Marketing Management 2: Understanding Chinese Millennial Consumers

This report analyzes the purchasing behavior of Chinese millennial consumers in the retail market, focusing on the key factors influencing their buying decisions. It begins with research objectives and questions, followed by a literature review that explores consumer decision-making processes, the characteristics of millennial consumers, and the influence of various factors on their shopping behavior. The report examines the characteristics of Chinese millennial consumers, highlighting their tech-savviness, preference for online purchasing, and unique approach to spending. It delves into the characteristics of online retail consumers, noting their reliance on brand websites, cautious purchasing behavior, and lesser interest in personalized goods. The report identifies main influencing factors, such as globalization, price sensitivity, and the importance of retail experiences. It also explores the internal determinants of consumer behavior, including motivation, attitudes, and perceptions. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding these factors for effective marketing strategies in the Chinese market.

Running head: MARKETING MANAGEMENT
MBA Marketing Management
Name of the Student:
Name of University:
Author Note

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Research objectives
The purpose of this report is to analyze and identify the insights into the purchasing
behavior of the Chinese consumers in the retail market by identifying the main factors which
influences the buying decisions of the millennial. It determines the internal determinants of
consumer behavior and analyzes the influencing factors which enable the millennial to make a
purchase decision in the market.
Research questions
1. What factors drive consumer behavior in Chinese millennial?
2. What are the characteristics of the millennial consumers?
3. How do the main factors influence the shopping behavior of the millennial in the Chinese
online market?
4. What are the internal determinants of the consumer behavior?
Literature review-
According to Cohen, Prayag and Moital (2014), the consumer decision making process is
considered to be one of the most essential and influencing areas to consumer decision making. In
order the better other consider the behavior of the consumer in the retail market, there are various
theories and models that has been proposed by the researchers. Additionally it was stated by East
et al. (2016), the specifics of the product or service, the situation of the consumers and the
product itself influences the purchasing decisions of the consumers. The millennial in the market
tend to have a differentiated approach in buying behavior than other generations as mentioned by

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Foxall (2014). They are considered to be more tech savvy in nature and prefer online purchasing
(Gunter and Furnham 2014). Previously the behavior of the consumers was considered to be the
interaction between the seller and the customers. However, the modern marketer considers it to
be an ongoing process. Various literature and studies embraces questions like what people buy
and why (Cohen, Prayag and Moital 2014).
Literature on consumer behavior
Consumer behavior was defined by Cohen, Prayag and Moital (2014), as the consumer
attitudes, tastes and preferences that enables them to make a purchasing decision in the market.
According to Pérez et al. (2013), the choice of the consumers in the market is considered to be
one of the most important aspects of consumer behavior in the market. As per theory and
literature, consumer purchases a particular product if it has utility to them. In general, a particular
consumer purchases the product or the service is he/she derives benefits from that particular
product or service. As mentioned by Rani (2014), there are other situation factors which
determine the consumer behavior and variance among the millennial and the consumers in
general. Further, it was stated by Solomon et al. (2014), that the needs and wants of the
consumers determine their purchasing behavior. There is wide range of factors which determines
consumer behavior (Spurling et al. 2013). The buying behavior of the consumers depends on the
attitudes of the consumers, their age groups, preferences, and intentions. Therefore, according to
Cohen, Prayag and Moital (2014), the retailers need to target their customer base and segment
the market based on age, gender, preferences and other factors which influences purchasing
decisions.
Millennial consumer characteristics in Chinese market

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As per Gunter and Furnham (2014), China is highly committed to “reform and opening”
policy in the year 1978. It is believed by Spurling et al. (2013), that the Chinese millennial have
quite the opposite purchasing behavior as compared to generation X. According to the market
research, they are highly fond of trendy products and prefer online marketing. According to East
et al. (2016), the millennial are usually the young or the youth generation of the society. The
millennial generations are often characterized as special, confident, immature and independent in
nature. As per Gunter and Furnham (2014), it has been identified that the millennial generation
makes purchases for themselves and to make them feel good. They are unlike the baby boomers
and the generation X, the millennial value their money and the products for which they are
making a purchase decision as mentioned by Pérez et al. (2013). Their purchasing decisions
depend mainly on the logistics and emotional needs. The millennial prefer to spend their money
on material things and they are often willing to pay more on the materials things. According to
Foxall (2014), the Chinese millennial are self educating in nature. They define their needs on
their own and tend to directly engage with the sales representatives in the mature. As per
analysis, it has been identified that 45% of the Chinese millennial consumers have certain
specific solutions before reaching to the shoppers of the retailers in the market (Gunter and
Furnham 2014). It is believed by Pérez et al. (2013) that the Chinese millennial use other third
party resources more during their process of making a purchasing decision; while on the other
hand, the non millennial buyers prefer leveraging on the vendor provided resources. As the
research suggests the Chinese millennial prefer sharing their purchase on the social media
platforms and share it with their associates and friends (Cohen, Prayag and Moital 2014). This
provides additional opportunities to the retailers as their product or services gets publicity.
However, as argued by Spurling et al. (2013), negative publicity on the social media platforms

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can hamper the reputation of the retail in the market. Therefore, it can be said that the brands
must activity engage with the millennial on the social media and engage with the users to address
their grievance. Hence, the characteristics of the millennial in the Chinese market are considered
to be an important determinant for their purchasing decisions.
Characteristics of Online Retail Consumers
Chinese Millennial are very much accustomed to technology and advancements of the
world and society. They are more attached and dependent on phones and technology as
compared to personal experience of doing things. In the modern world, a person can get his/her
work done very conveniently for the ease which is provided by technology, especially for their
shopping needs (Hong, Tam and Yim). However, these millennial are also one of the most
critical buyers as they scrutinize their preferences before availing the means of convenience as
made certain by technology.
Some of the characteristics which can be associated with the response and attitudes of
online retail shoppers include:
 The Chinese millennial shoppers discover the newest trends in the market through
company websites and stores, rather than knowing about the same from social media
sites. For many countries, it has been seen that the millennial buyers get to know about
trends from social media platforms whereas, it is different in case of Chinese market as
they rely more on brand websites and fashion magazines. ELLE brand in China chose to
go digital rather than print, as the CEO opined that social media, in the specific context
will not be adequate to acquire authority and recognition in the market.

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 It has been witnessed that the Chinese buyers are far more cautious rather than being
impulsive while making decision to purchase products. People assume that the ease of
technology has made buyers to live in shopping frenzy which makes them impulsive
buyers (Verma, Sharma and Sheth 2016). Chinese millennial buyers are more cautious
while buying as they are very specific about their demands and invests in products which
are best suited for them. Millennial tend to purchase products from their must have lists
very spontaneously, whereas, the Chinese buyers are far more careful in such situations.
 Millennial retail shopping consumers in China are less likely to spend money on goods
which are personalized to suit demands and keep up with the trends in the world. It has
been seen that millennial shoppers specific to the Chinese market have difference in their
responses as compared to the western countries. The western millennial prefer goods and
services which are custom made for them and are luxurious whereas, Chinese millennial
shoppers are not really eager to pay premium prices for the same goods. This difference
is attributed to the variance of geography and maturity of the market.
Main Influencing Factors
The factors which can determine the responses among consumers in the Chinese market
are diverse. Globalization has contributed hugely in the expansion of market which also include
retail as well as online. The Chinese buyers are aware of trends and westernization which
significantly contribute to the influences which are traced in the Chinese retail market. It has
been seen that the buyers in the Chinese retail market are spenders who are aware of what they
want and what is to be spent. The millennial shoppers tend to be more sensitive regarding prices
of products, especially in case of luxury items which are highly priced (Wang and Foosiri 2018).
It has been noted that Chinese shoppers are more willing to invest in entertainment. They prefer

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retail experiences which are personalized and are available at retail stores or brick and mortar
ventures. Experiences are valued highly by the consumers in the Chinese market, for which, the
likes are different as compared to many other countries. Chinese people consider retailtainment
as a way of engaging in social activity rather which is much desired. Therefore, the factors which
influence the trends and constitute of the millennial response associated with retail shopping, is
very much experience oriented rather than guided by trends.
One of the most important factor is that the millennial generation of China are unlike the
Generation X of the Western countries. They are more matured and confident about their needs,
for which they prioritize accordingly. Quality is something that they focus on. It is for this
precise reason that they are considered to be less materialistic while embracing mindfulness and
playfulness and arriving and deciding their choices. Chinese Millennial buyers are exhibiting
awareness which are beyond the norms and traditions which indicate cultural shift. They also
favor uniqueness more than what reign supreme among trends. They are more aware of the
utility and uniqueness which a product possesses rather than
Internal Determinants of Consumer Behavior
The combination which constitutes of the emotional and mental characteristics of the
consumers is unique. These characteristics include lifestyle, personality, attitudes, motivation,
perceptions and so on. These build up the combination of consumer behavior which is unique
and influence the market to great extent (Rucker and Galinsky 2016). These can be classified as
the internal determinant of behavior which are specific to consumers, specific to the Chinese
Market. Motivation is very important in case of consumers to achieve goals and take actions for
the same. Chinese millennial buyers are specifically found to be motivated to achieve what they
desire and meet the gap between what is needed and desired. If they identify something as

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needed, whereas, it is luxurious, they would be eager to pay high ended price as well. Attitudes
of the consumers can be referred to as the beliefs and behavioral intentions of consumers
(Rucker and Galinsky 2016). Attitudes of consumers may tend to alter in terms of direction,
strengths and stability of consumers. Attitudes among consumers which develop from having
personal and direct experience are held to be more confident in nature as compared to the
attitudes which re developed from indirect experience of consumers. Consumers tend to look for
relevant information before taking decisions about purchasing a produc (Ramya and Mohamed
Ali 2016)t. In other words, as is traced in Chinese context, the consumers are far more
experience oriented, which means they tend to rely on products and services which are felt
directly. This is how they make their preferences and attitudes are based on. Attitude also takes
into consideration social pressures which influence the behavior of customers and their intention
to purchase a product from the market. However, the attitudes of the consumers in the Chinese
market reflect that they tend to prefer quality over anything else. The consumers also highly
prefer uniqueness in the products which bear tailor made beauty and utility catering to the needs
of the customers. Perceptions of the consumers mean, identifying, choosing, bring together and
interpreting impulses to develop senses regarding the world. Consumers tend to disregard the
products which do not conform to their desires, needs, beliefs and so on (Ramya and Mohamed
Ali 2016). A consumer tends to relate with a product which they can find relevance and
attachment with, based on their stimuli. These may vary from one person to another. These
responses play a pivotal role to determine and influence consumer behavior.

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References and Bibliography
Cohen, S.A., Prayag, G. and Moital, M., 2014. Consumer behaviour: Concepts, influences and
opportunities. Current issues in Tourism, 17(10), pp.872-909.
East, R., Singh, J., Wright, M. and Vanhuele, M., 2016. Consumer behaviour: Applications in
marketing. Sage.
Foxall, G.R., 2014. Consumer Behaviour (RLE Consumer Behaviour): A Practical Guide.
Routledge.
Godey, B., Manthiou, A., Pederzoli, D., Rokka, J., Aiello, G., Donvito, R. and Singh, R., 2016.
Social media marketing efforts of luxury brands: Influence on brand equity and consumer
behavior. Journal of business research, 69(12), pp.5833-5841.
Gunter, B. and Furnham, A., 2014. Consumer profiles (RLE Consumer Behaviour): An
introduction to psychographics. Routledge.
Hong, W., Tam, K.Y. and Yim, C.K.B., 2016. E-service environment: Impacts of web interface
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and practice (pp. 120-140). Routledge.
Pérez, A., del Mar García de los Salmones, M. and Rodríguez del Bosque, I., 2013. The effect of
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Ramya, N. and Mohamed Ali, S.A., 2016. Factors affecting consumer buying
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Rani, P., 2014. Factors influencing consumer behaviour. International journal of current
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Rucker, D.D. and Galinsky, A.D., 2016. Growing beyond growth: Why multiple mindsets matter
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