15A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

1)    For this assignment, I stuck with the segment of college students specifically at the University of Florida. This segment was made up of three students that I picked at random in my most difficult class this semester. Their names were Josh, Alex, and Celeste. Since they has a busy schedule with difficult classes such as mine, they spend a large portion of time on studying and being productive. They all shared the unmet need of frequently not being able to find enough space in the library.

Interview #1- Josh

·       Alternative Evaluation

o   As a third year University student, Josh primarily chooses from his set of alternatives when buying a product based off of price and efficiency/quality. Josh is a Finance student who is very organized and involved in many different organizations, jobs, and activities. He values his ability to be successful and he does not enjoy spending excessive money nonsensically.

·       How/Where do they buy?

o   Josh usually buys items online, as he is not very interested in going shopping. Usually it is very easy for Josh to find what he needs online by narrowing a search down to save time.

·       Post-purchase evaluation. 

o   Josh is primarily interested in how fast it took him to find/obtain what he was looking for and if it got the job done. If a product is in bad condition, not useful, or it took an extended amount of time to reach him, he considers it a “bad” purchase.

Interview #2- Alex

·       Alternative Evaluation

o   When determining which purchase to make when ranging from a set of alternatives, Alex’s opinion is most heavily swayed by price and the extent to which he needs the item. In this way, it is also important to Alex how closely the purchase lines up with his needs. Similarly to Josh, Alex is very financially conscious and is more fixated on need base spending.

·       How/Where do they buy?

o   Alex usually buys items in stores because he is more comfortable viewing clothes and important items in person. However, he frequently shops online as well for a wider selection of items and because it saves time.

·       Post-purchase evaluation. 

o   When trying to figure out if a purchase was a good idea, Alex tends to look at how close the product is to what he was looking for or if it even exceeded his standards.

Interview #3 – Celeste

·       Alternative Evaluation

o   Celeste, just like Alex and Josh, focuses on price when making purchasing decisions, however far less intensely. Celeste is more flexible when it comes to these decisions if the quality and style of a produce seem worthwhile.

·       How/Where do they buy?

o   Celeste likes to online shop and shop in stores. Both of them, in her opinion, are fun activities and it really just depends on what it is that she is looking for.

·       Post-purchase evaluation. 

o   Celeste relates her post-purchase evaluation specifically to her experiences in clothes. If clothes she bought online look identical to what she saw on the websites and on the models, and they were of good quality and fit, she was always happy with her purchase.

Draw conclusions. In Summation, it is clear that as far as alternative evaluation goes, price matters to the majority of my segment. College students are more frugal because tuition and the cost of living is expensive for a full time student with a part time job. With this being said, there is a little flexibility with price if the product is useful and high quality. All of the individuals in my segment are also interested in shopping online, which is very common of people in this specific age range due to developing technology. When determining if a purchase was a good decision, all of the individuals are fixated on essentially getting their money’s worth. They consider if the product was what they were seeking out or if it went above their expectations.