Factors influencing consumer behavior

Cultural Factors

Cultural factor divided into three sub factors (i) Culture (ii) Sub Culture (iii) Social Class

Culture - The set of basic values perceptions, wants, and behaviors learned by a member of society from family and other important institutions. Culture is the most basic cause of a person’s wants and behavior. Every group or society has a culture, and cultural influences on buying behavior may vary greatly from country to country.

Sub Culture - A group of people with shared value systems based on common life experiences and situations. Each culture contains smaller sub cultures a group of people with shared value system based on common life experiences and situations. Sub culture includes nationalities, religions, racial group and geographic regions. Many sub culture make up important market segments and marketers often design products.

Social Class - Almost every society has some form of social structure, social classes are society’s relatively permanent and ordered divisions whose members share similar values, interests and behavior.

Social Factors

A consumer’s behavior also is influenced by social factors, such as the (i) Groups (ii) Family (iii) Roles and status

Groups - Two or more people who interact to accomplish individual or mutual goals. A person’s behavior is influenced by many small groups. Groups that have a direct influence and to which a person belongs are called membership groups.

Family - Family members can strongly influence buyer behaviour. The family is the most important consumer buying organization society and it has been researched extensively. Marketers are interested in the roles, and influence of the husband, wife and children on the purchase of different products and services.

Roles and Status - A person belongs to many groups, family, clubs or organizations. The person’s position in each group can be defined in terms of both role and status

Personal Factors

It includes i) Age and life cycle stage (ii) Occupation (iii) Economic situation (iv) Life Style (v) Personality and self concept.

Age and Life cycle Stage - People change the goods and services they buy over their lifetimes. Tastes in food, clothes, furniture, and recreation are often age related. Buying is also shaped by the stage of the family life cycle.

Occupation - A person’s occupation affects the goods and services bought. Blue collar workers tend to buy more rugged work clothes, whereas white-collar workers buy more business suits. A Co. can even specialize in making products needed by a given occupational group. Thus, computer software companies will design different products for brand managers, accountants, engineers, lawyers, and doctors.

Economic situation - A person’s economic situation will affect product choice

Life Style - Life Style is a person’s Pattern of living, understanding these forces involves measuring consumer’s major AIO dimensions i.e. activities (Work, hobbies, shopping, support etc) interest (Food, fashion, family recreation) and opinions (about themselves, Business, Products)

Personality and Self concept - Each person’s distinct personality influences his or her buying behavior. Personality refers to the unique psychological characteristics that lead to relatively consistent and lasting responses to one’s own environment.

Psychological Factors

It includes these Factors i) Motivation (ii) Perception (iii) Learning (iv) Beliefs and attitudes

Motivation - Motive (drive) a need that is sufficiently pressing to direct the person to seek satisfaction of the need

Perception- The process by which people select, Organize, and interpret information to form a meaningful picture of the world.

Learning - Changes in an individuals’ behavior arising from experience.

Beliefs and Attitudes - Belief is a descriptive thought that a person holds about something. Attitude, a person’s consistently favorable or unfavorable evaluations, feelings, and tendencies towards an object or idea