Consumer Behaviour

An Introduction
What is Consumer Behaviour?

Those activities directly involved in

obtaining , consuming and disposing of
products and services, including the decision
processes that precede and follow these
actions
Consumer behaviour focuses on how individuals
make decisions to spend their available resources
(time, money, effort) on consumption-related items
that includes what they buy, why they buy, when they
buy it, where they buy it, how often they buy it, how
often they use it, how they evaluate it after the
purchase and the impact of such evaluations on
future purchases, and how they dispose of it.
consuming entities
Personal Consumer :Buys goods and services for his
or her own use, for the use of the household or as a gift
for a friend. The products are bought for final use by
individuals, who are referred to as end users or
ultimate consumers.

Organizational Consumer à Includes profit and non-

profit businesses, government agencies (local, state,
national) and institutional (e.g. schools, hospitals, and
prisons), all of which buy products, equipment, and
services in order to run their organizations.
This study draws on concepts from
various other disciplines
Psychology
Sociology
Anthropology
Economics
Marketing
Definition…
“ consumer behavior is the process involved when
individual or group select, purchase, use or dispose of
products , service , idea's or experiences to satisfy
need and want”
 Soloman
Consumer behavior refers to “the mental and
emotional processes and the observable behavior of
consumers during searching for, purchasing and post
consumption of a product or service.”
James F. Engel, Roger D. Blackwell and
Paul W. Miniard,“Consumer Behaviour” (1990).
 Need to study ?

‘You cannot take the consumer for granted

any more’
Therefore a sound understanding of
consumer behaviour is essential for the
long run success of any marketing program
Characteristics
Systematic process.
Influenced by various factors.
Different for different customers.
Different for different products.
Varies across regions.
Reflects status.
Improves standard of living.
Brand loyalty.
Why is this important?
Out of 11000 products launched by 77 companies,
only 56% are present five years later …
Only 8% of new product concepts offered by 112
leading companies reached the market. Out of this
83% failed to reach marketing objectives ..
Production polices.
Price polices.
Decision regarding channels of distribution.
Consumer do not always act/react predictably.
Consumer preference are changing.
 A new product must satisfy
consumer needs, not the needs and
expectations of management.

Understanding and adapting to consumer

motivation and behaviour is not an option – it
becomes a necessity for competitive survival
THANKS