RETAILING – HOW CONSUMERS CHOOSE WHERE THEY SHOP
Consumers have many different retail channel options, but how do they decide where to shop? Understanding why consumers shop where they do is a vital part of marketing. It is important to understand the factors influencing where consumers shop and why they buy products in the stores that they do. The following are some of the factors that consumes consider. It is worth noting that the list is endless but below we highlight some of the crucial factors:
Price is an important selection criterion for where consumers shop. However, this is not always true. Price becomes less important if consumers do not get total satisfaction from the shop.
The quality of the products sold will have an influence. For example, customers would not buy poor quality food even if it is cheap. The product assortment and freshness is also considered. Most customers are considerate of their health so they will be skeptical when buying from a retail outlet where their health will be compromised.

The attitude of the salespeople is also important. Where consumers decide to purchase products is influenced by the retail staff. Consumers like shopping where employees are knowledgeable about the products and services offered. In addition to knowledge level and experience of the sales personnel, customers will also consider the degree of helpfulness of the sales person. They will note if the attire of the sales person is neat and clean. They will also buy from a store where the sales people have courtesy, friendliness, respect and empathy for the customers.

Selling improvement efforts provided by the retail outlet are also important. Customers will prefer shops that have an easy payment plan. It is for this reason that a lot of people buy from furniture shops even if they end up paying almost double the cash price. Customers will also buy from