consumer behavior

Factors affecting consumer behavior:

1. Cultural influences- person's behavior is influenced by broad culture of the society 

   1. Culture shapes values like- achievement, success, humanitarianism 

   2. These can be broken down into- religious groups, tribal groups which affect taboos, preferences and lifestyle 

2. Social values- factors like- reference group. Family, role models, status 

3. Psychological influences- maslow's hierarchy of needs 

4. Personal influences- due to personal characteristics like age, gender, occupation, marital status, economic status, lifestyle 

Personal influences

due to personal characteristics like age, gender, occupation, marital status, economic status, lifestyle that directly impact consumer choices and preferences.

Marketing influences

1. Product- product differentiation from competitors and value creation 

2. Price- price sensitive buying decision 

3. Place- convenience increases probability of consumers finding and buying products 

4. Promotion- marketing communication is vital for raising customer awareness about the product 

Technological influences

1. Can influence customer behavior cause of: 

   1. Allows easier access to information 

   2. Growth of e-commerce and online reviews 

   3. Influence of social media and digital marketing 

Complex buying behavior

- consumer is involved in a purchase and perceive differences among brands 

• They have a lot to learn about the product 

Dissonance reducing buying behavior

consumers are  involved with expensive, infrequent purchases but see little difference among brands 

• To counter dissonance marketers should provide evidence and support to help consumers feel good about their choice post purchase 

Habitual buying behavior

low consumer involvement and little significant brand differences perceived. For example- salt, sugar 

• Advertising should be based on classical conditioning in which buyers identify products by symbols repeatedly attached to them 

Variety seeking buying behavior

low consumer involvement but significant perceived brand differences 

• There is a lot of brand switching 

• Marketers encourage variety seeking by offering lower prices on products, free samples 

  • Ex- when buying cookies, a consumer may hold some beliefs, choose a cookie brand without much evaluation, and then evaluate that brand during consumption. But the 

Types of buying decisions: 

1. Complex buying behavior

2. Dissonance reducing buying behavior-

3. Habitual buying behavior-

4. Variety seeking buying behavior

Buyer decision process:

1. Need recognition 

2. Information search 

3. Evaluation of alternatives 

4. Purchase decision 

5. Post purchase behavior

Demographic segmentation:

• segmentations/Characteristics like:

  • Age- child,teen, young adult, senior 

  • Income- low, middle, high 

  • Gender- male, female

  • Education- highschool, college, post grad 

  • Occupation- blue collar, white collar, self employed 

  • Marital status+family- single, married, divorced, with or without children 

  • Geographic location- country, region, city 

Psychographic segmentation:

• Based on: lifestyle, values, beliefs, personality, attitudes 

• Lifestyle- health conscious, tech lovers, adventurous

• Values+beliefs- environmental activist, luxury seekers, socially conscious buyers 

Importance of understanding consumer behavior: 

1. Helps designing marketing strategies 

2. Influences product development and campaign planning 

3. Helps in global marketing

4. Allows for targeting based on cultural and social attributes