OUGD501 - VOSS Experiment

To test the theories of luxury water brands being associated with ones individual sense of self I creates a practical experiment to see if these has any real life feasibility. The experiment took place over a two week period in university, for the first week I brought in a standard bottle of bottled water 'highland spring' and for the second week I used a `voss' bottle which was then refilled with tap water. I wanted to see if my peers would notice any difference over this period or make any comments regarding my water brand selection. I found that in the first week when I used highland spring no comments were made about my water selection however in the second week significant interest was taken to the VOSS water. Comments included; 'isnt that the really experience water' 'nice bottle' 'i love voss' and 'where did you get that from' this shows support for people taking notice of the brand values and either complimenting me for my choice of water (showing an association with me as a person with VOSS the brand) or wanting to be part of it stating they also appreciate VOSS or asking where they could get it. 

Hypothesis: If one is seen to be associated with a luxury brand of water then the individuals profile will be raised to suggest luxury/affluence. 

Method: Over a two week period the subject will use two different water brands within their daily lives, the first week will use a standard bottled water [highland spring] and the second week will use a luxury bottled water [voss]. The experimenter will monitor any changes in the subjects peers i.e. comments made to conclude whether the luxury brand has any impact on the connotations of the individual. 

Findings: No comments were made about the subjects water selection in the first week when the highland spring water was used however significant interests was create in the second week with the subjects selection of VOSS water.

Conclusion: It can be concluded that the use of Luxury water brand VOSS created a significantly higher interest with the subjects peers who commented on the lifestyle values and significance of the brand. 

The result included a range of extraneous variables such as the peers already knowing the subject personally so had previous understanding of his lifestyle; demographic and psychographic profiling that make this experiment subjective however creates strong support for the extended research into the application of the product with the individuals sense of self.