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Satakunnan ammattikorkeakoulu Satakunta University of Applied Sciences

WENXIN XU

Consumer Behavior in China’s Pet Food Industry

DEGREE PROGRAMME IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS 2022

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Author Wenixn Xu	Type of Publication Bachelor's thesis	Date December 2022
	Number of pages 65	Language of publication: English
Title of publication Consumer Behavior in China's Pet Food Industry Degree Program International Business
This thesis seeks to understand the position and relevance of Chinese consumer behavior and how it affects the Chinese pet food market, by examining four factors of consumer behavior. The purpose of this thesis is also to determine the business climate and possibilities in Chinese pet food industry. The pet industry, a developing market in China, has not yet been wellresearched, particularly in the area of pet food. By studying the consumer behavior of Chinese pet food consumers, to monitor and draw conclusions about the aspects of Chinese customers that are influencing and driving the rapidly expanding pet food industry in China. The four components from consumer behavior are used as the primary theoretical framework for the research of Chinese consumer behavior, to demonstrate the state of Chinese people's purchasing habits and preferences with regard to pet food purchases, under each of the four criteria, the significant qualities of Chinese customers will be
briefly described. Empirical data was collected by using an online questionnaire for Chinese pet food consumers, there were 19 questions in all in the questionnaire. Question 1 through Question 18 are mandatory questions; 11 of them asked to select only one option, and 7 of them asked to select multiple options. The last question is a free-text option that seeks to elicit the respondents' own opinions or recommendations on pet food products and purchasing pet food goods based on their prior purchasing experiences and expectations
for the future Chinese pet food market. There were 133 valid responders once the survey was modified and delivered. The outcome of the study indicated that consumers who are young, educated, married, and have families dominate the Chinese pet food business; the younger generation is the market's greatest driver. The most crucial consideration when purchasing pet items is product safety, which could even take precedence over all other considerations in the minds of consumers. Products that are sufficiently safe will offer pets a suficient level of safety. Keywords

1 INTRODUCTION .
2 PROBLEM SETTING AND CONCEPTUAL FRAME OF REFERENCE.. ...... 6
2.1 Problem setting .. .... 6
2.2 Conceptual framework... ..... 8
2.3 Boundaries of the thesis.... ...... 10
3 ABOUT THE PET FOOD.. ...... 11
3.1 Why pet food ... .... 11
3.2 Chinese pet food .. ........................................................................ .... 12
4 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR... ...................................................... ....... 13
4.1 Consumer behavior in general .. ....... 13
4.2 Cultural factors ... .... 15
4.3 Social factors.... ... 17
4.4 Personal factors..........
4.5 Psychological factors ...... ...... 22
5 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR IN CHINA. ... 25
5.1 Background on Chinese consumer behavior ..... .... 25
5.2 Younger generations are taking the markets..... ...... 26
5.3 Online consumer behavior in China ...... ..... 27
5.4 Online consumer behavior in China – pet food . ..... 30
5.5 Chinese consumers buying preferences...... ..... 31
5.6 Opportunities in Chinese consumer markets ...... ...... 33
5.7 Opportunities in Chinese pet food consumer markets ................. ....... 36
5.8 Case study - “2007 Pet Food Recall”.. ...... 38
6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .. ... 39
6.1 Research methods ... ... 39
6.3 Data collection .. .................................................................. ..... 42
6.4 Validity and reliability ... ................................................ .... 44
7 RESEARCH FINDINGS....
8 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS .
9 RECOMMENDATIONS.. .... 68
REFERENCES
APPENDICES

1 INTRODUCTION

This thesis is intended to be a study of the consumer market for pet food in China, with a particular focus on Chinese consumer behavior. As the Chinese pet food industry is growing rapidly, the thesis can analyze Chinese consumer buying habits and preferences along with the questionnaire result from the Chinese consumers on buying pet food. This thesis will also contain the knowledge about Chinese online consumer behavior, the big trend in Chinese economic market also in Chinese pet food market, and the possible risks can happen in Chinese pet food products business. Future more, the thesis will conduct a questionnaire survey for Chinese consumers that owning pets and having experience of buying pet food products, or planning to buy pet food products, the questionnaire questions and results will show in the appendices in last page.

The background of this study is based on the China’s pet industry, which is one of the most particularly prominent in China's rapidly growing economic environment today, and then focus to pet food, which is the largest proportion of the pet industry. One of the major facts that is essential to know about China as a giant among emerging countries is the Chinese consumer base, and the reader will find in this paper theoretical knowledge of the four major characteristics of consumer behavior, and the characteristics of Chinese consumers. It also combines the author's interest in pets and the pet industry, as well as the concern and desire to explore the Chinese consumer market as a Chinese.

The purpose of this thesis is to find out the position and significance of Chinese consumer behavior by analyzing four factors of consumer behavior, and how this influences the Chinese pet food industry and the Chinese pet food economy. In conjunction with an online questionnaire, in order to ascertain the business climate and potential inside a genuine Chinese pet food industry. The pet industry, an emerging market in China, has not yet been extensively researched, particularly in the area of pet food. By analyzing the Chinese consumer performance of pet food, it is used to observe and conclude what factors of Chinese consumers are influencing and driving the booming growth of pet food in China. The purpose of this thesis is also to analyze how does the Chinese consumers influence the Chinese pet food market, based on the analyze of questionnaire results from Chinese consumers, the target group of the questionnaire was the members of several pet groups from WeChat, with sufficient knowledge of pet food and experience in consuming pet food, to better gain valuable information on Chinese consumer buying preference and habits from Chinese pet owner, in order to better understand how Chinses consumers behave in the pet food market in China.

The conceptual framework and the boundaries of the thesis will be presented in more detail in the next chapter. In the conceptual framework that in the next chapter, the reader can clearly gain a quick understanding of a general structure of this thesis, which covers the background and basis for starting the research, is built on the environment of pet food in China to unfold and is an important argument for this thesis. The fourth chapter is the theoretical part examining four factors from consumer behavior in general, and the fifth chapter is including the theoretical informational on Chinese consumer behavior, and the main characteristics of Chinses consumers. The following chapters will focus on the empirical part, which will include the chosen research method, research plan and implementation. Research findings will present in chapter 7, and research conclusions, research summary and conclusion will be presented in chapter 8, chapter 9 will be recommendations. Then the final words will come the last.

From this thesis, the reader can get a good sense of what the Chinese consumer wants, especially in the Chinese pet food market, where a central tenet is "what products do Chinese consumers need". What these factors have brought to China's pet products market as young Chinese consumers become the mainstream consumers, e-commerce becomes more popular, and consumers become more self-consumed and dominant. For groups interested in consumer performance, Chinese consumer performance, the Chinese pet food market, or the group looking to enter the Chinese pet food market, this study is an appropriate piece of reading material. This thesis will provide the reader with further insight into the Chinese pet food market.

2 PROBLEM SETTING AND CONCEPTUAL FRAME OF REFERENCE

2.1 Problem setting

The purpose of this thesis is to study Chinese consumer behavior on buying pet food products, identifying the business opportunities in the Chinese pet food market, and determining how Chinese consumers affect the pet food market. The purpose of this thesis is also to gain valuable information on Chinese consumer buying preference and habits from Chinese pet owner, in order to better understand how Chinses consumers behave in the pet food market in China.

Chinese pet food market is huge and growing at a rapid place, there are 30,000 pet stores that sell over 10 million different types of pet foods. It is not difficult to define the emphasis of the pet industry, which is more focus on pet food. Combined with the author's personal interests in the pet field, the purpose of this thesis is also to support the author's further development by studying the research of Chinese consumer behavior and the factors that influence Chinese buyers' habits.

A quantitative study will be conducted as part of the thesis, which will involve an online questionnaire and the findings in the end will be compared to the theoretical background on Chinese consumer behavior. This study analyzes the influence of Chinese consumer behavior on Chinese consumer preferences and purchasing habits. The object of this thesis is also to find opportunities by analyzing Chinese consumer behavior in pet food industry. As a result, the readers with an interest in Chinese pet food and a desire to do business in Chinese pet food markets will have a better understanding of Chinese pet food business and gain a better point of view and understanding of it. Additionally, the aim will be to find useful information and knowledge about Chinese consumers and what type of pet food products they will choose to buy, from where they will purchase the product, and what factors influence the Chinese consumers to buy pet food. The following research questions will guide the objective of this thesis.

The main research problem in this thesis is:

What factors affect the Chinese pet food consumer groups’ buying behavior, and what kind of pet food products will appeal to Chinese pet food consumers?

Specifically, this thesis study seeks to answer the following questions:

Who are the consumer groups in Chinese pet food market?

What is the impact of Chinese consumer behavior on Chinese pet food market?

What factors will affect the Chinese consumers’ buying decision on pet food?

What are Chinese consumer preferences in pet food options?

What group of consumers drives the Chinese pet food industry the most?

What are the current trends and challenges facing the pet food industry in China?

What pet food product qualities are important for Chinese consumers?

The theoretical part will include the general characteristics of Chinese consumers. The research will examine how these Chinese consumers have different interests in different types of pet food, and the group who is willing to spend on pet food, and how are those groups different. The study aims to discover which factors influence the willingness and propensity of Chinese consumers to buy pet food. The aim of literature review is to search and analyze the literature to guide the research important conceptual and research papers on consumer buying behavior. The literature review examines consumer buying behavior as one of the major domain areas. It focuses on the consumer side.

The thesis will also provide information about the consumer behavior of Chinese people regarding purchasing pet food online, which is a Chinese online consumer behavior. Online shopping is becoming increasingly popular in China as a means of consumption. In the study of Chinese online consumption performance, the questionnaire survey will also include questions about online consumption of pet food. The results of the questionnaire survey can be combined with the literature review to identify the strengths and weaknesses and give evidence-based summaries and recommendations.

2.2 Conceptual framework

Figure 1. Conceptual framework - Study of Chinese consumer behavior in China’s pet food industry with the questionnaire from Chinese pet food consumers (Author of thesis, 2022)

The conceptual framework (Figure 1) incorporates the main structure of this thesis. The conceptual framework serves as a key element in explaining the important variables and conceptual relationships of this thesis. Starting with mention the information about Chinese pet food market, to guide the reader know the market situation of China’s pet food industry.

And then move to the theoretical part which will talk about the consumer behavior in general, the four factors include in the consumer behavior which are: culture factors, social factors, personal factors and phycological factors. These four factors are used as the core concepts of the theoretical part to analyze the pet food industry in China, considering the internal and external aspects of Chinese consumer behavior. The relationship between Chinese consumer behavior and Chinese pet food markets is linked through four factors of Chinese consumer behavior.

Using the four factors from consumer behavior as the main theoretical basis to study the Chinses consumer behavior, is conductive to showing the status of Chinese people’s buying habits and preference in the pet food purchasing. The important characteristics of Chinese consumers will be briefly described, but not detailed under each of four factors. Chinese consumer behavior is mainly influenced by culture factors and personal factors, those two factors are from both external and internal factor, those will be mentioned in more detail in the chapter 5.

Combine with the questionnaire from Chinese pet food consumer, the conclusion that can be drawn is through Chinese consumers’ consumption preference in pet food and summarize what influences Chinese consumers’ desire and decision to purchase, and what characteristics Chinses consumers want in the products. The purpose of the questionnaire for this thesis is to obtain the Chinese pet food consumer previous buying experience and gain the valuable results to reasoning and argumentation the theories, as well as to provide the findings and suggestions from the thesis study to the readers.

The results of the study of Chinese consumer behavior, including their buying behavior, buying preference, and the questionnaire results from Chinese consumes on buying pet food products, combined with the theoretical and empirical parts, can be used to analyze the study findings, to better understand and find out the prospects for the Chinese pet food market.

2.3 Boundaries of the thesis

In the process of research in thesis, there are various reasons that may lead to the boundaries and limitations of the research. These reasons can be mainly divided into two parts: due to the research methodology or due to the researchers themselves.

This thesis will mainly talk about the pet food industry in China, the theoretical base of this thesis starts from consumer behavior studies and then introduces main characteristics of Chinese consumers. Thus, the questionnaire for Chinese pet food consumers is aimed at finding out what affects their purchasing preference and decision regarding pet food products, and what features they would like to see when buying pet food products. The main purpose is to find out what influence the customer’s buying decision and extended to the Chinese consumer, and how does those influence the fast-growing pet industry in China.

This study does not account for the potential impact of the current economic cycle on consumer preferences. For instance, people are anticipated to have more money to spend in a developing economy, which may potentially influence their purchasing decisions.

The target market - Pet food industry in China, and the target consumer – individuals who own a pet or pets in China are already decided.

3 ABOUT THE PET FOOD

3.1 Why pet food

This thesis is a study about Chinese consumer behavior and its role in Chinese pet food industry. Chinese pet food market is huge and growing at a rapid place, there are 30,000 pet stores that sell over 10 million different types of pet foods. More and more people nowadays are bringing one or more pets into their family, and the pets is getting more popular among all age groups. In China, there are 73.55 million people who owning pets and China’s pet food industry is extraordinary rise.

Pet food is the top market segment in Chinese pet products distribute, from Figure 2. The staple food and pet snacks are taking over half percentage from the whole Chinese pet food market. Pet food (such as dry pet food, pet snacks, pet nutrition, etc.) accounted for 54.7% of the market size, and pet medical care accounted for 25.8% of the market size, with the two categories accounting for 80.5% of the total market size. The two categories together accounted for 80.5% of the market. Pet food is a daily necessity for pet ownership, and the new generation of pet owners purchase pet food more frequently. The overall percentage is higher because of the higher frequency of pet food purchase (Guolian Securities, 2021) Pet food consumption can have both the emotional and aesthetic premium of consumer upgrading, and at the same time has the characteristics of immediate consumption (Consumer World, 2021)

Figure 2.Different consumption ratios in the pet market - China 2020 (Guolian Securities, 2021)

Nowadays, more and more individuals of all ages have a pet in their home, and the pets are growing more and more well-liked. This trend is also noticeable in China, the author's home country. This thesis can explain why Chinese pet food is dominating the overall pet business, demonstrate the factors causing this industry to grow through time, and support individuals who want to be successful in China's pet food sector.

By examining different factors from consumer behavior, that affect Chinese consumer behavior when buying pet food, this study contributes to a better understanding of how these factors affect pet food sales in China. An in-depth analysis revealed that buyer decision process strongly correlates with consumer behavior on buying pet food. Consumer behavior on pet food purchases is affected by both marketing stimuli and buyer characteristics. The results may provide a better understanding of Chinese consumer behavior and improve it.

3.2 Chinese pet food

Pet food is the core consumption of Chinese consumers and the largest market segment of pet products. With the pet food industry booming and the daily food foundation requirement increasing rapidly, the marketers and companies are starting to target the consumer group overseas, out of China. Pet food made in China is exported all over the world, bringing in both positive and negative feedback. This thesis will also include one case that named “2007 pet food recalls” which happened with certain pet meals export from China were poisoning and killing cats and dogs. FDA (Food and Drug Administration) identified contamination in vegetable proteins imported into the United States from China and used as ingredients in pet food. (Center for Veterinary Medicine, 2018) This case as part of this thesis, the author can better understand what caused the "2007 pet food recalls", and how Chinese pet food business can improve in the future based on the case. By analyzing the risks after the case, the use of this case in the thesis can be viewed as a business opportunity.

In addition to this, the basis of this thesis is to find out the Chinese consumer preference and buying habits by analysis their consumer behavior based on the four factors studies. The theoretical part herein will be presented in the form of a literature review, which will give an in-depth study of the four factors of consumer behavior, combine with the Chinese consumer behavior, study the influence and impact of consumer behaviors on the pet food market in China. This thesis discusses the overall pet food market in China and how it is positioned. Utilizing customer behavior to discover consumer opportunities in the Chinese pet food industry

4 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR

In this chapter, the theoretical background that author used is based on Philip Kotler’s book from 2018, that Kotler’s idea about how four factors-culture factors, social factors, personal factors, and psychological factors, will influence consumer behavior. The book is delineating and explains these four factors, but many other books about professional marketing also cover the consumer behavior knowledge.

4.1 Consumer behavior in general

This thesis is relevant to a marketing study on consumer behavior. Marketing success is based on studying and understanding customer value and consumer behavior. A consumer's behavior refers to the sort of product or service they purchase in response to a need to solve a problem, either for their own use or for their family or friends. Marketing is engaging customers and managing profitable customer relationships. The aim of marketing is to create value for customers to capture value from customers in return. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 156) Understanding the consumer's behavior can be useful in analyzing the market's condition and finding new opportunities for staying in the market or entering it. Understanding a marketplace's customers and its consumer behavior is its most important element.

A model of buyer behavior in Figure 3, that can perfectly describe what drives consumer behavior. The marketing environment, which involves what types of products are available at what price at what location and how they are promoted. These factors, together, create a phenomenon called marketing stimulus, the marketing stimuli is decided by marketers, at this stage, buyers are in a passive state. In another word, buyer’s characteristics and decision process belong to “black box”, where decisions are made, cannot be seen from marketers. Consumers' responses to stimuli, characteristics, decision processes, and decision-making processes are simulated in the black box model. An interpersonal or intrapersonal stimulus (one between people) can be distinguished from an interpersonal stimulus (one within a person). It is a model that is similar to behaviorism's black box theory, where the focus is on the relationship between stimuli and consumer responses rather than the processes inside the consumer. (Madhanvan, 2015, pp. 74-112) Therefore, after the buyer makes the decision, the marketer can collect feedback of the buyer's attitudes and preferences for further marketing purposes.

Figure 3. The Model of Buyer Behavior. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 159)

Consumer behavior deals with the study of buying behavior of consumers. The marketers can gain a better understanding of consumer behavior by observing how consumers purchase goods and services from the market. The purpose of this thesis by studying the consumer behavior, is to find out the characteristics of Chinese consumers and its consumer behavior factors, in order to extend the research to the Chinese pet food market, as well as to point out Chinese consumption behavior, consumption preferences and purchasing habits in pet food industry.

Often, customers themselves don’t know exactly what influences their purchases. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 158) There are four factors that contribute to consumer behavior, which are cultural factors, social factors, personal factors, and psychological factors in Figure 4. The four factors described above can also be divided into external factors and internal factors. External factors include social and cultural factors, while internal factors include personal and psychological factors. Buyers buying decisions are affected by an incredibly complex combination of external and internal influences. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p.159) Cultural factors are defined as the combination of culture, subculture, and social class. Social factors include groups and social networks, family, role, and status. Personal factors include age and life-cycle stage, occupation, lifestyle, personality, and self-concept. And finally comes to the psychological factors, which include motivation, perception, learning, beliefs, and attitudes. Each of these factors will be discussed in more detail in the later chapter.

Figure 4. Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 159)

4.2 Cultural factors

Cultural factors exert a broad and deep influence on consumer behavior. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p.159) In this phase, marketers need to consider the elements of buyer’s culture, subculture, and social class. Culture is often a reflection of someone's individual values. Cultural factors comprise of set of values and ideologies of a particular community or group of individuals. (Juneja, 2019) For example, nationality, ethnicity, and living conditions can have a significant effect on culture.

Culture

The culture of a person can influence their behavior when making purchases. Human behavior is largely learned. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p.159) in which case someone's culture behavior is largely shaped by the environment he is living in and the people he is around. Cultures differ from country to country, so it's inevitable that people from different cultures will have different ways of dealing with each other according to their own cultures.

People's thinking, mindsets, habits, beliefs, and personal behaviors are influenced by their culture. The culture of each group will vary from the individual to the larger group. It can be created by individuals or small groups, such as the culture of a family or the culture of an organization. A person's collective behavior can also be influenced by the wider environment, for example by different national and religious cultures. Every group or society has a culture, and culture influences on buying behavior may greatly from both county to county and country to country. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p.159)

Subculture

Subcultures include nationalities, religions, racial groups, and geographic regions. In a society, a subculture is an entity unique in the sense that it represents a related set of behaviors, emotional reactions, and cultural norms shared by a group of people. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 160; Peter & Olson, 2008, pp. 321-323) It’s a culture that seeking out a niche style, subcultures are characterized by different groups of people but has similar ideas, attitudes, habits, beliefs, and ways of life, and can be viewed as values and beliefs that differ from those of a dominant culture, which has its own set of values and behavior. Different subcultures can be defined by different dimensions, such as country, region, color, race, religion, gender, sexuality, class, wealth, education, occupation, and age. Subcultures present shocks and changes in every society, whether they improve on the dominant culture or rebel against it. In some cases, these shocks and changes can also have a positive effect.

“Subculture” is merely a nominalist abstraction, a purely arbitrary way of grouping together a number of individuals on the basis of certain selected features that we choose to highlight for the purpose at hand. (Muggleton, 2000, p. 32) Most of the subcultures are passed down from groups, and through group identification and sharing, these subcultures are also passed down like the common mainstream culture. People living in society are not only influenced by the values and norms of the mainstream culture, but also by many subcultures from the groups they live in.

The subculture is in the process of becoming the dominant culture because of the group that follows it, in another word, there is a large part of the population that recognizes these subcultures, and in some senses, the subculture is becoming the dominant culture. As a result, subcultures influence people's purchasing decisions, which is why marketers will create products or services to meet the needs of the subculture, which will make them more appealing to the subculture groups of people.

Social class

Social class divides among the members of a society who have similar values, interests, and behaviors. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 162) Social class is the division of people into classes according to various inequalities, which is not determined by a single factor, but measured as a combination of occupation, income, education, wealth, and other variables. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 162)

Social classes can be defined as groups with similar values, interests, and behaviors, which are relatively homogeneous and continuous (Madhanvan, 2015). Society has a certain number of resources, but each individual has a different number of resources. In a society with similar values, interests, and behavior, class is relatively a permanent, ordered division. The measurement of social class is not based on a single factor, but rather reflects the combination of multiple factors. Depending on how much resources a person has, they will be categorized as being in a certain class. The emphasis is to analyze the objective existence of each class in order to find ways of resolving class conflicts and maintaining social order, which encompasses the interests of each class. Social class consists of the following elements:

Career

Achievement

Social interaction

• Wealth

Value orientation

Strata consciousness

4.3 Social factors

A consumer's behavior is determined by social factors, such as small groups he or she is involved in, social networks they belong to, family members, and role models he or she follows (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 162) influencing the formation and change of attitudes of consumers, the presence and effect of social factors are powerful. A society's components include its environment, its population, and its civilization. In terms of social factors, there are two aspects, namely the natural environment (mainly the secondary environment) and the social environment.

Groups and social networks

The importance of group influence varies across product and brands. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 162) Groups and social networks are influence of humans on production and living environment. It is generally accepted that such unions are practiced based on objective criteria (e.g., occupation, social status, ethnicity, gender, age, education). In contrast, there is a second concept refers to the actual presence of a combination of people through some type of common activity devoted to a shared goal and serving the needs of the members of the combination. As this thesis pertains to the study of Chinese consumer behavior, 'collectivism' is a term that describes Chinese culture and society in terms of social factors, the Chinese are very group - oriented. Identifying the target market's reference groups is an important task for marketers. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 162) Thus, it is important to understand the Chinese consumer’s social groups to entry the knowledge on social factors of Chinese consumer behavior.

Words of mouth and recommendations can have a strong impact on consumer buying behavior when it comes from the people around like family, associates, and other consumers, it has more powerful influence than the advertisements or salesperson. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 163) In addition, the act of exerting social influence on others by someone who possesses special skills, knowledge, personality, or other characteristics, when these influential talk, consumers listen. (Kotler, 2018) By the same token, this powerful influence can be applied to online social networks as well. It explains why groups with tremendous visibility are often the one to sponsor products. In the current era of online socialization, people are becoming more accustomed to sharing their shopping experiences on the web and leaving feedback online, which is undoubtedly of huge influence on marketers.

Family

It has been extensively studied that family members influence buyer behavior. Consumer marketers are interested in the role of spouses and children when it comes to purchasing different products and services. Families are the most important consumer buying organizations in society (Kotler, 2018) An individual's personality, characteristics, attitudes, and evaluation criteria are influenced by the family. This influence extends to the decision-making process involved in purchasing goods and services. Small purchases made on daily basis in China usually are made by the wife, but big purchases, such as those that cost a lot, are made by the husband. Thus, marketers should study the role and the relative influence of the husband, wife, and children in the purchase of goods and services. (Ali, 2016, pp. 76-80)

Families' buying behavior is greatly influenced by their children. Often, children play a significant role in the decision-making process for family purchases, from restaurants and vacation destinations to mobile devices and, even, cars (Kotler, 2018, p. 166).

Buying habits are strongly influenced by the family into which a person is born. The influences of parents and the individual's upbringing have a significant impact on their buying decisions. From a marketing standpoint, the amount of demand for many products is more dependent on the number of households than the number of families. Therefore, families matter much more to marketing than consumer demand levels when it comes to consumer behavior (Ali, 2016).

Roles and status

A person's position within a group can be determined by examining roles and status. People belong to a variety of groups, such as families, clubs, and organizations. The role someone plays is defined by their activities. Each role carries a status. Marketers must be aware of how products and brands can serve as status symbols. (Ali, 2016) It is common for people to choose products and services according to their status and role in society. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, pp. 165-166)

Anyhow, the person's position in each group can be defined both in terms of role and status. Roles describe the activities that people are expected to perform according to their surroundings. Role status varies depending on the respectable society accords them. (Kotler, 2018)

4.4 Personal factors

Personal factors can also influence consumer behavior. Each person is a different individual. Some of the important personal factors that influence buying behavior are lifestyle, economic status, occupation, age, personality, and self-concept (Kotler, 2018).

Occupation

People's lifestyles and buying decisions differ widely depending on their occupations or professions. According to the nature of their occupation, they have different buying considerations and decisions. An individual's buying behavior can be differentiated, for instance, from an individual who is a doctor, a lawyer, a teacher, a clerk, a businessman, a landlord, etc. Marketers must develop different marketing strategies that cater to different occupational groups' buying motives. (Ali 2016, p 80)

Purchasing goods and services is influenced by a person's occupation. Consumers in different jobs will choose differently. Blue collar workers buy rugged work clothes, whereas executives purchase business suits. The product needs of certain occupational groups may even be the subject of specialty markets, as marketers try to identify occupational groups with an above-average interest in their products. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 167)

In China, after entering the middle-income level, people's demand for consumption upgrades will increase significantly; consumption of non-essential goods becomes the main type of expenditure and a way for people to shape their personal style. More Chinese people are willing to spend money to buy products and services that more revealing of personal identity. (Accenture, 2022)

Age and lifestyle

Different stage of age and will have different tastes in food, clothing, furniture, and entertainment. It is common for individuals to charge for goods and services throughout their lifetime. In addition to this, household lifecycle stages also influence household purchases, and changes in life cycle stages are often the result of changing demographics and personal circumstances. Lifestyle is the way in which a person chooses to spend their time and money, and the way they choose to spend it determines their identity as consumers. Marketers typically creates appropriate products and marketing plans for each stage of a life cycle based on their target markets. (Solomon 2018, pp. 258-259; Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 186) Lifestyle is a pattern of living that a person chooses in order to live his or her life in a particular way, such as through his or her activities, interests, and way of life. People of the same culture, class, and occupation often have very different lifestyles. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 168)

As behavior is the first determinant of health and well-being, the lifestyle perspective recognizes that people sort themselves into their respective groups because of what they like to do, how they spend their leisure time, and whom they spend money on. Lifestyle marketing is about providing consumers with ways to enjoy their lives and express their social identities, and it is not only about the ability to allocate their discretionary income. Lifestyle marketing allows consumers to choose their preferred means of enjoyment and expression of their social identities. (Solomon 2018, p 260- 261.)

Economic situation

A person's economic circumstance will strongly influence the store and product choices she or he makes. In order to be successful in investing in products and services, marketers will pay close attention to trends in spending, personal income and saving. The economic situation of the consumer dictates a great deal of his buying behavior. As a result, if an individual has a high income and savings, then he will purchase more expensive products; on the other hand, an individual with a low income and savings will purchase less expensive products. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 169; Jisana, 2014)

Personal and self-concept

Personality traits of an individual have a great deal to do with consumer behavior. In describing the personality of a person, characteristics such as self-confidence, dominance, sociability, autonomy, defensiveness, adaptability, and aggression are generally described. The way a consumer responds to marketing stimuli depends on his or her personality, but efforts to use that information in marketing contexts can be quite challenging. When considering the choice of a product or brand, consumers can analyze their behavior by considering their personality. (Solomon 2018, pp. 242-245; Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, pp. 168-169)

4.5 Psychological factors

Motivation, perception, learning, and beliefs and attitudes are four psychological factors that influence a person’s buying decisions.

Motivation

In a situation where a person has a pressing need to satisfy, a product that can satisfy multiple consumer needs will influence consumer buying decisions. Consumer motivates refer to needs that are sufficiently urgent to direct a person to seek satisfaction of the need. A person tries to satisfy the most important need first. (Kolter 2018.) Customers' buying behavior can also be affected by a level of motivation. There are different needs that every individual has, including physiological needs, biological needs, socio-economic needs, etc. Needs are inherently different, since some are urgent, and some are not. When the urge for satisfaction is more pressing, a need becomes a motive. (Gajjar, 2013) Motivating people means getting them to act in a certain way. Consumers are motivated to seek satisfaction when they are aroused by a need. A consumer is motivated to reduce or eliminate this need by creating a state of tension. Consumers seek satisfaction because they are motivated by an urgent need. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, pp. 169-172; Solomon, 2018, pp.172-173)

Abraham Maslow has created a theory showed the hierarchy of consumer needs. The model can be used by marketers to gain a better understanding of their customers and the process by which they are able to reach spiritual peaks. (Solomon 2018.) It divided the needs to five categories which are psychological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs.

Psychological needs

The psychology needs can be seen as a science of understanding and meeting the fundamental needs that people have every day, these needs are biologically necessary for humans to survive, which can include food, water, sleep, clothing, living conditions, as well as health and reproducibility. Prior to moving on to the next level of fulfillment, humans must take care of these basic needs. (MasterClass, 2021; Mcleod, 2018)

Safety needs

Safety needs can be understanding as “I feel safe to do/to be something/somewhere.” These needs are the basic needs together with the psychological needs, e.g., security, protection, shelter. (Solomon, 2018.)

Social needs

Social needs come after the basic needs (psychological needs and safety needs) have been fulfilled, A personal relationship is the underlying motivation for human behavior at this level of need. Feelings of belongingness are basic people's social needs. (McLeod, 2018)

Esteem needs

A person's self-esteem can be divided between internal (from within himself/herself) and external (from others). Self-esteem includes being respected achievements, mastery, independence, dignity, as well as self-respect. Status, reputation, prestige, and other external factors are included in esteem. Having respect and a good reputation is extremely important for children and adolescents, even before having a strong sense of self-worth or dignity. (McLeod, 2018; Maslow)

Self-actualization needs

After all other basic and psychological needs have been met, this category of needs is the last and most important need to be met. It is a self-actualization, self-fulfillment, self-development, and experience of peak moments. Becoming everything one can become is the ultimate goal. (Maslow)

Perception

Essentially, perception refers to how a person experiences the world on a sensory level. When perception is used as a motivational tool, it describes the process by which people choose, organize, and interpret information to construct meaning and make sense of the world around them. It is possible for people to perceive the same stimulus differently due to selective attention, selective distortion, and selective retention. (Charry, 2020; Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, p. 172)

Learning

Every experience can be defined as a learning process, and every experience is a potential source of valuable information. During action, people learn from their experiences and as a result, they change their behavior. (Kolter, 2018) Understanding the way consumers learn about products and services is at the heart of the consumer learning process. An ongoing process of learning is the result of experience, which causes a change in behavior. Consumers acquire information that is applied to future purchase decision via the learning process. Consumer behavior’s basis is start with leaning, in another words, consumer motivation stems from unfulfilled needs. (Kolter & Armstrong, 2018; Solomon, 2018, pp.130-131; Duggal, 2018)

Beliefs and attitudes

A person's beliefs are their descriptive thoughts about something. Attitudes are referring to an individual's consistent forms of evaluation, feeling, and tendency towards an idea or someone. Different products appeal to different customer beliefs and attitudes. Marketers are very curious about such beliefs and attitudes since such beliefs and attitudes form the basis for the brand image and play a crucial role in consumer behavior. By organizing campaigns that put this aspect of the business in the spotlight, marketers will be able to change the beliefs and attitudes of their customers. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2018, pp. 170-173; Gajjar, 2013)

5 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR IN CHINA

After an introduction to four factors influencing consumer behavior with theorical review before, in this chapter, the author will focus on consumer behavior in China.

5.1 Background on Chinese consumer behavior

The Chinese are heavily influenced by their traditional cultural values when it comes to buying and selling in the marketplace. They make more use of informal communication channels and rely more on opinion leaders and reference groups, which on the one hand reflects the fact that Chinese people will rely more on internal factors (cultural factors and personal factors) in their consumer behavior, compared to external factors that will not have as much influence, overt deference was regarded as characteristic of China's business culture. (Kindel, 1985; Guirdham, 2009, p. 33) A Chinese consumer's shopping habits are generally established since childhood, so the consumer habits will not change with age. Despite the fact that increased wealth can influence some consumers' preferences, but most Chinese consumers' spending habits are largely influenced by their living conditions and incomes. (Nelson, 2011)

People in China believe in values that are based largely on Confucianism, a social philosophy that emphasizes benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, faith, courage, forgiveness, sincerity, loyalty, filial piety, and fraternity. Hierarchies and inequalities are common in China regarding father-son relationships, employeeemployer relationships, and husband-wife relationships. Also, Chinese people strongly follow the rules that respect the old and love the young, as a result, children become one of the most important elements in social factors of consumer behavior. (Guirdham, 2009, p. 238; Kindel)

Diligence and enterprising spirit are the cultural gene of the Chinese nation, and it is also the source of power for the Chinese people to achieve national prosperity and happiness in the past century. Over the past few decades, the income level of the Chinese people has continued to rise, and the pursuit of a better life has continued.

Most Chinese believe that "being content with the status quo is not enough but striving to improve life." To be happy in time, as well as having long-term happiness. (Accenture, 2022)

5.2 Younger generations are taking the markets

Younger people in China are increasingly occupying China's market. Young people generally believe that power and money can represent everything. (Guirdham, 2009, p. 243) In the age of the internet, China’s young people have taken over most of the control. New brands, new products and new channels for young people are emerging all the time. (Accenture, 2022) As a result, their goals will differ greatly from those of older generations. They will work hard to improve their quality of life and attain highlevel pursuits. Compared to the older generation who think in terms of getting by and living without worrying about food and clothing.

There are groups of young people defined a name “twenties”, this means this groups of generations are mostly belonged to the first generation of the one-child policy. Their consumer habits are spontaneous, more self-centered, and more about getting selfsatisfaction. This is reflected in spending most of their income on entertainment consumption, advanced technology products and luxury goods. (Nelson, 2011.)

Chinese parents are spending increasingly more energy and financial resources on their children due to family planning and the encouragement to have one or two children per couple. Parents try to meet the needs of only children as much as possible, and the chances for them to go shopping with adults have increased dramatically. As a result, children's influence cannot be ignored, and it tends to expand. Families in China are typically child-centered, and this plays a significant role in influencing their purchasing decisions.

Young pet owners in China (born between 1989-2000) are taken the big space in the whole share of pet owners, dog owners are 66%, cat owners are 75%, from Figure 5. (MobTech, 2021) Pet food trends are mostly driven by the pet owners, the owners decide what kind of products they will choose to purchase, instead of pet itself. In

China, the pet food market is largely shaped by a younger generation of pet owners, pet ownership is often pushed to the extreme in China, with owners increasingly seeking pet products and service that reflect their own lifestyle and quality. (Pet Food Trends, Chinese Style, 2019)

Figure 5. Distribution of cat and dog owners in China, by age (MobTech, 2021)

Most of the Chinese younger generation feels that power and money can solve almost all their problems, and their quest for a high quality of life has increased. By the same token, their own pets’ consumption levels will reach a higher level as well. The young generation of pet owners will pay more attention to the high quality of pet food, as reflected in safe ingredients, adequate nutrition, and reputable brands. (Guirdham, 2009; Pet Food Trends, Chinese Style, 2019)

5.3 Online consumer behavior in China

Introduction

China now has 1,02 billion internet users, and it took 70.9% of total Chinese population. (Kemp, 2022) In China, where over one billion people had internet connection as of December 2021, from Figure 6, the market for mobile apps is expanding quickly. Moreover, one fifth of the four billion internet users globally in 2021 came from China. (Thomala, 2021; CNNIC, 2022)

Figure 6. Number of internet users in China from 2008 to 2021 (CNNIC, 2022)

The exponential increase in Chinese internet users over the past two decades has also created prospects for Chinese e-commerce. Therefore, it has become crucial for emarketers to comprehend what motivates Chinese consumers to spend online. Understanding what Chinese consumers want from internet purchasing is crucial. In order to build a more effective online marketing plan that considers their changing wants and lifestyle and enhances their happiness with online buying.

Overview of China’s online market

With over one billion online users seeing in the rise of a powerful nation in manufacturing and cyberspace, China’s digital economy is flourishing. In December 2021, there were 284 million internet users in China, making it the nation with the highest percentage of internet users worldwide. Most of the internet users that using online purchase regards convenience is the main benefit of e-commerce. (CNNIC, 2022; KPMG, n.d.) Chinese online markets are gaining popularity as more and more business conducts their business online. The success of the internet has fueled the emergence and growth of e-commerce a d continues to pique the interest of inventors and practitioners alike. In order to foster the expansion of internet users, the digital economy is increasingly playing a significant role in rearranging production and life factor resources, restructuring the socioeconomic structure, and altering the global competitive scene. (Chen & Li, 2010; CNNIC 2022)

The profitability of the online market increases and enticing at a time when internet usage is on the rise. For both professionals and businesspeople, the expansion of the market and interest in using the internet for shopping and purchasing is exciting. (Chen & Li, 2010) In Chinese internet markets, there are primarily three outcomes that are successful:

• China’s cyber capabilities kept getting better

There will be 1.425 million finished 5G base stations by the end of 2021, and 355 million 5G mobile phone users. The world’s largest fiber optic and mobile broadband network was contracted in China, and the nation’s information technology infrastructure is constantly being improved and its supply capacity is noticeably increased. (CNNIC, 2022)

The inclusive impact of the internet persisted

More individuals can now benefit form and be content with the online economy, society, and culture thanks to new enterprises like telecommuting, online medical care, and community group buying that have continued to emerge. The Chinese internet market showed tremendous strength and resiliency in its expansion. (CNNIC, 2022)

Information accessibility progress was accelerated

Almost all age group are participated in using internet, Figure 8. The middle age group and elder age group (40\~ ≥60) are taking 45.2% of all the internet users in China. (CNNIC, 2022) All Chinese departments continued to focus on the challenges that underrepresented groups face when utilizing smart technologies in 2021. The Ministry of Industry and information Technology directed the first amount of 227 websites and phone APPs the completion of the assessment of accessibility modifications for the elderly on schedule while continuing to focus on the characteristic and demands of the older groups. (Zhong, 2020; CNNIC, 2022)

Figure 7. Breakdown of internet users in China as of December 2021, by age (CNNIC, 2022)

5.4 Online consumer behavior in China – pet food

In China, where both the offline and online pet markets have seen substantial expansion, pet food is a crucial product on the market. The share of pet food retail sales online in China has been increased rapidly, Figure 8.

Figure 8. Share of pet food retail sales online in China from 2011 to 2020 (Ma, 2022)

With the development of the Internet, the sale of pet products has shifted from offline to online, with 81.8% of pet owners choosing online e-commerce. The scale of pet supplies and pet medical care is also growing rapidly at this stage. (Guolian Securities, 2021)

Consumers who are younger, more educated, married, and have families are more likely to purchase pet food online. They are less concerned with imported goods and are more concerned with brand, ingredients, and retailer reputation. Between customers’ perceptions on online and offline buying, there is barely statistically meaningful difference. Online shopping has exploded in popularity during the past ten years, notably in China. Pet food is seen as a new entrant with significant growth potential in the Chinese online market. The demand for processed pet food is rapidly increasing in China, and the traditional offline businesses are being impacted by the internet market channel. (Xiao et al., 2021)

One of the most crucial factors in Chinese markets is reputation; when consumers make purchases online, their first step is mostly start by reading online reviews from past customers, thus, processors must exercise caution when establishing their brand’s reputation. Retailers, and particularly internet retailers, must spend a lot of effort into building their brand’s reputation. (Xiao et al., 2021)

5.5 Chinese consumers buying preferences

Respect its traditional culture and value

Marketers in China have to consider culture to develop effective strategies since such strategies cannot be developed without consideration of the specific characteristics of the Chinese culture. Chinese traditional cultures have been shaped by Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. (Tang, 2009; Zheng, 1997) In Confucianism, the family is seen as the basic unit of social organization, and it establishes an ethical and moral code that governs all relationships. The importance of preserving face, as well as not causing shame, is imperative since the family is the primary unit of our society. (Tang, 2009) After Confucianism, Taoism has been the most influential philosophy in Chinese thought through the ages. Although different from Confucianism almost completely, the ideology is not contradictory. The way of Tao is based on the idea that all material existence and all changes in the world can be explained by a single, fundamental principle, which are between five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The existence of this principle governs everything, from change to life. (Tang,

2009) In the third century AD, Buddhism emerged in China as an independent religion, after being introduced from India. It is believed by Buddhism that desire is the source of all pains, and the pain can be alleviated by suppressing desire through meditation. (Tang, 2009)

To this day, these traditional cultural concepts are still preserved and admired by most Chinese people. People are willing to follow these traditional cultures to achieve better moods and better opportunities, regardless of whether they are in business or personal life.

In addition to this, “Made in China” has become a new trend in recent years, with Chinese people increasingly seeking their own products. While the international market is launching personalized products for the Chinese market, the old national products are exploring the road of transformation and are coming back to the public's attention; the quality of national products is rapidly improving and there are many innovations in marketing methods, coupled with the rising cultural confidence of Chinese consumers, many categories have seen cases of local brands even catching up with international brands. (Accenture, 2022) The main intentions of Chinese people when they choose to consume domestic products include:

Cost-effective

Products with features

• National pride

Demand on healthy products

China's daily needs are changing as its per capita income levels rise. In these demands to achieve a high-quality lifestyle, the demand for diets has evolved from better taste to healthier diets. Chinese have a saying that “Illness enters by the mouth.” which make their extremely strict food requirements, this is not only reflected in the highquality guarantee of food, most of the Chinese people also strongly believe in the power of herbal medicine, and many food or health products have been added with herbal ingredients, which greatly enhances the desire of Chinese consumers to buy them. While health food and products are still generally expensive, Chinese consumers are more concerned about their health than ever before. In addition to traditional Chinese medicines and solutions, younger and affluent consumers are often seeking out Western products, but with the social development, these people are also more willing to focus on domestic brands rather than just seeking Western products. (Nelson, 2011) Many Chinese people are willing to pay high prices for quality health products and enjoy contactless delivery services. (Ernst & Young Global Limited, 2021)

5.6 Opportunities in Chinese consumer markets

When face to Chinese consumers, to satisfy their emotional, intellectual, and social needs, Chinese consumers are constantly looking for new products and services that suit their hectic lifestyles. (Tang, 2009) Marketers should not underestimate the quality and requirements of Chinese products, and these products must be of the highest quality with a good reputation while meeting basic requirements, Chinese consumers are more and more following the principle of "quality is more important than price". They are more likely to pay attention to product quality rather than price when making a purchasing decision. They tend to follow the moral standards of traditional Chinese culture, regardless of whether they are marketers or consumers. The Chinese consumer market will be a big opportunity for businesses with a good moral foundation, producing good products and services with heart and integrity.

In the Accenture 2022 China Consumer Insights report, consumers’ diversified value aspirations are profiled form five perspectives.

1. “Me” Economic

With the popularity of smart devices and the rapid development of e-commerce platforms, the decision-making power of household consumption returns more to the individual, “one person, one shopping cart’, consumers’ sense of self is becoming more and more distinct, and consumption has become a way for Chinese people to shape their personal style. When making shopping decisions, they place more importance on their own internal needs than on outside ways and evaluations. “I need” and “I like” are more and more popular and becoming the emphasis of one’s purchasing idea. At the same time, Chinese people have always attached importance to their families, and they still want to take into account the needs of their families while expressing their individual style in their consumption. (Accenture, 2022)

2. Neo-Rationalism

Chinese consumers are increasingly scrutinizing their needs, paying attention to the essence of the goods, comparing multiple brands, researching in depth, and looking for the best option for them between multiple brands and channels. In the process of comparison, they explore the connotation of the goods and focus more and more on the sense of meaning while pursuing freshness. (Accenture, 2022)

3. The master of time

Since 2010, China has entered the ranks of upper middle-income countries. (Lu, 2012) Chinese people are gradually starting to pursue work-life balance, value practice, and gradually getting used to paying for convenience in order to get more leisure time. For example, spending time with family, exercising and exploring the unknown wide world, they have unlimited expectations for leisure. (Accenture, 2022)

“996” working regular in China known as the term is abbreviation for a work schedule that runs from 9am to 9pm, six days a week. (Zaagman, 2021) For Chinese people, who are used to struggle, efficiency and busyness, "leisure time" is a strange and luxurious thing. Compared with other countries, Chinese residents have less leisure time, and the number of statutory paid vacation days is far less than that of developed economies. Combined with the significant increase in time spent caring for the elderly and spending time with children compared to a decade ago, the time people have at their disposal is even more precious. With rising living standards and more services available, more and more Chinese are willing to spend money to have more time. (Zaagman, 2021; Accenture, 2022)

4. Coexistence with Technology

Over the past two decades, technology has evolved in leaps and bounds for a wide range of applications. Now that smart living has become normalized, the novelty is fading, and people are thinking about the role of technology on multiple fronts. While using digital products and services for convenience, people expect companies to provide people-oriented and using humanization technology applications. Chinese consumers have a strong sense of trying new things. From smartphones to smart homes, smart products have fully and deeply penetrated into people's daily lives. (Accenture,

2022) The attitude of Chinese consumers towards digital technology has gone from unfamiliarity to acceptance, from unconditional welcome to strict scrutiny. But with this comes a negative impact, as "cell phone dependency" spreads to older and younger age groups and concerns about physical and mental health grow. People hope that smart products can improve efficiency while considering their own and their families' physical and mental health.

5. Sustainable prosperity

More and more Chinese consumers are aware of the social and environmental impact of individual behavior and the importance of sustainability. Environmental protection is becoming cooler and more fashionable for Chinese people, and more and more Chinese people are fulfilling their green commitments and are willing to putting effort and money into environmental protection.

In the Accenture 2021 Global Consumer Survey, 98% of Chinese respondents recognize "the value of environmental protection and sustainability, and the impact it has on their behavior and product choices. Consumer expectations are moving from "getting a good product/service/experience from a company" to "making the world a better place through my consumer behavior", from "ego needs" to "big ego needs". (Accenture, 2022)

Conclusion

China’s consumer market has entered a new phase of steady growth, and companies must shift from rough expansion to refined operations, deeply understand the changing needs, and build basic capabilities in order to continue to provide consumers with goods and services that truly meet their needs. (Accenture, 2022) As mentioned in the author's previous theoretical part, most Chinese people value their families and respect elderly people as well as young ones. Marketers should learn to find business opportunities from them, for example, how to make their products and services follow this principle; where to get the attention of these people, etc. When the younger generation in China is taking over the market, it is important to keep an eye on the latest consumption trends they are pursuing and predict what will be their next pursuit products and service.

In China, the beginnings of a mature consumer society have emerged. (Accenture, 2022) Faced with rapid social change and a plethora of choices, Chinese consumers are maturing rapidly, becoming more rational and autonomous, and taking a holistic view of the functional value, emotional value and long-term rewards of goods and services. They are striving for cultural enjoyment and growth experiences and have a growing sense of social responsibility.

In China's consumer market, it is more important to have a macro vision to think about the value of the mission of corporate existence and to develop strategies and implementation plans in a responsible manner. For example, insisting on humancentered technology application, reducing the negative impact of business activities on the environment, and helping to achieve common prosperity. Know how to gain insight into people's innermost desires and quickly adapt to changing consumer preferences and dynamically changing market conditions. Learn from consumers efficiently and continuously. At the same time, focus on helping people solve problems that are relevant to them, thus making their lives better. Knowing how to cultivate long-term, resilient consumer relationships and increase consumer confidence in the company and the brand.

5.7 Opportunities in Chinese pet food consumer markets

Pet is part of the life

In today's China society, pets play more like family member, friend, child role than just an animal, and pet owners tend to choose high quality pet food over cheap pet food within their spending power. In addition, the concept of scientific pet care is gradually popularized. More and more pet owners are starting to give their pets regular medical services. In recent years, the pet industry has grown rapidly, and the identity of pets has gradually changed, from being mere amusement to being a companion in people's lives. (Guolian Securities, 2021; Consumer World, 2021)

Made in China – Demand on high quality domestic products

In China, when pet owners choose pet food, domestic preference is higher than imported products. More and more Chinese pet owners are open to domestic brands, the cost-effective performance of domestic pet products has become a major advantage, and the psychological reason for supporting domestic products is also a major driving factor. Following percentages of pet owners' consumer brand preferences, Figure 10:

Figure 9. Chinese consumer buying preference on pet food, focus on brands (MobTech, 2021)

Both domestic and imported will be chosen 49.5%

More inclined to national brands 16.3%

More inclined to imported brands 15.9%

Only choose national brands 9.8%

Only choose important brands 2.0%

Not concerned about the brands 6.5%

National brands (26.1%) > Imported brands (17.9%)

With the rise of domestic brands and the localization of the pet industry, domestic enterprises have a vast market space and market potential. The main reasons for Chinese pet owners to buy national products are, e.g., high cost-effective performance, support for “Made in China”, high quality to meet their needs, good after-sales service, and being recommended by other consumers. (Consumer World, 2021; MobTech, 2021)

Feedback from other consumers

Chinese pet consumers have a high degree of loyalty in their choice of brand for pet staple foods. (Consumer World, 2021) Over 50% of purchase decisions are influenced

by word-of-mouth from other consumers, i.e., feedback on the products after use.
Reading other consumers’ feedback reviews become essential for most Chinese people.

Pet Nutritional

Pet nutrition, as a supplement to pet food, caters to the demand for consumer upgrading. Feeding habits of pet owners who feed daily and irregularly account for more than 50% of the pet owners. When choosing nutritional products, functional effect, reputation, and cost effectiveness, are essential elements. Pet dogs ranked in the top three for calcium and bone, gastrointestinal conditioning and skin care and coat needs. Cats have an increased need for coat and joint protection. (Consumer World, 2021)

5.8 Case study - “2007 Pet Food Recall”

The 2007 U.S. pet food contamination incident refers to the March 16, 2007-present emergency recall of products from Canada-based pet food manufacturer “Menu Foods” due to the alleged contamination of its ingredients resulting in the death of dogs and cats. (Center for Veterinary Medicine, 2018) The cause, and extent of contamination of this incident are under investigation. The primary cause of death in the poisoned pets was kidney failure. The preliminary findings of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration concluded that the allegedly contaminated products used wheat protein powder and rice protein powder imported from mainland China in late 2006, which contained melamine and melanic acid. Crystals containing these two substances were also found in the kidneys of the poisoned pets. (Texas Veterinary Laboratory on Front Lines of Pet Food Recalls - AgriLife Today, 2021)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration investigation found that melamine was detected in some wheat protein powder and rice protein powder imported from Jiangsu Xuzhou Anying Biotechnology Development Company and Shandong Binzhou Futian Biotechnology Co., Ltd. and tentatively concluded that melamine contained in pet food was the cause of the poisoning deaths of cats and dogs. The products from the two companies were declared for export under the name of illegally inspected goods to evade inspection and quarantine authorities. The Chinese government subsequently closed the factories of the two companies and revoked the licenses. (CCTV, 2007)

This pet food accident has undoubtedly dealt a huge blow to the Chinese pet food industry, behind the deaths of thousands of pets, greatly reducing the credibility of pet food made in China, both in terms of the lives of pets and the credibility of “Made in China”, which are both extremely devastating. It could even be said to be almost a death sentence for pet food made in China. But behind this storm, there are still many conscientious Chinese manufacturers who are making products responsibly, which is why the Chinese pet industry has been on an upward trend. The author will neither deny the irreparable mistakes made by individual Chinese pet food companies in the 2007 pet food recall, nor deny the general trend that the Chinese pet food industry is pursuing the production of nutritionally balanced, natural, and healthy products with well-known brands. Thus, one of the most important lessons can be found in this accident: safe ingredients and healthy production are the first step for all industries towards to consumer markets.

6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In this chapter, author will discuss the methodology for the empirical part of the thesis, including the research methods theorical and the research method of this thesis study, data collection and analysis, and create and analysis of online questionnaire questions. It will also consider the validity and reliability of the findings.

6.1 Research methods

The method of conducting research can be quantitative or qualitative.

Qualitative research refers the research that does not include any statistical methods, or any quantitative research related. Qualitative research focus more on words and sentences than numbers to research on a phenomenon. In another word, qualitative research is non-numerical data research method, to better understand, describe, and interpret the phenomenon. It is typically used in the humanities and social sciences, typically by using special techniques such as interview, surveys, case studies, etc. In qualitative research, the results provide direction for the research process. It does not yield similar objective explanations because the interpretation and outcome are subject to interpretation, and the result always depend on the researcher. (Kananen, 2013, pp. 31-32; Salkind, 2006, p. 201; Bhandari, 2020)

Qualitative research is for it to assist in understanding how people perceive the world. It tends to be flexible in their interpretation of data and seek to retain rich meaning. Qualitative researcher here refers to the author, are considered “instruments” in research because every observation, interpretation, and analysis is processed through the author’s own personal lens. (Bhandari 2020) Qualitative research can be used for preliminary research and useful for advanced research, qualitative research often used in business because it delivers exact information and analysis, it can be used in marketing research and for forecasting, and as a matter of fact, all this information came from qualitative research as theories and models at some stage. (Kananen, 2013, p. 32)

Quantitative research aims at generalizing, thus doing quantitative research requires having knowledge about the researched subject. Frequently, quantitative research requires the use of questionnaires, which require knowledge of the topic being studied. In essence, this is a more statistical approach to research. (Kananen, 2019, p. 25)

Questionnaire is the most common way to carry out quantitative research (Kananen, 2019, p. 30). Various analysis methods can be used on Excel to analyze data obtained through a questionnaire, for example independent t-tests and Chi-squared tests. In quantitative research, the analysis is directed to a certain group, also known as "population" (Kananen, 2019, p. 30). Certain group is used in order to find information specific to the population's or subculture's preferences, in this case, pet owning Chinese consumers. Quantitative research is used in order to analyze the results. (Kananen, 2013, p. 31)

6.2 Creating the questionnaire

The author had a strong interest in pets and raised pets in China for many years, which was one of the major reasons for choosing the topic for the thesis. As a Chinese, the author is also very interested in the relationship between Chinese consumers and the Chinese economy. Therefore, the online questionnaire was aimed at Chinese consumers who have had purchased pet food products or wish to purchase them from several WeChat pet groups.

“WeChat” is one of the most popular social media applications in China. WeChat is used by almost all Chinese people. A physical questionnaire survey is very difficult to conduct since the author was not located in China. In accordance with the thesis' topic, the author gathered four pet-related WeChat groups and gathered approximately 900 Chinese, from all over the cities in China, those were meeting the requirement of quantity and breadth for this thesis. The questionnaire started with the draft in Word file and transferred into an online platform via an Chinese questionnaire creating website called “Wen Juan Xing” (问卷星), the website required a domestic Chinese phone number assess to use, in order to use the website, the author obtained help from her mother in verifying the phone number. The questionnaire can be found in the last page (appendix).

The questionnaire questions for this thesis were created based on the main research question:

• What factors affect the Chinese pet food consumer group’s buying behavior, and what kind of pet food products will appeal to Chinese pet food consumers? and supporting research questions:

Who are the consumer groups in Chinese pet food market?

What is the impact of Chinese consumer behavior on Chinese pet food market?

What factors will affect the Chinese consumers’ buying decision on pet food?

What are Chinese consumer preferences in pet food options?

What group of consumers drives the Chinese pet food industry the most?

What are the current trends and challenges facing the pet food industry in China?

What pet food product qualities are important for Chinese consumers?

This questionnaire was primarily focused on Chinese consumers' performance in pet foods, as well as a general theory of Chinese consumers' performance. The purpose of the questionnaire was to be able to collect data results that would provide insight into the behavior of Chinese consumers buying Chinese pet food, generally including who they are, what products they are willing to pay for, what kind of products they care about, and where do they buy those products.

Together 19 questions were settled in the questionnaire, except the last question is not a mandatory question, the rest of 18 questions were all required to answer, included “choose only one option”, and “can choose more than one option” questions. The last question was aimed to ask the respondents to provide their own opinion or suggestions on buying pet food products. The questionnaire results will be presented anonymously. The expected response time for the questionnaire was around 5 minutes, based on the speed and reflection of the different respondents. The language form of the questionnaire is in Chinese and English, the English form will appear after the Chinese form, the author considers that the popularity and usage rate of English is not very widespread in China, and the people involved in the WeChat group are not well known to the author, so using the native language for questionnaire can maximize the benefits of this questionnaire, thus, all respondents can answer the questions without reading difficulties. In addition, as a native Chinese author, the Chinese form of the question will not be considered a problem when designing.

6.3 Data collection

As determined by the author, most of the target members involved in the WeChat group are Chinese consumers who own pets, had experience in purchasing pet food, or planning to purchase pet food. The expected valid responses are at least 50, and the total number of people in the WeChat groups is estimated to be approximately 9 hundreds, this population is assumed to get enough of answers in the result. It is expected that the online survey will not take long to collect answers, and once the link to the questionnaire is posted in the group, the vast majority of members who see it and decide to answer will do so immediately. Unlike sending in email form, real-time links sent to a group need to be aware that other members' statements may overwrite the link, so at least two invitations to reply need to be sent, and the content and reason for the link needs to be clearly stated in the groups, which is relatively tricky because most of the selected groups are not allowed to post external links casually unless there is an acceptable reason and motivation. Therefore, author need to organize the language well to convince group members to become respondents.

In this thesis, the research methodology was decided as questionnaire to Chinese consumer behavior, when questionnaire is used to obtain research results, the questions will ask the sample (respondents) to answer the listed on the questionnaire, however, if suitable respondents cannot be reached, or the geographical area covered is not broad enough, can all become limitations for the final analysis and findings.

The respondents for this thesis were selected from several pet owner groups on WeChat, totaling about nine hundred people. The respondents are suitable for the questionnaire, as they are supposed to own pets or have had experience owning pets and are covered from lots of different cities from China, therefore, they belong to the groups within the scope of the author’s research. But the result cannot be absolutely guaranteed that all respondents are people who own pets and consumed pet food products. The coverage of WeChat groups is too wide to be used almost all Chinese. Therefore, there may be pet-free individuals who have no relevant purchasing experience in the group, or pet food merchants who join the large group for online marketing. Then their answers for the questionnaire may be consistent with the literature review and deviation from more accurate data. But in author’s opinion, they possibility in this case could be small. When the number of respondents is large enough, they are more likely to support the results than those who do not belong to the target group’s answer.

The study was conducted using an online questionnaire website called “Wen Juan Xing”, once the questions has been decided and set, the website will create a link automatically, this is the link that the author can send to the WeChat groups. The answering amount and answers will be saved to the system and the website will create the data that can be analyzed in digital version, the final presentation format of the data can be selected e.g., charts and graphs. It is therefore easier to analyze the results without transferring the data to another application by the author herself.

6.4 Validity and reliability

The results and conclusions of the thesis should be accurate, reliable, and trustworthy after gathering data. Validity and reliability of measurement are important characteristics of good measurement practices. (Kananen, 2013, pp. 176-177; Salkind, 2006, p. 105) A researcher may set a reasonable and perfectly acceptable research question with a well-crafted hypothesis that is logical and well expressed before initiating the analysis. However, if the researcher uses the wrong tool in order to measure the research question, it will cause the credibility of the study to be questioned. A measurement instrument's validity and reliability are essential because their absence may explain why it accepts the research incorrectly. (Salkind, 2006, p. 105)

The validity of a test or instrument refers to the accuracy, veracity, authenticity, or genuineness of the measurements that are made as per the author's specifications. Validity refers to the ability of a research study to examine the correct factors and eliminate any characteristics that might deter readers from trusting the results of the study, it is a measurement instrument's capability to measure what it was designed to measure. To evaluate the validity of a text, one must examine the context in which the text appears. (Salkind, 2006, pp. 113-114; Kumar, 2005, p. 153)

In terms of reliability, there is both a true score and an observed score component, reliability refers multiple measurements of the same thing yield the same results. Reliability is an indicator of how accurate research is when it's applied to a particular study. An instrument can be defined as reliable if it is consistent and stable, which makes the measurements it makes predictably and accurately. This degree of accuracy or precision is measured by its reliability. (Salkind, 2006, pp. 106-108; Kumar, 2005, pp. 156-157)

7 RESEARCH FINDINGS

The questionnaire was included 19 questions in total. From question 1 to question 18 are questions that must be answered, 11 questions are “only choose one option” questions, and 7 of them are “choose more than one options” questions. The last question is free to answer option, which aims to collect the respondents’ own thoughts or suggestions on pet food products and buying pet food products, based on their buying experiences and expectation from the future Chinese pet food market, the last question is not a mandatory option. After the questionnaire was edited and sent, there were 133 valid respondents. There was only one way to send the questionnaire, which was through the WeChat pet groups. The process took about a day, from sending out the questionnaire in the morning and receiving all the 133 responds in the evening, because the message in the groups refreshed quickly, there will be constantly group members texting messages, so once the link to the questionnaire was sent, the group members at once who saw and chose to answer were limited within a specified period of time, thus, the author sent it twice in three groups.

There was a total of 986 people in the three targeted WeChat groups, and because they were specific groups, which are pet related, thus, the majority of the respondents were the ones the author expected, and they were people who had pets or wanted pets and had experience buying pet food, and people who were interested in buying pet food. Although it is impossible to determine how many group members saw the questionnaire, 133 responses are enough given the requirement of at least 50 results being at minimum number. Therefore, the results of this questionnaire for the research are considered to have both validity and reliability, provided that the sample group is relevant, and the sample amount is sufficiently large. The questionnaire questions can be seen from the appendix in the end of the thesis, there are some basic questions to segment the group of respondents, start with the respondents covered almost every urban area in China, from Figure 10.

江苏省/Jiangsu Province	22
江苏省/Jiangsu Province	22	102030
广东省/GuangdongProvince	16
四川省/Sichuan Province	10
河南省/Henan Province	9
河北省/Hebei Province	9
云南省/Yunnan Province	7
山西省/Shanxi Province	6
湖南省/Hunan Province	5
上海市/Shanghai City	4
陕西省/Shanxi Province	4
浙江省/Zhejiang Province	4
福建省/FujianProvince	3
广西藏族自治州/GuangxiZhuangAutonomousRegion	3
内蒙古自治区/MongoliaAutonomousRegion	2
江西省/JiangxiProvince	2
黑龙江省/Heilongjiang Province	2
新疆维吾尔自治区/XinjiangUygurAutonomousRegion	1
贵州省/Guizhou Province	1
吉林省/Jilin Province	1
甘肃省/Gansu Province	1
重庆市/ChongqingProvince	1
安徽省/Anhui Province	1
Total	114

Figure 10. Distribution of respondents by region in China (Questionnaire results)

From the results, there are 22 respondents from Jiangsu province （江苏省）, 16respondents from Guangdong province（广东省）, 10 respondents from SichuanProvince（四川省）, 9 respondents from Henan province（河南省）, 9 respondentsfrom Hebei province（河北省）, 7 respondents from Yunnan provinces（云南省）,6 respondents from Shanxi province（山西省）, 5 respondents from Hunan province（湖南省）, 4 respondents from Shanghai city （上海市），4 respondents fromShanxi province（陕西省）, 4 respondents from Zhejiang province（浙江省）, 3respondents from Fujian province（福建省）, 3 respondents from Guangxi ZhuangAutonomous Region（广西壮族自治区）, 2 respondents from Inner MongoliaAutonomous Region（内蒙古自治区）, 2 respondents from Jiangxi province（江西省）, 2 respondents from Heilongjiang province,（黑龙江省） 1 respondent fromXinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region（新疆维吾尔自治区）, 1 respondent fromGuizhou province（贵州省）, 1 respondent from Jilin province（吉林省）, 1respondent from Gansu province（甘肃省）, 1 respondent from Chongqing city（重庆市）, 1 respondent from Anhui province（安徽省）. Together amount from aboveis 114 respondents.

Because the link of this questionnaire was sent directly in WeChat and requires real name authentication to answer, so when the respondents are successfully verified, their WeChat regional location will be automatically fed back to the system, the total number of respondents is 133, the remaining 19 do not show the region, the probability is that they did not open the system tracking permission. Based on the fact that all the respondents are Chinese and come from pet owner groups, even if the result do not count these 19 respondents, the number of remaining respondents is sufficient to support the reliability and will not affect the validity of the result.

Question 1:

您的宠物类型是?（可以选择多项）/What kind ofpet do you own?(You can chose more than one option）[多选题]

Figure 11. Question 1: What kind of pet do you own?

The first basic question was to ask the consumers what breed of pet they own. The respondents were allowed to choose more than one option, Figure 11 shows that 55.04% of the consumers own the dog and 51.94% consumers own the cat. The bird with 20.93%, aquarium with 19.38%, rabbit with 14.73%, amphibians with 10.08%, and others with 4.65%. In terms of pet types, dogs and cats are the two giants, followed by birds, aquariums, and rabbits, the rare pet type is amphibians and others, for example, reptiles and rodent pets, relatively uncommon, tend to niche.

Question 2:

Figure 12. Question 2: Where did you get your pet?

This question aimed to figure out the route that the consumers get their pet from, the highest rate 34.13% are from option that adopted from friends and acquaintances, this relates to social factors in Chinese consumer behavior, 29.37% are from offline purchase, 18.25% are from offline purchase, 11.9% are from adoption agency, and 6.35% are from homeless animals. Adopted from friends and acquaintances, and offline purchase became the most popular way for Chinese consumers to get a pet, 63.5% of the sample amount were collected from those two categories. Also, since the economic development and the convenience of online transactions, the online purchasing also became a common way to buy the pet after above two options, but the coverage is not very extensive. Choosing online purchasing without seeing the pet brings problems that may include the unhealthy state of the pet, frightening and bringing harm to the pet in transit. At least online purchasing is a way that the author does not promote. The adoption agency and homeless animals were the least options to get a pet for the respondents.

Questions 3:

Figure 13. Question 3: What is your age group?

The third question is also a question that subdivided the respondents, which reflects in the age group. The younger generation from age 15-25 years old, and 26-35 years old took 59.52% of the selected Chinese consumers, in Chinese pet food consumers. The purpose of this question is that the author wanted to figure out which groups of age consumers took big place in the pet food market. Age between 36-45 years old were 28.57%, the coverage in the age above 56 years old stage was obviously very low, which are 0.79%, the popularity of these pet WeChat groups may not be very high for the slightly older and elderly people.

Question 4:

请问您的性别是?/What is your gender?[单选题]

Figure 14. Question 4: What is your gender?

The fourth question subdivided the respondents by their gender, the result showed that in Figure 14, female took 57.94% from the respondents are more than the male group which took 38.89%. The rest 3.17% of other option is a very small fraction of the number and will have no effect on the overall results.

Question 5:

请问您的学历是?（请选择一项）／What is your highest education background? (Please choose only one option）[单选题]

Figure 15. Question 5: What is your highest education background?

According to the fifth question, most of the respondents have a bachelor's degree, which is 49.59%, nearly half of the respondents. Following that are 23.58% who have a junior degree, indicating that the majority of Chinese pet food consumers are belong to intermediate and advanced education. 18.7% of respondents had high school or lower education, whereas those with a master's degree or higher take up only a small share of the respondents. Only 8.13% belong to this group.

Question 6:

请问您的婚姻状况是?/What is your marital status?[单选题]

Figure 16. Question 6: What is your marital status?

In question 6, the marital status of Chinese pet food consumers was presented. The married with a child/children comprised 39.84% of the target Chinese consumers, while the married one who did not have children accounted for only 8.94%, which is the lowest percentage among the target Chinese consumers. There was relatively little difference between singles and those in a relationship with 27.64% and 23.58%, respectively.

The above 6 questions from above presented, also can be found from appendix from the last page. Question 1 to question 6, are all matters of dividing the target Chinese consumers, which will have different groups under different factors. Different gender, age groups, marital status, and education levels are used to study and draw arguments about pet food purchases, the following tips can be used to draw a conclusion from the data results from questions 1 through 6.:

Cats and dogs are the preferred pet breed option

• Most families or individuals get their pets from friends or acquaintances

Female pet ownership is more common, and pet product purchasing power is stronger than for male

• The younger generation is taking over the pet food consumer market

• Married people with children are most interested in pets and pet food

• Middle and higher educated people are more interested in pets and pet food

Question 7:

Figure 17. Question 7: What are the reasons that made you decide to have a pet?

After six questions that divided consumers into groups according to multiple factors, question 7 started to focus on psychological factors, from consumers side.

This question allowed for numerous selections because there are usually several factors when related to pet ownership decisions. With a high rate of 67.48%, the respondents' most popular response was that owning a pet may make daily living more enjoyable. Similar with the rate from options from “It is a good way to decompression” with 52.03%, and “The pet will make me feel less lonely” with 46.34%.

Having a pet for the owner are most likely to increase the happiness of life, as well as can be seen from the 30.08% from “The pets are just so cute, I feel wonderful by owning a pet”. “Can cultivate love and responsibility” came after with 29.27% among respondents, “Can spend free time to have fun with the pet” has 22.76% responses. “The pet can show my personality” with 17.07%, “Can expand my social circle” with 14.63%, “For getting my family’s and friend’s support to own a pet” with 13.82%, and “The pet can improve my status” with 11.38% were the fewest motives, totaling less than 20% of the total amount.

Question 8:

8.宠物在您的生活中扮演了什么角色?（请选择一项）/What role do pets playin your life?(Please choose only one option)[单选题]

Figure 18. Question 8: What role do pets play in your life?

In response to Question 8, determined the owners' perceptions of the role their pets play in their lives, this question can be categorized as raised from a pet perspective, most respondents—34.45% and 32.77%—selected the options linked to family and friends. This indicated that for Chinese pet owners, their pets primarily serve as family members or friends. The option related to children came in at 20.17% of the total— indicating that a significant proportion of respondents treat their pets as their own children. The last option, 12.61%, was "just a pet," indicated that the pet's only role is that of a pet and nothing else.

To understand why respondents chose to own a pet and what they thought of it, questions 7 and 8 were asked. More emphasis should be placed on the respondent and pet sides. Following are the results from questions 7 and 8:

• The happiness of life can be greatly increased by having a pet.

Most of pet owners treat their animals more like family members, friends, and even children rather than just as pets.

Question 9:

9．您一般从哪里购买宠物的相关食品?/Where do you most often purchase the pet food products?[单选题]

Figure 19. Question 9: Where do you most often purchase the pet food products?

Following the fundamental question 1 to 6, which categorized pet owners according to several variables, questions 7 concerned the pet owner, and 8 concerned the role that pets play in the lives of their owners. The questions about pet food products begin at question 9.

Regarding the growing popularity of online shopping in China, 32.79% of respondents said they would buy their pet food items primarily online, while 20.49% said they would buy their pet food entirely online. Together, these two percentages accounted for 53.28% of all respondents. Out of all respondents, 18.03% and 4.92% chose to buy pet food products mainly in pet stores and only in pet stores, respectively. The remaining 20.49% chose to buy pet food goods both online and offline.

Question 10:

10．您购买宠物食品的频次是?/How often do you purchase pet food products in following options? [单选题]

Figure 20. Question 10: How often do you purchase pet food products in following options?

In question 10, which also focused on pet food, respondents were asked how frequently they buy pet food products. Of those, "4-6 times in half a year" received the highest rating (41.76%), followed by "2-3 times a month" (30%) and "2-3 times in half a year" (24.17%). "Once in half a year or less often" received the lowest rating from respondents.

Question 11:

11．近3个月内，您消费过哪些宠物相关产品?（可以多项选择）／What pet related products you have purchased in last 3 months? (You can choose more than one option） [多选题]

Figure 21. Question 11: What pet related products you have purchased in last 3 months?

To find out the most popular pet products that owners have bought in the last three months are the subject of Question 11.

This data can be used to highlight the focus of the pet food products. The biggest percentage of respondents—68.85%—have bought pet food in the past three months. The second highest percentage—67.21 percent—have bought pet snacks. The two highest percentages all related to pet food products. The other non-food purchasing alternatives are pet outdoor products (27.05%), pet medical and health care (45.08%), and pet toys (60.66%). And 2 responses with 1.64% of respondents in other answers, leaving the "pet clothes" and "surgery" texts, “pet clothes” may fall under “outdoor products” and “surgery” may fall under “Pet medical”, based on its low rate and how the proper kinds are divided afterward, the "other" option doesn't seem to have an impact on the outcome of this question.

Question 12:

12．在选择宠物产品时，您通常会为你的宠物考虑以下哪些因素?（可以多项选择）/When choosing pet products,which of the following factors do you usually consider for your pet?(You can choose more than one option） [多选题]

Figure 22. Question 12: When choosing pet products, which of the following factors do you usually consider for your pet?

This question is focused on pet food and intended to learn what the owner considers when purchasing pet food products. Starting with "place of origin," which received the lowest response rate (26.23%) and is the factor that Chinese pet food purchasers care about the least. "Nutritional content" and "Naturality and healthiness" were both rated as essential for respondents' purchasing preferences (65.57% and 65.57%, respectively). Respondents have a 55.74% rating for "Product efficacy" and a 56.56% rating for "Price.”

Question 13:

13．您在购买宠物食品时，主要考虑以下哪些因素?（可以多项选择）/Which of the following factors do you mainly consider when purchasing pet food?(You can choose more than one option） [多选题]

Figure 23. Question 13: Which of the following factors do you mainly consider when purchasing pet food?

The purpose of Question 13 was to determine the factors that consumers frequently consider when selecting pet food products. The respondents had the option of selecting more than one answer, and the safety of the product came out on top (71.31%), followed by the price and quality of the product, which came in at 66.39% and 65.57%, respectively. Prices and product quality are often inversely correlated. The appearance of the product's packaging is the aspect that Chinese customers value the least when making a purchase of pet food. After considering the internal factors of the products themselves, consumers will concentrate on the external factors, such as the product's reviews from other customers (41.8%) and the sales volume of the products (35.25%). There is only one respondent chose the other option, leaving the text "none," the author assumed that this consumer did not take any other factors into account when buying pet food.

Question 14:

14．在购买宠物食物产品时，作为宠物主人，您一般会考虑以下哪个因素?（请选择一项）／When purchasing pet food products,as a pet owner,which of the following factors is more important to you?(Please choose only one option） [单选题]

●-根据自己的消费习惯购买产品/Iwill purchase the products based on my personal buying preference ●-我会更多的考虑自己宠物的实际需求/Iwould consider more about my pet’sactual needs

Figure 24. Question 14: When purchasing pet food products, as a pet owner, which of the following factors is more important to you?

Question 14 brought out the fact that the Chinese consumers purchase the pet food products based on their personal buying preference as same as consider more about the pet’s actual needs. The pie-shaped results in the Figure 24 clearly illustrated that these two considerations are equally divided, 50.82% respondents will purchase the products based on their personal buying preference, and 49.18% respondent will consider more about their pet’s actual needs.

Question 15:

15．以下什么口碑因素会影响你的最终购买决定?（可以多项选择）/Which of the following word-of-mouth factors will affectyour final purchase decision?(You can choose more than one option） [多选题]

Figure 25. Question 15: Which of the following word-of-mouth factors will affect your final purchase decision?

Question 15 presents one of the most significant elements that can influence customers' purchasing decisions. This question related to consumer behavior with social factors and offers multiple choices. The most frequent method for Chinese customers to arrive at a decision is through recommendations from friends, which accounted for 53.72% of the respondents. The recommendation of an online pet influencer, which received 51.24% of the respondents' votes, is a further aspect that contributed to the conclusion that Chinese consumers' purchasing decisions were related to the group influence. The least influential component, which is recommendation from a WeChat pet group, has 21.49% of respondents. Recommendations from pet store employees were also a typical approach to get the products, which has 47.93%.

Question 16:

16．您在购买宠物食品时，比较注重以下哪些功效?（可以多项选择）/Which of the following functions do you pay more attention to when buying pet food?(You can choose more than one option）[多选题]

Figure 26. Question 16: Which of the following functions do you pay more attention to when buying pet food?

This question represented what Chinese pet food consumers would choose to have in terms of efficacy in the pet food product. Gastrointestinal conditioning received the highest percentage of responses (74.38%), took the top spot with the highest coverage. Additionally, 63.64% of respondents said that improved immunity for pets was also very important. The top two product efficacies ensured that pets have basic health protection. The effectiveness of hair and skin care was emphasized by 50.41% of respondents, followed by oral care (42.98%), calcium (41.32%), hairball removal (34.17%), tear marks (21.49%), and sterilization care (12.4%).

Question 17:

17．您在购买宠物食品时，更偏向于以下哪个因素?（请选择一项）/When buying pet food,which of the following do you prefer more?(Please choose only one option） [单选题]

Figure 27. Question 17: When buying pet food, which of the following do you prefer more?

The choice and preference of Chinese pet food customers for domestic and international brands is the main subject of this question. Considering that 36.36% of respondents selected both domestic and imported brands, it is difficult to determine whether brand domestic or imported consumers like more. However, it is important to note that the remaining respondents chose domestic brands (41.32%) and imported brands (22.31%), respectively. Although the neutral part of the data does not make this evident, the remaining data results indicated that the Chinese pet food consumers chose domestic brands almost half more than the imported brands.

Question 18:

18．假设发现了您购买的宠物产品质量出现了问题，您会怎么做?（请选择一项）/What would you do ifyou found a quality problem with your pet product?(Choose only one option） [单选题]

. -反馈给商家，协调退款或补偿/Feedback to merchant to coordinate refund or reimbursement
-带宠物去相关医疗机构检查/Takepets to relevant medical institutions for examination
-投诉商家，为不再出现类似问题，保护其他宠物/Complaint aboutthe merchantto protect other pets in order not to cause sin
只要宠物没有出现健康问题，可以不了了之，不在购买即可/As long as the pet has no health problems,it can be ignored and..
-不是很在意/Idonotreally care

Figure 28. Question 18: What would you do if you found a quality problem with your product?

Question 18 asked Chinese consumers what their choices would be if a problem pet food product was found. This was a single choice question, and respondents could have implemented more than one of the options, but the author set this question as a single choice to provide more accurate data for analysis and to identify Chinese consumers' attitudes toward the problematic products.

The feedback to merchant to coordinate refund or reimbursement is the most selected option with 40.5% from respondents, another option that related to merchant is the consumers will make report and complaint about the merchant to protect other pets in order to not cause similar problems again, take 18.18% from respondents, together 58.68% of respondents will choose to take the issues from merchant side, the result and purpose of this two options is to obtain compensation, not to pay for bad products, report merchants, and provide protection for other consumers and their pet. There are 9.09% of respondents choose to ignore the issue as long as the pet does not have any health difficulties and decide not to purchase the product anymore, while 31.4% of respondents decide to take their pet to the appropriate medical facilities for assessment. Together, 40.49% of the respondents indicated that they would give the pet more attention than the products if the problem products will have a detrimental impact on the pet's health. Only one respondent gives the option that do not really care, it took 0.83% from all the respondents, there is no significant impact on the result of this question.

Question 9 to question 18 were asking the questions from Chinese consumers about pet food products, generally include answers as follows:

• Most of the Chinese pet food consumers purchase the pet food products online.

Most of the Chinese pet food consumers purchase pet food products around 5 times in half a year.

Pet staple food is the most common and popular products for Chinese consumers.

Nutritional content, naturality and healthiness is the most important elements for Chinese consumers to consider when buying pet food products.

• The domestic brands become more selected than imported brands.

Group influence will mostly affect the Chinese consumer’s final buying decision, e.g., feedback from family or friends, recommendations from online pet influencers.

• Product safety is extremely important.

The last option question 19 is not a mandatory question, see from Figure 29, the respondents can choose to write if they have anything to talk about,

作为一名宠物食品消费者，根据您之前的消费经验和体验，有什么想法，建议，心得想要提出吗？(非必答题)/ As a pet food consumer, do you have any thoughts,suggestions, or insights based on your previous consumer experience? (Not a mandatory question) [单选题]

Figure 29. Questions that free to answer (The last question from questionnaire)

The author manually listed the responses sent by the respondents from Figure 30, because the final answers were not automatically provided from website.

序号/Number	提交答卷时间/SubmitTime	答案文本/TextContent
1	2022/12/16 2:20:17	宠物食品的产品中，最重要的是安全，其次是对宠物的健康和美丽功效。作为宠物主人，我们最希望的就是毛孩子的健康茁壮成长。作为消费者，我们最希望的事商家们的良心生产和用心经营/Themostimportantthinginpetfoodproductsissafety，followedbyhealthandbeautybenefits for pets.As pet owners,what we want most is the healthy and strong growth of our furchildren.Asconsumers,what we hope for most is the conscientious productionand heartfeltmanagementof businesses.
15	2022/12/163:43:02	一定保证质量/Qualityisguaranteed
17	2022/12/163:45:26	希望监管力度增加/Hopefully，regulationwillincrease
19	2022/12/163:50:41	好/Good
26	2022/12/163:57:10	希望各位商家可以凭良心生产/Hopethatallbusinessescanproducewithaconscience
30	2022/12/164:02:06	非常棒/Excellent
35	2022/12/164:11:41	非常棒/Excellent
41	2022/12/16 4:18:15	如果可以只是希望多出点对宠物健康好一点的产品，不要去伤害一个个小生命/Justhope thatmore products thatare better for the health of pets,donot gotoharmasmallife
45	2022/12/164:22:45	物超所值/Excellentvalueformoney
54	2022/12/164:35:30	拒绝黑心商家！！！/Rejecttheshadymerchants!!!
71	2022/12/165:03:09	调理肠胃，营养健康/Regulatesthegastrointestinal tractand isnutritiousandhealthy
89	2022/12/16 5:23:04	定要注意食品安全观察宠物的状态/Besure topayattentionto foodsafetyand observe thestateof your pet
93	2022/12/16 5:25:19	宠物是人类的朋友，我们要倍加爱护/Petsarehuman friendsandweneedtotakegood careofthem
100	2022/12/165:36:18	很好/Verygood
101	2022/12/165:37:20	选择适合的消费/Choosetheconsumptionthatsuitthebestforoneself
105	2022/12/165:42:31	增营养/Enhancednutrition
106	2022/12/16 8:11:19	宠物食品一定要安全，养了他们就要重视，爱护他们/Petfoodmustbesafe，raisethemshouldpayattentionto,love them

Figure 30. Answers from last question in questionnaire (Author of the thesis, 2022)

Figure 30 shows that there are 17 valid responses, including some ideas, recommendations, and observations from respondents based on their prior consumer experiences. The responses showed that while some respondents had positive shopping experiences, most respondents were concerned about the high standards and quality guarantees of pet food products. Most of the rest of the feedback related to the effectiveness of the pet food products, about requesting that the vendor can manufacture with a conscience on the products, and about asking for regulating the gastrointestinal system and is nutritious and healthful. Only one respondent made the recommendation that customers make the best choices for their consumption in this response. For Chinese consumers, safety and healthy efficacy are typically the most crucial factors when choosing pet food products.

8 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

The main findings from chapter 7 will be summarized in the conclusion chapter, along with the theoretical and empirical parts, to determine whether the questionnaire results are consistent with the theory. The theoretical component discussed consumer behavior in general and Chinese consumer behavior. These four components generally assisted the author in understanding what consumer behavior is and how each factor differs from one another. The consumer behavior in general included cultural factors, social factors, personal considerations, and psychological factors. The author was able to understand better next about the Chinese consumer behavior, therefore, she was able to know and explain Chinese consumers’ behavior and applied the knowledge into the findings.

When the results and findings are sufficient to answer the research questions, it forms a back-and-forth discussion, and the findings correspond to the point of view mentioned in the theory section, which also serves as the summary. The research questions can be found in chapter 2 from subchapter 2.1 about problem setting. The following paragraphs will answer each question together with the research findings.

The fact that the younger generation is taking over the industry, including in the market for pet food products, is one of the most significant aspects in Chinese consumer behavior. Question 3 (Figure 13) reveals that the age group in Chinese pet food products is most likely to be between the ages of 15 and 25 and 26 to 35. These two industries account for around 59.52% of the Chinese pet food market. The research finding from figure 15 with question 5 can demonstrate that people with middle and higher education levels are more interested in pets and pet food items than consumers with lower education backgrounds in China. Additionally, Question 6 (Figure 16)

shows that groups with families are especially interested in pet products and pet food. Thus, the research question “Who are the consumer group in Chinese pet food market”, and “What group of consumers drive the Chinese pet food industry most” can be answered:

• The consumer groups that in Chinese pet food market is the group who are younger, more educated, married, and have families, and younger generation drives the Chinese pet food market the most.

The questionnaire (Figure 17) aims to connect the psychosocial factors by questioning the consumer why they decide to own a pet. Almost all the responses indicate that owning a pet can boost happiness in life. For instance, owning a pet can increase joy in life, be a stress reliever, prevent loneliness, pass the time, and foster love and responsibility. Owning a pet is a very pleasant thing. And the majority of pet owners consider their animals to be more than just pets; rather, they see them as members of the family, friends, and children. This factor is found in question 8 (Figure 18), and when a pet joins the family, the decision to buy food for it will also be of a high standard. This is because Chinese consumers place a high value on their friends and family, and children frequently play an important role in the decision-making process.

Figure 6 shows the data illustrates another significant change in Chinese consumer behavior: an increase in the frequency and popularity of online shopping. The pet food products industry in China is thriving, and since Figure 8 pet food online retail sales have been steadily rising. These two facts were found in chapter 5 about Chinese customer behavior. This information can be combined with survey results (Figure 19), which show that internet shopping is the preferred method for Chinese customers to buy pet food. Figure 20 gave the information about how often the consumers purchases pet food products, the result showed most consumers have a high purchase frequency, implying that Chinese pet food consumers care a lot about their pets.

Question 11 (Figure 21) provided the conclusive evidence that, given that this thesis topic is about pet food products and that the research goal was to determine why pet food is important, consumption of pet food is concentrated in China's pet market, and pet staple food is the sector's largest category of immediate need.

Questionnaires (Figure 22, Figure 23, Figure 26) are the finding that will answer the most important research questions which are “What factors will affect the Chinese consumers’ buying decision on pet food”, “What pet food product qualities are important for Chinese consumers?”, and “What are Chinese consumer preferences in pet food options?”. The following are the conclusions drawn from the findings:

• The safety of the product is the most significant factor for pet products; this issue is likely to replace all other factors in the consumer's decision-making process. Products that are sufficiently safe will provide the pet with an adequate level of security.

• The nutritional value of the product, natural health, pricing, and product effectiveness are the factors that have the greatest impact on Chinese pet food consumers' purchasing decisions, with the product's origin and look having the least significant effects.

One of the greatest factors influencing Chinese pet food buyers is word-ofmouth recommendations from friends.

Chinese consumers of pet food are more likely to purchase goods that are secure, come highly recommended by friends, and have health benefits.

Questionnaire (Figure 27) can present that Chinese consumer are now more prefer the domestic brand – Made in China, the reasons why Chinese pet consumers choose to buy Chinese products can be categorized as cost-effective performance, the gradual satisfaction of consumers' pursuit of high quality, the recommendation of other consumers, and support for "Made in China".

A manufacturing mishap that resulted in pet food recall in 2007 is described in section 5.8. Questionnaire (Figure 28) asked Chinese pet food consumers what they would decide to do first if they discovered there were issues with the pet food products they had purchased, in relation to the instance from chapter 5.8. Among the results obtained, most of the answers to take measures against the merchant, either feedback with the merchant, negotiate refunds and compensation, or report the merchant and leave no loose ends. So far, the research question “What are the current trends and challenges facing that pet food industry to China” can be answered as follow:

Chinese consumers primarily rely on national brands and online shopping for their pet food.

• Pet food safety is currently the biggest industry challenge because a food safety incident can have serious consequences for manufacturers, retailers, customers, and pets.

For the main research question “What factors affect the Chinese pet food consumer groups’ buying behavior, and what kind of pet food products will appeal to Chinese pet food consumers?”, the results of the questionnaire can be used to analyze the answer showed that customers of pet food are primarily from the younger generation of the consumer market, with middle-class and upper-class backgrounds and family-oriented consumer groups being more interested in pets and pet food. The ability of pet ownership to significantly increase life pleasure and enhance consumer psychological pacts is the primary reason why Chinese pet owners opt to keep pets. Online shopping for pet food has become the mainstream of consumer consumption, but whether online or offline consumption, the primary concern of Chinese consumers for pet food is concerned about safety and health, in fact, the efficacy of the product, the least concerned about the origin of the product and packaging. At the same time, Chinese consumers are increasingly choosing domestic brands rather than just pursuing imported products. The recommendation of friends and the promotion of online pet influencers became the two most important factors influencing Chinese pet food consumers. Therefore, Chinese pet food consumers are largely attracted to and buy products that are safe enough, contain health benefits, have a good reputation, have positive customer feedback, are recommended by family and friends, and are marketed by online pet influencers.

When there is a problem with a purchased product, Chinese consumers are the first to contact the merchant to coordinate compensation or to report the merchant to stop the damage in time for the individual and others. Only a very small percentage of the population is left alone with “I do not really care” attitude, and the vast majority of Chinese pet food consumers have a large degree of concern for the health and safety of their pets.

The questionnaire was able to answer all the research questions, the results of theory and research are consistent. Thus, the author identifies the research was successful.

9 RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter offers advice to businesses already operating in China as well as those that desire to succeed in the Chinese pet food market, as well as the individuals who are interested in Chinese consumer behavior and Chinese consumer behavior focus on pet food industry. This thesis provides important informations on the characteristics and behavioral manifestations of Chinese pet food consumers and what products are most popular among Chinese pet food consumers. The main research of this thesis is the behavior of Chinese pet food consumers, the information available in the thesis is the theoretical basis of consumer behavior, the theoretical basis of Chinese consumer behavior, the characteristics of Chinese consumer behavior, and the characteristics of Chinese consumer behavior in the pet food industry.

The author offers the following recommendations for firms looking for consumer market segments:

Start looking for the consumer groups with the younger age and use internet marketing more often, while being aware of and cognizant of the epidemic of online pet food shopping. Finding online pet influencers with large followings and commissioning product endorsements can be reflected in the daily posts and videos. In addition to recommendations from friends, recommendations from online pet bloggers have a strong influence on Chinese consumers' purchasing decisions. Focus more on the rise of Made in China, manufacturing high quality, safe and healthy pet food products on the basis of “Made in China”, a successful national brand brings a sense of national pride and corresponds to the cultural factors of the Chinese consumer.

The most important factor to be considered in the development of pet food products is food safety, which is a criterion that almost all consumers of pet food rank at the top of their consideration list when making a purchase. Saying that a pet food product has largely achieved success in the Chinese pet food industry when it possesses a high enough level of safety and good enough health benefits is not an exaggeration.

FINAL WORDS

This thesis is a blend of the author's love of animals and her interest in the Chinese consumer market as a Chinese person at the outset. The author has benefited much from the process overall, building on the consumer performance classes she has taken and deepening her understanding of consumer behavior theory. The theoretical part is not an easy task for the author, as it covers a large number of books and website materials to read, and each theoretical knowledge and point has to have a precise source, and it needs to form a final written expression with the author’s own expository sentences, which is a real challenge to read a large number of literature studies in a non-native English language, but fortunately, after writing this thesis and studying for it, the author's English has improved further.

It is worth to mention that before the questionnaire decided as the final methodology, there was the interview decided before first. The author's preferred plan was to select the case company to interview and then analyze and draw conclusions from the results. After identifying the case company, the author prepared interview questions and sent them to a Chinese pet food company that he had initially identified but did not receive a response within two weeks even of sending the reminder email. After this happened, the author chose to expand the selection of companies and started looking for more case companies and sent a wide range of emails inviting an interview, but unfortunately, no response was received.

In that case, in order to move the thesis forward, the author chose to change the methodology from interview to questionnaire, which meant making relevant changes to the thesis from beginning to end, requiring a new draft of the questionnaire, finding respondents to the questionnaire, and ensuring that there would be enough respondents. Fortunately, the questionnaire was much more efficient than the author thought, and the authors got double the number of respondents than required in one day, meaning that the findings were more convincing and well-founded, with high validity and reliability.

Also, during the period of writing the thesis, the author did not have a great motivation to write for some time, in the author's travel and more focused on work, and also on moving is the basis, not fully focused on the thesis, also after writing to many companies requesting interviews and not getting any response, the author was not very motivated to write, so the progress of the dissertation in about 3 months are not a great progress, this is also the author of the dissertation process feel negative point. But it is worth mentioning that after the decision to return to focus on the rest of the research, the author's efficiency increased a lot at the same time, and with positive responses results to the questionnaire, even better than expected, the analysis of the results and comparison of the theoretical part of the connection turned out to be interesting writing.

In the future studies, the author found this study will extremely be helpful in her knowledge of consumer performance in general and Chinese consumer behavior. Furthermore, this thesis brings the author not only an academic addition to the knowledge, but also a good lesson on how to deal with sudden changes, both in life and in the workplace. Overall, the author is satisfied with this thesis, the findings of the paper achieve a high degree of agreement with the theoretical basis of the authors' research, and the findings are supported by a large amount of data and data correlation, meaning that the credibility of this paper is extremely high.

In the absence of extensive research on the pet food market in China, the authors hope that this thesis will become one of the key sources in this field.

Finally, the author wants to express her gratitude to everyone who helped and encouraged me while she was writing my thesis. Special thanks go to my thesis advisor for her prompt feedback, her parents for their support from China, and her boyfriend for his company.

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宠物食品消费者调查问卷

各位毛孩子，水孩子，飞孩子家长好，

我的名字是徐文心，目前大三在读于芬兰的Satakunta University of Applied Sciences (SAMK)大学，国际贸易专业。

现在在写论文的调查研究阶段，我的论文主题是通过宠物食品消费者行为，来分析和总结中国宠物食品市场的行情，和消费者的需求以及市场，需要你们作为宠物食品消费者的协助。

这份调查问卷是关于中国消费者对宠物食物产品的消费习惯和偏好，以及什么因素会影响你们的消费决定，如果您的家中有宠物，有过购买宠物食品的经历，或者有打算购买宠物食品的意向，那么您将会是这份调查问卷的完美答卷者。

问卷的语言有中英文形式，英语是方便最后作者的调查结果应用和分析，您完全可以正常中文作答。

非常感谢您的参与，此次及调查结果将会匿名公布，并且花费大约5分钟的时间。此次问卷调查仅用于学术研究，不涉及任何商用目的。

My name is Wenxin Xu and l am currently a junior at Satakunta University of Applied Sciences (SAMK) in Finland, majoring in International Business.

The topic of my thesis is to analyse and summarise the Chinese pet food market, consumer needs and market through pet food consumer behaviour,and I need your assistance as pet food consumers.

This questionnaire is about Chinese consumers' consumption habits and preferences for pet food products,and what factors influence your consumption decisions. If you have pets at home, have experienced buying pet food,or have the intention to buy pet food, then you willbe the perfect respondent to this questionnaire.

The questionnaire is available in English and Chinese, English is convenient for the final application and analysis of the author's findings,and you can answer in Chinese exactly as normal.

Thank you very much for your participation, the results will be published anonymously and will take about 5 minutes to complete.This questionnaire is for academic research only and is not intended for any commercial purposes.

1.您的宠物类型是？（可以选择多项）／What kind of pet do you own?(You can choosemore than one option）【多选题】

-狗狗/ Dog

-猫咪/Cat

－水族类/Aquarium

-鸟类/Bird

-兔子/Rabbit

－两栖类/Amphibians

-其他/Others

2.您的宠物来源是哪里?/Where did you get your pet?

○－线下购买／ Offline purchase

-亲友熟人送养/ Adopted from friends and acquaintances

○－线上购买／Online purchase

－爱心机构领养／Adoption Agency

○－捡拾流浪动物／Homeless animals

3.请问您的年龄是?／What is your age group?

O- 15-25岁/ Age between 15-25

O - 26-35岁 / Age between 26-35

O - 36-45 岁 / Age between36-45

O - 46-55 岁 / Age between46-55

○ - 56 岁以上/ Age above 56

4.请问您的性别是?/What is your gender?
○-女性／Female
○-男性/Male
○-其他／Other
5.请问您的学历是？（请选择一项）/What is your highest education background?
(Please choose only one option) ○-高中及以下／ High school or lower ○-大学专科/ Junior degree
○－大学本科 /Bachelor degree ○-研究生及以上/Master degree or above
6.请问您的婚姻状况是?/What is your marital status?
○－单身/ Single
○－恋爱中／ In a relationship
○-已婚无孩/ Maried and without a child
○- 已婚有孩 / Married and have child/children

7.您之所以养宠物，是因为?（可以选择多项）／What are the reasons that made you decide to have a pet? (You can choose more than one option) 【多选题】

－养宠物能够增加生活乐趣/ Can add fun to daily life

-养宠物是一种解压方式/ It's a good way to decompression

-养宠物会让我感到不再孤单/The pet will make me feel less lonely

－养宠物能彰显我的个性/The pet can show my personality

-养宠物能够提高我的身份／The pet can improve my status

□-养宠物打发闲暇时间/ Can spend free time to have fun with the pet

-养宠物培养爱心和责任感/Can cultivate love and responsibility

-得到家人和朋友的青睐和认可/For geting my family's and friend's support to own a pet

－养宠物可以拓展我的社交圈／Can expand my social circle

－宠物很可爱，拥有宠物实在太幸福了／The pets are just so cute,I feel wonderful by owning a pet

8.宠物在您的生活中扮演了什么角色？(请选择一项）/What role do pets play in your life?
(Please choose only one option)○-家人/ Family member○－朋友/Friend○-孩子/ Child○-只是宠物／ Just a pet

9.您一般从哪里购买宠物的相关食品?/Where do you most often purchase the pet food products?

○－全部线上购买／AIl purchase online

○－大部分线上购买／Most purchase online

○- 线上线下各半/Half-pet store and Half-online

－大部分线下购买／Most purchase in pet store

-全部线下购买／All purchase in pet store

10.您购买宠物食品的频次是?/ How often do you purchase pet food products in
following options?
O-一个月2-3次／2-3 timesamonth
O-半年4-6 次/ 4-6 times in half a year
O- 半年2-3次/ 2-3 times in half a year
-半年一次或者没有／ Once in half a year or less often

11.近3个月内，您消费过哪些宠物相关产品？（可以多项选择）／What petrelated products you have purchased in last 3 months? (You can choose more than one option) 【多选题】

-宠物主粮/ Pet Staple Food

-宠物零食/Pet Snacks

－宠物玩具/Pet Toys

- 医疗保健/ Pet Medical and Health Care

□-宠物出行/Pet Outdoor Products

□－其他 (请填写）/ Other (Please specify)

12.在选择宠物产品时，您通常会为你的宠物考虑以下哪些因素？（可以多项选择）／Whenchoosing pet products,which of the following factors do you usually consider for yourpet? (You can choose more than one option）【多选题】

□-营养成分/Nutritional Content

-天然健康 /Naturality and Healthiness

□－产品功效/Product Efficacy

－价格/Price

－原产地/ Place of Origin

－其他 (请填写）/Other(Please specify)

13.您在购买宠物食品时，主要考虑以下哪些因素？（可以多项选择）／Whichof thefollowing factors do you mainly consider when purchasing pet food? (You can choosemore than one option）【多选题】

□-产品质量/Product's Quality

□-产品价格/Product's Price

-产品安全性/Product's Safety

□-产品评论/Product's Reviews

-产品销量/Product's Sales Volume

-产品外观/ Product's Package Design

－其他 (请填写）/ Other (Please specify)

14.在购买宠物食物产品时，作为宠物主人，您一般会考虑以下哪个因素？（请选择一项）/ When purchasing pet food products,as a pet owner, which of the following factors is more important to you? (Please choose only one option)

O-根据自己的消费习惯购买产品/Iwillpurchase the products based on my personal buying preference

-我会更多的考虑自己宠物的实际需求/Iwould consider more about my pet's actual needs

15.以下什么口碑因素会影响你的最终购买决定？（可以多项选择）／Which of the followingword-of-mouth factors will affect your final purchase decision? (You can choosemore than one option）【多选题】

□-朋友推荐/Recommendation from friends

□-宠物博主推荐/Recommendation from online influencer

□-实体店导购推荐/Recommendation from pet store worker

-宠物微信群中推荐/ Recommendation from WeChat pet group

16.您在购买宠物食品时，比较注重以下哪些功效？（可以多项选择）／Whichof thefollowing functions do you pay more attention to when buying pet food? (You canchoose more than one option）【多选题】

□-强化免疫/Enhanced immunity

-肠胃调理/Gastrointestinal conditioning

-美毛护肤/ Hair beauty and skin care

□-口腔护理/Oral care

-补钙/ Calcium supplements

-去毛球 / Removing and preventing hairballs

-祛泪痕 / Removing and preventing tear stains

－绝育呵护/ Sterilization care

□－其他 (请填写）/ Other (Please specify)

17.您在购买宠物食品时，更偏向于以下哪个因素？（请选择一项）／When buying pet food, which of the following do you prefer more? (Please choose only one option)

○-国货品牌/Domestic Brand

○－进口品牌／Imported Brand

○-都会考虑/Considering Both

18.假设发现了您购买的宠物产品质量出现了问题，您会怎么做？（请选择一项）／What would you do if you found a quality problem with your pet product? (Choose only one option)

O-反馈给商家，协调退款或补偿／Feedback to merchant to coordinate refund or reimbursement

O-带宠物去相关医疗机构检查/Take pets to relevant medical institutions for examination

○－投诉商家，为不再出现类似问题，保护其他宠物／Complaint about the merchant to protect other pets in order not to cause similar problems again

－只要宠物没有出现健康问题，可以不了了之，不在购买即可／As long as the pet has no health problems,it can be ignored and not purchased anymore

○- 不是很在意/Ido not really care

作为一名宠物食品消费者，根据您之前的消费经验和体验，有什么想法，建议，心得想要提出吗? (非必答题)/ As a pet food consumer,do you have any thoughts, suggestions,or insights based on your previous consumer experience? (Not a mandatory question) [清除选择]

O您的作答/Your Answer

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Consumer Behavior in China’s Pet Food Industry

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CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION

2 PROBLEM SETTING AND CONCEPTUAL FRAME OF REFERENCE

2.1 Problem setting

2.2 Conceptual framework

2.3 Boundaries of the thesis

3 ABOUT THE PET FOOD

3.1 Why pet food

3.2 Chinese pet food

4 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR

4.1 Consumer behavior in general

4.2 Cultural factors

Culture

Subculture

Social class

4.3 Social factors

Groups and social networks

Family

Roles and status

4.4 Personal factors

Occupation

Age and lifestyle

Economic situation

Personal and self-concept

4.5 Psychological factors

Motivation

Psychological needs

Safety needs

Social needs

Esteem needs

Self-actualization needs

Perception

Learning

Beliefs and attitudes

5 CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR IN CHINA

5.1 Background on Chinese consumer behavior

5.2 Younger generations are taking the markets

5.3 Online consumer behavior in China

Introduction

Overview of China’s online market

• China’s cyber capabilities kept getting better

The inclusive impact of the internet persisted

Information accessibility progress was accelerated

5.4 Online consumer behavior in China – pet food

5.5 Chinese consumers buying preferences

Respect its traditional culture and value

Demand on healthy products

5.6 Opportunities in Chinese consumer markets

1. “Me” Economic

2. Neo-Rationalism

3. The master of time

4. Coexistence with Technology

5. Sustainable prosperity

Conclusion

5.7 Opportunities in Chinese pet food consumer markets

Pet is part of the life

Made in China – Demand on high quality domestic products

Feedback from other consumers

Pet Nutritional

5.8 Case study - “2007 Pet Food Recall”

6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

6.1 Research methods

6.2 Creating the questionnaire

6.3 Data collection

6.4 Validity and reliability

7 RESEARCH FINDINGS

Question 1:

Question 2:

Questions 3:

Question 4:

Question 5:

Question 6:

Question 7:

Question 8:

Question 9:

11.近3个月内，您消费过哪些宠物相关产品？（可以多项选择）／What petrelated products you have purchased in last 3 months? (You can choose more than one option) 【多选题】

Microsoft Word - Consumer Behavior in China's Pet Food Industry_Wenxin Xu.docx