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Situational Influence: Advantageous if Perfected

This week in Consumer Behavior we covered the topics of situational influence and problem recognition, which covers situations of purchase, and the first step in the decision making process. More specifically, I took a liking to the topic of situational influence, and how purchase situation, which has nothing to do with the consumer themselves, can have such a big impact a consumers ultimate decision to buy.

The situation a consumer finds themselves in even before they walk into a physical retail store can have an impact on their purchase decisions. Situational influence is defined as the factors particular to a time and place that have an effect on current behavior, yet do not follow from the knowledge of the stable attributes of the consumer. Breaking this down into layman’s terms, situational influence is all the components of a situation that will impact a consumers perceptions of products, attitudes, behavior, and purchase intentions. Situational factors can include many aspects of a product, including the brands communications, the physical purchase process, use of the product, and final disposal. In addition to this, the characteristics of the situation also come into play at the beginning stages of the decision process.

Physical Surroundings

What I found most interesting about situational influence is the characteristics of physical surroundings that brands and companies use to leverage purchases. Brands can use specific and tailored physical surroundings to make their stores look more inviting, and create specific emotions and feelings in shoppers to create cues or reinforcement effects when purchasing. All the physical aspects of the store, including layout, lighting, merchandise, presentation, colors, sounds, aromas, facade, dress and behavior of sales personnel, and decor can produce and elicit emotional feelings, which ultimately has an effect on propensity to buy from the store.

Using Physical Surroundings to your Advantage: Starbucks


Image result for starbucks coffeeStarbucks does a phenomenal job of using their physical surroundings to their advantage, to influence the consumer to increase their purchase intentions. Aside from the situation, a consumer choosing to go to Starbucks values their status and wants to promote an ideal image to society, and Starbucks plays off this in their stores. From the facade of the store they create a sophisticated and modern outer building with simplistic design. Inside the store you are greeted with the powerful smell of freshly brewed coffee and baked goods. The colors, design, fixtures, music, and furniture inside the store reflects an overall mood of style, simplicity, and freshness. In combination with this the store associates greet you kindly and carry the theme of modern simplicity and a sense of higher value in their attire and communication. They always try to make your visit as pleasant as possible…and who could forget…they even write your name on the cup! How special! Starbucks tries to create an atmosphere that draws in its target audience of status conscious consumers. The physical surroundings in the store combine to alter the mood responses of shoppers…and I believe they are doing a darn good job. Starbucks is successful at marketing more than just a product, they sell an experience.

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