CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR

MEANING : Consumer behaviour obviously refers to the behaviour of consumers in deciding

to buy or not to buy or use or not to use or dispose of or not to dispose of the products
which satisfy their needs.
Consumer behaviour tries to answer the following questions:
• What products and services consumers buy?
• Why do they buy them?
• When these are bought?
• From where?
• What is the frequency of buying?
• How often are they used?

• NEED (PROBLEM ) RECOGNITION : It is the first step in buying process.

Consumer can take buying decision only if he has needs and requirements. He will
decide and make list of the items which are required by him. Needs are of two
types :

• INTERNAL : refers to the personal needs like hunger , thirst , safety needs , social
needs etc.

• EXTERNAL : refers to the car , watches , television etc.

Marketers need to identify the circumstances that trigger a particular need by gathering
information from a number of consumers.

INFORMATION SEARCH : After identifying the needs next step is to search for availability of
goods. This can be possible from various sources of information. They are as follows.

1. PERSONAL SOURCE

2. COMMERCIAL SOURCE

3. PUBLIC SOURCE

4. EXPERIENCE

As a result of information search , consumers get idea regarding different types of products , places
where they are available , qualities etc.

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES : As result of information search , consumer gets idea

regarding different types of products , places where they are available , qualities of various
brands etc. so after collecting this ideas , consumer undertakes evaluation process.

There is not a single evaluation process used by all consumers. It means that there are
alternative processes but the evaluation is done on the basis of buying situations.

Evaluation is done on the basis of :

• Qualities of products
• Utility of products and
• price of the product
After evaluating this factors , consumer takes the decision whether to buy the product or
not. For example , if a consumer wants to buy CAMERA then he will evaluate on the basis of
price , speed , size , sharpness of picture etc. then he will decide to buy the camera.
Another example can be – A brand of toothpaste can be evaluated on the basis of colour ,
taste , flavour , price etc.
PURCHASE DECISION : After evaluation process is over , the consumer decides to
purchase that product which he or she like the most, normally , the consumer puts the
different product in serial order according to their preferences.

But there are two additional factors between the purchase intention and purchase
decision. These factors are :

• Attitude of others
• Unanticipated situational factors
• ATTITUDE OF OTHERS : Before consumer buys any product he takes the opinion of
others regarding the product. If opinion or attitude of others is not favourable then
he may change his decision. For example , if person decides to buy a ‘Maruti ‘ car but
his wife thinks that it is small car for the family , then he may decide to buy some
other car.

• UNANTICIPATED SITUATIONAL FACTORS : Purchase intention is also influenced by

unanticipated situational factors . Consumer decides to buy any product on the basis
of expected family income , expected price & expected product benefits. When the
consumer is about to act , the unanticipated factors may forces him or her to change
purchase intention. For example he or she may loose the job.

• In the same manner , when consumer decides to buy any product and goes to
market . Then sometimes he does not buy the product because unanticipated factor
prevents him. Thus , he changes his decision at the last moment. For example ,
suppose a person goes to the shop but he does not like the behaviour of salesman in
such case , he may come back or may decide not to purchase the product.

• POST PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR : Purchase procedure does not end with the
purchase of the product. Post purchase feeling is considered to be the last step of
buying process. When the consumer buys any product and tries any product then ,
consumer experienced some level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction . If the consumer
is satisfied he will buy the product again. On the other hand , if the consumer is
dissatisfied he will not purchase the product again.

• The major theory holds that consumer ‘ s satisfaction is a function of his or her
expectations (E) and the product’s perceived performance , (P) that is ,

S = f (E , P )

• If , P = E , consumer is satisfied
• If , P > E , consumer is highly satisfied
• If , P < E , consumer is dissatisfied
FACTORS AFFECTING BUYING BEHAVIOUR

CULTURAL FACTORS : Culture , subculture and social class are particularly

important influences on consumer buying behaviour. 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 is the fundamental determinant of a person’s wants &
behaviour. For example , to wear gold ornaments during marriage is affected by
culture .

Culture affects what people buy, how they buy and when they buy. Marketer must be
aware of this aspect and marketing programme should be designed accordingly.

Each culture consists of smaller subcultures. It includes nationalities , religions ,

racial groups , and geographic regions. Product and marketing programme should
be prepared in light of sub cultures to tailor their needs.

• Nationality groups
• Religion groups
• Racial groups
• Geographical groups
Social class : in any society , generally the social classes are divided into upper ,
middle , & lower class. Again these can be further classified like :

• upper – upper ( less than 1% )

• lower – upper class ( 2%)
• Upper – middle (12% )
• Middle class ( 32 % )
• Working class ( 38 % )
• Upper – lower class (8 % )
• Lower – lower class ( 7% )
Social classes have several characteristics. First , those within each class tend to
behave more alike than persons from two different social classes. Social classes
differ in dress , speech patterns , recreational preferences etc. Second , persons
are perceived as occupying inferior or superior positions according to social class.
Third , individuals can move up or down the social class ladder during their lifetimes.
Social classes show distinct product and brand preferences in many areas ,
including clothing , home furnishings , and automobiles. Social class differs in media
preferences, upper class consumers often preferring magazines and books and
lower class consumers often preferring television .

SOCIAL FACTORS : In addition to cultural factors , a consumer’ s behaviour is

influenced by such social factors as reference groups , family , and social roles
and status.

• REFERENCE GROUPS : A person’s reference groups consist of all the

groups that have direct or indirect influence on his or her attitude or behaviour
. Groups having direct influence is called membership groups. Some
membership groups are primary groups such as family , friends , co-workers,
neighbours , those with whom person interacts continuously and informally.
People also belong to secondary groups, such as religious , professional
groups , which tend to be more formal and require less continuous interaction.

People are also influenced by groups to which they do not belong.

• Aspirational reference group : A person is not a member of such groups. But,
he likes to belong to those groups.

• Dissociative groups : These reference groups include such groups whose

values or behaviour a person rejects, or dislikes. He tends to behave
differently than those groups.

• Marketer should identify reference groups of his target market and should try
to influence those groups. In case of Television, automobile, clothing, home
furniture etc. the reference groups have more direct impact on buyers
purchase decision.

An opinion leader is the person in informal , offers advice or information about a

specific product , which of several brands is the best or how a particular product may
be used.

FAMILY : Family is the most important consumer buying organisation in society and
family members constitute the most influential primary reference group. We can
distinguish two families in the buyer’s life.

• Family of orientation : consists of parents and siblings.

• Family of procreation : more direct influence on everyday buying behaviour ,
consists of one’s spouse and children.
Marketers are interested in the role and relative influence of family members in the
purchase of a large variety of products and services.
Generally wife is the main purchasing agent for the family , especially in the field of
food , clothes, soaps , powder etc. While husband is main buyer for the family in the
field of expensive products and services. Such as refrigerators ,television ,
computer , life insurance & bank services. In case of furniture, entertainment
services etc. husband and wife jointly take decisions. Another shift in buying pattern
is the direct and indirect influence of children and teens. Direct influence directs
children’s hints, request or demand ---- I want to go to Mc donald’s . Indirect
influence means that parents know the brand , product choices and preferences of
the children without hint or request.

Role and status: A person plays various roles throughout his life. He has to play
different role in family, club, office or social organisation. A role consists of the
activities a person is expected to perform. Each role carries a status. for example, a
person is father for his child, husband for his wife, son for his parents, friend for his
friends, boss for his department and a member of a social organisation, each role
carries status. For example, senior vice president of marketing has more status than
sales manager , a sales manager has more status than office clerk. People choose
products that reflect and communicate their role and desired status in society.
Therefore, marketer should try to associate products and brands with specific roles
and status.

PERSONAL FACTORS: A buyer’s decisions are also influenced by personal

characteristics. These include buyer’s age and stage in life cycle , occupation and
economic circumstances , personality , lifestyle and values. Because many of these
characteristics have a very direct impact on consumer behaviour , it is important for
marketer to follow them strictly.

 Age and Stage in the life cycle : People buy different goods and services
over a life time. Taste in food , clothes , furniture , and recreation is often age
related. Consumption is also shaped by the family life cycle and number ,
age , and gender of people in the household at any point of time.

Marketer should also consider critical life events --- marriage , childbirth , illness ,
relocation , divorce __ as giving rise to new needs.

 Occupation and economic circumstances :

occupation also influences consumption patterns. A blue collar worker will buy work
clothes , work shoes , and lunchboxes. A company president will buy dress suits , air
travel and club membership. Marketers should try to identify the occupational groups
that have above average interest in their product and services. Product choice is
greatly affected by economic circumstances : spendable income , saving and
assets ,debts , borrowing power and attitude toward spending and saving.

 Personality : Each person has personality characteristics that influence his or

her buying behaviour. By personality , we mean a set of distinguishing human
psychological traits that lead to relatively consistent and enduring responses
to environment stimuli. Personality characteristics such as individualism, self –
confidence, courage, sociability, mental balance etc. have strong influence on
needs and preferences. Personality can be useful variable in analyzing brand
choices. People often choose and use product which suit to their personality.
In case of clothing, automobiles, perfumes etc. products are influenced by
users’ personality characteristics.

 Self Concept : It is what person believes of him. There can be actual self
concept , how he views himself; ideal self concept, how he would like to view
himself; and other self concept, how he thinks others see him. Person
purchases such product that matches with his/her self concept. Marketer must
identify self concept of his target buyers and must try to match product with it.

 Life style and values: People from the same subculture , social class, and
occupation may lead quite different lifestyle. A lifestyle is a person’s pattern of
living in the world as expressed in activities , interests and opinion. Lifestyles
are shaped partly by whether consumers are money constrained or time
constrained. Companies aiming to serve money constrained consumers will
create lower costs products and services. Consumers who experience time
are prone to multitasking i.e. doing two or more things at the same time.
(example) Consumer decisions are also influenced by core values , the
belief systems that underlie consumer attitudes and behaviours. Marketers
who target consumers on the basis of their values believe that by appealing to
people’s inner selves, it is possible to influence their outer selves – their
purchase behaviour.