Marketing: Decision Making, Problem Solving, & Perception Process

Decision Making, Problem Solving, Consumer Decision-Making, & Perception Process

Habitual Decision Making, Limited Problem Solving, Extended Problem Solving, And Perceived Risk

Habitual decision making refers to the daily constant decisions a consumer must make with regard to purchasing. This decision making encompasses buying necessities such as food. Limited problem solving is involved in the habitual decision making because it is a small process such as picking one brand over another. In contrast to this process is extended problem solving which refers to making bigger purchases that involve comparison shopping and studying the differences between brands. Perceived risk may be present in any of these decision-making processes but it is much higher when the product is expensive or if the consumer believes that she may lose something in the transaction or making a poor choice.

Steps in The Consumer Decision-Making Process

The steps in the consumer decision-making process include: Problem Recognition, Information Search, Evaluation of Alternatives, Product choice, and Post Purchase Evaluation.

The Three Parts Of The Perception Process: Exposure, Attention, & Interpretation

Exposure refers to the necessity of the product to be in the person’s range of senses. If the marketer cannot engage the consumer’s perception through exposure the person will not be aware of the product. Attention is the metal process of noticing a product. For marketers, they must be able to engage the consumer’s thinking in order for their product to be considered. Interpretation is the process by which the consumer assigns meaning to the product based on prior experience or assumption. This is an extremely important perception because it is how the consumer views the product. If the product is not presented correctly then it will fail because it is not perceived in the way that it is supposed to, i.e., naming a construction company “Weak Construction” may give consumers the wrong interpretation.

Three Components of Attitudes, Personality, Lifestyle, and Family Life Cycle

The three components of attitudes are affect, cognition, and behavior. These components help to create the consumer personality which is the unique psychological characteristics that influence the way the consumer responds. Lifestyle is the pattern of living that determines a consumer’s purchasing choices, e.g., active people buy active wear. The lifestyle of the consumer is important because lifestyles change especially in regard to family life cycle. Consumers who have families go through different stages of buying such as newlyweds looking for a new home. Understanding this concept allows marketers to target and focus their campaigns on these varying demographics.

Reference Groups and Opinion Leaders

Reference groups are groups of people that a consumer may want to please or imitate. These groups impact consumers by affecting decisions to buy products. For instance, if a movie star recommends a particular product this can result in consumers who wish to emulate the movie star buying the product. Another way that product purchasing is impacted is through opinion leaders. Opinion leaders are typically objective people but have a high interest in the product. Computer programs that blog about a particular software are considered opinion makers because consumers look to these individuals for information concerning the product in question.

Market Segmentation

Market segmentation is important when locating customers because segmentation reveals the markets niche. This strategy seeks to create specific products or services that fill an unfulfilled need or desire for customers. Sports cars are an example of this form of marketing because they fill the desire of a market segment that enjoys or wants fast cars. This strategy is important because it fills gaps in the market place.

Major Demographic Characteristics Frequently Used in Segmenting Consumer Markets

Segmenting consumer markets relies heavily on major demographics such as age, gender, income, and education. Using these demographics the marketer can better understand who the consumer is.

Consumer Psychographic Segmentation

Psychographic segmentation is when consumers are grouped according to psychological and behavioral similarities. For example, some vacation consumers want to spend their time in Disney World while other consumers would rather go to Hershey Park.

Undifferentiated, Differentiated, Concentrated, and Customized Marketing Strategies

Undifferentiated marketing strategy is a broad-based strategy where many consumers are targeted. Differentiated strategy is the targeting of distinct groups of consumers with different products. The product is developed specifically for the intended consumer group. Concentrated marketing is when a firm specifically targets a market segment with one of few products. Custom marketing is a strategy where specific product and messages are aimed as specific customers, e.g., elderly for emergency bracelets.

Product Positioning, Brand Personality, Perceptual Maps

Positioning is the strategy that uses the product’s brand to create a distinct position in relation to other competing brands, in the mind of the customer. The goal of positioning a product is to identify by its uniqueness and differences with the competition. For example, the Honda brands itself as a low maintenance vehicle because of its superior quality. This position could easily be a position of being a highly gas efficient vehicle as well. With this different brand, Honda could also advertise in the green markets to a greater degree. This is also referred to as developing a brand personality where people think of the product in terms of it being good, green, or bad in relation to other competing products. Perceptual maps help marketers position products by giving them a clear means of seeing how the product is perceived by the consumer.

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Photo by Riccardo Annandale on Unsplash

Article Updated: 10/12/2021