Consumers could be relocating to retailer B from A because A has availability issues on their preferred brand . Instead of substituting their preference for Brand product that distributor A has provided , they will shift channel of distribution to get their brand of choice and get satisfaction - here , consumers may be willing to pay more for less .
the most preferred mode of competition at macro level in market operations as whichever route or channel the consumer decides to take , she is never lost - the sibling retailer A loses to sibling retailer B but overall , the parent retailer ensures consumer retention or recruitment since intercompetition is shut down in this case . The rival channel siblings do outshine each on , but not limited to , market opening ( market expose ), products availability , customer shopping experience , consumer preference , customer service and streamlined internal operations .
Brand Loyalty And Switching
This is another parameter that can give realization on consumer whereabouts in the sense that consumers could be shifting from brand A over brand B in the market because of reduction in the quality or quantity of brand A with assumption that since it enjoys market brand equity in the current state , a reduction in quality or quantity for the same price will still make consumers stick around . For consumers to stick and not to shift , the brand must not have substitutes hence a monopoly , which unfortunately leads to consumer exploitation in the market .
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Consumers could be relocating to retailer B from A because A has availability issues on their preferred brand . Instead of substituting their preference for Brand product that distributor A has provided , they will shift channel of distribution to get their brand of choice and get satisfaction - here , consumers may be willing to pay more for less .
Since consumers are super bargainers and they want more for less , they will have no choice but to shift to brand B where they can derive maximum or even higher utility levels as they would have while consuming brand A .
Consumers could be relocating to retailer B from A because A has availability issues on their preferred brand . Instead of substituting their preference for Brand product that distributor A has provided , they will shift channel of distribution to get their brand of choice and get satisfaction - here , consumers may be willing to pay more for less .
Consumers could also be dropping their brand loyalty due to increase in prices of their longtime brand of preference hence making affordability unbearable or imbalance in utility derived versus price paid . Despite all the justifications for the brand to increase prices , reduce quantity and quality and be unavailable , the consumers feel shortchanged in the market by their brands of preference and the only solution for them is to switch .
Finally , one can deduce that that introduction of a low-priced substitute for Brand product A with similar or more satisfaction will also lead to consumers shifting brands and the new brand eating into the current brand ’ s market share hence a paradigm shift .
Economic Conditions
This is a key and critical factor in understanding consumer paradigm shift in the market . Economic Conditions can be backed by government policy measures that can make the situation even more worse leading to consumers shifting . Tough economic conditions and statutory measures leave consumers asking the question - which way - which is answered more often on their incomes by budgetary re-adjustments . This leads to a change in consumer behavior in terms of their purchasing power as well as where , when and how they source goods and services .
In the case of inflation pushing the costs of production higher , firms will tend to pass the costs to the consumers through price increments which in turn reduces consumer affordability for similar or more volumes they used to demand that is less goods and services being chased by too much money .
When government introduces higher statutory deductions on employees and increases taxation on goods and services , consumers are left with reduced disposable incomes which negatively impacts volume of goods and services purchased .
Increase in the prices of other essentials , hence high cost of living , makes consumers to revise and readjust their budgets to reflect the economic situation in the country , recategorize some of their desires from needs to wants with clarity on what to purchase or consume and to what levels , imposing tough austerity measures on themselves to fit in and in return negatively impacting consumer footfall or spending on different channels and goods . This also occasions consumer shifting to cheaper brands thereby affecting their loyal brands or the frequency of consumption .
It is my trust that this informs us on the consumer whereabouts to help us realign our respective market strategies and decisions to grow and develop industries , brands , channels and economies at large since consumers are the key drivers of the economy .
Patrick Maninga is a graduate of Economics with IT from Maseno University who believes in economics of sustainability . He is currently working at Naivas Limited as Branch Support Officer - Pricing and Promotions . You can engage him via email at : Maningapatrick97 @ gmail . com .