Study Guide for Chapter 2

Study Guide for Chapter 2

Study Guide for Lecture 2 – Consumer Behavior 2


What is a consumer

A person
Unmet needs
Purchases things for personal consumption
Receives benefit from the product
Unique
No two people are alike

The Consumer Buying Process
Purchasing is problem solving
This is how people make decisions
Because we are in a business context, we focus on problems that are solved with purchases
The principles apply to other types of decisions as well

There are 5 stages we go through in making a purchase



Not all people go through all five steps every time

Effort is a function of Involvement
Financial, social and psychological risk
Expensive?
Serious personal consequences?
Reflect on your social image?
May drop out of the process at any time

High involvement
Extended Problem solving
Lots of effort
Medium involvement
Limited problem solving
Low involvement
Routine problem solving
Automatic purchases

Problem recognition

Can be internal or external
Can be sudden or gradual
If you lose your cell phone, you need a new one
Now
Gradual needs are can be stimulated by a “trigger”
Feel hungry when you walk past a bakery
Odor of fresh bread is a trigger
This is what impulse advertising is all about.

Dissatisfaction with a current product may stimulate a need
Wonderful opportunity for new products
Just because we feel a need doesn’t mean we’re going to make a purchase
Can drop put for any number of reasons

How can marketers stimulate needs?
Create dissatisfaction with current products
Fashion
Planned obsolescence
Come up with better products
New and improved
Provide triggers
Time-sensitive advertising
Point of purchase


Information search

Sometimes called identify alternatives
This is the “awareness set”
You cannot purchase something unless you are aware of its existence




How actively we look for new alternatives depends on
Perceived risk
Knowledge
Confidence
Prior experience
Level of interest...

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