This is my Consumer Behavior project. We were to select a brand and provide a complete analysis of the consumer behavior.

1. Group Project : TROJAN
Consumer Behavior BAMK 365
Spring 2009
Dr. N.D. Kling
Lyles LJ Armour
Charline Boccara
Michael Hamling
Josh Leiker

2. Table of Content
I. Trojan Brand Condoms History & Quick Facts ................................................................. 4
1. Trojan Brand Condoms History .......................................................................................... 4
2. Quick Facts ......................................................................................................................... 4
II. Decision Process ................................................................................................................. 6
1. Situational Factors .............................................................................................................. 6
a. Communications situation – Sex education .................................................................... 6
b. Purchase Situation – In advance or as needed................................................................. 6
c. Usage situations – Health, pregnancy prevention or both ............................................... 7
d. Disposition- Not a concern with Trojan condoms .......................................................... 8
Recommendation ................................................................................................................ 8
2. External Influences ............................................................................................................. 9
a. Cultural variations – African-American, Latino, White ................................................. 9
b. Values ............................................................................................................................ 10
c. Demographics................................................................................................................ 11
d. Group Influence............................................................................................................. 12
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 12
3. Internal Influences ............................................................................................................ 13
a. Perception ...................................................................................................................... 13
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 14
b. Learning ........................................................................................................................ 15
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 15
c. Motives .......................................................................................................................... 16
d. Personality ..................................................................................................................... 17
e. Emotions........................................................................................................................ 17
f. Attitudes ........................................................................................................................ 18
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3. 4. Problem recognition – active problem .............................................................................. 18
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 19
5. Information Search............................................................................................................ 20
6. Alternative evaluation and selection ................................................................................. 21
a. Affective vs. Attribute ............................................................................................... 21
b. Other Available Brands and Methods ....................................................................... 23
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 23
7. Outlet selection and purchase ........................................................................................... 23
a. Outlet Choice vs. Product Choice.............................................................................. 23
b. Convenience & Point of Purchase Displays .............................................................. 25
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 25
8. Postpurchase processes ..................................................................................................... 26
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 26
9. E-Commerce ..................................................................................................................... 26
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 27
10. Survey............................................................................................................................ 27
a. Questionnaire ................................................................................................................ 28
b. Results ........................................................................................................................... 29
Recommendation .............................................................................................................. 31
Bibliography ............................................................................................................................. 32
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4. I. Trojan Brand Condoms History & Quick Facts
1. Trojan Brand Condoms History
Trojan Brand Condoms was originally created by The Carter Medicine Company, and in 1937
they renamed themselves to Carter-Wallace Inc. 28 year‘s later Carter-Wallace produce
Trojan Condoms and many other brands. In 2001 Church & Dwight CO., Inc acquired Carter-
Wallace, a deal worth $610.5 million dollars. Trojan Brand Condoms are now being
manufactured by Church & Dwight CO., Inc. they are Americas #1 condom. Trojan Brand
Condoms have been around for more the 90 years.
2. Quick Facts
Trojan Brands Condoms are known all across America, but here are some things that many
consumers may not know about the product. The manufacturing of Trojan Brand Condoms is
a six step process;
 Step #1: Building strength with vulcanization
No, vulcanization has nothing to do with pointy-eared aliens. It‘s the process we use to
compound raw latex, giving it strength and elasticity. We pump raw latex into compounding
kettles, add other materials and turn up the heat. We then store the liquid latex compound in
stainless steel tanks.
 Step #2: A quick dip, on to the oven, then a bath
Many a health spa would be jealous. We dip clean glass molds into the latex bath, then cure
them in an oven at 175 ºº Fahrenheit. From there, the glass molds are given a hot-water bath.
Then, rotating brushes remove the condoms from the molds.
 Step #3: On the dry side
The condoms are dried in batches of about 50,000 in large dryers for two hours.
 Step #4: Electronic testing
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5. Electronic testing machines make sure every TROJAN® condom is up to snuff. Each condom
travels on a stainless steel mold into a water solution charged with an electric current. If
current passes through the condom to the mold, there‘s a hole in the condom and it‘s off to the
―reject‖ bin.
 Step #5: Foiled
The condoms that ace the electronic test are individually sealed in foil pouches, and coded
with a lot number and expiration date. Pouches are inspected by hand as they travel off the
line.
 Step #6: Hitting the shelves
We insert pouches into cartons and code them with lot numbers and expiration dates. We then
bundle the cartons and ship them to retailers.
Trojan Brand Condoms also provides consumer with the exact day and year their product was
manufactured. www.Trojancondoms.com explains Julian date code for the example date Oct-
2005 2340U. “Then the next three digits (234) represent the day of the year of manufacture
and the fourth digit (0) represents the year of manufacture. The letter or letters represent
machinery used in the condom’s manufacture.”
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6. II. Decision Process
1. Situational Factors
a. Communications situation – Sex education
“Sex education is the process of acquiring information and forming attitudes and
beliefs about sex, sexual identity, relationships and intimacy.”1 Sex education is also about
developing young people's skills so that they make informed choices about their behavior, and
feel confident and competent about acting on these choices. It is widely accepted that young
people have a right to sex education, partly because it is a means by which they are helped to
protect themselves against unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted
diseases and HIV/AIDS. Obviously, sex education includes the use of condoms.
Sex education may be taught informally, such as when someone receives information from a
conversation with a parent, friend, or through the media. Formal sex education occurs when
schools or health care providers offer sex education. Sometimes formal sex education is
taught as a full course as part of the high school. Other times it is only one unit within a more
broad biology class, health class, or physical education class. But sex education remains
a controversial issue in the United States – especially because of the values‘ issue, as we will
see later.
b. Purchase Situation – In advance or as needed
The purchase situation refers to the situation in which a purchase is made. The situation in
which a purchase is made can influence consumer behavior. “A shortage of time, such as
trying to make a purchase between classes, can affect the store-choice decision, the number of
brands considered, and the price the shopper is willing to pay.”2According to our survey, a
large majority of people purchase condom in advance which means that marketers have a real
opportunity to influence consumers‘ purchase.
But the purchase situation remains embarrassing for a large part of the population. While no
prescription is required, nor ID needed, the purchase itself makes condom use particularly
1
http://www.avert.org/
2
Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh, Best, P.486
6

7. difficult for some individuals, “because purchase is assumed to precede subsequent use in a
sexual encounter”.3 This suggests that the purchase conditions are an important factor into
condom use reluctance. Committed purchasers develop strategies that help complete the
transaction. Males and females rely on similar purchase strategies. Female purchasers express
more concern about the purchase and overall require more strategies, such as ―hiding‖ the
condoms among other items. To conclude, Trojan should really take into account the
acquisition of the product.
c. Usage situations – Health, pregnancy prevention or both
“Marketers need to understand the usage situation for which their product are, or may
become, appropriate.”4 Thanks to this knowledge of the market, marketers can communicate
and insist on the brand and products satisfaction in each relevant usage situation. It is a well-
know fact: latex condoms are the most effective way to prevent pregnancy and to protect
against STDs and HIV. On one hand, with the spread of AIDS and other STDs, latex condoms
may have a greater role in disease prevention than in contraception. On the other hand, the
risk of pregnancy also plays a huge role in condom purchasing decision. Indeed, the breakage
rate for condoms is two out of 100, and condoms stay one of the most effective means to
avoid non-desired pregnancy, and the only one to provide protection against AIDS and other
STDs – excepted abstinence.
Plus, we have to notice that condom use changes with age. It may be hard to believe, but
adolescents – aged under 18 – use condoms more than young adults. The authors believe that,
as they get older, adolescents start to establish themselves in longer-lasting couples, and start
to change their contraceptive use (to hormonal methods, for example, instead of condoms).
“Among young people, the fear of an unwanted pregnancy makes them take greater protective
measures,” report a researcher for the Galician. “However, as people get older, they become
more relaxed in the use of prophylactic methods, and use other methods more, such as the
Pill.” This is a well-known phenomenon – people with fewer partners believe they have a
lower risk. However, it is obvious that, in reality, monogamy does not completely remove all
risks. Then, most of the advertising campaigns have to be directly addressed to teens, and to
some extend to young adults.
Most of the people who used a condom reported a combination of reasons for doing so. Both
disease prevention and contraception are their motivation. But, the reasons vary if we consider
3
The impact of embarrassment on condom purchase behavior, Dahl, Gorn, & Weinberg, 1998
4
Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh, Best, P.486
7

8. those within ongoing relationships versus those outside of an ongoing relationship. For those
within ongoing relationships, pregnancy prevention had great importance: only 10% stated
that disease prevention was their only reason for using condoms. In contrast, for those whose
last sexual encounter occurred outside of an ongoing relationship, disease prevention was
most important: Only 11% stated that pregnancy prevention was their only reason for using
condoms.
Finally, according to our survey, most of people are more concerned by birth control opposed
to health when using condom. So, preventive health strategies must focus on the use of
condoms, not only to prevent pregnancy, but also as a means of preventing sexually-
transmitted diseases.
d. Disposition- Not a concern with Trojan condoms
“Consumers must frequently dispose of products or product packages after or before
product use. [And] decisions made by consumers regarding the disposition situation can
create significant social problems as well as opportunities for marketers.”5 But in the case of
Trojan, disposition situation is not really relevant. Indeed, condom is a one-time usage
product, and there is any issue associate with the purchase of new condoms. Plus, condoms
are available without a prescription, can be bought at most drugstores, in vending machines in
some restrooms, by mail order, and at certain health care clinics, and they are inexpensive.
The only thing is that condoms have an expiration date which tells consumers when it is safe
to use the condom until.
Recommendation
Sex education – Nowadays it is a fact: more and more teens are engaging into premarital sex.
This underscores the need for sex education to students. Sex education can help them make
better informed decisions about their personal sexual activities. And sex education also helps
to lessen risk behaviors in teenagers like engaging in unprotected sex which result in
unwanted pregnancies and STDs. That is why we think that Trojan should engage a vast sex
education program which could also increase the brand image.
5
Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh, Best, P.487
8

9. 2. External Influences
a. Cultural variations – African-American, Latino, White
“Cultural values are widely held beliefs that affirm what is desirable. These values affect
behaviors through norms, which specify an acceptable range of responses to specific
situations.”6 There are numerous factors which have to be taken into account in purchasing
and using condoms, and these ones change across different cultures.
Among U.S. men and women aged 18-59 who had sex in the last year, percentage who used a
condom at last sex, by selected characteristics, according to type of relationship, 1996
National Household Survey on Drug Abuse7:
Race/Ethnicity
Ongoing Casual
relationship relationship
White 16.2% 62.0 %
Black 29.9 % 65.0 %
Hispanic 22.8 % 57.5 %
Other 29.6 % 66.3 %
According to José María Faílde, lead author of the study and a researcher at the Galician
University, ―condom use among young Latino males and females has more to do with
preventing unwanted pregnancies than with preventing infection with sexually-transmitted
diseases‖.
According to a study made on a sample of African-American adolescent males between 18
and 22, from different backgrounds and levels of education, youths noted that condoms help
avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. Using condoms is also considered to be
6
Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh, Best, P.44
7
Condom Use and HIV Risk Behaviors Among U.S. Adults: Data from a National Survey, John E. Anderson,
Ronald Wilson, Lynda Doll, T. Stephen Jones and Peggy Barker
9

10. suitable, responsible behavior. 85% of them say that their families would approve of them
using condoms. This particular group could benefit from more posters on condom use in
schools and public bathrooms, sex education in schools, and the availability of free, quality
condoms. And condom vending machines in schools would encourage condom use.
b. Values
We can refer to a research8 which combines the Values Theory (VT, Schwartz, 1992)
with the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991) in an effort to identify cultural values
supporting condom use. According to this survey, while many similarities were observed in
the estimated models of condom use behavior in the two samples (Americans and Puerto
Ricans), the results suggest that the Puerto Rican value of ―familismo‖ (tradition), and the US
values of individualism and success (achievement and self-direction), are supportive of
condom use in these respective cultures.
Moreover, the conservative value of the American society plays a huge role in choosing to
purchase/use condoms, or not. Indeed, in recent years, under the Bush administration, some
conservatives have claimed that condoms are not very effective in protecting against sexually
transmitted diseases and have pressed federal agencies to adopt this viewpoint.9 Under the
Bush Administration, scientific evidence on the effectiveness of condoms has been
suppressed or distorted to reflect this conclusion. In place of effective, disease-preventing
safe-sex education, the administration has chosen to teach abstinence as the only way to
prevent the spread of AIDS. According to Mitchell Warren, Executive Director of
the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition (AVAC), “There is no single magic bullet to stop HIV
and AIDS—and there never will be. This means that world leaders have an ethical and moral
obligation to provide people with the most comprehensive set of prevention options
available.” And this should be applied no matter what the values of the society are. So, most
of time, values are a brake in purchasing condoms.
8
Comparison of a culturally-tailored model of condom use behavior in Puerto Rico and the U.S., Kiene SM,
Perez-Jimenez D, International Conference on AIDS 15th, 2004, Bangkok, Thailand
10

11. c. Demographics
“Demographics describe a population in terms of its size, structure and distribution.”10
This includes the number of individuals in the society, the age, the education, the level of
income, the occupation, the family structure, the ethnic background, the gender, and the
geographic location. A review of the literature on adolescent sexual behavior reveals that
condom use is influenced by social and demographic characteristics, knowledge about
reproductive health, self-efficacy and attitudes regarding condoms, and issues of access and
affordability. Behavior patterns appear to differ according to gender, age, and education level.
 Age: The likelihood of condom use decreases as youth become older and stabilizes
during adulthood. Levels and consistency of condom use are highest among younger
teens and then decline steadily as teens grow older. This decline in use by older
adolescents, and adults, can be attributed to the fact that, ―as relationships become
more stable, adolescents prefer to use the pill.”11 It has also been suggested that
―older adolescent girls grow in acceptance of their sexuality by assuming the entire
responsibility of contraception.”12
 Gender: ―Historically, sexually risky behaviors have more often been found in boys
than in girls.”13 Boys tend to have their first sexual experience at a younger age than
do girls, and socio-cultural norms also tend to be more permissive for boys. ―Given the
sporadic nature of adolescent sexual activity and the fact that sexual relations are
more often initiated by the male partner, the decision to use condoms is usually
relegated to boys.”14 Actually, women and men have unique roles in the negotiation
process – as far as the use of a condom is concerned –, women play a more active role
in negotiation of condom use, while men play a more reactive role. Women generally
have more favorable attitudes, with the exception of greater inhibition about buying
and possessing condoms. Men engaged in preliminary condom use behaviors (carrying
and keeping condoms at home) substantially more often.15
10
Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh, Best, P.66
11
Geiss & Gerrard, 1984, Whitley, 1990
12
Gruber & Chambers, 1987, Hayes, 1987
13
Chilman, 1986, Earle & Perricone, 1986
14
Sexual behaviors and condom use: a study of suburban male adolescents Adolescence , 1994, Nguyen T. Minh
Nguyet, Brigitte Maheux, Francois Beland, Lucille A. Pica
15
Gender Differences in AIDS-Relevant Condom Attitudes and Condom Use, Sacco, William P.
11

12.  Education: Education is a key determinant for condom use. For both men and
women, condom use is positively associated with higher levels of education. In
addition, education of the male partner appeared to be more important than education
of the female partner probably reflecting that it is mostly the male partner who decides
on the use of a condom. The higher educated more often expressed intentions
to use condom than the lower educated.
d. Group Influence
A group – which is several individuals who are interdependent in some way – prescribes
pattern of behavior expected of a person in a given situation. Group can have influence on
individuals who refer in some way to this last. Actually we talk reference group – the term
comes about because an individual uses a relevant group as a standard of reference against
which oneself is compared. Group influence is even more important among teens, because
most of them are looking for a reference, a behavior to adopt.
According to a study,16 adolescents who perceive referent-group norms as supporting condom
use are almost twice as likely to use condoms during sexual intercourse. Modifying
adolescents' perceived referent norms may result in increased condom use. Indeed, perception
of referent group normative behavior has been identified as the only factor which significantly
differentiated adolescents who use condoms from those who do not. For example,
approximately 81% of adolescents who perceive referent-group norms as supporting condom
use during sexual intercourse were frequent condom users; while, in contrast, only 47% of the
adolescents who perceived referent-group norms as supporting unprotected sexual intercourse
were condom users.
Recommendation
Commercials targeting women – A large majority of condoms ads are addressed to men.
Usually the scenario is made as the condom make them attractive to women. But in a value-
changing society, men are not anymore the only one to take the decision of using a condom.
And women play a huge role in the ―negotiation‖ of condom use. By targeting them, women
could feel more comfortable to buy the condom which is not quite common yet. Given the
importance of the group influence in the decision to use condom or not – especially among
16
Influence of perceived reverent-group normative behavior on adolescents use of condoms, DiClemente R,
DuNah R, International Conference on AIDS
12

13. teenagers, the main target –, the commercial should integrate this aspect by showing, for
example, a group of girlfriends having fun and advising their friend to use a condom.
3. Internal Influences
a. Perception
Perception occurs in four stages – exposure, attention, interpretation, and memory. Trojan
does its best to maximize consumer exposure through advertising and product placement.
Consumer exposure to Trojan condoms can be random or deliberate. For example, a person
might see an ad for Trojan condoms while flipping through a magazine, which is random
exposure. When consumers seek to purchase a condom in a drug store, they might read the
boxes of all the condom brands they are interested in. This is deliberate, voluntary exposure.
As the ad or information is seen, attention occurs. One method of obtaining the consumer‘s
attention is to place the Trojan brand condoms at kiosks within stores, or to have their boxes
placed at eye level on the shelves. Trojan also runs humorous advertisements that consumers
will enjoy watching in hopes of increasing ―interestingness‖ and reducing ad avoidance.
Individual factors also impact attention. Most purchasers of condoms are very motivated to
have a quality product because of the high-risk usage situation. An inadequate product can
result in pregnancy or disease. This makes condoms a very unique product because it‘s
inexpensive but also has temporary high involvement. Once a consumer becomes comfortable
with a brand of condoms, the perception of risk lessens and the product becomes more low-
involvement. Another individual factor, brand familiarity, causes consumers to be less
attentive to ads for products about which they have substantial knowledge. This could be a
problem faced by Trojan because it is a widely known brand. Trojan condoms account for
70.5% of condom sales in drug stores, and have more than 4 times the market share of Durex,
the second runner-up (Koerner).
Following attention, the consumer interprets the data. A consumer choosing a brand of
condoms might interpret price, for example, to be correlated to quality. Though many
consumers are very price-conscious, they may interpret the lowest priced brand as being the
lowest quality and will forgo savings in exchange for confidence that the product will
function properly. This is called price-perceived quality. Consumer expectations also play a
role in condom brand selection. Many consumers expect the well-known brands to be of
13

14. higher quality. This factor can lead consumers to select Trojan over other brands because it is
very well-known.
An article in Design Week called ―Do they have no shame?‖ outlined the various ways in
which personal products such as condoms might be destigmatised. This is very important
because many consumers view a condom purchase as embarrassing or shameful. The article
by Angus Montgomery recommended using straightforward and authoritative language in
advertisements, and to use a warm color palette. The article also explained that Durex
softened their logo to be perceived as more unisex, hoping to become a first choice for female
consumers. Durex also reached out to female consumers by packaging its high-end orgasm
enhancing lubricant luxuriously, like a perfume bottle. This lubricant would most likely be
purchased by women, so the attractive packaging could help the woman perceive the lubricant
as a special product rather than a necessity.
In Brandweek, Kenneth Hein interviewed Church & Dwight vice president of marketing
James Daniels about the condom purchase process. He said that ―while most sexually active
people know that they should use them [condoms], they don‘t bother. Unlike selling other
things people should use—like toothpaste or car insurance—condoms carry a stigma. Some
see them as dirty while others are affected physically as using a condom interrupts ‗the act.‘‖
Daniels went on to explain that most sexually active Americans know how to use condoms
and why it is good for them to do so. However, condoms are only used during 24% of sex acts
in America. Daniels used cultural anthropologists and clinical psychologists to explain why
people use toothpaste every time they brush their teeth, but fail to use a condom every time
they have intercourse. The predictable result of Daniels‘ study was that Americans still
largely view sex as shameful or ―dirty,‖ and hence are embarrassed to have and use condoms.
The less predictable result was that putting on a condom interrupts the sexual instincts of the
male, particularly the instinct to procreate. This interruption has the effect of emasculation.
This is one reason that Trojan‘s marketing is so male-oriented. Daniels concluded that the
product must be viewed not only as responsible, but masculine.
Recommendation
Use this information to optimize marketing strategies – The study found that male
consumers were so put off by the emasculation of wearing a condom that they and their
partner will choose not to use one, despite urgent health concerns. Instead of promoting the
condom as a necessity for health, Trojan should use the ―sex sells‖ strategy. Advertising the
14

15. exciting features of condoms, along with promoting the attractiveness of a Trojan-wearing
man to the opposite sex, could help men feel less emasculated by condoms.
b. Learning
Learning is ―the change in content or organization of long-term memory or behavior.‖
Most purchase actions by consumers are learned behaviors. Memory plays an important role
in the learning process of consumer behavior. Semantic memory is the basic knowledge and
feelings an individual has about a concept. For example, condoms may elicit widely different
feelings from one person to the next. While one consumer‘s semantic memory creates feelings
of responsibility or excitement, the semantic memory of another consumer might lead to
uncertainty or shame. Short term memory (STM) is very important to marketers because
elaborative activities, which serve to add new elements to concepts (such as the purchase of a
product), take place in STM. Because STM can hold a limited amount of information,
marketing strategies must be oriented towards refreshing information for their consumers.
Learning can be high-involvement when consumers are motivated to process information on a
product or low-involvement when a consumer has little or no motivation to process such
information. Communication about the product should be structured differently depending on
the level of involvement. A person purchasing condoms for the first time will most likely be
engaged in high-involvement learning, while a person who is brand loyal will probably
choose a box very quickly.
Recommendation
Use shaping to encourage brand loyalty – Consumers should be given samples of Trojan
condoms to try, with a coupon accompanying the package. Once the consumer tries the
condom and finds it satisfactory, the coupon will encourage a repeat purchase. The consumer
will then become accustomed to Trojan condoms and will become a brand loyal customer.
Currently, one may order a free sample of Trojan condoms online. This alienates consumers
who do not visit the Trojan website. In-store promotion of the free samples would increase
awareness of this offer. Signs and special kiosks featuring the availability of free samples
should be posted in drug stores with convenient mail-in cards for consumers who do not wish
to order the sample online. The customer should also receive a discount or 2-for-1 coupon
with their sample.
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16. c. Motives
One important motive that a consumer has for purchasing condoms is health. Church &
Dwight, owner of the Trojan brand, has been advocating the prevention of sexually
transmitted diseases through its recent ―Evolve‖ campaign. Michael Johnsen wrote in Drug
Store News that the Kaplan Thaler Group created this campaign ―to emphasize the use of
condoms out of respect for the other partner.‖ This campaign focused largely on college
students. A 40-foot long Trojan bus with an IMAx roller coaster ride traveled to colleges
across the country in 2008. C&D chairman Jim Craigie stated that ―three out of four times,
people don‘t use a condom…three out of four times they risk getting a disease.‖ As
mentioned earlier, most consumers know how to use condoms and understand why it is
important to use them.
Aside from prevention of disease, the most obvious reason to use condoms is pregnancy
prevention. However, society generally views babies as good and happy things, and wouldn‘t
necessarily respond well to a marketing program based on the prevention of babies. Some
consumers may be less motivated by the prevention of pregnancy because there are a wide
variety of other methods of contraception available, such as birth control pills and IUDs. This
factor makes disease prevention the most unifying motive across all markets. While some
couples may rely on alternative contraceptives, no one is immune to sexually transmitted
diseases.
Pregnancy prevention is more of a manifest motive (or a motive that is freely known and
admitted) because is not taboo in most instances for a consumer to admit that they would not
like to procreate and any given time. Prevention of STDs is more of a latent motive because
many consumers might be reluctant to admit that they are concerned about their partners
being diseased.
Marketing must be able to address consumers‘ manifest AND latent motives for purchasing a
product. Trojan‘s ―Evolve‖ campaign attempted to do so with one commercial featuring a bar
full of pigs and women. The pigs represented men who without a supply of condoms. In the
commercial, a pig procures a Trojan condom and turns into a very attractive man, in whom a
woman at the bar is very interested. To a male watching the commercial, the manifest motive
is addressed because it is common knowledge that using a condom will almost always prevent
pregnancy. It is obvious in the commercial that the man and woman have met recently and are
not making any family plans yet. The latent motive of prevention of STDs is also addressed
16

17. by the commercial through the portrayal of those who do not use Trojan condoms as
disgusting pigs. Psychologically, consumers associate pigs with dirtiness and disease.
Showing the pig turn into a man stresses that using condoms keeps you clean and healthy.
d. Personality
Trojan has worked for decades to establish a strong brand personality. A brand personality
is a set of human characteristics that become associated with a brand, and some brands
acquire a particular type of image this way. For the Trojan brand, it starts with the name and
logo. Many consumers are familiar with the history of the Trojan horse. The logo is a man‘s
head with a Spartan helmet on. This symbolizes many things, all of them quite masculine. The
name Trojan creates association with intelligence and victory. The Spartan helmet symbolizes
both manliness and protection. All of these things add to Trojan‘s brand personality.
As mentioned above, Durex reaches out to women through attractive packaging and unisex
colors. Trojan does not make any effort in this direction, instead sticking with a hyper-
masculine brand personality that, while potentially excluding women, may attract many men
to the product. Specific dimensions of brand personality into which Trojan condoms fit are
Ruggedness, Competence and Excitement. Because of the personal nature of the product,
Trojan does not use some of the typical methods of communicating brand personality, such as
celebrity endorsers and user imagery. Instead, Trojan uses executional factors such as
humorous ads and strong logo presence.
e. Emotions
Pleasure, arousal, and dominance are key emotional factors in consumer behavior.
Pleasure factors that could motivate a condom purchase are Competence and Pride. The
consumer will want to feel smart and responsible, as well as in control of the situation to
come. Condoms help satisfy these emotional needs. In the dimension of Arousal, Activation
could be a motivating emotion. Activation includes feelings of excitement and activeness.
One struggle that Trojan encounters is the Shame indicator from the Dominance dimension.
Negative, shameful underlying feelings towards sex often reflect upon condoms. Trojan‘s
advertisements generally avoid the emotional approach because of the prominence of shame
in relation to sexual activity.
17

18. f. Attitudes
The first component of consumer attitude is the cognitive component. The cognitive
component consists of the consumer‘s beliefs about a product. This is very important to
consider in the case of condom purchases. For example, a consumer who believes that
contraceptives are immoral might view condoms as the satanic devices. A consumer who
believes that sex before marriage is wrong, but is doing it anyway, will view the purchase of
condoms as shameful. This is the affective component of there attitude – the feeling elicited
by the product. A person with strong hedonic motives who very much enjoys sex and sees
nothing wrong with it will have a much better cognitive attitude because the condom is not
shameful or evil to this person. In fact, the affective response to the condom might elicit
feelings of anticipation and excitement. It is all dependent on the individual attitudes of the
consumers. The behavioral component is also intertwined with the cognitive and affective
components. For sensitive products such as condoms, it is difficult to estimate the response
tendencies of consumers. Trojan has inferred that the response tendency of a consumer with
negative cognitive and affective responses to condoms might have the behavioral tendency to
purchase online. As a result, Trojan‘s website directs consumers to online outlets through
which condoms may be discreetly purchased.
4. Problem recognition – active problem
Problem recognition in the mind of a consumer results from a gap in desired and actual
states of being which is large enough to activate the consumer decision process. For example,
a person may not have any children, which is the consumer‘s current situation. The
consumer‘s desired lifestyle may be to remain childless until marriage. A situational factor,
sexual activity, contributes to the problem recognition process. In this instance, the consumer
realizes that his sexual activity could result in fertilization. Here, the problem is recognized.
The desire to resolve a problem is largely dependent on the magnitude of the discrepancy
between the desired and actual states, and the relative importance of the problem. In the
situation of birth control, both are very high. Having a baby versus not having a baby
represents a huge discrepancy between the desired and actual states, and is also a very
18

19. important issue. The consumer, in this case, is very aware of the problem, which by this
definition is an active problem.
However, another dimension contributes to the consumer decision process in the purchase of
condoms. This dimension is the problem of variety-seeking. Consumers may become bored
with current products and attempt to satisfy their craving for diversity. If a consumer is not
satisfied with the varieties within a brand, or does not know that such varieties are available,
they may solve their variety problem by purchasing a different brand. Trojan has done well in
recognizing and providing for the desire for variety. Trojan offers over 40 different kinds of
condoms, such as lubricated, ribbed, flavored, and latex free.
When Trojan makes an effort to induce problem recognition in consumers, they are soliciting
generic problem recognition. This is because the 2 major problems that consumers recognize
in this case are birth control and STD prevention. When Trojan seeks to raise awareness of
these issues, the best the company can do is to increase the general market size. This is
because these problems can be solved by many brands, not just Trojan.
Recommendation
Trojan already heavily advertises the health benefits of using condoms. However, the problem
recognition for consumers simply urges them to use a condom. Trojan needs to advertise its
condoms using a unique selling point that draws customers to Trojan condoms, not just
to condoms in general. For example, Trojan offers a lubricated condom with a pleasure-
enhancing lubricant. This would be a good feature to promote because many consumers
purchase this lubricant separately. Promoting the convenience and excitement of this type of
condom could increase the purchases of brand-loyal consumers and urge other consumers to
try Trojan condoms for the first time.
19

20. 5. Information Search
Once the consumer realizes that they have a problem to solve, they will perform internal
and often external searches to find all the possible solutions. A consumer who recognizes the
problem of needing a condom for pregnancy prevention and health will first perform an
internal search to determine whether they already have the information needed to make a
decision. This search will be based on the consumer‘s personal evaluative criteria. For a
person who needs to purchase condoms, the evaluative criteria may include reliability,
pleasure, and size. Trojan‘s goal is to design a marketing plan that informs consumers about
the various ways in which Trojan condoms can meet their evaluative criteria.
Sexually active consumers will most likely have an awareness set established for condom
purchases. The evoked set includes the brands and types of condoms that the consumer will
evaluate further. The inept set contains brands or products that the consumer feels are
unacceptable for consideration. This set, for example, might include Trojan Magnum
condoms for a consumer with no need for a larger size of condoms. The inert set contains
brands that the consumer knows about but feels indifferent toward. Given that Trojan
condoms account for over 70% of condom sales, one can infer that the Trojan brand is in the
awareness set of consumers with the need for condoms.
Once the consumer addresses his or her evoked set, they will compare them based on their
personal evaluative criteria. This requires the consumer to have the necessary information for
their evoked set. The consumer might use the following sources of information:
 Memory: The consumer could use past experiences, such as a bad experience with a
defective condom or a good experience with a lubricated condom, to make a decision
 Personal sources: the consumer could ask for a recommendation from a friend or recall
previous advice
 Independent sources: The consumer may have read a study on the effectiveness of a
certain type of condom, and uses this to evaluate his or her options
 Marketing sources: The consumer may base their decision on a previously viewed
advertisement
 Experiential sources: The consumer could request a sample for product trial
20

21. If these internal searches prove insufficient, the consumer will seek information based on their
evaluative criteria. One source for this information is the internet. A Google search for
―condom‖ provides the Trojan website as the foremost link. The website features detailed
descriptions and graphics of all the Trojan products, as well as a substantial FAQ section. It is
important for Trojan to drive customers to their website to increase brand loyalty and gain
market penetration.
Across brands, condoms are essentially very similar in price and variety. This lessens the
chance of an external search that requires much effort. Customers are more likely to perform
an external search by inspecting packaging. Trojan includes extensive detailing and
information on their condom packages for this reason. For example, a consumer who is
interested in a lubricated condom may take time in the store to choose between spermicidal or
tingling lubricants. Many customers will be engaged in low product involvement, especially if
they buy condoms regularly. However, first-time purchasers or those who are unfamiliar with
prophylactics may be more motivated to learn about the product and all of their options.
Similarly, consumers who view condoms as positive will be more prone to perform an
external search. Those with negative views about condom purchases will be more likely to
grab the first box they see with a brand they recognize.
6. Alternative evaluation and selection
a. Affective vs. Attribute
Given our company selection Trojan and our particular product condoms, we have
determined that the majority of users have a positive affective feeling. When a consumer‘s
consummatory motive comes into play along with their emotions consumers looking for our
product have a positive reaction. We also determine that the primacy goal out of our sample
survey group was overall health while the instrumental motive was birth control. When it
comes to attribute based selections, we had to look a little deeper. Given that the general idea
of a condom is for protection from unplanned births and STD‘s we have to look at the
condom at its individual level. Below is a list of attributes between different condoms that are
offered by Trojan provided by www.trojancondoms.com.
21

22.  Material
 Latex
 Non-latex
 Lubricant
 Climax Control
 Lubricated
 Non-lubricated
 Spermicidal
 Warming
 Size
 Extra Large
 Large
 Regular
 Designs
 Extra sensitive
 Extra sensitive
 Mutual stimulation
 Roomier
 Standard design
 Textured
 Transmit body heat
As you can see consumer looking for variety have plenty of options available to them. Of
course each above attribute comes at a cost and not all are available in all areas. The good
thing Trojan has going for them is brand loyalty so price for many consumers did not come
into play. Trojan also did not have to worry about store image. Many consumers looking for
this product did not care where they located their product, they were more concerned how
soon and fast they could get it to fulfill their desire.
22

23. b. Other Available Brands and Methods
With Trojan caring four times the market share their next closes competitor is Durex.
Durex has attempted to capture a different portion of the market. Durex offers the same
options above stated in the affective vs. attribute section, but they have additional attributes
available as shown on their website, www.durex.com. Their biggest different or additional
option is Tropical Flavored condoms. Pleasures Plus, LifeStyles, Trustex, and Inspiral are
additional brands available to consumers. After speaking to several non-users of condoms we
also discovered a withdraw method not relating to abstinence know as ―pull-out.‖ This is
simply a process in which a male removes his penis from that female‘s vagina and ejaculates
elsewhere. There is no data provided that this is an effective method against unplanned births
and STD‘s. An additional method that was also brought to our attention was birth control.
Many non-users of condoms also rely on birth control as their next form of protection. The
only concern we found with that as a resource was that it doesn‘t prevent against STD‘s.
Recommendation
Given that Trojan provides many options to choose out of we recommend that Trojan would
take a look at the affective motives – We believe that if Trojan should air more marketing
strategies like their ―Evolve One Evolve All‖ ads that ―scare‖ consumers into using our
product or show the benefits. As of right now Trojan according to their website has 67
different Trojan ads not all of which have aired on T.V. We are aware of the social risk, but
understand that Trojan Condoms is a product that is often overlook and not given enough
credit. If consumers are going to participate in sexual activities it is important that they protect
themselves. This release of ads will not only promote their brand image, and market share, but
in the long-run help society as a whole. They will be contributing to reducing unplanned birth
and STD‘S.
7. Outlet selection and purchase
a. Outlet Choice vs. Product Choice
When it came to discovering how consumers react to choosing an outlet to purchase a
product over the brand we didn‘t find any real correlation. Trojan condoms are found in any
grocery store, convenient store, gas station and of course in sex shops. What we did see is,
depending on which of the locations above are closer determined which outlet to go to.
23

24. Trojan also allows consumer to purchase their product online from several partnering
websites. That will be further explained in the E-Commerce section. Another key factor that
comes into play for consumer is the perceived risk. Even thought the majority of consumers
feel there is more risk when not using our product, most consumers believe that condoms
have a 99.9% success rate; PubMed states that the actual success rate is 98.1%. When we
compare the risk of our products to many of the risk that consumer believe are present i.e.
social cost, financial cost, time cost, effort cost, physical cost we found that consumer believe
our product to be a benefit rather than having any risk.
 Social cost from the information we gather can be seen several ways. Parents of young
kids may feel that Trojan promoting they openly would leave kids with an open mind
set that sex at a young age is acceptable. While kids themselves see it as a resource,
meaning that if they are going to be sexually involved, they would rather have a
condom then not. Also believing that their parents would be proud that the acted
responsibly
 Financial cost for Trojan products is reasonable across the board. When we asked
those who purchase condoms that had a long-term outlook, stating that ―I‘d rather pay
5 bucks for a box of condoms, then be paying for a child at a young age.‖
 Time cost was again like financial cost. It wasn‘t something that many consumers we
spoke to concerned with. The majority of the complaints came from males, where they
stated that they had to leave their ―activity‖ to go purchase the product.
 Effort costs are cost that we did not see relevant in our product. There was little effort
involved in with the purchasing of our product or with the use of our product.
Although there are instructions on each box of condoms many users don‘t often read
them.
 Physical cost did not show any implications to our product. The only side affect to our
project would be if a consumers were allergic to latex, where Trojan has product that‘s
fit those needs being non-latex condoms.
Again we found that there was not a perceived risk to purchase our product but more so a risk
if our product was not purchased. Throughout our search for Trojan consumers knowledge,
we did notice that consumer looking for our product did have some idea of a comfortable
store atmosphere. Given that consumers stated that they did feel uncomfortable purchasing
condoms we found that low lighting and merchandise presentation was important. Consumers
24

25. wanted a feeling that there were in a secluded area where their selecting of condoms can be
somewhat hidden.
b. Convenience & Point of Purchase Displays
Convenience played a major role in our product. Again consumers normally went to the
closes location available to them to purchase our product. With information from our survey
we saw that roughly 50% of our purchase were unplanned or spur of the moment where the
rest were in advance purchases. We also thought of how to attract consumer to our product
with point of purchase displays. Point of purchase displays with the product presented by
Trojan comes with many conflicts. Although it would appear that with a product that many
are aware of and easily ready to purchase that a point of purchase display would be
convenient. But after speaking to several consumers who were interview, many believed that
there would be a negative social effect that Trojan as a company would have to take on. They
stated that many parents or social organizations who promote abstinence would lash out
against the company. We also found that some consumers would be too embarrassed to pull
our product from a point of purchase display. Thus, we agree that a point of purchase display
would be better to leave for a different product.
Recommendation
Given that we have decided that point of purchase displays are not valuable options and can
be found in several locations. We recommend that Trojan began to provide coupons, or
set up a multiple-item discount and partner with another product such an energy drink.
With them being able to provide coupons that will allow more brand awareness and brand
loyalty. While multiple-item discounts would allow consumer who wouldn‘t regularly buy a
product, buy this particular product because they are given a discount to the product that
they initially wanted to purchase. For example, a consumer comes into a store for an energy
drink; see an additional discount for Trojan condoms if they purchase the drink and Trojan
Condoms at the same time. The consumer then decides that not only can he/she get the energy
drink they wanted but they will also be able to purchase a product that can be use in the
future.
25

26. 8. Postpurchase processes
Once the consumer purchases the product, they evaluate it based on instrumental
performance. Essentially with the Trojan product, it either works as a protective sexual
device, or breaks. Comfort is also another relative factor influencing the consumers
postpurchase evaluation. Given the relatively low price and situation, purchasing condoms is
a low involvement purchase and consumers do not exhibit a large amount of dissonance after
purchase. Trojan, being the brand leader in this market, has done an excellent job at turning
customers into repeat purchasers with their image of reliability and quality.
Affective performance can show a small influence on the consumer as well; the situation
calling for this product is usually associated with positive, strong feelings and one might come
to associate those feelings with this brand. Consistent quality control is very important to
Trojan as any flaws in their product can lead to serious repercussions and lead to customer
dissatisfaction.
Recommendation
Consumers typically see condoms as an item that they should use as opposed to something
they want to use. Trojan should develop an ad campaign that repositions purchasing and
using condoms into something that consumers feel good about doing. By tapping into the
affective performance of the product, Trojan can make customers feel happy and proud of
themselves for practicing safe sex.
9. E-Commerce
Trojan offers links to various online stores through their website,
http://www.trojancondoms.com where one can purchase their products over the internet. This
can remove the ―embarrassment‖ factor which can affect a lot of customers. Since there is
somewhat of a stigma placed on purchasing condoms, at least for younger consumers, this can
create a considerable amount of comfort and make the consumer much more likely to
purchase.
The Trojan website offers an easy to use catalog showcasing their many products. Consumers
can obtain information and learn about the differences in each product in the comfort of their
26

27. own home without having to ask a retail associate in a store, who might not be too
knowledgeable on the product in the first place. Another benefit of this is that most stores
probably do not carry the entire Trojan catalog so the website offers consumers the maximum
amount of choices. Each product information page also provides quick and easy links to
ordering that specific product.
Free samples are easily obtainable right on the home page. You can typically choose a free
sample of one of their newer lines that consumers might have not had a chance to use. Using
product seeding for their new lines can be a great way to generate word of mouth and give
consumers a risk-free way to try a product that they might not normally use. Additionally,
this adds a physical ―touch‖ aspect in deciding if the consumer wants to go with Trojan or go
with another brand, perhaps one that is better known to them at the time.
The ―Evolve One, Evolve All‖ campaign from Trojan, one of their largest in recent history, is
an attempt to promote the message of sexual safety to as many people as possible. They are
hoping to take advantage of social networking and viral marketing with their commercials
being shared online. The website http://www.evolveoneevolveall.com features creative
advertisements that can easily be viewed and shared by visitors, and a community where you
can view and upload your own video pertaining to the campaign.
Recommendation
When a customer chooses to order a particular product on Trojan.com, they are given several
affiliate sites that sell condoms where you can purchase the given product. Having several
third-party choices to choose from may turn off the consumer. If Trojan was able to supply
these condoms directly through their website, it would eliminate the ―online middleman‖
and be that much easier for the consumer to order their product. Developing a network to
ship directly to the consumer should not be too difficult to build as it is already done when
one orders a free sample from the website.
10. Survey
We conducted our own survey to try to get a better grasp of the purchasing behavior of
college students. Here is the survey administered to 52 students at the Monfort College of
Business.
27

28. a. Questionnaire
1. Are you a MALE or FEMALE?
2. What brand first comes to mind when purchasing a condom?
3. Do you have a favorite brand or do you choose when you get to the store? BRAND or
STORE.
4. Do you research before purchasing? If yes where?
A. In Store
B. Online
C. Word of mouth
D. T.V.
E. Other _____________________
F. Don‘t research
5. What is your main reason for using a condom HEALTH or BIRTH CONTROL?
6. Are condoms the primary source for protection? YES or NO.
7. Does your partner purchase the condoms? YES or NO.
8. Do you shop alone when purchasing condoms? YES or NO.
9. Are condoms easily accessible to college students? YES or NO.
10. When do you purchase condoms?
A. Spur of moment
B. In advance
11. Are you concerned with price when purchasing condoms? YES or NO.
12. Would you purchase Trojan Condoms from a Specialty Sex store rather than your
local convent corner store if they had more variety? YES or NO.
13. Are you uncomfortable purchasing condoms in a store? YES or NO. If it were a
specialty sex store would you? YES or NO.
14. After your purchase do you feel Positive or Negative?
15. When considering Trojan Condoms, what is the first thing that comes to mind? i.e.
quality, price, variety, size.
16. What would persuade you to choose Trojan Condoms over other brands? Please rank
the effectiveness of each method.
A. Free samples
B. Price
C. Package look
D. Location (register, kiosk)
E. Product information availability
28

29. b. Results
Influences to Choose Trojan Condoms
Men
Free Sample
34%
Product Info
Availability
50%
Price
8%
Location
Within Store Package Look
0% 8%
As evidenced in the chart above, 50% of men said that the availability of information about
Trojan condoms would influence them to choose the brand. The second most common
response was an offer of free samples. None of the men responded that location of Trojan
condoms within the store influenced them to choose the brand.
Influences to Choose Trojan Condoms
Women
Free Sample
33%
Product Info
Availability
56%
Price
0% Package
Look
Location Within 0%
Store
11%
Female respondents showed a preference for product information availability as an influence
of their brand decision. As with the males, the second most popular influence was a free
sample offer.
29

30. 25
20
15
Positive
10 Negative
5
0
Feelings towards purchase (Men)
Clearly, the overall feelings towards purchasing condoms a positive for a vast majority of
respondents.
30
25
20
15 Positive
Negative
10
5
0
Feelings towards purchase (Women)
None of the women who responded to the survey had negative feelings when purchasing
condoms.
30

31. Main Reason For Condom Use
17%
38% Health Men
Birth Control Men
Health Women
Birth Control Women
37%
8%
The results to this question were particularly surprising. It is clear that the majority of both
men and women use a condom for health reasons. Only a quarter of the respondents said that
their primary reason for using condoms is pregnancy prevention. This was interesting because
pregnancy prevention is the manifest motive for condom usage, while health is the latent
motive.
Recommendation
The results of our surveys show us that information availability is of foremost importance to
the college student segment. Trojan can do this by adding more informational material to the
packaging of their products. Another way to provide more information would be to include
kiosks with attention-grabbing informational panels. To enhance the informational content of
the Trojan condoms on the shelves of retail locations, we recommend using dispensers similar
to the coupon dispensers in many grocery stores. These dispensers would distribute slips of
paper with information about health benefits of Trojan condoms, as well as the unique
features of their assorted varieties.
31

32. Bibliography
 http://www.avert.org/
 Consumer Behavior: Building Marketing Strategy, 10th ed., Hawkins, Mothersbaugh,
Best
 The impact of embarrassment on condom purchase behavior, Dahl, Gorn, &
Weinberg, 1998
 Condom Use and HIV Risk Behaviors Among U.S. Adults: Data from a National
Survey, John E. Anderson, Ronald Wilson, Lynda Doll, T. Stephen Jones and Peggy
Barker
 Comparison of a culturally-tailored model of condom use behavior in Puerto Rico and
the U.S., Kiene SM, Perez-Jimenez D, International Conference on AIDS 15th, 2004,
Bangkok, Thailand
 Geiss & Gerrard, 1984, Whitley, 1990
 Gruber & Chambers, 1987, Hayes, 1987
 Chilman, 1986, Earle & Perricone, 1986
 Sexual behaviors and condom use: a study of suburban male adolescents, 1994,
Nguyen T. Minh Nguyet, Brigitte Maheux, Francois Beland, Lucille A. Pica
 Gender Differences in AIDS-Relevant Condom Attitudes and Condom Use, Sacco,
William P.
 Influence of perceived reverent-group normative behavior on adolescents use of
condoms, DiClemente R, DuNah R, International Conference on AIDS
 The Other Trojan War - What's the best-selling condom in America?, Koerner,
Brandon, Slate, September 29, 2006 http://www.slate.com/id/2150552/
 Trojan Takes on U.S Sexual Health Crisis, Brandweek, Hein, Kenneth, 1/18/2009
 Do they have no shame ?, Montgomery, Angus, Design Week, 1 /29/2009 Vol. 24
Issue 4
 Vendor campaigns stimulate sexual health awareness, Johnsen, Michael, Drug Store
News, 12/8/2008, Vol. 3 Issue 1
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