Know-How Exchange : Customer Behavior

Thanks for the quick response! Really appreciate it.

Any other comments? Maybe a bit more elaborate

Thanks again!

Dear nasier_n,

To add to BARQ's great answer:

Consumers use things—they consume goods, products, and services in a money-for-value-obtained exchange: gasoline, milk, insurance, movie tickets, groceries, cars, batteries, clothing, and so on.

Customers buy from you, or from your competitors, because they know you, like you, and trust you (or your competitors). They buy from you based on familiarity, emotional response, and because they like what you stand for, or because they aspire to be like other people that have bought from you.

So it's the job of your marketing to ensure that needs are met, that expectations are exceeded, and that minds are read so that your goods, services, and products meet unmet needs, thereby placing you and the solutions you offer first in a given category and front and centre in people's minds.

I hope this helps.

Gary Bloomer
The Direct Response Marketing Guy™
Wilmington, DE, USA

Thank you Gary for your answer.

I do know the difference between a customer and a consumer.

My original question was aiming at the difference between customer and consumer insight.
Does Consumer Insight(s) include Customer Insight(s) or are these two fields complementary?

Let me put this in perspective for you:
I work in the strategic marketing group of a major German insurance company and we are in the process of restructuring the organization of the Marketing department towards a more customer-centric structure.

I will be the one in charge for the Customer Insight(s) unit. And before I get started on this new area of work I want to clarify if it is limited to insights derived from existing customers and prospects or if it entails analyzing general consumer behaviour. I would say it does include consumer behaviour and market trends and therefore Customer Insight(s) is not the right term because it is too limited / restrictive. The right term for this new unit would be Consumer Insight(s), no?

Or are the two synonymous? My personal perception is that most organizational units are called Customer Insight(s) as opposed to Consumer Insight(s).
I hope this is clear enough.
I am very analytical person and I think it is of vital importance to have clear definitions so that everyone knows what you're talking about and what his/her job is.
But maybe I'm just being anal about this.

Thanks again for your answers!
-Nasier

If you're in charge of the customer insight(s) unit - how does your organization define the charter of your group? It doesn't matter what we think of the differences - it matters what your employer is paying you to do.