Post on 24-Oct-2014
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 80
Unit 5 Consumer Buying Behavior
Structure
51 Introduction
Learning Objectives
52 Characteristics affecting Consumer Behavior
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
56 Buying Motives
57 Buyer Behavior Models
58 Summary
59 Terminal Questions
510 Answers
51 Introduction
Consumers are individuals households or businesses who use the
products In this unit we are limiting our study to individual and households‟
use of products for personal consumption Consumer characteristics vary
from country to country Therefore it has become challenging task for
marketer to understand the need buying behavior of consumer before
developing product and marketing program In this section we will discuss
consumer buying behavior and hisher decision making process We will
also look into the decision process of buyer for new product Consumer
motives and behavior models are analyzed to identify buying environment
Learning Objectives
After studying this unit you will be able to
Identify the characteristics those affect consumer behavior
Explain different types of buyer behavior
Analyze the consumer decision making process
Discuss consumer decision process for new products
Examine the buying motives and behavioral models
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 81
52 Characteristics affecting Consumer Behavior
Cultural Social Personal and Psychological factors influence the consumer
behavior These are external to the company and cannot be controlled
Marketer would like to understand the impact of these factors on hisher
organization
I Cultural factors
1 Culture is the combination of customs beliefs and values of
consumers in a particular nation Majority Indians are vegetarians
and a company which sells non vegetarian items should analyze
these values of the consumer For example KFC which sells
chicken dishes all over the world added vegetarian burgers in their
menu to serve vegetarian consumers Another multinational
McDonald whose majority of sales comes form selling beef lets
didn‟t include in the Indian menu as cow is a sacred animal
2 Subcultures are part of culture comprising geographic regions
religions nationalities and racial groups The value system of
these groups differs from others For example Hindus in north
India eat special vegetarian food during the Navaratra festival
They prefer to spend their time with their family During this time
restaurants will have lesser traffic To attract the customers
restaurants started offering the authentic Navaratra dish This
helped the restaurant to attract the family who don‟t have time
bachelors and people want to spend their time with family without
allotting much time for food preparation and so on
3 Social class - these are permanent groups in the society whose
members have common likings According to Mckinsey consumer
report Indian consumers can be classifies into five different
categories They are
a Deprived
b Aspires
c Seekers
d Strivers and
e Global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 82
1 Deprived are the people who earn less than Rs 90000
annually This group is also known as below poverty line They
are the poorest people in the country They won‟t get
continuous employment and they earn their lively hood from
seasonal work People in this category will do less skilled or
semi skilled work
2 Aspires belongs to the families who earn between Rs90 000 to
Rs 2 00000 This group consist small shop keepers industrial
workers and small land holding farmers Though they earn
more than deprived class but half of their money goes for
basic amenities and food
3 Seekers earn between Rs 200000 to 500000 This class
varies largely The group contains fresh workers middle level
employees government employees and business people The
class varies widely on the age attitude and other factors
4 Strivers belong to the group who earn between Rs 500000 to
1000000 People in this category are considered very
successful The group contains business people large farmers
senior government officials and professionals Their earnings
are enough to fill their apatite of materials They are leading the
consumption led growth in India
5 Global Indians are earning more than Rs 1000000 This group
is comprised of senior government officials professionals
business people and top business executives India is
witnessing the growth in this class They are truly global they
purchase international brands and have international cuisine
II Social factors
Human beings are social animals They live and interact with other
people Therefore there is a chance of influence by others on their
opinions Marketers like to identify such influential persons or groups
of consumer Generally such groups are classified into two major
groups namely reference groups and family
Reference groups are used in order to evaluate and determine the
nature of a given individual or other groups characteristics and
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 83
sociological attributes Reference groups provide the benchmarks and
contrast needed for comparison and evaluation of group and personal
characteristics ldquoReference groups are groups that people refer to
when evaluating their own qualities circumstances attitudes values
and behaviors - William Thompson amp Joseph Hickey Society in
Focus 2005rdquo Reference groups act as a frame of reference to which
people always refer to evaluate their achievements their role
performance aspirations and ambitions
Family Indian culture gives utmost importance to the family People
discuss with their family before purchasing the valuable items Wife
children and parents influence the decisions of the family Therefore
many companies use either whole family or kids in their promotional
programs
Figure 51 Figure 52
Godrej introduced memory back up auto washing machine They have
shown the family in the advertisement who are enjoying without any
problems of washing clothes In the second advertisement Dabur
chyavanprash uses kids in their advertisements The target customers are
used with celebrity to provide necessary image and convey the attributes of
the product
III Personal factors
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making We discussed age and occupation
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 84
factors and their application earlier in the marketing environment unit
We will discuss lifestyle and its influence on the consumer in the
segmentation unit In this section we will focus on the personality and its
influence on the consumer decision making process Personality is the
image of people‟s traits Traits include Self confidence Dominance
autonomy defensiveness adaptability and aggressiveness Many
companies used these concepts in their marketing communications
Bajaj pulsar used muscularity to highlight its image (definitely male) Fair
and lovely and stay free tried to highlight 21st century Indian girl and their
aspirations in their communications
IV Psychological factors
Motivation
Abraham Maslowrsquos ldquoNeed Hierarchy Theoryrdquo
One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of
needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow Maslow saw human
needs in the form of a hierarchy ascending from the lowest to the highest
and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied this kind of need
ceases to be a motivator As per his theory these needs are
i Physiological needs These are important needs for sustaining the
human life Food water warmth shelter sleep medicine and
education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
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Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
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6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
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6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
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pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
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reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
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9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 81
52 Characteristics affecting Consumer Behavior
Cultural Social Personal and Psychological factors influence the consumer
behavior These are external to the company and cannot be controlled
Marketer would like to understand the impact of these factors on hisher
organization
I Cultural factors
1 Culture is the combination of customs beliefs and values of
consumers in a particular nation Majority Indians are vegetarians
and a company which sells non vegetarian items should analyze
these values of the consumer For example KFC which sells
chicken dishes all over the world added vegetarian burgers in their
menu to serve vegetarian consumers Another multinational
McDonald whose majority of sales comes form selling beef lets
didn‟t include in the Indian menu as cow is a sacred animal
2 Subcultures are part of culture comprising geographic regions
religions nationalities and racial groups The value system of
these groups differs from others For example Hindus in north
India eat special vegetarian food during the Navaratra festival
They prefer to spend their time with their family During this time
restaurants will have lesser traffic To attract the customers
restaurants started offering the authentic Navaratra dish This
helped the restaurant to attract the family who don‟t have time
bachelors and people want to spend their time with family without
allotting much time for food preparation and so on
3 Social class - these are permanent groups in the society whose
members have common likings According to Mckinsey consumer
report Indian consumers can be classifies into five different
categories They are
a Deprived
b Aspires
c Seekers
d Strivers and
e Global Indians
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 82
1 Deprived are the people who earn less than Rs 90000
annually This group is also known as below poverty line They
are the poorest people in the country They won‟t get
continuous employment and they earn their lively hood from
seasonal work People in this category will do less skilled or
semi skilled work
2 Aspires belongs to the families who earn between Rs90 000 to
Rs 2 00000 This group consist small shop keepers industrial
workers and small land holding farmers Though they earn
more than deprived class but half of their money goes for
basic amenities and food
3 Seekers earn between Rs 200000 to 500000 This class
varies largely The group contains fresh workers middle level
employees government employees and business people The
class varies widely on the age attitude and other factors
4 Strivers belong to the group who earn between Rs 500000 to
1000000 People in this category are considered very
successful The group contains business people large farmers
senior government officials and professionals Their earnings
are enough to fill their apatite of materials They are leading the
consumption led growth in India
5 Global Indians are earning more than Rs 1000000 This group
is comprised of senior government officials professionals
business people and top business executives India is
witnessing the growth in this class They are truly global they
purchase international brands and have international cuisine
II Social factors
Human beings are social animals They live and interact with other
people Therefore there is a chance of influence by others on their
opinions Marketers like to identify such influential persons or groups
of consumer Generally such groups are classified into two major
groups namely reference groups and family
Reference groups are used in order to evaluate and determine the
nature of a given individual or other groups characteristics and
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 83
sociological attributes Reference groups provide the benchmarks and
contrast needed for comparison and evaluation of group and personal
characteristics ldquoReference groups are groups that people refer to
when evaluating their own qualities circumstances attitudes values
and behaviors - William Thompson amp Joseph Hickey Society in
Focus 2005rdquo Reference groups act as a frame of reference to which
people always refer to evaluate their achievements their role
performance aspirations and ambitions
Family Indian culture gives utmost importance to the family People
discuss with their family before purchasing the valuable items Wife
children and parents influence the decisions of the family Therefore
many companies use either whole family or kids in their promotional
programs
Figure 51 Figure 52
Godrej introduced memory back up auto washing machine They have
shown the family in the advertisement who are enjoying without any
problems of washing clothes In the second advertisement Dabur
chyavanprash uses kids in their advertisements The target customers are
used with celebrity to provide necessary image and convey the attributes of
the product
III Personal factors
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making We discussed age and occupation
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 84
factors and their application earlier in the marketing environment unit
We will discuss lifestyle and its influence on the consumer in the
segmentation unit In this section we will focus on the personality and its
influence on the consumer decision making process Personality is the
image of people‟s traits Traits include Self confidence Dominance
autonomy defensiveness adaptability and aggressiveness Many
companies used these concepts in their marketing communications
Bajaj pulsar used muscularity to highlight its image (definitely male) Fair
and lovely and stay free tried to highlight 21st century Indian girl and their
aspirations in their communications
IV Psychological factors
Motivation
Abraham Maslowrsquos ldquoNeed Hierarchy Theoryrdquo
One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of
needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow Maslow saw human
needs in the form of a hierarchy ascending from the lowest to the highest
and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied this kind of need
ceases to be a motivator As per his theory these needs are
i Physiological needs These are important needs for sustaining the
human life Food water warmth shelter sleep medicine and
education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
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Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
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In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
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55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
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6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
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pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
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reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
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Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
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9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 82
1 Deprived are the people who earn less than Rs 90000
annually This group is also known as below poverty line They
are the poorest people in the country They won‟t get
continuous employment and they earn their lively hood from
seasonal work People in this category will do less skilled or
semi skilled work
2 Aspires belongs to the families who earn between Rs90 000 to
Rs 2 00000 This group consist small shop keepers industrial
workers and small land holding farmers Though they earn
more than deprived class but half of their money goes for
basic amenities and food
3 Seekers earn between Rs 200000 to 500000 This class
varies largely The group contains fresh workers middle level
employees government employees and business people The
class varies widely on the age attitude and other factors
4 Strivers belong to the group who earn between Rs 500000 to
1000000 People in this category are considered very
successful The group contains business people large farmers
senior government officials and professionals Their earnings
are enough to fill their apatite of materials They are leading the
consumption led growth in India
5 Global Indians are earning more than Rs 1000000 This group
is comprised of senior government officials professionals
business people and top business executives India is
witnessing the growth in this class They are truly global they
purchase international brands and have international cuisine
II Social factors
Human beings are social animals They live and interact with other
people Therefore there is a chance of influence by others on their
opinions Marketers like to identify such influential persons or groups
of consumer Generally such groups are classified into two major
groups namely reference groups and family
Reference groups are used in order to evaluate and determine the
nature of a given individual or other groups characteristics and
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 83
sociological attributes Reference groups provide the benchmarks and
contrast needed for comparison and evaluation of group and personal
characteristics ldquoReference groups are groups that people refer to
when evaluating their own qualities circumstances attitudes values
and behaviors - William Thompson amp Joseph Hickey Society in
Focus 2005rdquo Reference groups act as a frame of reference to which
people always refer to evaluate their achievements their role
performance aspirations and ambitions
Family Indian culture gives utmost importance to the family People
discuss with their family before purchasing the valuable items Wife
children and parents influence the decisions of the family Therefore
many companies use either whole family or kids in their promotional
programs
Figure 51 Figure 52
Godrej introduced memory back up auto washing machine They have
shown the family in the advertisement who are enjoying without any
problems of washing clothes In the second advertisement Dabur
chyavanprash uses kids in their advertisements The target customers are
used with celebrity to provide necessary image and convey the attributes of
the product
III Personal factors
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making We discussed age and occupation
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 84
factors and their application earlier in the marketing environment unit
We will discuss lifestyle and its influence on the consumer in the
segmentation unit In this section we will focus on the personality and its
influence on the consumer decision making process Personality is the
image of people‟s traits Traits include Self confidence Dominance
autonomy defensiveness adaptability and aggressiveness Many
companies used these concepts in their marketing communications
Bajaj pulsar used muscularity to highlight its image (definitely male) Fair
and lovely and stay free tried to highlight 21st century Indian girl and their
aspirations in their communications
IV Psychological factors
Motivation
Abraham Maslowrsquos ldquoNeed Hierarchy Theoryrdquo
One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of
needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow Maslow saw human
needs in the form of a hierarchy ascending from the lowest to the highest
and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied this kind of need
ceases to be a motivator As per his theory these needs are
i Physiological needs These are important needs for sustaining the
human life Food water warmth shelter sleep medicine and
education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
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reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
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9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 83
sociological attributes Reference groups provide the benchmarks and
contrast needed for comparison and evaluation of group and personal
characteristics ldquoReference groups are groups that people refer to
when evaluating their own qualities circumstances attitudes values
and behaviors - William Thompson amp Joseph Hickey Society in
Focus 2005rdquo Reference groups act as a frame of reference to which
people always refer to evaluate their achievements their role
performance aspirations and ambitions
Family Indian culture gives utmost importance to the family People
discuss with their family before purchasing the valuable items Wife
children and parents influence the decisions of the family Therefore
many companies use either whole family or kids in their promotional
programs
Figure 51 Figure 52
Godrej introduced memory back up auto washing machine They have
shown the family in the advertisement who are enjoying without any
problems of washing clothes In the second advertisement Dabur
chyavanprash uses kids in their advertisements The target customers are
used with celebrity to provide necessary image and convey the attributes of
the product
III Personal factors
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making We discussed age and occupation
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 84
factors and their application earlier in the marketing environment unit
We will discuss lifestyle and its influence on the consumer in the
segmentation unit In this section we will focus on the personality and its
influence on the consumer decision making process Personality is the
image of people‟s traits Traits include Self confidence Dominance
autonomy defensiveness adaptability and aggressiveness Many
companies used these concepts in their marketing communications
Bajaj pulsar used muscularity to highlight its image (definitely male) Fair
and lovely and stay free tried to highlight 21st century Indian girl and their
aspirations in their communications
IV Psychological factors
Motivation
Abraham Maslowrsquos ldquoNeed Hierarchy Theoryrdquo
One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of
needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow Maslow saw human
needs in the form of a hierarchy ascending from the lowest to the highest
and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied this kind of need
ceases to be a motivator As per his theory these needs are
i Physiological needs These are important needs for sustaining the
human life Food water warmth shelter sleep medicine and
education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
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pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
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reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
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Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
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9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 84
factors and their application earlier in the marketing environment unit
We will discuss lifestyle and its influence on the consumer in the
segmentation unit In this section we will focus on the personality and its
influence on the consumer decision making process Personality is the
image of people‟s traits Traits include Self confidence Dominance
autonomy defensiveness adaptability and aggressiveness Many
companies used these concepts in their marketing communications
Bajaj pulsar used muscularity to highlight its image (definitely male) Fair
and lovely and stay free tried to highlight 21st century Indian girl and their
aspirations in their communications
IV Psychological factors
Motivation
Abraham Maslowrsquos ldquoNeed Hierarchy Theoryrdquo
One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of
needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow Maslow saw human
needs in the form of a hierarchy ascending from the lowest to the highest
and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied this kind of need
ceases to be a motivator As per his theory these needs are
i Physiological needs These are important needs for sustaining the
human life Food water warmth shelter sleep medicine and
education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
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Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
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Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 85
list of need satisfaction Maslow was of an opinion that until these
needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life no other motivating
factors will work
ii Security or Safety needs These are the needs to be free of physical
danger and of the fear of losing a job property food or shelter It also
includes protection against any emotional harm
iii Social needs Human beings are social animals They strive to be in
the society In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs
for affection acceptance and friendship
iv Esteem needs According to Maslow once the people satisfied with
social needs They would like to have esteem needs This category
includes power prestige status and self-confidence needs It includes
both internal esteem factors like self-respect autonomy and
achievements and external esteem factors such as states recognition
and attention
v Need for self-actualization Maslow regards this as the highest need
in his hierarchy It is the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming it includes growth achieving one‟s potential and self-
fulfillment It is to maximize one‟s potential and to accomplish
something
Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer
is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs If
person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies
should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications
Activity 1
You are asked to book a hotel in your city for a period of 2 weeks by your
friend who is an American citizen What are the various cultural social
and personal factors that you think will affect your friend in his choice of
hotel
Perception
It is the process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 86
Explanation of the definition stimulus is generated by hearing smelling
seeing touching and tasting People develop stimulus about product or
services through any of the above themes and creates an image in the
mind
The marketing implication of the definition Marketer researches his
consumer profile and communicates the product or service messages either
through radio demo or television By seeing hearing or experiencing the
product or service consumer will develop an image in the mind The
message given by company may pass through three different selection
procedures
a) Selective attention The habit of the people to analyze the information
completely and interpreting it They develop the perception about the
product or service only after complete analysis This is very difficult
group to handle as they request for more information
b) Selective distortion the phenomena in which consumer will have
predispositions and interpret the organizations information as they like it
This type of perception is both effective and non effective for the
company If consumer understands the wrong message in a right way it
is advantageous but if he understand right message in wrong way then
company will be under trouble
c) Selective retention consumer will not remember all the points informed
by the company Heshe may remember the good points of company
and forget the negative points of the company
53 Types of Buying Decision Behavior Henry Assael Model
Figure 53
High Involvement Low involvement
Significant difference
between brands
Complex buying
behavior
Variety seeking buying
behavior
Few differences between
brands
Dissonance
reducing buying
behavior
Habitual buying behavior
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 87
Complex buying behavior Customers who are representing this behavior
are highly involved in the purchase of the product or service The process
became complex as difference between brands are very high For example
customer who wants to purchase refrigerator would like to know the
meanings of defrosting door lock digital temperature control etc The price
of the product usually high let me show you the comparison of three brands
and significant difference between them
Table 51
LG GR T-282
GVGE
Akai D186
TT DX
Electrolux
Kelvinator 386
Defrost system
Door Lock
Adjustable Shelves
Moisture and
Humidity Control
Deodorizing Ability
Water Dispenser
Defrost system
From the above example it is clear that marketer should first develop the
belief about the brand provide the information and differentiate the
company brand from others In the above example you can see both Akai
and LG don‟t have water dispenser while Electrolux have Both LG and
Electrolux have moisture and humidity control while Akai lacks it Customer
would like to know what these features are and how they add value to the
product
Dissonance reducing buying behavior
The behavior exhibited by the customer when product purchase requires
high involvement but only few differences exist For example customers
who want to purchase CTV will not find many differences between the
brands but the price of the product and its technicality makes customer to
involve more One of the major disadvantages of this type of behavior is
customer will show post purchase dissonance which is very difficult to
control
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 88
Variety - seeking buying behavior
When there are significant difference between the brands existing but
customer will not involve more while purchasing marketer identify this
behavior as variety seeking buying behavior Let us discuss the purchasing
behavior of customer for biscuits There are many varieties of biscuits
available One can purchase salt biscuits cream biscuits Marie biscuits
and milk biscuits of Britannia Parle ITC sun feast and others The customer
who purchased Britannia tiger earlier may purchase Sun feast cream biscuit
next time This doesn‟t mean that quality of Britannia tiger is inferior to other
brands but customer would like to try the varieties available in the market In
this situations marketer should undertake following steps
a The market leader should encourage customers to buy repeatedly
b Make the product available and visible to the customer in the shopping
places
c The firm who are not market leader should come out with sales
promotion techniques to encourage customer to purchase the product
Habitual buying behavior
The low involvement between the brands and few differences between the
brands leads to the habitual buying behavior For example spice powder
marketed by MDH Everest or MTR have very few difference between them
and customer do not search the information to purchase particular product
Marketers whose customer represents this category should follow below
listed strategies
a Use price and sales promotions to stimulate product trial
b Use more visual aspects than the wordings in the advertisements
c Television is the better media for this type of products
d Use classical conditioning theory to create advertisements
Activity 2
When you have to buy toothpaste what factors do you consider before
making a decision to buy a particular brand What kind of perception do
you have about the particular toothpaste
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 89
Self Assessment Questions
1 Religion is one of the __________ factor that influence consumer
behavior
a Cultural
b Social
c Personal
d Psychological
2 Seekers income varies between
a 90000 to 200000
b 200000 to 500000
c 500000 to 1000000
d None of these
3 The habit of the people to analyze the information completely and
interpreting it is called as _____________
4 Dissonance reducing behavior is
a Significant difference between brands and high involvement
b Significant difference between brands and low involvement
c Few difference between the brands and high involvement
d Few difference between the brands and low involvement
5 The process of acquiring interpreting selecting and organizing sensory
information is called as _____________
54 Consumer Buying Decision Process
After discussing the factors those influence the buying behavior now we
will discuss the consumer decision making process Consumer passes
through five different stages while purchasing the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 90
Figure 54
1 Need recognition customer posses two type of stimuli‟ at this juncture
One is driven by the internal stimuli and another is external stimuli The
examples of internal stimuli are customer‟s desire attitude or perception
and external stimuli are advertising etc From both stimuli customers
understand the need for the product Here marketer should understand
what customers needs have that drew customers towards the product
and should highlight those in the communication strategy
2 Information search In this stage customer wants to find out the
information about the product place price and point of purchase
Customer collects the information from different sources like
a Personal sources Family friends and neighbors
b Commercial sources Advertising sales people dealers packaging
and displays
c Public sources mass media and consumer rating agencies
d Experiential sources Demonstration examining the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 91
In this stage marketer should give detailed information about the
product The communication should highlight the attributes and
advantages of the product in this stage so that he created the positive
image about the product
3 Evaluation of alternatives After collecting the information consumers
arrive at some conclusion about the product In this stage he will
compare different brands on set parameters which he or she thinks
required in the product The evaluation process varies from person to
person In general Indian consumer evaluate on the following
parameters
a Price
b Features
c Availability
d Quality
e Durability
At this stage marketer should provide comparative advertisements to
evaluate the different brands The advertisement should be different for
different segments and highlight the attribute according to the segment
4 Purchase decision
In this stage consumer buy the most preferred brand In India
affordability plays an important role at this stage Organizations‟ bring
many varieties of the products to cater to the needs of customers
5 Post purchase behavior
After purchasing the product the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction and dissatisfaction The consumer will also engage in post
purchase actions and product uses of interest to the marketer The
marketer‟s job does not end when the product is bought but continues
into the post purchase period Customer would like to see the
performance of the product as he perceived before purchase If the
performance of the product is not as he expected then he develops
dissatisfactions Marketer should keep an eye on how consumer uses
and disposes the product In some durable goods Indian consumer want
resale value also Many automobile brands that were not able to get
resale value lost their market positions
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 92
55 Buyer Decision Process for New Products
The buyer‟s decision for existing products and new products varies You
already seen in the existing product buying decision process consumers
have the option to search for the information and evaluate them In the new
product such options don‟t exist Therefore we should understand how
consumer comes to know about the product Kotler defined this process as
adoption process According to Philip Kotler Adoption is bdquoThe mental
process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an
innovation to final adoption‟
Adoption process
Figure 55
1 Awareness the consumer became aware of the product but lacks
information about it
2 Interest By this stage previous information is available consumer
shows interest to get the information about the product
3 Evaluation After receiving the information consumer analyzes the
benefits of new products over any existing products or substitutes and
decides whether to buy or not
4 Trial The consumer tries the new product on a small scale to improve
his or her estimate of its value
5 Adoption In this stage consumer decides to make full and regular use
of the product
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 93
Adoption rate
Figure 56
The adoption of new product varies from individual to individual
1 25 of the consumers adopt any new product that enters to the market
These consumers are status conscious people Marketer should
highlight how the new product will bring the esteem to the consumer
2 135 of the customers fall into the early adopter categories In this
categories customer observed the advantage of the new product and the
moment the price of the product falls into the affordable category they
buy the product
3 The next group is the biggest one in the adoption process These group
customers are attracted towards the benefits of the product They make
sure that there are no technical or general problems associated with the
product This group contains 34 of the total customers
4 This group consist 34 of customers The group looks for the quality
product at the affordable prices
5 The final group is called as laggards These are traditional and price
conscious people They often take lot of time to adoption of the product
Activity 3
List out the factors that would make you or your neighbors to watch
movies in multiplexes rather than go to cinema theaters
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 94
Self Assessment Questions
6 Sales people are _______________sources of information
a Public
b Personal
c Commercial
d Experiential
7 The third stage in the adoption process is
a Awareness
b Interest
c Evaluation
d Trial
8 The customer group who adopt the new product at the end are called
as_______________
9 ________________ of consumers belongs to early adopter category
10 Customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is determined in _______ stage
of consumer decision process
a Information search
b Evaluation of alternative
c Purchase
d Post purchase
56 Buying Motives
bdquoThe thoughts feelings emotions and instincts that induces customer to buy
a product are called as buying motives‟
According to Prof DJ Duncan bdquobuying motives are those influences or
considerations which provide the impulse to buy induce action and
determine choice in the purchase of goods and services‟
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 95
Classification of buying motives
Figure 57
1 Product buying motives are those influences and reasons which
prompt a buyer to choose a particular product in preference to others It
may be design shape dimension size color package etchellip
Product buying motives are further classified as
a Emotional product buying motive and
b Rational product buying motive
a Emotional product buying motives in which buyer decides to
purchase a product without thinking over the matter logically and
carefully Buyer takes the decisions on the emotions Following
factors provides the list that influence the emotional product buying
motives
1 Customer attaches the pride with the product
2 Customer try to imitate form others
3 Purchase d the goods for affection on any family member
4 Products that provide comfort are usually purchased on the
emotions
5 Sexual appeal products are brought on emotional product
motives
Emotional patronage
buying motive
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 96
6 The product those used as recreation hunger or habit products
are usually bought emotionally
7 Products those provide distinctiveness or individuality
b Rational product buying motives When buyer examines pros and
cons of purchasing a product and takes decisions then the behavior
is called as rational product buying motives Buyers will be looking
for any of the following factors before taking rational decisions
1 The safety or security features provided by the product
2 The value for money provided by the product
3 Suitability and utility of the product
4 Durability of the product
5 Convenience of the product
2 Patronage buying motives are those considerations or reasons that
make a buyer patronage a particular shop in preference to other shops
while buying a product
Patronage buying motives are classified into two categories They are
a Emotional patronage buying motives
b Rational patronage buying motives
a Emotional patronage buying motives are patronizing a particular
shop without logical thinking or reasoning Emotional patronize
buying motives include the following decisions
1 Appearance of the shop
2 Visual merchandising in the shop
3 Reference groups influence about one particular shop
4 Shopping in a big mall is a prestige issue
5 Imitating the other reference groups‟ members
b Rational patronage buying motive will arises after buyer analyzing
the shop carefully and providing the information to reference group
members Rational patronage buying motives include the following
1 Convenience of the shop to the buyers
2 Value for money provided by the shops
3 Financial schemes and facilities provided by the shop
4 Availability of wide range of goods
5 Reputation of the shop in the area
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 97
6 Sales force efficiency to convince the customer
7 Services provided by the sales executives
Activity 4
Point out the buying motives of a person known to you who is interested
to purchase a mobile phone or has recently purchased one
57 Buyer Behavior Models
The influence of social sciences on buyer behavior has prompted marketing
experts to propound certain models for explaining buyer behavior Broadly
they include the economic model the learning model the psychoanalytical
model and the sociological model
1) The Economic Model According to the economic model of buyer
behavior the buyer is a rational man and his buying decisions are totally
governed by the concept of utility If he has a certain amount of
purchasing power a set of needs to be met and a set of products to
choose from he will allocate the amount over the set of products in a
very rational manner with the intention of maximizing the utility or
benefits
2) The Learning Model According to the learning model which takes its
cue from the Pavlovian stimulus response theory buyer behavior can be
influenced by manipulating the drives stimuli and responses of the
buyer The model rests on man‟s ability at learning forgetting and
discriminating The stimulus response learning theory states that there
develops a bond between behavior producing stimulus and a behavior
response (S R Bond) on account of the conditioning of behavior and
formation of habits This theory may be traced to Pavlov and his
experiments on salivating dogs Pavlov‟s experiments brought out
associations by conditioning
In his well known research with dogs a bell was rung every time food was
served to a dog Eventually the dog started salivating each time upon
hearing the bell though no food was served The dog‟s behavior is
conditioned it is related to behavior-producing stimulus (bell ringing) and
behavior response (salivation) The SR bond so established causes a set
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 98
pattern of behavior learnt by the object ndash dog In terms of consumer
behavior an advertisement would be a stimulus whereas purchase would
be a response
Learning Process According to the stimulus-response theory learning is
dependent on drive cue (stimulus) response and reinforcement
Drive Drive may be defined as any strong stimulus that impels action It
arouses an individual and keeps him prepared to respond The drives may
be classified as primary drives and secondary drives Primary drives are
based upon innate physiological needs such as thirst hunger pain
avoidance and sex The secondary drives are based upon learning They
are not innate and are derived from the primary drives These include the
desire for money fear pride rivalry etc
Cue Cue or stimulus may be defined as any object in the environment
perceived by the individual The aim of the marketing man is to find out or
create the cue of sufficient importance that it becomes the drive stimulus or
elicits other responses appropriate to his objective Here the objective is to
find out those conditions under which a stimulus will enhance the chances of
eliciting a particular kind of response
Response Response is an answer to a given drive or cue When a man
feels thirsty he attempts to get water at any cost Here attempt to get water
is a response to the primary drive of thirst ldquoResponse also includes
attitudes familiarity perception and other complex phenomenardquo Responses
may be generalized or discriminatory Generalized response refers to a
uniform response to similar though not identical stimuli Discriminatory
response refers to the selective response to similar stimuli Undifferentiated
products such as cigarettes and detergents normally elicit generalized
consumer responses but by huge advertising outlays companies try to
induce consumers to perceive differences in brands and to make
discriminatory responses
Reinforcement Reinforcement or reward means reduction in drive and
stimulus It has been defined as ldquoenvironmental events exhibiting the
property of increasing the probability of occurrence of responses they
accompanyrdquo Thus when consumption of a product or a brand of product
leads to satisfaction of the initiating need (drivestimulus) there is
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 99
reinforcement If at some later date the same needs are aroused the
individual will tend to repeat the process of selecting and getting the same
product or brand of product Each succeeding time that product or brand
brings satisfaction further reinforcement takes place thus further
increasing the possibility that in future also the same product or brand will
be bought This type of behavioral change increasing possibility that an act
will be repeated is called learning reinforcement increases the rapidity and
vigor of learning
3) The Psychoanalytical Model The psychoanalytical model draws from
Freudian Psychology According to this model the individual consumer
has a complex set of deep-seated motives which drive him towards
certain buying decisions The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears suppressed desires and totally subjective longings His
buying action can be influenced by appealing to these desires and
longings The psychoanalytical theory is attributed to the work of
eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior According to this theory the mental
framework of a human being is composed of three elements namely
1 The id or the instinctive pleasure-seeking element It is the reservoir
of the instinctive impulses that a man is born with and whose
processes are entirely subconscious It includes the aggressive
destructive and sexual impulses of man
2 The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the
behavioral expectations of society It develops out of the id
dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct which is
characteristic of man It represents the moral and ethical elements
the conscience
3 The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the
id and the superego It is the most superficial portion of the id It is
modified by the influence of the outside world Its processes are
entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the
outside world
The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to
satisfy all his needs within the bounds of society Consequently such
unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual which have to be
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 100
repressed Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the sub-
conscious and continues to influence consumer behavior
4 The Sociological Model According to the sociological model the
individual buyer is influenced by society or intimate groups as well as
social classes His buying decisions are not totally governed by utility he
has a desire to emulate follow and fit in with his immediate environment
5 The Nicosia Model In recent years some efforts have been made by
marketing scholars to build buyer behavior models totally from the
marketing man‟s standpoint The Nicosia model and the Howard and
Sheth model are two important models in this category Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model where the human
being is analyzed as a system with stimuli as the input to the system and
behavior as the output of the system Francesco Nicosia an expert in
consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer
behavior in 1966 The model tries to establish the linkages between a
firm and its consumer ndash how the activities of the firm influence the
consumer and result in his decision to buy The messages from the firm
first influence the pre-disposition of the consumer towards the product
Depending on the situation he develops a certain attitude towards the
product It may lead to a search for the product or an evaluation of the
product If these steps have a positive impact on him it may result in a
decision to buy This is the sum and substance of the bdquoactivity
explanations‟ in the Nicosia Model The Nicosia Model groups these
activities into four basic fields Field one has two sub-fields the firm‟s
attributes and the consumer‟s attributes An advertising message from
the firm reaches the consumer‟s attributes Depending on the way the
message is received by the consumer a certain attribute may develop
and this becomes the input for Field Two Field Two is the area of
search and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives If
this process results in a motivation to buy it becomes the input for Field
Three Field Three consists of the act of purchase And Field Four
consists of the use of the purchased item
58 Summary
Mckinsey consultancy classified Indian consumers into five categories
namely deprived aspires seekers strivers and global Indians
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 101
Individual factors like age occupation lifestyle and personality influence
the consumer decision making
People have two types of buying motives - rational buying motives and
patronage buying motives
There are five important Consumer behavior models namely the
Economic model the Learning model the Psychoanalytic model
Sociological model and Nicosia model
List of Key Terms
Buyer behavior
Need hierarchy
Consumer dissonance
Buying motives
Consumer decision-making process
Adoption rate
Buyer behavior models
59 Terminal Questions
1 Explain the characteristics that affect consumer behavior
2 Discuss the types of consumer buyer behavior with the help of Henry
Assael model
3 Explain the consumer decision making process
4 Discuss the buyer decision strategies for new products
5 Write a note on buying motives
510 Answers
Answers to Self Assessment Questions
1 Cultural
2 200000 to 500000
3 Selective attention
4 Few difference between the brands and high involvement
5 Perception
6 Commercial
7 Evaluation
8 Laggards
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56
Marketing Management Unit 5
Sikkim Manipal University Page No 102
9 135
10 Post purchase
Answer to Terminal Questions
1 Refer 52
2 Refer 53
3 Refer 54
4 Refer 55
5 Refer 56