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,CHAPTER 1 UNDERSTANDING CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR
Consumer behavior = The totality of consumers’ decisions with respect to the
acquisition, consumption, and disposition of goods, services, time, places, and ideas by
(human) decision-making units over time.
Example: Choosing a Netflix subscription, watching a series, recommending it to a
friend, and later cancelling the subscription.
Offering = A product, service, activity, experience, person, place, or idea offered to
consumers.
Example: A concert, voting for a politician, donating to UNICEF
- Acquisition = How consumers obtain an offering. This may involve buying, renting,
leasing, sharing, trading, borrowing or receiving it. Example: A car
- Usage or consumption = How, where, when, and how often consumers use an
offering.
Example: Consumers use their phones for work, gaming, photography, social media,
etc.
- Disposition = The process by which a consumer gets rid of an offering, temporarily
or permanently. Examples: reusing, storing, recycling, donating, reselling, or
discarding it
Consumer roles
- Information gatherer = The person who collects information relevant to the
decision.
Example: A teenager compares different laptops online.
- Influencer = The person who attempts to affect the decision.
Example: The teenager recommends one laptop to their parents.
- Decider = The person who determines what will be acquired.
Example: The parents decide which laptop will be bought.
- Purchaser = The person who actually obtains or pays for the offering.
Example: One of the parents orders and pays for the laptop.
- User = The person who consumes or uses the offering.
Example: The teenager uses the laptop for university.
One person can perform all these roles, but they can also be divided among several
people.
THE CONSUMER BEHAVIOR MODEL
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CORE
The psychological core includes:
- Motivation, ability, and opportunity
- Exposure, attention, perception, and comprehension
- Prior knowledge and memory
- Attitude formation and change
THE PROCESS OF MAKING DECISIONS
1. Problem recognition = Perceiving a difference between an actual state and an ideal
or desired state.
Example: A student notices that their current laptop is too slow for university work.
2. Information search = Searching for information needed to make a decision.
Example: The student compares laptop reviews, prices, and specifications.
3. Judgment and decision-making = Evaluating alternatives and selecting an
offering.
Example: The student compares a MacBook with several Windows laptops.
4. Post-decision evaluation = Evaluating a decision or consumption experience after
it has occurred.
Example: After using the laptop, the student decides whether it was worth its price.
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, - High-effort decision-making = Decision-making involving considerable thought
and mental effort.
Example: Comparing several expensive laptops on performance, battery life, price,
and weight.
- Low-effort decision-making = Decision-making involving little thought or mental
effort.
Example: Automatically choosing the same toothpaste as usual.
THE CONSUMER’S CULTURE
Consumer behavior is also influenced by reference groups, social influence, word of
mouth, consumer diversity, households, social class, values, personality, and lifestyles.
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR OUTCOMES
Consumer behavior can lead to:
- adoption or rejection of innovations
- symbolic use of products
- diffusion of products through a market
- ethical and social consequences
Customer value = The benefits consumers receive from an offering relative to the costs
they incur.
Example: A more expensive hotel can still provide greater value if its location, service,
and comfort outweigh the additional price.
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,CHAPTER 1 UNDERSTANDING CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR
Consumer behavior = The totality of consumers’ decisions with respect to the
acquisition, consumption, and disposition of goods, services, time, places, and ideas by
(human) decision-making units over time.
Example: Choosing a Netflix subscription, watching a series, recommending it to a
friend, and later cancelling the subscription.
Offering = A product, service, activity, experience, person, place, or idea offered to
consumers.
Example: A concert, voting for a politician, donating to UNICEF
- Acquisition = How consumers obtain an offering. This may involve buying, renting,
leasing, sharing, trading, borrowing or receiving it. Example: A car
- Usage or consumption = How, where, when, and how often consumers use an
offering.
Example: Consumers use their phones for work, gaming, photography, social media,
etc.
- Disposition = The process by which a consumer gets rid of an offering, temporarily
or permanently. Examples: reusing, storing, recycling, donating, reselling, or
discarding it
Consumer roles
- Information gatherer = The person who collects information relevant to the
decision.
Example: A teenager compares different laptops online.
- Influencer = The person who attempts to affect the decision.
Example: The teenager recommends one laptop to their parents.
- Decider = The person who determines what will be acquired.
Example: The parents decide which laptop will be bought.
- Purchaser = The person who actually obtains or pays for the offering.
Example: One of the parents orders and pays for the laptop.
- User = The person who consumes or uses the offering.
Example: The teenager uses the laptop for university.
One person can perform all these roles, but they can also be divided among several
people.
THE CONSUMER BEHAVIOR MODEL
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CORE
The psychological core includes:
- Motivation, ability, and opportunity
- Exposure, attention, perception, and comprehension
- Prior knowledge and memory
- Attitude formation and change
THE PROCESS OF MAKING DECISIONS
1. Problem recognition = Perceiving a difference between an actual state and an ideal
or desired state.
Example: A student notices that their current laptop is too slow for university work.
2. Information search = Searching for information needed to make a decision.
Example: The student compares laptop reviews, prices, and specifications.
3. Judgment and decision-making = Evaluating alternatives and selecting an
offering.
Example: The student compares a MacBook with several Windows laptops.
4. Post-decision evaluation = Evaluating a decision or consumption experience after
it has occurred.
Example: After using the laptop, the student decides whether it was worth its price.
2
, - High-effort decision-making = Decision-making involving considerable thought
and mental effort.
Example: Comparing several expensive laptops on performance, battery life, price,
and weight.
- Low-effort decision-making = Decision-making involving little thought or mental
effort.
Example: Automatically choosing the same toothpaste as usual.
THE CONSUMER’S CULTURE
Consumer behavior is also influenced by reference groups, social influence, word of
mouth, consumer diversity, households, social class, values, personality, and lifestyles.
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR OUTCOMES
Consumer behavior can lead to:
- adoption or rejection of innovations
- symbolic use of products
- diffusion of products through a market
- ethical and social consequences
Customer value = The benefits consumers receive from an offering relative to the costs
they incur.
Example: A more expensive hotel can still provide greater value if its location, service,
and comfort outweigh the additional price.
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