Week 3 - Strategic Planning and the Marketing Environment

what are the 5 steps of the consumer decision process

1. need/want recognition

2. search

3. evaluation

4. choice

5. post purchase use and evaluation

#1: need recognition

• consumers recognize thay have an unsatisfied need

• satisfy functional and psychological needs

#2: information search

search for information about various options that exist to satisfy that need

• The length & intensity of the search are based on several factors

internal search for information

the buyer examines his or her own memory and knowledge about the product or service

external search for information

the buyer seeks information outside his or her personal knowledge base to help make the buying decision

#3: alternative evalution

Consumers must now sift through the choices available & evaluate the alternatives

evaluate criteria

a set of important attributes about a particular product that are used to compare alternative products

eg. price, looks, features

determinant attributes

To simplify the decision making process, consumers use shortcuts such as determinant attributes & consumer decision rules

#4: choice

• customers are ready to buy

• purchase decision

#5: postpurchase

• it entails actual, rather than potential customers

• 3 possible outcomes

what are the 3 possible postpurchase outcomes

• customer satisfaction

• postpurchase dissonance

• custoner loyalty

what is postpurchase dissonance

buyer’s remorse - an internal conflict that arises from an inconsistency between two beliefs, or between beliefs & behaviours

undesirable consumer behaviour

• negative word-of-mouth can be damaging

high involvement and consumer buying decisions

• greater attention

• deeper processing

• develops strong attitudes and purchase intentions

low involvement and consumer buying decisions

• less attention

• peripheral processing

• generates weak attitudes and increased use of cues

personal factors - influences on cosumer behaviour

• gender, age, stage of life

• lifestule, activities, interests and opinions

• mood

• personality and self concept

psychological factors - influences on cosumer behaviour

• motivation

• perception

• learning

• attitude

societal factors - influences on cosumer behaviour

• culture

• subculture

• social class

• reference groups and opinion leaders

• family

external factors - influences on cosumer behaviour

• situational factors

• social norms

• time

• reason for purchase

what are the 7 steps of the marketing research process

1. define the problem or the opportunity

2. design the research

3. design the data collection forms

4. specify the sample

5. collect the data

6. analyze the data

7. write the research report and present its findings

what are the 3 types of marketing research

• Quantitative Research

• Qualitative Research

• Causal Research (experiments)