PSY/322
June, 11 2013
A business needs to have the ability to properly understand their consumer base so they are able to produce products and make marketing strategies that will appeal to the target audience. Consumer psychology allows the business to obtain information that will lead to understanding the consumers. Marketers want to understand many factors related to the consumers personalities and how it influences his or her behavior toward purchasing a product or service. For a successful marketing message the business must understand consumer psychology. Consumer psychology is the study of how an individual’s personal beliefs, thoughts, perceptions influence his or her decision to purchase a good or service. Consumer psychology is defined as “The study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society"(“Consumer Psychology,” 1994, para.). Consumer psychology places concerns within various psychological concepts to help better understand the consumers. (Katona, n.d). How consumers process information, use judgment, and make decisions are a few psychological concepts that influence consumer psychology. Decision making gives the individual the chance to choose between to possible actions. The choice of the individual can alter the outcome of what will happen on the product purchase. For example an individual is thinking of investing some money in the stock market this would be alternative one. The second alternative would be to save the money for a different expense rather than buy stock. A choice can change the outcome of purchasing a product or not things like amount of cash available, demographic variables, past experiences, and personality traits. All 4 of these can be factors
References: Consumer Psychology. (1994). Annual Review of Psychology , 45, . Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/205823161 Katona, G. (n.d). What is Consumer Psychology? . Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/614314897/fulltextPDF?accountid=458 Perner, L. (2010). Consumer Behavior: The Psychology of Marketing. Retrieved from http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/