Consumer Decision Process
The consumer decision process is the staged path of a purchase: problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, store choice and purchase, and postpurchase processes, with the option to step back. It is a way to organise what happens and is conceptual, not predictive of any single brand choice.
What it is
The consumer decision process is the staged path of a purchase: problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, store choice and purchase, and postpurchase processes, with the option to step back. It is a way to organise what happens, and the textbook that sets it out says it is conceptual, not predictive of any single brand choice.
In effect
The same five stages can be used to read emotion-based and environment-based buying as well as attribute-based buying. The Why We Project uses them as the frame for its Consumer Psychology Guide.
What it does not say
The model is a map and not a measurement. It does not say that every buyer passes through every stage, or in order, and it does not predict which brand a buyer will choose.
Sources
- Hawkins, Quester and Neal, Consumer Behaviour.