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Consumer decisionmaking is a central part of consumer behavior, but the ways we evaluate and choose products (and the amount of thought we put into these choices) varies widely, depending upon such dimensions as the degree of novelty or risk related to the decision. A purchase decision actually is composed of a series of stages that results in the selection of one product over competing options. Decisionmaking is not always rational. Our access to online sources is changing the way we decide what to buy. We often fall back on welllearned “rules of thumb” to make decisions. Consumers rely upon different decision rules when they evaluate competing options.
Chapter Consumers as Decision Makers Chapter Objective • Consumer decision-making is a central part of consumer behavior, but the ways we evaluate and choose products (and the amount of thought we put into these choices) varies widely, depending upon such dimensions as the degree of novelty or risk related to the decision • A purchase decision actually is composed of a series of stages that results in the selection of one product over competing options • Decision-making is not always rational • Our access to online sources is changing the way we decide what to buy • We often fall back on well-learned “rules of thumb” to make decisions • Consumers rely upon different decision rules when they evaluate competing options Learning Objective • • • • Steps in the decision-making process Consumers today Consumer make rational perspective Types of Consumer Decisions The Decision-Making Process • There are several steps in the decision-making process: • Consumers today may have too many choices; this is known as consumer hyperchoice – Problem recognition – Information search – Evaluation of alternatives – Product choice Perspectives on Decision Making • Consumer make rational perspective – use the economics of information approach to the search process, gathering information until the rewards (utility) of doing so no longer exceed the costs – integrate as much information as possible with what they already know about a product, weigh the pluses and minuses of each alternative, and arrive at a satisfactory decision – Though this approach is correct in many instances, it does not describe all forms of decisionmaking • • Purchase momentum occurs when initial impulses increase the likelihood that we will buy even more than we need People differ in terms of their cognitive processing style – Some use a rational system of cognition (process information analytically and sequentially) – Others rely on an experiential system of cognition (process information holistically and in parallel) – What really happens is that people use multiple strategies and the thought process is known as constructive processing It means that we evaluate what we need to to get the job done and that is how much effort we expend Types of Consumer Decisions (1) Extended problem solving • • relates to our self-concept and the outcome may be risky • Extended problem solving has grown in the online space due to the popularity of social games (multiplayer, competitive goal-oriented activity with defined rules of engagement and online connectivity among a community of players) • Information search can be from memory (internal search) and outside sources (external search) Game-based marketing – offer a targeted audience (2) Limited problem solving - more straightforward and simple • We use decision rules to choose among alternatives because we are not as motivated to search or information or to evaluate alternatives • We fall back on general guidelines/cognitive shortcuts instead of starting from scratch every time we need to decide (3) Habitual decision-making - occurs with little to no conscious effort – We make the choices using a process called automaticity – Habitual decision-making minimizes time and energy spent on mundane purchase decisions (4) Mental Accounting: Biases in the Decision-Making Process • • • • • • Mental accounting helps to explain the way we post a problem (called framing) and whether it is phrased in terms of gains or losses influences our decision The sunk-cost fallacy says that having paid for something makes us reluctant to waste it Behavioral economics blends psychology and economics to study how consumers make decisions Anchoring refers to the fact that when people are given a number, they use that number as the standard for future judgments When people are obsessed with preparing for the future so they cannot enjoy the present it is called hyperopia Prospect theory defines choice in terms of gains and losses Product Choice: How Do We Select from the Alternatives? (2) Evaluation is made difficult due to feature creep – more and newer features being added to products • • Evaluative criteria are the dimensions used to judge the merits of competing options Determinant attributes are the features we actually use to differentiate among our choices • • • • In order for a marketer to effectively recommend a new decision criterion, it should convey three pieces of information: there are significant differences among the brands on the attribute Should supply the consumer with a decision-making rule convey a rule that is consistent with how the person made the decision in the past (3) Product categorization is how consumers organize their beliefs about products or services • This knowledge is represented in a consumer’s knowledge structure (the set of beliefs and the way these beliefs are organized in our minds) There are several levels of categorization: – Basic level category—typically most useful; items have a lot in common but broad range of alternatives can be considered – Superordinate category—abstract concepts – Subordinate level—individual brands; prototypical items help describe subordinate level (4) Product categorization has many strategic implications Some of these are: • • • • Position a product—The conception of the product relative to other products in the consumer’s mind, or positioning strategy, hinges on the extent to which the consumer categorizes a product Identify competitors—Do different products act as substitutes? Create an exemplar product—The most known, accepted product or brand can be a category exemplar that exerts disproportionate influence on how people think of the category Locate products in the store—Consumers often expect to find certain products within certain places within the store environment Discussion Ask students to write down as many brands of soft drinks (or potato chips, or cars, or cologne, etc.) as they can think of in 60 seconds Of this group (in each case), ask students to consider which they would consider purchasing How could marketers that represent that group you did not select move into your preferred evoked set? Cybermediaries • business that is growing to meet the demand for information and service on the Web is the cybermediary This intermediary helps to filter and organize online market information so that customers can identify and evaluate alternatives more efficiently • Electronic recommendation agents are software tools that try to understand a human decision maker’s multi-attribute preferences for a product category by asking the user to communicate his preferences • • About 80% of online shoppers rely on customer reviews before they buy The people who supply these reviews are known as brand advocates People who provide reviews so to boost their reputation as knowledgeable advisors This is known as the reputation economy Learning Objective • • Loyalty & Habit Decision Rules Brand Loyalty or Habit? • • • • Zipf’s Law - describes our tendency to prefer a number-one brand to the competition, which helps explain why brands that dominate their markets are as much as 50% more profitable than their nearest competitors Many people tend to buy the same brand just about every time they go to the store This consistent pattern is due to inertia, where a brand is bought out of habit merely because less effort is required Marketers find it easy to unfreeze our habit with promotional offers when we have little or no underlying commitment to a brand Consumers who flit from brand to brand to get deals are called brand sluts Brand loyalty is a form of repeat purchasing behavior reflecting a conscious decision to continue buying the same brand Decision Rules We Use When We Care • Consumers use different rules, depending on the complexity of the decision and the importance of the decision to them (1) Non compensatory decision rules (2) Compensatory decision rules compensatory decision rules Compensatory decisions are rational decisions They involve: • • You weigh the good points against the bad computing an overall value for each option based on the impact of attribute and relative weight, and selecting the option with the best value There are two basic types of compensatory decision rules: • • Simple additive rules—the consumer merely chooses the alternative having the largest number of positive attributes Weighted additive rules—the consumer considers the relative importance of positive attributes • • In compensatory decisions, when the final values for attributes are computed, negative attributes can be compensated for by equal or higher value positive attributes For instance, a plane ticket that costs $50 more (negative attribute) may ultimately be the better choice because it is a direct flight (positive attribute) Compensatory decisions are rational However, people don't make compensatory decisions Collecting and comparing all of the necessary data is simply too labour intensive non-compensatory • • Simple decision rules In reality, we typically make non-compensatory decisions This happens when people: - don't collect all the relevant information systematically, - fail to consider the relative importance of various attributes, or - not trade off the benefits of some attributes against the deficits of others • • For instance, in the airline example above, decision makers may simply not collect information on all the relevant attributes In our airline example, they may consider price but not stopovers or overall flight time Alternately, people may find the task of comparing the tradeoffs too much Instead of weighing price against layover, they may adopt strategies like "drop the choice with negative attributes." Continuing the example, under this strategy the higher priced ticket goes without consideration of the longer travel time In reality, human decisions all include non-compensatory decision strategies • • • • Rules within this structure can be: The lexicographic rule—the brand with the best attribute is selected The elimination-by-aspects rule—must have a specific feature to be chosen The conjunctive rule—the consumer processes products by brand Cutoffs are established for each brand Failure to meet one cutoff means the brand will be rejected Discuss Provide an example of when you have used a compensatory decision rule What was the rule? Did you have regrets afterward? How you learn to adjust these rules? How can marketers deal with these rules? ... the decision to them (1) Non compensatory decision rules (2) Compensatory decision rules compensatory decision rules Compensatory decisions are rational decisions They involve: • • You weigh the... conscious decision to continue buying the same brand Decision Rules We Use When We Care • Consumers use different rules, depending on the complexity of the decision and the importance of the decision. .. Consumers today Consumer make rational perspective Types of Consumer Decisions The Decision- Making Process • There are several steps in the decision- making process: • Consumers today may have too many