PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS INFLUENCING CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

The psychological factors that influence an individual's decision to make a purchase are categorized into the individual's motivations, perceptions, learning and his beliefs and attitudes.

Motivation

Beliefs and Attitudes

Psychological Factors

Perception

Learning

MOTIVATION
Much of what people do can be traced to their needs. An unsatisfied need causes an inner state of tension, feeling of disequilibrium, or dissatisfaction. A motive is an inner drive or pressure to take action in order to eliminate tension, to satisfy a need or solve a problem, or to restore a sense of equilibrium.
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How do Psychological Factors influence Consumer Buying Behavior?? ____________________________________________________________________________

Probably the classification most closely associated with promotion divides motives into: Rational and Emotional motives. Rational Motives are supported by a systematic reasoning process that people perceive as being acceptable to their peers. Emotional motives are characterized by feelings that may emerge without careful thought or consideration of social consequences. The motivation is the drive that leads the consumer towards buying a product or service. If the motivation is high, meaning the need or perception of need is high; the individual will actively seek to satisfy that need. This results in the consumer deciding to buy the product or service. Psychologists have developed theories of human motivation. Two of the most popular theories are: The theory of Sigmund Freud and The Theory of Abraham Maslow. The Theory of Sigmund Freud: Freuds theory suggests that a person does not fully understand his or her motivation. If someone wants to purchase an expensive car, he/she may describe his/her motive as wanting a hobby or career. At a deeper level, he/she may be purchasing the car to impress others with his/her talent. At a deeper level, he/she may be buying the car to feel young and independent again. The Theory of Abraham Maslow. Maslows theory suggests that a person tries to satisfy the most important need first. When that important need is satisfied, it will stop being a motivator and the person will then try to satisfy the next most important need. Maslow's says that human needs are arranged in a hierarchy, from the most pressing to the least pressing. Maslow's hierarchy of needs given below in order of importance, are:
Physiological needs, Safety needs,

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How do Psychological Factors influence Consumer Buying Behavior?? ____________________________________________________________________________ Social needs, Esteem needs and Self-actualization needs.

PERCEPTION
Selecting, organizing and interpreting information in a way to produce a meaningful experience of the world is called perception. There are three different perceptual processes which are selective attention, selective distortion and selective retention. In case of selective attention, marketers try to attract the customer attention. Whereas, in case of selective distortion, customers try to interpret the information in a way that will support what the customers already believe. Similarly, in case of selective retention, marketers try to retain information that supports their beliefs.

LEARNING
Consumers are products of their experiences. They catalog each experience as good or bad for later use when a similar situation arises. These experiences influence the consumer buying behavior by changing the way they react to products similar to those they already have experience with. For example, many consumers choose to buy Toyota cars because they have had good experiences with their previous Toyota models. Companies that focus on the consumer experience often gain repeat business because the consumer does not feel the need to look anywhere else to fulfill that particular need. This often outweighs the fact that the competition may be cheaper or even better in some cases.

BELIEFS & ATTITUDES

Beliefs and attitudes greatly influence consumer buying behavior. Beliefs are the way people think about a particular subject or product. An attitude is the individual's consistently favorable or unfavorable evaluation, tendency or feeling about a particular subject. These beliefs and attitudes shape the consumer's perception of the product. These factors may be difficult to change because they stem from the individual's personality and lifestyle. Consumers often block information that conflicts with their beliefs and attitudes. They tend to selectively retain information or even distort the information to make it consistent with their previous perception of the product.
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How do Psychological Factors influence Consumer Buying Behavior?? ____________________________________________________________________________

CONCLUSION
A number of factors involve consumer choices. In some cases, consumers will be more motivated. For example, one may be more careful choosing a gift for a friend than when buying the same thing for one self. Some consumers are also more motivated to comparison shop for the best prices, while others are more convenience oriented. Personality impacts decisions. Some like variety more than others, and some are more receptive to stimulation and excitement in trying new stores. Perception influences decisions. Some people, for example, can taste the difference between generic and name brand foods while many cannot. Selective perception occurs when a person is paying attention only to information of interest. For example, when looking for a new car, the consumer may pay more attention to car ads than when this is not in the horizon. Some consumers are put off by perceived risk. Thus, many marketers offer a money back guarantee. Consumers will tend to change their behavior through learning e.g., they will avoid restaurants they have found to be crowded and will settle on brands that best meet their tastes. Consumers differ in the values they hold.

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