CUSTOMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR AND DECISION PROCESS

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

Consumer behaviour is basically a study to find out how an individual, group or an organization select, buy, use any product or services. Also to understand the various factors which influence their decision. 

Consumer’s behaviour in today’s scenario keeps on changing just because of the availability of the large number of choices and substitutes available in the market. There are various factors which influence consumer behaviour in day to day life, which help them to decide whether to buy the particular product or not.

The factors that influence the consumer behaviour are;

Cultural factors

Social factors

Personal factors

CONSUMER BUYING DECISION PROCESS

Need recognition

The very initial step rather the first thought in the buyers head is to recognise the problem or need that is triggered by internal and external stimuli.

Due to the change in weather our skin tends to change its texture. In summer we face oily skin, in winters we face dry skin this is indeed a problem or need for having a VPJ product as it cure dry skin problems.

Information search

This stage helps the customer to gather information about the product and learn about different brands that exist in the market. The customer learns about the various alternatives/substitutes available in the market.

Information on VPJ is available through advertisements, various websites, word of mouth etc.

Two levels of search:

 Milder search state called heightened attention, where consumers are more receptive towards information about the product.

Active information search level where the customer is looking for reading material, talking to his friends, going online and visiting stores to learn about the product.

Evaluation of alternatives

An evaluation of alternatives is the stage where a consumer uses the information gathered in the information search to evaluate alternative brands in the product category. There are several processes that work inside the consumer's mind, forming beliefs and attitudes about all of the products to choose from.  However these processes all evolve based on the individuals buying situation. The situation evolves from the set of attributes the consumer is choosing to evaluate products by.

Although VPJ is one of the most used petroleum jelly products across the world it still faces competition from Nivea and Johnson and Johnson petroleum jelly. There are different alternatives available in the market such as boroplus, ponds, dove etc.

Purchase decision

In this stage the customer is very sure of the product he needs. He is well educated about the brand, the price, the need etc of the product.

Post-purchase decision

A marketers job is not done at the purchase stage, the post-purchase stage is as important as any other stage. Here it calculates the satisfaction or the dissatisfaction level of the consumer. If the consumer is satisfied he will consider repurchasing the same brand and if he is dissatisfied he will look for alternate brands.