Consumer behavior

Habari Mwanafunzi! Welcome to the World of Consumer Behavior!

Ever found yourself at a supermarket, staring at two brands of cooking oil, and wondering why you always reach for the same one? Or why you and your friends suddenly *must* have the latest trending sneakers? That's not magic, my friend. That's Consumer Behavior in action! It’s the exciting story behind every single purchase, from buying a 10-bob mandazi at the local kiosk to choosing a new smartphone.

In this lesson, we're going to become detectives. We'll uncover the secret clues and hidden reasons that make people (including you!) decide to buy, use, or even ignore certain products. Understanding this is the superpower of every great marketer. Let's get started!

What Exactly is Consumer Behavior?

Simply put, Consumer Behavior is the study of how individuals, groups, and organizations select, buy, use, and dispose of goods, services, ideas, or experiences to satisfy their needs and wants.

Think about it this way: a marketer's job is to solve a customer's problem. But how can you solve a problem if you don't understand the person who has it? You can't! That's why this topic is so crucial. By understanding the 'why' behind the 'buy', we can create better products, more convincing advertisements, and build brands that people love and trust.

Kenyan Example: Think about Safaricom's M-Pesa. They understood a deep-seated need in Kenyans: a simple, safe way to send money back home (to ushago) without using slow, risky buses. They didn't just sell a service; they solved a major Kenyan problem. That is the power of understanding the consumer.

The Big Four: Factors That Shape Our Choices

Imagine your decision to buy something is like a delicious pot of stew. It's not just one ingredient that gives it flavour, but a mix of many things. Consumer behavior is the same! The main "ingredients" fall into four major categories.

   +-----------------------+
   |  CONSUMER DECISION    |
   +-----------+-----------+
               |
   +-----------+-----------+
   |           |           |
 Cultural   Social    Personal   Psychological
 Factors    Factors   Factors     Factors

1. Cultural Factors

This is the broadest and deepest influence. It's the set of basic values, perceptions, wants, and behaviors learned by a member of society from family and other important institutions.

• Culture: This is our shared Kenyan identity. For example, the importance of community and family (the spirit of Harambee) influences many purchasing decisions, from buying things in bulk for the extended family to contributing to community fundraisers.
• Sub-culture: Within Kenya, we have many sub-cultures (tribes, religious groups, youth groups like 'Gen Z'). Each has its own unique flavour. For instance, wedding attire choices are heavily influenced by tribal customs.
• Social Class: This isn't just about money, but also about education, occupation, and background. Someone living in Karen might do their weekly shopping at Carrefour, while someone in Kayole might prefer the local market and kiosk. The product choices, brands, and even the shopping experience are different.

2. Social Factors

We are social creatures! We are heavily influenced by the people around us.

• Reference Groups: These are the groups you look up to. It could be your circle of friends, a church group, or even your favorite TikTok influencers! If a popular creator like Azziad Nasenya promotes a new skincare product, her followers are more likely to trust it and try it.
• Family: This is often the most important buying influence! Think about who decides what brand of unga or soap is bought in your house. The mother? The father? As a student, your parents likely still influence your major purchases.
• Roles and Status: The role you play in society affects what you buy. A university student's wardrobe is very different from that of a bank manager. We buy products that "fit" our role.

Real-World Scenario: Your friend gets a new pair of Nike sneakers that everyone is talking about on Instagram. Suddenly, your current shoes feel old and you start looking up prices for the same Nikes online. You have just been influenced by your reference group (your friend) and the trends they follow!

3. Personal Factors

These are the characteristics that are unique to you as an individual.

• Age and Life-Cycle Stage: Your needs change as you grow. As a Year 2 student, your priorities might be data bundles, affordable food, and looking good. A 35-year-old with a young family is more concerned with school fees, diapers, and mortgage payments.
• Economic Situation: This is a big one in Kenya. When the price of petrol goes up, people might choose to use a matatu more and their personal car less. When your HELB loan comes in, your spending power temporarily increases!
• Lifestyle: This is your pattern of living. Are you an outdoors person who loves hiking in Karura Forest? You'll buy hiking boots and sportswear. Are you a foodie who loves trying new restaurants in Westlands? You'll spend more on experiences.
• Personality: Are you adventurous, confident, quiet, or practical? People often choose brands that match their personalities. Someone who sees themselves as sophisticated might prefer an iPhone, while a practical, value-conscious person might choose a reliable Tecno phone.

4. Psychological Factors

These are the internal, "unseen" factors happening inside a consumer's mind.

• Motivation: What is the driving force behind your need? A famous psychologist, Abraham Maslow, arranged human needs in a hierarchy. Marketers often target these needs.

    Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs:

          / \
         /   \
        /     \   <-- Self-Actualization (e.g., University education)
       /_______\
      /         \ <-- Esteem Needs (e.g., Buying a cool brand of clothes)
     /___________\
    /             \ <-- Social Needs (e.g., Buying airtime to call friends)
   /_______________\
  /                 \ <-- Safety Needs (e.g., M-Pesa for secure transactions)
 /___________________\
/                     \ <-- Physiological Needs (e.g., Kitu-kidogo, water)
-----------------------

• Perception: How you see the world. Two people can see the same Naivas advertisement. One might think, "Great deals!", while another thinks, "It's too crowded." Marketers work hard to create a positive perception of their brand.
• Learning: If you buy a KPLC token via M-Pesa and have a smooth, easy experience, you have *learned* that it's a good method and will do it again. A bad experience teaches you to avoid it.
• Beliefs and Attitudes: A belief is a thought you hold about something ("Infinix phones have great batteries"). An attitude is your consistent feeling towards it ("I don't like brand X, their products are low quality"). It's very hard for marketers to change a negative attitude!

Image Suggestion: A vibrant, colourful digital collage showing the four factors of consumer behavior. On the left, a family celebrating a cultural festival (Cultural). Next to it, a group of cool Kenyan youths taking a selfie, showing off their fashion (Social). Then, a single student at a laptop, budgeting their expenses (Personal). Finally, a close-up of a person's head with icons representing motivation, learning, and perception (Psychological). The style should be modern and energetic.

The Buyer's Journey: The 5-Step Decision Process

Okay, so we know what influences consumers. But how do they actually make a decision? It's usually a 5-step process.

[ 1. Need Recognition ] --> [ 2. Information Search ] --> [ 3. Evaluation of Alternatives ] --> [ 4. Purchase Decision ] --> [ 5. Post-Purchase Behavior ]
     "My phone is         "Let me ask my friends,     "Should I get the Tecno,        "Okay, I'll buy the        "I love this new phone!
      too slow!"            check Jumia reviews."       Samsung, or an Oppo?"          Tecno from that shop       Or... I should have
                                                                                        on Luthuli Avenue."        bought the Samsung."

The final step, Post-Purchase Behavior, is critical. If the customer is happy, they become a loyal advocate. If they are unhappy, they might experience "cognitive dissonance" or buyer's remorse and complain to their friends. Marketers aim to reduce this by sending follow-up emails, offering good warranties, and ensuring the product lives up to its promises.

Image Suggestion: A clean, infographic-style illustration showing a young Kenyan adult's journey to buying a new laptop. Each of the 5 steps is a separate panel. 1) The student looks frustrated at a slow, old laptop. 2) The student is on their phone, scrolling through Jumia and asking a friend for advice. 3) The student is weighing options, with thought bubbles showing specs for Dell, HP, and Lenovo. 4) The student is at a store, happily paying for a new laptop. 5) The student is sitting at a cafe, smiling and using the new laptop.

Let's Do Some "Marketer Math"!

How do consumers evaluate alternatives? Sometimes, they do it subconsciously using a model. Let's try a simplified version called the Multi-Attribute Model. Imagine you're choosing between two popular boda boda hailing apps: Bolt and SafeBoda.

Step 1: Identify important attributes and assign a weight (out of 10) based on how important each is to YOU.

Step 2: Score each brand (out of 10) on how well they perform on each attribute.

Step 3: Multiply the weight by the score for each attribute, then add them up for a total score.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Attribute      | My Importance |      Bolt       |     SafeBoda      |
|                | (Weight)      | (Score | Total)  | (Score | Total)   |
|----------------|---------------|--------|---------|--------|----------|
| Price/Cost     |       9       |    8   |  72     |    7   |   63     |
| Rider Safety   |      10       |    6   |  60     |    9   |   90     |
| App Usability  |       7       |    9   |  63     |    8   |   56     |
| Availability   |       8       |    9   |  72     |    6   |   48     |
|----------------|---------------|--------|---------|--------|----------|
| TOTAL SCORE    |               |        |  267    |        |  257     |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Conclusion: Based on this model, even though you feel SafeBoda is much safer (a key factor), Bolt wins slightly because it scores higher on price and availability, which are also very important to you. This is how consumers often make trade-offs, and marketers need to know which attributes are most important to their target audience!

Conclusion: You're Now a Consumer Behavior Detective!

Amazing work! We've journeyed through the mind of the consumer. We've seen how everything from our culture and our friends to our personal financial situation and our deepest motivations shapes what we buy. We also mapped out the journey every customer takes, from feeling a need to making a purchase and beyond.

From now on, when you see an advertisement on a billboard along Thika Road, or when you choose one brand of milk over another in the supermarket, stop and think. What factors are influencing that decision? Which step of the buyer's journey are you in? By doing this, you're not just a consumer anymore—you're starting to think like a world-class marketer. Keep observing, keep questioning, and keep learning!