A Study of Consumer Behavior in Spain

Introduction

Buying habits and consumer behaviour is one of the vital things that one needs to incur in order to penetrate a market. Every place has different buying behaviour, therefore, a complete analysis is very important in which their choices, norms and values are considered before entering the market. In the United States, the buying behaviour is very different from that of any other country. The consumers’ selection depends on their needs and wants which would, later on, affect the demand-supply chain of the produces.

The things that might be the hot-selling articles in any one country might not be the same in any other country. For example, in August every year, the Spanish hold a celebration in which they use millions of tomatoes; this tomato consumption is not that much in any other country. So, although tomatoes are a necessity their consumption varies. In this research paper, the consumer behaviour towards buying the products in the US and in Spain would be analysed.

Under the light of Hofstede's National Index, there are five dimensions discussed as

• Power Distance
• Individualism
• Masculinity
• Uncertainty Avoidance
• Long-term Orientation

These five parameters are used to discuss the cultural diversity of Spain and the US. By knowing about all these dimensions, it will become easy for us to understand the marketing trend and buying behaviour of the consumers.

Spain as a Country under Study

Spain is a beautiful country which is a member of the European Union. The capital is Madrid and the inhabitants are called Spaniards. It is being located in the south west of Europe. It covers a total area of 505,403 square kilometres. The approximate population is around 47 million. Spain is a mountainous country having an active volcano peak, several rivers and mountain ranges that attract the tourists a lot. The major source of income for Spain is tourism. The average tourists attracted by Spain are around 48 million per annum. Whereas they employ only 10% of the workforce in their country and that is enough for them.

There are 88% native people in Spain and very less are the immigrants and the best part is that they have the literacy rate of about 97.5. The people are rich and very fond of cars and they like to have a great collection of them. So, it reflects the community as rich. They like to have a family oriented atmosphere and they enjoy hanging out together. They didn’t compete rather they enjoy being a team.

As compared to Spain, the United States is considered to be the most advanced countries in the world. It is the house of the latest technology and trends. The tourism, as well as the immigration ratios, are higher in the US. The dollar is considered as valuable currency as the English language is a worldwide spoken language. The people of the US are an example of individualism and they work hard day and night to earn. They are not family oriented people. the people of the US are usually more into buying cell phones, laptops and such technology, not everyone living there can afford a car and changing cars every now and then is not possible.

Values and Norms

The values and norms are the basics of any culture. They tell how a nation should react, what are the good things and what the taboos are in that nation. Every nation follows their norms and values as these are the traditions. In Spain, the people are not very advanced and do not have a fast. They prefer simple life trends. They have scenic places and shopping is mostly done by the tourists. Whereas, in the US the life is very fast and people are always competing with each other. They usually live as individuals and earn their livelihood themselves.

Cultural Values

The cultural values define the culture, the way of living, dressing, eating of any nation. These are different for different cultures. The culture of Spain is as simple as mentioned above, they are family oriented and usually not every person is earning in Spain.

National Values and Norms

In the light of the Hofstede’s Model, the contrast of Spain, as well as the United States, has been done as follows;

• • Individual versus Collectivism

The US culture is Individual-based, here the people earn for themselves. Every member of the family is earning. Even the students earn and support themselves.

But in Spain, the families have a collective lifestyle. Usually, one person of the family is earning and supporting his family. The earning is enough to support the whole family.

• • Youth and Age

The people living in the United States have a very fast life. They have to start earning since their youth and therefore they depend more on the junk food and easy to make foods. These foods are not healthy in the long term, therefore; there are more diseases and Obesity in the United States. In short, the people do not have time for themselves they are running all their lives. The lifespan is less and people die at younger ages.

In Spain, they hold an annual festival in which the whole country throws tomatoes at each other. They follow a healthy lifestyle and therefore the number of oldies in Spain is more. The people are healthy and they live longer.

• • Extended versus Limited Family

Continuing the above point, the people of the US have limited families because they do not have a proper family unit. The couples usually have an average of one to two kids. The families are short and as soon as the kids cross their maturity, they start looking for jobs and they settle in different states according to the nature of their jobs.

As compared to Spain, the people are the family unit. They stay together and breed more. Usually, they have extended families.

• • Competitive versus Cooperative

The people of the United States have a huge competition among themselves. They compete for better to the best and hence, there is a constant struggle going on. But, in Spain the conditions are adverse. The literacy rate is 97% and the students are not taught to beat each other rather they have a harmony. They support each other and corporate as a single unit.

• • Diversity versus Uniformity

There is a cultural diversity found in the United States is quite vast as many nations migrate here. As a result, there is a multiple market going on, like halal food for Muslims, non- veg for Indians, Seafood, Chinese and other diversities. But, in Spain, the inhabitants are 87% so there is less cultural diversity. The Spaniard's trends are in vogue and they show cultural uniformity.

Environment-Oriented Values and Norms

The norms and values related to the environment of the US and Spain are as follows,

• • Cleanliness

Keeping a nation clean is very important. In the US the people are fined for polluting their country. Spain has a cleaner environment without making much effort as the Spaniards are literate. Also, the Government keeps a check on the cleanliness as it has a lot of natural beauty and a tourist attraction spot.

• • Performance and Status

The people of the United States do not have much importance in power distance, and usually, the decisions taken are on the individual basis. The people of Spain ask their teachers or the elders before making any decision. For them, the status of the more experienced person matters a lot and they do not make any decisions before taking an advice.

• • Tradition versus Change

The traditions of the United States vary and change but those of Spain remain constant. Since there is a lot of cultural diversity in the US, thus the changes in traditions are more. In Spain, they stick to their old traditions and do not welcome change.

• • Risk Taking versus Security

The people living in the United States welcome change and are ready to take any risks while in Spain, the people avoid any sorts of risks. They get upset when the routine changes and are nervous about ambiguity. The people in the US buy new products as then the risk is not a big deal for them but the Spaniards are the most loyal customers.

• • Problem Solving

The problem solving is considered very serious in Spain and people would unite to sort out things but in the US usually the individual’s sort things on their own and do not share them with others.

• • Nature

The United States has fifty states and has all sorts of landscapes, while Spain is the mountainous area. The US natives are very busy in their lives that they are not that hospitable as compare to the Spaniards.

Self-Oriented Values and Norms

• • Active versus Passive

The consumers of the US are active consumers as they respond on the online ads and order things online. They are attracted to the deals and would purchase goods without thinking much. While in Spain, the consumer trend is a bit different as they are passive and are not much involved in the online shopping trends. They would ask others before making any purchases.

• • Sensual Gratification

The US inhabitants are risk-taking people and they are attracted towards impulsive buying. For them, choosing a good that is suiting their pocket is not a big deal; they appreciate the daily deals and utilize them. In Spain, the sensual gratification is given not much weight and the deals do not attract them because they avoid taking any risks.

• • Material versus Non-Material

The US natives are materialistic people, they work hard to earn a luxurious lifestyle, while the people of Spain have a simple lifestyle with many family members living together. They are not attracted towards materials goods and prefer living a simple life.

• • Hard work and Leisure

The people of the US are very hard working as all their families work. They do get weekends off but they also spend in completing the pending tasks, while, in Spain, the people are hard working but they do get leisure time end families to go out to enjoy. They dine out together and the fancy food attracts them as the whole families go out for eating.

• • Postponed Gratification versus Immediate Gratification

The people of the US are good at fulfilling immediate gratification. They do not take any advice, make a quick decision and make a purchase, while in Spain the postponed gratification trends are observed. The people would ask for the opinion of their elders and teachers and then would make a decision as they do not want to take any risks.

• • Religion

In Spain the prevalent religion is Catholicism. The younger generations do not take their religion seriously and fail to attend the Mass regularly. While in theUS, 69% of the people are Christians, 45% could be considered as Protestants and 20% are Catholics.

Consumer Behaviours in Purchasing, Using and Disposing of Products

From the Hofstede’s Model of cultural dimensions, the consumer behaviours of the US natives and the Spaniards have been clearly seen. Now, keeping in mind those trends the consumer behaviours can be expressed as;

• • Consumer Demand

In the US there is more consumer demand, also they need variety. The deals on different products attract the consumer market a lot and there is more impulsive buying.

In Spain, they avoid risk to the most; they would not prefer impulsive buying, rather buying from authentic sources would matter more.

• • Where do Consumers Shop

The consumers in the US can shop from anywhere be it online shopping or shop as far as the prices are attractive and the products are good. In Spain, the trend is very different, as the people are most dedicated towards safe buying and are loyal to their brands. They would prefer going to the shops, get their desired products and feel satisfied desired goods

• • Retail Shopping

In US retail shopping is not given much importance, while in Spain, retail shopping would bring about more satisfied consumers. They would prefer buying cars and keep changing and upgrading them quite often.

• • Use of Technology

The use of technology for buying and selling is more in the US as compared to Spain. The Spaniards are a feministic society so they are not much involved in the technology and gadget buying. In the US, the trend of the youth is more about buying cell phones and other such gadgets and keep updating and upgrading them.

• • Information Seeking

In the US there is a less role in power distance, so seeking information is not considered worthy enough and usually, the decisions taken are solitary. While, in Spain, there is a lot of power distance and the information seeking is considered an essential part of any activity.

• • Promotion

The promotions can attract US market more, while in Spain the promotions do not add to more sales. Because there is no competition in Spain as they work as a corporation, while in the US promotions can add to more sales because of neck to neck competition.

• • Price

The prices of the US market will greatly affect the consumers as they are impulsive buyers and there is more shopping trend. The US citizens wait for the Christmas sales to do their annual shopping. In Spain, the prices do not matter a lot as far as they are affordable, as they are loyal customers.

• • Products

A product that is new on the market and is affordable will be bought by the US natives, but in Spain, only the products that are risk-free will be consumed by the Spaniards.

• • Place

The US can shop while travelling; they prefer buying from nearby stores. There are many convenient stores in the US but in Spain, the place doesn’t matter, people would go to their loyalty stores to get their desired products.

• • Current Trends

Currently, the US is serving a good consumer market but China is penetrating in the US markets. The products are good but their substandard products have decreased the prices. The lifespan of these products is very less but the consumers to buy them due to great pricing policy. While in Spain, there are very expensive and excellent quality brands available. The prices are high but they provide excellent quality goods to the consumers.

For them, customer satisfaction is utmost important and they have loyal customers, the consumers do not search from shop to shop rather they contact their old brands. They are long-term oriented people and they want to see their products last longer and do not get fed up quickly.

Analysis and Discussion

The above-mentioned model can be categorised into five dimensions being power distance, Individualism and Collectivism, Masculinity and Feministic, uncertainty avoidance and Long-term orientation. In the US the power distance is 40% means there is an informal and direct relationship with those in power. While in Spain it is 57% means that Spaniards are more into listening and asking for opinions from those in power. For them giving a negative feedback to someone in power is not an easy task.

The US culture is more masculine being 62% while the Spain culture is 42% masculine. The Spain trends are more feministic and they are usually soft people not getting involved in crimes and other such trends. The US people are an individualism trend being 91% and Spain is 51% individual. While in Spain it is collectivism and people prefer working as teams. In the US the uncertainty avoidance is 46% while in Spain it is 86 % means that they are not happy with new and different things and Spaniards are more loyal customers.

Long-Term Oriented people are the Spaniards being 29% while the US natives are 19%. The Spaniards want good products that would last longer while the US people prefer changes and something new every time. From the above-mentioned model, it is clear that the US market is progressing more as compared to the Spaniard market as the diversity and the market demand is more in the US market. There is more competition in the US markets and they have compromised on the quality. Still, the demand is more so the supply more. While in Spain, the market targets its loyal customers and would never compromise on their quality. They would always satisfy their customers. All these data analysis has been made easy to accomplish because of the Hofstede's Model of Cultural Dimensions.