Consumer BehaviorWhy do we do what we do?

MKTG 340

Maureen O’Connor

Did you know…

Asian-Americans are more likely to purchase organic foods than any other ethnic group?

Women who live in the Northeastern U.S. are more likely to be influenced by a company’s eco-friendliness?

47% of consumers say they would not buy a product if they found the ads offensive?

What affects consumer behavior?

Internal factors– Motivation, ability and opportunity to purchase– Perception– Understanding– Attitudes– Memory

Consider Jessica’s desire for a ski vacation….

Motivation, Ability and Opportunity– Does she have the time and money?– Since it will be expensive she is motivated to do

research

Perception– She’ll look for relevant information

Understanding– She will focus and categorize the information

Jessica…

Attitude– She will develop attitudes about different options– She already brings pre-existing attitudes about

vacations to the decision making process

Memory– She will retrieve information from memory that

influences her decision

What else affects consumer behavior?

External Forces– Culture– Values– Social Class– Personality– Family– Reference Groups

Advertising’s work…

To understand and reflect the internal and external factors that influence target consumers

To influence the decision-making process

Consumer Decision-Making Process

Problem recognition

The point at which the consumer realizes a gap between the current and ideal state

– Can be triggered by marketing communications– Marketing communications presents a solution

Internal Search

Consumer rejects brands– that he or she doesn’t like, or had a bad

experience with– That he or she has little knowledge or experience

with– Consumer accepts brands

With high brand equity High quality products, reasonably priced Supported by attractive, clear messages

External Search

Looking for information from outside sources to make a better decision:– Friends and relatives– Experts– Books and magazines– The Internet– Stores and salespeople– Advertisements

External Search

Influenced by:– Ability to search (time and knowledge)– Cost/benefit of search (is it worth it?)– Motivation to search

Involvement (how important is it to me?) Cognition (am I someone who needs a lot of

information?) Shopping enthusiasm (do I like to shop?)

Evaluation of Choices

Evoked set: –the top 2 or 3 brands the consumers considers purchasing

Multi-attribute selection:–Evaluating brands by product performance or brand features

Likeability–The consumer chooses the product he feels best about, based on previous experience or an emotional bond with the brand

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ProblemRecognition

InformationSearch

Evaluation ofAlternatives

Evoked set

Multiattribute

Likeability

ProblemRecognition

F I G U R E 3 . 6Methods of Evaluating Alternatives

How does advertising respond?

Articulates the need Demonstrates the benefits that satisfy the

need Provides the necessary relevant information Encourages and rewards purchase Objective?

– Get into the consumer’s evoked set

Influences on Consumers

Cultural, social and psychological factors influence consumer decision making and interpretation of advertising

Together, these factors combine to create “attitudes”

Attitudes

Marketing can influence consumer attitudes about products by linking products to values

Attitudes have 3 parts:– How we feel (affective)– How we think (cognitive)– How we act (behavior)

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What emotion does this Pamper Wipes advertisement solicit?

Which attitude sequence would be the most likely for this product?

“Some things can be rough.” “Her wipe shouldn’t be one of them.”

Attitudes are influenced by values

American values– Freedom– Comfortable life– Equality– Excitement– Happiness– Personal

accomplishment– Security– Self fulfillment

Chinese values– Trust– Respect for elders– Harmony– Reciprocity– Long term relationship– Benevolence

Attitudes are influenced by

Culture– Holidays, celebrations, customs, rituals

Social class– Combination of education and economics

Family– Where is the family in its life cycle?– How is decision making allocated within the

family?

Also…

Reference Group– Membership and aspirational groups

Diversity– Race and ethnicity

Need for community and affiliation Personality

– Introverted vs. extroverted– Moody vs. even-tempered

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Age complexity Gender complexity Individualism Active, busy lifestyles Cocooning Pleasure pursuits Health emphasis

F I G U R E 3 . 7Trends Affecting Consumer Buyer Behavior

Better understanding leads to better communication…

Helps define and refine advertising objectives

Guides decisions about what the ads should say and look like

Tells us where and when advertising should be placed

Helps us understand when and how to use different promotional tactics

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Business to Business Behavior: The Buying Center

Types of Business to Business Buys

Straight rebuy:– Reorder what you have ordered in the past

Modified rebuy– Make some change based on dissatisfaction with

current buy or new opportunity for savings/value

New task– A new purchase – Little or no experience with product

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ProblemRecognition

InformationSearch

EvaluationOf

Alternatives

PurchaseDecision

Consumer Buying Process

IdentificationOf Needs

B-to-B Buying Process

Establish Specifications

Identify Vendors

Evaluate Vendors

Select Vendor

PostpurchaseEvaluation

Purchase Negotiations

F I G U R E 3 . 11