Consumer decision making

Consumer decision-making is the framework that integrates the inputs, processes, and outputs.  The input into deciding what to buy comprises the marketer’s offering (i.e., product, price, place, and promotion); the influence of reference groups—family, social class, culture, and subculture, word-of-mouth, and information from social media and advertising. Psychology—the person’s needs, motivation, and perception processes the input. The outcomes are the functions of learning and forming attitudes that are, deciding what to buy initially and whether or not to buy it again.

Consumer Decision-Making Model

INPUT

The input component of the consumer decision-making model includes three types of external influences:

1. The marketing mix consists of strategies designed to reach, inform, and persuade consumers to buy the marketer’s products repeatedly. They include the product, advertising and other promotional efforts, pricing policy, and the distribution channels that move the product from the manufacturer to the consumer.

2. The sociocultural influences include the consumer’s family, peers, social class,

Reference groups, culture, and, if applicable, subculture.

3. The input also includes communications, which are the mechanisms that deliver the marketing mix and sociocultural influences to consumers. The impact of the marketing mix and sociocultural influences is the input that determines what consumers purchase and how they use what they buy.

PROCESS

The process component of the model is concerned with how consumers make decisions. To understand this process, we must consider the influence of the psychological concepts— motivation, perception, learning, personality and attitudes, awareness of choices available, information gathering, and evaluation of alternatives.

Need Recognition

Need recognition occurs when a consumer is faced with a “problem.” For instance, take a young executive who decides to purchase a new cell phone with a high-quality digital camera. need recognition

The first step in the consumer decision-making process occurs when the consumer identifies and faces a “problem” that can be solved by buying a product or service.

 

Pre-Purchase Information Search

Pre-purchase search begins when a consumer perceives a need that might be satisfied by the purchase and consumption of a product. Sometimes, recalling past purchases provides the consumer with adequate information to make the present choice. However, when the consumer has had no prior experience, he or she may have to engage in an extensive search for useful information on which to base a choice. Consumers search their memory—their past experiences—before seeking information from other sources. The greater the relevant past experience, the less external information the consumer is likely to need to reach a decision. Many consumer decisions are based on a combination of previous experience and external information.

Evaluation of Purchase Alternatives

The evaluation of purchase alternatives follows the information search stage.

Decision Rules

Decision rules are procedures that consumers use to facilitate brand and other consumption-related choices. These rules reduce the burden of making complex decisions by providing guidelines or routines that make the process less taxing. There are two types of consumer decision rules that compare the attributes of the alternatives.

OUTPUT

The output portion of the consumer decision-making model as well as the consumer journey consists of purchase behaviors, consuming the product, and post-purchase evaluation of the purchases. In the consumer journey, marketers also consider post-purchase behavior in terms of their use of social media and whether they engage with or advocate for the brand.

Consumers make three types of buying decisions: trial, repeat, and purchase. When a consumer purchases a product (or brand) for the first time and buys a smaller quantity than usual, the purchase is a trial. Thus, a trial is the exploratory phase of purchase behavior in which consumers attempt to evaluate a product through direct use. For instance, when consumers purchase a new brand of laundry detergent about which they may be uncertain, they are likely to purchase a smaller quantity than if it were a familiar brand.