Chapter 6 Consumer Decision Making Consumer behavior processes a consumer uses to make purchase decisions as well as to use and dispose of purchased goods or services also includes factors that influence purchase decisions and product use 6 2 The Consumer Decision Making Process Consumer decision making process a 5 step process using by consumers when buying goods or services need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase post purchase behavior Need recognition result of an imbalance between actual and desired states Want recognition of an unfulfilled need and a product that will satisfy it Stimulus any unit of input affecting one or more of the 5 senses sight smell taste touch hearing Internal stimuli occurrences you experience such as hunger or thirst External stimuli influences from an outside source such as someone s recommendation of a new restaurant Want got gap the imbalance between actual and desired states Internal information search the process of recalling past information stored in the memory External information search the process of seeking information in the outside environment o Non marketing controlled information source a product information source hat is not associated with advertising or promotion personal experiences personal sources like family or friends public sources o Marketing controlled information source a product information source that originates with marketers promoting the product media advertising sales promotion salespeople product labels and packing and the internet o The extent to which an individual conducts an external search depends on his or her perceived risk knowledge prior experience and level of interest in the good or service Evoked set consideration set a group of brands resulting from an information search from which a buyer can choose a consumer s most preferred alternatives Brand extensions a well known and respected brand name from one product category is extended into other product categories Fully planned purchase partially planned purchase unplanned purchase 6 3 Post purchase Behavior Price often influences the level of expectations for a product or service Cognitive dissonance inner tension that a consumer experiences after recognizing an inconsistency between behavior and values or opinions 6 4 Types of Consumer Buying Decisions and Consumer Involvement All consumer buying decisions generally fall along a continuum of 3 broad categories routine response behavior limited decision making extensive decision making Goods and services in these 3 categories can be described by 5 factors o Level of consumer involvement the amount of time and effort a buyer invests in the search evaluation and decision processes of consumer behavior most important Frequently purchased low cost goods and services are generally associated with routine response behavior requires little search and decision time o Length of time to make a decision o Cost of the good or service o Degree of information search o Number of alternatives considered Limited decision making the type of decision making that requires a moderate amount of time for gathering information and deliberating about an unfamiliar brand in a familiar product category Extensive decision making the most complex type of consumer decision making used when buying an unfamiliar expensive product or an infrequently bought item requires use of several criteria for evaluating options and much time for seeking information Level of involvement in a purchase depends on o Previous experience when one has previous experience the level of involvement decreases o Interest the more interest the more involvement o Perceived risk of negative consequences risk increases involvement increases financial risk social risk psychological risk o Social visibility involvement increases as social visibility increases Types of involvement personal relevance o Product involvement means that a product category has high o Situational involvement means that the circumstances of a purchase may temporarily transform a low involvement decision into a high involvement one o Shopping involvement represents the personal relevance of the o Enduring involvement represents an ongoing interest in some process of shopping product or activity o Emotional involvement represents how emotional a consumer gets during some specific consumption activity Marketing strategy varies according to the level of involvement o High involvement products promotion to the target market should be extensive and informative o Low involvement products focus on package design so the product will be eye catching and easily recognized on the shelf Cultural social individual and psychological factors influence the decision process 6 5 Cultural Influences on Consumer Buying Decisions Cultural factors exert the broadest and deepest influence Culture the set of values norms attitudes and other meaningful symbols that shape human behavior and the artifacts or products of that behavior as they are transmitted from one generation to the next Culture is pervasive functional learned dynamic The most defining element of a culture is its values Value the enduring belief that a specific mode of conduct is personally or socially preferable to another mode of conduct It is important to understand cultural differences Subculture a homogenous group of people who share elements of the overall culture as well as unique elements of their own group o A culture can be divided into subcultures on the basis of demographic characteristics geographic regions national and ethnic background political beliefs and religious beliefs Upper class capitalist class upper middle class Middle class middle class working class Lower class working poor underclass Social class is typically measured by occupation income education wealth and other variables Social class indicates which medium to use for advertising where to best distribute their products 6 6 Social Influences on Consumer Buying Decisions Reference group all of the formal and informal groups in society that influence an individual s purchasing behavior o Direct face to face membership groups that touch people s lives directly Primary membership group a reference group with which people interact regularly in an informal face to face manner such as family friends and coworkers Secondary membership group a reference group with which people associate less consistently and more formally than a primary membership
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