Influencing Consumer Behaviour

Influencing consumer behaviour

Every individual in the world can be classified as a consumer, and in turn each individual is subject to their own tendencies and idiosyncrasies. The motivation behind why individuals and/or groups of people make certain purchase decisions is called consumer behaviour, or more easily put; how consumer’s select their products and services. There are various factors that contribute to each person’s purchase decisions, and for marketers understanding consumer behaviour is imperative.

There are three main components to take into consideration when understanding a consumer’s choice according to BrandWatch:

• Psychological factors: an individual’s outlook on the world, that is their perception, attitude and beliefs largely dictate how they will respond to a product or service.
• Individual factors: This is in regards to demographic, like a person’s age, ethnicity, gender, and occupation that plays a major part in purchase preferences.
• Cultural or social factors: A person’s taste is always influenced by their family, and friend’s group; as well as their culture, education, income and social class level.

When designing an ad campaign for a specific product or service marketers are always considering these three factors. The next question that arises is how do marketers acquire data that covers these components.

Acquiring consumer data:

There is a wide array of tools now available for marketers to gain better insights into what consumer’s want. To name a few:

• Government data: Government websites provide a vast resource of information, disclosing data about certain groups, demographics, and trends, as well as other sources of information usually free of cost.
• Customer reviews: Reviews left by customers usually indicates common likes and dislikes shared between consumers, and is highly effective in understanding consumers behaviour.
• Surveys: Whether acquired manually or via websites like survey monkey, surveys allow marketers or other data collection entities to ask specific questions, or gain insight about a particular service or product.
• Focus groups: Focus groups are a tried and tested method of acquiring information, whereby a small group of people from varying demographics is asked specific questions directly.
• Google analytics: Google analytics is an indispensable tool that displays the location of where the traffic is coming from. Information like demographics, interests and geography can also be acquired via the Audience tab.
• Social Media: In the 21st century, social media has become a very useful means of gathering data as people tend to share details into how they think and what they’re interested in. With the right tools, a lot can be uncovered about consumer behaviour.

Principles of influence and persuasion:

In 1984, Dr. Robert Cialdini published a book entitled Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. Till today, the books remains an invaluable resource to businesses and consumers alike to better understand consumer behaviour, and to formulate strategies that are likely to succeed. The six principles are:

Reciprocity: Most people have a natural tendency to return a favour, or respond in kind to something good someone has done for them. In business terms this can mean offering consumers generous discounts and sales, or even free samples.

Commitment: Have you ever had a friend that can’t help but buy products of a specific brand? For example say, iPhone users that can’t wait to buy the next iPhone even if there’s other devices on the market that are far more impressive and useful. This is due to the individual’s commitment to the brand, and as Cialdini states, once a person decides to take part or engage with something, it is likely they will stick with it or see it through.

Authority: It is common for people to agree with the opinion of somebody who is regarded as an authority or expert on a particular subject. Ever wondered why they include men in white lab coats in toothpaste commercials? Thus it’s a useful strategy for businesses to employ an expert of sorts to advocate for a particular product or service.

Consensus: This is a straight forward principle that simply states that if a lot of people are doing something, it’s likely that more people will join in. In terms of business this means that if a particular brand or company is very popular among consumers, chances are more consumers will join in and become part of the customer base.

Consistency: Just as an individual is more likely to trust a person that consistently delivers on their word, so it goes that a brand that consistently delivers on their promises is more likely to retain their loyal consumers, and gain new consumers in the process.

Scarcity: People have a tendency to be attracted to things they believe they can’t have. Businesses that play on this idea by providing exclusive products or services, or display these same products or services in short supply; make the purchase irresistible to the consumer, increasing the likelihood that they will buy.