Consumer buying behavior - when does your customer buy?
Posted by Audrey Sendrowski-Breuer on Wed, Jun 22, 2011 @ 04:14 PM
Quick, when is your customer ready to buy?
It's a trick question. Because the answer's not about when (Time)...it's about Who. And how they behave when it comes to buying.
Understanding Consumer Buying Behavior helps you understand how, why and when your customers buy. When your customer is ready to buy is based on who they are: a Now Buyer or a Future Buyer. Understanding them means the difference between success or failure (and wasting money) regarding your advertising.
Who are Now Buyers and Future Buyers?
Everyone of us is both a Now Buyer (NB) and a Future Buyer (FB).
The Now Buyer is already motivated and ready to buy. They've done their research and they are interested in one thing: information. They've made up their mind and just need to know what the best deal is and where to get it.
The NB wants information. Print is informational.
The Future Buyer needs motivation and isn't interested...right now. But they can be persuaded if you get in front of them before they become Now Buyers.
The FB needs motivation. Electronic media motivate and persuade. (Did you just get an "A-ha!" moment when it comes to advertising?)
Now Buyers and Future Buyers pay attention to your product or service very differently.
Running an ad to motivate a Future Buyer is a waste of time. If they don't need what you are offering right now, they won't pay attention to your ad. They won't even notice it. Don't believe me? Try this: if you read a newspaper this morning, watched tv, surfed the net or read a blog that contained links to other resources, name five ads/links you remember seeing, including what the ad/link was about. Chances are, you can't. And it's got nothing to do with faulty memory. The ad or two you do remember has everything to do with the fact that you were interested in the product or service in the first place. Which means you are a Now Buyer. If you didn't notice an ad, it's because you were a Future Buyer. And the ad was wasted money if it was intended to influence you, the FB.
Understanding the Now Buyer (NB) and the Future Buyer (FB) makes a big difference in how you advertise (what medium).
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Use informational media (print and internet/your website) to reach the Now Buyer
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Use electronic (radio and tv) and social media to motivate and persuade the Future Buyer
Now you understand more about Consumer Buying Behavior and how your advertising affects your customers. Understanding when you advertise is all about the Consumer Buying Cycle - or how the consumer buying decision process works.
That's our next blog.
Best,
Audrey
