Consumer buyer behaviour

The marketer need know what people are involved in the buying decision and what role each person plays. For many products, it is fairly easy to identify the decision-maker. Men normally choose their own shoes and women choose their own make-up. However, other products and especially new ones may well involve a decision-making unit of more than one person.

Consider the selection of a family car. The initial suggestion might come from the oldest child – he or she would be the initiator; a friend or colleague might advise the family on the kind of car to buy – he or she would be the influencer; the husband could be the one choose the make while the wife might have a definite opinion regarding the car’s style – they would be the deciders; the husband may well be the one actually to buy – the buyer; the wife might end up using the car more than her husband – she’d be the user.

A company needs to identify who occupies these roles because they affect product design and advertising message decisions. The car manufacturer in this case might be wise to include all the above participants in an advertisement.

The more complex buying decisions are likely to involve more buying participants and more buyer deliberation. We can identify three types of buying behavior.

Routine response behavior occurs when consumers buy low-cost, frequently purchased items. They know a lot about the product class and major brands and they have fairly clear brand preference. The goods in this class are often called low-involvement goods. A household detergent would fall into this category. Marketers of products that consumers buy routinely have two tasks. First, they must satisfy current customers by maintaining consistent quality, service and value. Second, they must try to attract new buyers – break them out of the routine of buying competing products – by introducing new features and using point-of-purchase displays and price discounts.

Buying is more complex when buyers confront an unfamiliar brand in a familiar product class. Limited problem-solving is involved when the consumer is fully aware of the product class but is not familiar with all the brands and their features. Buying a tennis racket might fall into this bracket. Marketers must design a communication programme that will help buyers understand the company’s brand and give them confidence in it.

Sometimes buyers face complex buying decisions for more expensive, less frequently purchased product in a less familiar product class. In these situations, buyers use extensive problem-solving to find out about the product class and the brands available. Buying a new stereo system might fall into this category. Marketers of products in this class need to help buyers learn about important buying criteria and persuade them that their brand rate high in terms of important features and benefits.

Дата добавления: 2015-08-20