JAYALAKSHMI RAJAN

ROLL NO:18
MCOM TAXATION
 Consumer Behaviour (CB)
• Consumer is considered as the nucleus of the marketing process.
• All marketing decisions are based on assumptions and knowledge of
consumer.
• It reflects the totality of thoughts and actions of the consumers in the
market.
• It is the outcome of both internal (individual) and external influences
(environmental).
• It is a dynamic aspect which undergoes frequent changes.
• Understanding CB is essential for the development of marketing
strategies.
 Who is a Consumer and
Customer ?
From the retailer point of view:

Customer is someone to whom you are selling a product or

service.

Consumer is someone who actually buys and consumes goods

and services you provide.
 Definition
According to Walters and Paul “consumer behaviour is the process
whereby individuals decide what, when, how and from whom to
purchase goods and services.”
Factors Influencing Consumer
Behaviour
 1.Social factors
Social factors have considerable influence over the buying behaviour of
consumers. social factors include consumers’ reference groups, family
and their roles and status in the society.
• Reference group
A person’s reference groups are those groups that have a direct
or indirect influence on the person’s attitude or behaviour.
• Family
Family has a significant influence over the consumer behaviour.
Family size and family structure are two important elements that
determine the behaviour of consumers. If the size of the family is
large, then purchase requirements will be high. Family structure
refers to constitution of the family.
• Role and status
A person in a society is associated with different groups such as
family, workplace, clubs and other social and political groups.
Position and role played by a person in the society and his group
greatly influences his buying behaviour.
 2. Cultural factors
Cultural factors have the broadest and deepest impact on consumer
behaviour. This set of factors mainly includes culture, sub-culture, and
social culture.
• Culture
In simpler words, culture is nothing but values, goals, customs,
attitudes, and belief of an individual. What an individual learns
from his parents and relatives as a child becomes his culture.
• Subculture
It is a powerful determinant of consumer needs and wants. Every
religion has its culture in terms of rules, values, rituals, and
procedures that have impact on its followers.
• Social Class
The social class to which an individual belongs influences the
buying decision. Generally, the people belonging to the same
class are said to be sharing the similar interest, value and the
behaviour.
 3. Personal factors
Personal factors include unique personal characteristics of consumers
which determine their behaviour in a market.
• Age and life cycle stage
A man passes through various stages of his life cycle, such as
infant, child, teenager, young, adult, and old. Need and preference
vary as one passes through different stages of life cycle. Marketer
may concentrate on one or more stages of his target consumers’
life cycle. Use of different product depends on age and stage of
buyers’ life cycle.
• Occupation and life style
Buying and using pattern of consumer, to a large extent, is
affected by a person’s occupation. For example, industrialist,
teacher, artist, scientist, manager, doctor, supervisor, worker,
trader, etc.,. Life style is the person’s pattern of living in the
world as expressed in the person’s activities, interest, opinion and
working style, etc.
• Personality
Personality characteristics, such as individualism, difference, self-
confidence, courage, firmness, sociability, mental balance,
patience, etc., have a strong influence on needs and preferences.
Every person buys that product which suits his personality.
 4. Psychological factors
Every person has distinguishing psychological characteristics which
influence his buying behaviour.
• Motivation
It has a significant impact on consumer behaviour. Motivation is
closely related to human needs. One has many needs at a given
time. Some needs are physiological in nature arising from
physiological states of tension, such as hunger, thirst, or
discomfort.

• Perception
It is the process by which an individual attains awareness or
understanding of his environment through his senses (vision,
hearing, smell, taste, and touch) or his mind. Perception differs
from person to person.
• Learning
Learning is basically concerned with experience of an individual.
Most of purchase decisions depend on self-experience or
experience of others, whose opinion carry value in buying
decisions.

• Attitude
Attitudes decide liking or disliking of object. People can judge
good or bad, beautiful or ugly, rich or poor, or desirable or
undesirable about an object, a product, or a person. Attitudes
play a vital role in accepting or rejecting, appreciating or
criticizing the product or brand.
Consumer Buying Process
• Need recognition
This step is also known as recognizing of unmet need. The need
is a source or force of buying behaviour. Buying problem arises
only when there is unmet need or problem is recognized. Need or
problem impels an individual to act or to buy the product.

• Information Search
Interested consumer will try to seek information. Now, he will
read newspapers and magazines, watch television, visit
showroom or dealer, contact salesman, discuss with friends and
relatives, and try all the possible sources of information. They
may include family members, friends, package, colleagues, radio,
TV, newspapers, and magazines.
• Evaluation of Alternatives
In the former stage, the consumer has collected information
about certain brands. Now, he undergoes evaluation of brands.
He cannot buy all of them. Normally, he selects the best one, the
brand that offers maximum satisfaction. Here, he evaluates
competitive brands to judge which one is the best, the most
attractive.

• Purchase Decision
This is the stage when the consumer prefers one, the most
promising brand, out of several brands. The former stage helps
consumers evaluate various brands in the choice set. The brand
that offers maximum benefits or satisfaction is preferred.
• Post-purchase Decisions
Consumer buys the product with certain expectations. Though
he decides very systematically, there is no guarantee of a
complete satisfaction. There is always possibility of variation
between the expected level of satisfaction and the actual
satisfaction. His subsequent behaviour is influenced by degree of
satisfaction/dissatisfaction.