Before we explore the role of consumer learning in consumer behaviour, let us first understand the concept of “consumer behaviour”.

Consumer Behaviour Decision Making

Consumer behaviour decision-making is the process of how consumers behave while making decisions about what to buy, when to buy it, and how to buy. It attempts to understand how consumers’ attitudes, emotions and choices affect their buying patterns. Consumer behaviour today uses many ideas from different sources such as economics, psychology and sociology.

Consumer behaviour can be difficult to predict due to the number of variables that can affect a buyer’s decision. However, new research methods such as machine learning, consumer neuroscience, and ethnographic studies are helping marketeers better understand consumer behaviour.

Determinants Of Consumer Behaviour

Consumer behaviour is determined by several factors which can influence the customer at various levels. These factors are not linear, nor are they all mutually inclusive.

The five key determinants of consumer behaviour are:

1. Psychological factors: These can include motivation, perception, attitudes and beliefs
2. Economic factors: Such as current and potential income, credit worthiness, liquid assets available and savings
3. Social factors: These include reference groups, family and friends, social status and role in society
4. Personal factors: These are factors such as age, income, occupation and lifestyle
5. Cultural factors: These include values, subcultures and the social class of the customer

A graphic to summarise these determinants of consumer behaviour is as follows:

Why does a marketer need to understand consumer behaviour?

A consumer – whether in a B2C segment or B2B segment – goes through a “funnel” to find a solution to their marketing problem or pain point. This funnel takes the consumer through various stages of awareness, interest, consideration, intent and evaluation before making a purchase decision. This marketing funnel looks like this:

Various marketing and communication tools can be used to drive customers through the funnel all the way to a purchase decision.

The growth of digital marketing has also led to massive growth in the availability of consumer data through multiple touchpoints. These data are used extensively to go beyond the first purchase into repeat buyer intentions, loyalty, referrals and advocacy.

The ability to understand and interpret the processes behind a customer’s purchase decision, or actions at each stage of the funnel presented above, means the difference between getting more revenue or losing business.

It is therefore important for marketers to understand how the consumer behaves at each stage of the funnel to create more effective communications to push them deeper into the funnel.

What is Consumer Learning?

“Consumer Learning” is nothing but the process by which a consumer obtains all the information required to shape their consumer behaviour. It is, in fact, the very basis of consumer behaviour. The knowledge and experience that is acquired during this “learning process” can be applied to future behaviour that can make a related purchase seem almost automatic in its execution. It can also be called “developing the mind’s muscle memory” to progress through the funnel process quickly.

A marketer must understand the elements of consumer learning to understand how and why their customers make the purchase decisions for their products or services.

 The key elements of consumer learning include:

1. Motivation
   1. Motivation is mainly pushed by “unfulfilled desires.”
   2. Motivation helps consumers learn more about a possible solution to their pain points.
2. Cues
   1. These are the stimuli that provide a clear direction to satisfy a motivation to fulfil a desire.
   2. Cues can either be created by a marketeer to influence a consumer or are part of the consumer environment.
3. Response
   1. This is the consumer’s reaction to a cue.
   2. The response is mostly determined by the consumer’s reaction to cues from earlier and similar situations (the “muscle memory” we discussed above)
   3. A skilled marketer can create specific cues to produce the desired consumer response.
4. Reinforcement
   1. This is the “reward” that the consumer receives or enjoys after completing and executing a purchase action.
   2. Although this is a post-purchase event, reinforcement is a very important component of consumer learning as it influences future behaviour.

Theories of consumer learning

Theories or methods of consumer learning are useful in driving awareness, consideration and the purchase of a given product or service.

Although there are as many theories of consumer learning as there are marketers in the industry, two main theories of consumer learning have been used by marketers worldwide:

1. Behavioural Learning
2. Cognitive Learning

We will examine both theories here.

1. Behavioural Learning Theory
   1. This theory is based on the principle that consumers learn by responding or reacting to external stimuli.
   2. These responses can be observed.
   3. This theory proposes that repetition will reinforce the cues, and the consumer will learn to respond to these cues automatically over time.
   4. The association of a reward gained through this type of behaviour is an important aspect of Behavioural Learning Theory.
   5. Also referred to as the “classical conditioning theory”, this approach is very useful in driving awareness and consideration through brand building.
   6. Behavioural Learning techniques can also be used for customer retention, as they don’t have to go through the entire purchase funnel for a repeat purchase.

2. Cognitive Learning Theory
   1. The Cognitive Learning Theory deals with the process of information processing by the human mind
   2. It lays greater importance on the process of collecting, storing and processing facts about the product or service
   3. Several factors can influence a consumer’s ability to use cognitive learning, including, but not limited to:
      1. Familiarity with the information available
      2. Their interest in the information
      3. The relevance of the information available
   4. The Cognitive Learning Theory is ideally applicable at the time of purchase

Marketers should ideally use both theories in a flow to influence and shape the entire consumer decision-making process. Behavioural Learning techniques help to build a brand over time in the consumer’s mind, while Cognitive Learning methods can help produce marketing activities that can push the consumer to a purchase decision.

Conclusion

Marketing teams are often caught up and involved in the day-to-day requirements of routine marketing activities. This leaves them with little or no time to really understand who their customers are and how they arrive at a particular purchase decision.

But if marketers are to really acquire and retain customers, they must understand and implement theories of consumer learning that can help them design, develop and execute marketing strategies and advertising campaigns that drive awareness, consideration and purchase of the product or service.

Finally, the knowledge of how a consumer decides on buying a product can help marketers decide which products should be developed to fulfil a consumer need or even remove a product that does not respond to market requirements.