- understanding the factors underlying the behaviour - knowing how to identify the stages in the...

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PURCHASING BEHAVIOUR

- Understanding the factors underlying the behaviour

- Knowing how to identify the stages in the purchasing decision process

- Knowing how to link purchasing behaviour to market segmentation

Laurence Chérel - Catherine Madrid Tech De Co Bordeaux

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PURCHASING BEHAVIOUR

In Marketing, the customer is the focus of the exchange.

It is therefore vital to understand the behaviour of the consumer.

1 – The underlying factors in purchasing behaviour (slides 3 30)

2 – The stages in the purchasing decision process (slides 31 54)


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1 -THE UNDERLYING FACTORS IN PURCHASING BEHAVIOUR

The various factors which influence and account for purchasing behaviour are useful for understanding why the buyer takes action with regard to his purchase.

Two types of factors are involved:

- individual factors

- group factors


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A – The individual influencing factors:

these are linked to the person of the buyer, and are personal to him. The following individual factors can be identified:

- need

- motivation

- experience-seeking

- perception

- attitude

- sociodemographic characteristics


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THE INDIVIDUAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

- NEED –

A need arises out of a sense of lack linked to the human condition; it is pre-existing.

Consumer society recommends commercial solutions to these needs. They may be:

• explicit and verbalised • OR implicit and latent.

:

Marketing detects needs Marketing evokes needs Marketing creates awareness of needs Marketing promotes possible solutions.

Needs are fundamental; they can be ranked according to Maslow’s pyramid.


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The pyramid of Needs according to Abraham Maslow

Self-actualisation needs

Esteem needs

Belonging needs

Safety needs

Physiological needs

A level of need is only felt when the preceding level has been satisfied.


R A T I N G

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The consumer acts under budgetary constraints and makes choices on this basis.

These choices are implemented by: Substituting between the goods that satisfy a single

need, Substituting between needs.

Consequently, in order to maximise his satisfaction, the customer establishes:

a hierarchy among the goods, a hierarchy among the needs.


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However, the consumer could be considered to be more strongly influenced by his social environment than by his personality alone.

His consumption would be of a more social, relational and active nature than a private, dispersed and passive one.

In fact, the customer has been found to be subject to a dual influence:

- the differentiation of individuals from one another and-their demand for equality.

This situation leads to the emergence of a spiral of needs.


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INDIVIDUAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

To the consumer the spiral of needs means:

ever-increasing needs,increasingly diversified needs.

The contemporary consumer’s quest to satisfy his needs directs him to a multiplicity of offers leading to:

- indecision when faced with choice

- the quest for variety to which the consumer adds, as distinctive features:

* the search for new experiences

* technological change


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INDIVIDUAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

- MOTIVATION –

These are the individual’s internal forces that make him take a certain course of action.

They correspond to rational or irrational determinants of human behaviour: feelings, emotions, interests, opinions, attitudes, aspirations, desires, etc.When a motivation is negative, it is referred to as a deterrent.


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- EXPERIENCE SEEKING –

Current tendency: marketers think that the consumer buys a product more for the pleasure it gives than for its intrinsic characteristics.

Promotion of consumption items


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The promotion of consumption items can be:

Pragmatic promotion:

When consumption is a useful action and is taken to achieve a given result:

Example: a time-saving product, a practical product, etc.

Hedonistic promotion:

When consumption produces pleasure and emotions in the consumer.

For example: the purchase of perfume pens, a bouquet of flowers, gourmet coffee, etc.


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- PERCEPTION –

This is a two-fold construction:

- sensation,

- followed by the interpretation of this sensation.

The visual, olfactory, tactile, etc. discovery of a product generates a sensation in the customer, who interprets this sensation and creates a mental representation (image) of it which will guide his behaviour.

Example: the packaging of this chocolate bar in black and gold glossy paper makes me believe that the chocolate is an exceptional product.


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- ATTITUDE -

They are predisposed towards favourable or unfavourable action in regard to an item.

This manifests as a judgement on the performance of the product compared with the features highlighted by the customer. This judgement is formed from the mental representation (image) of the product that the customer has created.

This judgement is 3-dimensional.


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The 3 component elements of attitude:Cognitive component: all of the consumer’s knowledge or beliefs about an item

I think, I know

Affective component: feelings developed towards an item

I like, I don’t like

Conative component: intended behaviours

I intend to do…


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- THE SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS –

1 – Age:

Age brackets can account for the differences in behaviour with regard to certain types of products:

- toys,

- books,

- etc.


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2 – Income combined with time available:

A correlation has been identified between household income, female employment and time management.

This correlation has an impact on, for example, the purchasing of “time-saving” products or services such as ready-made dishes, “drive-thru” shopping, etc.

It also influences the effort put into information research and store traffic behaviour.


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3 – Geographical location:

The living area or the type of housing that customers inhabit can influence their purchasing behaviour.

- region of residence,

- urban/peri-urban/rural area,

- individual/group housing,

- residence in an apartment/house


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B – The collective influencing factors:

The consumer operates within a social environment that influences his purchasing behaviour. Consequently, it is not his personality alone that affects his purchasing decision process.


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THE COLLECTIVE INFLUENCING FACTORS

- CULTURE –

Culture is defined as a set of norms, beliefs and habits learned from the social environment which determine shared modes of behaviour.It is built on:

- linguistic customs (familiar address/formal address),- educational practices,- religion,- climate,- dietary habits, - etc.


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Culture directs and governs certain customer behaviours in relation to the fundamental aspects of their existence.

Examples:* Time, Religion

Opening stores on Sundays?

*Meanings associated with colours

* Relationship with time

* Allocation of masculine/feminine roles Types of purchases

* Influence on the hierarchy of needsThe Hindu culture does not prioritise material gratification. (According to J-C Usinier, “Trade between cultures ”, PUF)


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• Culture can give a specific form to the manifestation of needs

Example: need to eat: pizza, paella, cassoulet …

* This must be taken into account particularly in international approaches

Example: MacDonald’s: adaptation of its product offering to local customs


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- GROUPS –

A group is made up of a set of individuals who accept a shared task and therefore become interdependent, interacting with one another.

The groups to which the customer belongs (membership groups: neighbours, colleagues, friends, etc.) or with which he identifies (reference groups: champions, artists, etc.), influence his purchasing behaviour by:

- disseminating information,

- reducing the perceived risk associated with the purchase (including performance risk),

- giving advice on choice, either choice of a product or choice of a brand,

- recommending models and lifestyles.


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- A SPECIAL GROUP: THE FAMILY -

The family is the influence group closest to the individual.

The family is considered a household (based on the meaning given by Insee (national institute of statistical and economic information)): it is a set of persons who share a main residence, irrespective of the relationship links.

It is understood as a purchasing unit.


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Within this purchasing unit, the individuals who comprise the family can play various roles in making purchasing decisions: key influencer, user, purchaser, etc.

These roles can vary depending on the stages of the decision-making process.

The marketing strategy must take account of this potential allocation of roles.


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Depending on the products, the decisions taken by the family can be joint or individual:

Purchasing requiring a more feminine decisionChildren’s clothing, food products, etc.

Purchasing requiring a more masculine decision

Cars, repairs, etc.

Purchasing requiring a conjugal decisionLiving accommodation, vacations

Note: roles nowadays are changing:Example: repositioning of Monsieur Bricolage on Déco stores

to appeal to women.


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- THE FAMILY LIFE CYCLE -

The family unit evolves over time. There are signal stages in the life of a family unit.

Each stage has corresponding purchasing priorities.

This approach can be useful in designing certain product offers (IKEA, SCNF, Theme parks, etc.).


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THE TRADITIONAL FAMILY LIFE CYCLE AND ITS PURCHASING PRIORITIES:

* Young bachelor:

fashion, entertainment

* Young childless married couple:

home amenities, hobbies

* Married couple, with children < 6 years:

accommodation, amenities, children’s products

* Married couple, with children > 6 years:

children’s products, upgrading amenities

* Married couple, without children at home, non-pensioners:

non-essential products, entertainment, savings.

* New retirees:

health, travel, pastimes

* Elderly retirees:

care, illness, security.


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THE CONTEMPORARY FAMILY LIFE CYCLE

* Single-parent households influences on markets such as the toy and travel markets, etc.

* Persons living alone influences on the packaging of food products, for example

* Reconstituted families and families with variable geometry

influences on furniture, modular vehicles, etc.


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The individual and collective influencing factors will play a part in the various stages of the purchasing decision-making process.

Let’s now look at these stages. (part 2: slides 31 54 )


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2 – THE STAGES IN THE PURCHASING DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

The making of purchases reflects a diversity of situations and issues.

The purchaser is the person who, by way of a process, will seek to resolve a fundamental problem:

choosing a response to a need.


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Choosing a response to a need can range from taking a habitual decision to extensive problem-solving…


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…FROM A HABITUAL DECISION TO EXTENSIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING…

-Regular purchasing

-Familiar product

-Little involvement

-Little thought

-Little research

-Little time afforded to purchasing

-Occasional purchasing

-Unknown product

-Active involvement

-Much thought

-A great deal of research

-Substantial time dedicated to purchasing


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A purchasing decision-making process corresponds to a chronological sequence of stages.

There are four of these stages. Their importance will depend somewhat on the type of purchase, the customer’s habit of making this type of purchase, the personality of the person making the purchase and his social environment.


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2 –THE STAGES IN THE PURCHASING DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

Diagram of the purchasing decision-making process


2 – information research

3 – evaluation of the possibilities

1- awakening and recognition of the need

4 – purchase and use

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STAGE N°1: AWAKENING AND RECOGNITION OF THE NEED

= Variance between a desired situation and a given situation

Variance revealed by:

* sources external to the individual

* sources internal to the individual


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Examples of external sources:

- marketing of a more efficient product

- discussion with friends, neighbours, colleagues, etc.

- a product advertisement

- etc.


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Examples of internal sources:

- an owned product which gives no satisfaction or no longer gives satisfaction

- a product that stops functioning

- personal change: relocation, marriage, arrival of a baby, job promotion, divorce, redundancy, etc.


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STAGE N°2: INFORMATION RESEARCH

In order to satisfy:

* A basic need recourse to a solution within reach

Short process

(little or no information research)

* A complex need

Long process


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Source of information:Internal

-Our personal knowledge of the product or brand,-Our memories, our experiences,-Our perceptions.

External-the marketing activities of the companies- family, friends, colleagues, etc.

NB: if the internal information seems adequate to us, there is then no deliberate information research.


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Information research can be deliberate and/or ongoing.

Deliberate research:This is an occasional exercise. Individuals will give selective attention to information during the deliberate research phase. The usefulness of the information will determine the information sources to which they are exposed.

Ongoing research:Some purchasers carry out ongoing research (shops, advertisements, discussions, etc.) in order to stay informed about topics that interest them.


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STAGE N°3: EVALUATING THE POSSIBILITIES

Once in possession of the information, the purchaser will have to choose from among several product offerings, the one which best suits him.

He forms his reasoning on the basis of the products already in his memory and those displayed in his commercial environment.


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He will take into account the diverse characteristics of the product offerings represented.

These characteristics are called attributes.E.g.: a car has a set of attributes such as fuel consumption, type of engine power, the brand’s recognition, safety devices, etc.

All of the product offerings feature various attributes.

Not all of the attributes play the same role. There are several categories of attributes.


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ATTRIBUTES

IMPORTANT DECISIVE

OUTSTANDING DISTINCTIVE


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The attributes:important refers to the characteristics which it would be unacceptable to leave out. They help eliminate the product offerings that do not meet the purchaser’s expectations on a particular point but they do not lead to a final choice.

decisive refers to the characteristics based on which the purchaser will make a trade-off between several possible solutions.


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The decisive attributes:Outstanding: refers to the characteristics in the mind of the purchaser when making his choice.

Distinctive: refers to the characteristics that enable the purchaser to decide between the product offerings but which are not necessarily in the mind of the purchaser.


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Example: Purchase of a laptop

* Important attribute: includes USB ports(a computer without USB ports would be ruled out of the choice possibilities)

* Outstanding decisive attributes:

Weight, screen size, storage capacity, price(characteristics from among which the purchaser will make comparisons with the various computers).

* Distinctive decisive attributes:

Fingerprint recognition (an attribute not necessarily present prior to choosing but one which can be used to decide between 2 computers meeting the customer’s expectations with regard to outstanding attributes.)


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The purchaser compares the product offerings based on the outstanding attributes.

Two possible approaches:A compensatory approachA non-compensatory approach


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Evaluating purchasing possibilities in a way that is:

Compensatory: means finding the product that represents the best compromise of the outstanding attributes that he is considering.

Non-compensatory: means choosing the product that satisfies him the most with regard to the outstanding attribute he considers most decisive.


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Example: Purchase of a laptopOutstanding attributes:

Weight, screen size, storage capacity, price

Compensatory evaluation of the possibilities:

The purchaser chooses the one with the best weight/screen size/storage capacity/price ratio

Non-compensatory evaluation of the possibilities:

The purchaser chooses the one that is lightest if he judges this to be the outstanding attribute that is most decisive for him.


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STAGE N°4: PURCHASE AND USE

The act of purchasing can be postponed or cancelled because of risks which the purchaser may perceive.

Three types of potential risk perceived when purchasing:

financial risk

performance risk

social risk


Laurence Chérel - Catherine Madrid Tech de Co Bordeaux

Risk The most susceptible purchasers

Examples of products affected

Financial Persons with a modest income, persons susceptible to price

Top-of-the-range items

Performance Persons who are exacting with regard to convenience and performance

Technologically complex products

Social Persons sensitive about self-confidence, persons easily influenced by groups

Socially visible products

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The act of purchasing does not signal the end of the purchasing decision process.

Following the act of purchasing, is use of the product.


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Use of the product will enable the purchaser the evaluate its actual performance.

- Positive evaluation choice reinforced

- Negative evaluation the purchaser:Retrospectively changes the reasons for his purchase OR researches information that can reassure him of his choice

OR tries to resell his product


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CONCLUSION:

INFLUENCING FACTORS AND THE PURCHASING DECISION-MAKING PROCESS


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THE EFFECTS OF INFLUENCING FACTORS ON THE VARIOUS STAGES OF THE PURCHASING PROCESS


1- awakening and recognition of the need

2 –information research

3 –evaluation of the possibilities

INFLUENCING

FACTORS

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1 – Influencing factors involved in the awakening and recognition of needs:

- need and motivation,

- Socio-demographic characteristic, INDIVIDUAL

- experience-seeking,

- culture,

- groups, COLLECTIVE

- family.


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2 - Influencing factors involved in information research

- Perception,

- attitude. INDIVIDUAL

- groups, COLLECTIVE

- family


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3 - Influencing factors involved in the evaluation of possibilities

- Perception,

- attitude, INDIVIDUAL

- motivation.

- Culture,

- groups. COLLECTIVE


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To purchase a product, a customer goes through various stages which are influenced by various factors (individual and/or collective). These diverse influences result in differences in behaviour with respect to customer purchases.

These differences in behaviour lead to the choice of various solutions to meet a single need. Each segment of the market corresponds to a type of purchasing behaviour which will lead to the choice of a specific product.


- understanding the factors underlying the behaviour - knowing how to identify the stages in the...

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