Me as a Consumer:
WHAT TYPE OF CONSUMER AM I?
There are two categories of consumers - the individual consumer or the organizational consumer. The individual consumer makes purchases that directly satisfy their own wants and needs or the wants and needs of those around them - such as a family member or friend; whereas, an organizational consumer makes purchases so that they can "produce other goods and services, resell them to other organizations or to the individual consumer, and help manage and run their organization" (Kardes et al., 2015).
As for me, I only make purchases for the sake of myself or those directly around me - like my fiance so I am the individual consumer. Instead of making purchases to sell items, I make purchases to keep items - such as makeup, food, clothing, and so on.
WHAT INFLUENCES MY BUYING DECISIONS AND HOW?
I am probably one of the easiest consumers to target for purchases - it does not take much to convince me. I am a graphic designer first so my eyes always go directly to the packaging and display. If the packaging is pretty I am going to buy it. If the display is pretty, I am going to walk towards it and more than likely get sucked into making a purchase. I fall for targeted Facebook ads ALL OF THE TIME. Since I have gotten engaged, I have been googling a lot of things around that and weddings. All of the advertisements that come up on my Facebook now also surround that. For instance, an advertisement came up last month for a pearl jean jacket with Mrs. Your New Last Name custom embroidered on the back and it was on sale FOR 50% OFF!! How could I pass that up when it would look so cute to wear in my engagement photos and then in my bridals?? Naturally, I purchased it and it should be arriving this week.
(image from: https://somethingnewbridalbox.com/collections/jackets)
Another huge influence on my purchases is my emotions. When I am feeling upset or depressed I tend to make purchases that I normally would not when I am happy. I buy absolutely ridiculous things or things I would normally wait to purchase when upset. For instance, lately, when I have been sad I purchase toys for my kitten. He already has a ridiculous amount of toys and in NO WAY needs any more. However, I always think of his happy little face and potential reaction when making the purchase and tell myself that is what will make me happy. When it comes to bigger purchases, like electronics or furniture, I tend to let reviews and research influence my purchases more than my emotions though.
WHAT STAGE ACTUALLY LEADS TO MY PURCHASING DECISIONS?
(image from:https://www.businessstudynotes.com/marketing/marketing-management/stages-consumer-decision-making-process/)
Typically there are five steps to the decision-making process. The first is the need recognition, search for information, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase evaluation. I like to this that the stage that leads to my purchase decision various depending on my mood and/or purchase type. There or days when my need recognition leads directly to a purchase. This is when I am sad and/or in a hurry to get a product or service. A good bit of my purchases on bad days end up being made in this stage. Alternatively, I am about to be making a purchase for getting my eyebrows microbladed. This is a big purchase and one that is permant - on my face that people see daily. For this purchase, I actually made it all the way to step 4 when making the purchase. I have alopecia and it leaves me with half of an eyebrow or less most of the time. I spent months searching for information on going to the right person and then months evaluating what alternative options I have. On my more rational days I will make it to step 3 or 4 before making my purchases.
(image from: https://www.paradiselashes.com/brows)
HOW AM I INFLUENCED BY MARKETING RESEARCH AND MARKETING DESIGN WHEN MAKING A BUYING DECISION?
I am always always always influenced by marketing research and marketing design when making a buying decision. Marketing research leads to targeted ads and boy oh boy am I a sucker for those! A few years ago I was on a health kick to try to loose weight. I was constantly googling healthy receipies and workout routines. In turn, I kept getting targetted ads for cute workout outfits. How can I say no to a cute new outfit? Of course I bought a ton of shirts and leggins from the websites because naturally, I thought that would motivate me more to actually workout and be healthy. I was absolutely wrong about that, but at least I got cute outfits out of it. Marketing design is my field of study and dream career so naturally, I am a sucker for that as well. When I see a well designed advertisement - whether it be that it is visually appealing or hilariously designed - I am going to fall for it and make a purchase. In fact, there were a couple of years where I was a sucker for the marketing from a specific makeup brand - Colourpop - and constantly bought new releases from them...I have boxes full of makeup that I donated that I never even opened.
DO I EXPERIENCE ANY POST-PURCHASE BEHAVOIR?
I pretty much always experience post-purchase behaviors. Especially when it comes to my 'I feel sad and need to make a purchase' impulse buys - this leads to, more often than not, my post-purchase regret. For instance, several years ago before I started school I made a big impulse purchase for an HP laptop because I was having a 'what am I doing with my life right now' moment and I thought it would motivate me to actually start applying for schools. Once I got the laptop, I began to really regret it. It was overly priced and within a month or two of owning it the cooling parts of the laptop broke. I looked this up online and found it was a common issue with this specific laptop. Had I actually gone past the first stage of the decision making process, I would have researched and found the bad ratings and reviews on this laptop. I would have searched for alternative laptops and made a better purchase.
My purchases do not always end in regret though. I do find satisfaction in some of my purchases. For instance, my first iPhone was the iPhone 4 I believe. I was extremely satisfied with it and recommended it to everyone after getting it. Because of this satisfaction, I became a loyal consumer to Apple for iPhones and now it is the only phone brand I purchase!
References
Kardes, F. R., Cronley, M. L., & Cline, T. W. (2015). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.
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