Consumer Behaviour in Rural Market

Consumer Buying Behaviour Model

Models of consumer behaviour help in understanding the inter-relationships between buyer behaviour forces and numerous factors that influence the decision-making process of consumers. Consumer behaviour models help marketers understand how a consumer makes a purchasing decision. Understanding the decision process is the first step in being able to influence it.

A model of consumer behaviour comprises two main elements: influential factors that impact the consumerer’s purchase decision and the consumer’s decision process.

Let us study the traditional models of consumer behaviour.

• Economic model: The economic model of consumer behaviour is based on the notion that a consumer’s purchasing pattern is focused on maximising benefits while reducing expenses. As a result, economic variables such as the consumer’s purchasing power and the price of competing products can be used to forecast consumer behaviour. For example, consumers prefer to buy when there are discounts given by sellers or sale is happening.
  
  
• Learning model: Consumer behaviour is governed by the need to meet basic and learned wants. For example, a hungry customer would fulfill their need for food before a learned need to wear trendy clothing. These deal with the buyer’s formation of knowledge, attitude and end decision about a brand. They are further classified as:
  
  
  • Motive: General or specific goals of the purchase.
    
    
  • Brand perception: The buyer’s perception of the selected brands’ ability to satisfy their motive.
    
    
  • Decision mediators/choice criteria: The buyer’s set of benchmarks and rules for comparing purchase alternatives according to their motive.
    
    
  • Predisposition: A preference towards purchasing a certain brand/s due to some bias or confidence towards them. For example, in rural areas, Colgate is famous for toothpaste and Lifebuoy is famous for bathing soap.
    
    
  • Confidence: The outcome of trust that buyer places in a particular brand is confidence.
    
    
  • Satisfaction: The level of contentment of the buyer regarding the outcomes of a purchase meeting their expectations for it.
    
    
  • Psychoanalytic model: The psychoanalytical approach takes into account the fact that both the conscious and subconscious minds impact consumer behaviour. Sigmund Freud’s three levels of consciousness (id, ego and superego) all operate to influence one’s purchasing decisions and behaviours.
    
    For instance, colours appeal different people differently. Green means fresh, red means passion and anger, yellow means optimism, white means purity, and blue means trust and cleanliness.
    
    
    
  • Sociological model: The sociological model focuses on the assumption that a consumer’s purchasing behaviour is influenced by his social status and influence. A consumer’s behaviour may also be influenced by the people with whom one interacts and the culture in which one lives.
    
    For example, given their respective jobs in the company they work for, a manager and an employee may have different buying behaviours, but if they reside in the same community, they may end up purchasing similar products and brands due to the social influence.

Contemporary Models

The traditional model attempts to explain what customers purchase based on their wants and needs while the contemporary model explains the decision-making process of consumers. The contemporary models also take into account the rational and deliberate aspect of decision-making instead of just emotions or unconscious desires.

All models of consumer behaviour assume that consumer behaviour is a rational process and outcomes from the past purchase decisions influence future purchase decisions. We will discuss few contemporary models below:

Howard-sheth Model (1969)

The Howard-Sheth model (1969) is one of the most comprehensive models of consumer purchasing behaviour and it employs the stimulus-response idea to explain buyer brand choice over time. It is an empirical model for understanding consumer decision-making process while making purchase decisions. It focuses on repetitive purchase behaviour where prior experience is likely to influence future attitudes.

The Howard-Sheth model borrows from the concepts of the learning theory to explain the brand choice behaviour, when learning takes place and how a buyer progresses from extensive to routine problem-solving behaviour.

The following are the elements of this model:

Input variables

Input variables are the stimuli in the environment about the brand and its product. The stimuli or input variables that come from the environment, could be informational cues concerning a product’s or brand’s features (i.e., quality, price, distinctiveness, service and availability). Significant stimuli are the real components of a brand that the customer encounters. For example, price, quality, service and availability.

These can again be of the following types:

• Significant stimuli: These stimuli are the physical aspects of the product/brand that the buyer is exposed to, such as the product’s quality, price or availability.
  
  
• Symbolic stimuli: These stimuli cause a psychological impact on how the buyer perceives the product/brand such as advertisements and publicity.
  
  
• Social stimuli: These stimuli are generated by the social environment of the buyer such as family, social class and reference groups.

Output variables

The output variables of the model are buyers’ observable responses to the input variables. These consist of five elements which are systematically arranged below in order from attention to actual purchase:

• Attention: This is the level at which the buyer takes in the information provided.
  
  
• Comprehension: This is the buyer’s understanding of a brand.
  
  
• Attitude: The buyer’s positive or negative disposition towards the brand based on his evaluation of the brand’s ability to satisfy his needs.
  
  
• Intention: Intention is the buyer’s intent of whether to buy and which brand to buy.
  
  
• Purchase behaviour: Purchase behaviour is the actual purchase act, which reflects the buyer’s inclination to buy under the influence of all the above factors.

Hypothetical constructs

Perceptual constructions and learning constructs are the two types of hypothetical constructs. The first considers how the individual interprets and responds to data from the input variables, taking into consideration stimulus ambiguity and perceptual bias.

The second covers the stages that lead from a buyer’s motivations to his contentment in a purchasing situation. The interaction of buyer motives, choice criteria, brand cognition, the resulting brand attitude and the confidence connected with the purchase decision results in purchase intention.

Exogenous variables: The model includes a few exogenous variables that have a big influence on purchasing selections. Factors such as personality traits, culture, social class and financial standing are some of the primary exogenous variables incorporated in the model.

Engel-kollat-blackwell Model (1978)

The Engel-Kollat-Blackwell model of consumer behaviour is fundamentally a cognitive problem-solving and learning model. This model accurately depicts a consumer’s active information-seeking and evaluation activities. The components of decision-making and their relationships and interactions, are depicted in this model. They consider consumer behaviour as a decision process and define five actions that occur in this decision process across time in their model of consumer behaviour.

For example, first a consumer becomes aware of a product through advertisements and matches the features of that product with his/her needs and desires. Thereafter, he/she thinks about how the product or service relates to their past experiences or needs.

Then, the consumer searches for competitors to see whether there is a better option available. After that, he/she may either make a purchase decision or completely stop the process if his/her mind is changed. In case the purchase is made, he/she will assess the experience as positive or negative.

Nicosia Model

Francesco Nicosia, a consumer motivation and behaviour expert, created this model in 1966. By establishing a relationship between the firm and its (potential) consumer, the Nicosia model attempts to explain buyer behaviour.

According to the approach, signals from the company impact the consumer’s attitude about the product or service first. The consumer’s attitude toward the product will be determined by the situation. This could lead to a product search or a consumer evaluation of the product’s features. If the above step satisfies the customer, he or she may respond positively and decide to purchase the product; otherwise, the opposite may occur.

This model of consumer behaviour was developed by F.M. Nicosia in 1966. It is a structural model of the purchase decision-making process that focuses on the interactive relationship between the firm and its potential consumers. The communication between the firm and its potential consumers occurs mutually – the firm communicates with the consumer using marketing strategies and the consumer communicates by making purchases.

Thus, both are connected and influence each other’s decisions. The Nicosia model is considered to be a dynamic model as the feedback of consumers helps the organisation improve its attributes. For example, companies seek feedback through various modes such as online shopping websites, Google, and so on to gauge the areas of improvement.