A STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF NOSTALGIA MARKETING ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

 

V. Rasika ¹, Dr. T. S. R. Vijay Janani ²

 

¹ Undergraduate, Department of Commerce (Hons.), Ethiraj College for Women, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

² Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce (Hons.), Ethiraj College for Women, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 

 

1. INTRODUCTION

Nostalgia is often described as a feeling of pleasure, mixed with sorrow that bring forth a bittersweet longing for the past. Derived from the Greek Word ‘Nostos Algos’ which roughly translates to homecoming sorrow, nostalgia taps into the cherished memories and past experiences of the person experiencing it. Nostalgia serves as a coping mechanism as it allows individuals to seek comfort in cherished memories during times of stress or uncertainty. In marketing, brands are capitalising on nostalgia by strategically using them as a promotional tool to create an emotional connection with consumers. By associating their brands with positive concepts, ideas, events, or figures, nostalgia marketing creates a sense of comfort, happiness, and familiarity with the brand, ultimately influencing consumer behaviour. Additionally, nostalgia makes us realise the importance of relationships as a significant portion of nostalgic feelings stems from recollections of shared experiences within a social group. This sense of belonging makes consumers lose grip on the finances making them less concerned about the immediate cost and more receptive to the product.

This research aims to explore the psychological mechanisms that affect consumer decisions, analyse the impact of nostalgia marketing across different generations, evaluate nostalgia as a double-edged sword, and assess the impact of nostalgia marketing on brand reputation and consumer loyalty.

 

2. METHODS AND TOOLS USED

To analyse the research objectives, primary and secondary data were utilised. Primary data was collected through questionnaires completed by 180 respondents. Secondary data was gathered from research articles and publications by various organisations and websites. The survey included demographic questions, questions assessing familiarity with past brands, purchasing behaviour, and Likert-scale items measuring perceptions of nostalgia marketing’s impact on brand reputation and loyalty.

The data was analysed using IBM SPSS. Descriptive statistics summarised responses. Spearmen and Pearson’s correlations examined relationships between variables. T-test was used to compare means, ANOVAs analysed group differences, and Chi-square tests assessed categorical associations. Frequency analysis was used for Likert scale items.

 

3. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

3.1. Alkhafagi, Y.A.M. (2023), The Effect of Nostalgia Marketing on Consumers’ Purchase Intention, 29 (136), 27-39.

This research examines the influence of nostalgia marketing by focusing on demographic factors. The findings of the study suggest that nostalgia can be strategically integrated into product planning to enhance consumer purchase intentions. By incorporating features that trigger nostalgia into products, marketers can effectively capitalise on consumers’ emotional connections to the past. Nostalgia marketing exhibited a stronger positive effect on purchase intentions among women compared to men, which varies across marital status with widows showing the highest impact, followed by divorced, married and single individuals. The author recommends incorporating nostalgia-driven product planning for companies as their marketing strategies.

 

3.2. Udita Bansal, 2022, Vol. 21, No. 2, 00-00, Nostalgic Consumers: A Study of the Impact of Nostalgia Marketing on the Consumers

This paper explores the emotional and psychological power of nostalgia and its application in marketing. It examines how nostalgic themes evoke positive emotions to influence consumer preferences, purchase intentions, and brand loyalty. The study highlights that nostalgia enhances mood, self-esteem, and social connectedness, fostering favourable consumer attitudes. It also identifies individual differences, cultural contexts, and situational cues as moderating factors in nostalgia’s effectiveness. The research design includes a comprehensive literature review on the psychological mechanisms of nostalgia and its marketing applications, and survey-based data analysis to measure its impact across multicultural groups. The findings reveal that nostalgic marketing strategies significantly boost purchase intentions and brand loyalty, concluding that nostalgia is a powerful emotional tool for shaping consumer behaviour and creating strong brand connections.

 

3.3. Masoga, L., Mohamed, S., Madinga, N., & Wahl, K. (2024). Reconnecting with the past: Examining nostalgia advertising’s impact on purchase intentions

This study investigates the role of nostalgia in advertising and its effects on consumer attitudes and behaviours. The authors aim to assess the impact of nostalgic versus non-nostalgic advertising on consumers’ purchase intentions. The study examines how attitudes toward

advertisements and brands influence brand image, loyalty, and purchase intentions. The researchers collected data from 250 participants using online surveys. The findings revealed no significant difference between the effects of nostalgic and non-nostalgic advertising on attitudes toward the advertisement and the brand. The brand attitudes were found to significantly influence purchase intentions, brand image, and brand loyalty. In contrast, consumers’ attitude towards advertisements did not have a direct impact on purchase intentions. As a conclusion, while nostalgic advertising may not directly enhance attitudes towards brands or advertisements when compared to non-nostalgic advertising, it fosters positive brand attitudes which remains crucial for improving purchase intentions, brand image, and brand loyalty.

 

4. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Table 1

Table 1 Age of the Respondents
	Frequency	Percent
Below 20	29	16.1
20-30	65	36.1
30-40	7	3.9
40-50	12	6.7
Above 50	67	37.2
Total	180	100.0
Source: Primary Data

 

Inference: From the above chart, it is understood that majority of the respondents are from the age groups above 50 (37.2%) and ’20-30’ (36.1%). 16.1% of the respondents are aged below 20, while 6.7% belong to the age group 40-50 and 3.9% belong to the age group 30-40.

Table 2

Table 2 Gender of the Respondents
	Frequency	Percent
Female	90	50
Male	90	50
Total	180	100.0
Source: Primary Data

 

Inference: The above chart shows the gender distribution of the respondents of the survey. The total sample consists of 180 respondents. Out of the total respondents, 50% are female and 50% are male.

Table 3

Table 3 Monthly Family Income of Respondents
	Frequency	Percent
Less than Rs.50,000	16	8.9
Rs. 50,000- Rs. 1,00,000	40	22.2
Rs. 1,00,000 - Rs.1,50,000	29	16.1
Rs. 1,50,000 - Rs. 2,00,000	24	13.3
Above Rs. 2,00,000	71	39.4
Total	180	100.0
Source: Primary Data

 

Inference: The above table shows the monthly family income of the respondents. Majority (39.4%) of the respondents have income above Rs 2,00,000 followed by 22.2 % respondents having a monthly family income of Rs 50,000 – Rs 1,00,000. 16.1% of the respondents have a monthly family income of Rs 1,00,000 – Rs 1,50,000. Around 13.3 % of the respondents have a monthly family income of Rs 1,50,000- Rs 2,00,000.

Chart 1

Chart  1 Emotional Response to Nostalgic Brands/Product

 

Inference: The above chart shows the distribution of each emotion that respondents experienced when asked to view an image of brands and products associated with the previous generation. It can be inferred that majority of the respondents felt nostalgia when they came across the brands and products they were familiar with. The respondents have also felt happiness which is often felt along with nostalgia. However, a few respondents have acknowledged that they felt no emotions when they saw the image which suggests that nostalgic emotion is subjective and not universal as individual responses may vary.

Table 4

Table 4 Purchase Intentions for High-Priced Nostalgic Products
	Frequency	Percent
Yes, definitely	30	16.7
Yes, but only if the price difference is small	47	26.1
Maybe, depending on the product	92	51.1
Probably not	5	2.8
No, not at all	6	3.3
Total	180	100.0
Source: Primary Data

 

Inference: The table presents the distribution of responses regarding the purchasing intentions of the consumers for high-priced nostalgic products. Majority of the respondents have chosen “Maybe, depending on the product” (51.1%). 16.7% of the respondents are willing to purchase high-priced nostalgic products, while 26.1% of the respondents would consider buying them only if the price difference is small. However, a small percentage of respondents have chosen no (3.3%) for an answer. This suggests that price sensitivity and product-specific considerations play a crucial role in purchasing decisions.

Table 5

Table 5 Relation Between Nostalgia and the Likelihood to Purchase the Nostalgic Product
Correlations
	Nostlagia	Happiness	Curiosity	Indifferen Ce	Likelihood
Correlation Coefficient	1	-.149*	-.170*	-.300**	.311**
Nostlagia Sig. (2-tailed)	.	.047	.022	.000	.000
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation Coefficient	-.149*	1.000	-.248**	-.300**	.019
Happiness Sig. (2-tailed)	.047	.	.001	.000	.804
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation Coefficient	-.170*	-.248**	1.000	-.122	-.091
Curiosity Sig. (2-tailed)	.022	.001	.	.103	.224
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation Coefficient	-.300**	-.300**	-.122	1.000	-.125
Indifference Sig. (2-tailed)	0	0	.103	.	.096
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation Coefficient	.311**	.019	-.091	-.125	1.000
Likelihood Sig. (2-tailed)	0	.804	.224	.096	.
N	180	180	180	180	180
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Source: Primary Data

 

Inference: The above table shows the correlation between likelihood of purchase and various emotions such as nostalgia, happiness, curiosity, and indifference. It can be inferred that there is a positive correlation (r=.311) between nostalgia and the likelihood of purchasing a nostalgic product. Therefore, as the feeling of nostalgia becomes stronger, higher is the likelihood of purchasing a nostalgic product. The feelings of happiness and curiosity have weak positive correlation with the likelihood to purchase a nostalgic product. There is a negative correlation (r=-.125) between the feeling of indifference and the likelihood of purchase.

Table 6

Table 6 Examination of Generational Differences in the Perceived Manipulative Intent of Nostalgia Marketing
Anova
	Sum of Squares	df	Mean Square	F	Sig.
Between Groups	18.785	4	4.696	1.098	.359
Within Groups	748.165	175	4.275
Total	766.95	179
Source: Primary Data

 

H0 – There is no significant association between age group and the perceived manipulative intent about nostalgia marketing.

H1 – There is significant association between age group and the perceived manipulative intent about nostalgia marketing

Inference: A one-way ANOVA was conducted to examine the generational differences in the perceived manipulative intent of nostalgia marketing. Since the p-value (.359) is greater than the significance level of 0.05, we accept the null hypothesis and infer that there are statistically no significant differences between age group and the perceived manipulative intent about nostalgia marketing. Therefore, based on the data, there is no evidence to conclude that the perceived manipulative intent in nostalgia marketing varies across different age groups.

Table 7

Table 7 Comparision of the Positive and Negative Perceptions of Nostalgia Marketing
Paired Samples Test
	Mean	Std. Deviation	t	df	Sig. (2-tailed)
Positive Perceptions	4.44444	2.82689	21.093	179	.0000
Negative Perceptions
Source: Primary Data

 

H0 – There is no significant difference between the means of positive perceptions and negative perceptions of nostalgia marketing

H1 – There is a significant difference between the means of positive perceptions and negative perceptions of nostalgia marketing

Inference: A paired sample T-test was conducted to examine the difference between the positive and negative perceptions of nostalgia marketing. Since the p value (.000) is lesser than the significance level (0.05), we reject the null hypothesis and infer that there is a statistically significant difference between the positive and negative perceptions.

Table 8

Table 8 Mean Value of Positive and Negative Perceptions of Brands That Use Nostalgia Marketing
	Mean	N
Positive_Perceptions	15.2944	180
Negative_Perceptions	10.8500	180
Source: Primary Data

 

The above table shows the mean values of positive and negative perceptions. The mean value of the positive perceptions is 15.2944 and the mean value of the negative perceptions is 10.8500. The mean score of positive perceptions is significantly higher than the negative perceptions. It can be inferred that the respondents held significantly more positive views than negative views about brands that use nostalgia marketing.

 

Chart 2

Chart  2 Reasons for the Purchase of Products from Older Generations

 

Inference: The above chart is based on the responses provided by the respondents regarding the reasons why they choose to buy products from the older generation as consumers. Majority of respondents (53.3%) have selected “They remind me of my childhood” which indicates the strong influence of nostalgia in choosing products from the older generations. 36.1% of the respondents believed that products from the older generations are of better quality which suggests that perceived quality acts as a motivator in influencing consumer choice. 30.6 % of the respondents are drawn to the “unique and distinctive” nature of older generation products. 27.8% of the respondents have admitted to choose to buy products from the older generations because they find them to be sustainable and healthier. This factor remains to be moderately influential. 13.3% of the respondents have chosen the popularity and advertising of the products, making it the least influential factor.

 

Chart 3

Chart 3 Impact of Nostalgia Marketing on Brand Reputation and Consumer Loyalty

 

Inference: The above chart presents the results the responses of the respondents about their perceptions of brands that use nostalgia marketing. A vast majority of the respondents hold positive views of brands as they are perceived ‘Innovative but rooted in tradition’ (47.2%) and ‘Reliable’ (46.1%). This suggests that the consumers appreciate brands that innovate the products from older generations. Therefore, there is more scope for the brands to diversify their product line by incorporating innovative features in nostalgic products to keep up with the latest advancements and maintain customer loyalty. 17.8% of the respondents’ associate “High- Quality” with the brands that use nostalgia marketing. This suggests that while nostalgia marketing contributes to positive brand perceptions, it may not influence the consumers’ perception about the product quality. A small percentage of respondents hold neutral (16.7%) views. Though 3.9% of respondents who have chosen “Outdated” as their perception of brands that use nostalgia marketing is minimal, it indicates that nostalgia marketing must be executed carefully by the brands to not make them perceived as outdated or manipulative.

Table 9

Table 9 Relationship Between Purchase Frequency, Loyalty, Reputation and Brand Outcomes
Correlations
	Frequency	Loyalty	Reputation	Positive	Negative
Correlation	1.000	.206**	.296**	.307**	-.019
Coefficient
Frequency
Sig. (2-tailed)	.	.006	.000	.000	.801
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation	.206**	1	.479**	.744**	.041
Coefficient
Loyalty	.006	.	.000	.000	.587
Sig. (2-tailed)
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation	.296**	.479**	1	.935**	.183*
Coefficient
Reputation
Sig. (2-tailed)	.000	.000	.	.000	.014
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation	.307**	.744**	.935**	1	.142
Coefficient
Positive
Sig. (2-tailed)	.000	.000	.000	.	.057
N	180	180	180	180	180
Correlation	-0.019	.041	.183*	.142	1.000
Coefficient
Negative	.801	.587	.014	.057	.
Sig. (2-tailed)
N	180	180	180	180	180
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). Source: Primary Data

 

5. Variables

·        FREQUENCY- Frequency of the purchase of a product due to nostalgia marketing

·        LOYALTY- Consumer loyalty towards nostalgic brands

·        REPUTATION- Reputation of brands that use nostalgia marketing

·        POSITIVE- Consumers’ positive perception towards nostalgia marketing NEGATIVE- Consumers’ negative perception towards nostalgia marketing

Inference: The above table shows the correlation between different variables that impact the brand reputation and consumer loyalty of brands that use nostalgia marketing. Brand reputation and positive perceptions show a strong positive correlation (r= .744, p< .01). Consumer loyalty has a positive correlation with brand reputation and positive perceptions. This indicates that positive perceptions of nostalgia marketing enhance the brand reputation and consumer loyalty. However, the frequency of purchase and negative perceptions have a weak negative correlation.

 

6. CONCLUSION

The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of nostalgia marketing on consumer behaviour. The results showed that most of the respondents were emotionally connected with nostalgic products making it a powerful marketing tool. However, it was also revealed that nostalgia is not universal as a few respondents did not strongly feel nostalgic towards brands and products from older generations. The analysis also revealed that although nostalgia increases consumer preferences towards buying nostalgic products, pricing played a crucial role in influencing their decisions. This suggests that brands must keep in mind product specific considerations and pricing strategies while marketing. It was also revealed that the more a consumer feels nostalgic about a product, the likelihood to purchase increases. Although the analysis revealed no relationship between the perceived manipulative intent and age groups, the brands must keep in mind that the concern is universal and maintain a balance to resonate with the consumers. The analysis also suggests that although, consumers hold more positive views than negative views by perceiving brands that promote nostalgic products as innovative and reliable brands must ensure that the quality of the nostalgic products meet consumers’ expectations. The brands also have more scope to diversify their product line by incorporating innovative features in nostalgic products to keep up with the latest advancements and maintain customer loyalty. Overall, it can be concluded that nostalgia is a potential tool for influencing consumer decisions, but the effectiveness depends on balancing emotional appeal, price considerations, and quality to resonate positively with the consumers.

 

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

None. 

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

None.

 

 

REFERENCES

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https://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=9049506&fileOI  d=9049508