This article focuses on Consumer Behavior and why it’s important for businesses and marketers to study their target consumers before launching/selling any product or service.
Can just a killer product/service idea be enough to earn profits in your business? While it definitely helps, it cannot be called a deal-breaker. Sometimes even the best of ideas finds no takers, but a done-and-dusted product/service idea can become an instant hit. Why does this happen? Why do some hit the bull’s eye while many others fail to create any buzz?
To know the reason why some ideas, impress and some don’t, it’s important to understand Consumer Behavior. When businesses ignore consumer needs, wants and expectations it results in them launching a product/service which has few takers. Failing to analyze and research the targeted audience can result in big losses for any business.
Consumer Behavior is a complex concept. There are numerous and diverse attributes that are contributing factors to how people behave before and after buying a product or service. Likes and dislikes, thinking processes, purchasing attitudes, consumption, and disposal patterns are some of the things you must consider while studying Consumer Behavior.
To successfully launch and sustain a product or service, you must understand the thought process of your target consumers. This can help in positioning and marketing your products or services advantageously. Doing so will also help you achieve set sales objectives, predict changes in buying patterns, and finally pivot you into a position of predictability and success.
What is Consumer Behavior?
While we have spoken enough about the necessity of Consumer Behavior, we haven’t yet understood its meaning. Consumer Behavior is a broad term used to refer to a process that consumers go through before and after buying any product or service. Studying consumer behavior begins with the needs and wants (of consumers) and follows through to the satisfaction of use and ends with the disposal of the product or service. And then the cycle continues. In any study of consumer behavior, it’s important to understand 4 Ws and an H (what, when, why, where, and how). What makes a consumer buy, when do they buy, why do they buy, and where and how do they buy?
Why is Studying Consumer Behavior Important
Today, information is readily available to consumers. So much so that they are inundated with diverse information. Today they know exactly what they want and don’t want. This has led to a situation where it’s become very difficult to overtly influence them. Marketers (and businesses) now must put their best foot forward to impress consumers. You must undertake thorough and proper research to understand consumers’ buying, retaining, and disposing of patterns so that you can offer them exactly what they want and need.
So, what does it mean to study Consumer Behavior? In today’s blog, this is exactly what we shall focus on. We shall delve into a few points to remember while studying Consumer Behavior.
1 – Stay Relevant
One of the biggest challenges for businesses today is staying relevant despite increasing competition and consumer awareness. Consumers today are much more informed than in yesteryears. With the constant supply of information, they are now in a position to constantly mold preferences, likes, and dislikes. Switching between brands, products, and services has become almost second nature to them. In such an environment, a business can only stay relevant when they catch the pulsebeat of the consumers.
2 – Retain Customers
One of the main reasons why you should study consumer behavior is to be able to create a niche customer base, and also be able to retain them. How do you do that? Primarily it starts by creating a product that meets client needs and wants. Once that is fulfilled, your customers will come back more than once. However, that’s not enough. You must also have a solid marketing strategy in place that helps convince your target audience to buy the product/service. With the help of Consumer Behavior, you can know what will make the customer buy the product the first time and what will make them come back to it again.
3 – Continuous Innovation
Innovation is the key to continuous success. Unless you are innovating, it will become very difficult for your business to survive the stiff competition. Once again, to successfully innovate and improve your range of products and services, you will need to study Consumer Behavior. Researching your customer needs and wants will enable you to tweak the current line of offerings.
4 – Improve Marketing Strategies
We all need a Point Zero, to begin with, something new. In marketing too, this rule applies. Unless you know where to begin, you cannot plan an appropriate roadmap. Studies on Consumer Behavior will not only help you theorize the past and current trends but will also help you know what drives the consumers toward buying certain goods and products. Consumer Behavior studies also influence customers to a large extent. If you are interested in improving your marketing strategy you should invest in studying the buying patterns of your consumers.
5 – Help Improve Customer Service
While we regularly categorize customers based on their demographic profile, it’s also important to remember that essentially all customers are different from one another. If you want to cater to your customer base satisfactorily, you will need to continuously improve the service you provide. Studying Consumer Behavior can help to understand them better.
In Conclusion
By now you would have realized the importance of Marketing & Consumer Behavior. But you would also realize the daunting task that awaits you! Can you study consumers alone, without insight, without context? No, you can’t. That’s why you need the support of a dedicated marketing agency that has been studying the changing preferences of consumers for a long time.
Cyrusson Inc. is a digital marketing agency that believes that Consumers are the King. Unless you understand them and offer what they want, you cannot be successful. If you are looking for a company that helps you understand your consumers better, it’s time you collaborate with us! We will study your target consumer, understand their preferences, and throw insights on how you can position your brand better. Get in touch with us to set up your free consultation today!