Consumer Behavior

types of groups

-membership groups- groups that have a direct influence and to which a person belongs -reference groups- serve as direct or indirect points of comparison or reference in formatting a persons attitudes or behavior -aspirational group- the individual wishes to belong

asian american consumers

most affluent US demographic segment relatively well educated 18.5 million people with 1 trillion in buying power -second fastest growing subsegment after hispanics -diverse group- Chinese largest group, then filipinos -shop frequently and are the most brand conscious of all the ethnic groups

culture

the set of basic values, perceptions, wants, and behaviors learned by a member of society from family and other important institutions cultural shifts- marketers are always trying to spot cultural shifts to discover new products that might be wanted ex. shift toward greater concern about health and fitness has created a huge industry for health and fitness services

brand personality

the specific mix of human traits that may be attributed to a particular brand sincerity (down to earth, honest), excitement (daring, spirited), competence (reliable, intelligent), sophistication (glamorous, upper class), ruggedness (outdoorsy and tough)

personality

the unique psychological characteristics that distinguish a person or group described in terms of sociability, autonomy, defensiveness, adaptability and aggressiveness -people are likely to choose brands that match their personality

Buying decision behavior

• Buying behavior can be categorized in terms of - Involvement: Amount of time/effort spent on the decision - Differentiation: The degree of difference between brands. complex buying behavior- lots of time looking up other options, pros and cons iPhones vs samsung (different operating system, different cameras) variety seeking- little time and effort used in your decision. there are many options for subway subs but low time in deciding dissonance reducing- uncomfortable feeling after making a purchase ex. buying office chair. all brands are making same claims but it takes time to decide because its expensive habitual- pepsi vs coke. blind tests show people cant tell the difference

Psychological factors affecting consumer behavior cont

• Learning: Changes in behavior arising from experience -if you have a bad experience w a product, you won't use it again. you've learned from your experience •Belief: A descriptive thought that a person holds about something. • It is beliefs, not reality, that shapes consumer behavior beliefs become attitudes • Attitude:Evaluations and feeling toward an object or an idea more resilient to change marketers should get their message across before consumer beliefs become reality

Psychological factors affecting consumer behavior

• Motivation:A need that makes one to seek satisfaction. ex. maslows hierarchy of needs • Perception:Theprocessbywhichpeopleseetheworld. • Perceptions≠Reality •It is perception, not reality, that shapes consumer behaviors and motivations. ex. income inequality USA- there is actually income inequality and people perceive it that way canada is actually high income inequality but not perceived that way France had protests against income inequality (perceived high) but It is actually low -perception shapes consumer behavior and motivation

subculture

A group of people with shared value systems based on common life experiences and situations includes nationality, religions, racial groups, geographic regions

lifestyle

A person's pattern of living as expressed in his or her activities, interests, and opinions involves activities (work, hobbies), interests (food, fashion) and opinions (on social issues, business, products)

new product

a good, service, or idea that is perceived by some potential customers as new

motive

a need that is sufficiently pressing to direct the person to seek satisfaction of the need motivation research- psychologists and other social scientists probe the subconscious motivations underlying consumers emotions and behaviors towards brands

opinion leader

a person within a reference group who, because of special skills, knowledge, personality, or other characteristics, exerts social influence on others -also called influentials or leading adopters buzz marketing- enlisting or creating opinion leaders to serve as brand ambassadors who spread the word about a companys products

personal factors

A buyer's decisions also are influenced by personal characteristics such as the buyer's age and life-cycle stage(tastes in food, clothes, furniture, recreation are related), occupation(the clothes they buy, various machinery), economic situation, lifestyle, and personality and self-concept.

hispanic American consumers

-represent a large, fast-growing market -youthful segment, more than half are under 30 -many subsegments based on nationality, age, income 55 million consumers w total buying power of $1.7 trillion

African american consumers

44 million consumers with almost $1.3 trillion in buying power -strongly motivated by quality and selection. brands are important -consumers of digital and social media

stages in the adoption process

Awareness: Consumer becomes aware of the new product, but lacks information about it. Interest: Consumer seeks information about new product. Evaluation: Consumer considers whether trying the new product makes sense. Trial: Consumer tries new product on a small scale to improve his or her estimate of its value. Adoption: Consumer decides to make full and regular use of the new product.

Cultural factors affecting consumer behavior

Culture: The most basic cause of consumer behavior that shapes social and personal factors Sub-culture: Groups of people with shared value systems (e.g., race, social class, fans of music and sports). ex. UB population

Social factors affecting consumer behavior

Social network: Word of mouth by opinion leaders via SNS ex. youtubers influence behaviors Family: gender expectations, time-honored traditions Roles: a person holds different roles. One's spending patterns change depending on one's role. ex. son, brother, neighbor if you go to the grocery store and you know your neighbor is looking at you, you buy something that plays into his expectation of you. if he thinks you maintain a healthy diet, you might put the broccoli in your cart

Model of consumer behavior

Stimulus-response model - Consumer behavior is the result of the environment - Consumer's characteristics and decision processes influence their behavior. environment is giving a stimulus to consumer and consumer responds the environment- other: microenvironment and marketing mix -consumers interpret these environments and engage in buying behavior -black box- everyone responds differently to ads

Role of marketing

Understand cultural shifts and identify different needs based on sub-culture. Understand social shifts and use social factors to shift consumer needs. Each consumer interprets the same message differently. Marketing activities can be directed to change consumer beliefs. Consumers' attitudes are difficult to change. social factors ex- youtubers

learning

changes in an individual's behavior arising from experience drive- a strong internal stimulus that calls for action -a drive becomes a motive when it is directed toward a particular stimulus object ex. a persons drive for self actualization might motivate them to look into buying a camera. the consumers response to the idea of buying a camera is conditioned by the surrounding cues -if the experience is rewarding, the consumer will probably use the camera more and more and their response will be reinforced

factors influencing consumer behavior

culture- many brands now target specific subcultures (hispanic, black) personal- peoples buying decisions reflect and contribute to their lifestyles- their whole pattern of acting and interacting in the world. ex- kitchenmaid sells more than just kitchen appliances/ it se;;s an entire cooking and entertainment lifestyle to kitchenthusiasts

cognitive dissonance

discomfort caused by post purchase conflict

Psychological factors example

ex. if a youtube says a company pollutes a lot, it becomes a belief and you dont buy the product the next day, company posts a video saying they abide by pollution rules and the youtube only said that because they had a bad customer service experience- changed belief before it became reality • Similar to stereotype—Difficult to change chevy ex. blind chevy tests and driver said it was very good w smooth ride- it must be Volkswagen. but it was actually chevy and they were shocked -this is an attitude- people believe that German cars are the best -attitude was misleading- similar to stereotypes

family

family members strongly influence buyer behavior -husband-wife involvement varies widely by product category -women outspend men on technology purchases and influence more than 80% of new car purchases

five adopter groups

innovators are venturesome- they try new ideas at some risk early adopters are guided by respect- they are opinion leaders in their communities and adopt new ideas early but carefully early mainstream- deliberate- although they are rarely leaders, they adopt new ideas before the average person late mainstream- skeptical- they adopt an innovation only after a majority of people have tried it lagging adopters- tradition bound- they are suspicious of changes and adopt the innovation only when it has become something of a tradition itself -early mainstream and late mainstream hold the highest percent share of all adopters

total marketing strategy

integrating ethnic themes and cross-cultural perspectives within a brand's mainstream marketing, appealing to consumer similarities across subcultural segments rather than differences

buyer decision process

need recognition- first stage- customer recognizes a problem or need -can be triggered by internal stimuli (when one of the persons normal needs rises to a level high enough to be a drive) or external stimuli (ex. an ad got you thinking about buying a new car) information search- consumer is motivated to search for more info -consumers can obtain info from personal sources (family, friends), commercial sources (ads, salespeople), public sources (mass media, consumer rating organizations), and experiential sources (using the product) -commercial sources normally inform the buyer but personal sources legitimize or evaluate products evaluation of alternatives-the stage of the buyer decision process where the consumer uses info to evaluate alternative brand s purchase decision-decision about which brand to purchase -2 factors can come in-between purchase intention and purchase decision: attitudes of others and unexpected situational factors (economy crash) post purchase behavior- consumers take further action after purchase, based on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction what determines satisfaction- relationship between consumers expectations and perceived performance

online social networks

online communities where people congregate, socialize, and exchange views and information -marketers are using social media more to build closer customer relationships instead of throwing one way commercial messages at them

self concept

peoples possessions contribute and reflect their identities

characteristics important in influencing an innovations rate of adoption

relative advantage- the degree to which the innovation appears superior to existing products. compatibility- the degree to which the innovation fits the values and experiences of potential customers complexity- the degree to which innovation is difficult to understand to use divisibility- the degree to which the innovation mat be tried on a limited basis (test driving) communicability- the degree to which the results of using the innovation can be observed or described to others

social classes

relatively permanent and ordered divisions in a society whose members share similar values, interests, and behaviors upper upper class, lower upper class, upper middle class, middle class, working class, upper lower class, and lower lower class group- two or more people who interact to accomplish individual or mutual goals many small groups influence a persons behavior -reference groups serve as a direct (face to face) or indirect points of comparison in forming a persons attitudes or behavior

consumer buyer behavior

the buying behavior of final consumers - individuals and households that buy goods and services for personal consumption all of these final customers combine to make up the consumer market

word of mouth influence

the impact of the personal words and recommendations of trusted friends, associates, and other consumers on buying behavior people trust friends and family more than advertisements

adoption process

the mental process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an innovation to final adoption -adoption is the decision by an individual to become a regular user of the product

perception

the process by which people select, organize, and interpret information to form a meaningful picture of the world selective distortion- the tendency of people to interpret information in a way that will support what they already believe selective retention- customers are likely to remember good points about a brand they favor and forget goof points made about competing brands subliminal advertising- customers being affected by marketing without knowing it

Consumer behavior

• The actions a person takes in purchasing and using products and services, including the psychological and social process that comes before and after these actions. •Consumers are the most important actors in the company's microenvironment, so understanding consumer behavior to satisfy their needs is very important.

Buying decision process

•Buying decision process involves five steps, including post- purchase behavior. • Cognitive dissonance:Discomfort caused by post-purchase conflict. - Uncertainty: "Maybe I should have bought X instead of Y..." - Justification: "No, my choice was sound and good." post purchase behavior includes regret