Who is a Consumer?

A Customer is one who is in the customary process of purchase or regularly purchases a product or service
from a particular organization or shop. A customer is always defined in terms of a specific product or company.
In a simple sense Consumers refers to individuals or households that use goods and services generated within
the economy. But in marketing, consumer is anyone who typically engages in the activities of evaluating, purchase,
using or disposing of goods and services
Ultimate Consumer or End Consumer is one who purchases goods and services for the purpose of individual or
household consumption.
What is Behaviour?
Behaviour refers to the process of responding to stimuli (The cues or actions that evoke/stimulate a reaction
from the receiver), a human being shows his behaviour in the way he feel, act and think (FAT) similarly the consumer
also shows his behaviour in way he feel, think and carry out action.

What is Consumer Behaviour?

One thing is very common that we all are consumer; everybody in this world is a consumer. Everything we
buying are consuming Varity of goods and services. However we all have different tastes, likes and dislikes and adopt
different behaviour patterns while making purchases decisions. Each consumer is unique and uniqueness is reflected in
the consumption behaviour and patterns and processes of purchases. The study of consumer behaviour provides us with
reasons, why the consumption behaviour differs from one another in buying and using product and services.
To Philip Kotler, Consumer buying behaviour refers to the buying behaviour of final consumer individuals and
households who buy goods and services for personal consumptions
To Schiffiman and Konuk, Consumer behaviour encompasses all the behaviour that consumers displays in searching
for, purchasing, using, evaluating and disposing of products and services that they except will satisfy their need
To Batra & Kazmi, consumer behaviour refers to the mental and emotional process and the observable behaviour
consumers during searching, purchasing and post consumption of a product or service
The study of consumer behaviour is the study of how individuals make decisions to spend their available
resources (Time, Money, and Effort) on consumption related items. It includes the study of what they buy, why they
buy it, when they buy it, where they buy it, how often they buy it and how often they use it.

Why it is Important for Marketers?

Consumer behaviour study and consumer research are most important for the marketers because these studies
offers a possibility to better understand what happens in business world, why someone is successful and someone else
not. The study of CB provides the marketer an important input for product planning, design modification, and
promotional strategy by unveiling certain answer to the questions like
What kinds of consumer buy our proposed product or services?
What feature do they look for?
What benefits do they seek?
How they use? And for what reasons?
How likely they to replace their old models with added features are become available?

Nature of Consumer Behaviour

Consumer behaviour is the subset of human behaviour and it is the function of the individual involved. This can be
presented nicely in below picture.

CB is Person Specific: in our daily experience

we come across many decision like purchasing
food item, soft drink, bathing soap. We prefer
individually television programme telecasts on
alternative channels. It is true that we take more
or less time in taking those decisions. In other
words we take more or less time in evaluating a
product or service before we purchase. And
while purchasing, we show a unique typical
behaviour. Therefore the purchase behaviour of
an individual differs from others and it is unique
to him.
CB is Product Specific: we not only differ from other customers, but the purchase behaviour of us is differing with
product to product or product category to another. Suppose you have selected LG Colour Television of 21 inch by
spending almost one hour, but you might spend more in selecting a LG Plasma Television and your evaluating criteria
may certainly change when your are supposed to purchase a Videocon washing machine.
CB is Situation Specific: our purchasing and consumption behaviour for the same product will differ depending on the
situation where we are operating. For example our consumption of sweet is more during festive days and almost we
dont prefer non-vegetable items, so our consumption behaviour on festive days is different from the ordinary days.
CB is an Inter-disciplinary Science: As consumer behaviour is a subset of human behaviour, so all behavioural
sciences play important role.
It borrows heavily from
concepts developed in other fields
such as psychology (study of
individual), sociology (study of
groups), social psychology (study of
how an individual operates in groups),
anthropology (the influence of society
on the individual) and economies (the
study of behaviour of people in
product, distribution and consumption
of goods and services)
CB is Complex Process: consumer behaviour is really a complex process because what sort of thinking goes in the
mind of the customer is not known to all, difficult to predict. Moreover it is influenced by several internal and external
factors that is why it is difficult to understand.

Scope of Consumer Behaviour

The scope of a subject refers to everything that is studied as part of that subject. When we set out to explain the scope of
consumer behaviour we need to refer to all that which forms
part of consumer behaviour.
The scope of consumer behaviour covers all the answer the
following questions, which are very often raised during
consumer decision making process.
What they buy?
Why they buy?
When they buy?
Where they buy it?
How often they buy it?
How do they buy it?

To define the scope of a subject it is important to set limit or a framework within which it shall be studied. Side
figure presents one such framework for studying consumer behaviour. This framework is made up of three main
sections. The study of all these three sections constitutes the scope of consumer behaviour.
Section 1: The Decision Process the decision process as represented by the inner-most circle. The decision process
includes five stages as problem recognition, information search, and evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision and
post purchase behaviour.
Section 2: The Individual Determinants the individual determinants on the middle Circle, it include all the
psychological factors like perception, motivation, attitude, personality and learning. All these psychological factors are
internal in nature, influence the decision making process.
Section 3: The External Environment the external environment which is represented by the outer circle, it includes
cultural and sub-cultural influence, family influence, social group influence, social class influence, personal influence.
All these factors are external in nature, influences the decision making process.

Importance of Consumer Behavior

In olden days, the importance of consumers behaviour was not realized because it was sellers market. But modern
marketing is customer-oriented. Therefore, the study of customers behavior is vital in framing production policies,
price policies, decisions regarding channels of distribution and above all decisions regarding sales promotion.

1) Production Polices: The study of consumer behaviour affects production policies of the enterprise. Consumer
behaviours discovers the habits, tastes and preferences of consumers and such discovery enables an enterprise to
plan and develop its products according to these specifications. It is necessary for an enterprise to be in continuous
touch with the changes in consumer behaviour so that necessary changes in products may be made.

2) Price Policies: The buyer behaviour is equally important in having price policies. The buyers of some
products purchase only because particular articles are cheaper than the competitive articles available in the
market. In such a case the price of such products cannot be raised. On the other hand, some other articles are
purchased because it enhances the prestige and social status of persons. The prices of such things can easily
be prestige and social status of the persons. The price of such things can easily be raised or fixed higher.
Some articles are purchased under particular attitudes and emotions such as khadi garments are purchased
who think themselves the followers of Gandhi. Prices of articles purchased under emotional motives, can also
be raised.
3) Decision Regarding Channels of Distribution: The goods, which are sold and purchased solely on the
basis of low price, must have cheap and economical distribution channels. In case of those articles,
which require after-sale service such as T.V. sets, refrigerators etc. must have different channels of
distribution. Thus, decisions regarding channels of distribution are taken on the basis of consumer
behaviour.
4) Decision Regarding Sales Promotion: A study of consumer behaviour is also vital in making decisions
regarding sales promotion. It enables the producer to know what motive prompts consumer to make
purchase and the same are utilized in advertising media to awaken desire to purchase. The marketer who
takes decision regarding brand, packaging, discount, gifts etc. on the basis of consumer behaviour for
promoting sales of the products.
5) Exploiting Marketing Opportunities: A study of consumer behaviour helps the marketers to
understand the consumers, needs, aspirations, expectations, problems, etc. This knowledge will be useful
to the marketers in exploiting marketing opportunities and meeting the challenges of the market.
6) Consumers do not always Act or React Predictably: The consumers of the past used to react to price
levels as if price and quality had positive relation. Today, consumers seek value for money, lesser price
but with superior features. The consumers response indicates that the shift had occurred.
7) Consumer Preferences are Changing and becoming highly diversified: This shift has occurred due to

availability of more choice now. Thus study of consumer behaviour is important to understand the
changes.
8) Rapid Introduction of New Products: Rapid introduction of new product with technological
advancement has made the job of studying consumer behaviour more imperative. For instance, the
information technologies are changing very fast in personal computer industry.
9) Implementing the Marketing Concept: This calls for studying the consumer behaviour, as
customers needs have to be given priority. Thus identification of target market before production
becomes essential to deliver the desired customer satisfaction and delight.

Model of Consumer Behavior

Consumers make many buying decisions every day. Most large companies research consumer buying
decisions in great detail to answer questions about what consumers buy where they buy, how and how much
they buy, when they buy, and why they buy. Marketers can study actual consumer purchases to find out what
they buy, where, and how much. But learning about the whys of consumer buying behavior is not so easy
the answers are often locked deep within the consumers head.
The company that really understands how consumers will respond to different product features, prices, and
advertising appeals has a great advantage over its competitors. The starting point for understanding buying
behavior is the stimulus response model of buyer behavior (as shown in figure 10.1). This figure shows
that marketing and other stimuli enter the consumers black-box and produce certain responses. Marketers
must figure out what is in the buyers black-box.
Marketing stimuli consist of the four Ps: product, price, place, and promotion. Other stimuli include major
forces and events in the buyers environment: economic, technological, political, and cultural. All these
inputs enter the buyers black-box, where they are turned into a set of observable buyer responses: product
choice, brand choice, dealer choice, purchase timing, and purchase amount.
The marketer wants to understand how the stimuli are changed into responses inside the consumers blackbox, which has two parts. First, the buyers characteristics influence how he or she perceives and reacts to
the stimuli. Second, the buyers decision process itself affects the buyers behavior.
Marketing

Other

Buyers

Buyers

Buyers

Stimuli
Product

Stimuli
Economic

Characteristics
Cultural

Decision Process
Problem recognition

Decisions
Product choice

Price

Technological

Social

Information search

Brand choice

Place

Political

Personal

Evaluation of alternatives

Dealer choice

Promotion

Cultural

Psychological

Purchase decision

Purchase timing

Figure 10.1: Black -box Model of Buying

Behavior

Factors influencing Consumer decision making

A consumers buying behavior is influenced by cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors. Cultural
factors exert the broadest and deepest influence.
Factors Affecting Consumer Behavior

Psychological Factors

Personal Factors

Motivation
Perception
Learning
Beliefs and
Attitude

Age and Life

Cycle Stage
Occupation
Life Style
Personality and
Self Concept

Cultural Factors
Culture
Sub Culture
Social Class

Social Factors
Reference Groups
Family
Roles and Status

Psychological Factors
A persons buying choices are influenced by four major psychological factors motivation, perception,
learning, beliefs and attitudes.
1) Motivation: A person has many needs at any given time. Some needs are biogenic; they arise from
physiological states of tension such as hunger, thirst, discomfort. Other needs are psychogenic; they arise
from psychological states of tension such as the need for recognition, esteem, or belonging. A need
becomes a motive when it is aroused to a sufficient level of intensity. A motive is a need that is
sufficiently pressing to drive the person to act.
2) Perception: A motivated person is ready to act. How the motivated person actually acts is influenced by
his or her perception of the situation. Perception is the process by which an individual selects, organizes,
and interprets information inputs to create a meaningful picture of the world. Perception depends not
only on the physical stimuli but also on the stimulis relation to the surrounding field and on conditions
within the individual.
3) Learning: When people act, they learn. Learning involves changes in an individuals behavior arising
from experience. Most human behavior is learned. Learning theorists that learning is produced through
the interplay of drives, stimuli, cues, responses, and reinforcement. A drive is a strong internal stimulus
impelling action. Cues are minor stimuli that determine when, where, and how a person responds.
4) Beliefs and Attitudes: Through doing and learning, people acquire beliefs and attitudes. These in turn
influence buying behavior. A belief is a descriptive thought that a person holds about something. Beliefs
may be based on knowledge, opinion, or faith. They may or may not carry an emotional charge.
Manufacturers are very interested in the beliefs people carry in their heads about their products and
services.
An attitude is a persons enduring favourable or unfavourable evaluations, emotional feelings, and action
tendencies toward some object or idea. People have attitudes toward almost everything: religion, politics,
clothes, music, and food. Attitudes put them into a frame of mind of liking or disliking an object, moving
toward or away form it. Attitudes lead people to behave in a fairly consistent way toward similar objects.

Personal Factors
A buyers decisions are also influenced by personal characteristics. These include the buyers age and stage
in the life cycle, occupation, economic circumstances, lifestyle, and personality and self-concept.
1) Age and Stage in the Life Cycle: As a person passes through different stages of his life he needs
different set of products. Further the tastes, habits of persons change with age. They eat baby food in the
early years, most foods in the growing and mature years, and special diets in the later years. Taste in
clothes, furniture, and recreation is also age related. Consumption is shaped by the family lifecycle.
Some recent work has identified psychological life-cycle stages. Marketers pay close attention to
changing life circumstances divorce, widowhood, remarriage and their effect on consumption
behavior.
2) Occupation and Economic Circumstances: Occupation also influences a persons consumption
pattern. A blue-collar worker will buy clothes, work shoes, and lunchboxes. A company president will
buy expensive suits, air travel, country club membership, and large sailboat. Marketers try to identify the
occupational groups that have above-average interest in their products and services.

Product choice is greatly affected by economic circumstances; spend able income (level, stability, and
time pattern), savings and assets (including the percentage that is liquid), debts, borrowing power, and
attitude towards spending versus saving. Marketers of income-sensitive goods pay constant attention to
trends in personal income, savings, and interest rates. If economic indicators point to a recession,
marketers can take steps to redesign, reposition, and re-price their products so they continue to offer
value to target customers.
3) Lifestyle: People from the same subculture, social class, and occupation may lead quite different
lifestyles. A lifestyle is the persons pattern of living in the world as expressed in activities, interests, and
opinions. Lifestyle portrays the whole person interacting with his or her environment. Marketers
search for relationships between their products and lifestyle groups. For example, a computer
manufacturer might find that most computer buyers are achievement-oriented. The marketer may then
aim the brand more clearly at the achiever lifestyle.
4) Personality and Self-Concept: Each person has a distinct personality that influences buying behavior.
By personality, we mean distinguishing psychological characters that lead to relatively consistent and
enduring responses to environment. Personality is usually described in terms of such traits as selfconfidence, dominance, autonomy, deference, sociability, defensiveness, and adaptability. Personality
can be a useful variable in analysing consumer behavior, provided that personality types can be
classified accurately and that strong correlations exist between certain personality types and product or
brand choices. For example, a computer company might discover that many prospects show high selfconfidence, dominance, and autonomy.
Related to personality is self-concept (or self-image). Self-concept is the totality of persons thoughts
and feelings with reference to himself or herself as the object. Marketers try to develop brand images
that match the target markets self-image. It is possible that a persons actual self-concept (how she
views herself) differs from her ideal self-concept (how she would like to view herself) and from her
others-self-concept (how she thinks others see her).

Cultural Factors
Culture, subculture, and social class are particularly important in buying behavior.
1) Culture: Culture is the most fundamental determinant of a persons wants and behavior. It consists
of the learned values, norms, rituals, and symbols of society, which are transmitted through both the
language and symbolic features of the society. The growing child acquires a set of values,
perceptions, preferences, and behaviors through his or her family and other key institutions. A child
growing up in the United States is exposed to the following values: achievement and success,
activity, efficiency and practicality, progress, material comfort, individualism, freedom, external
comfort, humanitarianism and youthfulness.
The basic characteristics of a culture are as follows:
a)
b)
c)
d)

Culture exists to serve the needs of the society.

Culture is acquired from society, throughout our life time.
Culture is learned through interactions with other members of the culture.
Culture is transferred from generation to generation with new
influences constantly being added to the cultural soup.
e) Culture will be adaptive to the needs of the society.

Social Class

Culture

Sub Cultures

Cultural Factors and Their

Relationships

2) Subculture: Each culture consists of smaller subcultures that provide more specific identification and
socialization for their members. Subcultures include nationalities, religions, racial groups, and
geographic regions. Many subcultures make up important market segments, and marketers often design
products and marketing programs tailored to their needs.
3) Social Class: Virtually all-human societies exhibit social stratification. Stratification sometimes takes
the form of a caste system where the members of different castes are reared for certain roles and cannot
change their caste membership. More frequently, stratification takes the form of social classes.
Social classes are relatively homogenous and enduring divisions in a society, which are hierarchically
ordered and whose members share similar values, interests, and behavior. Social classes have the
following characteristics:
a) Persons within a given social class tend to behave more alike.
b) Social class is hierarchical.
c) Social class is not measured by a single variable but is measured as a weighted function of ones
occupation, income, wealth, education, status, prestige, etc.
d) Social class is continuous rather than concrete, with individuals able to move into a higher social
class or drop into a lower class.
Social class can be subdivided into four categories, viz., upper class, upper middle class, middle class
and the lower class.
i)

Upper Class: This class consists of people who are rich and possess considerable wealth, e.g.,
people with large businesses and wealthy corporate executives.

ii) Upper Middle Class: This class consists of well-educated people holding top class positions in
middle size firms, or professionals. They have a strong drive for success and indulge in shopping for
goods that speak of their social status.
iii) Middle Class: This class consists of white collar workers like middle level and junior executives,
sales-people, small business owners, etc. These people lead a conservative lifestyle and spend
moderately.
iv) Lower Class: This class consists of blue collar workers like factory laborers, semi-skilled and
unskilled laborers in the unorganized sector. These people are more family oriented and depend on
their family for economic and emotional support. Their families are usually male dominated.

Social Factors
In addition to cultural factors, a consumers behavior is influenced by such social factors as reference groups,
family, and social roles and statuses.
1) Reference Group: Generally speaking a reference group can designate to any person or group that
serves as a point of comparison (or reference) for an individual informing either general or specific
values, attitudes or behavior. Every human being because of his sociable nature prefers to evaluate his
abilities and opinion based on the comparison of others abilities and opinions.
According to Philip Kotler, A persons reference groups consist of all the groups that have a direct
(face to face) or indirect influence on the persons attitudes or behavior. Reference groups are of
different types.

According to Herbert Hyman, Reference group is the type of group that an individual uses as a point
of reference in determining his own judgments, preferences, beliefs and behavior.

Classification of Reference Groups

i)

Normative Reference Group: Reference groups that directly influence general or broadly defined
values or behavior are usually called normative reference group. For example, a child's normative
reference group will be his family.

ii) Comparative Reference Group: Reference group which will serve as a benchmark for certain
specific or narrowly defined attitudes are called comparative reference group. Such a group serves as
a point of comparison especially for evaluating ones own status.
iii) Contractual Group: Another way of classifying reference group will be in terms of a person's
membership or degree of involvement with the group and in terms of the positive or negative
influence they are able to evolve on the person's attitudes, behavior and values. One such reference
group is the contractual group. These are the groups with which the person interacts and has regular
contact.
iv) Aspirational Group: An aspirational group is one to which the individual wishes or aspires to belong.
The individual may not have a formal membership and also does not have face to face contact but he
aspires to be a member. This aspiration acts as a positive influence on that person's attitude and
behavior.
v) Disclaimant Group: Another type of reference group is the disclaimant group. This is a group
whose values or behavior does not appeal to the individual. Here a person may have membership or
face to face contact but he disapproves of the group values, attitudes and behavior. Here his behavior
will be the opposite or reverse to the norms of the particular reference group.
vi) Avoidance Group: This may be a group with which the person may not hold membership nor have
face to face contact and also of whose values, attitudes and behavior, the person totally disapproves.
Here the person will tend to avoid the group and will adopt values, attitudes and behavior which will
be in opposition to that of the group.
People are significantly influenced by their reference groups in at least three ways:
a) Reference groups expose an individual to new behaviors and lifestyles.
b) They influence attitudes and self-concept.
c) They create pressures for conformity that may affect actual product and brand choices.
2) Family: Family members can strongly influence buyers behavior. The family is the most important
consumer buying organization in society, and it has been researched extensively. Family is of two types:
a) Family of Orientation: From parents a person acquires an orientation towards religion, politics,
self worth etc. In countries where parents live with their grown children, their influence can be
substantial.
b) Family of Procreation: This involves a more direct influence on every buying behavior it includes
ones spouse and children. Marketers are interested in the roles and influence of the husband, wife,
and children on the purchase of different products and services.
Husband-wife involvement varies widely by product category and by stage in the buying process.
Buying roles change with evolving consumer lifestyles.

Functions of the Family

a) Economic Well-Being: Economic security, providing financial means to its dependents is
unquestionably a basic family function.
b) Emotional Support: Love, affection, support, intimacy, care, and courage.
c) Suitable Family Lifestyles: Another important family function in terms of consumer behavior is the
establishment of a suitable lifestyle for the family. Upbringing, experience, and the personal and
jointly held goals of the spouses determine the importance placed on education or career, on reading,
on television viewing, and on the selection of other entertainment and recreational activities.
d) Socialization of Family Members: It encompasses young children and adults, and is a central
function. These generally include moral and religious principles, interpersonal skills, dress and
grooming standards, appropriate manner and speech and the selection of suitable educational and
occupational or career goals.
3) Roles and Statuses: A person participates in many groups family, clubs, and organizations. The
persons position in each group can be defined in terms of role and status. A role consists of the activities
that a person is expected to perform. Each role carries a status. A Supreme Court justice has more status
than a sales manager, and a sales manager has more status than an office clerk. People choose products
that communicate their role and status in society. Thus company presidents often drive Mercedes, wear
expensive suits, and drink Chivas Regal scotch. Marketers are aware of the status symbol potential of
products and brands.

Buying role of Consumers

There are following six different roles of persons, which can participate in the buying decision:
1) Initiator: The initiator is a person who first suggests or thinks of the idea of buying the particular
service.
2) Influencer: Influencer is a person who explicitly or implicitly has some influence on the final buying
decision of others. Students are
influenced by the advice of the
Influencers
professor while taking a decision to
(Children)
purchase a book. Here Professor is
the influencer.
Communications
3) Decider: The decider is a person
who ultimately determines any part
or whole of the buying decision, i.e.,
whether to buy, what to buy, how to
buy, when to buy or where to buy.
Children are the deciders for buying
the toys, house lady for kitchen
provisions, and head of the family for
durable or luxury items.
4) Gatekeeper:
The
person
or
organization
or
promotional
materials which act as a filter on the
range of services which enters the
decision choice set.
5) Buyer: The buyer is the person who

Targeted at
Children (Taste,
Image)

DecisionMakers
(Parents/
Children

Communications
Targeted at
Parents (Nutrition)

Information
Gatherers
(Parents)

Various Roles in Family

Purchaser
s

Consumers
(Children)

actually purchase. Buyer may be the decider or he may be some other person. Children (deciders) are the
deciders for purchasing the toys, but purchases are made by the parents. Thus, parents are buyers.
6) User: User is the person who actually uses or consumes the services or products.
The marketers task is to study the buying process and its main participants and their role in the buying process.
He should initiate all of them to make the purchases of his product at different stages and through different
strategies

Consumers Decision Making Process / Buying Process

Decision-making is a process of selecting an appropriate option from two or
more alternatives. A customer enjoys the freedom of choosing a particular
brand or product when there is more than one brand or product to choose from.

The purchaser or consumer takes his buying decision, for some commodities
immediately without much consideration such as items of daily use while for
some other commodities mainly luxury or durable items, he thinks much
before taking a decision to purchase it. Sometimes, he consults others.
Generally, the purchaser passes through five distinct stages in taking a decision
for purchasing a particular commodity. Broadly, in making a purchase decision
the consumer goes through the following stages:

Problem Recognition

Pre purchase Information

Search

Evaluation of Alternatives

Purchase Decision

Post Purchase Behavior

1) Problem Recognition: The buying process starts when the buyer

Figure 10.2: Buying Process
recognizes a problem or need. The need can be triggered by internal
stimuli. In the former case one of the persons normal needs-hunger, thirst, sex-rises to a threshold level
and become a drive. In the latter case, a need is aroused by an external stimulus. A person passes a
bakery and sees freshly baked bread that stimulates her hunger, she admires a neighbours new car; or
she watches a television ad for a Hawaiian vacation.
Marketers need to identify the circumstances that trigger a particular need by gathering information from
a number of consumers; marketers can identify the most frequent stimuli that spark an interest in a
product category. They can then develop marketing strategies that trigger consumer interest.

2) Pre-purchase Information Search: An aroused consumer will be inclined to search for more
information. We can distinguish between two levels of arousal. The milder search state is called
heightened attention. At this level a person simply becomes more receptive to information about a
product.
At the next level the person may enter active information search: looking for reading material, phoning
friends and visiting stores to learn about the product of key interest to the marketers, are the major
information sources to which the consumer will turn and the relative influence each will have on the
subsequent purchase decision. Consumer information sources fall into four groups.
i)

Personal Sources: Family, friends, neighbors, acquaintance

ii) Commercial Sources: Advertising, salespersons, dealers, packaging, displays.

iii) Public Sources: Mass media, consumer, rating organization.

iv) Experiential Sources: Handling, examining, uses the product.
The relative amount and influence of these information sources vary with the product category and the
buyers characteristics. Generally speaking the consumer receives most of the information about a
product from commercial sourcethat is, marketers-dominated sources. But most effective information
comes from personal sources. Each information sources performs a different function in influencing the
buying decision. Commercial information normally performs an informing function, and personal
sources perform a legitimizing or evaluation function. For example, physicians often learn of new drugs
from commercial sources but turn to other doctors for evaluative information.

3) Evaluation of Alternatives: There is no single evaluation process used by

all consumers or by one consumer in all buying situations. There are several
decision evaluation processes the most current models of, which see the
process as cognitively oriented. That is, they see the consumer as framing
judgment largely on a conscious and rational basis.

Evaluative Criteria

Beliefs

Attitudes

Evaluation may be thought of as a system as depicted in figure 10.3:

Intentions

i)

Figure 10.3: Evaluation System

Evaluative (Choice) Criteria: These are the dimensions used by

consumers to compare or evaluate products or brands. In the car example, the relevant evaluative
criteria may be fuel economy, purchase price and reliability.

ii) Beliefs: These are the degrees to which, in the consumers mind, a product possesses various
characteristics, e.g., roominess.
iii) Attitudes: These are the degrees of liking or disliking a product and are in turn dependent on the
evaluative criteria used to judge the products and the beliefs about the product measured by those
criteria.
iv) Intentions: These measure the probability that attitudes will be acted upon. The assumption is that
favorable attitudes will increase purchase intentions, i.e., the probability that the consumer will buy.
Some basic concepts will help us understand consumer evaluation processes.
i) The consumer is trying to satisfy a need.
ii) The consumer is looking for certain benefit from the product solution.
iii) The consumer sees each product as a bundle of attributers with varying abilities of delivering the
benefit sought to satisfy this need.
The attributes of interest to buyers vary by product.

Consumers vary as to which product attributers they see as most relevant and the importance they attach
to each attribute. They will pay the most attention to attributers that deliver the sought benefit. The
market for a product can often be segmented according to attributes that are salient to different consumer
groups.

The consumer develops a set of brand beliefs about where each brand stands on each attribute. The set of
beliefs about a brand makes up the brand image. The consumers brand image will vary with his or her
experience as filtered by the effects of selective perception selective distortion and selective retention.

4) Purchase Decision: In the evaluation stage, the consumer forms preference among the brand in the
choice. The consumer may also form an intention to buy the most preferred brand. However, two factors
can intervene between the purchase intention and the purchase decision.
i) The first factor is the attitudes of others. The extent to which another persons attitude reduces, ones
preferred alternative depends on two things:
a) The intensity of the other persons negative attitude towards the consumers preferred alternative.
b) The consumers motivation to comply with the other persons wishes.
ii) The second factor is unanticipated situation factors that may erupt to change the purchase intention.
Preferences and even purchase intentions are not completely reliable predictors of purchase
behavior.
A consumers decision to modify, postpone, or avoid a purchase decision is heavily influenced by
perceived risk. The amount of perceived risk varies with the amount of money at stake the amount of
attribute uncertainty and the amount of consumer self-confidence.

In executing a purchase intention, the consumer may make up to five purchase sub decisions:
i)
ii)
iii)
iv)
v)

A brand decision (brand A);

Vendor decision (dealer 2);
Quantity decision (one computer);
Timing decision (weekend), and
Payment-method decision (credit card).

Purchase of everyday product involves fewer decisions and less deliberation. For example, in buying
sugar a consumer gives little thought to the vendor or payment method.

5) Post-purchase Behavior: After purchasing the product, the consumer will experience some level of
satisfaction or dissatisfaction. The marketers job does not end when the product is bought. Marketers
must monitor post purchase satisfaction, post purchase actions and post purchase product uses.
i) Post-purchase Satisfaction: What determines whether the buyer will be highly satisfied, somewhat
satisfies or dissatisfied with a purchase? The buyers satisfaction is a function of the closeness
between the buyers expectations and the products perceived performance. If performance falls
short of expectations, the customer is disappointed; if it meets expectations the customers is
satisfied; if it beyond expectations the customer is delighted. These feelings signify a difference in
whether the customer buys the product again and talks favorably or unfavorably about the product to
others.
ii) Post-purchase Actions: The consumers satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the product will
influence subsequent behavior. If the consumer is satisfied he or she will exhibit a higher probability
of purchasing the product again.

Dissatisfied consumer may abandon or return the product. They may seek information that confirms
its high value. The may take public action by complaining to the company, going to a lawyer, or
complaining to other groups (such as business private or government agencies). Private action
includes making a decision to stop buying the product (exit option) or, warning friends (voice
option). In all these case the seller has done a poor job of satisfying the customer.
iii) Post-purchase Use and Disposal: Marketers should also monitor how buyers use and dispose of the
product. If consumers store the product in a closet, the product is probably not very satisfying and
word-of-mouth will be not being strong. If they sell or trade the product new product sales will be
depressed. Consumer may also find new uses for the product.