There can be several non price related factors which affect the demand for a product. Some of the most commonly discussed ones are seasonality, branding, demographics, available and future expected income etc.
Demographics is one factor which can significantly affect the demand of any product, be it a consumer durable, healthcare, or any other product that we see around us. Demographics include population size, population growth, age distribution of population, gender profile, education levels etc (Bragg, 2013).
Whenever there is an ageing population or when the population growth is very low or negative, the overall demand in the economy declines. This can result in continuous downturn in the economy and the demand for most products is shrinking every quarter.
A very famous example of this phenomenon is Japan. Japanese population growth has been negative and even the current population has an average age of one of the highest in the world. As a result, overall economy and demand has been declining for almost two decades now.
A very common factor which affects supply of a product is the government regulation regarding the product. There can be many goods or services which have a highly regulated environment and the supply is more or less dictated by government laws and regulations.
A common example is of cars in a few countries. Many countries have restriction on the registration of new cars in order to keep the congestion levels down and protect the environment.
As a result, many car manufacturers have to regulate supply of cars in these countries taking into account the laws set by the local government, even when the demand is there in the market. This way, the car manufacturers have to balance their growth plans and extant government regulations without taking into consideration price factors.
Works Cited
Bragg, Steven. What are the non-price determinants of demand? Accounting Tools. 7 May 2013. Web. <http://www.accountingtools.com/questions-and-answers/what-are-the-non-price-determinants-of-demand.html>.
