Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No.2

Report findings and draw conclusions:

I interviewed three more UF students who live in Florida, but not in Gainesville. While I only interviewed UF students, this segment consists of any college student who has to travel a long distance from their home to school, during breaks, holidays, etc. I learned that my product is better done as an attachment rather than a replacement, so long as it is simple to install.

In my first interview I talked to Christian. He said that the quality of the seat belt attachment really is based on the comfort it provides, and that it doesn't need a particular style. He did however, make me think that it should probably have various color schemes for different vehicle interiors, or just for different individuals' tastes. He also does most of his shopping online already, because he is lazy and tends not to go out. While this is more of a personal scenario, I believe that my product isn't one that people find in stores, but something that is marketed online on its own, or through vehicle modification retailers.

In the second interview, I also learned that quality of material is more important, as well as style, over price. The interviewee, Jessica, said that if she were to add a modification to her vehicle, it is more important that it looks like it belongs, rather than be cheap and ugly. If she were to buy it, she would base whether it was a good purchase on how often the product was used, and this would be closely correlated to its quality as well as style.

In my last interview I spoke with another business student, David. We mainly focused on the subject of where my product will be sold, and how customers will find it. While my first thoughts were that online sales would be the only way to get my product to customers, as it is easier, cheaper, and more widely used by people looking for car accessories, he led me to believe that there may also be a possibility selling in auto part and repair shops, even if it may only be to get the idea to spread.

As a whole, interviewing this segment opened my eyes to all the different factors that come into play when designing a product. It must be fairly simple to install, so that people who order it online can just do it themselves at home. There have to be different styles to adhere to multiple tastes and car designs. Online shopping is definitely the easier way to go, but I shouldn't rule out in person sales, which could be useful in getting the product out there at the beginning. And when these buyers look back to see whether it was a good purchase or not, they look mainly to how much it is used, and so quality and comfort is most important, while the product must also remain affordable for what it is.