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MODULE 3. CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

OVERVIEW

Consumer buying behavior is comprised of all

considerations a person takes when deciding what products to
choose or buy, where to buy the product, when to buy the
product, how the product will purchase, and why particular
products or brand was chosen. This also includes other
factors like buyers' characteristics that influence a person’s
decision to buy a certain product or avail of a particular
service. Marketing decisions tend to be better if the marketer
is fully aware of the importance of consumer behavior.
Adapting the marketing concept begins with identifying the
needs of the consumer, and this is better achieved through a
study of consumer behavior.

This module will present the stages by which the consumer

undertakes when deciding which product or services to buy.
Also included in this module is a discussion on how behavioral
sciences can help to understand the buying process.

SUGGESTED READINGS and/ or ENRICHMENT

CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

Consumers make countless buying decisions in terms of

what product or brand they will avail or the type of services
that they wish to have every day. Consumers’ buying decisions,
however, are affected by some factors. It is for this reason
that companies conduct a lot of research to find out what
products or services the market demands or looks for, where
consumers usually purchase products that will satisfy their
needs and wants, and what type of promotions influence them to
buy and at what price.

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 1
 This topic on consumer buying behavior looks into the
various factors that influence purchasing decisions, whether
the company caters to the consumer market or industrial
market.

Objectives:
At the end of this module, students are expected to:
1. compare the different factors affecting buying
decisions;
2. analyze what influences the market’s purchasing
decisions;
3. identify the industrial market and its characteristics;
and
4. discuss the types of buying situations and the
participants in the buying center.

INTRODUCTION

Consumer buying behavior is comprised of all

considerations a person takes when deciding what product to
choose or buy, where to buy the product, when to buy the
product, how the product will be purchased, and why the
particular product or brand was chosen. This also includes
other factors like buyer’s characteristics that influence a
person’s decision to buy a certain product or avail of a
particular service.

PATTERN OF CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

For a buyer to decide on the kind of product he wants to

purchase, some stimuli trigger his decisions. These stimuli
consist of the different control environmental factors like
the marketing mix—product, price, place, and promotions, and
uncontrollable factors like demographic. Economic,
technological, political, socio-cultural, and climate.
According to Kotler and Armstrong (2009), marketers must
figure out what is in the buyer’s black box, which has started
after considering the stimuli. The buyer’s black box, where
the stimuli entered, involves the responses of customers for
the different stimuli which will form the basis of the
customers’ purchase decisions. It also consists of the buyer’s
characteristics which describe how the buyer reacts to certain
environmental stimuli.

FACTORS AFFECTING CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

1. Cultural Factors
a. Culture

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 2
 b. Sub-culture
c. Social class

2. Social Factors
a. Reference group
b. Family
c. Roles and status

3 Personal Factors
a. Age and life cycle
b. Occupation
c. Economic situation
d. Lifestyle
e. Personality and self-concept

4. Psychological Factors
a. Motivation
b. Perception
c. Learning

Cultural Factor

Cultural factor has the broadest impact on consumer

buying behavior. This represents the basic values of an
individual including his beliefs and behavior, which are
learned from family, schools, and other institutions in
society.
Because of cultural differences, companies must be able
to fully understand their market and be able to come up with a
marketing program fitted to the preferences of their target
audience. Within a particular culture are various sub-culture
or groups of individuals with common practices, beliefs,
dialect, or orientation, and belong to a similar geographical
location. A specific example is the regional groups in the
Philippines. In the Philippines, there are Bicolanos,
Kapampangans, Ilocanos, Cebuanos, and many others. Each of
these groups has its common practices, traits, and behaviors
that are unique to its respective group.
Society is also made up of a class structure known as
Social class. This is composed of individuals with the same
interests, behaviors, as well as values. Individuals in the
same social class tend to dress in the same manner speak the
same language, and engage in particular activities. Society’s
social class is determined by income, level of education, and
wealth.

Four Categories of Social Class Structure in the Philippines

(Llanes and Jurado, 1982):

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 1. Class A. This is equivalent to the upper-upper stratum in
the United States. These are the elite or people who are
wealthy or those from well-known families. They own
several businesses, houses, and cars, and can travel
anywhere at any given time. Mostly, their houses are
filled with amenities.

2. Class B. People from this class are professionals and

entrepreneurs. They may also have a comfortable lifestyle
and good income. They live in well-furnished own houses,
condominium units, or well-furnished houses in known
subdivisions or villages, possessing modern household
conveniences.

3. Class C. This is the middle class, which is composed of

workers who live in modest residences, and if located in
the city are often rented. In most situations, people who
belong to Class C do not have the conveniences found in
the homes of those in Class B. The middle class is
composed of workers who often live in rented apartments
and earn an average wages.

4. Class D. A big majority of people belong to Class D. This

refers to the upper-lower class made up of skilled and
unskilled laborers, low-waged earners. These are those
considered doing a menial job for minimal pay, a big
majority of our people belongs to the Class D. Sometimes,
these individuals are lucky to be given regular jobs or
regular source of income. Most of these workers are paid
on daily basis and that means-No work, No pay. It is hard
for this group to improve their standard of living with
limited opportunities to get employed and the cost of
education is high. It is with this condition that most
companies or institutions focus their corporate social
responsibility (CSR) programs toward helping this group
improve their standard of living.

Some marketing men include people “with no visible means of

livelihood” beggars in this group. Whereas, others prefer to
label the unemployed slum members in a separate category known
as class X (lower-lower):

Social Factor

Consumer buying behavior is also influenced by social

factors such as family, reference groups, social roles, and
social status.
Reference groups refer to groups that can strongly
influence the attitude and character of a person. The group,
which a person wishes to be part of, is referred to as the

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 4
aspirational group. An example of this is when a teenager
wishes to be a member of a professional photography club in
the future. A membership group is where a person is a member.
This group has a direct influence on the person’s decisions
especially when it comes to his/her brand choice.

Family members are a strong buying market. Family is the

most important consumer buying organization in society.
Parents always influence the brand choice of customers,
especially young ones. Companies are expected to know the
various purchasing roles of each member of the family. For
instance, finding out who among the family members has a
strong decision power when it comes to availing education-
related products or services, or who decides on what household
appliances to buy. Normally, in the area of food consumption,
the wife is given the authority to decide. Children are also
good members of the family to consider as the target markets.
Most travel destinations or vacation is availed by the family
because of their suggestions.

The different activities expected from a person are known

as roles. An individual role carries a particular status given
by society. Status is the esteem provided by society
concerning the role of an individual. A person purchases
products that reflect his/her role and status. Consider the
various roles played by a father who works as a Department
manager. In his office, he is someone who leads his team; at
home, he plays the role of a loving father and dedicated
husband; toward his parents, he plays the role of a son; and
toward his favorite basketball team, he plays the role of an
avid fan. As a department manager, he tends to purchase
clothes, which reflect his role and status. His choice of a
brand tor a pen or bag also reflects his role and status. As a
Father, he must be careful in his choice of television
programs, especially if he watches together with his young
children.

Personal Factor

People, depending on their age and position in the life

cycle stage, desire different products.

The family life cycle includes being adolescent, single,

married, a couple without child or couple with a child or
children, and senior citizens or those in their 60 years and
above.

The elderly prefer mellow music and serene places where

they can truly relax. Retirees and upscale individuals are the
target market for vacation packages, especially luxury

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 5
cruises. Newlyweds are the best market for appliances and
condominiums or housing investment. On the other hand,
teenagers prefer upbeat music.

One’s job or occupation also influences the type of

clothing a person will wear, the place to stay for vacation,
and the food to eat in a restaurant or dining place. For
example, people who work at the office tend to buy mostly
corporate attire while those with blue-collar jobs tend to
purchase mostly jeans, t-shirts, or working clothes.

The income level influences the choice of products or

services of the market. The better the economic situation of a
person, the more brand conscious he becomes, and therefore, he
will tend to spend more. The lifestyle of a person changes as
income improves. For instance, a lot of people now are
becoming more health-conscious than yogurt houses and various
tea kiosks in different places, especially in Malls, are
sprouting. They are also becoming more conscious about their
grooming and physique that they frequent facial clinics, spa,
and gym to make sure that their physical health is maintained.
Because of this, part of their income is saved tor this
purpose.

Personality is the totality of a person’s being,

consisting of many traits such as being aggressive, outspoken,
dominant, and having self-confidence among others.

Psychological Factor

Psychological factors cover those different areas that

influence the market such as their motivation level, beliefs,
and way of looking at things or situations.

Motivation refers to what stimulates a person to purchase

a product or avail a service. A person’s level of motivation
can be associated with the different levels of need as
identified by Abraham Maslow in his hierarchy of needs.

Another psychological factor that affects buyers’

decision is their perception about a product, a service, or a
situation. Perception is a person’s interpretation of the
information around him that helps him form a meaningful
scenario. People learn from their actions. Learning involves
changes in the person’s attitude according to his experience.
If a person’s experience in using a particular brand of laptop
or mobile phone is satisfying, he will probably choose to use
or buy more products from that brand and will even be
promoting the brand unconsciously through word of mouth.

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 6
BUYER’S DECISION PROCESS

The way consumers purchase a specific product is strongly

influenced by cultural, social, personal, and psychological
factors. These factors are not controlled by any marketer;
however, companies must consider all of these influences in
drafting any marketing program so it can better serve its
target market.

1. Need Recognition
The initial step of a person in deciding to purchase
a product is to recognize that he has a need that has to
be met. A person’s desire for a product may be influenced
by stimuli within himself, like the feeling of hunger or
exhaustion that will be satisfied by food or rest. The
need can also be influenced by external stimuli like
seeing a classmate with the latest cell phone model or
reading a print ad showing amazing features of a laptop.
These stimuli can make a person consider purchasing a
product.

2. Information Search
After recognizing the need or problem and
identifying the product that will satisfy the need, the
next step in the buying decision process is the search
information related to the product. A well-informed
customer may be able to purchase better products for the
same price.
Information search is not an easy task; one has to
go through to time-consuming research, even spending on
the process of looking for information. There are several
sources of information that are available to customers.
The primary sources of information are personal
experiences, reference groups, acquaintances, businesses,
or professionals. Business sources include advertising,
salespeople, websites, dealers, or distributors, while
professional sources of information include physicians,
lawyers, teachers, among others.

3. Evaluation of Alternatives
This involves using the gathered information to
evaluate alternative brands in the choice set. To
effectively evaluate alternatives, consumers must: (a)
synthesize information; (b) establish decision criteria;
(c) determine the type of alternatives, and (d) compare
alternatives.

4. Purchase Decision

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 7
 This is the stage where customers choose the
particular product to purchase from among the many
alternative brands. However, two factors may affect their
purchase decisions. One is the perception or attitude of
others about the customer’s brand choice. This happens
when a member of the family disapproves of the chosen
brand because of its price, quality, features, or other
factors that contribute to the customer’s change of
purchase decision. Another factor is the unexpected
situation, in the same way when a competing brand offers
a much lower price or a new product is launched in the
market offering better features, price, or design.

5. Post-Purchase Behavior
This is the last stage in the buying. Decision
process. Post-purchase evaluation can be a learning
experience for consumers. Companies must give importance
to the post-purchase evaluation of consumers because it
will determine whether they are satisfied or not with the
purchased product. A customer shows delight when the
product he/she has purchase exceeds his/her level of
expectation. On the contrary, a customer becomes
disappointed when the product purchased falls short of
his/her expectation. A Customer is satisfied when the
product he/she purchased meets his/her expectations.

INDUSTRIAL MARKET AND BUYING BEHAVIOR

Aside from the consumer market that purchases products

for its consumption, there also exists the industrial market,
which is a bigger market in terms of the quantity purchased.
Industrial market or business-to-business (B2B) market
purchases products for further production or processing and
manufacturing new products.

The industrial or B2B market includes the following:

1. Industrial Market- is composed of industries such as
manufacturing, mining, banking, retail trade, wholesale
trade, services, transportation, public utilities, and
communications.
2. Resellers – are individuals who buy goods and resell
them to end-users at a profit. Examples of resellers
are convenience stores, grocery stores, supermarkets,
and department stores.
3. Government and Institutional Market – includes the
local and national government agencies and the public
and private entities.

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 8
 TASK 1. Give a sample of each industrial or
B2B market.

CHARACTERISTICS OF INDUSTRIAL MARKET

1. Close Supplier and Customer Relationship

In the industrial market, business relationships are
often close, and lasting a business relationship starts
with a sale transaction. A good business relationship is
created and maintained by directing the company’s
marketing activities toward creating and maintaining
successful exchanges with the customers (Hutt and Speh,
2013).

2. Derived Demand
The industrial market’s demand is derived. In other
words, the demand for goods and services is derived from
the demand of the consumers. Thus, if consumers demand
cars decreases, car manufacturers’ demand for tires, 3
car paints, car air condition, and other car accessories
will also drop.

3. Direct Purchasing
Salespeople from the manufacturing companies go to
the industrial market for product sales. The industrial
market normally purchases products in volume. Thus,
companies provide buyers (firms) technical assistance
before, during, and after-sales are made.

4. Geographically Concentrated Buyers

This allows manufacturers to easily reach their
target market. When buyers are concentrated
geographically, manufacturers use more personal Selling;
while if buyers are dispersed, media promotion is the
best medium to use. A beauty consultant ina department
store engages in personal selling when she describes the
benefits of a particular cosmetic brand to a customer
with the hope that the customer will be persuaded to
purchase. Other personal selling example includes cars,
condominium units, equipment, raw materials, and other
products sold by a salesperson of a business enterprise
or company to another industrial customer.

5. Inelastic Demand
Many companies have inelastic demand. This means
that the companies demand business products, which are
not affected by the price change. For example, a decrease

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 9
 in the rice of car tires will not cause the manufacturing
companies to buy more car tires.

6. Larger but Fewer Buyer

The industrial market normally interacts with fewer
but larger buyers. Buyers purchase in huge product
quantity.

7. Leasing
This is common to most firms in the industrial
market. Before, only large equipment or expensive types
of machinery were rented out, such as construction
equipment and warehouses. Nowadays, industrial market
players like suppliers and users lease other items such
as delivery trucks for product distribution and storage
houses for inventories.
There are advantages when an industrial player,
either buyers or sellers, leases. Some of these
advantages are (Llanes and Jurado, 1982):

a. Through leasing, a firm can still use its investment

capital for other purposes.
b. Leasing is best for firms that have temporary needs
for equipment or storage, particularly when there is
construction going on.
c. Leasing is a good decision for firms that have small
investments and firms that are new in the industry
or just starting. This means that the firm need not
have to immediately buy equipment or machinery.
d. Leasing is also an effective way of getting
distribution for new products. Thus, potential users
may be more willing to rent than buy.

8. Professional Purchasing
Unlike the consumer market, wherein purchasing
decisions can be done by anyone without undergoing
training, purchasing and selling in the industrial market
necessitate either the firms’ seller or buyer to undergo
professional training to effectively close a sale.
Expertise in the area of sales or business is a must.

9. Reciprocity
This means the company will purchase products from a
firm (seller) only if the seller will also purchase
products from the buyer. Firms practice reciprocity as a
solution to a declining sales volume.

10. Several Buying Influences

In the industrial market, a team of buyers in the
firm normally influences buying decisions.

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TYPES OF BUYING SITUATION

1. Straight Rebuy – describes a situation where a firm

reorders regularly.
2. Modified Rebuy – describes a buying decision where a firm
wants to make some changes to product specifications,
process, delivery or payment requirements, and other
terms.
3. System Purchase – involves a total solution to the
buyer’s problem of not making separate purchases and
decisions.
4. New-Task Buying - refers to purchasing products for the
first time.

PARTICIPANTS IN THE BUYING CENTER

The group of people within an organization that makes

purchase decisions is said to form the buying center.
Gilbert Harell (2002) stated that there are six participants
in the buying center, namely:
1. The Gatekeeper refers to the first person that a sales
representative gets in contact with. Gatekeepers control
the flow of business information into the buying center
or firm.
2. Information Seeker – searches for data that can be used
during the purchasing process.
3. Advocates- are people who influence the buying center
decisions. Their influence is obtained from their
expertise on a particular topic and with their skills in
interacting with other people outside the organization.
4. Users are members of the organization who will use the
product. They initiate the purchase of the product and
provide information as to specifications.
5. Decision Makers – are people who choose and approve the
suppliers or providers of products.
6. Buyers - are people who have the authority to contact
suppliers and negotiate terms for products to be ordered
or purchased.

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 11
 TASK 2

Discussion Questions:
1. Enumerate the different factors that
influence consumer buying behavior and
explain each.
2. How does the industrial market differ from the
consumer market?

Concept Application:
1. Individuals act on their beliefs and some beliefs will
make a person choose to buy a product or decide
otherwise. Choose two Asian countries and research on now
people from these countries differ in the following:

a. Choice of colors on the following occasion/situation

 New Year
 Mourning
 Wedding
 Conducting business

b. food choices
c. attitude toward the product’s brand
Prepare a short presentation that will show the differences
between these two countries.

2. Form a group or team with five members each and present a

role play on the following
a. Show why it is essential for any company to understand
consumers’ buying behavior; and
b. Show how a business can better understand its market.

3. Explain the role that each member of the family plays in

the following:

a. Purchase of new appliance;

b. Choice of buying a new car;
c. Choice of place for a family outing; and
d. Choice of a restaurant.

MARKETING MANAGEMENT 12
 FEEDBACK

Good Job for your excellent work. For those who did
not got a perfect score, you need to exert extra
effort and review module 1 to 3.

SUMMARY

One of the most important aspects of knowledge that the

marketer must have is the one concerning consumer behavior.
Marketing will be a little less difficult if the marketer
knows how consumers behave. As marketing is always confronted
with a buying problem. The consumer’s buying process consists
of several stages which include problem recognition,
information processing evaluation. Several factors affect
consumer buying behavior.

SUGGESTED READINGS

 7 Unconscious errors we make when buying brand

 https://goo.gl/WGcpml

REFERENCES

 Medina, Roberto Principles of Marketing, 2008 Revised

Edition.Rex Bookstore, Inc.
 Balasan, Ma. Nancy T. Marketing Basics A modular Approach
2014 Edition.Rex Bookstore, Inc.
 Philip Kotler, Marketing Management International Edition

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