Dairy purchase behaviors: Increasing understanding of Chinese consumers using a consumer involvement segmentation approach

Understanding consumers' purchase behaviors is fundamental to the success of dairy industry. With its economic importance, Chinese market critical producers in most countries around world. However, understanding consumers this particularly challenging as these often have a different relationship with products elsewhere world, given country's historical dairy-related scandals. This special can be characterized by what consumer behavior researchers call “high involvement,” indicating that attempt reduce level risk associated buying products. Surprisingly, while impacts several important aspects behavior, examination concept involvement sector has not been widely considered. Of note, there no how vary their levels and implications on behaviors. Nor involvement-based insights provided companies position marketing mix suit needs better. Thus, study proposes new approach decisions introducing “consumer involvement” segmentation tool through which individuals' behavioral consequences predicated according profile. Based an online survey administered Shanghai using 1,073 consumers, principal component analysis confirmed multidimensional construct, 4 factors: pleasure value, symbolic probability. A 2-step cluster identified clusters based profile: face-concerned lover, carefree consumer, cautious confused consumer. According one-way ANOVA test cross-tabulation χ2 test, segments behave differently relation extensiveness decision making, cue utilization, trust information sources, consumption behavior. The outcomes paper further explain why measurements aiming restore for do work among some individuals may exhibit diverse attitudes toward such due heterogenous levels. also provides suggestions practitioners organizations develop effective target strategies policies clusters.