Chapter 5 Flashcards
Consumer Behavior
the actions a person takes in purchasing and using products and services, including the mental and social processes that come before and after these actions
purchase decision process
the stages a buyer passes through in making choices about which products or services to buy
purchase decision process stages
- problem recognition (perceiving a need)
- information search (seeking value)
- alternative evaluation (assessing value)
- purchase decision (buying value)
- postpurchase behavior (realizing value)
- Problem Recognition
perceiving a difference between a person’s ideal and actual situations big enough to trigger a decision
Ex: Need a new computer
- Information Search
search for information using internal search or external search
internal search
scan your memory for previous experiences with products or brands
external search
needed when past experience or knowledge is insufficient, the risk of making a wrong purchase decision is high, and the cost of gathering information is low
3 Primary Sources of external information
- personal sources (relatives, friends, social media sites that consumer trusts)
- public sources (product rating orgs, consumer reports, gov agencies, TV consumer programs)
- marketer-dominated sources (info from sellers-ads, company websites, salespeople, store displays)
- Alternative Evaluation
Clarifies the information gathered by (1) suggesting criteria to use for the purchase, (2) yielding brand names that might meet the criteria, (3) developing consumer value perceptions
evaluative criteria
Objective (such as display) and subjective (such as prestige) product characteristics you use to compare different products/brands
consideration set
A group of brands within a product category that a buyer views as alternatives for possible purchase
multi-attribute model
A compensatory model of customer decision making based on the notion that customers see a product as a collection of attributes or characteristics. The model uses a weighted average score based on the importance of various attributes and performance on those issues.
- Purchase Decision
from whom to buy and when to buy
- Post Purchase Behavior
After buying the product, consumer compares it with personal expectations & is either satisfied or dissatisfied
satisfaction, dissatisfaction, loyalty, cognitive dissonance
cognitive dissonance
feeling of post-purchase psychological tension or anxiety
involvement
the personal, social, and economic significance of the purchase to the consumer
High Involvement purchase
Purchase decisions that heavily involve us
Have at least one of these characteristics : the item is expensive, can have serious, personal consequences, could reflect on one’s social image
Ex: buying a car
Medium Involvement Purchase
Purchase decisions that only involve us a little bit
Ex: Meal planning for the week (more thinking)
Low Involvement Purchase
Purchase decisions that barely and involve us
Ex: buying toothpaste
3 types of decision making
- Extended
- Limited
- Routine
extended problem solving
Each of the five stages of the consumer purchase decision process is used & considerable time/effort are devoted to the search for external information and the identification/evaluation of alternatives
-used in high involvement purchases
Ex: Buying house/car
(high involvement)
limited problem solving (medium involvement)
Consumers seek more information or rely on a friend to help them evaluate alternatives
-used for purchase decisions that don’t require a lot of time or effort
- medium involvement
Ex: Buying a toaster or deciding where to eat
Routine Problem Solving (Low Involvement)
Purchase decision is a habit & requires low involvement
Ex: buying a candy bar , frequently purchased grocery products (milk)
Situational influence
temporary conditions that affect how buyers behave
5 situational influences that affect purchase decisions
- purchase task
- social surroundings
- physical surroundings
- temporal effects
- antecedent states
Purchase Task (Situational Influences)
the reason for engaging in the decision to purchase
Social Surroundings (Situational Influences)
the other people present when a purchase decision is made
physical surroundings (situational influences)
Decor, music, crowding in store
Temporal effects (situational influences)
time of day, amount of time available
Antecedent States (Situational Influences)
situational factors, usage contexts, time pressure, mood, shopping orientation
consumer touchpoints
are a marketer’s product, service, or brand points of contact with a consumer from start-to-finish in the purchase decision process
Ex: ads, online, social media, etc
consumer journey map
a visual representation of all the touchpoints a consumer comes into contact with before, during, and after a purchase
Psychology
Helps marketers understand why & how consumers behave as they do
Motivation
The energizing force that stimulates behavior to satisfy a need
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
(level 1) Physiological Needs
(level 2) Safety and Security
(level 3) Relationships, Love and Affection
(level 4) Self Esteem
(level 5) Self Actualization
Physiological Needs (Maslow)
Basic survival needs that must be satisfied first
Ex: food, water, shelter, oxygen
Safety Needs (Maslow)
security and protection from physical and emotional harm
Ex: financial security, life, insurance, freedom from harm, alarm system
Social Needs (Maslow)
The needs for love, companionship, and friendship-the desire for acceptance by others
Personal needs (Maslow)
Status, self-respect, prestige, achievement
Self actualization needs (Maslow)
to find self-fulfillment and realize one’s potential
Personality
a person’s consistent behaviors or responses to recurring situations
Self concept
When people see themselves & the way they believe others see them
Actual self-concept
how people actually see themselves
ideal self-concept
how people would like to see themselves
Perception
the process by which an individual selects, organizes, and interprets information to create a meaningful picture of the world
Selective perception
a filtering of exposure, comprehension, and retention
Selective exposure
people pay attention to messages that are consistent with their attitudes and beliefs and ignore messages that are inconsistent with them
Selective comprehension
interpreting information so that it is consistent with your attitudes and beliefs
Selective retention
consumers do not remember all the information they see, read, or hear, even minutes after exposure to it
Subliminal perception
you see or hear messages without being aware of them
Perceived risk
the anxiety felt because the consumer cannot anticipate the outcomes of a purchase but believes there may be negative consequences
Learning
behaviors that result from repeated experience and reasoning
Behavioral learning
the process of developing automatic responses to a situation built up through repeated exposure to it
4 variables central to how customers learn from repeated experience
- Drive
- Cue
- Response
- Reinforcement
Drive
a need that moves an individual to action
Cue
a stimulus or symbol perceived by consumers
Response
the action taken by a consumer to satisfy the drive
Reinforcement
the reward
stimulus generalization
a response to another stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus
Ex: Tylenol PM & Tylenol Cold/Flu
stimulus discrimination
a person’s ability to perceive differences in stimuli
Cognitive learning
making connections between two or more ideas or simply observing the outcomes of others’ behaviors and adjusting your own accordingly
Ex: Tylenol showcasing pain reliever medicine by showing someone using it and finding relief
brand loyalty
a favorable attitude toward and consistent purchase of a single brand over time
Attitude
a learned predisposition to respond to an object or class of objects in a consistently favorable or unfavorable way
Beliefs
a consumer’s subjective perception of how a product or brand performs on different attributes based on personal experience, advertising, and discussions with other people
3 approaches to change consumer attitudes
- Changing beliefs about the extent to which a brand has certain attributes
- Changing the perceived importance of attributes
- Adding new attributes to the product
Lifestyle
A person’s pattern of living as expressed in his or her activities, interests, and opinions
Psychographics
Analysis of consumer lifestyles, provides insights into consumer needs/wants
sociocultural influences
evolve from a consumer’s formal and informal relationships with other people
Personal influence
A consumer’s purchases are often influenced by the views, opinions, or behaviors of others
2 aspects of personal influence
1) opinion leadership
2) word-of-mouth activity
opinion leadership
individuals who exert direct or indirect social influence over others
Ex: using actors, musicians, athletes to represent products
word of mouth
the influencing of people during conversations
Ex: trustworthy friends
influencer marketing
Focusing on the identification and recruitment of influencers to advocate a company’s products, services, and brands rather than focusing exclusively on prospective buyers
Reference groups
people to whom an individual looks as a basis for self-appraisal or as a source of personal standards
3 reference groups
- Associative group
2: Aspiration group - Dissociative group
Associative group (reference group)
one to which a person actually belongs
Ex: fraternities and sororities and alumni associations
brand community
a specialized group of consumers with a structured set of relationships involving a particular brand, fellow customers of that brand, and the product in use
Aspiration group (reference group)
one that a person wishes to be a member of or wishes to be identified with
Ex: sports team, professional society
Dissociative group (reference group)
One that person wishes to maintain a distance from because of differences in values/behaviors
Social Class Influence
the relatively permanent, homogeneous divisions in a society into which people sharing similar values, interests, and behavior can be grouped
-upper, middle, lower class
Ex: occupation, source of income, education
Family Influence
the influence of family members on decisions
3 types of Family Influence
- Consumer socialization
- The family life cycle
- Family decision making
consumer socialization
the process by which people acquire the skills, knowledge, and attitudes necessary to function as consumers
Ex: children learn how to purchase by interacting w/ adults in purchase situations & through their own purchasing/product usage experience
The Family life cycle
the distinct phases that a family progresses through from formation to retirement, each phase bringing with it identifiable purchasing behaviors
family decision making
is the process by which decisions that directly or indirectly involve two or more family members are made
2 Family Decision Making Styles
1) Joint Decision Making
2) Spouse Dominant
joint decision making
most decisions are made by both husband and wife
spouse dominant decision making
either husband or wife is mostly responsible
5 Roles in the Purchase Decision Process of Family Decision Making
1) information gatherer
2) influencer
3) decision maker
4) purchaser
5) user
Information gatherer
one or more individuals will secure information related to the possible purchase
figures out all the options & evaluates them
Ex: being in charge of choosing the best place to go on vacation, finding all the possible locations
Influencer
Person who can persuade you
Ex: seeing info on TikTok & telling your parents/persuading them not to go to Orlando for vacation
Decision maker
Person who has power to decide
Ex: parents
Purchaser
the person who actually buys the product under consideration
Ex: parents
User
the person who actually uses the product
-NOT always the purchaser
Ex: kids using a LEGO set
Culture and Subculture Influences
Influence product preferences & buying patterns
Subculture
subgroups within the larger, or national, culture with unique values, ideas, and attitudes
