Buyer Decision-Making Process in Relation to Purchase of a New Car - Coursework Example

Consumer Behavior: Buyer Decision-Making Process in Relation to Purchase of a New Car University: Date of Submission: Introduction Consumer behavior reviews a buyer’s approach, preferences, objectives, and decisions regarding the consumers actions in the marketplace when buying a product. This study usually focusses on the social, personal tastes, economic, psychological, intellectual and cultural factors that go into the decision making process by the consumer (MarketingTeacher, 2014). The consumer in this paper is a 40 year married male. He is a financially stable self-employed civil engineer. The consumer is married with three kids. He travels from home to work and from work to different work sites every day. Every morning he drops his three kids to school then drives his wife to work. He lives a couple of kilometres from the city and during most weekends he takes his family to leisure spots within and close to the city. The main reasons for purchasing a new car is that their current car has dipped in performance and they also desire a more spacious vehicle for their family of five. The following sections examine the consumer’s behavior, decision-making process and the marketing recommendations for this niche of consumers (ConsumerFactor, 2014). Characteristics That Affects Consumer Behaviors This section examines the various attributes that will affects the consumer’s choices when buying a new car. The factors that will be analyzed are social, psychological and personal preferences (Hawkins & Mothersbaugh, 2009). 1) Social factors. The consumer is influenced by the norms and preferences of his immediate social circle (friends, family, relations and fellow civil engineers) and also the society at large. With social pressure, the desire is to conform to the various standards set by society while also trying to stand out from one’s peers with a unique choice. The consumer in our case will have to contemplate the following decisions when buying a new car: Which models of cars do people with large family sizes normally buy? Which types of cars do my friends own and how can I acquire that will make me stand out? Which cars do people of my economic and social standings buy? Which vehicles have my brothers, sisters, cousins and other relatives bought? 2) Psychological factors. The consumer’s buying decisions and actions are persuaded by such factors as their knowledge, motivation for buying, opinion and beliefs. The consumer’s individual motivation when buying the car will be a major aspect when making the purchase. Motivation and need are tightly intertwined. Perception is the distinctive way in which the consumer selects, analyzes and understands the data they receive. Using their discernment they make a decision on which information is important. Knowledge acquired is through learning. It is the information that the consumer has acquired from experience. Beliefs are the convictions that a consumer has regarding a certain product or service. Beliefs are developed over time through experience and social influences (MarketingTeacher, 2014). The consumer assesses the following psychological factors in their decision making: Why do I need to buy this car? What will I use the car for? I believe certain manufacturers of cars better produce quality models, so should I get one from them? What are my previous experiences with certain models? 3) Personal preferences. The tastes, likings and personal attributes of the consumer significantly influence their buying behavior (MarketingTeacher, 2014). The consumer asserts such factors as their age, occupation, lifecycle stage, opinions, and way of life, income, personality and interests. With advancement in age, the consumer’s needs morph and adapt to various needs and circumstances. The buyer considers their income and lifestyle. Whether the car is in their price range and if they can buy it without having to make major lifestyle choices to accommodate their purchase. The consumer’s personal interests and opinions on different cars will be a focal component in their final decision. The consumer will contemplate with this queries: Which car suits my needs at this age? Which car will fit impeccably into my financial expenditure? Which car matches my occupation as a civil engineer? Types of Consumer Buying Decisions Buying decision behavior differs from one consumer to another and also depending on the type of product (Hawkins & Mothersbaugh, 2009). The factors that a consumers considers when making the decision to buy a particular product or service are explored here. Buying decision behaviors can be grouped into: Complex buying behaviour Dissonance reducing buying behaviour Habitual buying behaviour Variety seeking buying behavior. The buying behaviours that will be associated with the purchase of a car are: Complex Buying Behavior In this behaviour, the consumer is highly involved in the decision making process and consider the significant differences between the various brands in the product group. Involvement denotes to several actions the buyer must make to understand the goods or services they want to buy. The consumer does whatever they can to understand the product category. This behavior is prevalent in situations where the product is expensive and less frequently bought. The consumer will search for information about different models of family cars online and read reviews about the brands in automobile magazines in order to know their variances. More information will be attained from asking friends, relatives and owners of different car brands to ascertain their opinion. Research will be done on the difference in performance and quality between European and Asian cars. Finally the buyer will go for test drives at retail stores to have a feel of the cars, to compare the cars and to contrast their performance (MarketingTeacher, 2014). Dissonance Reducing Buying Behavior In this behavior, customer involvement is very high. This is mainly because the product to be purchased is less frequently bought, is expensive and the perception of difference between the various brands in that product category is insignificant. The consumer does in depth research on the diverse products and consults people with helpful information about the product. The final decision however is based on factors such as price, location, opinion and availability of the brand. In our study, the consumer will research on different family cars and ask for information about them amongst his peers (Hawkins & Mothersbaugh, 2009). However, most family cars of the type the consumer desires are almost alike in specification: same engine size; interior space; leg room; car seats; performance and features). The consumer will end up making their decision by factoring such options as which car retail shop is closest to their residence; which shop offers lower prices and which brand is most liked among my relatives and peers. Variety Seeking Buying Behavior In a variety seeking buying behavior situation, the consumer has low involvement in the decision making process. The brands in this product category have significant differences. The consumer does not exercise brand loyalty and tends to change different models. The consumer acquires beliefs and attitudes during use of the products and when they need to make a similar purchase they will only buy the same product if the experience was wholesome. In our study, the consumer will have previously used similar brands and will buy a new car depending on whether they liked the former car model or not. The consumer could also be out to get a different model from the one they currently possess and so will buy a new car without putting much though and research into the product (ConsumerFactor, 2014). Components of the Decision Making Process The decision making process involves a number of phases that the buyer will go through before and after making the final decision to purchase the product. The core principle here is that the purchase of the product is essential to the buyer and that the consumer will take time to evaluate the available alternatives (Hawkins & Mothersbaugh, 2009). The five stages of the consumer decision process in chronological order are: I. Recognition of the problem II. Search for Information III. Assessing different options IV. Decision to buy product V. Post-purchase evaluation Recognition of the Problem The consumer recognizes a problem and the need to solve it. This is the first and also the most vital part of the decision making process. The consumer will want to buy something if they have a need for it. The consumer weighs their current situation with their preferred situation. The need could be functional, social or just brought about by the need to change. In the decision to buy a new car, the consumer’s problem is that the current car is not spacious enough and therefore desires a car that is spacious and ideal for a family of five. Search for Information Once the need is identified, the consumer then seeks information of the available resolutions to his problem. The consumer will search for information depending on the difficulty of the challenge at hand. The buyer could already have some knowledge about the particular product from years of using it. In process of buying a family car, the buyer will search for data on the internet regarding different models of cars; read expert reviews and opinions in automobile magazines and ask for information from friends, peers and family. Assessing Different Options Once adequate information has been gathered, the consumer evaluates the available options on offer. The consumer analyzes which alternative best fulfils their need and which they prefer. The higher the number of alternatives the consumer considers, the more likely they are to make good decisions. The buyer investigates the objectives attributes such as car size, engine size, performance, luxury features and overall specifications. The consumer also examines the subjective attributes of the family cars such as how society views the cars, what friends think about the car, the social status that comes with the car. Decision to Buy the Product Now that the consumer has thoroughly weighed the different alternatives, they can purchase the brand that best fulfils their want. The decision will depend on the information acquired from comparing and contrasting different products in the previous stage. The consumer has reviewed different family cars, their performance, capacity, number of seats and engine size. The consumer will then choose the car model that satisfies their need and head to a car shop to make the purchase (ConsumerFactor, 2014). Post-Purchase Evaluation In this stage, the consumer evaluates the adequacy of the product against his initial need and whether the decision to purchase of the product was sensible or not. In using the new family car, the consumer will see if it meets his requirements. Whether the car is spacious enough; whether all the family members like it; whether the engine has good performance and reliability; whether friends and relatives approve of his decision and whether it fulfils their individual needs and preferences. If the requirements were fulfilled, the customer gets a sense of satisfaction and builds brand loyalty. If the needs were barely fulfilled, the customer is disappointed and will very likely exhibit complex buying behaviour in their next purchase of similar products (MarketingTeacher, 2014). Marketing Recommendations On complex buying behavior, marketer of expensive and infrequently used products should have a fine understanding of the consumer’s behavior and decision making process. It is the marketers’ obligation to furnish the consumer with relevant information about their product and create messages that influence a buyer’s opinions and attitudes towards their product. The marketer needs to have a more informative campaign than their competitors highlighting the product’s superiority over the competitor’s. In dissonance reducing buying behavior, the marketer should encourage support and product care to the consumer. Marketing campaigns should offer discounts and incentives for buying the product such as baby seats. The marketer can also try after-sale communication campaigns to get customer feedback and offer solutions to any problems the consumer may experience with the product. In variety seeking buying behavior, marketers should lure consumers by offering lower prices, coupons and advertisements that urge the buyer to try new products. Marketers can also provide adverts that target consumers with families of more than four people with additional discounts and additional purchases. Marketers should also encourage the customers to for a habit of buying their brand by funning regular adverts and dominating retail space (Hawkins & Mothersbaugh, 2009). Conclusion Consumer behaviour examines the preferences and actions of a consumer when buying a product. Consumer behaviour is influenced by social, personal, economic, psychological, intellectual and cultural elements surrounding the buyer. In complex buying behavior, the buyer is highly involved in the decision making process and needs enough information to choose between diverse brands. In dissonance reducing buying behaviour the consumer is vastly involved and needs a lot of information to decide between almost similar models. In variety seeking buying behavior the consumer involvement is little and the buyer choses between dissimilar brands. The decision making process involves identifying a problem, searching for information, analyzing different options, making the purchase and finally post-purchase evaluation. Marketers should offer information to complex buyers, offer discounts, after-sale communication and lower prices to dissonance reducing buyers and offer discounts and encourage variety seeking buyers to be habitual buyers of their brand. Bibliography ConsumerFactor, 2014. Consumer Buying Decision Process. [Online] Available at: http://theconsumerfactor.com [Accessed 2014]. Hawkins, D. & Mothersbaugh, D., 2009. Consumer Behavior Building Marketing Strategy. s.l.:McGraw-Hill. MarketingTeacher, 2014. Consumer Behavior. [Online] Available at: http://www.marketingteacher.com [Accessed 7 11 2014]. Read More