Socio-Psychology & Consumer Behaviour

Consumer behaviour is defined as "the mental and social cycles individuals go through in the acquisition, use, and removal of things," according to certain definitions. Customers purchase products to achieve a specific goal. Objectives are desired outcomes that are thought to be attainable. Customers buy items for the sole purpose of utilizing the capacity they should fulfil in a narrow utilitarian sense. Customers, on the other hand, buy most items not only for their utilitarian value, but also to convey something about themselves to others; they serve as an identity function.

When we study consumer psychology, we learn about a variety of issues such as how, when, why, and in what manner a consumer would behave when purchasing a specific product. There are a variety of factors that influence customer purchasing decisions, but one of the most important is social influence. Consumer decision-making is heavily influenced by social influence, but who are the consumers? Consumers are people like you and me who play an important role in our daily lives.

One of the most significant effects of social influence is that our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours begin to resemble those of the people and consumers around us. This type of shift in our preferences can happen even if no one is trying to persuade or influence us, making it spontaneous and automatic. For example, when we observe individuals around us purchasing goods or services from a certain brand, we are drawn to it and consider purchasing products from that same brand in order to relate and bond with others. Although no one forces us to do so here, it is clear that this is the general consumer behaviour.

This type of influence might happen when we assume that other individuals have more information, expertise, and opinions about specific topics than we do. And adhering to them will assist us in making sound selections. Also crucial in human decision-making is social comparison, validity, and appraisal. For example, when we want to buy a jacket, we heed our friend's advise about what will suit us since we believe our friends have strong judgement on matters that concern us. Consider our friend's advise on what will suit us because we trust our friends' judgement on matters that affect us. Also, by doing so, we feel a sense of contentment, connection, and validity that people, particularly your friends, would like you, love you, or compliment you whenever you wear that particular jacket, and this is one of the most common reasons for our purchasing patterns and behaviour.

Before placing their items on the market, all new and current enterprises, brands, and start-ups evaluate this psychology of consumer behaviour. They research:

• How we (consumers) make brand, product, and service decisions
• What makes us choose one brand over another, and how do social media, friends, family, and other variables influence our purchasing decisions?
• Our decision-making processes and emotions
• How to effectively communicate with customers and develop a marketing strategy

Application of social psychology

Consumption is linked to a huge range of current societal and individual issues, whether it be excessive spending or purchasing products that are harmful to people's health or the environment. This research highlights how social psychologists can contribute to the understanding and improvement of purchasing behaviour. For example, a social psychologist noticing that product is purchased for identification purposes can help explain why people in difficult financial situations may occasionally squander on lavish, seemingly unnecessary items. Professionals, planners, and producers can collaborate with a social psychologist who has some knowledge of the scenarios in which deliberation fails completely and people shop without much thinking.

They can work together to promote things and conditions (such as school canteens) that will help people (and societies) achieve their long-term goals. Finally, the bits of knowledge in the advertising cycles assist advertisers and campaigners, as well as public authorities, in determining the harmfulness of specific adverts and identifying groups of consumers who may be prone to certain consumer behaviour problems.