BUSN2020 Consumer Behavior: Analyzing Portable PC Purchase Decisions

This report explores consumer behavior in the context of portable PC purchases, specifically focusing on laptops and all-in-one computers. It begins by introducing the increasing reliance on computers and the growing market for portable PCs due to their space-saving, affordability, and portability advantages. The report delves into the factors influencing consumer decisions, including internal aspects like motivation and age, and external factors such as culture and economic conditions. It presents statistical data on PC consumer demographics, brand preferences, and reasons for switching brands, highlighting the importance of mobility, connectivity, value-added features, post-purchase services, peripheral specifications, core technical features, physical appearance, and price. The report further discusses the use of survey data to assess consumer behavior, weighing the pros and cons of this data collection method. Finally, it touches upon the measurement tools and the managerial relevance of analyzing this data for businesses in the PC market.

Running Head: Consumer Behaviour
Consumer Behavior

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Table of Contents
Introduction.....................................................................................................2
Information about How Consumers Choose the Selected Category................3
Explanation of the data needed.......................................................................7
Details of the Measurement Tools Used........................................................11
Managerial relevance of the data analysis....................................................13
Reference......................................................................................................15

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Introduction
The world today has grown into a global village; meaning that someone in
Europe does not need to hustle to communicate with someone in Australia or
Asia. The reason why communication is easy; transportation is easy; and
generally, life is easy due to technological advancements. However, the
advancement of technology has largely been attributed to the introduction
and the development of computers. Computers have been used for decades
since their introduction and still in operation (Geisler and Hoang, 2013, pg.
39). They are employed in many sectors of the global economy including
transport, education, and health among others. Therefore, people have
grown fond of using computers in almost everything. Some of the benefits
posted by computers include the creation of IT professions, the creation of
automobile safety features, and advancement of methods of communication.
In other sectors, computers are used to diagnose patients, run simulations
and test projects, as well as to calculate and process immense data.
However, as the world continues to advance technologically, new areas of
computer application emerge while over-dependence on computer systems
continue to increase. In today’s society, there are many computer models
sold in the market. With more and more models of computers filling the
market, the need to create more IT professions arise. Apart from that, the
market base has been steadily growing since the use of computers has been
part of human lifestyle (CRN, 2016).
For this activity, our brands are portable PC. These PCs are either all in one
computer or computer laptops which have a number of advantages
compared to other large computer brands. Some of the benefits of all-in-one
PCs include space saving, sleek appearance and, affordability, and power
saving modes. As mentioned herein, laptops and all in one PC brands are
slim compared to other brands thereby, consuming less space compared to
other bulkier brands. At places like offices and organizations that struggle for

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space to place their bulky computers, all in one computers and laptops are
slim enough to fit in areas that others cannot. Such computers can be carried
from one place to another. The all-in ones are lighter, smaller and can be
moved from the house to the office in one trip (Hong, et al., 2013, pg. 26).
In relation to our brand, this paper will, therefore, provide information
regarding the reasons why consumers would purchase portable PCs rather
than other computer brands. The paper will also discuss expectations,
existing findings, and current market practices involving g computers
(Jarvenpaa and Todd, 2017, pg. 67).
Information about How Consumers Choose the Selected Category
Studies regarding the purchase of personal computers in the Australia show
that there are a number of theories and models that have been formulated
to understand the buying behaviour of consumers. In the process of buying a
product, a customer needs to have his or her decisions made on what
product to purchase and why. The method used to make a decision
regarding whether to buy product A or B is what we refer to as decision-
making. For every product sold in the market, there are purchase decisions
that need to be considered before going for that particular product. For this
product, some of the internal factors that would affect the decisions made
during purchase include motivation, perception, age, attitude, and gender.
However, the external factors include culture, the size of the family,
members, economic conditions like income and earnings, and peer reference
groups. In addition, there are social factors such as the customer’s computer
literacy level and PC references (IDC, 2016).
a) PC Consumer Statistics
According to PC marketing reports, about 92% of individuals in the Australia
are using PCs of which 78% are youths and 22% adults. According to these
reports, out of the entire population that uses PCs, the age structure for

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consumers is as follows: 32% of consumers are between the ages of 18 and
25; 54% fall between 26 and 35 years; 12% fall between 36 and 45 years;
and lastly 2% of consumers are above 46 years. However, the level of
education of individuals consuming PC products was as follows: 5% of
consumers were high school graduates; 80% were college, tertiary
education, and university graduates; then 15% of consumers had Masters
Degrees or Ph.Ds.
Results that were more specific showed that a larger percentage opted for all
in one and other portable computers rather than bulky products (PC World,
2013). As shown in the Table 1, the frequency distribution of portable brands
is illustrated.
Table 1. Frequency Distribution of PC Portable Brands
Frequency Distribution of Laptop Brands
9 2.8
26 8.0
49 15.0
20 6.1
60 18.3
42 12.8
12 3.7
75 22.9
34 10.4
327 100.0
Acer
Asus
Dell
Fujitsu/Siemens
HP
IBM
Sony
Toshiba
Other
Total
Frequency Percent (%)
The study report also conducted surveys on whether the current PC brands
that consumers used are their original brands or whether they had changed
their brands; for those who admitted having switched their brands, they were
asked to state reasons why they had to switch brands (Hair, et al., 2018).
Some of the alternative reasons for switching brands given were:
- Overall dissatisfaction from the laptop brand previously used

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- Reasons not associated with dissatisfaction
In line with the survey, portable PC users were grouped into:
- Stayers (to refer to individuals who did not switch brands)
- Satisfied switchers (to refer to those who switched their brands for
reasons other than being dissatisfied) and;
- Dissatisfied switchers (to refer to those who switched their brands
because of dissatisfaction from previous PC brands)
In relation to the performed survey, Table 2 below demonstrates the
outcomes of PC consumption in the country. According to the result, 62.4%
of consumers considered themselves as stayers; 25.7% satisfied switchers;
and 11.9% dissatisfied switchers (Kim, Han, and Srivastava, 2013, pg. 229).
Table 2. Distribution of PC Consumers
Three Customer Groups
204 62.4
84 25.7
39 11.9
327 100.0
Stayers
Satisfied Switchers
Dissatisfied Switchers
Total
Frequency Percent (%)

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b) Factors Influencing Purchase Decisions
Using principal components method of analysis to determine the reasons
behind purchase decisions, it became evident that some of the features that
consumers regarded while buying a specific PC brand included:
- TV/Audio connection
- Bluetooth availability
- Availability of infrared technology
- Presence of efficient wireless Internet features
The named features are regarded as mobility and connectivity features.
About 21% of consumers regarded “Mobility and Connectivity Features” as
the most important factor when purchasing a PC brand. However, there is
another 19% of consumers that buy PC brands with regards to factors like
ease of PC usage, resistant keyboard, chassis durability, security solutions,
brand image, and other PC accessories. Such features are called “Value
Added Features”. Otherwise, there are consumers who prefer “Post Purchase
Services” when buying PC brands (PC World, 2013). The consumers who go
for “Post Purchase Services” account for 11% of the entire consumer
population. “Post Purchase Services” include factors such as ease
maintenance and repair, technical service network prevalence, availability of
technical support, and availability of warranty and guarantee conditions.
Apart from that, there is a group of consumers who identified “Peripheral
Specification” as the most important factor of brand purchase (Ganesh,
Arnold and Reynolds, 2015, pg. 71). This consumer group accounted for 17%
of the entire PC brand consumer population in the country. This factor is
composed of features like PC standby duration, USB ports available,
modem/Ethernet, presence of DVD/CD player features, and
speakers/amplifiers availability. On the contrary, there is a group of
consumers who valued “Core Technical Features” when it comes to
purchasing of PCs. This group was about 26% of the entire consumer

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population. Core Technical Features include processor type and speed, hard
disk capacity, memory, and display resolution. Yet, another considered factor
is “Physical Appearance”. About 2% of consumers preferred going for PC with
good physical appearance. Some of the related features of physical
appearance include design, weight, color, and dimensions. Finally, yet
importantly, there are consumers who consider going for “Payment and Price
Conditions” when purchasing PCs. This group accounts for 4% of the entire
consumer population (Dillon and Reif, 2014, pg. 5).
Explanation of the data needed
The type of data needed to assess the consumer behavior of purchasing a
laptop computer is survey data. This data collection method has been
chosen due to its easily quantifiable results and ease of access. The pros and
cons of surveys as a means of data collection are listed in Table 3 below:
Table 3. Pros and Cons of Survey Data Collection Method
Pros Cons
Relatively inexpensive Generally broad questions and
answers are used to cater to as
many people as possible
Can reach large numbers of people Cannot guarantee everyone who
sees the survey will complete it as
surveys are typically optional
Easily quantifiable results Surveys are not thorough as they
are usually multiple-choice answer
of predetermined questions and are
not tailored to each participant
Can be completed over the internet
without the need for face-to-face
interaction
Survey participants completing a
survey online may be influenced by
other factors and may result in

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‘satisficing’ behaviours
Additional data such as survey start
and end times, times between
clicks, and page times can all be
captured and recorded when an
online survey platform is used
To expand on what was covered in Table 3, we will delve deeper into the
pros and cons of survey data collection method to explain why the reasons
listed are positive or negative.
Pro 1: Relatively Inexpensive
- There are numerous survey creator websites that organisations can
use to create, have participants complete the survey on, and calculate
results for the business. These sites are generally free or inexpensive
and can make the experience easier for both the person conducting
the survey and the participant.
- This is a positive for conducting a survey on the consumer behaviours
of people purchasing laptop computers as it will make the process
easier to complete if there is no cost involved.
Pro 2: Can Reach Large Number of People
- By using online surveys, more would be participants can be reached,
and thus more data can be obtained.
- When looking into consumer behaviours, it may be useful to
investigate data of a wide variety of people from a vast area as it may
be interesting to note what areas purchase what brands.
Pro 3: Easily Quantifiable Results
- Survey can give us real statistics straight away: e.g. x amount of
people have been buying product b loyally for a period of y amount of

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years. This type of data can easily show us the consumer behaviours of
laptop computer purchases.
Pro 4: Can be Completed Over the Internet Without the Need for Face-To-
Face Interaction
- Other method of data collection must be completed in person such as
interviews. Surveys are not so personal and do not require face-to-face
interaction and as such can be completed by participants online in the
comfort of their own home.
- Collecting data for information on the consumer behaviour of laptop
purchases does not require face-to-face interaction or personalised
questions as it is not a personal topic and as laptop computers are
widely purchased and used by a clear majority of the population, the
more data collected the better.
Pro 5: Additional Data such as Survey Start and End Times, Times Between
Clicks, and Page Times can all be Captured and Recorded when an Online
Survey Platform is Used
- This can be useful to determine whether a participant is engaged in
the survey topic or not, and whether they had to think about an
answer.
- Relating back to laptop computers this may be interesting information
to note as laptop computers are a high-involvement purchase decision
so if a survey were to ask them what their ideal laptop computer brand
would be, and they took a long time or a short time to answer it may
tell the survey conductor which brands are considered and which are
not.
Con 1: Generally Broad Questions and Answers are Used to Cater to as Many
People as Possible

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- The survey conductor may miss out on useful information by trying to
make the survey questions apply to every participant.
- In a survey for people who purchase laptop computers, there will be
participants from many different backgrounds and to cater for that the
survey may be broad and miss beneficial information on the why’s and
who’s that the survey just could not cover.
Con 2: Cannot Guarantee Everyone who sees the Survey will Complete it as
Surveys are Typically Optional
- This can be a problem when the survey conductor is trying to gain as
much information as possible but only receives a 30% response rate.
According to a study conducted by Barge and Gehlbach in 2012,
participants who are offered some sort of incentive for completing the
survey were more likely to complete the survey with that survey
getting a 65% response rate as opposed to the 43% response rate of
the survey that did not offer an incentive; Even for the incentivised
survey the response rate is only 15% above half.
- For a consumer behaviour survey that is trying to gain as much
information as possible, it is preferred that the people sent the survey
participate but there is no guarantee that they will.
Con 3: Surveys are not Thorough as they are Usually Multiple-Choice Answer
of Predetermined Questions and are not Tailored to Each Participant
- Using the same survey for every person may make it hard for
participants to relate to the survey questions. For example, using the
same survey for people of a greatly different socio-economic
background may mean that participants of a lower income are not able
to relate to questions about such a high-priced item such as a laptop
computer.

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Con 4: Survey Participants Completing a Survey Online may be Influenced by
Other Factors and may Result in ‘Satisficing’ Behaviours
- ‘Satisficing’ is a term used to describe behaviours when the
consumers’ decision was not entirely beneficial to them (Barge and
Gehlbach, 2012). Satisficing occurs when participants make their
decision based on what requires the least amount of effort rather than
what applies to them the most. Satisficing may occur when a person is
distracted by outside forces such as music, television or other people.
Satisficing in surveys can be picked up on if conductors analyse
whether people have chosen the same answer for numerous questions,
if they have skipped questions etc.
- When collecting data for consumer behaviour research purposes, the
survey conductor would want the data collected to be as true and as
clear as possible. Satisficing behaviours would alter the data collected
and may impact results.
Details of the Measurement Tools Used
As seen in the section above, a survey has been chosen as the type of data
needed for acquiring information on the consumer behaviours of people
purchasing a laptop computer. A draft survey down below will show the kinds
of questions that will be asked and provide an idea of the kind of data that
may be collected should this survey be conducted. This survey is written with
the country of Australia in mind.
Survey Draft
Question 1: What region of Australia are you from?
Answer Options:
- ACT
- NT