UNDERSTANDING CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

Understanding consumer behaviour

Understanding consumer behaviour

First case: Second-hand shops

For decades scholars and practitioners have been frustrated by the very capacity of either psychological or marketing models to predict consumer behaviour. It is essential therefore to try to clearly recognise the many problems, in trying to understand consumer behaviour in a precise, reliable and significant way.

'The study of consumer behaviour is at this time seen as a 'behavioural or social science.' There are many that would challenge that this is a misnomer although it is not strictly a 'science', in it purest form when compared with the 'Natural' and 'Mathematical sciences'. Watson states, "Behavioural Science is a purely objective experimental branch of Natural Science."

To understand the real reasons people purchase one brand over the other, it is necessary to understand their underlying needs and concerns.

In the past the theory of consumer behaviour has come from psychology; however, with further study sociology, anthropology and economics also contribute.

According to Ray Wright (1999), 'Behaviour could be used as a means of segmentation, whereby buyers are divided into groups according to the attitude and behaviour shown towards products and companies.' This is influenced by factors that marketers cannot directly control. The understanding of its impact is crucial, as marketing mix strategies can be developed to appeal to the references of the target market. Once the consumers' decision making process and buying behaviour processes have been assessed, the 4P's can be developed in line with consumers' needs and wants - i.e. the type of product required, price range, place and promotion.

The lifestyle each of us leads is an iportant factor while buying from second hand shops is an expression of our situation.' People's interest in goods, activities and opinions are affected by their lifestyles, reciprocally, they would buy goods to express this. Marketers are increasingly monitoring the needs of the consumers to target. The instrument most widely used is the SRI Values and Lifestyles. (See Appendix 3)

Since consumers need and want change with age. Companies use age and life cycle to segment the market, offering different products or using different marketing approaches for different age and lifecycle groups. To target kids, teens, baby boomers or mature consumers, in the Banking Sector they have introduced savings plans to suit the various age groups differentiated. (See Appendix 4) Age also determines the extent to which a consumer would go for an item regardless of strategy used. In the travel industry they target using the family life cycle (See Appendix 5) the young and the young at heart, using the newly wed, the young single adult and the retiree, the young at heart, to capture market share - Walt Disney's advertisements. Note need be taken, that the pattern of spending will change over the family life cycle.

Economics is another important factor for buying from second hand shops and it plays an integral role in a person's purchase due to their discretionary income, as they satisfy Maslow's physiological needs. Marketers use 'because it's affordable' to sell many products, to ...