Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

I interviewed three homeowners who find themselves lost when deciding between repairing or replacing a broken appliance.

Picking the alternative- Does price matter the most? Does quality? Is there more than one factor that is important to your customer segment?

The alternatives seemed to be either calling a friend/family to come help, googling for tutorial videos/how-to sites, or calling a handyman nearby. One of the people I interviewed seemed to be very expressive about her need for accurate and comparable pricings. She mentioned having been scammed a few times by workers because she didn’t know what the correct pricing would be for the kind of labor she was requesting. The other two said that of course they care about the pricing of the actual repair, as well as the service my app would provide. This confirmed the need for a cheap and reliable service. Quality also seems to be critical as one of the guys I talked to said there have been many times the person he contracted didn’t do the job right, and he ended up having to find someone else to come and fix it. He said he would have rather payed a little more upfront if it meant getting a higher quality job. This shows that in this particular segment, quality is more important than pricing.

How/where do they buy?

When purchasing a new appliance, they usually go to Costco, Home Depot, or Walmart. All three said they usually opt for financing when buying a costly appliance. As far as online or in person, one person enjoyed buying it online, while the other two liked going in and physically seeing the appliance. Although one of the two mentioned that currently she would rather buy it online due to everything going on in the world.

As far as the repairs, they all said that they either went online to find a repairman or they had a friend refer someone who can come and help. They usually pay in cash.

What matters most to your customers when they think back on the 'rightness' of the purchase? What helps them determine the purchase was a good idea? What sorts of things make them think a purchase was a bad idea? 

The most important thing that they think back on is how easy the whole process was. If it was a tedious affair, that took too much back and forth, as well as cost more money and time then expected, than it is seen as a negative experience. It seems that if everything is done smoothly at the right price and without too much personal intervention, it is seen as a good idea.  

Conclusion- How would you succinctly describe this segment in terms of alternative evaluation, purchase decision, and post-purchase evaluation?

Overall, it would be safe to say that this segment prefers quick and reliable solutions to their appliance dilemmas. They would rather pay more upfront and get quality work, than have to waste a lot of their precious time on something as simple as a broken appliance. Based on previous interviews, I have also come to learn that some people are ok spending more time doing the repairs themselves to ensure that it is done correctly. This adds to the conclusion that in this particular market, customers look for things to be done efficiently and correctly. They also enjoy having the right information at their fingertips so they can make the appropriate decisions.