Session 9-10

Question 1

What is the study of consumer behavior?

Answer 1

Study of the process involved when consumers select, purchase, use and dispose of products, services, ideas and experiences

Question 2

What is the purpose of studying consumer behavior?

Answer 2

• Observe and understand predictable patterns that underlie consumer behavior
• Capitalize on patterns to their advantage

Question 3

What is the consumer purchase decision process?

Answer 3

1. Problem recognition/need recognition: perceive a need
2. Information Search: Seek value
3. Alternative evaluation: assess value
4. Purchase decision: Buying value
5. Post-purchase behavior: Value in consumption or use

Question 4

What is need recognition?

Answer 4

Detecting a difference between perceived actual state vs plausible desired state. Difference has to exceed a certain threshold.

Question 5

How can firms influence a consumer’s need recognition?

Answer 5

1. Change consumer’s desired state
2. Change perceived actual state
3. Make consumers aware of possible negative consequences of not using their product

Question 6

How can the perceived actual state be influenced?

Answer 6

Through marketing, it can activate a consumer’s decision process by showing shortcoming of products currently being used

Question 7

What kind of research is done to understand needs?

Answer 7

Exploratory marketing research to get information about consumer’s needs: Focus groups, ethnographic research

Question 8

What is information search/information processing

Answer 8

The consumer searches for information to make a decision, they can find this information from a variety of sources such as:
-Memory (past experience)
-Media/internet (Marketing sources)
-Friends’ recommendations (Personal sources and marketing sources)

Question 9

Describe the two things consumers can be exposed to

Answer 9

Exposure: One or more senses are activated
Consumers are exposed to:
1. Firsthand Experience: product trial, free sample, testers, free cosmetic samples/makeovers
2. Secondhand Information: Logos, point of purchase and shelf space, sales reps, coupons, consumer reports

Question 10

What is the danger of overexposure?

Answer 10

Mere exposure effect: the more we have a stimulus, the more apt we are to like it (positive habituation)
But: boredom causes negative habituation, therefore advertising wears-out, limited availability of high-fashion clothing.

Attitude vs exposure follows reverse parabole

Question 11

What is a subliminal message?

Answer 11

When percievers are not aware that they are seeing the message

Question 12

What is supraliminal message?

Answer 12

When perceivers are aware of the product/message but are not aware of its influence (Product placement in movies)

Question 13

What is exposure vs attention?

Answer 13

Exposure: contact with a stimulus
Attention: Thinking about the stimulus, the amount of cognitive resources focused toward a stimulus

Question 14

What are the limits on attention?

Answer 14

-Attention span
-Cluttered marketing environment: Advertising in all possible places, huge frequency of ads, huge number of products

Question 15

How do you grab consumers’ attention?

Answer 15

1. Promote voluntary attention:
   - Connect with consumers’ needs. make the message relevant and make them want to focus on information that is relevant to their current plans, intentions, goals.
   - Persuading consumers to volunteer their attention in return for some tangible benefit
2. Promote involuntary attention:
   - Suprise/shock
   - incomplete stimuli
   - big, intense, colorful
   - different, creative, novel
   - funny
   - sex appeal
   - choose the right place

Question 16

What are attitudes?

Answer 16

More or less complex judgments about a stimulus based on feelings, perceptions, facts, evidence, attributes and automatic associations

Question 17

What is an example of classical conditioning

Answer 17

Existing association: Meat –> Salivating

Stimulus pairing: Bell + Meat –> Salivating

Conditioned association:
Bell –> Salivating

Question 18

What is an evoked set?

Answer 18

Small group of products being evaluated. usually smaller than total number of products available for purchase

Question 19

What is step 3: Evaluate alternatives?

Answer 19

Considering evoked sets, and the alternatives considered.

Consumers evaluate the objective attributes of a product and the subjective attributes when comparing and deciding what to purchase

Question 20

What are biases in evaluation?

Answer 20

Cognitive biases: Why our decisions are not always rational. Appear in everyday’s life, including when making purchase decision

Question 21

What is purchase decision?

Answer 21

• What to buy
• When to buy
• WHere to buy
• WHo will buy
• How to pay
• How much to pay

Question 22

What is post-purchase behavior

Answer 22

State of the buyer decision process in which consumers take further action after purchase based on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction.

Satisfaction is Performance > Expectations

Question 23

What is cognitive dissonance?

Answer 23

Internal conflict:

• DId i make a good decision?
• Did i buy the right product?
• Did I get a good value?

Question 24

What is personality?

Answer 24

Consistent behaviors or responses to stimuli.

Personality traits include assertiveness, introversion, compliance, dominance, etc.

Question 25

How is personality revealed to marketers?

Answer 25

Through a person’s self concept, which is how people see themselves and how they think others see them. People purchase products that reinforce their self concept

Question 26

What is motivation?

Answer 26

Reason for customer to purchase or not purchase.

Can be for different reasons such as:
Physical reasons, safety reasons, Social reasons (links to group), Reflect success, to better themselves

Question 27

What is perception?

Answer 27

Process by which the customers selects, organizes and interprets information. THis affects purchasing.

Question 28

What is lifestyle and the three main types?

Answer 28

Values, attitudes and behaviors exhibited by customers. How they spend their time and allocate their resources is important. Examples of lifestyle are:

Achievers: Live busy, strong goals, commitment to career and family, consume time saving and prestige products

Strivers: Trendy, fun-loving and less confident customers that can purchase for safety reasons

Thinkers: Mature, reflective, educated, buy durable and functional products instead of stylish products.

Question 29

What are situational influences?

Answer 29

The Physical environment: Atmosphere of the store, restaurant, etc. Color, smell, size, crowding, noise, etc.

Time: Amount of time available to make a decision

Personal Factors: mood, amount of money, who you are shopping with

Question 30

What is an opinion leader?

Answer 30

Person who has the ability to influence other’s attitudes or behaviors.

Provide valuable info: knowledgeable, early adopters, significant status

Question 31

What is a reference group?

Answer 31

They influence an individual’s purchase behavior. Cluster of poeple that share the same attitudes, evaluations, aspirations, behaviors.

Question 32

What are socio-cultural influences (Define Culture and Social Class)?

Answer 32

Culture: group within a society whose members share a distinctive set of beliefs, characteristics or experience

Social Class: Overall rank of people in society, measured by occupation, income, education and wealth. Often have common taste in clothing, style, leisure activities

Question 33

What are influences of Customer purchase decision process?

Answer 33

personality, motivation, perception, lifestyle, physical environment, time, personal factors, opinion leader, reference group,