The Buying Decision Process By: Pedram Armat

1. The Buying Decision ProcessBy: PedramArmat

2. Definition • The consumer buying decision process looks at how consumers make buying decisions. (Kotler and Armstrong)

3. The Customer Buying Process (also called a Buying Decision Process) describes the process that customer goes through before they buy the product. Understanding customer’s buying process is not only very important for the Salespeople, it will also enable them to align their sales strategy accordingly.

4. The buyer decision process consists of 5 stages: • 1. Need recognition • 2. Information search • 3. Evaluation of alternatives • 4. Purchase decision • 5. Post purchase behavior

5. The buyer decision process consists of 5 stages:

6. 1. Need recognition • This is the first stage of the Buying Decision Processin which the consumer is able to recognize what the problem or need is and subsequently, what product or kind of product would be able to meet this need. It is oftentimes recognized as the first and most crucial step in the process because if consumers do not perceive a problem or need, they generally will not move forward with considering a product purchase.

7. A need can be trigerred by internal or external stimuli. Internal stimuli refers to when one of the person’s normal needs, such as hunger, thirst, sexrises to a level high enough to become a drive. For example, an elderly, single woman may feel lonely so she decides that she wants to purchase a cat.

8. External stimuli include outside influences such as advertising or word-of-mouth. For example, an advertisement or a discussion with a friend might get you thinking about buying a new car.

9. At this stage, the marketer should research consumers to find out what kinds of needs or problems arise, what brought them about, and how they led the consumer to this particular product.

10. 2. Information search • An interested consumer may or may not search for more information. If the consumer’s drive is strong and a satisfying product is near at hand, the consumer is likely to buy it then. If not, the consumer may store the need in memory or undertake an information search related to the need. • example : need a new car

11. The amount of searching you do will depend on the strength of your drive, the amount of information you start with, the ease of obtaining more information, the value you place on additional information and the satisfaction you get from searching.

12. Consumers can obtain information from several sources: • 1. Personal sources: (family, friends, neighbors) • 2. Commercial sources: (advertising, sales people, websites, dealers) • 3. Public sources: (mass media,, Internet searches, newspaper, radio, TV) • 4. Experiential sources: (examining, using the product)

13. As more information is obtained, the consumer’s awareness and knowledge of the available brands and features increase. • The challenge for the marketing team is to identify which information sources are most influential in their target markets.

14. 3. Evaluation of Alternatives • Once the information collected, the consumer will be able to evaluate the different alternatives that offer to him, evaluate the most suitable to his needs and choose the one he think it’s best for him.

15. In order to do so, he/she will evaluate their attributes on two aspects: • 1. Objective characteristics, such as the features and functionality of the product • 2. Subjective characteristics, such as perception and perceived value of the brand by the consumer or its reputation.

16. The consumer will then use the information previously collected and his perception or image of a brand to establish a set of evaluation criteria, desirable or wanted features, classify the different products available and evaluate which alternative has the most chance to satisfy him.

17. The process will then lead to what is called “evoked set”. “The evoked set” is the set of brands or products with a probability of being purchased by the consumer (because he has a good image of it or the information collected is positive).

18. On the other hand, “inept set” is the set of brands or products that have no chance of being purchased by the shopper (because he has a negative perception or has had a negative buying experience with the product in the past). While “inert set” is the set of brands or products for which the consumer has no specific opinion.

19. A factor that heavily influences this stage is the customer’s attitude. Involvement is another factor that influences the evaluation process. For example, if the customer’s attitude is positive and involvement is high, then they will evaluate a number of companies or brands; but if it is low, only one company or brand will be evaluated.

21. Marketers should study buyers to find out how they actually evaluate brand alternatives. If they know what evaluate processes go on, marketers can take steps to influence the buyer’s decision.

22. Purchase decision • In the evaluation stage, the consumer ranks brands and forms purchase intentions. Generally, the consumer’s purchase decision will be to buy the most preferred brand, but two factors can come between the purchase intention and the purchase decision.

23. The first factor is the attitudes of other. If someone important to you thinks that you should buy the lowest-priced car, then the chances of your buying a more expensive car are reduced.

24. The second factor is unexpected situational factors. The consumer may form a purchase intention based on factors such as expected income, expected price and expected product benefits. However, unexpected events may change the purchase intention.

25. For example, the economy might take a turn for the worse, a close competitor might drop its price, or a friend might report being disappointed in your preferred car. • Thus, preferences and even purchase intentions do not always result in actual purchase choice.

26. Postpurchase behavior • The marketer’s job does not end when the product is bought. After purchasing the product, the customer will be satisfied or dissatisfied and will engage in postpurchase behavior.

27. What determines whether the buyer is satisfied or dissatisfied with a purchase? • The answer lies in the relationship between the consumer’s expectations and the product’s perceived performance. • If the product falls short of expectation, the consumer is disappointed. • If it meets the expectations, the consumer is satisfied. • If it exceeds expectations, the consumer is delighted.

28. Why is it so important to satisfy the customer? • Customer satisfaction is a key to building profitable relationships with consumers-to keeping and growing consumers and reaping their customer lifetime value.

29. A dissatisfied consumer responds differently • Bad word of mouth often travels faster than good word of mouth. • Companies cannot simply rely on dissatisfied customers to volunteer their complaints when they are dissatisfied.