Consumer behavior - what influences it and what types can be distinguished?

Buyers are now the object of increasingly fierce competition. This is because economic development has brought a wide selection of products and services. The modern customer, looking for a specific offer, has a variety of options at his disposal, which for your brand means one thing - the need to compete for his attention. In this regard, it is useful to know what factors influence consumer behavior in the market are of key importance.

Consumer behavior - definition

Consumer behavior is a concept that encompasses the decision-making process regarding the purchase of a particular product or service. In addition, consumer behavior is also analyzed in the context of subsequent opinions on the purchase and conduct after the transaction is finalized. Consumer behavior is fundamental to the effectiveness of the sales process, so a brand should start by identifying the target audience it wants to reach with its offer, and in the next step analyze the factors that have the greatest impact on consumer decisions.

Analyzing customer behavior is a very good way to optimize the sales process and improve the level of customer service. It is worth noting that some types of consumer behavior are intentional and deliberate actions, but the behavior of customers in practice can also be subconscious. Example: spontaneous purchase of a product, dictated solely by the influence of advertising. It is necessary to distinguish between irrational and rational consumer behavior in order to actually be able to identify the factors that influence it.

Factors influencing consumer behavior

Knowing what the basic determinants of consumer behavior are will allow you to choose those factors that you can actually influence in your sales and marketing efforts. This is also important if you want to analyze what the customer's purchase path looks like. Besides, understanding the determinants of consumer behavior allows you to create a more effective advertising message. It is important to be aware that market consumer behavior is not a uniform phenomenon, which influences the need to adapt brand activities to the needs and expectations of the target group.

The impact of advertising on consumer behavior

The influence of promotions on consumer behavior is one of those factors whose importance is very difficult to overestimate. Why? Advertising can determine what motives a person has when deciding to buy a particular product or service. Often, advertisements appeal to the rationality of customers, showing the practicality of the promoted offer, but advertisements that "affect" the purchase decision-making process in an emotional way are also common. An example? Ads that suggest that a product is luxurious, and that buying it in practice increases the customer's prestige.

It should be emphasized that when choosing the optimal advertising activities, such as experience marketing, influencer campaigns, etc., it is necessary to target the needs and expectations of a specific target group.

The impact of merchandising on consumer behavior

Merchandinsig has a significant impact on customer behavior in the store. With the proper placement of products on the shelf, you can effectively influence the consumer's purchasing decisions. An aesthetically arranged storefront encourages visitors, the placement of aisles and their lighting will influence the path a customer will take, and placing products at the shopper's eye level will increase the chance that the consumer will place them in his or her shopping cart.

By placing items that complement each other side by side, the likelihood that a customer will decide to purchase additional products is raised. Seating, i.e. moving products so as to remove empty shelf space, makes the store look very well stocked, and appropriate music will influence the pace of shopping. By analyzing shopping behavior, you can develop a more effective merchandising strategy that is tailored to the specific group of consumers who are your target audience.

See also: what is video analysis?

The impact of price on consumer behavior

Among the factors shaping consumer behavior, it is impossible not to mention price, which is not only important in terms of the profits made. Time-limited promotions give the impression of urgency, so they can encourage the buyer to complete the transaction as soon as possible. A high price, contrary to appearances, does not have to dissuade from buying a product at all - pricing policy is sometimes an element of the strategy shaping the luxury image of a given brand. In other words, the price of products and services can influence how consumers perceive your company.

Consumer behavior vs. individual characteristics

The types of consumer behavior depend not only on external factors, that is, attempts to influence their decisions through advertising or merchandising. Among the factors shaping buyer behavior are also those that are difficult to change in practice, but knowledge of them, as we mentioned above, can help in designing effective promotional activities.

This group includes cultural factors influencing consumer behavior in the market, i.e. the environment in which a person operates on a daily basis, religious culture, cultural trends, such as the fashion for organic products, etc. This is the reason why consumer behavior in different markets can be completely different.

Other issues that affect customer buying behavior include:

• Age,
• Education,
• Marital status,
• Property status,
• Belonging to a particular social group,
• Occupation,
• Lifestyle,
• Views.

Thus, when analyzing what actually influences a consumer's purchasing behavior, one must keep in mind that a large role is played by his individual characteristics, but also by the environment in which he grew up and currently functions.

Consumer behavior models - why use them?

Again, let's emphasize: the model of consumer behavior depends on which group of customers you are dealing with. A simple example: consumer behavior on the Internet may be different from that presented during online shopping. For you, this means first of all that you need to identify the factors that actually determine the behavior of the customers you are targeting. So first you need to determine what the basic characteristics of your target audience are, and then carefully analyze which factors are most likely to influence the purchasing decisions of its members. Using consumer behavior models will allow you to organize the knowledge you have gathered.

Research and analysis of consumer behavior

Researching consumers and their behavior is one way to systematize the sales and promotion process, not working in the dark, but relying on hard, analytical data. In practice, consumer behavior research is usually qualitative innature. This means that the research conducted is primarily focused on analyzing the nature of a particular course of action, behavior, etc. In the course of qualitative research, relatively small groups of people or single respondents are tested, so it should be noted that their results may have limited applicability to the study of the behavior of larger populations. What tools can be used when analyzing consumer attitudes and behavior?

• Focus research, or focus group interviews. A small group of people is stimulated to discuss a specific topic.
• This method works especially well if you want to test consumer behavior at the point of purchase.
• One-on-oneinterview. One-on-one consumer interview.

The prevalence of qualitative research does not mean, of course, that a consumer behavior survey is meaningless. On the contrary, surveying by CATI (telephone) or CAPI (face-to-face interview) can provide a lot of valuable information about consumer motivations. The advantage of surveying is that a large group of people can be surveyed in a relatively short period of time, selecting a sample representative of the group for this purpose.

On the other hand, after the purchase process is completed, it is worth doing a customer satisfaction survey. This will tell you whether the consumer is satisfied with the purchase and how he or she rates their customer experience (consumer experience). In this survey, it is additionally worthwhile to include questions about what made them choose just your offer and what is actually the value to the customer associated with the purchase of a particular product or service.