Financing and Marketing Management

Unit 14 - Marketing Environment-Consumer Behaviour

14.3. Major factors influencing Consumer Behaviour

Animation 1 indicates that a buyer’s purchase decisions are highly influenced by the buyer’s cultural, social, personal and psychological factors. These factors are further elaborated in animation 2. For the most part, they are “noncontrollable” by the marketer but must be taken into account. We want to examine each factor’s influence on buying behaviour. We will illustrate these influences for a hypothetical consumer named Margaret:
Margaret is thirty-five, married and a brand manager in a leading consumer packaged goods company. She received an MBA some years before computers became available. Linda wants to expand her skill base and use a computer in her work and home. She is considering buying a personal computer but faces a great number of brand choices: IBM, Radio Shack, Apple, Compaq and so on. Her choice will be influenced by many factors.