How hyper reality gave me a new life : a study on the postmodern Pakistani consumer

Abstract

In the post-modern era, the rules used to measure, define and predict consumption patterns and behaviour have been rendered ineffective. Such consumers, especially in the realm of hyperreality, exhibit the kind of individuality that is hard to measure using traditional marketing and research tools. The unpredictability of their behaviour and their tendency to value the symbolic meaning of brands more than the utilitarian make it difficult to group them using conventional demographic variables. Within the domain of hyperreality, users are subjected to various influencing factors, which ultimately help to evolve their self concept. Facebook was chosen as the face of the hyperreal world and through two forms of qualitative techniques- namely semi-structured, in-depth interviews and “Netnography”- a sample of fifteen respondents, who were regular users of Facebook, was studied. Instead of aiming to arrive at a definite conclusion, the study sought to explore the topic and discover the different themes that emerged from the analysis of the primary data. The themes were discussed in detail and recommendations were given, which focused on identifying gaps and relating the different ways marketers could fill them, such as by providing different options and services to meet the needs of the evolved self-concept of the post-modern consumer.