CHAPTER
8
The Buying
Process and Buyer
Behavior
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall
Learning Objectives
• Discuss the meaning of a customer
strategy
• Explain the difference between consumer
and organizational buyers
• Understand the importance of alignment
between the selling process and the
customer’s buying process
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall
8-28-2
Learning Objectives
• Understand the buying process of the
transactional, consultative, and strategic
alliance buyer
• Discuss the various influences that shape
customer buying decisions
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Customer Strategy Defined
“A customer strategy is a carefully
conceived plan that results in maximum
customer responsiveness. One major
dimension of this strategy is to achieve a
better understanding of the customer’s
buying needs and motives.”
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Strategic/Consultative
Selling Model
FIGURE
8.1
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Complex Nature of
Customer Behavior
• Individual customers perceive the product
in their own terms
• The customer is a person, not a statistic
• Companies that fully
accept this basic truth
are likely to
adopt a one-to-one
marketing strategy
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Consumer versus
Organizational Buyers
• Consumer buyer behavior refers to the
buying behavior of individuals and households
who buy goods and services for personal
consumption
• Business (organizational) buyer behavior
refers to the organizations that buy goods and
services for use in the production of other
products and services that are sold, rented, or
supplied to others
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Differences Between Consumer and
Organizational Buyers
FIGURE
8.2
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Types of Organizational
Buying Situations
• New-task buy
• Salespeople rely on consultative selling skills
• Straight rebuy
• Salespeople constantly monitor satisfaction
• Modified rebuy
• Salespeople can provide service and
anticipate changes
• Systems selling
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Types of Consumer
Buying Situations
• Habitual buying situations
• Variety-seeking buying situations
• Complex buying situations
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Mitchells/Richards
See Mitchells Website
See the Hug Your Customers
Website
Salespeople at
Mitchells/Richards work hard
to discover the customer’s
needs and provide outstanding
service after the sale.
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Achieving Alignment
• The buying process is a systematic series
of actions, or a series of defined,
repeatable steps, intended to achieve a
result
• Salespeople need to be clear on how
decisions are being made
• Acquire specific information rather than
making generalizations about the buyer’s
decision-making process
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Steps in the Buying Process
FIGURE
8.3
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Steps in the Buying Process
• Need awareness
• Salespeople can create value by determining
problems and identifying solutions
• Evaluation of solutions
• Salespeople can create value by providing
useful information
• Resolution of problems
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Steps in the Buying Process
• Purchase
• Salespeople create value by arranging
financing or supervising delivery and
installation
• Implementation
• Value creation involves timely delivery,
superior installation, accurate invoicing, or
follow-up contacts by the salesperson
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Understanding Buying Processes
• Transactional process buyers
• Salespeople can eliminate any unnecessary costs
or delays
• Consultative process buyers
• Salespeople focus attention on needs
awareness and help customer
evaluate solutions
• Strategic alliance process buyers
• Companies team up to gain
mutual competitive advantage
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Buyer Resolution Theory
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Customer Strategy Model
FIGURE
8.5
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Basic Needs—Maslow
• Physiological: food, shelter
• Security: free from danger
• Social: identification
with social groups,
friendship
• Esteem: desire to feel
worthy in eyes of others
• Self-actualization: need
for mastery,
self-fulfillment
FIGURE
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Group Influences
FIGURE
8.7
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Group Influences
• Role: expectations associated with
position
• Reference groups: categories of people
you see yourself belonging to
• Social class: group with similar values,
interests, lifestyles
• Culture: influences of group with common
language, environment, also subcultures
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Buying Motives
• A buying motive is an aroused need, drive,
or desire that stimulates behavior to satisfy
the aroused need
• It’s helpful to discover the “dominant
buying motive” or DBM
• Four basic motive types—emotional,
rational, patronage, and product
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Emotional and Rational Motives
Emotional
• Acts due to passion
or sentiment
• Emotional appeals
common
• If two products are
identical, the
salesperson who
“connects” has the
advantage
Rational
• Acts on reason or
judgment
• Relatively free of
emotion
• Salespeople gather,
interpret, and
disseminate
customer-specific
information
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Patronage and Product Motives
Patronage
• Buy from a particular
firm
• Past experience
positive
• Relevant elements:
superior service,
product selection,
competent sales staff
Product
• Buyer believes one
product is superior to
others
• Preferences for:
specific brands,
quality, price,
design/engineering
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Rational Buying Motives
See the
Website
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Selling NASCAR in Manhattan
See the
Website
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Creating Value Throughout the
Buying Process Model
FIGURE
8.8
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Key Concept
Discussion Questions
• Discuss the meaning of customer strategy
• Explain the difference between consumer
and business buyers
• Explain the importance of alignment
between the selling process and the
customer’s buying process
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall
8-28
Key Concept
Discussion Questions
• Discuss the buying process of the
transactional, consultative, and strategic
alliance buyer
• Discuss the various influencers
that shape customer
buying decisions
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall
8-29
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mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written
permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
Publishing as Prentice Hall
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall
8-30