What factors influence consumer behavior?

It is easily deductible that not everyone consumes in the same way, due to a large number of variables, either because we do not have the same tastes, the same income or the same age. In any case, despite how different we are from each other, there are products for almost all tastes and needs. In order for these products to exist, it is necessary for companies to study carefully what factors influence consumer behavior, which we will explain in this article.

Internal factors

These correspond to individual and internal characteristics to the individual himself and his experience and personal situation, without the influences of the outside world. They are grouped into the following four:

• Motivation: the consumer must have a predisposition and therefore a motivation to obtain that product that can meet their needs, and since we have different needs, we will also have different motivations.
• Perception:all people continuously receive stimuli from outside, but the same stimulus is perceived differently by each person. Therefore, the way we perceive what surrounds us by our senses will determine our preferences.
• Experience:based on the experiences we had previously with a brand or a specific product, we will decide if it is convenient to repeat, creating a habit or try something new after a bad experience.
• Demographic and socioeconomic characteristics: of course we will not be able to access the same products if our income is low or if it is very high, just as we will not demand the same products if we are 15 years old than 85. On the other hand, our decision will always condition our decision. Factors such as our usual interests or activities.

External factors

They are those influences that we receive, sometimes very intensely, from the world around us, and that influence our behavior as consumers. They are the following:

• Cultural environment:formed by the set of customs and norms that have been created in the society in which we live, and that generate behavioral models common to the group of people living in that cultural environment. The needs in the culture of a sub-Saharan tribe will not be the same as in the culture of a large Asian city.
• Social groups:in a more concrete way than the previous one, the social group or social groups to which we belong also have an important influence on our decisions, since in them we will find trustworthy people related to us, whose opinion will probably be very taken in account.
• Family:this is undoubtedly the group with the greatest influence on our personality and our way of acting, since the way they have taught us to live will probably be very similar to the way we will later act when we demarcate from the family nucleus.
• Personal influences:refers to those specific people in whom we have placed a lot of confidence, and whose opinion will prevail in us over any other that we obtain, since we assume that what they tell us, they do so sincerely and accurately. It can also be valid for those leaders and experts in a subject, who make value judgments on it.
• Situation at the time of purchase:here there can be a multitude of external variables that influence our decision at the time of purchase, from the state of the product packaging, the available size of the container or the existence of special offers.