Comments for Consumer Behaviour

Comment on Why Market Researchers Shouldn’t Read Consumer.ology by Philip Graves

Philip Graves — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:56:25 +0000

@Philip Graves How curious to be having a conversation with my namesake!
Thank you for pointing out the depth of astrology, it is far greater than I had imagined and, quite possibly, similar in extent to that of market research.

However, I think it’s vital to distinguish between longevity of tradition or extent of coverage and validity. Should we still subscribe to the Greek gods because they endured for several thousand years? Does the vast amount of Christian literature prove the existence of God? Clearly not.

Science has often been found to be barking up the wrong tree: the clear distinction to be made is the willingness to consider all evidence and revise perspectives accordingly. As human beings one could argue that we’re naturally somewhat disinclined to scientific thinking, but highly adept at pseudoscience: the vast quantity of complete hooey that people have and continue to believe in is testimony to this. (Accepting this last sentence depends entirely on whether you see it as an attack on one’s own beliefs or consider it in terms of the stuff other people subscribe to but you don’t).

Comment on Why Market Researchers Shouldn’t Read Consumer.ology by Philip Graves

Philip Graves — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 21:56:37 +0000

There have been numerous astrological journals since the Astrologer’s Magazine and Philosophical Miscellany edited by Charles Lemoine from around 1793. Most were short-lived until 1890, when Alan Leo and Frederick Lacey launched their own Astrologers’ Magazine, which ran as a monthly for five years before changing its name to ‘Modern Astrology’ and then continued to appear monthly until the 1930s, and latterly bimonthly until a few years into World War II. Since the early 1980s, there has been a peer-reviewed astrological journal dedicated to statistical research into astrology, “Correlation”. The historical literature on astrology is vast, and most of it very serious intellectually. Yes, some astrologers sell forecasts, but in printed periodical form that is not the essential function of astrological journals so much as that of almanacs, which are an even older tradition than astrological magazines, although much narrower in their focus.

Comment on Playing with Market Research by Simon Thorne

Simon Thorne — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:35:54 +0000

I am right in the middle of exams at the moment and have been reading a lot on decision making. I really enjoy reading about all the anomalies between what people think and what they do, and especially why they think they did something! It’s all very interesting.

Do you think it is possible that many decisions are made on the basis of how easy they will be to rationalise in the future? The obvious method being introduce an inferior option to make the other look better, or in apples case always bringing out things in 3′s, making it easy to choose the middle option, although apple is probably a bad example for that… I would love to investigate whether or not purchases are ‘partly rationalised’ and depending on how easy it is to rationalise that will lead to a purchase, because they can justify their actions later. If only there was a way to actually hear what was going on in a persons brain while shopping.

Out of interest do you have any plans to release any more books in the future?

Simon Thorne

Comment on Dell Finally Convert me to Apple by Great_ape

Great_ape — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:05:29 +0000

An example of experience is the product!

Comment on Charity Begins at Home by Philip Graves

Philip Graves — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 13:00:31 +0000

Don’t get me wrong, I think many charity shops do a great job and they play a positive role in our High Streets, particularly in terms of helping to recycle products that would otherwise end up in landfill.

As you suggest, if entrepreneurs can be creative enough they can find niches, but small retailers really don’t enjoy the level playing field that they should.

And as long as they’re there, I’m sure the steady stream of board games that my children enjoy will continue to arrive in my house thanks to my wife’s keen eye for a bargain.

Comment on Charity Begins at Home by Simon Thorne

Simon Thorne — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 20:45:54 +0000

An interesting point of view. I do agree with what you said, it is all very nice to be charitable, but can we afford to be right now. High Streets have became bare. Where i live in Bangor several shops have closed down and been replaced by charity shops (and we had alot to start). There has also been some innovative use of the shops though, a new cafe selling halal meats, very good in bangor as although its small and out of the way is one of the most multi-cultural places ive ever been. As well as this we have a chinese super market, and several new small business’ opening.

The shops targeting the foreign students at bangor i think has some life in them, its something that has been missing in bangor and has been filled. The new shops that have opened however, a hair emporium, a gadget shop, a few other cafes, i feel they’re destined to fail. Maybe if they were given similar benefits they would have a greater chance of surviving. More people would be willing to take the risk if they were offered such benefits too, which could lead to kick-starting the economy.

For now though, I think i may just be using that charity shop, hard times being a student…

Comment on Amazon Test New Website Design by Philip Graves

Philip Graves — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 12:05:31 +0000

Thanks Simon… it’s a fascinating challenge asking people to consider the quality of their experiments/ market research: all the ‘irrational’ drivers of consumer behaviour are present in people’s decisions to use flawed research methods in business (social proof, loss aversion, habit…). Good luck with your course, I think you’ve chosen an area that’s going to be booming in the next few decades… at least, it should be very much in demand!

Philip
P.S. All Amazon reviews greatly appreciated!

Comment on Amazon Test New Website Design by Simon Thorne

Simon Thorne — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:24:52 +0000

@Philip Graves I really have enjoyed your book consumer.ology, having just started a masters in consumer psychology with business I am noticing already how often I urge people to stop and think if they are really testing what they want to. Everybody knows they want their experiments to be valid in the real world, but when the criteria for judging such validity is flawed... Thanks to your book i have learnt to question "answers" alot more. As it seems amazon have done too, and will be all the more profitable for it.

Comment on Amazon Test New Website Design by Philip Graves

Philip Graves — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 08:37:35 +0000

I can see the role of both but in my view a split test, particularly when you have the scale of Amazon, will provide answers to usability also. If one side of the test has significantly different proportions of people buying a particular product than the other side, and if conversion is different, you can easily extrapolate where usability issues may exist. However, when people are primed to conduct a particular shopping exercise for a usability study there is no guarantee that they are in the same frame of mind as they would be when shopping outside of that artificial context: people may be more determined, for example, so as not to look foolish and ‘fail’ at the test; or they may give up more quickly because they have no real need to locate the product.

Additionally, usability isn’t static. How do you replicate the real-world effect of people trying once, giving up, returning through habit and then either succeeding or failing again? And how many iterations do you presume is reasonable before you conclude people haven’t adapted quickly enough? A live trial with a split test answers these questions with no artificial context.

Comment on Amazon Test New Website Design by Frank

Frank — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 13:58:03 +0000

Hopefully at this point they’re only testing the revenue implications and not the usability. Online they have no idea of what you came to the website to do, versus a usability test where the tasks are assigned and the ability of a visitor to complete the test is the criterion.