| Course | MKT 435 Consumer Behavior (MKT/435) |
|---|---|
| Week | 5 |
| Paper type | Consumer insight communication plan |
| Length | about 1,016 words, 4 double-spaced pages plus title page and references |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | University of Phoenix |
| Program | BS in Business |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MKT 435 Week 5
Speaking to Skeptics, Partners and Researchers: Turning Consumer Insight Into a Communication Plan
[Student Name]
University of Phoenix
MKT/435: Consumer Behavior
Week 5 Final Assignment
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Lumen Row, its campaign plan, budget and test results are composites written for a model paper.
Lumen Row, the composite Colorado home fitness company, has spent four weeks studying the people who buy its $1,499 connected rowing machine. It now needs to turn that understanding into a communication plan that brings more qualified shoppers to the brand, helps them decide and keeps them rowing after purchase. The annual communication budget is about $3.6 million, roughly 13% of revenue. Consumer research is only worth paying for if it changes what a company says, to whom and where. This paper converts the insights into objectives, messages, media and measures.
Summary of Insights
Buyers take about six weeks to decide and often stall when comparing options. They are motivated by health, convenience, performance or community, and those who row for enjoyment stay engaged longest. They judge quality partly through price and the feel of the machine. Many doubt they will keep using equipment, and perceived control over sticking with workouts drives intention. Partners often share decisions, friends' experiences matter and the brand community reduces cancellations.
How Advertising Works
Vakratsas and Ambler (1999) reviewed more than 250 studies and concluded that there is little support for a single fixed hierarchy of effects. Advertising works through cognition, affect and experience in different combinations depending on the product and context. Lavidge and Steiner (1961) had earlier described a ladder of effects in which buyers first learn a brand exists, come to understand and like it, prefer it, feel sure about it and finally buy. Lumen Row will use stages as a planning tool while recognizing that buyers move back and forth.
Objectives
Awareness: raise aided awareness among adults interested in home fitness from 24% to 32%. Consideration: increase visitors who use the comparison tool by 25%. Trial: grow showroom and home trial bookings by 30%. Retention: raise the share of owners active at six months from 70% to 78%.
Creative Brief
Target: adults 35 to 64 interested in home fitness who doubt they will stick with it. Insight: they believe rowing works but not that they will keep doing it. Objective: move them to book a home trial. Main message: people like you keep rowing, and here is how. Proof: activity data and real member stories. Tone: warm, honest and encouraging, never shaming. Call to action: start a 30-day home trial.
Message for Skeptics
Insight: skeptics doubt their own follow-through. Message: You have quit before. Here is why this time can be different. Proof: data on owners who complete onboarding and stories from members who once abandoned gym memberships.
Message for Researchers
Insight: researchers build criteria as they go and stall when overwhelmed. Message: Compare honestly. Proof: a two-year total cost chart, independent noise tests and a quiz that recommends one setup.
Message for Partners
Insight: partners worry about noise, space and cost. Message: It fits your home and your budget. Proof: a video of the machine in a small living room during a phone call and a cost comparison with two gym memberships.
Messages by Motive
Motive groups from Week 2 still guide creative choices inside each message. A skeptic who is also a health protector might see a 58-year-old member describing how rowing eased her knee pain, while a skeptic who is mainly short on time might see a parent fitting a 15-minute class between school drop-off and a first meeting. Performance seekers receive progress charts, and social rowers receive invitations to the next live team challenge.
Shareable Content
Berger and Milkman (2012) analyzed thousands of news articles and reported that articles stirring strong, energizing feelings spread further than calm or saddening ones, and that upbeat pieces outperformed gloomy ones. Lumen Row will make milestone moments easy to share, such as completing a first 100 kilometers, with uplifting visuals.
Matching Messages to Stages
The plan staggers messages through the six-week decision. In the first two weeks, social video aims to spark recognition and show relatable members. In weeks two to four, search and comparison content answer researchers' questions. In weeks four to six, showroom invitations, partner videos and trial offers address final doubts. After purchase, onboarding and community messages take over. Retargeting will be capped so shoppers are not followed by the same ad for weeks.
Media: Search
Search ads and pages answering common questions will reach researchers when they are actively looking.
Media: Social Video
Short member stories on Instagram, YouTube and Facebook will reach skeptics and partners, targeted to adults 35 to 64 interested in fitness and health.
Media: Showroom Events
Couples' trial nights in showrooms will let partners experience quiet operation and feel.
Media: Professional Partners
Physical therapists will receive information on rowing for rehabilitation to share with patients.
Media: Email and the App
Onboarding emails, habit reminders and community invitations will support retention.
Budget
Search $900,000; social video $1.2 million; showroom events $400,000; professional partnerships $200,000; content production $600,000; testing and research $300,000.
Retention Communication
Communication does not stop at the sale. In the first 30 days, new owners will receive a welcome call, short reminders at their chosen workout time and invitations to beginner group classes. At three months, they will see progress summaries. Owners who have not rowed in two weeks will receive a friendly check-in offering easier classes rather than guilt.
Testing
Each message will be tested with small budgets before scaling. Variables include message type, length and imagery.
Measures
Awareness surveys, comparison tool use, trial bookings, purchases, six-month activity and cancellations will be tracked by message and channel.
Risks
Member stories could seem staged if overproduced, so videos will be filmed simply in real homes. Heavy retargeting could annoy shoppers, which is why frequency caps apply.
Ethics
Claims will be supported by data. Health benefits will not be overstated. Member stories will be real and consented. Personal data will be used only with permission.
Conclusion
Lumen Row's plan translates consumer insights into tailored messages for skeptics, researchers and partners and into media that reach them. Research on how advertising works and why content is shared guides the approach, while testing and measures ensure learning continues.
References
Berger, J., & Milkman, K. L. (2012). What makes online content viral? Journal of Marketing Research, 49(2), 192-205. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.10.0353
Lavidge, R. J., & Steiner, G. A. (1961). A model for predictive measurements of advertising effectiveness. Journal of Marketing, 25(6), 59-62. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224296102500611
Vakratsas, D., & Ambler, T. (1999). How advertising works: What do we really know? Journal of Marketing, 63(1), 26-43. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299906300103
What the MKT 435 Week 5 instructions ask
The final MKT 435 assignment usually asks students to apply consumer behavior insights to a marketing communication strategy. Common requirements include summarizing key insights about the target consumer, setting communication objectives, developing messages that reflect motivation, perception, attitudes and social influences, choosing media and touchpoints, planning how to measure effects and discussing ethical considerations. Some prompts ask for a creative brief or sample ad. Show clearly how each communication choice follows from a specific insight, support the plan with research on how advertising works and use APA citations. Include a short creative brief. Plan tests of messages before spending heavily, because consumer insight suggests what may work but only data confirms it.
How this MKT 435 Week 5 example is built
After analyzing buyers of a connected rowing machine, the paper turns insights into a plan. Key insights include a six-week decision, motives tied to health, time, performance and community, doubts about follow-through and strong influence from partners and friends. Research on how advertising works supports objectives for awareness, consideration, trial and retention. Messages target skeptics with real member stories, researchers with detailed comparisons and partners with noise and space demos. Research on why content spreads guides shareable member milestones. Media include search, social video, showroom events, physical therapist partnerships and email. A $3.6 million budget, a creative brief, tests and measures complete the plan, with ethical limits on claims.
MKT 435 Week 5 grading rubric: where the points go
Strong communication plans show a clear line from consumer insight to objective, message and medium. Instructors credit a concise summary of insights, objectives tied to stages of the decision, messages tailored to motives and attitudes, media that reach targets where they search or gather, a testing plan and measures for each objective. Papers that address ethical issues, such as honest claims and privacy, show maturity. Reviewers look for scholarly research on advertising and consumer behavior, consistency with earlier weeks and a realistic budget. Showing how results will feed future research adds depth. A creative brief or table linking insights to messages helps, along with organized headings and correct APA citations throughout the plan.
MKT 435 Week 5 help: mistakes to avoid
Students often write communication plans that ignore their own consumer analysis. Tie every message to an insight. Another frequent gap is using one message for everyone. Tailor messages to segments and decision stages. Students also choose media without explaining why. Show where target consumers search and gather. Set measurable objectives for each stage. Plan tests before large spending. Address the people who influence the buyer, such as partners and friends. Include ethics. Use research on how advertising works rather than assuming a simple path from ad to sale. Finally, explain how results will feed back into future insight, so the company keeps learning about its customers.
Related MKT 435 sample papers
Other MKT 435 week samples
- MKT 435 Week 1: The Consumer Decision Process
- MKT 435 Week 2: Perception and Motivation
- MKT 435 Week 3: Attitudes and Learning
- MKT 435 Week 4: Family, Social and Cultural
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MKT 435 Week 5 questions, answered
What does MKT 435 Week 5 usually cover?
It usually covers applying consumer insight to marketing communication: summarizing insights, setting objectives, tailoring messages, choosing media, testing, measuring and addressing ethics.
Where can I find a free MKT 435 Week 5 sample paper?
The complete plan, from insights to budget, appears above; ask for a custom version built on your own consumer research.
What is a creative brief?
A short document that summarizes the target audience, key insight, objective, main message, supporting proof and tone to guide the creation of advertising.
How does advertising work?
Research suggests advertising works through a mix of thinking, feeling and experience rather than a single fixed sequence, and its effects depend on the product, audience and context.
Why do some messages get shared more than others?
Content that evokes strong emotions, especially positive or high-arousal ones, and that is practically useful or interesting tends to be shared more often.
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