Consumer Behaviour and Insights: Ritz London Case Study Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of consumer behavior and the decision-making process, focusing on the context of a case study of the Hotel Ritz London. It explores the stages of the consumer decision-making journey, including problem recognition, information search, alternatives evaluation, purchase decision, and post-purchase evaluation. The report examines the importance of mapping a path to purchase and understanding consumer decision-making for marketers. It compares and contrasts the key differences in the decision-making processes in Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B) contexts. The report also evaluates different market research approaches and methods used to understand the decision-making process in both B2C and B2B contexts, as well as how marketers can influence the different stages of the decision-making process. Finally, the report critically evaluates the application of appropriate theories, concepts, and models that influence and impact the decision-making process, supported by specific examples and context. The report utilizes the Economic Man Theory and the Stimulus Response Model to understand consumer behavior.

Consumer Behaviour and
Insights

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION 3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
P1 Explain and analyse the stages of consumer decision making journey for a given products
and services............................................................................................................................3
P2 Explain why it is important for the marketers to map a path to purchase and understand
consumer decision making.....................................................................................................5
................................................................................................................................................6
M1 Evaluate how marketers are responding to the decision making process, applying relevant
concepts and models...............................................................................................................6
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6
P3 Compare and Contrast the key differences of the decision making process in Context of
B2C and B2B, providing specific examples...........................................................................6
P4 Evaluate the different approaches to market research and methods of research used for
understanding the decision making process in both B2B and B2C contexts.........................7
M2 Provide a Coherent and justified evaluation of how different factors influence decision
making and buying behaviour, supported by specific............................................................8
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................8
P5 Evaluate how marketers can influence the different stages of the decision making process
of B2C and B2B, giving specific examples............................................................................8
M3 Critically evaluate how marketers influences each stage of the decision making process
with reference to relevant methods and models applied......................................................10
D1 Critically evaluate the application of appropriate theories, concepts and models that
influence and impact upon the decision making process, supported by specific examples and
context..................................................................................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Consumer behaviour is the process of identifying and analysing how to select, use and buy
the products and services in order to satisfy their needs and wants. It is the study of organisations
and customers and how they use and select products and services. The Consumer behaviour is
concerned with motivations and psychology (Santos and et. al., 2021). It is important as it helps
company to understand what influences the buying decision of consumers. The report is based on
the consumer decision making process and map of a path to purchase including market research
to understand consumer decision making process and differences in the context of B2C and B2B.
The report also includes the influence on the different stages of decision making process in the
Context of B2B and B2C. The Chosen Organisation for this report is Hotel Ritz London; it is one
of the famous and renowned hotels in London that provide excellent services to their customers.
TASK 1
P1 Explain and analyse the stages of consumer decision making journey for a given products and
services.
Consumer decision making journey is a process that helps in describing how people make
decision of purchase. The Consumer decision making journey for products and services consist
following steps:
Problem Recognition
The first stage of consumer decision making process is to recognise the needs for
products and services. When Consumers recognise the want they collect the information in order
to fulfil the want (Pantano, Priporas and Foroudi, 2019). No purchase can be happen if consumer
doesn’t recognise their needs and desire. The wants can be triggered by external and internal
stimuli due to which consumer thinks about the need which they want to fulfil. The Hotel can
make consumer recognise that they have a problem which can be solved by finding the needs and
wants. When people gone through problem recognition phase then they can move towards the
purchasing process.
Information search
ing the needs and wants of consumers they collect information related to the products and
services whether positive or negative. The Customers collect the information by consulting
through online resources or going at physical location personally. There are various information

gathering techniques which can be used by the consumers in order to get better results and gain
more useful information related to the services and facilities provided by the Hotel (Kumagai,
2020). They can gain through magazines advert, tv and radios, newspapers, online reviews and
taking feedback from existing customers. Hotel Ritz London must focus on enhancing the market
presence to attract more and more customers it could be possible by maintain the positive
reviews and providing better facilities form their competitors. As nowadays business turn to the
internet to avail the information related to the services and facilities provided by the Hotel. It is
important for the Organisation to use various channels and increase its online presence they are
pay per click advertising, high quality websites, SEO strategies and social media marketing
strategies.
Alternatives evaluation
It is the third stage of consumer decision making process in which consumers make the
decision and identify the product which they want. The customers look out the alternatives
choices so that they can compare the prices, product availability, quality and additional product
benefits. The Ritz London provides better services and facilities from their competitors which
makes them unique and stands out from the crowd (Mogaji, Balakrishnan and Kieu, 2021). The
Hotel also follows the sustainability practices to save the environment and protect the health and
safety of consumers. It is one of the strength of the Hotel that they use sustainable practices and
provide best facility to their customers. The Consumers will conduct the research and take a lot
of time to make the decision whether to purchase the services of the Ritz Hotel. The Decision of
the guest is totally depends on the Hotel reviews and feedback which they collect form different
sources.
Purchase decision
When customer collect all the information related to the products which includes
feedbacks and reviews than finally consumers made purchase decision whether to purchase the
products and services or not (Pearce, 2016). The purchase decision is based on the various
factors which they analyse and evaluate and after finding the positive results they get ready to
pay for the services which Ritz London will provide to consumers. It is the responsibility of the
Hotel to provide best services to their customers so that they can gain the loyalty of their guest
which helps in increasing the profitability and growth of business.
Post purchase evaluation

Post purchase evaluation determines the decision of the consumers for making the
purchase is correct. The Evaluation reflects whether the purchase fulfil the needs and
requirements of consumers (Shahab, Ghazali and Mohtar, 2021). For an Organisation it is
necessary to take feedbacks from customers so that they can identify whether they are satisfy
with the services and facilities provided by Ritz London. The post purchase evaluation process
helps in making changes in the services as per the feedbacks of the customers. If the guest give
positive feedback that means they are satisfy with the services of Hotel whereas if they give
negative reviews that means hotel need to make changes in order to provide better facilities.
The Economy Man Theory
The theories used by Hotel Ritz London to understand the consumer behaviour in more
appropriate manner is the Economy Man Theory. It is a model or theory which reflects that
customers are narrowly self interested and rational. The theory depicts that consumers are selfish
they want to maximise their benefits in exchange process (Svajdova, 2021). The Model suggests
that people collects information and facts related to the products and services before making
decision of the purchase.
P2 Explain why it is important for the marketers to map a path to purchase and understand
consumer decision making
For Hotel Ritz London it is important to map a path to purchase and understand the
consumer decision making process. As the purpose of mapping is to understand the need and
requirements of customers and also improve their experiences by providing better quality
services. By mapping a path to avail the services provided by the Hotel they can enable better
customer experiences due to which their profit and growth can be increased. The Customer
journey mapping provides a way for customers so that they can achieve their goals in better
aspects (McCarthy, 2016). By understanding the consumer decision making Hotel Ritz London
can know about the needs and requirements of the customers and try to satisfy that in order to
build string customer base. The mapping of customer journey provides various benefits such as it
allows optimising the customer on boarding process, benchmarking the customer experience
desired, understanding the differences in buyer personas and creating a logical order to buyer
journey.

.
M1 Evaluate how marketers are responding to the decision making process, applying relevant
concepts and models.
The Hotel Ritz London is responding the decision making process by identifying the
opportunities and challenges. For an organisation it is necessary to align marketing efforts with
the decision of the customers related to the purchase. Ritz London must know the factors which
can influenced by personal factors such as occupation, lifestyle, self concept, life cycle state,
economic situation, personality and buyer’s age. So organisation understand the each stage of
consumer decision making process and influence the decision by providing better facilities and
services that attracts them towards the Hotel (Sharma, 2019). The Organisation also applies the
model in order to understand the consumer decision making process in better aspects. The
Stimulus response model is a model of consumer behaviour; it focuses on the consumer as a
problem solver and thinker who responds to many internal as well as external factors when
deciding related to the purchase.
TASK 2
P3 Compare and Contrast the key differences of the decision making process in Context of B2C
and B2B, providing specific examples.
B2B refers to business to business and B2C refers as business to Consumers. They are
different to each other in terms of consumers and audience. B2C sell goods and services to
consumers for their personal use whereas B2B sells goods and services to other businesses.
Decision
making
procedure
Business 2 Customers Business 2 Business
Recognisin
g needs
In this stage customers made their
decision by identifying the needs and
wants. The needs and requirements of
the customers are practical in nature.
For instance: Purchase of car for
going office.
The purchase is made when needs and
demands of Organisation are set up.
For instance: Purchase of parts of
cars in order to run the production
process in smoother way.
Collecting In this stage, consumers gather the In this stage, the data is collected in

facts and
data
data so that they can make the
decision related to the purchase.
order to utilise the resources in
efficient and effective manner.
Identifying
alternative
options
The Customers identify the other
option in order to satisfy their needs
and wants.
In this stage business identifies the
other alternative for getting the
sources from which they can bought
the raw materials on better price with
good quality.
Comparing
alternatives
Consumers compared the alternative
in terms of price, quality, products
availability and various other features.
The Organisation compares the
alternative in terms of cost, quality
and durability of other products of
different companies.
Selecting
best
alternatives
In this stage consumer selects the best
alternative that provided better goods
and services with affordable price.
The business selects the best
alternative that provides raw materials
at best price with other Companies.
Executing
purchase
In this stage the final decision related
to the purchase is made by the
consumers.
The final decision is made by the
company in order to purchase the raw
materials and equipments.
Evaluating
results
After making the purchase an
evaluation is conducted in which
consumers gives feedback related to
products and services which they
bought.
The results are being evaluated if in
case company have any issue related
to their vendor they can clear and
solve it appropriately.
P4 Evaluate the different approaches to market research and methods of research used for
understanding the decision making process in both B2B and B2C contexts.
The Ritz London uses two approaches to market research and methods of research for
understanding the decision making process they are economic view model and passive view
model (Majeed, 2019). These model helps in understanding the decision making process in clear
aspects and also they can gain the ways through which consumers get influenced and take
decision related to getting services offered by Ritz London.
Economic view model

The Economic view model depicts that buying decision of consumers are depend on the
concept of utility if hotel serve maximum utility to their guest they get ready to pay for the
services and facilities of Ritz London. The guests will make the decision with the intention of
increasing benefits. The model is based on various predictions of buying behaviour of consumers
(Bavik, Ngan and Ekiz, 2017). The Customer analyse the price and other factors of the services
which is provided by the Hotel and identify whether it is satisfying the needs and wants of
consumers.
Passive View Model
Passive view model determines that there are various factors that can influence the
consumer purchasing decision but the company have to identify these factors in order to increase
the profit and growth of business. The Guest can be influenced by promotion, sales, advertising,
marketing, etc. This model doesn’t recognise that people play equal role in making decision
related to purchase.
M2 Provide a Coherent and justified evaluation of how different factors influence decision
making and buying behaviour, supported by specific.
There are various factors that influence the decision making and buying behaviour of
consumers they are cultural and social factors. These factors affect the decision making of
customers as it includes the status, reference groups, role and family. The status of people plays
an important role as people with rich class are ready to pay the amount for getting best quality of
services, their main motive is to get best quality services and facilities no matter what the price
is. The Cultural factor also affects the decision making process of consumers as they prefer the
best location which attracts them with the culture of the city. So, Ritz London must focus on
these factors in order to attract and build strong customer base (Nyame-Asiamah and Kawalek,
2020).
TASK 3
P5 Evaluate how marketers can influence the different stages of the decision making process of
B2C and B2B, giving specific examples.
The marketers of Hotel Ritz London can influence the different stages of decision making
process by keep focusing on the consumer buying process and making a strategy that helps in
understanding the process in effective and efficient manner. There are various theories and

models which helps in providing knowledge related to the consumer behaviour through which
organisation can understand the consumer power and behaviour in better way. The theories are
as follows-
Cognitive Learning
The Cognitive learning theory depicts that customers learn about the products and
services by conducting various analysis and evaluation. For example, asking consumers on their
experience (Annamalai and Varshney, 2018). It is a process though which consumers acquire
consumption knowledge and buying behaviour and also gain the experience which they need to
function in Market. The Ritz London creates a strategy through which they can influence the
behavioural patterns and self interest of people in order to increase the profitability and
productivity of business.
Behavioural Theory
Behavioural theory determines the way through which consumers learn about the products
and services through behaviour repetition. There are various characteristic of the consumers
which influences the decision making process they are nature, belief and attitude. It is important
for the Ritz London to gain the knowledge related to the consumer behaviour and maintain
healthy relation according to it so that business runs in smoother way with increase in customer
base.
Patterns of Buyer Behaviour
The Consumers behave various patterns which reflect their buying habits. The Customers
have different buying habits which make them unique from each other. The buying behaviour
patterns of consumer are collective which offers unique characters to Organisation. The buying
behaviour patterns are as follows-
Place of Hotel-
The Consumer pays for the facility and services if they like the place and it satisfy the
needs and wants of guests. The place plays an important role in making the decision related to
the purchase. It is necessary for the hotel to attract and retain customers by offering them
customise services that makes them unique form competitors.
Services purchased-
The services will be purchased when customers get fully confident that it fulfils the needs
and requirements of consumers. The Customer evaluates the services of other Hotels and make

the decision to purchase the facility of hotel that provides better services with affordable price
(Shaw, 2017). The price plays an important role in the life of consumers due to which they
evaluate and measure the performance of Hotels.
Time and frequency of purchase-
Time and frequency of purchase also plays and important role in consumer buyer
behaviour. Generally guest purchase the services of Hotel when they go for the trip and
vacations. Usually guest avail the services during summer season so that they can enjoy their
holidays with their families and friends.
Method of Purchase-
Method of purchase is the mode through which consumer make the payment for the
services which is provided by the Hotels. The Ritz London collects the payment via online,
credit card or cash on delivery. It depends on the consumer which payment method they want to
use in order to avail the services and facilities provided by the Hotel.
M3 Critically evaluate how marketers influences each stage of the decision making process with
reference to relevant methods and models applied.
The Marketers of Hotel Ritz London influences the each stage of decision making process
by using cognitive and behavioural theory due to which they can create comprehensibility of
behaviour of guest. This theory helps increasing the brand image and value of consumers so that
they can gain loyalty of people and achieve the objectives and goals of Hotel. It is the
responsibility of the Hotel to influence the decision making process of the consumers by
attracting them with the services provided by the Hotel and ensure that their\ facilities are best
form the other organisation (Oe and Yamaoka, 2020). The Consumer get attract when they get
better services at affordable price as people always look the price first and match the facilities
which they gain according to the premium.
D1 Critically evaluate the application of appropriate theories, concepts and models that influence
and impact upon the decision making process, supported by specific examples and context.
There are various theories and models which is used for understanding the consumer
behaviour in more appropriate way. The model which is used for getting better knowledge of
consumer decision making journey is The Economic theory. It is the theory which depicts that
consumers are selfish they will purchase the products and services in order to gain the maximum
benefits. If they are not getting the maximum benefits it become difficult for organisation to

make them influence related to making purchase. The advantage of this theory is that it helps
organisation to know more about the consumers buying behaviour.
CONCLUSION
From the above information it is being concluded that consumer behaviour plays an
important role in increasing the profitability and productivity of business. It is important for the
company to understand the behaviour of customers in order to take the appropriate action to
attract and retain them. The Consumer behaviour is affected by various factors they are
marketing campaigns, economic conditions, personal preferences, group influences and
purchasing power. There are various types of consumer behaviour such as complex buying
behaviour, dissonance—reducing buying behaviour, habitual buying behaviour and variety
seeking behaviour.

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