Analyzing And Interpreting Consumer Experiences: Constructing A Customer Journey Map And Analyzing Behavior Theory

Step 1: Choose the topic for the task

Consumer behavior involves identifying persons, groups, or companies activities which may include purchase as well as disposal of products and services.it deals with identifying what reasons can make a consumer to buy a certain product over others. This enable the marketers to analyze the past and be able to predict the future.

Family and lifestyle is important in consumers buying decisions. Its influence how a consumer buys his/ her product because every family has different motives, beliefs to the decision process. According to Wayne D. Hoyer, (2018) socialization in every family assist in developing tastes and preferences as well as  consumption patterns for every the member that is involved.

Kotler $ Keller (2011) today’s marketing pegs on the study of the consumers buying behavior due to increasing factors influencing their decision making. Businesses selling products and services to the customers ought to understand their customers’ culture, social groups, family and lifestyles, consumer attitudes and motivational factors. When a business understands this issue, they must develop a market plan in order to meet the needs and wants of their customers.

This journey map gives a story of every experience of each consumer from the first contact to developing a long lasting relationship. It aims majorly on identifying the key interactions that the customer has with every organization. It focuses on the feelings questions and motivations as well as the touch points of every user. It focuses on teaching the organizations about the customers and also in making the consumers to make a well thought decision on purchases so as to avoid unnecessary spending or buying of products that has no value for money.

Consumer behaviour is the process where consumers make a choice on whether, what, when, how, where, and from whom to purchase goods and services. Walters (1974) Self-reflection is important because it provides one with the opportunity to learn their preferences as they make their own personal choices. Challenging decisions encourages accuracy and more measurable and endless productivity. When customers are given realistic task and sufficient time to complete that task, they are able to think critically on their preferences. In the beginning deciding consumer preference might be a challenge since it is difficult to specify the exact product.

1. When creating awareness it is important to make the advertisements more appealing so as to attract more consumers and for the information to reach into a wider market.
2. Customers will always buy products that aims in fitting the life they wantto leave. In making the customers to always like the feeling they always get when using a product. They need to feel productive, healthy and smart. I realized that reflecting features of various aspects and doing comparison is a perfect and preferred way to make best and quality choices.
3. This journey has enabled me to identify which considerations are important when making a choice for the best service selection. In my next journey map I will be keener in considering various factors so as to give me the best choices and decisions. This study has made me think about what other considerations should be made in future to improve the quality of the product
4. Since I am planning undertake more subsequent purchases, this task has enabled me to think about my future plan and budget and what plans I will consider in the future.
5. This journey is good and should always be used on a daily basis to enable on to make a better choice and decision.
6. I have learned that it is always to try new products and services because if one is not open to new ideas then it may be hard to grow and to cope with the changing environment.
7. Always emphasize on giving quality services and best customer service so that consumers are always motivated for a subsequent purchase.

Consumers are rational being and they select products or services in the scale of their preferences where they rank priorities, consumers also exhibit a transitive behavior that is if a consumer prefers commodity A to B, and B to C then he/she must prefer A to C. They rank there priorities according to the order of the preference (Lichtenstein et al. 2006.), in the product or services most necessary or basic for their survival.

Step 2: Construct your customer journey map.

Consumer product are complimentary since the use of one product need/ must to be consumed with another product that is some products cannot meet the consumer`s desired effects if it is not used with another product thus said to be complimentary. This in turn affect the consumer`s choice on some products considering key factors such as sum total price to be incurred if the consumer is to go for the product and they also undertake measures to ensure that the marginal benefits exceeds the marginal cost.

The consumer`s assume that there are some specific products or services that should be constantly/continuously consumed in addition they also assume that they have a specific quantity of the product/commodity to be consumed at a particular point (Bettman et, al. 1998). The preference of product is also assumed to be homogenous, with the exception of the addictive commodities, technological changes which brings about desire to know more about given goods which when prices increase also demand increase, hence poor people may not afford, in addition some are luxury goods ,some customers  desire to have money or amount of income.

Consumers assume that commodities can be divided into smaller units and the need is more or at least one good because they are taken not to have all what they want. They therefore prefer to go for products sold in smaller quantities in respect to budgeting the money they have hence ensuring that with the little money available they get to purchase all they desire. (Huber, et al. 1993) Substitute commodities affect consumer’s behavior since there are some commodities that satisfy the same need example, tea and Coffee this is a type of competitive demand.

Also the consumers at times makes their choice of products with respect to the knowledge they have or the information available about the product in question. Online marketing and social media takes a bigger role in making decisions on the choice of product and also with respect to other people’s comments and views about the product thus the consumer is able to make a solid decision and can have more confidence thus purchase the product or service.

Motivation, attitude and emotion are some of the concepts that influences consumers decision on if tho buy, how and when to purchase a product or service. It is important to critically understand these elements so as to understand consumers buying habits.

An attitude gives a description of various feelings and evaluations towards an idea or a product. It categorises in the frame of either liking or disliking things and moving away or attracted to them. Attitude is important since it helps customers in product evaluation. They are always directed towards a product and can either be positive or negative. Peak (1955).

Step 3: This step is a ‘Consumer Reflection’ that requires you write about your experiences based on the insights you have gained from your customer journey map.

For example, people who have an attitude that eating healthy is important tend to perceive vegetables as healthy in relation to meat and flesh. This leads to an increased consumption of vegetables and thus forces the meat producers to look for various strategies to influence this attitude. Attitudes may not be easy to change and thus it may require difficult adjustments.  Kaplan & Fishbein (1969) Producing products which are compatible with existing attitudes is easier than changing consumer’s attitude toward a product.

The consumer in this journey map the consumer is feeling confused on what brand to purchase for his fridge but at the same time he is inspired to do an extensive research since he is open to new ideas.

Motivation is the force that impels an individual behavior change towards an object. Consumers are motivated to process information and generate suppositions which often seek out to affirm whether the information is right or wrong. Foxall (2008). The motivation state of the consumers drives the people to identify and purchase products and services that fulfil their desires or needs. The fulfilment of those needs and desires motivates individuals to continue purchasing goods and services that fulfil those needs. Longo, D, Lent, W., and Brown (1922).

(Maslow, 1970) “The first premises is that all humans acquire the same set of motives through genetic making and social interaction”. The Second is “some motives are more critical than others”.

The consumer in the journey map is motivated to by the desire to have a conducive method of avoiding wastage as well as the need for fresh products at all times. His family, friends and social media influences his need to buy a specific brand of fridge

This is a concept that refers to the strong and uncontrollable feeling that can influence consumers buying behaviour. (Bagozzi, Gopinath & Nyer, 1999) Emotions are closely associated to motivation and personality which makes emotions highly individual. If consumer needs are not met then it results into negative emotions which may lead to anger and frustrations, on the other hand, if these needs are met then it results into happiness and contentment. If a certain product gives adverts that leads to positive emotions then it’s likely to gain brand loyalty and result into high consumer satisfaction.

The consumer in the journey map is excited after purchasing the fridge because he has been satisfied by the brand he acquired, his research and other related activities led to the positive emotions of excitement to the extent that he encourages his friends to acquire a similar product.

Customer journey map

Conclusion

Understanding consumer buying behaviour is essential in marketing. Consumers, being rational beings ways options or undertake actions that seeks to have more benefits to the cost incurred. The consumers always ensures that the income is exchanged with the need or want that satisfy both parties, the buyer and the seller. McLeod, (2007) individual needs and wants is a motivator when not satisfied. The level of motivation of an individual affects the purchasing decisions for products. The level of motivation differs low to high depending on the purchases to be made. Motivation levels is also affected by familiarity with purchase, status and the cost of the purchasing. Motivational levels change widely among individuals and are influenced by external factors such as social values, beliefs about brands, and personal values. Attitudes, emotions and motivation are considered as automatically available as when considering performance behaviour (Ajzen & Fishbein, 2000)

References

Ajzen, I., & Fishbein, M. (2000). Attitudes and the attitude-behavior relation: Reasoned and automatic processes. In W. Stroebe & M. Hewstone (Eds.), European review of social psychology (Vol. 11, pp. 1–33). Chichester, England: Wiley

Bettman James R, Mary Frances Luce and John W.Payne 1998.”Constructive consumer’s choices processes” .Journal of Consumer Research 25(3):187-217

Bagozzi, R.P, Gopinath, M, Nyer, P.U, 1999. The Role of Emotions in Marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. 184-207.

Lichtesten, Sarah and Paul Sloricc.2006.The construction of preference .Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press

Foxall, G. R. (2014). Invitation to consumer behavior analysis. In Consumer Behavior Analysis (pp. 23-40). Routledge.

Huber, Joel Dick R Wittnick .John A. Fielder and Richard Miller.“The effectiveness of alternative preferences elicitation Procedures in predicting choice. Journal of Marketing Research 30(1):105-14

Wayne D. Hoyer, D. J. M. R. P., 2018. Consumer behaviour 7th Edition. Australia: Cengage learning.

McLeod, S., 2007. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Simply Psychology, 1.

Maslow, A.H, 1970. Motivation and Personality. 2^nd Edition. New York, Harper and Row.

Keller, Kevin Lane (1987), “Memory Factors in Advertising: The Effect of Advertising Retrieval   Cues on Brand Evaluations,” Journal of Consumer Research, 14 (December), 316-33.

Walters, C. G. (1974). Consumer behavior: Theory and practice. McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Kaplan, K. J., & Fishbein, M. (1969). Th e source of beliefs, their saliency, and prediction of attitude. Journal of Social Psychology, 78, 63–74.

Longo, D. A., Lent, R. W., & Brown, S. D. (1922). Social cognitive variables in the prediction of client motivation and attrition. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 39, 447–452.

Peak, H. (1955). Attitude and motivation. In M. R. Jones (Ed.), Nebraska symposium on motivation (Vol. 3, pp.149–188). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

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