Health Choice, a concept of the future - Guiding customers towards healthier alternatives
Healthy varietiesPoint of purchaseMarkingsSignsBuying behaviourManagement of enterprisesFöretagsledningManagementBusiness and Economics
Purpose: To find out in what ways signs of healthier varieties in store, affect and possible change, customer behaviour. Methodology: The study has a positivistic view on the world. The research is conducted by an abductive approach using theory and empirical data alternately. Both quantitative and qualitative methods have been adopted in order to see changes in customer behaviour as well as explain it. Theoretical perspective: The study is based upon theories in the areas of customer behaviour (buying behaviour and decision making) and the store environment that could affect that behaviour (total merchandise process and point of purchase communication). The theoretical chapter is summarised with a modified AIDA-model. Empirical foundation: By using a quantitative method (sales data) we aimed to find out whether or not our signs affected the customers behaviour. With qualitative methods (customer interviews and observations) we aimed to strengthen the data from the quantitative method as well as to explore the meaning of the customers? behaviour. Conclusions: By putting forward four products as a healthier alternative in the bread section, we succeeded in increasing the sale of three of them. We did not change the customers? behaviour from choosing ?unhealthy bread? to instead choosing a ?healthy bread?. We did however change some people?s behaviour from buying one ?healthy bread? to another also ?healthy bread?. There is a big interest for health and markings of healthier alternatives, but customers buy bread because of taste, and not just because of the healthiness. We found that it is easier to influence younger people (since they often have a few breads they chose between) than elderly (which buy the same bread out of habit). Some people are not available for receiving an external stimulus in the store, since they are ?bound? to another product (for example buying a product for someone else or because of satisfied habit).