Consumer purchasing patterns refers to the buying behavior of the ultimate consumer. Many characteristics, factors, and specificities influence a person’s decision-making process, purchasing behaviors, shopping habits, the retailers they go to, and the brands they purchase. A purchase decision is the overall result of each one of these factors.
Consumers are led by things like their social class, their culture, their sub-culture, the groups they belong to, their personality, their family and friends, social and psychological factors, etc. Not only that, but consumers are also influenced by things like cultural trends as well as their societal and social environment.
Businesses who can identify and understand the factors that influence customer decisions are much more likely to be successful. These businesses will be able to create a marketing message, strategy, and advertising campaigns that are more in line with the needs and wants of their target customers. All of this can help a business to increase sales and revenue.
If you want to learn more about consumer behavior, consumer purchasing patterns, and how applied statistics can help you increase your sales and make your business more successful, then keep reading below:
Why Businesses Should Analyze Customer Behavior
Most of us know our best friends pretty well, what they like, dislike, where they choose to shop, what brands they like and why. We may even be able to predict what our friends will buy from a shop before they even step foot inside. This comes in handy when it comes to buying them a birthday gift or a Christmas present. Well, wouldn’t it be brilliant if you knew your customers this well too? While this goal may not seem achievable, analyzing customer behavior and data is a great place to start.
Customer behavior will not tell you who is shopping in your business, but instead how and why they are shopping in your store. It looks at things like which products they choose, how often they shop, whether they like your promotions and marketing ideas and whether they are happy with the service you have provided. Knowing all of this information helps businesses to communicate better with their customers.
The Processes Involved in Consumer Purchasing
Consumer purchasing patterns refers to the selection, purchase, and consumption of goods or services that fulfill the consumer’s wants and needs. There are several different processes involved in consumer purchasing.
Initially, consumers will try and find what they would like to consume. Then the consumer will select only the products that promise greater utility. After selecting the commodities, the consumer will work out which item is the best value for money (or which one they can afford). Finally, the individual will analyze the commodities and prices and decide on which one they will choose.
Although this is the basic process that every consumer will follow, several other factors may influence their decision making. These include:
- Their culture – this includes their sub-culture and social class
- Their economic status – this includes their income, their family income, liquid assets, etc.
- Psychological factors – this may include the opinion of others, the type of education they have had, their attitude, and beliefs, etc.
- Social factors – this can include their role and status, their family, and friends
- Personal factors – this factor includes their age, their occupation, their income, their lifestyle, and their personality
A customer or consumer will take all these things into account before purchasing a product.
Data Can Unlock Consumer Purchasing Patterns
Thanks to technology’s increasing influence on our lives, it is now easier than ever to collect data on customer habits, needs, and wants. Web analytics and other types of data are a treasure trove of useful information for marketers looking to increase their customer base.
Marketing is now much more customer-centric than it once used to be, and success is often measured by a brand’s ability to connect with a target audience. Thanks to this, many marketers are turning to data-driven strategies such as applied statistics to help understand their customer base better.
What is Applied Statistics?
Applied statistics is the core of data analysis. The practice of applied statistics entails analyzing data to determine a business’s needs. Businesses now have access to much more big data than they used to. However, this data is often hard to understand. Many businesses rely on professionals who have applied statistics knowledge to help them make sense of the data they gather. These professionals also help them to spot trends in the market and solve real-world problems.
Research has shown that businesses who properly analyze their data are much more likely to be profitable and efficient. Not only that, but the data collected can also be used by nonprofits, government agencies, and other organizations to collect important demographic information, prevent disease, steer political campaigns, and test potential life-saving pharmaceutical products.
Understanding the Data in Your Business
If you want your business to be successful, then you will need to take advantage of the data you have collected about your customers. One of the main sources of that data is the purchases they have made. Basically, we know that a customer has already bought something from you, you just need to know why they chose to buy the product they did. When someone makes a purchase, you know:
- What time they made the purchase
- What day they made the purchase
- What items they chose to buy
- How much money they spent
- Whether they used discount codes
- What discounts they used
- Where they live
Breaking all this information down into smaller chunks makes it easier to find patterns in consumer purchasing. Once you have collected all this information and you have analyzed it, you will be able to work out how to market your products to your customers and how to reach them.
Data is Increasing at an Extremely Fast Rate
Lots of businesses find it hard to apply and use statistics, particularly as the amount of data we have only seemed to keep growing, In the last two years alone, over 90% of the world’s data has been collected, and this pace does not seem to be slowing down. In fact, evidence suggests that this number is only increasing. If we look at the rate of data created each minute in the world, we find that 16 million texts are sent and over 46,740 pictures are posted on Instagram. So, it is no wonder that the demand for professionals who work in fields like data science, applied statistics, and data analytics has increased over the last few years.
3 Reasons Why Businesses Should Use Analyze Data
Applied statistics will not only tell you what products are popular, but it will also help you in several other ways. Here are some of the reasons why businesses should use applied statistics:
- Content optimization – the data you have collected from your statistics will help you to optimize your marketing campaigns. Not only will you be able to target your products to the right customers, but you will also be able to engage with them on their preferred channel. Not only that, but it will also allow you to ensure that the content you release is delivered at the most optimal timing.
- Content personalization – there is a growing need for businesses to produce personalized content that is unique to each of their customers. Almost 41% of consumers said they had moved to a different company last year due to inadequate personalization.
- Customer retention – although it is important to attract loyal customers, it is also important to retain them. Many consumers will start looking elsewhere if you do not understand their wants and needs, engage with them, or acknowledge them.
Applied Statistics and Predicting Consumer Purchasing Patterns
One of the main foundations of applied statistics is found in probability. The goal of analyzing statistics is to find patterns and then use these patterns to predict. These patterns are told by statistical data you hear in everyday life such as:
- Financial markets
- Weather reports
If we take weather data for an example, evidence has suggested that the weather can impact people in a range of ways. From our activity levels to our mood and even to the choices we make, the weather is a compelling force. Businesses can use the data collected by a weather application programming interface to predict customer behavior. They will be able to use the data they have collected to find out how different weather conditions affect consumer purchasing patterns.
Of course, there are some obvious ways that weather can affect a business, such as consumers stocking up on essentials such as milk or bread before a storm, but this is not the only way that weather can affect a business. Weather data can also be used to affect business outcomes. For example:
- Staffing allocations
- Inventory planning
- Targeted marketing
- Production strategy
- Supply chain development
Businesses can use the data they collect to improve the performance and efficiency of their business. If you want to know more about how weather data can affect a business’s outcome, then click here.
One of the most important things to consider when running a business is the factors that influence consumer behavior. In other words, the elements that affect your customers’ buying decisions. Applied statistics can help businesses to unlock the secrets of consumer purchasing patterns. Businesses rely on data scientists and statisticians to analyze data and predict future trends. By studying available data, statisticians apply predictive modeling methods to systematically anticipate outcomes.