Introduction
The purpose of this project is to help you relate consumer behavior principles to your own consumption experiences and enhance your self-knowledge and understanding of your behavior in the marketplace. This assignment enables you to not only observe and record your own consumption experiences, but also analyze the factors which might be influencing your buying decisions.
Directions
Each student is required to keep a Personal Consumption Journal of all purchases of products and services for the next two weeks. The weekly entries in your journal should include the following factors:
Date of purchase and time of day
Where you shopped (type of store/non-store)
Number of stores/web sites you visited
Items purchased
Brand names
Total amount spent Cash? Charge? Other?
For whom the items were purchased Self? Others?
Was it a planned purchase? Impulse purchase?
Sources of information related to the purchases
Was someone with you at the time of purchase? Did they influence your buying?
Role of sales people, advertising, coupons, sales, etc.
How satisfied you were with your choices?
Any other significant information related to the purchase
Review your list of products and services you purchased during the two-week period and select at least 6 of your larger purchases which best portray your personality, values, and lifestyle.
Using consumer behavior theory and principles, prepare a 3 page report in which you analyze the influences that led you to your purchase decisions. Specifically, examine personality, family, peer, cultural, lifestyle, situational and demographic influences that led you to your purchases.
Your written report for this project should include your Personal Consumption Journal and your analysis of your buying behavior.
