A purchase situation is regarded as one of the most critical issues that affect consumer behavior. This situation involves a range of contextual factors that shape antecedent states and purchase environment. The decisions that are made by consumers may change rapidly since contextual factors are numerous and cannot be fully anticipated. Nevertheless, the awareness of usage contexts, social issues, time constraints and mood increases the opportunity for matching customers and their desired products.
Speaking of antecedent states, it is important to note that mood and consumption situations impact consumers’ choices. Solomon et al. (2012) identified a set of emotional states, of which arousal and pleasure are the most pronounced since they identify the outcome of consumer decisions; either positive or negative regarding a product or service. For example, if a consumer is excited by a street festival, he or she will be more likely to visit a store with masks and gifts, but if the same event causes distress, the outcome would be the opposite. In addition, mood can be impacted by the store design, colors, marketing strategies, staff responsiveness, and so on (Solomon et al., 2012). In case an emotional appeal was stimulated by advertising through the media, a client visiting the store and hearing the music from the advertising would become more pleased. Accordingly, it is a consumption situation that involves the characteristics of the environment and the personal features of consumers.
Along with physical surroundings, social environment is another contextual factor that implies the presence of social underpinnings for making a purchase. For example, a young girl who wants to impress her new boyfriend can buy more cosmetics and dresses. In this connection, the concept of context can be understood as a set of factors that can inform and shift the process and result of decision-making (Thomadsen et al., 2018). The above example shows that social factors can change the incentives of shopping as it is evident that the mentioned girl might not buy the items without the need to impress her partner. The presence or absence of co-consumers can significantly alter purchase motives: usually, the presence of many people in a store causes arousal, which can be evaluated by some clients as a positive feature, while others would prefer leaving the crowded place. To better predict consumer behaviors, it is possible to focus on a specific product or target audience (Myers and Sar, 2015). For instance, generation Y is interested in supporting brands, such as Amazon, Google and Starbucks, largely preferring online purchases.
Time constraints compose one more category of situational factors that are taken into account by consumers, either deliberately or unconsciously. The perceptions of time and priorities that are set by people identify their time styles that integrate past orientation, future coordination, economic time and time anxiety (Foxall, 2016). For example, the significance a person attaches to the past, present and future purchasing intents determine the period he or she would buy products. Some people may treat their time for shopping as a methodical procedure that requires analytical skills and may cause pressure (Foxall, 2017). Others tend to approach shopping as a river, being spontaneous in their decisions and having a focus on the present. Impulsive purchasing is characteristic of the latter category of clients, which is useful to select and design relevant marketing strategies. Time poverty appears when consumers feel that they are pressed by time, which is mainly the perceived inability to consider all the alternatives (Solomon et al., 2012). Such a trend increases the responsiveness of consumers to innovations that help in saving time.
To conclude, the contextual factors that impact consumer choices include mood, physical and social environment, as well as time constraints. The in-depth understanding of these factors allows for anticipating and meeting consumer behaviors. Depending on their mood, time perceptions and environmental factors, consumers are likely to buy one or another product, which shapes a specific context. The antecedent states involve the disposition towards shopping and emotional condition, while the factor of time assists in understanding the number of efforts and time a consumer would spend to make a purchase. By considering the discussed factors in combination, it is possible to increase consumer satisfaction and achieve higher sales and product loyalty.
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