Psychological and behavioral characteristics of consumption in the elderly

With the increase of age, the consumption characteristics and needs of the elderly show different changes, which has attracted the attention of domestic academic circles. Under the background of the continuous growth of the consumption of the elderly in Jiangsu Province, this paper analyzes the current situation of the consumption of the elderly and the psychological and behavioral characteristics of the consumption, and then puts forward the demand trend of the consumption of elderly care services.

As of the end of 2018, Jiangsu Province has a registered population of 10,000 people, of which there are 10,000 people aged 60 and above, accounting for an increase of 10,000 people over the same period in 2017, and 10,000 people over 65 years old. Middle-aged and elderly people are regarded by many merchants as the most potential consumers, and they are the primary sales target of merchants in the future market (Li Wei, 2017). The purpose of this paper is to analyze the problems existing in the elderly service consumption market in Jiangsu Province, and then analyze the psychological and behavioral characteristics of the elderly, and then put forward the consumption needs of the elderly.

First, the development status of the pension service consumer market.

1.The elderly have the problem of consumption solidification.

The conservative thinking and mature consumption habits make the consumption of the elderly tend to be solid. In other words, the elderly are accustomed to fixed consumption processes and items, and it is difficult for them to adapt to new consumption patterns. At present, the proportion of fixed consumption by the elderly does not exceed 50%, which still has a certain impact on the development of the entire elderly consumer market.

With the progress of science and technology, the solid-state consumption of the elderly has prevented the development of the pension service consumer market, the elderly can not feel the changes in the market, and the speed that new things can bring is very easy to lead to the development of the elderly pension service consumer market in the past.

2.The development of the consumer market for pension services is immature.

1) The overall scale is small.

The consumer market for elderly pension services mainly involves daily necessities, food, medical and health care, pension services and other fields, and most of the business methods are still decentralized, and there are some better areas that have not been developed; There are relatively few types of goods, and the way of sales is relatively blunt, which is mainly because of the lack of understanding of the needs of the elderly, resulting in a very passive position in the entire sales process.

2) Insufficient market development.

The increasing demand for health and independent living among the elderly highlights the importance of technology and product innovation in the clothing, food, housing and transportation of the elderly, especially in disease prevention and health care. But at present, the research and development of elderly products is far behind, the products and services provided to the elderly are relatively single, and the technical content is relatively low, and the entire elderly pension service consumer market looks prosperous but in essence mixed. For example, in terms of pension service institutions, there are relatively few pension institutions with comprehensive functions and good environment, and the distribution areas are relatively remote.

The basic characteristics of the consumer market are as follows:

1.Non-profit. Consumers buy goods to obtain a certain use value and solve their own living consumption needs, rather than to resell them for profit.

2.Non-professional. Consumers often lack professional product knowledge and market knowledge, and consumers are easily affected by merchants, manufacturers' publicity, service attitude and product quality when purchasing goods.

3.Generalized. The consumer market not only has a large number of buyers, but also a wide geographical distribution, from domestic to foreign, from urban to rural, consumers are everywhere.

4.Hierarchical. Due to the different income levels of consumers and the different social classes they are in, the needs of consumers will show a certain hierarchy.

5.Substitution. In the consumer market, except for a few commodities that are irreplaceable, most commodities can be found interchangeably used goods and substitutes, so the commodities in the consumer market have strong substitution.

6.Epidemic. Consumer demand is not only affected by the internal factors of consumers, but also by external factors such as fashion, environment, values, etc., and the needs of consumers in different times are also different. Therefore, the goods in the consumer market have a certain popularity.

<>1. The purchase motivation and behavior of middle-aged and elderly people are mostly rational, and the middle-aged and elderly people have more consumption experience and knowledge, and are good at observing, analyzing and comparing in the purchase process, which is more rational.

2. The middle-aged and elderly pursue convenience, practicality and affordability, and the middle-aged and elderly have a high degree of psychological stability and pay more attention to reality. Its purchase motives are convenient, practical, safe and reliable, and affordable. They often demand that the goods are easy to use, easy to buy, a good shopping environment, and thoughtful service.

3. The characteristics of middle-aged and elderly consumers due to the decline of the physiological function of middle-aged and elderly consumers, compared with young consumer groups, their demand structure has also undergone great changes, mainly in the fact that in all the commodities of middle-aged and elderly people, the consumption of nutritious food, health food and health care products occupies a large proportion.

1. Characteristics of the consumption behavior of the elderly.

1. Habitual consumption behavior.

Elderly consumers have decades of purchase and consumption practice, in the long-term selection and use process, accumulated rich experience, and elderly consumers often believe in their own purchase experience, so the elderly consumers have formed a relatively stable purchase and consumption habits for certain goods, and have a certain preference for certain brands, with high brand loyalty. Once such habits are formed, they are more difficult to change and will greatly affect the purchasing behavior of older consumers.

2. Rational consumption decision-making.

The forms of decision-making that people make to consume can generally be divided into rational and impulsive. Due to age and psychological factors, older consumers tend to think twice before making purchases. In this process, the consumption decisions of elderly consumers are less affected by emotional impulses, so a large number of advertising bombardments have a great impact on their purchase of goods.

At the same time, because they are the elders in the family and play a certain role model in the family, although purchasing and consumption is a personal behavior, elderly consumers will also consider the overall interests of the family more. Based on this factor, the purchase decisions of elderly consumers tend to be rational, especially for the purchase of high-value consumer goods, and the decision-making process will be longer.

3. Convenience of consumption targets.

For elderly consumers, the goal of their consumption is first positioned in convenience and practicality. Due to the gradual deterioration of physiological functions of elderly consumers, the demand for commodity consumption focuses on their ease of learning and use, and convenient operation, so as to reduce the burden of physical and mental power, and at the same time benefit health.

Answer]: The consumption behavior of the elderly has the following characteristics.

1) Consumption content is mainly focused on food and drink, medical care and cultural entertainment. As a result of physiology, it occurs. The primary concern of the elderly is how to prolong their lives and how to contribute their surplus heat to the society.

This situation makes the elderly urgently need low-sugar, low-salt, low-cholesterol, low-protein diet and health care products that are beneficial to their health. At the same time, with the gradual establishment of modern concepts, the elderly are eager to enrich their later life, so they also have great consumption potential in terms of culture and entertainment.

2) Consumption habits are relatively stable, and the degree of loyalty to the product brand is very high. Due to the rich purchase experience and long-term consumption habits formed in the past, the elderly have always been less at ease with new products, but they have a soft spot for time-honored products, and sometimes even seem more stubborn.

3) Pursue to make the stove convenient and practical, pay attention to the quality and function of the product. The elderly are no longer as fanciful and emotionally oriented as young people, but are very rational and mature, so when buying products, they often weigh whether their quality is reliable, whether the functions are convenient and practical, whether the service staff are thoughtful and enthusiastic, and whether the relevant procedures are simple and easy.