Consumer Behaviour Flashcards
The individual factors that influence behaviour
The individual factors that influence behaviour are motivation, perception, learning ability, attitude, personality and lifestyle.
Motivation
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Perception
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Learning Ability
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Attitude
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Personality and Lifestyle
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The group factors that influence behaviour
Cultural Groups
Family
Reference Groups and Opinion Leaders
Cultural Groups
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Family
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Reference Groups and Opinion Leaders
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There are six phases in the decision-making process.
Step1: need recognition Step 2: search for information Step 3: Evaluation Step 4: decision-making Step 5: purchasing action Step 6: post-purchase evaluation
Business decision making
Four types of buying decision may be distinguished:
- New-task buying.
- Straight rebuy.
- Modified rebuy.
- Systems buying.
• New-task buying.
An example would be an organisation buying something completely new that it has never used before. Imagine Coca-Cola deciding to sell the soft drink in cardboard boxes like fruit juice. The purchase of the cardboard containers would be a new task.
• Straight rebuy.
An example would be an organisation simply reordering stock of its best selling item.
• Modified rebuy.
An example would be an organisation reordering an item but with different specifications. Coca-Cola could, for example, order tin cans from its supplier, but request 450 ml instead of 340 ml cans.
• Systems buying.
An example would be an organisation purchasing an online document storage solution. It does not buy scanners from one supplier and computers from another, but purchases the complete system from one vendor.
Buying Centre
The decision-making unit of a buying organisation is called its buying centre. In addition to having functional roles and concerns, individuals in the buying organisation may play different roles in the decision-making process that crosses functional boundaries.
Table 4.1 compares buying centres in consumer markets and organisational markets, indicating the members, the roles they play and the functional areas that may be involved.
The members of the buying centre could play any of the following roles:
users, influencers, buyers, decision-makers and gatekeepers.
Organisational User
A machine breaks down; the operator reports it, thus initiating the process. The operator may also be asked to help with specs for replacement. The operator is the user.
Organisational Influencer
The user may be the influencer; also R&D staff, accountants, suppliers, sales reps and external consultants may be involved.
Organisational Buyer
The buyer handles the search for and negotiations with suppliers.
Organisational Gatekeepers
Secretarial staff may prevent the influencers reaching the decision- maker; R&D staff could withhold information.
Consumer User
A child pesters his parents for a new bike. The child initiates and is the user.
Consumer Influencer
The child’s mother thinks about it and says:”Well, perhaps he has grown out of the old one …”’
Consumer Buyer
The parents pay the bill.
Consumer Gatekeepers
The mother and father restrict the time the child can spend on the internet looking at different bikes.
Consumer Decision-maker
The child’s father agrees and they all go to Toys ``R’’ Us where the child will make the final decision subject to restraints imposed by parents’ credit limit.
Organisational Decision-maker
The decider may be a senior manager with either an active or a passive role in the whole process or even the buyer and/or influencer.
Analysing buying centre
When analysing the make-up of the buying centre, we should look not only at the allocation of roles to the different functional areas of the organisation, but also at the seniority of the members. Also, an individual’s contribution to the buying centre may not be limited to one role. Whatever the structure, however fluid the buying centre is, it is still necessary for the aspiring supplier to attempt to identify the pattern in the target organisation in order to create effective communication. Having established decision-making structures, we can now examine the buying decision process.
The organisational buying process consists of the following eight stages:
- problem recognition
- general need recognition
- product specification
- supplier search
- proposal solicitation
- supplier selection
- order routine specification
- performance review
• problem recognition
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• general need recognition
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• product specification
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• supplier search
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• proposal solicitation
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• supplier selection
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• order routine specification
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• performance review
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