, the U.S. society has a general sense of trust in the European products, which represented high quality and good taste. Therefore, Mattus decided to use the Nordic style name, thinking that it could evoke the feeling of fresh, natural, healthy and high-quality.

• Trigger consumers’ needs/want by advertising 

    Haagen-Dazs’ emotional marketing has earned itself great success. It has a long history of connecting its products with romantic relationships. The well-known slogan “Love her, treat her Haagen-Dazs” (愛她，就請她吃哈根達斯) has spread through the world, attaching fantasy for love and all the romantic feelings to its products. It made the consumers regard the act of treating females Haagen-Dazs as same as sending them roses, a representation of romance. The connection of Haagen-Dazs with romance has contributed a lot to not only its sales, but also the brand awareness of Haagen-Dazs. The advertising made Haagen-Dazs appealing to both the females who have fantasy for beautiful love and the males who would like to express their love. 

    In spite of the connection with romantic relationships, Haagen-Dazs has always insisted on its high-class image. It emphasizes the quality of its products and the strict production procedures, advocating of the “luxury experience” in almost all of their advertising. In the advertising of Haagen-Dazs, words like “Selected”, “Luxury”, “Precious”, “Exclusive”, etc., are of high frequency. The positioning of Haagen-Dazs and the high-class image it has created have successfully triggered consumers’ needs, making them connect the brand with high-quality life in sub-consciousness.

  

   2. Searching Process 

• Internal search 

Though Haagen-Dazs seldom did advertising on television, its print ads of great visual impact succeeded in impressing the target market. The connection with romance and its insistence on high-class image has also earned it high brand awareness. When consumers thinking of purchasing ice-cream, it is easy for them to think of Haagen-Dazs and the brand values behind. 

• External search 

1. Pay more for brands equated with higher status
    Consumers are more willingly to spend higher sums of money for certain brands which are equated with higher status. The Times has given Haagen-Dazs the name of “Rolls-Royce of ice-cream”, which has been used in Haagen-Dazs’ advertising too. The high price of Haagen-Dazs somehow contributed to its high-class image and made consumers believe that it is a symbol of high-quality life. The indications of quality life and relatively high social status behind the brand makes the Haagen-Dazs’ consumers willingly to pay more.


Cognitive mapping – Strengthen the linkage with romance 


      The competition of ice-cream brands is becoming more and more fierce even for those who aiming at high-end market. Competitors like Godiva is a threat to Haagen-Dazs. In order to stand out from the great number of competitors, Haagen-Dazs has done a lot to differentiate itself. Its connection to romance is one of its selling points since it was the first to do that and the effect is hard to copy. During the Valentines, Haagen-Dazs will have special offers for couples and hold some related campaigns aimed at couples. Through the advertising of Haagen-Dazs, it is clear that it has always trying to strengthen the linkage between its products and romance. The pictures below are good examples. 

  

   3. International Implications – Aim at targeting market

    Haagen-Dazs entered the China market in 1997 and opened its first store in Shanghai. To successfully open the China market, Haagen-Dazs has spared no effort to get close to its Chinese consumers. Below are two of the Haagen-Dazs’ cases specifically aiming for Chinese market.

Approaching the new year of 2000, Haagen-Dazs launched special products to the Chinese consumers, including the ice-cream hotpot, which combing western ice-cream with Chinese traditional hotpot, bringing the consumers interesting and special experience.





1. Before the Lantern Festival in 2001, Haagen-Dazs creatively launched ice-cream mooncakes for Chinese market. It is also worth mentioning that the ice-cream mooncakes were limited edition and reservation were needed before purchase. The exclusiveness of the ice-cream mooncake make it even more attractive to consumers.