Buying behaviour:

Consumer decision making varies with the types of the buying decision. The decisions to buy toothpaste, a tennis racket, a personal computer, and a new car are all very different. Assail distinguished four types of the consumer buying behaviour based on the degree of the buyer involvement and the degree of differences among brands as shown in the table below.

Types of the buying behaviour:

1.       Complex buying behaviour: consumers engage in the complex buying behaviour when they are highly involved in a purchase and aware of significant differences among brands. This is usually the case when the product is expensive, brought infrequently, risky, and highly self expressive. Typically the consumer does not know much about the product category. For example, a person buying a personal computer may not what attributes to look for. Many product features carry no meaning unless the buyer has done some research. Complex buying behaviour involves a three step process.

a.       The buyer develops beliefs about the product.

b.      He or she develops about the product.

c.       He or she makes a thoughtful choice.

2.       Dissonance reducing buyer behaviour: sometimes the consumer is highly involved in a purchase but sees little difference in the brands. The high involvement is based on the fact that the purchase is expensive, infrequent, and risky. In this case, the buyer will be shop around to learn what is available but will buy fairly quickly, perhaps, responding primarily to a good price or to purchase convenience. For example, carpet buying is a high involvement decision because carpeting is expensive and self expressive, yet the buyer may consider most carpet brands in a given price range to be the same. After the purchase, the consumer might experience dissonance that stems from noticing certain features or hearing favourable thing about other brands. The consumer will be alert to information that supports his or her decision. In this example, the consumer first acted, then acquired new beliefs, then ended up with a set of attitudes.

3.       Variety seeking buying behaviour: it is shown when the customer has low involvement and the absence of significant brand differences. Here consumers often do a lot of brand switching. Think about cookies. The consumer has some beliefs about the cookies, chooses a brand of cookies without much evaluation, and evaluates the product during consumption. Next time, the consumer may reach for another brand out of a wish for a different taste. Brand switching occurs for the sake of variety rather than dissatisfaction.

4.       Habitual buying behaviour: it is shown when the customer has low involvement and the absence of the significant brand differences. Marketers of low involvement products with few brand differences find it effective to use price and sales promotions as an intensive to product trial, since buyers are not highly committed to any brand. Marketers use four techniques to try to convert a low involvement product into the higher involvement.

They can link the product to some involving issue, as when Crest toothpaste is linked to avoiding the cavities. They can link the product to some involving personal situation for the instance, by advertising a coffee brand early in the morning when the consumer wants to shake off sleepiness. They might design advertising to trigger strong emotions related to the personal values or the ego defence. They might add an important feature (for example, fortifying a plan drink with the vitamins).