RESPOND TO BOTH STUDENT'S POSTS! (MINIMUM 150 WORDS EACH)

Prompt: Summarize the article and of the four behaviors introduced in the article, which behavioral cue resonates with your personal consumer decision journey and why? Please discuss an example in which you applied this behavioral cue.

first student:

Summarize the article included within this discussion.

The article details how marketers today are making a shift away from the traditional segmentation of demographic and lifestyle habits. Today consumers are more front and center on their purchases. With information so widely available at the click of a button, producers need to be more informative of their brand. Marketers today are cluing in on the customer experience and attempting to answer five major behaviors action triggers, channel usage, research habits, buying criteria and influencers.

Action triggers is the stimulus that causes a consumer to act. By understanding the channel usage can allow the producer or marketer to best position the product for advertising and information. Research habits are becoming more prevalent, making it important that producers release proper information to keep consumers educated. Buying criteria is what is necessary for the consumer to make a purchase. Finally, influencers are the people who can convince a consumer to buy. When a producer can identify and appropriately answer to these five behaviors puts them in the best position to create brand awareness and increase market value.

Of the four behaviors introduced in the article, which behavioral cue resonates with your personal consumer decision journey and why? Please discuss an example in which you applied this behavioral cue.

Of the behaviors described in the article, the one which resonates most with me is the research habit. It is true that the customer experience is more commonly including research ahead of the purchase. With online access so widely available, brings the ability for consumers to shop around for the best product available. Not only are consumers shopping around, but they are also utilizing social networks to ask questions before making a purchase, especially large purchases. Consumers want the best bang for their buck and avoid buyer's remorse. Putting in the proper research allows the consumer an opportunity to be fully informed and satisfied with their purchase.

second student:

1. Summarize the article included within this discussion.

As I read the article, the thought that immediately came to mind, was that marketers have to be more intrusive. However, they have to develop an approach for acquiring more information, without being perceived as overly intrusive. The article's title euphemizes the process by calling it "deep segmentation strategies." The constant change in the needs, preferences, and practices of consumers, requires that marketers work to keep themselves informed of current consumer demands. The article also states that as a result of marketers' efforts to stay abreast of the consumer market, brands are now having to tailor their products and services to meet the needs of consumers and their behaviors which can change from moment to moment. The article also speaks to the growing trend of valuing the customer experience above price. According to a 2017 Forbes article, this trend has been developing for some time now.

2. Of the four behaviors introduced in the article, which behavioral cue resonates with your personal consumer decision journey and why? Please discuss an example in which you applied this behavioral cue.

The behavior that resonates most with my personal decision journey is research habits. This resonates with me because, for any purchase that I make, my ultimate goal is to get the best price. I can now, as a result of this class, further define my ultimate goal as searching to acquire a product or service that affords me the best perceived value, at the best price. This can be a challenge because perceived value is not always actual value. For example, several laptops ago, I purchased the third laptop that I had ever owned at that time. I purchased it directly from a well know manufacturer (Lenovo), and I had it designed according to my personal specifications. Accordingly, I was willing to pay a little for it in order to replace the HP that had crashed. As it turned out, my perceived value was considerably overstated. The Lenovo computer, which was the most expensive laptop I had ever purchased, turned out to be the worst performing laptop of all my previous AND subsequent laptops. In fact, it was the worst I.T. purchase I have ever made. While I have always been one to do my due diligence for every purchase that I make, that experience has taught me to consistently look for ways to improve my research habits and practices.