How Do Consumer Characteristics Influence Buying Behavior - Research Paper Example

Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Research Statement 2 Background Information 3 Significance of the Problem 4 Literature Review 6 Managerial Implications 9 References 10 Research Statement Over the last few decades, the organizations and marketers have witnessed drastic and substantial variations in the buying patterns of the products and services in the consumer market. In other words, the organizations have come to an observation that the buying patterns of the consumers and their decisions have altered over the time. Moreover, the quantity of purchase and the types of products in purchasing have come across the shifting in the consumer buying habits. On the contrary, previously marketers and organizations were able to comprehend the consumers buying behaviors and patterns through their experiences of selling the products to the consumers. However, firms and marketing decision makers lost direct contact with the customers with the augmentation of the market and organizations. Therefore, consumer-buying behavior is one of the most significant aspects for the organizations in today’s time to be acquainted with the buying patterns and habits of the consumers so that they can focus on their products or services to the market (Pride & Ferrell, 2008). Since the consumer market profoundly depends upon the buying behaviors of the customers, therefore organizations should understand the market before developing or designing any marketing strategies. As a result, to the constantly changing buying patterns of the consumers, consumer research has become one of the imperative methods for the marketers and enterprises where they are spending millions of dollars for the study of consumer habits. Moreover, consumer research allows the marketers to gain more knowledge about the consumer behavior and their habits of buying a particular product or service. Furthermore, this research also makes the enterprise identify and recognize with the response of the customer towards the overall product that include its features, price, advertising and several others over its competitors (Pride & Ferrell, 2008). The research will also lead to the surveillance that consumer enormously varies in age, income, education, taste and quite a lot of other factors. In addition, the consumer characteristics that influence their purchasing habits also include elements such as cultural, social, personal, and psychological characteristics. Therefore, the consumer research findings provide a great deal of assistance to the firms, as they are then able to determine the strong association between the marketing stimulus and the customer reaction. In addition, the consumer characteristics that deeply persuade the buying behaviors are constructive and valuable for the marketers to identify and understand the consumers that the firms are making an effort to influence them (Pride & Ferrell, 2008). In particular, the researcher will put efforts on the below mentioned research statement to achieve aims and objectives of the research: “To identify and analyze the influence of consumer characteristics on buying behavior?” Background Information Back in the old days, it was easier to determine what makes consumers buy what they buy. A market was just that- a marketplace. Bazaars and shops directly dealt with the customers they were selling products to and thus were aware of the moods and preference as well as how different contexts influence the consumption of various products (Pride & Ferrell, 2010). However, as time passed and the trade industry expanded, shops grew into brands and brands became large multinational companies, making it much more difficult for the shopkeepers to interact with the public to find out about their preferences (Pride & Ferrell, 2007). Thus, these companies started hiring firms and people whose only job was to find out what consumer behaviors affects their purchase and consumption of various products. This research is similar to this concept in that it tries to examine various consumer characteristics that affects they buyer behavior. Study of various business magazines like Business Week, Forbes, Fortunes, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Black Enterprise Inc has led to the observation that recently, there has been a downfall in consumption of cosmetics amongst women in the West (Kotler, 2010). The companies are worried and apprehensive about their market and want to know where they are lacking. Thus, this research will investigate this problem to its core and will submit a report that will help these companies in accessing their consumer market in much enhanced perspective. Skin care has become one of the vital and crucial elements for the women in recent times due to the escalated awareness and education to paramount heights amongst women in particular about the skin. However, the breakdown in the consumption of cosmetics also reveals the fact that cosmetic industry is in a state of flux in the contemporary times. Moreover, quite a few traditional brands that have been prominent in the cosmetics come under the view as old. This is due to the reason that customers are demanding and searching for more holistic and therapeutic benefits from the skin care products (Carducci, 2009). Significance of the Problem One might question the importance and relevance of this research. There are multiple reasons that justify the undergoing of the research. First, all companies heavily depend on the market researches to plan their advertising campaigns, promotions and sponsorships. A significant portion of annual budget is set aside for this department and therefore, it is of extreme importance that the companies exactly know what their audience wants and strike that nerve (Pride, Hughes, & Kappr, 2011). Moreover, the marketers and firms want to cater the maximum amount of customers, which would only be possible with the extensive learning about their buying patterns and habits. Therefore, an extensive study and research becomes an essential component for the organization to identify and distinguish the factors that influences the buying decisions of the customers (Solomon, 2010). Secondly, the current trends in the cosmetics industry expose the detail that it is flourishing all over the world, especially in the west. Women in US and other Western countries flaunt their beauty and therefore, use large amounts of cosmetic products. This is due to the reason that consumers especially in the urban areas have now turned and tuned their lifestyles into active standard of living where fashion has become one of the leading and principal features for all. The women are more concerned about their social gatherings and want to be up-to-the-mark with the fashion trends of the civilization. Furthermore, looking young and beautiful has also become the primary motive for the women of the today. Thus, this research will benefit a whole lot of brands and is therefore highly important (Carducci, 2009). Another chief and considerable facet that needs to come under focus is the transactional life that the women are living in the modern era of today where her life is on fast forward button. Moreover, she is moving and competing in all aspects of life whether it is home or office. They are more interested in keeping themselves more young and beautiful, which makes more use of the beauty products by them. Consequently, the research and study of their behavior that leads to their decision would enhance the firms and marketers to understand their needs and demands (Kardes & Kardes & Cronley & Cronley & Cline & Cline, 2010). Recent fashion trends amongst women also demonstrate the piece of information that women are moreover interested in luxury spending as she looks for more than just a product. A value-added experience out of the product is of more value to her. This also makes important for the marketer to have a comprehensive research that can identify what the women wants out of a product as a complete package (Kardes & Kardes & Cronley & Cronley & Cline & Cline, 2010). Literature Review Since businesses and organizations subsist and survive in the marketplace due to the presence of the customers as they are the means of support to them. Therefore, it becomes fundamental and critical for the firms to know their customers in an appropriate and accurate manner. The literature on marketing is very profound and full of relevant information that this research will try to incorporate in itself. The research will take into account, the four Ps that make up the market stimuli:  product, price, place, and promotion (Armstrong & Kotler, 2008). The research will individually examine each element of this model and notice how each of them has altered in the past year or two, leading to the drop in consumption (Armstrong & Kotler, 2008). The model of consumer characteristics include how these four stimuli lead to the consumer responses such as “the choice of the product, choice of the brand, and the amount of the product purchased” (Armstrong & Kotler, 2008). Thus, this important literature can come under synthesis in to the research to gauge better understanding of the buying behavior. The four Ps plays a profusion of significance in determining and manipulating the purchasing power and decision-making of the consumer. Moreover, the four Ps lead to the solving the questions such as frequency of the product purchased and what brands or the products would be the first preference. The product and its features come under design keeping in mind the problem that it would solve for the customers or the benefits that it would bring to them. The price of the product is a prevalent facet, as the women have become more price conscious while making any purchase of the general commodity. On the other hand, with cosmetics women are even ready to pay a higher price with compared to the quality of the product (Schiffman, 2007). Placement of the cosmetic products is another eminent aspect that intensely affects the purchasing decision power of the women. Placement would also lead to determine the sales of the product. However, the last P that is promotion is the most influential and predominant feature that helps to great extent in the decision-making process of the buying patterns of the women in cosmetics. How well the product comes under promotion would play a decisive role for the consumers to identify whether to buy the product or not. This is due to the reason that the promotion of the product increases the customer information, awareness, and knowledge that the customer recalls while making a decision for buying (Schiffman, 2007). The literature also provides an insight into the dimensions of consumer characteristics, which affects their buying behavior. The review of this literature suggests that buyers’ cultural, social, personal, and psychological background has a great deal of impact on their purchases. The cultural factors consist of subculture, nationality, religion, and social class; social factors involve family, roles, and status; personal factors comprise of occupation, economic situation, lifestyle and personality and self-concept; and physiological factors include motivation, perception, learning, beliefs, and attitude (Hoyer & Macinnis, 2009). The psychological factors that embrace how a consumer might think, feel, reason or make a selection amongst different substitutes or options of cosmetics brands and products becomes important for the firm to know in order to appropriately target the consumer through their marketing strategies. Moreover, the external environmental factors that incorporate culture, sub-culture, social class, family, occupation, education, lifestyle, and economic situations also play a vital role in shaping the decision for the buying pattern of the consumers. As the person’s personality, basic values, perceptions, wants, and behaviors intensely depend upon the culture and the society that he or she comes under bringing up. Family members such as mothers play an influential role on the children especially in cosmetics as the girl wants to associate herself to her mother for which the probability of using the same products as her mother increases (Hoyer & Macinnis, 2009). Personal characteristics also comes under the view to affect the decision making process of the buying behaviors. Factors such as magazines, media, and advertisements have a huge affect on the teenage girls in consuming the cosmetics, as they are likely to have advice from these sources (Hoyer & Macinnis, 2009). Consumer responses comes under strong influence by the social class, therefore, social class also shapes up the buying patterns and behaviors of an individual. For instance, a middle-class single parent would most likely avoid expensive brands and will try to settle down for a cheaper and more durable model. However, the conventional buying patterns of the cosmetics also divulge the fact that women want more quality and high priced product in cosmetics as they relate it to prestige and status. This might be one of the key and foremost reasons that could lead to the downfall of the cosmetic products as the middle class women do not tend to spend a huge amount on such luxurious commodities (Loudon, 2001). Managerial Implications According to the studies, it can come under conclusion that the consumer characteristics on buying behavior is the outcome of the multifaceted interchange of the aspects that incorporate cultural, social, personal and psychological facets. Therefore, extensive and widespread research is significant through various methods so that appropriate conclusions can come under drawings that can lead to better development of the marketing strategies. Marketers and firms through the consumer research would be in a much better position to understand the needs and wants of the consumers on an overall basis. This would help the firms to develop strategies that would prove to be fruitful in persuading the customers in their buying habits (Hawkins, 1998). At the same time as consumer motivation and their level of interest for a particular product greatly depends upon the strategies implemented by the marketers to reach the audience effectively. Since the twenty first century has the marketplace with millions of customers where the firms are not able to directly get in touch with the consumers, therefore, the research with respect to consumer buying behavior becomes one of the most imperative aspects for them in order to get familiarity to the needs and wants of the customers. However, with the proper understanding about the consumers’ buying habits would lead the firms to develop, formulate and exercise strategies that would better recognize the desires of their consumers. Lastly, this would bring benefit to the organization as well due to the reason that they would be in a better position to target their audience and fulfill their needs and requirements. This would provide the organization an edge over their competitors as well (Hawkins, 1998). References Armstrong, G., Kotler, P. (2008). Marketing: An Introduction. Pearson Prentice Hall. Carducci, B. J. (2009). The Psychology of Personality: Viewpoints, Research, and Applications. Wiley-Blackwell. Hawkins. (1998). Consumer Behavior. Tata McGraw-Hill Education. Hoyer, W. D. & Macinnis, D. J. (2009). Consumer Behavior. Cengage Learning. Kardes, F. K. R & Kardes, F. K. & Cronley, M. L. & Cronley, M. L. & Cline, T. W. & Cline, T. W. (2010). Consumer Behavior. Cengage Learning. Kotler, P. (2010). Principles of Marketing: A South Asian Perspective. Pearson Education India. Loudon. (2001). Consumer Behavior: Concepts and Applications. Tata McGraw-Hill Education. Pride, W. J., Ferrell, O. C. (2007). Marketing. Cengage Learning. Pride, W. J., Ferrell, O. C. (2010). Foundations of Marketing. Cengage Learning. Pride, W. J., Hughes, R. J., Kappr, J. R. (2011). Business. Cengage Learning. Pride, W. M. & Ferrell, O. C. (2008). Marketing Express. Cengage Learning. Schiffman. (2007). Consumer behavior. Pearson Education India. Solomon, M. R. (2010). Consumer behavior: buying, having, and being. Prentice Hall. Read More