Consumer Behavior 1

What is Marketing?

The 'art and science of choosing target markets and getting, keeping, and growing customers through creating, delivering, and communicating superior customer value' (Kotler and Keller, 2008: 5). It is the process of discovering and translating consumer wants into products and services, beginning and ending with customer satisfaction.

What is a Marketing Organization (Marketer)?

Within the marketing context, 'product or service sellers'.

What are Producers (in marketing)?

Institutions who buy raw materials and process them into final products.

What are Manufacturers (in marketing)?

Institutions buying intermediate or half-finished materials and process these into final products.

What are Wholesalers (in marketing)?

Institutions who buy final finished products and re-sell them in bulk in the same original form.

What are Retailers (in marketing)?

Institutions who buy finished products and re-sell them in small quantities and in the same form to final users.

What are Products (as marketed 'things')?

Tangible items such as pens, appliances, and shoes.

What are Services (as marketed 'things')?

Intangible offerings such as beauty parlors, barbershops, and catering services.

What are Ideas (as marketed 'things')?

Concepts sold through institutional advertisement, focusing on public services, values, and policies.

What is an Institution (as a marketed 'thing')?

An organization's image or goodwill that is sold.

What are People (as marketed 'things')?

The concept of selling a platform or goodwill.

What is a Target Market?

Buyers of goods (present product users or prospective buyers) targeted by marketing organizations. It refers to 'people' with needs to satisfy, capacity or money to spend, and willingness to buy.

What is a Consumer Market?

Individuals who buy goods for their own personal use or purpose.

What is an Industrial Market?

Institutions or people who buy industrial goods either for use in business operations or for re-sell purposes.

What is the Marketing Concept Philosophy?

A management orientation where the key task is to determine target market needs and wants and deliver desired satisfactions more effectively than competitors. It is a business orientation that evolved in the 1950s where consumer needs and wants became the firm’s primary focus.

What is the Selling Concept Philosophy?

A management orientation assuming consumers won't buy enough products unless the organization makes a substantial effort to stimulate interest. It is a natural evolution from the production and product concepts, where a marketer's primary focus is selling unilaterally produced products.

Define Consumer Behavior.

The behavior consumers display in searching for, purchasing, using, evaluating, and disposing of products and services to satisfy needs. It focuses on how individuals spend available resources (Time, Money, Effort) on consumption-related items.

What is Overt Behavior (Consumer Behavior)?

Visible and observable buying actions (e.g., a customer browsing products in a store, comparing prices).

What is Covert Behavior (Consumer Behavior)?

Hidden or internal mental processes related to buying (e.g., a shopper thinking about affordability or imagining product use).

What is Conscious Behavior (Consumer Behavior)?

Buying decisions made with full awareness and intention (e.g., choosing a specific brand of laptop after online research).

What is Unconscious Behavior (Consumer Behavior)?

Purchasing influenced by habits or emotional triggers without deep thought (e.g., buying the same brand of toothpaste without thinking).

What is Voluntary Behavior (Consumer Behavior)?

Buying choices made freely and deliberately (e.g., deciding to upgrade a phone even if the current one still works).

What is Marketing Stimuli (affecting consumer behavior)?

Promotions, product displays, advertisements that can trigger buying actions (e.g., a 50\% discount sign makes a customer put an item in the cart).

What is Store Environment (affecting consumer behavior)?

Layout, music, lighting, and cleanliness that influence movement and purchase (e.g., a well-organized shelf encourages browsing longer).

What is Social Influence (affecting consumer behavior)?

The presence or opinions of peers or other shoppers (e.g., seeing others buy a product encourages similar action).

What is Perception (affecting consumer behavior)?

How the consumer interprets product information and messaging (e.g., believing a product is healthy due to its packaging).

What is Motivation (affecting consumer behavior)?

Internal drive to fulfill needs (based on Maslow’s hierarchy or similar theories) (e.g., thinking whether a luxury watch satisfies esteem needs).

What are Attitudes and Beliefs (affecting consumer behavior)?

Pre-existing views about brands, quality, or value (e.g., avoiding a product due to perceived low quality).

What is Information Availability (affecting consumer behavior)?

Access to product reviews, comparisons, and research (e.g., choosing a laptop after comparing features and ratings).

What is Price Sensitivity (affecting consumer behavior)?

Budget constraints or value-for-money concerns (e.g., selecting the most affordable yet efficient washing machine).

What is Product Knowledge (affecting consumer behavior)?

Level of familiarity with features or functions (e.g., a tech-savvy buyer carefully choosing a smartphone based on specs).

What is Brand Familiarity (affecting consumer behavior)?

Repeated exposure and previous use (e.g., always grabbing the same coffee brand without thinking).

What are Emotional Triggers (affecting consumer behavior)?

Mood, nostalgia, or brand storytelling (e.g., buying comfort food after a stressful day).

What are Cultural or Personal Routines (affecting consumer behavior)?

Daily habits shaped by upbringing or lifestyle (e.g., always purchasing a specific brand of rice due to family tradition).

What are Personal Preferences (affecting consumer behavior)?

Style, taste, or lifestyle goals (e.g., choosing eco-friendly products based on values).

What are Aspirational Needs (affecting consumer behavior)?

Desire to enhance self-image or status (e.g., upgrading to a premium phone for social prestige).

What is Discretionary Income (affecting consumer behavior)?

Availability of extra money to spend on non-essential items (e.g., buying new headphones even if old ones still work).

What is the Production Concept Philosophy?

Assumes that consumers are mostly interested in product availability at low prices.

What is the Product Concept Philosophy?

Assumes that consumers will buy the product that offers them the highest quality, best performance, and the most features.

What is Product Orientation?

Leads a company to constantly improve product quality and add technically feasible features without first determining consumer want, often leading to marketing myopia.

What is Marketing Myopia?

A focus on the product rather than on the consumer needs it presumes to satisfy. It may cause a company to ignore crucial market changes by looking in the mirror rather than through the window.

What is Market Segmentation?

The process of dividing a market into subsets of consumers with common needs or characteristics, which is the cornerstone of modern marketing.

What is Consumer Research?

The process and tools used to study consumer behavior.