Consumer Behaviour: The Rise of Frozen Yogurt

In order for a business to be successful, they must understand what affects a customer’s decision whether or not to buy a product. This process is known as understanding Consumer Behaviour. Consumer Behaviour can be defined as the cultural, social, and personal factors, as well as personal memories and perceptions that affect a buyer’s decision.  An example of this is the recent emergence of frozen yogurt in Canada. In the past two years, over 12 million servings of frozen yogurt have been purchased. Recently companies such as Menchie’s and Yogurty’s are opening stores in Canada. It is interesting to see how each company has created their business plan based on consumer behaviour.  Frozen yogurt is a new, popular, and trendy product. Menchie’s capitalizes on this social factor by posting photos of celebrities eating their product all throughout the store. It is important for Menchie’s to remind their customers that eating frozen yogurt is cool. Yogurty’s has changed their strategy based on personal memories and perceptions. Yogurty’s is owned by Yogen Fruz, but does not associate themselves with them.  This is because frozen yogurt is supposed to be a new craze. If Yogurty’s had included Yogen Fruz in their title, customers would have had preconceptions that Yogurty’s was old, and not trendy. In my opinion, understanding consumer behaviour is essential when developing business strategies and business plans.