Description
document on consumer buying behavior.
Consumer Buying Behaviour
What influences consumers to purchase products or services? The consumer buying process is a complex matter as many internal and external factors have an impact on the buying decisions of the consumer. When purchasing a product there several processes, which consumers go through. These will be discussed below. 1. Problem/Need Recognition How do you decide you want to buy a particular product or service? It could be that your DVD player stops working and you now have to look for a new one, all those DVD films you purchased you can no longer play! So you have a problem or a new need. For high value items like a DVD player or a car or other low frequency purchased products this is the process we would take. However, for impulse low frequency purchases e.g. confectionery the process is different. 2. Information search So we have a problem, our DVD player no longer works and we need to buy a new one. What’s the solution? Yes go out and purchase a new one, but which brand? Shall we buy the same brand as the one that blew up? Or stay clear of that? Consumer often go on some form of information search to help them through their purchase decision. Sources of information could be family, friends, neighbours who may have the product you have in mind, alternatively you may ask the sales people, or dealers, or read specialist magazines like What DVD? to help with their purchase decision. You may even actually examine the product before you decide to purchase it.
3. Evaluation of different purchase options. So what DVD player do we purchase? Shall it be Sony, Toshiba or Bush? Consumers allocate attribute factors to certain products, almost like a point scoring system which they work out in their mind over which brand to purchase. This means that consumers know what features from the rivals will benefit them and they attach different degrees of importance to each attribute. For example sound maybe better on the Sony product and picture on the Toshiba , but picture clarity is more important to you then sound. Consumers usually have some sort of brand preference with companies as they may have had a good history with a particular brand or their friends may have had a reliable history with one, but if the decision falls between the Sony DVD or Toshiba then which one shall it be? It could be that the a review the consumer reads on the particular Toshiba product may have tipped the balance and that they will purchase that brand.
4. Purchase decision Through the evaluation process discussed above consumers will reach their final purchase decision and they reach the final process of going through the purchase action e.g. The process of going to the shop to buy the product, which for some consumers can be as just as rewarding as actually purchasing the product. Purchase of the product can either be through the store, the web, or over the phone.
Post Purchase Behaviour
Ever have doubts about the product after you purchased it? This simply is post purchase behaviour and research shows that it is a common trait amongst purchasers of products. Manufacturers of products clearly want recent consumers to feel proud of their purchase, it is therefore just as important for manufacturers to advertise for the sake of their recent purchaser so consumers feel comfortable that they own a product from a strong and reputable organisation. This limits post purchase behaviour. i.e. You feel reassured that you own the latest advertised product.
Factors influencing the behaviour of buyers. Consumer behaviour is affected by many uncontrollable factors. Just think, what influences you before you buy a product or service? Your friends, your upbringing, your culture, the media, a role model or influences from certain groups? Culture is one factor that influences behaviour. Simply culture is defined as our attitudes and beliefs. But how are these attitudes and beliefs developed? As an individual growing up, a child is influenced by their parents, brothers, sister and other family member who may teach them what is wrong or right. They learn about their religion and culture, which helps them develop these opinions, attitudes and beliefs (AIO) . These factors will influence their purchase behaviour however other factors like groups of friends, or people they look up to may influence their choices of purchasing a particular product or service. Reference groups are particular groups of people some people may look up towards to that have an impact on consumer behaviour. So they can be simply a band like the Spice Girls or your immediate family members. Opinion leaders are those people that you look up to because your respect their views and judgements and these views may influence consumer decisions. So it maybe a friend who works with the IT trade who may influence your decision on what computer to buy. The economical environment also has an impact on consumer behaviour; do consumers have a secure job and a regular income to spend on goods? Marketing and advertising obviously influence consumers in trying to evoke them to purchase a particular product or service.
Peoples social status will also impact their behaviour. What is their role within society? Are they Actors? Doctors? Office worker? and mothers and fathers also? Clearly being parents affects your buying habits depending on the age of the children, the type of job may mean you need to purchase formal clothes, the income which is earned has an impact. The lifestyle of someone who earns £250000 would clearly be different from someone who earns £25000. Also characters have an influence on buying decision. Whether the person is extrovert (out going and spends on entertainment) or introvert (keeps to themselves and purchases via online or mail order) again has an impact on the types of purchases made.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Abraham Maslow hierarchy of needs theory sets out to explain what motivated individuals in life to achieve. He set out his answer in a form of a hierarchy. He suggests individuals aim to meet basic psychological needs of hunger and thirst. When this has been met they then move up to the next stage of the hierarchy, safety needs, where the priority lay with job security and the knowing that an income will be available to them regularly. Social needs come in the next level of the hierarchy, the need to belong or be loved is a natural human desire and people do strive for this belonging. Esteem need is the need for status and recognition within society, status sometimes drives people, the need to have a good job title and be recognised or the need to wear branded clothes as a symbol of status. Self-actualisation the realisation that an individual has reached their potential in life. The point of self-actualisation is down to the individual, when do you know you have reached your point of self-fulfilment? But how does this concept help an organisation trying to market a product or service? Well as we have established earlier within this website, marketing is about meeting needs and providing benefits, Maslows concept suggests that needs change as we go along our path of striving for self-actualisation. Supermarket firms develop value brands to meet the psychological needs of hunger and thirst. Harrods develops products and services for those who want have met their esteem needs. So Maslows
concept is useful for marketers as it can help them understand and develop consumer needs and wants.
Types of buying behaviour. There are four typical types of buying behaviour based on the type of products that intends to be purchased. Complex buying behaviour is where the individual purchases a high value brand and seeks a lot of information before the purchase is made. Habitual buying behaviour is where the individual buys a product out of habit e.g. a daily newspaper, sugar or salt. Variety seeking buying behaviour is where the individual likes to shop around and experiment with different products. So an individual may shop around for different breakfast cereals because he/she wants variety in the mornings! Dissonance reducing buying behaviour is when buyer are highly involved with the purchase of the product, because the purchase is expensive or infrequent. There is little difference between existing brands an example would be buying a diamond ring, there is perceived little difference between existing diamond brand manufacturers
What is Consumer Buying Behavior? Definition of Buying Behavior: Buying Behavior is the decision processes and acts of people involved in buying and using products. Need to understand:
• • •
why consumers make the purchases that they make? what factors influence consumer purchases? the changing factors in our society.
Consumer Buying Behavior refers to the buying behavior of the ultimate consumer. A firm needs to analyze buying behavior for:
•
Buyers reactions to a firms marketing strategy has a great impact on the firms success. The marketing concept stresses that a firm should create a Marketing mix (MM) that satisfies (gives utility to) customers, therefore need to analyze the what, where, when and how consumers buy.
•
•
Marketers can better predict how consumers will respond to marketing strategies.
Stages of the Consumer Buying Process Six Stages to the Consumer Buying Decision Process (For complex decisions). Actual purchasing is only one stage of the process. Not all decision processes lead to a purchase. All consumer decisions do not always include all 6 stages, determined by the degree of complexity...discussed next.
The 6 stages are: 1. Problem Recognition(awareness of need)--difference between the desired state and the actual condition. Deficit in assortment of products. Hunger--Food. Hunger stimulates your need to eat. Can be stimulated by the marketer through product information--did not know you were deficient? I.E., see a commercial for a new pair of shoes, stimulates your recognition that you need a new pair of shoes. 2. Information search-o o
Internal search, memory. External search if you need more information. Friends and relatives (word of mouth). Marketer dominated sources; comparison shopping; public sources etc.
A successful information search leaves a buyer with possible alternatives, the evoked set. Hungry, want to go out and eat, evoked set is
o o o o
chinese food indian food burger king klondike kates etc
3. Evaluation of Alternatives--need to establish criteria for evaluation, features the buyer wants or does not want. Rank/weight alternatives or resume search. May decide that you want to eat something spicy, indian gets highest rank etc. If not satisfied with your choice then return to the search phase. Can you think of another restaurant? Look in the yellow pages etc. Information from different sources may be treated differently. Marketers try to influence by "framing" alternatives. 4. Purchase decision--Choose buying alternative, includes product, package, store, method of purchase etc.
5. Purchase--May differ from decision, time lapse between 4 & 5, product availability. 6. Post-Purchase Evaluation--outcome: Satisfaction or Dissatisfaction. Cognitive Dissonance, have you made the right decision. This can be reduced by warranties, after sales communication etc. After eating an indian meal, may think that really you wanted a chinese meal instead. Handout...Pillsbury 1-800#s 1-800 #s gives the consumer a way of communicating with the marketer after purchase. This helps reduce cognitive dissonance when a marketer can answer any concerns of a new consumer.
Types of Consumer Buying Behavior Types of consumer buying behavior are determined by:
•
Level of Involvement in purchase decision. Importance and intensity of interest in a product in a particular situation. Buyers level of involvement determines why he/she is motivated to seek information about a certain products and brands but virtually ignores others.
•
High involvement purchases--Honda Motorbike, high priced goods, products visible to others, and the higher the risk the higher the involvement. Types of risk:
• • •
Personal risk Social risk Economic risk
The four type of consumer buying behavior are:
•
Routine Response/Programmed Behavior--buying low involvement frequently purchased low cost items; need very little search and decision effort; purchased almost automatically. Examples include soft drinks, snack foods, milk etc.
•
Limited Decision Making--buying product occasionally. When you need to obtain information about unfamiliar brand in a familiar product category, perhaps. Requires a moderate amount of time for information gathering. Examples include Clothes--know product class but not the brand.
•
Extensive Decision Making/Complex high involvement, unfamiliar, expensive and/or infrequently bought products. High degree of economic/performance/psychological risk. Examples include cars, homes, computers, education. Spend alot of time seeking information and deciding. Information from the companies MM; friends and relatives, store personnel etc. Go through all six stages of the buying process.
•
Impulse buying, no conscious planning.
The purchase of the same product does not always elicit the same Buying Behavior. Product can shift from one category to the next. For example: Going out for dinner for one person may be extensive decision making (for someone that does not go out often at all), but limited decision making for someone else. The reason for the dinner, whether it is an anniversary celebration, or a meal with a couple of friends will also determine the extent of the decision making.
Categories that Effect the Consumer Buying Decision Process A consumer, making a purchase decision will be affected by the following three factors: 1. Personal 2. Psychological 3. Social The marketer must be aware of these factors in order to develop an appropriate MM for its target market. Personal Unique to a particular person. Demographic Factors. Sex, Race, Age etc. Who in the family is responsible for the decision making. Young people purchase things for different reasons than older people. Handout...From choices to checkout... Highlights the differences between male and female shoppers in the supermarket. Psychological factors
Psychological factors include: Motives-A motive is an internal energizing force that orients a person's activities toward satisfying a need or achieving a goal. Actions are effected by a set of motives, not just one. If marketers can identify motives then they can better develop a marketing mix. MASLOW hierarchy of needs!!
o o o o o
Physiological Safety Love and Belonging Esteem Self Actualization
Need to determine what level of the hierarchy the consumers are at to determine what motivates their purchases. Handout...Nutrament Debunked... Nutrament, a product marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb originally was targeted at consumers that needed to receive additional energy from their drinks after exercise etc., a fitness drink. It was therefore targeted at consumers whose needs were for either love and Belonging or esteem. The product was not selling well, and was almost terminated. Upon extensive research it was determined that the product did sell well in inner-city convenience stores. It was determined that the consumers for the product were actually drug addicts who couldn't not digest a regular meal. They would purchase Nutrament as a substitute for a meal. Their motivation to purchase was completely different to the motivation that B-MS had originally thought. These consumers were at the Physiological level of the hierarchy. BM-S therefore had to redesign its MM to better meet the needs of this target market.
Motives often operate at a subconscious level therefore are difficult to measure.
Perception--
What do you see?? Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and interpreting information inputs to produce meaning. IE we chose what info we pay attention to, organize it and interpret it. Information inputs are the sensations received through sight, taste, hearing, smell and touch. Selective Exposure-select inputs to be exposed to our awareness. More likely if it is linked to an event, satisfies current needs, intensity of input changes (sharp price drop). Selective Distortion-Changing/twisting current received information, inconsistent with beliefs. Advertisers that use comparative advertisements (pitching one product against another), have to be very careful that consumers do not distort the facts and perceive that the advertisement was for the competitor. A current example...MCI and AT&T...do you ever get confused? Selective Retention-Remember inputs that support beliefs, forgets those that don't. Average supermarket shopper is exposed to 17,000 products in a shopping visit lasting 30 minutes-60% of purchases are unplanned. Exposed to 1,500 advertisement per day. Can't be expected to be aware of all these inputs, and certainly will not retain many. Interpreting information is based on what is already familiar, on knowledge that is stored in the memory.
Handout...South Africa wine.... Problems marketing wine from South Africa. Consumers have strong perceptions of the country, and hence its products.
Ability and Knowledge-Need to understand individuals capacity to learn. Learning, changes in a person's behavior caused by information and experience. Therefore to change consumers' behavior about your product, need to give them new information re: product...free sample etc. South Africa...open bottle of wine and pour it!! Also educate american consumers about changes in SA. Need to sell a whole new country. When making buying decisions, buyers must process information. Knowledge is the familiarity with the product and expertise. Inexperience buyers often use prices as an indicator of quality more than those who have knowledge of a product. Non-alcoholic Beer example: consumers chose the most expensive six-pack, because they assume that the greater price indicates greater quality. Learning is the process through which a relatively permanent change in behavior results from the consequences of past behavior. Attitudes--
Knowledge and positive and negative feelings about an object or activitymaybe tangible or intangible, living or non- living.....Drive perceptions Individual learns attitudes through experience and interaction with other people.
Consumer attitudes toward a firm and its products greatly influence the success or failure of the firm's marketing strategy. Handout...Oldsmobile..... Oldsmobile vs. Lexus, due to consumers attitudes toward Oldsmobile (as discovered by class exercise) need to disassociate Aurora from the Oldsmobile name. Exxon Valdez-nearly 20,000 credit cards were returned or cut-up after the tragic oil spill. Honda "You meet the nicest people on a Honda", dispel the unsavory image of a motorbike rider, late 1950s. Changing market of the 1990s, baby boomers aging, Hondas market returning to hard core. To change this they have a new slogan "Come ride with us". Attitudes and attitude change are influenced by consumers personality and lifestyle. Consumers screen information that conflicts with their attitudes. Distort information to make it consistent and selectively retain information that reinforces our attitudes. IE brand loyalty. There is a difference between attitude and intention to buy (ability to buy). Personality--
all the internal traits and behaviors that make a person unique, uniqueness arrives from a person's heredity and personal experience. Examples include:
o o o o o
Workaholism Compulsiveness Self confidence Friendliness Adaptability
o o o o o o o
Ambitiousness Dogmatism Authoritarianism Introversion Extroversion Aggressiveness Competitiveness.
Traits effect the way people behave. Marketers try to match the store image to the perceived image of their customers. There is a weak association between personality and Buying Behavior, this may be due to unreliable measures. Nike ads. Consumers buy products that are consistent with their self concept. Lifestyles-Recent US trends in lifestyles are a shift towards personal independence and individualism and a preference for a healthy, natural lifestyle. Lifestyles are the consistent patterns people follow in their lives. EXAMPLE healthy foods for a healthy lifestyle. Sun tan not considered fashionable in US until 1920's. Now an assault by the American Academy of Dermatology. Handout...Here Comes the Sun to Confound Health Savvy Lotion Makers..
Social Factors Consumer wants, learning, motives etc. are influenced by opinion leaders, person's family, reference groups, social class and culture. Opinion leaders--
Marketers try to attract opinion leaders...they actually use (pay) spokespeople to market their products. Michael Jordon (Nike, McDonalds, Gatorade etc.) Can be risky...Michael Jackson...OJ Simpson...Chevy Chase Roles and Family Influences-Role...things you should do based on the expectations of you from your position within a group. People have many roles. Husband, father, employer/ee. Individuals role are continuing to change therefore marketers must continue to update information. Family is the most basic group a person belongs to. Marketers must understand:
o o o
that many family decisions are made by the family unit consumer behavior starts in the family unit family roles and preferences are the model for children's future family (can reject/alter/etc) family buying decisions are a mixture of family interactions and individual decision making family acts an interpreter of social and cultural values for the individual.
o
o
The Family life cycle: families go through stages, each stage creates different consumer demands:
o o o o o o
bachelor stage...most of BUAD301 newly married, young, no children...me full nest I, youngest child under 6 full nest II, youngest child 6 or over full nest III, older married couples with dependant children empty nest I, older married couples with no children living with them, head in labor force
o
empty nest II, older married couples, no children living at home, head retired solitary survivor, in labor force solitary survivor, retired Modernized life cycle includes divorced and no children.
o o o
Handout...Two Income Marriages Are Now the Norm Because 2 income families are becoming more common, the decision maker within the family unit is changing...also, family has less time for children, and therefore tends to let them influence purchase decisions in order to alleviate some of the guilt. (Children influence about $130 billion of goods in a year) Children also have more money to spend themselves. Reference Groups-Individual identifies with the group to the extent that he takes on many of the values, attitudes or behaviors of the group members. Families, friends, sororities, civic and professional organizations. Any group that has a positive or negative influence on a persons attitude and behavior. Membership groups (belong to) Affinity marketing is focused on the desires of consumers that belong to reference groups. Marketers get the groups to approve the product and communicate that approval to its members. Credit Cards etc.!! Aspiration groups (want to belong to) Disassociate groups (do not want to belong to) Honda, tries to disassociate from the "biker" group. The degree to which a reference group will affect a purchase decision depends on an individuals susceptibility to reference group influence and the strength of his/her involvement with the group. Social Class--
an open group of individuals who have similar social rank. US is not a classless society. US criteria; occupation, education, income, wealth, race, ethnic groups and possessions. Social class influences many aspects of our lives. IE upper middle class Americans prefer luxury cars Mercedes.
o
Upper Americans-upper-upper class, .3%, inherited wealth, aristocratic names. Lower-upper class, 1.2%, newer social elite, from current professionals and corporate elite Upper-middle class, 12.5%, college graduates, managers and professionals Middle Americans-middle class, 32%, average pay white collar workers and blue collar friends Working class, 38%, average pay blue collar workers Lower Americans-lower class, 9%, working, not on welfare Lower-lower class, 7%, on welfare
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o
o
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Social class determines to some extent, the types, quality, quantity of products that a person buys or uses. Lower class people tend to stay close to home when shopping, do not engage in much prepurchase information gathering. Stores project definite class images. Family, reference groups and social classes are all social influences on consumer behavior. All operate within a larger culture. Culture and Sub-culture-Culture refers to the set of values, ideas, and attitudes that are accepted by a homogenous group of people and transmitted to the next generation. Culture also determines what is acceptable with product advertising. Culture determines what people wear, eat, reside and travel. Cultural values in the US
are good health, education, individualism and freedom. In american culture time scarcity is a growing problem. IE change in meals. Big impact on international marketing.
If a marketer can identify consumer buyer behaviour, he or she will be in a better position to target products and services at them. Buyer behaviour is focused upon the needs of individuals, groups and organisations. It is important to understand the relevance of human needs to buyer behaviour (remember, marketing is about satisfying needs).
Let's look at human motivations as introduced by Abraham Maslow by his hierarchy of needs: The hierarchy is triangular. This is because as you move up it, fewer and fewer people satisfy higher level needs. We begin at the bottom level. Physiological needs such as food, air, water, heat, and the basic necessities of survival need to be satisfied. At the level of safety, man has a place to live that protects him from the elements and predators. At the third level we meet our social and belongingness needs i.e. we marry, or join groups of friends, etc. The final two levels are esteem and self-actualisation. Fewer people satisfy the higher level needs. Esteem means that you achieve something that makes you recognised and gives personal satisfaction, for example writing a book. Selfactualisation is achieved by few. Here a person is one of a small number to
actually do something. For example, Neil Armstrong self-actualised as the first person to reach the Moon. The model is a little simplistic but introduces the concept a differing consumer needs quite well.
To understand consumer buyer behaviour is to understand how the person interacts with the marketing mix. As described by Cohen (1991), the marketing mix inputs (or the four P's of price, place, promotion, and product) are adapted and focused upon the consumer. The psychology of each individual considers the product or service on offer in relation to their own culture, attitude, previous learning, and personal perception. The consumer then decides whether or not to purchase, where to purchase, the brand that he or she prefers, and other choices.
doc_207008491.doc
document on consumer buying behavior.
Consumer Buying Behaviour
What influences consumers to purchase products or services? The consumer buying process is a complex matter as many internal and external factors have an impact on the buying decisions of the consumer. When purchasing a product there several processes, which consumers go through. These will be discussed below. 1. Problem/Need Recognition How do you decide you want to buy a particular product or service? It could be that your DVD player stops working and you now have to look for a new one, all those DVD films you purchased you can no longer play! So you have a problem or a new need. For high value items like a DVD player or a car or other low frequency purchased products this is the process we would take. However, for impulse low frequency purchases e.g. confectionery the process is different. 2. Information search So we have a problem, our DVD player no longer works and we need to buy a new one. What’s the solution? Yes go out and purchase a new one, but which brand? Shall we buy the same brand as the one that blew up? Or stay clear of that? Consumer often go on some form of information search to help them through their purchase decision. Sources of information could be family, friends, neighbours who may have the product you have in mind, alternatively you may ask the sales people, or dealers, or read specialist magazines like What DVD? to help with their purchase decision. You may even actually examine the product before you decide to purchase it.
3. Evaluation of different purchase options. So what DVD player do we purchase? Shall it be Sony, Toshiba or Bush? Consumers allocate attribute factors to certain products, almost like a point scoring system which they work out in their mind over which brand to purchase. This means that consumers know what features from the rivals will benefit them and they attach different degrees of importance to each attribute. For example sound maybe better on the Sony product and picture on the Toshiba , but picture clarity is more important to you then sound. Consumers usually have some sort of brand preference with companies as they may have had a good history with a particular brand or their friends may have had a reliable history with one, but if the decision falls between the Sony DVD or Toshiba then which one shall it be? It could be that the a review the consumer reads on the particular Toshiba product may have tipped the balance and that they will purchase that brand.
4. Purchase decision Through the evaluation process discussed above consumers will reach their final purchase decision and they reach the final process of going through the purchase action e.g. The process of going to the shop to buy the product, which for some consumers can be as just as rewarding as actually purchasing the product. Purchase of the product can either be through the store, the web, or over the phone.
Post Purchase Behaviour
Ever have doubts about the product after you purchased it? This simply is post purchase behaviour and research shows that it is a common trait amongst purchasers of products. Manufacturers of products clearly want recent consumers to feel proud of their purchase, it is therefore just as important for manufacturers to advertise for the sake of their recent purchaser so consumers feel comfortable that they own a product from a strong and reputable organisation. This limits post purchase behaviour. i.e. You feel reassured that you own the latest advertised product.
Factors influencing the behaviour of buyers. Consumer behaviour is affected by many uncontrollable factors. Just think, what influences you before you buy a product or service? Your friends, your upbringing, your culture, the media, a role model or influences from certain groups? Culture is one factor that influences behaviour. Simply culture is defined as our attitudes and beliefs. But how are these attitudes and beliefs developed? As an individual growing up, a child is influenced by their parents, brothers, sister and other family member who may teach them what is wrong or right. They learn about their religion and culture, which helps them develop these opinions, attitudes and beliefs (AIO) . These factors will influence their purchase behaviour however other factors like groups of friends, or people they look up to may influence their choices of purchasing a particular product or service. Reference groups are particular groups of people some people may look up towards to that have an impact on consumer behaviour. So they can be simply a band like the Spice Girls or your immediate family members. Opinion leaders are those people that you look up to because your respect their views and judgements and these views may influence consumer decisions. So it maybe a friend who works with the IT trade who may influence your decision on what computer to buy. The economical environment also has an impact on consumer behaviour; do consumers have a secure job and a regular income to spend on goods? Marketing and advertising obviously influence consumers in trying to evoke them to purchase a particular product or service.
Peoples social status will also impact their behaviour. What is their role within society? Are they Actors? Doctors? Office worker? and mothers and fathers also? Clearly being parents affects your buying habits depending on the age of the children, the type of job may mean you need to purchase formal clothes, the income which is earned has an impact. The lifestyle of someone who earns £250000 would clearly be different from someone who earns £25000. Also characters have an influence on buying decision. Whether the person is extrovert (out going and spends on entertainment) or introvert (keeps to themselves and purchases via online or mail order) again has an impact on the types of purchases made.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Abraham Maslow hierarchy of needs theory sets out to explain what motivated individuals in life to achieve. He set out his answer in a form of a hierarchy. He suggests individuals aim to meet basic psychological needs of hunger and thirst. When this has been met they then move up to the next stage of the hierarchy, safety needs, where the priority lay with job security and the knowing that an income will be available to them regularly. Social needs come in the next level of the hierarchy, the need to belong or be loved is a natural human desire and people do strive for this belonging. Esteem need is the need for status and recognition within society, status sometimes drives people, the need to have a good job title and be recognised or the need to wear branded clothes as a symbol of status. Self-actualisation the realisation that an individual has reached their potential in life. The point of self-actualisation is down to the individual, when do you know you have reached your point of self-fulfilment? But how does this concept help an organisation trying to market a product or service? Well as we have established earlier within this website, marketing is about meeting needs and providing benefits, Maslows concept suggests that needs change as we go along our path of striving for self-actualisation. Supermarket firms develop value brands to meet the psychological needs of hunger and thirst. Harrods develops products and services for those who want have met their esteem needs. So Maslows
concept is useful for marketers as it can help them understand and develop consumer needs and wants.
Types of buying behaviour. There are four typical types of buying behaviour based on the type of products that intends to be purchased. Complex buying behaviour is where the individual purchases a high value brand and seeks a lot of information before the purchase is made. Habitual buying behaviour is where the individual buys a product out of habit e.g. a daily newspaper, sugar or salt. Variety seeking buying behaviour is where the individual likes to shop around and experiment with different products. So an individual may shop around for different breakfast cereals because he/she wants variety in the mornings! Dissonance reducing buying behaviour is when buyer are highly involved with the purchase of the product, because the purchase is expensive or infrequent. There is little difference between existing brands an example would be buying a diamond ring, there is perceived little difference between existing diamond brand manufacturers
What is Consumer Buying Behavior? Definition of Buying Behavior: Buying Behavior is the decision processes and acts of people involved in buying and using products. Need to understand:
• • •
why consumers make the purchases that they make? what factors influence consumer purchases? the changing factors in our society.
Consumer Buying Behavior refers to the buying behavior of the ultimate consumer. A firm needs to analyze buying behavior for:
•
Buyers reactions to a firms marketing strategy has a great impact on the firms success. The marketing concept stresses that a firm should create a Marketing mix (MM) that satisfies (gives utility to) customers, therefore need to analyze the what, where, when and how consumers buy.
•
•
Marketers can better predict how consumers will respond to marketing strategies.
Stages of the Consumer Buying Process Six Stages to the Consumer Buying Decision Process (For complex decisions). Actual purchasing is only one stage of the process. Not all decision processes lead to a purchase. All consumer decisions do not always include all 6 stages, determined by the degree of complexity...discussed next.
The 6 stages are: 1. Problem Recognition(awareness of need)--difference between the desired state and the actual condition. Deficit in assortment of products. Hunger--Food. Hunger stimulates your need to eat. Can be stimulated by the marketer through product information--did not know you were deficient? I.E., see a commercial for a new pair of shoes, stimulates your recognition that you need a new pair of shoes. 2. Information search-o o
Internal search, memory. External search if you need more information. Friends and relatives (word of mouth). Marketer dominated sources; comparison shopping; public sources etc.
A successful information search leaves a buyer with possible alternatives, the evoked set. Hungry, want to go out and eat, evoked set is
o o o o
chinese food indian food burger king klondike kates etc
3. Evaluation of Alternatives--need to establish criteria for evaluation, features the buyer wants or does not want. Rank/weight alternatives or resume search. May decide that you want to eat something spicy, indian gets highest rank etc. If not satisfied with your choice then return to the search phase. Can you think of another restaurant? Look in the yellow pages etc. Information from different sources may be treated differently. Marketers try to influence by "framing" alternatives. 4. Purchase decision--Choose buying alternative, includes product, package, store, method of purchase etc.
5. Purchase--May differ from decision, time lapse between 4 & 5, product availability. 6. Post-Purchase Evaluation--outcome: Satisfaction or Dissatisfaction. Cognitive Dissonance, have you made the right decision. This can be reduced by warranties, after sales communication etc. After eating an indian meal, may think that really you wanted a chinese meal instead. Handout...Pillsbury 1-800#s 1-800 #s gives the consumer a way of communicating with the marketer after purchase. This helps reduce cognitive dissonance when a marketer can answer any concerns of a new consumer.
Types of Consumer Buying Behavior Types of consumer buying behavior are determined by:
•
Level of Involvement in purchase decision. Importance and intensity of interest in a product in a particular situation. Buyers level of involvement determines why he/she is motivated to seek information about a certain products and brands but virtually ignores others.
•
High involvement purchases--Honda Motorbike, high priced goods, products visible to others, and the higher the risk the higher the involvement. Types of risk:
• • •
Personal risk Social risk Economic risk
The four type of consumer buying behavior are:
•
Routine Response/Programmed Behavior--buying low involvement frequently purchased low cost items; need very little search and decision effort; purchased almost automatically. Examples include soft drinks, snack foods, milk etc.
•
Limited Decision Making--buying product occasionally. When you need to obtain information about unfamiliar brand in a familiar product category, perhaps. Requires a moderate amount of time for information gathering. Examples include Clothes--know product class but not the brand.
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Extensive Decision Making/Complex high involvement, unfamiliar, expensive and/or infrequently bought products. High degree of economic/performance/psychological risk. Examples include cars, homes, computers, education. Spend alot of time seeking information and deciding. Information from the companies MM; friends and relatives, store personnel etc. Go through all six stages of the buying process.
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Impulse buying, no conscious planning.
The purchase of the same product does not always elicit the same Buying Behavior. Product can shift from one category to the next. For example: Going out for dinner for one person may be extensive decision making (for someone that does not go out often at all), but limited decision making for someone else. The reason for the dinner, whether it is an anniversary celebration, or a meal with a couple of friends will also determine the extent of the decision making.
Categories that Effect the Consumer Buying Decision Process A consumer, making a purchase decision will be affected by the following three factors: 1. Personal 2. Psychological 3. Social The marketer must be aware of these factors in order to develop an appropriate MM for its target market. Personal Unique to a particular person. Demographic Factors. Sex, Race, Age etc. Who in the family is responsible for the decision making. Young people purchase things for different reasons than older people. Handout...From choices to checkout... Highlights the differences between male and female shoppers in the supermarket. Psychological factors
Psychological factors include: Motives-A motive is an internal energizing force that orients a person's activities toward satisfying a need or achieving a goal. Actions are effected by a set of motives, not just one. If marketers can identify motives then they can better develop a marketing mix. MASLOW hierarchy of needs!!
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Physiological Safety Love and Belonging Esteem Self Actualization
Need to determine what level of the hierarchy the consumers are at to determine what motivates their purchases. Handout...Nutrament Debunked... Nutrament, a product marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb originally was targeted at consumers that needed to receive additional energy from their drinks after exercise etc., a fitness drink. It was therefore targeted at consumers whose needs were for either love and Belonging or esteem. The product was not selling well, and was almost terminated. Upon extensive research it was determined that the product did sell well in inner-city convenience stores. It was determined that the consumers for the product were actually drug addicts who couldn't not digest a regular meal. They would purchase Nutrament as a substitute for a meal. Their motivation to purchase was completely different to the motivation that B-MS had originally thought. These consumers were at the Physiological level of the hierarchy. BM-S therefore had to redesign its MM to better meet the needs of this target market.
Motives often operate at a subconscious level therefore are difficult to measure.
Perception--
What do you see?? Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and interpreting information inputs to produce meaning. IE we chose what info we pay attention to, organize it and interpret it. Information inputs are the sensations received through sight, taste, hearing, smell and touch. Selective Exposure-select inputs to be exposed to our awareness. More likely if it is linked to an event, satisfies current needs, intensity of input changes (sharp price drop). Selective Distortion-Changing/twisting current received information, inconsistent with beliefs. Advertisers that use comparative advertisements (pitching one product against another), have to be very careful that consumers do not distort the facts and perceive that the advertisement was for the competitor. A current example...MCI and AT&T...do you ever get confused? Selective Retention-Remember inputs that support beliefs, forgets those that don't. Average supermarket shopper is exposed to 17,000 products in a shopping visit lasting 30 minutes-60% of purchases are unplanned. Exposed to 1,500 advertisement per day. Can't be expected to be aware of all these inputs, and certainly will not retain many. Interpreting information is based on what is already familiar, on knowledge that is stored in the memory.
Handout...South Africa wine.... Problems marketing wine from South Africa. Consumers have strong perceptions of the country, and hence its products.
Ability and Knowledge-Need to understand individuals capacity to learn. Learning, changes in a person's behavior caused by information and experience. Therefore to change consumers' behavior about your product, need to give them new information re: product...free sample etc. South Africa...open bottle of wine and pour it!! Also educate american consumers about changes in SA. Need to sell a whole new country. When making buying decisions, buyers must process information. Knowledge is the familiarity with the product and expertise. Inexperience buyers often use prices as an indicator of quality more than those who have knowledge of a product. Non-alcoholic Beer example: consumers chose the most expensive six-pack, because they assume that the greater price indicates greater quality. Learning is the process through which a relatively permanent change in behavior results from the consequences of past behavior. Attitudes--
Knowledge and positive and negative feelings about an object or activitymaybe tangible or intangible, living or non- living.....Drive perceptions Individual learns attitudes through experience and interaction with other people.
Consumer attitudes toward a firm and its products greatly influence the success or failure of the firm's marketing strategy. Handout...Oldsmobile..... Oldsmobile vs. Lexus, due to consumers attitudes toward Oldsmobile (as discovered by class exercise) need to disassociate Aurora from the Oldsmobile name. Exxon Valdez-nearly 20,000 credit cards were returned or cut-up after the tragic oil spill. Honda "You meet the nicest people on a Honda", dispel the unsavory image of a motorbike rider, late 1950s. Changing market of the 1990s, baby boomers aging, Hondas market returning to hard core. To change this they have a new slogan "Come ride with us". Attitudes and attitude change are influenced by consumers personality and lifestyle. Consumers screen information that conflicts with their attitudes. Distort information to make it consistent and selectively retain information that reinforces our attitudes. IE brand loyalty. There is a difference between attitude and intention to buy (ability to buy). Personality--
all the internal traits and behaviors that make a person unique, uniqueness arrives from a person's heredity and personal experience. Examples include:
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Workaholism Compulsiveness Self confidence Friendliness Adaptability
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Ambitiousness Dogmatism Authoritarianism Introversion Extroversion Aggressiveness Competitiveness.
Traits effect the way people behave. Marketers try to match the store image to the perceived image of their customers. There is a weak association between personality and Buying Behavior, this may be due to unreliable measures. Nike ads. Consumers buy products that are consistent with their self concept. Lifestyles-Recent US trends in lifestyles are a shift towards personal independence and individualism and a preference for a healthy, natural lifestyle. Lifestyles are the consistent patterns people follow in their lives. EXAMPLE healthy foods for a healthy lifestyle. Sun tan not considered fashionable in US until 1920's. Now an assault by the American Academy of Dermatology. Handout...Here Comes the Sun to Confound Health Savvy Lotion Makers..
Social Factors Consumer wants, learning, motives etc. are influenced by opinion leaders, person's family, reference groups, social class and culture. Opinion leaders--
Marketers try to attract opinion leaders...they actually use (pay) spokespeople to market their products. Michael Jordon (Nike, McDonalds, Gatorade etc.) Can be risky...Michael Jackson...OJ Simpson...Chevy Chase Roles and Family Influences-Role...things you should do based on the expectations of you from your position within a group. People have many roles. Husband, father, employer/ee. Individuals role are continuing to change therefore marketers must continue to update information. Family is the most basic group a person belongs to. Marketers must understand:
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that many family decisions are made by the family unit consumer behavior starts in the family unit family roles and preferences are the model for children's future family (can reject/alter/etc) family buying decisions are a mixture of family interactions and individual decision making family acts an interpreter of social and cultural values for the individual.
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The Family life cycle: families go through stages, each stage creates different consumer demands:
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bachelor stage...most of BUAD301 newly married, young, no children...me full nest I, youngest child under 6 full nest II, youngest child 6 or over full nest III, older married couples with dependant children empty nest I, older married couples with no children living with them, head in labor force
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empty nest II, older married couples, no children living at home, head retired solitary survivor, in labor force solitary survivor, retired Modernized life cycle includes divorced and no children.
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Handout...Two Income Marriages Are Now the Norm Because 2 income families are becoming more common, the decision maker within the family unit is changing...also, family has less time for children, and therefore tends to let them influence purchase decisions in order to alleviate some of the guilt. (Children influence about $130 billion of goods in a year) Children also have more money to spend themselves. Reference Groups-Individual identifies with the group to the extent that he takes on many of the values, attitudes or behaviors of the group members. Families, friends, sororities, civic and professional organizations. Any group that has a positive or negative influence on a persons attitude and behavior. Membership groups (belong to) Affinity marketing is focused on the desires of consumers that belong to reference groups. Marketers get the groups to approve the product and communicate that approval to its members. Credit Cards etc.!! Aspiration groups (want to belong to) Disassociate groups (do not want to belong to) Honda, tries to disassociate from the "biker" group. The degree to which a reference group will affect a purchase decision depends on an individuals susceptibility to reference group influence and the strength of his/her involvement with the group. Social Class--
an open group of individuals who have similar social rank. US is not a classless society. US criteria; occupation, education, income, wealth, race, ethnic groups and possessions. Social class influences many aspects of our lives. IE upper middle class Americans prefer luxury cars Mercedes.
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Upper Americans-upper-upper class, .3%, inherited wealth, aristocratic names. Lower-upper class, 1.2%, newer social elite, from current professionals and corporate elite Upper-middle class, 12.5%, college graduates, managers and professionals Middle Americans-middle class, 32%, average pay white collar workers and blue collar friends Working class, 38%, average pay blue collar workers Lower Americans-lower class, 9%, working, not on welfare Lower-lower class, 7%, on welfare
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Social class determines to some extent, the types, quality, quantity of products that a person buys or uses. Lower class people tend to stay close to home when shopping, do not engage in much prepurchase information gathering. Stores project definite class images. Family, reference groups and social classes are all social influences on consumer behavior. All operate within a larger culture. Culture and Sub-culture-Culture refers to the set of values, ideas, and attitudes that are accepted by a homogenous group of people and transmitted to the next generation. Culture also determines what is acceptable with product advertising. Culture determines what people wear, eat, reside and travel. Cultural values in the US
are good health, education, individualism and freedom. In american culture time scarcity is a growing problem. IE change in meals. Big impact on international marketing.
If a marketer can identify consumer buyer behaviour, he or she will be in a better position to target products and services at them. Buyer behaviour is focused upon the needs of individuals, groups and organisations. It is important to understand the relevance of human needs to buyer behaviour (remember, marketing is about satisfying needs).
Let's look at human motivations as introduced by Abraham Maslow by his hierarchy of needs: The hierarchy is triangular. This is because as you move up it, fewer and fewer people satisfy higher level needs. We begin at the bottom level. Physiological needs such as food, air, water, heat, and the basic necessities of survival need to be satisfied. At the level of safety, man has a place to live that protects him from the elements and predators. At the third level we meet our social and belongingness needs i.e. we marry, or join groups of friends, etc. The final two levels are esteem and self-actualisation. Fewer people satisfy the higher level needs. Esteem means that you achieve something that makes you recognised and gives personal satisfaction, for example writing a book. Selfactualisation is achieved by few. Here a person is one of a small number to
actually do something. For example, Neil Armstrong self-actualised as the first person to reach the Moon. The model is a little simplistic but introduces the concept a differing consumer needs quite well.
To understand consumer buyer behaviour is to understand how the person interacts with the marketing mix. As described by Cohen (1991), the marketing mix inputs (or the four P's of price, place, promotion, and product) are adapted and focused upon the consumer. The psychology of each individual considers the product or service on offer in relation to their own culture, attitude, previous learning, and personal perception. The consumer then decides whether or not to purchase, where to purchase, the brand that he or she prefers, and other choices.
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