Buying Behavior and Market Analysis - Essay Example

? Topic: BUYING BEHAVIOR AND MARKET ANALYSIS From the three products, I have purchased a computer software, which was a computer game, and an underwear. The computer game was a high involvement purchase and the underwear was a low involvement purchase. A high involvement purchase takes a higher expenditure than a low involvement purchase. It also takes a lot of risk to do this purchase; therefore a proper evaluation is important before purchasing. The computer game I purchased was FIFA 2012 and it was costly. It also took a substantial amount of risk because some of the files could be corrupted and it wouldn’t function. Again, the game could refuse to work with my computer. On the other hand, a low involvement purchase needs simple process of evaluation. Buying underwear was simple and it is something I do every now and then. I knew the brand and the size I was going for. In purchasing the computer game, I felt that I needed a better and a recent version of the game I had. I had seen this new version in my friend’s computer and felt that I, too, should have one like that. The next thing I did was to enquire about the game. The price was the first thing to enquire so that I could know if I could afford it or at least needed some assistance. Another thing that I had to know was whether the game could play on my computer, that is the processor and RAM requirement of the game. Lastly I had to enquire if there was a warranty in case the game was not in good condition. After getting all the information about the game, I had to evaluate in what terms it was better than the one I had. Another friend of mine had told me about another similar computer game and I had to go and enquire from him and compare the two. Finally I decided to purchase the game. It worked well with my computer and I was completely satisfied with that purchase. In purchasing the underwear, the task was rather simple. The process of evaluation was not as lengthy as in the purchase of the game. The first step was to recognize that I needed new underwear. This was because I had lost three of my underpants in a camp last month and the others were becoming old. I didn’t need much time in deciding which ones I needed since I knew exactly the brand I usually buy. I purchased the underpants and they were just as good as I had expected. The process of purchasing a computer game is quite different from the process involved in purchasing the underwear. First, it is the time taken in each stage of the process. In a low involvement purchase, the process is quite simple because it involves purchases we do regularly. Most of the time, in a low involvement purchasing, we skip some steps or even rearrange these steps. When a need arises, the next step automatically is searching information about what one needs, however, this step is mostly skipped in low involvement purchasing. This is because one already knows what they want. From there, the decision is made and one goes straight to purchasing. In a high involvement purchasing, all the steps have to be followed and this makes the process longer. One has to take a lot of time in searching for information about the product to be purchased. Also, a lot of time is needed in evaluation of alternatives so that one purchases the best product. The other difference between the two purchases is that in the purchase of computer game there was a high risk involved compared to purchasing underwear. The risks in a high involvement purchase are due to the amount of money involved. This is because it is not the kind of a purchase one does every now and then. This is the reason why it is important to take enough time in the process When marketing any product, the essence is to attract and persuade customers to purchase your products. This process is not as easy as it sounds. One has to have the skills needed in order to affect the decision of the buyer. Understanding the customer behavior model is the first step in marketing of any product, be it a low or a high involvement purchase. However, depending on the product, different strategies are used to make sure that customers buy your product. I am first going to start with marketing of a high involvement product, in this case a computer game. The process of purchasing begins with recognition of a need. As a marketer, one should take advantage right from this stage or even before. To do this, one needs to arouse the need even before the customer realizes that they need the product. This is achieved first through advertisement. There are certain aspects in an advert that make sure that it makes an impact. These aspects include the name of the brand, and the cues used in the advert such as music. A good advertisement will arouse the need in a buyer. In the second step of consumer buying behavior where the buyer searches for information about the product, the marketer should come. At this stage, adequate information should be provided to a point of convincing the buyer that it is the best product. The qualities of the product should be provided convincingly when the buyer is looking for that vital information. This can also be done through advertisements in the media. In case of a computer game, features such as graphics and speed of the game should be given in the advert. Cues used in the advert should be attractive. Such would include a person playing the game. When a buyer is evaluating alternatives, the marketer’s ultimate goal is to make sure that his is the best in the market. This calls for modifications and additional efforts. A computer game, for instance, could be made compatible with a wide range of computers. Additional services could be offered, such as free installation and a few months warranty. Through this, buyers will prefer your product over the others. In the final two stages, decision making and post purchase evaluation, it is up to the marketer to make sure that the information given about the product was genuine. If in case the information given before the purchase was not correct, the customer will realize in the post purchase analysis. This will give the product a bad reputation. In this case, marketing will not have achieved its purpose. In marketing a low involvement product, the step in the consumer behavior model to emphasize is that of evaluation of alternatives. Underwear, for example, is something people buy regularly. There are many different brands in the market, therefore the essence here is to create a brand that is appealing to people. In every product there is the target group in terms of market. Here the target group is males. A brand name would be that which is appealing to male, such as a name of a superstar that people like to be associated with. References Kotler, P. (2001). Marketing management. Toronto: Pearson Education Canada,. Read More