Prof. B. B.
Mishra
Extensive Problem
Solving
Limited Problem
Solving
Routine Response
Behaviour
Importance of the decision
Extent of previous experience
Existence of well-established decision
criteria
Amount of information at hand about each
alternative
The number of alternatives available
Model of consumption being followed
Need Recognition
Pre-purchase Search
Evaluation of Alternatives
The realization that there is a difference
between actual and desired states
The higher the gap, the stronger the need (or bigger
the problem)
• Active Versus Inactive problems
– Active: those you are aware of
– Inactive: those that you are not yet aware of (but
exist)
• Those that require immediate solutions and
those that do not require immediate solutions
• Considering the knowledge about occurrence
of the problem and immediacy of solution;
consumer problems can be –
Routine type, Emergency, Planning, Evolving
Identify existing consumer problems and find
solutions for these
Lower the actual state
Increase the desired state
Increase the importance of the gap between
actual and desired states
Convert inactive problems to active problems
Convert problems into ones requiring an
immediate solution
Types of Information Sources
Types of Information Sought
Factors Affecting Extent of Information Search
PERSONAL IMPERSONAL
Friends Newspaper articles
Neighbors Magazine articles
Relatives Consumer Reports
Co-workers Direct-mail brochures
Computer salespeople Information from product
Calling the electronics advertisements
store Internal web site
Brands or alternatives available
Evaluative criteria to be used
Generally, product features
Ratings of brands on evaluative criteria
Product Factors: Higher search when
It is a long-lasting or infrequently used product
There are frequent changes in product styling
Large volume is purchased
The price is high
There are many alternative brands
There is much variation in features
continued
Situational Factors: Higher search when:
Experience is lower
Previous experience was unsatisfactory
Social Acceptability: Higher search when:
Purchase is a gift
Product is socially visible in use
continued
Value-Related Factors: Higher search when:
Purchase is discretionary
All alternatives have both positive and negative
qualities
No agreement among users exists
Conflicting information is available
Other considerations exist
continued
Consumer Factors: Higher search when:
Consumers are well-educated, have higher
income levels and are younger
Consumers are low in dogmatism and risk
perception
Level of involvement is high
Shopping is seen as an enjoyable activity
continued
Affective choices
More holistic; an overall evaluation
based on how one feels about a purchase
Attribute-based choices
Have pre-determined evaluative criteria
May require both external and internal search
Complicated decision rules may be used
Can be tangible or intangible
Include surrogate indicators
Attributes that are used as indicators of another
attribute
Are often ranked in order of importance
Procedures used by consumers to facilitate
brand or other consumption-related choices
Compensatory
Brands evaluated in terms of each relevant criteria and
the best brand (or one with the highest score) is chosen
Non-compensatory
Positive evaluations do not compensate for negative
evaluations
• Conjunctive Decision Rule
– Product attributes are identified
– a minimally acceptable cutoff point is
established for each attribute
– brands that fall below the cutoff point
on any one attribute are eliminated
from further consideration.
» continued
• Disjunctive Decision Rule
– consumers identify product attributes
– establish a minimally acceptable cutoff
point for each attribute
– accept the brand that meets or exceeds
the cutoff for any one attribute
» continued
Lexicographic Decision Rule
Product attributes are identified
Product attributes are ranked in terms of
importance
brands are compared in terms of the attribute
considered most important
Brand that scores highest on the first attribute is
chosen
If there is a tie, the scores on the next attribute are
considered
Lifestyles as a Consumer Decision Strategy
Incomplete Information
Non-comparable Alternatives
Series of Decisions
Consumption Vision
Mental picture of the consequences of using a
particular product
Delay decision until missing information is
obtained
Ignore missing information and use
available information
Change the decision strategy to one that
better accommodates for the missing
information
Infer the missing information
Get products into consumers’ evoked set
Limit information search if your brand is the
preferred brand
Increase information search if your alternative
is not the preferred brand
Use point-of-purchase advertising effectively
Identify decision rule used by target market
and use suitable promotional messages
Influence the choice of evaluative criteria
Influence the rating of your product on
evaluative criteria used
Use surrogate indicators effectively
Use ‘consumption vision’
