Why should you focus on consumer behaviour for targeted marketing?

Imagine standing at the supermarket, in front of the hair products aisle, and choosing a single shampoo from the dozens of varieties sitting there.

You browse through the product descriptions and every shampoo claims to make your hair ‘shiny, bouncy, voluminous and smooth,’ and they all contain the same ingredients like aloe vera or lavender.

You take a while to consider what’s right before picking one that claims to deliver value for money. The thought process that led to your choice forms the crux of consumer behaviour in marketing.

In a world where you can get 50 different varieties of instant noodles under the same roof, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for brands to push their products to consumers.

Being novel is not enough—your product needs to be good-quality, affordable, and exclusive at the same time! Understanding what consumers want can give your product an edge over the competition.

Realising why consumers prefer certain products over others can help you market your product to the right audience and drive home more revenue. This type of marketing, known as targeted marketing, can refine your marketing strategies—you know exactly whom to sell to, how much to sell and what price you need to sell at.

If you are interested in a marketing or business career, an innate understanding of consumer behaviour can develop your marketing instincts and allow you to shine.

If you want to learn how consumer behaviour can impact targeted marketing, this blog is for you; we’ll delve into the definition of consumer behaviour and tell you why it’s important.

What is consumer behaviour?

This is essentially a study of the psychology behind buying habits and conducting  research will help you dig deeper into why certain age groups prefer specific products, what they like about it and if they would buy a different product with the exact same composition. This allows you to understand who your target audience is and refine your product as per customer preferences.

From large multinational organisations to small neighbourhood retail stores, all sales establishments can benefit from understanding target market analysis.

A common example of companies utilising consumer psychology is placing small, accessible items near the cash register. As most people have to wait at the counter to pay for their purchases, they may use this time to browse these items, which may influence their decision to pick up a few extra things.

Important aspects of consumer behaviour that affect marketing strategies

You might find understanding the role of consumer behaviour in business, difficult, as it might not always be linear or logical. However, most consumers follow certain patterns in their spending habits.

Being aware of the types of target markets and the factors influencing these patterns can help you make educated guesses about the way consumers perceive your product.

• Social factors: Factors like the culture of your customers, their societal values, educational background and lifestyle all determine what kind of products they buy. For example, if the customers coming to your establishment are deeply religious, they will not like products that hurt their sentimental beliefs.
• Personal-need factors: Your product needs to fulfil a purpose to be bought; otherwise, customers will not buy your product, even if they have the money to. For instance, if you place fancy toys in the local grocery store, chances are that very few toys will be bought.
• Economic factors: You should keep in mind that the cost of your product can be its greatest advantage or deterrent. Comparing the prices of similar products is an important aspect of consumer behaviour. If you price it too low, your product can be perceived as being of low-quality. If you price it too high, people will not buy your product as they can get cheaper alternatives.

How understanding consumer behaviour helps with targeted marketing

Understanding the motivation behind customer behaviour can help you utilise them to your advantage and influence customer mentalities. Here are some ways in which you can use targeted marketing, backed by consumer behaviour research, for the benefit of your business:

• You can mitigate risks for your business: If you are considering releasing a new product, it’s best to test market sentiments by releasing it in a controlled environment - this is why most companies distribute free samples to judge customer reactions.

Doing this can help you make the necessary adjustments before releasing your products on a larger-scale. This can also mitigate economic losses of large-scale production if your product proves to be unpopular.

• You can create an effective marketing strategy: Studying consumer behaviour can help you build a successful marketing strategy. Armed with the knowledge of what your customers want, your marketing campaigns can hit the points that lead to the product having maximum impact. Important questions related to price and promotion of the product will also be answered at this stage.
• You can achieve better customer insights: A study of consumer behaviour can give you an insight into their brains. You can conduct online surveys, distribute free samples with feedback cards or hold personal interviews. Analysing the feedback and applying it to your marketing strategies can improve your chances of success.

The way your business communicates with clients and customers determines sales. Consumer behaviour can help you connect with your customers by crafting the message of your campaign based on what’s important to them.

Consumer behaviour is an important component of the syllabus of any marketing degree. If you wish to gain expertise in consumer behaviour, you should consider obtaining a marketing qualification.

The Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing is a great option if you’re looking for a specialised course guided by industry experts. Online Masters Degree in Marketing to learn more about the course and how to further your marketing career.

This article is written by Sweha Hazari and edited by Anisa C.