15A- Figuring Out Buyer Behavior
Segment:
My target segment is females between the ages of 18 and 25.
Interview 1: My good friend who is a Sophomore, 20 years old
I decided to interview one of my closest friends who I haven't interviewed before. For her, she says that the main factor in making a purchase decision is price. The price of something is always the top priority for her, and she says that being in college and being on a budget heavily contributes to that. For my friend, she admits that the price is the first thing she notices, and if it is way out of her budget, she won't even bother picking it up because she knows that she won't end up purchasing it. She is also more likely to purchase online, and in fact does most of her shopping from online boutiques. The reason for this is because there is a very large variety of clothes and other things for her to choose from online. Another reason is that it is way cheaper to find and purchase certain things online or through Amazon than it is to do so in person. Finally, there are really no good clothing stores in Gainesville, and purchasing online gives her that variety that she can't find here in town. She is typically likely to use her debit card during all transactions, especially since it is usually online. For my friend, she determines whether or not it was a good purchase given how long the product lasts without breaking, and whether or not she uses it often. If the product has a long life span because of the good quality, then she usually tends to like the product. If it was something she uses every day which was absolutely necessary to purchase, she generally doesn't need to wait in order to know that it was a good buy. A bad purchase would be something that was very expensive that she could have found online for way cheaper and the same quality. Additionally, it would be something that is very bad quality and is damaged after its first use.
Interview 2: My roommate's sister who is a Junior, 21 years old
I asked my roommate's older sister if I could sit down with her and ask her a few questions. For her, the main factor when making a purchase decision is the quality of the product. If the quality for something is very good, she tends to be more prone to purchase it, regardless of the price. Quality and price tends to go hand in hand, and she said she doesn't mind paying a little bit extra if it means that the item is very good quality. She is also more open to buying things online over buying them in actual stores. Since she lives in Gainesville as well, she recognizes the fact that there are not a great variety of options to choose from in town, so she looks towards online retail in order to find a wider selection. Because most of her purchases are online, she uses her credit card for purchases over $80 and uses her debit card for any amount that is below that. After evaluating the rightness of her purchase, she says that she generally looks at two things. How effective the item is compared to her previous purchases, and how long it lasts before it breaks or needs to be replaced. In this case, she generally likes to try out new brands of clothes or items when purchasing online. Thus, she compares the quality and lifespan of these new purchases to her old ones and sees which she was able to get the most use out of. Whichever brand that is, she tends to continue to order different things from that same brand, because she trusts it and has had a great experience with it in the past. If the item turns out being very bad quality and is inferior compared to previously purchased items, she strays away from that brand.
Interview 3: My sister's roommate who is a Junior, 21 years old
I had never interviewed my older sister's roommate, so I sat down with her because she fits perfectly within my segment. When making decisions about whether or not to make a purchase, I was surprised to find out that the top thing she looks for is where the item was manufactured. This, of course, is a general guideline that she follows whenever she is looking at buying clothes. This does not pertain to her judgment regarding food, obviously. She gives preference to clothing that is manufactured in the United States because it goes hand in hand with her second priority: quality. She associates American-made items with being of very good quality, which she doesn't mind paying more money for because she looks at it as an investment since it will last her a long time. She says that she makes most of her purchases in person at thrift stores. There are a lot of great thrift shops in Gainesville which makes the search a lot easier for her. When she is home in Orlando, there are a ton of great shopping malls and boutiques so she makes sure to visit those whenever she is home. She rarely buys online because she says that sizing is an issue for her and whenever she orders clothes, it is usually too big or too small. When buying at stores in person, she also uses her debit card as her primary form of payment. She never uses any finance options because she rarely buys things that are expensive enough for financing. When she thinks back on the rightness of a purchase, she evaluates it based on whether or not the quality was worth the price. In other words, she focuses on how comfortable the clothes is to wear and whether or not she would buy another product of the same material. If she finds that the product is very bad quality, she avoids future purchases of products of the same quality.
Summary: Overall, I would say that this segment has very similar buying behaviors. The group as a whole tends to look for similar attributes when deciding whether or not to make a purchase. They also all have identical ways of analyzing the 'rightness' of a purchase. They look at the lifespan of the product and how long they were able to use it comfortably to its full extent. A majority of my interviewees also would rather purchase stuff online than go to stores in person, and a huge part of this decision is their geographic distance to good boutiques or stores. Also, since they are on a college budget, price plays a huge role in determining whether or not to go through with the purchase. Quality also effects this decision, but does not nearly have as heavy as an impact as does item price.
My target segment is females between the ages of 18 and 25.
Interview 1: My good friend who is a Sophomore, 20 years old
I decided to interview one of my closest friends who I haven't interviewed before. For her, she says that the main factor in making a purchase decision is price. The price of something is always the top priority for her, and she says that being in college and being on a budget heavily contributes to that. For my friend, she admits that the price is the first thing she notices, and if it is way out of her budget, she won't even bother picking it up because she knows that she won't end up purchasing it. She is also more likely to purchase online, and in fact does most of her shopping from online boutiques. The reason for this is because there is a very large variety of clothes and other things for her to choose from online. Another reason is that it is way cheaper to find and purchase certain things online or through Amazon than it is to do so in person. Finally, there are really no good clothing stores in Gainesville, and purchasing online gives her that variety that she can't find here in town. She is typically likely to use her debit card during all transactions, especially since it is usually online. For my friend, she determines whether or not it was a good purchase given how long the product lasts without breaking, and whether or not she uses it often. If the product has a long life span because of the good quality, then she usually tends to like the product. If it was something she uses every day which was absolutely necessary to purchase, she generally doesn't need to wait in order to know that it was a good buy. A bad purchase would be something that was very expensive that she could have found online for way cheaper and the same quality. Additionally, it would be something that is very bad quality and is damaged after its first use.
Interview 2: My roommate's sister who is a Junior, 21 years old
I asked my roommate's older sister if I could sit down with her and ask her a few questions. For her, the main factor when making a purchase decision is the quality of the product. If the quality for something is very good, she tends to be more prone to purchase it, regardless of the price. Quality and price tends to go hand in hand, and she said she doesn't mind paying a little bit extra if it means that the item is very good quality. She is also more open to buying things online over buying them in actual stores. Since she lives in Gainesville as well, she recognizes the fact that there are not a great variety of options to choose from in town, so she looks towards online retail in order to find a wider selection. Because most of her purchases are online, she uses her credit card for purchases over $80 and uses her debit card for any amount that is below that. After evaluating the rightness of her purchase, she says that she generally looks at two things. How effective the item is compared to her previous purchases, and how long it lasts before it breaks or needs to be replaced. In this case, she generally likes to try out new brands of clothes or items when purchasing online. Thus, she compares the quality and lifespan of these new purchases to her old ones and sees which she was able to get the most use out of. Whichever brand that is, she tends to continue to order different things from that same brand, because she trusts it and has had a great experience with it in the past. If the item turns out being very bad quality and is inferior compared to previously purchased items, she strays away from that brand.
Interview 3: My sister's roommate who is a Junior, 21 years old
I had never interviewed my older sister's roommate, so I sat down with her because she fits perfectly within my segment. When making decisions about whether or not to make a purchase, I was surprised to find out that the top thing she looks for is where the item was manufactured. This, of course, is a general guideline that she follows whenever she is looking at buying clothes. This does not pertain to her judgment regarding food, obviously. She gives preference to clothing that is manufactured in the United States because it goes hand in hand with her second priority: quality. She associates American-made items with being of very good quality, which she doesn't mind paying more money for because she looks at it as an investment since it will last her a long time. She says that she makes most of her purchases in person at thrift stores. There are a lot of great thrift shops in Gainesville which makes the search a lot easier for her. When she is home in Orlando, there are a ton of great shopping malls and boutiques so she makes sure to visit those whenever she is home. She rarely buys online because she says that sizing is an issue for her and whenever she orders clothes, it is usually too big or too small. When buying at stores in person, she also uses her debit card as her primary form of payment. She never uses any finance options because she rarely buys things that are expensive enough for financing. When she thinks back on the rightness of a purchase, she evaluates it based on whether or not the quality was worth the price. In other words, she focuses on how comfortable the clothes is to wear and whether or not she would buy another product of the same material. If she finds that the product is very bad quality, she avoids future purchases of products of the same quality.
Summary: Overall, I would say that this segment has very similar buying behaviors. The group as a whole tends to look for similar attributes when deciding whether or not to make a purchase. They also all have identical ways of analyzing the 'rightness' of a purchase. They look at the lifespan of the product and how long they were able to use it comfortably to its full extent. A majority of my interviewees also would rather purchase stuff online than go to stores in person, and a huge part of this decision is their geographic distance to good boutiques or stores. Also, since they are on a college budget, price plays a huge role in determining whether or not to go through with the purchase. Quality also effects this decision, but does not nearly have as heavy as an impact as does item price.
Hey Beca,
ReplyDeleteI think you did a really great job with these interviews and gained a lot of insight about your market segment. I too found that a lot of the buyers in my segment looked at similar attributed when making a purchasing decision. Though our two products are pretty different (mine being fitness apparel) majority of the buyers in my segment also cared about quality and used the lifespan of the product as a way to determine whether or not it was a good purchase.