Understanding Buyer Behavior
Read this chapter. The terms "customer" and "consumer" are often mistakenly used interchangeably. The distinction is blurry because different organizations, academics, and governments have varying definitions for both of them. One easy way of distinguishing between the two is to think of the consumer as a potential customer to a firm and the customer as someone that already consumes the goods a specific firm produces. For example, if you regularly purchase shoes from Footlocker, you are a Footlocker customer. But if your friend does not shop at Footlocker, then Footlocker considers him a consumer: a potential customer. Firms often target consumers and existing customers differently.
Buyer Behavior as Problem Solving
Market Offerings
Another relevant set of situational influences on
consumer problem solving is the available market offerings. The more extensive the
product and brand
choices available to the consumer, the more complex the purchase
decision process is likely
to be.
For example, if you already have purchased or are considering purchasing a DVD,
you know there are many brands to choose from-Sony, Samsung, Panasonic,
Mitsubishi,
Toshiba, and Sanyo, to name several. Each manufacturer sells several
models that differ
in terms of some of the following features-single or multiple event
selection, remote
control (wired or wireless) , slow motion, stop action, variable-speed
scan, tracking control, and so on. What criteria are important to you? Is purchasing a
DVD an easy decision? If a consumer has a need that can be met by only one product or
one outlet in the
relevant market, the decision is relatively simple. Either purchase the
product or let the
need go unmet.
This is not ideal from the customer' s perspective, but it can occur.
For example, suppose you are a student on a campus in a small town many miles from
another marketplace.
Your campus and town has only one bookstore. You need a textbook for
class; only one
specific book will do and only one outlet has the book for sale. The
limitation on alternative market offerings can clearly influence your purchase behavior.
As you saw in the DVD example, when the extent of market offerings increases, the complexity of the problem-solving process and the consumers' need for information also increases. A wider selection of market offerings is better from the customer's point of view, because it allows them to tailor their purchases to their specific needs. However, it may confuse and frustrate the consumer so that less-than-optimal choices are made.