Issues relating to purchase and post purchase behaviour

Abstract

Consumer is the king and it is the consumer who determines what a business is. The wealth of products and services produced in a country make our economy strong. Almost all the products have a number of alternative supplies and the consumer should make a decision to buy products of a particular brand. Consumers make two types of purchases. Trial purchase and repeat purchases. If a consumer is induced to purchase for the first time, a smaller quantity than usual and with certain degree of hesitancy, it is termed as a product trial. In any event, the trial is the base of purchase behavior where intention is to evaluate a product through trial. On the other hand repeat purchase indicates the commitment on the part of the consumer towards the product, company and others. The purchase process marks the recognition of actual purchasing environment and its effect on the process. This is the stage where mental evaluation is translated into purchase activity at the point of purchase. The act of purchase can be affected by many factors. Time, mood, shopping experience, sales persons effectiveness, etc. But the consumer satisfaction is determined by the person’s overall feeling toward the product after purchase. Satisfaction is often determined by the degree to which a product’s performance is consistent with the consumer’s prior expectations of how well it will function. Product may be introduced by consumers into secondary markets during a process of lateral cycling. The purchase and post purchase are the last two stages of consumer decision making.While the purchase stage is more crucial from the manufacturers or marketer’s perspective, the post purchase behavior indicates the ultimate satisfaction perceived by consumers and has implications for marketers as a determinant of future purchase decisions.