A free mini course. Twenty-three lessons on the customer: who they are, why they buy, what shapes the decision and how a relationship is built and kept. Work through them in order, or take the section you need — every lesson stands on its own, and many have an exercise and a worked answer. There is nothing to enrol in, no sign-up and nothing to pay. This is a route through the archive rather than all of it, so each section links on to everything else we have on that subject.
Looking for a certificate? The paid courses are separate, and assessed.
1. Understanding the Customer
Who a customer actually is, and the different kinds a business deals with.
2. Why People Buy
The starting point for consumer behaviour: what drives a purchase.
3. What Shapes Buying Behaviour
The internal factors that influence how a person decides.
- Internal Influences – Personality
- Internal Influences – Motivation
- Internal Influences – Emotion and Perception
- Internal Influences – Learning
- Internal Influences – Lifestyle and Attitude
- Internal Influences – Memory
4. Situational Influences on Buying
How the moment itself — time, place and mood — changes a buying decision.
- Consumer Behavior: Situational Influences
- Consumer Behavior: Atmospherics
- Consumer Behavior: Online Shopping
- Consumer Behavior: Eating Habits
- Consumer Behaviour and Time
5. Segments and Generations
Grouping customers by demographics and generational experience.
- Segmentation, Demographics and Behavior
- Segmenting Publics in America
- The Six Living Generations in America
- Baby Boomers in America
- Generation X in America
- Generation Alpha
6. Building Customer Relationships
Moving from a single sale to an ongoing relationship.
More on relationship marketing
Finished? Try the exercises. Most lessons above have a practice question and a worked answer, and the answers show the reasoning rather than just the conclusion.
The other free mini courses: Traditional Marketing · Digital and Social Media · Business and Organisations · Strategy and Analytics.
What’s next? Three certificated courses are live — Foundations of Marketing, Foundations of Social Media Marketing and Marketing Planning. See all courses. A course on customer and consumer behaviour is in development.