Question

Most differences in how consumer purchases are made and how businesses and institutions make purchases have been covered, but I think impulse buying can be a large differentiator. There are a lot of consumers out there who take their time and go through the steps of a buyer's decision process, but in reality, there are also consumers who make split or last second decisions to purchase a product or service. Products may be placed strategically near a cashier to entice a consumer to make a quick decision to purchase, while businesses don't have to deal with these temptations. The marketing strategy to an individual can be completely different from that of an organization or institution, and because of that, the buying processes are affected.

From a business or institutional level, all purchases are formally decided on through a more structured process by a group of individuals. An organizational buying process comes in the form of problem-solving, but in the case of impulse buying, consumers might not have a valid reason for the purchase. I believe that having multiple people involved in the purchasing decision process is a great model. Imagine if that consumer who falls for the impulse buy was with their parents rather than alone. The result might be different if the individual had someone to consult with regarding their purchase decision.

Please respond in over 100 words

Answer 1

I agree, consultation leads to better decisions, that's why all these major companies and institutions have a "team" for everything. When we rely on one person the whole decision could be affected by that person's instinctive desire but when there are several people, contradictions are seen and better decisions are produced.

Similarly, if that individual had her parents with her, they would have stopped her from buying that impulsively and would have asked her about the need of it. This interrogation process is not very pleasant most of the times and may lead to mental irritation in that individual but it pays off a big amount of money later.

A process of discussion leads to result which are more rational and strategic than impulsive.