Understanding Customer Behavior and Classification

Posted on Nov 1, 2025 in Business Administration and Management (BAM)

What is a Customer?

A customer is any individual or entity that purchases goods or services from another, either occasionally or regularly. The customer is at the core of any commercial activity, as there can be no sales, revenue, or viable business without them.

In marketing and customer service, a customer is considered not only a buyer but also someone who expects a satisfying experience, appropriate service, and added value for their choice.

Customer vs. Consumer Distinction

The customer does not have to be the same person as the consumer. The consumer is the person who satisfies their needs through a particular good (or the user, if it is through a service).

Example: The customer (buyer) purchases the product, while the consumer (user) is the one who ultimately uses or consumes it.

Customer Classification

Classification by Relationship with the Company

  • Internal Customers: Employees or departments within the organization that receive services from others.
  • External Customers: Those who purchase goods or services from outside the company (the end consumers).

Classification by Type of Purchase

  • Individual/Private Customers: Buy for personal use.
  • Corporate/Business Customers: Purchase on behalf of a company or institution, either for resale or operational use.

Stages of the Buying Process According to Kotler

  1. Need Recognition
  2. Information Search
  3. Evaluation of Alternatives
  4. Purchase Decision
  5. Post-Purchase Behavior

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Motivation

Understanding customer motivation often relates to satisfying fundamental human needs, typically categorized as follows (from highest to lowest level):

  1. Self-Actualization: Desire to become the most that one can be.
  2. Esteem: Respect, self-esteem, status, recognition, strength, freedom.
  3. Love and Belonging: Friendship, intimacy, family, sense of connection.
  4. Safety Needs: Personal security, employment, resources, health, property.
  5. Physiological Needs: Air, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing, reproduction.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is a technological tool that helps companies manage and optimize all interactions with their current and potential customers. Its main goal is clear: to strengthen business relationships, increase customer satisfaction, and improve profitability.

Key Factors Influencing Customer Buying Behavior

Understanding the decision-making process requires analyzing various factors that shape how and why customers purchase goods or services. These factors are typically grouped into three main categories:

1. Personal Factors

Characteristics specific to the situation in which a person finds themselves at a given time when acquiring a good or service.

  • Age: Whether the customer is young, an adult, elderly, a child, or a baby, their buying behavior will differ.
  • Gender: Men and women often do not buy in the same way or the same things.
  • Marital Status: Being single, married, or widowed influences purchasing decisions.
  • Socioeconomic Level/Lifestyle: Economic capacity and social status shape consumption patterns. The middle/upper class does not consume the same as the working class.
  • Cultural Level: A customer’s knowledge and education level allow them to process information, influencing how they meet their needs.

2. Psychological Factors

Internal aspects of the individual that shape the way they think and perceive reality.

  • Motivations: These are the reasons a customer has for purchasing a product. There are as many motivations as there are needs.
  • Personality: The set of traits and qualities that determine how a person acts, behaves, and understands reality. An introverted person will have different needs than a very sociable one.
  • Perception: The interpretation made of nearby reality. Two people may perceive the same event in different ways.
  • Learning: Refers to changes in customer behavior as a result of previous experience.
  • Beliefs: Relates to preconceived ideas customers have about a product, brand, or technology. These are shaped by experiences accumulated and internalized over time.

3. Cultural or Social Factors

External aspects to the individual. Everything surrounding a person influences their behavior and consumption.

  • Family: The social group with which the closest relationships are maintained and which shapes the individual from birth.
  • Environment: Friends, work environment, neighbors, etc., influence the person and thus their consumption habits.
  • Social Groups: They are key in shaping consumption habits, whether by belonging to them and adopting their values, or by wishing to imitate them or differentiate from them.
  • Role: The function a person plays within a social group. It is not the same to be a leader as it is to be just another member.