How to influence consumers buying decisions?

What I have experienced, there are three categories of consumers:

1. Knows precisely what they need--a Sony tv, xyz model (might be due to referrals/personal search/ads/brand loyalty/discounts etc)

2. Coming with some predetermined options-Sony xyz, LG abc and/or Samsung pqr to choose from etc.

3. On spot decision makers with no predefined set of options.

I personally have found that there are only few people in the first category and they mostly adhere to what they have chose.

But, most people belong to 2nd & 3rd subsets & I have observed that a sales persons with good insights such as market/product/competition/customer behavior etc & possessing good communication skills could do wonders, that is what we call 'conversion'.

In my view, exposing consumers to a product can be very challenging considering the amount of competing product messages (ads) that are also trying to accomplish the same objective (i.e., advertising clutter). So marketers must be creative and use various means to deliver their message. Once the message reaches consumer it must be interesting enough to capture their attention.

The five stages before a buying decision by a consumer are

1)unawareness

2)awareness

3)attention

4)perception

5)Action

A marketer designs his marketing action based on these 5 stages. Initialy a consumer may be unaware of the existence of the product. So they advertise etc; then it's visibility is managed in the product where it is displayed like the Aisle in a departmental store. He is guided to this product through colorful displays and eyecatching environment design around the product. Then percepetion of the product is managed by enabling him to feel and test the product for its quality and charecter of functionality and finaly the action of the buying process take place if all the previous four stages are designed properly. Some times promotional processes are initiated to induce action from the consumer.

I think the most powerful and effective medium of influencing potential consumers is existing consumers! I will be much more inclined to buy a particular TV, car, internet connection, mobile phone etc if it has received a strong endorsement from my offline or online networks. The key point here is that potential consumers trust other consumers more than they trust the companies that are selling the products.

In today's age of connectivity, companies need to facilitate the creation of communities around their products. An open and transparent dialogue with consumers, unrestricted reviews, feedback mechanisms all go hand-in-hand in building loyal communities. And loyal communities and brand evangelists tend to be far more influential (and viral) than a commercial starring a leading celebrity.

Buying decision depends upon the need and the economic stretch of the buyer, as a seller we have to understand both of needs and try to supplement with a positive feedback for him to take the things home.

Why do American's are always looked upon as good communicators, its because of their flexibility  and positive frame of mind. Today consumers are aware of the practices being advocated by all firms.

Good quality, integrity, services like rocket singh will make more consumers

Product presentation,atractive packaging will impress customers.

In my opinion, Marketers must continually monitor and respond if their message becomes distorted in ways that will negatively shape its meaning. This can often happen due in part to competitive activity (e.g., comparison advertisements). Finally, getting the consumer to give positive meaning to the message they have retained requires the marketer make sure that consumers accurately interpret the facts about the product.

I think the Best way to Keep Influencing the Minds of the Consumers is only through Constant Innovation & Evolution of Not only the Product but the Marketing Strategies of the company.

Lot of Importance should be given to the Anthropology & Demographic Sensibilities.

As long as you give a consumer value for money spent and communicate the same in a fair manner without tall and exaggerated claims, you will have purchased his loyalty. At the same time you also have to keep reinventing the wheel in terms of giving some good offers or value aded products froms time to time.

This is where a good loyalty program helps. It keeps the customer with you and at the same time rewards him for his perseverence in being loyal to your brand. The customer starts feeling important in the knowledge that his opinions are being rewarded and listened to. Even monthly customer meets in all the towns where your brand operates is also a good way of influencing their buying decisions.

Big Companies are still providing there products at higher cost than the consumer is able to pay which is decreasing there interest to purchase. This is also one of the reason that local producers are gaining pace because customer wants good products and service at low cost which the local manufacturers provide them so we see that customers are more inclined to pay for local products two - three times rather than puchasing originals for one time. So in order to influence the customers buying decision, companies must try to reduce cost of goods and services as well as increase their quality of goods and services.

Inducing a consumer is done always through their EMOTION!

An emotional connect ensures LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT :)) Any product that can connect to the sensibility of the coonsumer with his / her emotion wins my BUYING DECISION all the time!! Good ideation here... All the suggestions are very effective too :)