Blog Post #15: Assignment 15A - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

For this assignment, I interviewed my 21 year-old neighbor with anxiety issues, a 58 year-old man suffering from severe arthritis, and a 30 year-old woman that deals with depression.

1. In my first interview with my 21 year-old neighbor that deals with anxiety issues, I learned a great deal. I found that the price of the items she purchased typically played a large role in her purchasing decisions because, considering she is a typical, broke, college student, she cannot afford to pay the higher prices of higher quality products. However, she claims that she gets the same benefits from all products, so the quality and style of the products don't matter a lot to her. I also learned that, since she is from the younger generation, she more often than not makes her purchases online and uses her debit card to pay for it. In regards to her post-purchase evaluation, she makes her assessment entirely on how much the product reduces her anxiety. If she feels more relaxed after smoking or ingesting the product than before, then she will think that the purchase was a good idea. Therefore, if the product fails to reduce her anxiety, then she will believe the purchase was a bad idea. 
2. In my second interview with the 58 year-old man suffering from severe arthritis, that resulted in a lot of pain, I also discovered a lot of great information. I learned that the style of the product was the most important aspect in his alternative evaluation. He always preferred to use ingestible products, such as edibles, rather than use products that he would have to smoke and inhale because he coughed a lot when ever he would smoke. Quality was also quite important to him in that he preferred higher quality products rather than the lower quality, cheaper ones because he could afford them. Since he is of the older generation and prefers old-fashioned ways of shopping, he usually makes his purchases in a store and uses cash. However, as he has gotten older and his arthritis has worsened, he has been less able to go to the stores in person. For his post-purchase evaluation, he knows he made good purchase if his pain from the arthritis is decreased and if he enjoys the taste of the product he ingests. If he is still in a great deal of pain after using the product or doesn't enjoy the taste of it, he considers the purchase a bad idea. 
3. For my final interview, I talked to a 30 year-old woman that deals with depression. I learned that when she conducts her alternative evaluation, the most important aspect to her is the quality of the products. Since she can afford higher quality products, she prefers to purchase those instead of the cheaper, lower quality products that do not have as much of a positive effect on her depression. Therefore, price is not a very important aspect to since she can afford to spend more money on expensive products. She also doesn't have a preference on the style of the products, so that aspect is not very important to her either. When she makes her purchases, she prefers to do it online and pay with her debit card as a way of keeping her purchasing habits discrete. In her post-purchase evaluation, she knows she made a good purchase if she feels happier after using her product. 

After conducting my interviews, I learned that the younger generations prefer to make purchases online and use debit or credit cards while older customers prefer using cash and making their purchases in the stores. I also learned that, for the younger customers, price is the most important aspect when making a purchasing while the quality and style of the products aren't as important. However, as the customers get older, price begins to become less important while the quality and style of the products become more important. I will definitely take all of this into account when considering my service.