Buyer Behaviour Portfolio

Name: Vlad Daniel-Florian

Student number:1710588
Task 1: Product Purchase Analysis

A product is a mixture of different characteristics and benefits, usually overestimated,

designed differently according to the needs of the consumer. My decision of buying a phone
was influenced by the fact that my old phone was too old and too slow and I wanted to get a
phone that I can keep for at least 2 years. The purchase of a Samsung phone was related to
the brand, well-known for qualitative products with a lot of features, that was a very important
aspect for me in the process of buying. The Samsung brand was the best to satisfy my
requirements for quality, performance, style. They offer a lot of new and interesting features,
good performance stats together with an easy to use operating system. Another important
aspect was the price which was a bit high but expected for this kind of phone which is one of
the best from the market. The price also changed my mind from buying a normal version of
the phone to buying a plus version which has a better camera and battery, important
features for a mobile phone, the small difference being insignificant compared to the benefits
obtained. One of the reasons that made me choose this product was also the feedback
given by the other users about this kind of product, which were highly positive, users being
satisfied with the product. The fact that I could try the product in the shop before buying it
was also a bonus because I could enjoy the experience of using it and see a few of things
that I was unsure about, this together with the fact that I could order it online after analysing
reviews and feedback also helped me making my purchase.( Zubin, S.,Jim, B.2016)
)My decision was mainly influenced by the image that I had about this brand and the quality
that I associated with this name. I acted like a Brand-conscious shopper because my
perception is that a phone is an expensive gadget which requires careful analysis before
buying and I will not afford to change it for at least 2 years so I have chosen to pay more
money for a brand to get ensuring that the product will meet the required quality,
performance and resistance requirements.( Martin, E.et al.2006).
After a few months of using the product, a Samsung S8+ phone my opinion about
brand's performance has not changed, the product meets all the features presented and
satisfy my requirements, however, I realize now that the price that I paid was too high
compared to what I got, the phone is just a little bit better than a phone from another brand
which is much cheaper.(Henry, A.1995) My opinion is that the company meet all the
expectations, the phone is able to do everything that was promised and promoted, the only
bad thing being that my expectations were much higher and I was thinking that this product
is going to be different.
Task 2: Psychological Antecedents of Consumer Behaviour

Pleasure cruises started as and alternative for long distance travel, being more
comfortable and faster than land travel. After a period of using transport ships which were
not very comfortable and were unpractical for longer trips, specially designed cruise ships
started to be used offering a better experience for customers. After the apparition of long-
range passenger planes, the cruise ships and excursions offered by them started to lose
customers. That was caused by the wish of the people to reach a certain destination as fast
as possible, a requirement that the planes are the best. Anyway, the cruise ships still
represent a huge part of the travel industry offering a unique style of travel. The main target
of this cruise ships is older people who are attracted by the concept offered by this type of
tourism, having the entertainment represented by shows, concerts and activities very close
to them, in the same place where they have accommodation. Another fact that makes cruise
ships popular to older people is the fact that they are safe, not having to venture into
unknown places to get food or other needs, all of their needs being included in the price of
the trip. The variety of the entertainment and multiple possibilities offered on a ship are
enough to make elderly people feel comfortable and happy without monotony.(Zubin, S.,
Jim, B.2016)Cruise ships also created a new type of marketing of new and unpromoted
destinations, people who have been in a place with cruise ships declared that they want to
come back in that place with a land excursion. Cruise ships are preferred by older people
also because that they get all-inclusive services like food, accommodation, entertainment
and transport to places without having any worries about possible risks or losing time finding
what they want.(Saurabh, K.D.(2017) This type of travel is also popular because of the
hedonism that it offers, giving the holiday excitement and happiness as soon as it starts. The
immediate satisfaction that it offers is an important characteristic of this activity, people don't
need to lose time travelling to a certain destination and starting the vacation time from that
point. Having the comfort of a luxurious hotel while travelling is the main advantage of this
type of excursion, also the variety of food and activities offered without the need to travel in
specific places is a very important aspect.(Peter, M.C.1995) Some of the people also choose
much smaller cruise ships which offer the needed luxury but in a more intimate way, without
masses of people and crowded places.(Zubin, S.,Jim, B.2016)
Task 3: Sociological Issues in Consumer Behaviour

The personality of people is linked to the environment and the culture from where
they grow, some of the personal characteristics being deducted from society. However, the
culture connection with the personality of individuals is not viewed as a very strong one due
to the variety of personality from a nation. Cultural stereotypes, particularities and marks can
only be used to describe an society and not an individual.(Geert, H.et al. 2010)The most
used study of characteristics of a culture or nation was made by Hofstede who studied IBM
workers from over 60 countries. He found five cultural dimensions named: Individualism-
collectivism, Uncertainly avoidance, Power distance, Masculinity-femininity and long-term vs
short-time. Hofstede’s research was used for marketing purposes but was also criticised
because of some reasons as, the study used only IBM workers, a fact that may affect the
results; the research was taking place around 1960 and society changed a lot from that time
to our days so the result may not be conclusive nowadays.(Zubin, S., Jim, B.
2016).However, the principal features of cultures will show the differences between different
nations society.
Canada is a country of which culture is based on an individualistic concept which dominates
many of the daily activities like work and hiring where individual merit and skills are the most
important. Canada score of 80 in Individualism shows that the society is formed by people
who care more about themselves and close relatives. That does not mean that people from
Canada are bad, opposite the 68 score at Indulgence describe the fact that Canadians value
their relax time and happiness a lot. Indulgence in a Society context meaning that people
tend to act for their joy, leisure time and spending money without restrictions. As a third
cultural dimension, we have masculinity where Canada scored 52 which means that society
is motivated by masculine characteristics. Competition and achievement are some of the
masculine particularities together with the desire for being the best. However, a score of 52
does not mean that society is highly based on masculine concepts, being based more on
respect for high standards and achievements. The concept of uncertainty avoidance is
based on the process of society facing the idea of future coming with changes and
unexpected events. Some nations show a big interest for future, creating institutions
designed to avoid unexpected situations, but Canada's score of 48 shows a culture that is
enjoying the new concepts coming with the future. This is indicating that society is open to
innovation and change and also encourage the free expression of any kind.
The scores of Canada in Hofstede research summarise that society is an individualistic one
based on respect for good results and personal achievements but also a wealthy, open-
minded society where people value the present moment of their life and enjoy it.(Hofstede
Insights, 2018).
Task 4: How social media changed consumer behaviour. Instagram.

Social media has changed the consumer behaviour drastically. Marketers try to adapt
and update their ways of promotion to this new environment. The consumer tends to listen to
opinion leaders who are celebrities or people followed by a lot of users which are trusted by
their followers. Influencers can affect the purchase decisions of thousands or millions of
buyers by their activities. These people are the best marketers of these days being able to
make something viral and highly wanted by just posting an image, reaction or review of
it.(Solomon, Michael R.2016)
Social media has also influenced products life cycle , by making the way from the product to
the costumer much shorter and also increasing the number of people that can hear about a
product in a shorter time. The process becomes more complex now when a product lifecycle
can be influenced also by social media trends and styles which can change in a single
day.(Zubin, S.,Jim,B.2016).Instagram is one of the social platforms that dominate this
industry with over 700 millions users. One of the most common subjects of the posts is
travelling, many of the users are actually rely on posts for choosing a destination. People
interested of certain places can see reviews, photos and feedback from all kind of people
like celebrities, travellers or normal people and can make a better opinion about that place.
The fact that is based on visual content transform Instagram into a great tool of marketing,
being a very powerful influence. After companies find out the dimension and potential of
Instagram promotion , many of the popular figures from there started to be paid to post or
show some products to their community of people, this method reaching more potential
buyers than classic promotion methods. The Instagram marketing potential didn't stop here
because many of the popular accounts were mainly focused on a specific niche of people so
companies just need to pick their target people and promote their product there. Services or
products offered by the companies should meet the requirements of the influencer that they
contact because the process can always work backwards, a bad review and feedback got
from a big influencer can destroy a product and the image of the company.(Terttunen, A.
2017)
Reference list
1.Geert, H.et al.(2010)Cultures and organizations : software of the mind :
intercultural cooperation and its importance for survival,3rd edition,London:McGraw-
Hill
2.Henry, A.(1995)Consumer Behavior.5th edition.Cincinnati:SOUTH-WESTERN
College Publishing
3.Hofstede Insights. (2018). Country Comparison - Hofstede Insights. [online]
Available at: https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/canada/
[Accessed 6 Mar. 2018].
4.Martin, E.et al.(2006)Consumer Behaviour.West Sussex:John Wiley & Sons Ltd
5.Peter, M.C.(1995)Consumer Behaviour.3rd
edition.Maidenhead,Berkshire:McGRAW-HILL Book Company Europe
6.Saurabh, K.D.(2017)The Routledge handbook of consumer behaviour in hospitality
and tourism.Milton Park,Abington:Routledge
7.Solomon, Michael R.(2016).Consumer behaviour: a European perspective.6th
edition.Edinburgh Gate:Pearson Education Limited
8.Terttunen, A. (2017). The influence of Instagram on consumers’ travel planning
and destination choice. Undergraduate. Haaga-Helia University of Applied Science.
9.Zubin, S.,Jim, B.(2016)Consumer Behaviour.3rd edition.London:SAGE
Publications Ltd