CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Implications of dynamics of perception on marketing strategy
By Dr . Catherine Ngahu
Consumer perception is a major influencer of consumer behavior . For that reason , it ’ s of great interest to marketers as they strive to create strategies to influence consumer buying decisions . Perception basically relates to how individuals select , organize and interpret the things they receive through the senses into a meaningful and reasonable picture of the world . Consumers receive marketing input through the sensory receptors . Input regarding products , services advertising and prices comes to the consumer through the senses of sight , hearing , touch , taste and smell .
We are all consumers of various products and services . As such , we have to make decisions about what to buy out of the many options available in every category we have a need for . We also have to determine where to buy , when to buy and how much to buy among other buying decisions . Our choices are influenced by many psychological and sociological factors . Perception of one of the critical psychological factors that influences our decision-making processes and eventual choices .
Consumer perception comes into play whenever we are making purchase decisions . Furthermore , the varied options available and the need to make choices in the buying process leads customers to develop a keen sense of assessment . The consumer decision making process involves the recognition of needs and wants as well as the awareness of various products that are available in their category of interest . Customers engage in information gathering activities to identify suitable products that will meet their needs . They subsequently evaluate the various alternatives before making a decision on what to buy . Perception plays a crucial role in consumers ’ search and assessments of product and services .
“ Since each individual is a unique entity with different experiences , values ,
and expectations , it follows that the way different people perceive something is also distinct . This implies that reality is a personal experience for each person . This explains why two people can see the same thing and perceive it in a totally different way ”
The buying decision is associated with complexity particularly when it involves expensive and new or unfamiliar products . This compounds consumer perception especially in situations where the customer is not clear about the attributes to consider in the evaluation .
Moreover , the proliferation of brands in many categories today complicates the consumer choice process . In the days when we had just a few brands in each category , life was simple and we spent little time shopping . But today , there are so many malls , many retail outlets and numerous online channels . If you take the case of banks , there are over forty banks to choose from in Kenya . Within a single bank there are so many offerings too . We also have over forty insurance companies to choose from with many varied policies on offer . When you go to the supermarket , choosing a black tea or herbal tea brand can be totally overwhelming because of the numerous options presented .
The complexity of consumer decision making today is well captured by the joke about a thirsty man who went to a restaurant and asked for water and the waiter proceeded to ask him a series of questions - one liter or half , cold or room temperature , still or sparkling and so on until he felt so overwhelmed that he wanted to change his order to something less complicated . Consumer perception is one of the factors that enable consumers to navigate this complexity and to make buying decisions effectively .
Consumers take in the input of products , services , brands , prices , packaging and advertisements among other marketing stimuli through the sensory receptors . They then proceed to interpret the bits of information such as product attributes , package design , price , brand name or colors into something that they can assess and make a decision about the marketer ’ s offer .
Perception is not a function of sensory input alone . It is generally the result of two different kinds of
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MAL 45 / 21 ISSUE