Essay Sample on Psychology of Sales or Consumer Behavior

Introduction

Social psychology has developed to be an area of intense academic interest in bringing together practical insights and research into the manner different social theories can be applied to clarify consumers' behaviors. Social psychology is a discipline that uses scientific methods to understand and illustrate the way feelings, thoughts, and behaviors of people are manipulated by the actual, implied or imagined the presence of other human beings and the social environment. On the other hand, consumer behavior refers to the activities and decisions people make when obtaining, consuming and disposing of products and services (Hoyer, et.al p 3). Likewise, consumer behaviors entail the choices one make about consumption of time and scarce resources among other offerings by marketing organizations. For businesses and marketing practitioners, understanding the way consumers make decisions about purchasing behavior is essential in planning every aspect of the exchange process. Therefore, this paper will discuss a case of relevant to the psychology of sales behaviors, as well as some of the concepts of consumer psychology and the manner they influence consumers' behaviors.

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The McDonald Case

One of the strategies flourishing businesses uses to retain a competitive advantage and retain their consumers is by creating great customer relationships and high level of trust. For instance, I have realized that the fast food industry has been one of the fastest growing sectors in the American economy, due to the increased number of people attracted to restaurants and fast food joints. Although the health practitioners have been raising alarm against the health effect of junks, firms such as McDonald, Pizza Hut, Burger King, and Subway among others continue to retain and attract a considerable large number of customers. Apart from overcoming the health awareness creating by physicians, the fast food industry is dominated by programs aimed at rewarding customer's loyalty. For example, I have realized that McDonald restaurants are using sales apps to enable them to to reward their customers with discounts on their favorite items.

Additionally, McDonald has a membership program that attracts a large number of consumers. In most cases, people tend to associate themselves and share with others about such programs. In efforts to promote the McDonald app, the company also intend to start rewarding every member who visits their coffee chain stores. As a result, this will attract more people to their membership programs because of the lucrative and discount services offered to members. Likewise, McDonald takes part in communal activities through the Ronald McDonald House Charities programs and offers national scholarships to the less fortunate in the society.

Concepts of Consumer Behavior

They are numerous factors that affect the acquisition, usage and disposition decision made by consumers. Some of them include the cultural environment, gender, age, social class, friends and other lifestyle influencers (Hoyer, et.al p 10). However, the model of consumer behavior entails at least the following four concepts.

The Consumer Culture

Culture refers to beliefs, knowledge, morals, and customs acquired by people in a given society. Mainly, these factors differ with age, gender, demography and social classes (Hoyer, et.al p 10). For instance, people from the upper class generally tend to spend on luxurious and expensive items while those at the low-income class spend more on high-end products. The middle class prefers spending on items that make their future secure. Ultimately, this difference affects consumer behaviors and preferences. By considering gender women are expected to buy and use beauty products while men are perceived to be tough and strong and would rarely spend on items such as fairness creams. Likewise, in the case of McDonald Firm women would be targeted more as compared to men because the society associates them with jumbles as compared to men.

The Psychological Core

The psychological core concept is also known as internal consumer processes. Before a person makes a decision to buy something he or she should have a source of knowledge upon which to base his or her decision. The psychological core entails motivation, exposure, altitude and memory about the product or service (Hoyer, et.al p 11). Taking into consideration the case of McDonald firm, the loyalty programs and accrued benefits are a source of motivation for people to visit their chain stores. Likewise, the use of apps opens the firms to a wider range of people who would appreciate learning more about their services and products.

The Process of Making Decision

The psychological core processes are intertwined to decision making. The process involves problem recognition, searching for relevant information, decision making, and post-purchase evaluation (Hoyer, et.al p 12). For one to make a decision you have to recognize the unfulfilled need. In this case, going for McDonald coffee or flies might be caused by shift and amended gender equality making family meals rare in contemporary society. As a result, people tend to look for sources of ready food to meet their needs with some opting for McDonald varieties.

Consumer Behavior Outcome and Issues

Mainly, consumer behavior outcomes are widely affected by the consumers' culture, internal and external consumer processes and decision making. Some of the possible outcomes and issues include the symbolic use of the product, the diffusion of ideas or services, adoption, and developing social responsibilities among other experiences (Hoyer, et.al p 13). In this case, one might end up making it a routine to have a mug of coffee every day or on a weekly basis or others might resist the further purchase. Likewise, through McDonald community activity participation their consumers might develop social reasonability.

Conclusion

In conclusion, understanding the manner in which people think and act is a key part of marketing. For this reason, consumer behaviors are studied intensively to gain better knowledge about both the conscious and inert stimuli that influence people's purchasing will, usage, and disposal of products from the market. A firm can only succeed if consumers see a need that its products or services can solve. Consequently, they become aware of the product and its capability and decides that it offers the best available solution for them to make a purchase. Therefore, firms should invest in learning and comprehending the psychology of sales behaviors to satisfy their consumers' needs.

Works Cited

Hoyer, W. D., MacInnis, D. J., Pieters, R., Chan, E., & Northey, G. (2017). Consumer Behaviour: Asia-Pacific Edition. Cengage AU.