Consumer Behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Consumer Behavior - Essay Example The study of consumers helps firms and organizations improve their marketing strategies by understanding issues such as how: The psychology of how consumers think, feel, reason, and select between different alternatives (e.g., brands, products); The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment (e.g., culture, family, signs, media); The behavior of consumers while shopping or making other marketing decisions; Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing abilities influence decisions and marketing outcome;   How consumer motivation and decision strategies differ between products that differ in their level of importance or interest that they entail for the consumer; and How marketers can adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and marketing strategies to more effectively reach the consumer. â€Å"One "official" definition of consumer behavior is "The study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secur e, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society"  (Perner 2010). ... group (e.g., friend’s influence what kinds of clothes a person wears) or an organization (people on the job make decisions as to which products the firm should use). Consumer behavior involves the use and disposal of products as well as the study of how they are purchased. Product use is often of great interest to the marketer, because this may influence how a product is best positioned or how we can encourage increased consumption.   The impact of consumer behavior on society is also of relevance. For example, aggressive marketing of high fat foods, or aggressive marketing of easy credit, may have serious repercussions for the national health and economy. Reasons for studying consumer behavior; To stay in business by attracting and retaining customers. To benefit from understanding consumer problems To establish competitive advantage The subject consumer behavior is very interesting. â€Å"Through the application of sociology, psychology and demographics, marketers can beg in to understand why consumers form attitudes and make decisions to purchase. Consumer-behavior studies inform marketers, advertisers and public agencies how product and service selection is influenced by personality, perception, values and beliefs† (Kirchheimer 2011). For marketing, these influences are studied in the context of demographics, which includes ethnicity, age, marital status, size of  family, income,  education  and employment. Perception: Is how information is collected and categorized. Perception is affected by the amount of exposure to a stimulus and by individual interpretation. Personality: Is a weak component of consumer behavior, Personality means a pattern of behavior founded on an individual’s outlook and internal traits. In this use, outlook means point of view and traits