Importance of Studying Consumer behavior in market research

Understanding consumer behavior is vital for every organization and is a major part of market research, before launching a new product in the market. This report discusses the different factors of consumer behavior that are necessary for thorough market research.

Consumer and Market Research
Importance of Studying Consumer behavior in market research
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Table of Contents
Introduction: Consumer and Market Research.......................................................................................- 2 -
Consumer Decision making process........................................................................................................- 2 -
Problem recognition............................................................................................................................- 3 -
Information Search..............................................................................................................................- 3 -
Evaluation of Alternatives...................................................................................................................- 3 -
Purchase..............................................................................................................................................- 4 -
Post purchase satisfaction or dissatisfaction.......................................................................................- 4 -
Individual determinants of Consumer behavior......................................................................................- 4 -
Motivation and Involvement...............................................................................................................- 4 -
Consumer learning..............................................................................................................................- 5 -
Personality and lifestyle influences.....................................................................................................- 5 -
Social Processes.......................................................................................................................................- 6 -
Culture.................................................................................................................................................- 6 -
Family..................................................................................................................................................- 6 -
Social Class..........................................................................................................................................- 7 -
In Conclusion...........................................................................................................................................- 7 -
References...............................................................................................................................................- 9 -
Appendix One – Consumer decision making process............................................................................- 11 -
Appendix two – Maslow’s Hierarchy of Motivation and Needs.............................................................- 12 -

Introduction: Consumer and Market Research
In order to understand a consumer, one must know the consumer. And, to know him or her, one must
study them. Understanding consumer behavior is vital for every organization and is a major part of
market research, before launching a new product in the market. It is to note that the term “consumer
behavior” refers to the study of the buying or purchasing tendencies of the consumers. Failing to
analyze how consumers would respond to the new product will lead the company to face significant
losses. Assessing consumer behavior is highly complex as different consumers have different mind-set
and attitude towards their purchase making, their consumption as well as the disposal of the very
product. With the same, the continuous change in the loving standard of the people, the trends in the
market, change in technology etc. are aiding to this complexity. Hence, understanding the concepts and
theories in relation to the consumer behavior helps the marketers to market the product effectively.
It is to note that a person who goes for shopping does not necessarily buys a product. There are many
stages that a consumer passes through before making his or her final decision for which to buy. There
are several factors like social, cultural, psychological, personal etc. that influence the purchasing decision
of the consumers (Barnham, 2014). This report is going to elaborate on discussing about these different
factors of consumer behavior that are necessary for a thorough market research, that the markets
would find useful after having a thorough understanding of the importance of analyzing consumer
behavior and applying the theories and concepts of consumer behavior.
Consumer Decision making process
The decision making process of consumers is the process that are used by the marketers for identifying
and tracking the process of decision making of customers, including their journey from the very
beginning to the end. It is broken down into five different individual stages and they are- problem
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recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, and purchase and post purchase satisfaction
of dissatisfaction (see appendix 1).
Problem recognition
It is the very first stage of consumer decision making process. It is all about what exactly the customer
needs. At this stage, the consumer feels like there is something that is missing and he needs it in order
to get back feeling normal (Song, 2016). When marketers determine when their target demographic
develops these desires or needs, it is the ideal time to advertise their new products to them.
Information Search
It is the second stage of the consumer decision making process. In this phase, the customers research
about a product or service that can satisfy their needs and wants. The search engines like Google have
become their primary research tool in order to get their answers (Creusen, Hultink & Eling, 2013). Also,
friends, family members all have had several experiences and they too, offer the consumers
recommendation and suggestions for buying. It is also to note that in this stage, consumers also begin to
think regarding the risk management as they do not want to egret making their purchase decision
(Consumer market research, 2007).
Evaluation of Alternatives
At this stage, consumers begins to think of questions like “Is this really the right product for me do? He
begin to compare the product and the brand with the other available options (Dens et al., 2018). Once
he is determined about the thing that will satisfy him, he start to seek out for the best deal and it might
be based on the quality, price or any other factors. Customers at this stage also read several reviews of
earlier buyers and compare the prices in order to take suitable decision.
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Purchase
At this stage, the customers have already decided what to buy on the basis of knowledge they gather.
They have already taking risk into account and are definite on what they want to purchase and they
make the purchase of their desired product at this stage.
Post purchase satisfaction or dissatisfaction
It is one of the most important stages for the companies or the brands and for the customers as well. It
is all about finding out why the customers would feel satisfied with the product purchase. It considers
factors like specifications, branding and value. When a customer feels like the product has matched or
even have exceeded the made promises, he or she will potentially become a brand ambassador for the
product and influence other potential customers in their second stage. It boosts the chance of the
product being bought again. However, the same goes fo negative feedback as well. If inserted in second
stage of a new customer, the negative feedback can halt the journey of that customer towards buying
the product.
Individual determinants of Consumer behavior
In a particular society, different types of consumers exhibit several different types of behavior and this is
because each and every individual is unique in their own way and all of them have unique sets of needs.
There are several individual determinants of consumer behavior including, perception, learning,
motivation, personality and attitude. However, motivation, learning and attitude shall be discussed
below:
Motivation and Involvement
Motivation is an internal factor that activates some of the needs of a person and at the same time,
provide a direction of his or her behavior towards the fulfillment of those needs. As per Tommasetti et
al. (2018), it is the “why” of behavior. It prevails to reduce the state of tension within an individual as
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well as for protecting, satisfying and enhancing him and his self-concept. It is to note that motivation can
be rational or irrational, conscious or unconscious, positive or negative. It ranges from the biological
desires like thirst and hunger to the highly advanced scientific pursuits such as landing on another
planet. As per Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, there are five steps of human motivation or needs-
physiological, safety, social (love or belongingness), esteem and self-actualization (see in appendix 2)
Consumer learning
As per Khan and Malik (2002), learning refers to the change in the behavior of an individual that comes
out as a result of his or her experience. It is the process of gaining knowledge. It is to note that
consumer behavior is the process of learning. This is due to the fact that it is modifies as per the past
experience of the customer as well as the objectives that are set by him or her. However, as per
Gershman, Samuel and Nathaniel (2017), the process of consumer learning is made of 4 stages and they
are- drive, cue, response and reinforcement. The term ‘Drive’ refers to “an internal state of tension
which warrants action” (Barnham, 2017). Cue refers to the object recognized by the person in the
environment. Response on the other hand is the answer to the drive or cue. It comprise of attitudes,
perception and familiarity. Moreover, reinforcement means decrease in drive and stimulus. It refers to
the events that increase the likelihood of the occurrence of response.
Personality and lifestyle influences
Many of the times, the term “personality” is used for demonstrating the capacity of a person for
charisma, friendliness and popularity. Notwithstanding this fact, this refers to the important differences
in between two different individuals. Hence, personality comprise of the things like actions, habits and
mannerisms, which make a person like he or she is and thereby, it serves for making them different from
rest others. It is to note that the types of personality can be extrovert or introvert. Or one of the other
classification can be as tradition direction- the inner or the outer direction. Each one of these traits can
be explored as the likely clued to the consumers’ behavior. It is also to mention that evaluating the role
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of personality in marketing is regarded as drawing the consumer’s profile and the psychographic market
segmentation.
Social Processes
In the field of psychological determinants, the behavior of the consumers can be seen as the stand point
view of a person. The social psychologists and the sociologists have attempted for explaining the
behavior of some group of individuals along with the way in which it influence the market research.
These determinants are culture, caste, opinions, reference groups, and family.
Culture
As per Becker, Kraus and Rheinschmidt-Same (2017), cultures are the symbols, the behavioral patterns
and the anti-factors that are passed on social manner from one generation to other. It comprise of the
cognitive elements like the values, beliefs, norms, non-normative behavior etc. It is to note that cultures
are specific to the areas is which they evolve and the cultural and the sub-cultural groups have their
unique patterns of consumption and this provide an important basis to the marketers. Trends in culture
have very notable implications for the product development, merchandising, market segmentation,
advertising, packaging and advertising. So, during designing the marketing mix of a brand, it is very
important to determine all the cultural values which are relevant to the product.
Family
It is to note that most of the decisions that are made by the customers are taken with the help of their
family members and also, their purchase making decisions are affected by the attitudes, values and
desires of theirs. Family being the primary group is very important as it links an individual with wide
society. Also, it is because of the family members that individuals learns the roles that are appropriate
for the adult life. Their feedback seems to be a credible resource for the buyers. Family offers an
environment where the individual evolves and they develop a personality and at the same time, gain
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values as well. Also according to Thaichon (2017), a child usually develop his behavior of purchasing and
his preferences by watching his parents and he automatically tend to buy the same products and
services even when he develops and grows old.
Social Class
The buying behavior of the individuals are influenced by the caste and social class to which they belong.
It is to mention that social class is homogenous and permanent division of every society into which
people or families share similar interests and life style and at the same time, their behavior can be
categorized. According to Esping-Andersen (2017), “the constitution of a social class is determined by
the income, authority, power, ownership, lifestyles, education, consumption patterns, occupation, type
and place of residence of the individual members”. However, from the marketing point of view, social
class are relevant because the behavior of the consumers are influenced by these. Each class develops
its very own styles, behavior patterns and living standard.
In Conclusion
Hence, from the above discussion it is clear that analyzing and assessing the behavior of consumers
plays a very significant role in the overall success of market research. Consumer behavior involves wide
range of ideas, services, factors and tangible products. It is all about the approach of how a customer
would buy and use the service and merchandise. Understanding them is very important for the
marketers especially in such a competitive business environment where customer is the king and there
each and every competitor is trying their best to grab their attention. Right from the stages of consumer
decision making process to the social, psychological and personal determinants that influence their
buying decision, marketers today need to assess each and every aspect. This is because success in this
era depends on the efficiency of the organizations in delivering what they have promised to their
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customers. And, the responsibility basically lies on the companies to develop a culture where value for
the product is provided and quality service is offered for achieving high degree of customer satisfaction.
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References
Barnham, C. (2014). Making meaning: the fate of the consumer in market research. International Journal
of Market Research, 56(3), 279–281. https://doi.org/10.2501/IJMR-2014-019
Becker, J. C., Kraus, M. W., & Rheinschmidt‐Same, M. (2017). Cultural expressions of social class and
their implications for group‐related beliefs and behaviors. Journal of Social Issues, 73(1), 158-
174. Retrieved from: https://spssi.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/josi.12209
consumer market research. (2007). Bloomsbury Business Library - Business & Management Dictionary,
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Creusen, M., Hultink, E. J., & Eling, K. (2013). Choice of consumer research methods in the front end of
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268–287. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470785317751333
Esping-Andersen, G. (2017). Politics against markets: The social democratic road to power (Vol. 4877).
Princeton University Press.
Jain, R., Aagja, J., & Bagdare, S. (2017). Customer experience–a review and research agenda. Journal
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Khan, S., & Malik, T. (2002). Marketing Research and Public Relations. Doing Business with Oman, 166–
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Proctor, T. (2000). chapter eight: ANALYSING THE CUSTOMER IN THE MARKET PLACE. Strategic
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2nd International Conference on Humanities and Social Science Research (ICHSSR 2016).
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Thaichon, P. (2017). Consumer socialization process: The role of age in children's online shopping
behavior. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 34, 38-47. Retrieved from:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2016.09.007
Tommasetti, A., Singer, P., Troisi, O., & Maione, G. (2018). Extended Theory of Planned Behavior
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Structural Equation Model. Sustainability, 10(7), 2580. Available at: doi:10.3390/su10072580
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Appendix One – Consumer decision making process
Consumer decision making process
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Appendix two – Maslow’s Hierarchy of Motivation and Needs
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Motivation and Needs
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