CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
BUAD 307
MARKETING FUNDAMENTALS
Learning Outcome Objectives
• Understand how consumer
cognitive (thinking) processes and
limitations, affect, beliefs, social
influences, and other contextual
factors influence consumer
decision making, choices, and
behavior
• Appreciate how these insights can
be used to design and implement
effective marketing strategies
• Appreciate individual and segment
differences in process and
outcome
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Influences on and of Consumer Behavior
PERCEPTION/
SENSATION
MARKET
RESEARCH
INFO
SEARCH
STRATEGY
CHOICES
COGNITION
AFFECT
PREFERENCES
BELIEFS
CONSUMER
COMMUNICATION
SOCIAL AND
OTHER INFLUENCE
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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True or False?
1. If you have bad breath, you cannot smell it
yourself.
2. If you eat a balanced diet, you do not need
vitamin supplements.
3. Using a razor with five blades will reduce the
likelihood of cutting yourself and will result in
less skin irritation.
4. Dell Computers tend to be of higher quality
than those made by HP and Sony.
5. Rust stains on clothes can be removed with
the use of lemon juice. Bleach actually
makes these stains worse.
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Questions Faced By
Consumers
• Are veggie burgers actually healthy?
• What makeup should you use to get an
“even” skin tone?
• Do I get any useful benefits from spending
more than $125 on a digital camera?
• Should I get a “make-over?” What am I
looking for? What should I do?
• Is my mechanic honest?
• Which tie should I wear for a job interview?
• Should I give my wife roses, chocolate, or
software?
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Consumer Problems and
Recognition
• Consumer problem:
Discrepancy between ideal and
actual state--e.g., consumer:
– Has insufficient hair
– Is hungry
– Has run out of ink in his or
her inkjet cartridge
• Problems can be solved
in several ways--e.g., stress
reduction  vacation, movie, hot
bath, medication
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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CONSUMER DECISIONS:
Theory and Reality in Consumer Buying
PROBLEM
RECOGNITION
INFORMATION
SEARCH
EVALUATION OF
ALTERNATIVES
PURCHASE
POSTPURCHASE
EVALUATION/
BEHAVIORS
Theory
Complications
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Post Purchase Behavior
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Approaches to Search for
Problem Solutions
INTERNAL
Memory
Thinking
EXTERNAL
Word of mouth, media,
store visits, trial
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
9
Options Identified and Considered
UNIVERSAL SET
All possible options
RETRIEVED SET
Options that readily
come to mind
Options that will be
considered by the
consumer
EVOKED/
CONSIDERATI
ON SET
Note: Retrieved and evoked
sets will vary among
different consumers. Brand
awareness is important
since this is required for the
brand to be in the evoked
and retrieved sets.
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
10
REMINDER
• For low involvement
products, efforts aimed at
affecting internal search
tend to be more
effective—the consumer
is usually not willing to
expend energy on
external search.
• External search is more
likely for higher
involvement products.
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Decision Making Issues
• Involvement level
– Temporary
– Enduring
• Consumer locus of
control
– Internal
– External
• Product category
complexity
• Consumer knowledge
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Evaluation Type
IMPORTANT
BUAD 307
LESS
IMPORTANT
– Compensatory: Decision based on overall
value of alternatives (good attribute can
outweigh bad ones)
– Non-compensatory: Absolutely must meet
at least one important criterion (e.g., car
must have automatic transmission)
– Hybrid: Combination of the two (e.g., one
non-compensatory measure, then
compensatory tradeoffs on other attributes
– Abandoned strategy: Consumer finds initial
criteria unrealistic and proceeds to less
desirable solution
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
13
Heuristics—Low Involvement
Decision Rules
• If either Coke or Pepsi is on
sale, buy that brand;
otherwise, buy Coke
• The larger the navels, the
better the orange
• The larger package is likely to
offer a lower unit price (not
true in reality)
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Consumer Information
Processing
PERCEPTION
CONSCIOUS
PRE-CONSCIOUS
ATTENTION
LIMITED—SUBJECT TO
PRIORITY
DIVIDED
Note: This is a simplified
conceptual model that
should not be taken too
literally. The boundaries
between the steps are
actually rather “blurry.”
BEHAVIOR
ELABORATION
LINKS TO OTHER
ITEMS IN MEMORY
 ASSOCIATION
STORAGE
(IN MEMORY)
BUAD 307
No “guaranteed” arrow—
triggers may or may not
happen.
COMPREHENSION
CORRECT OR INCORRECT
ELABORATE OR SHALLOW
TRIGGERS
(“REMINDERS” TO
ACTIVATE MEMORY)
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
(THINKING BRINGS
ABOUT NEW LINKS
AND THOUGHTS)
RETRIEVAL
(ACTIVATION)
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Associate Network of
Knowledge
SANDWICH
PEANUT
BUTTER
MITT
ROMNEY
FAT
PEANUTS
REPUBICAN
PARTY
ELEPHANT
7 BLIND MEN
TRUNK
ZOO
GIRAFFE
MEDICINE
TIGER
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
16
TRAVEL
CASKET
iTUNES
E-MAIL
PORTABLE
TEXTING
FUNERAL
STEVE
JOBS
DEAD
INNOVATION
LAPTOP
SPREADSHEET
GOSSIP
iPHONE
iPAD
APPLE
FRUIT
HEALTHY
PEAR
REPORT
TV
MONITOR
FINANCE
DESKTOP
SOAP
OPERAS
JUICY
GRANDMA
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PRINTER
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Attitudes―components
AFFECT
(FEELING)
BELIEFS
BEHAVIORAL
INTENTIONS
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Attitude Components
• Beliefs
– Can be positive,
negative, or neutral
– May or may not be
accurate
– May contradict other
beliefs held by the other
person
• Affect
– May be positive or
negative
– May take on specific
dimension (e.g.,
pleasure, disgust)
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
• Behavioral
Intentions
– An individual’s plan or
expectations of what he
or she will do
– May appear inconsistent
with beliefs
– May not predict well what
the individual will do in
reality
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Generating Beliefs Through
Advertising
• Statements must be
– Perceived
– Comprehended
– Remembered
– Believed (at least in part)
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Affect
• Based on
– Past emotional
associations of product
– Emotional effect of beliefs
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Attitude Change Strategies, Part I
• Changing Affect
– Classical conditioning:
“Pairing” the brand or product
with desired stimulus—e.g., a
car with a beautiful woman
– Attitude toward the ad: A
likable ad for a brand in a
mundane product category—
e.g.,
• Energizer Bunny
• Snuggles (fabric softener)
– Mere exposure: Items (e.g.,
advertisements) that have
been seen before tend to be
better liked
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
22
Attitude Change Strategies II
• Changing behavior (e.g., sampling):
Consumers tend to infer attitudes
from behavior (e.g., I buy the
product  I must like it or It must be
good)
• Changing a belief component
– Changing existing beliefs
• Difficult
• Advertiser’s motives are suspect
– Changing the importance of attributes
– Adding beliefs
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
23
Adding Beliefs (True or Not):
Examples
• Brushing and flossing do
not reach all areas of the
mouth
• People under stress need
more vitamins
• Baking soda will reduce
odor of refrigerators
• Fragmented hard drives
may cause computer
errors
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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REMINDER
• Changing currently held
beliefs tends to be
difficult—people know the
marketer has an ulterior
motive
• Adding new beliefs that
are not inconsistent with
what is already believed
may be more effective
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
25
One-sided vs. two sided
appeals
• One-sided: only saying
what favors your side
• Two-sided: stating your
case but also admitting
points favoring the other
side
– Why is this effective?
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
26
The Means-End Chain
Promotion/
positioning should be
aimed at higher
levels of chain!
Self-esteem
Values
Feeling of power
Consequences
Attributes
Note additional
details on the
handout.
BUAD 307
Performance
Fast acceleration
Large engine
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
27
Subliminal Perception: A
Diabolical Marketing Tool?
• Subliminal messages in ads
are illegal in U.S.
• Some research support for
modest effects
– Probably limited to one
syllable words
– Complex messages can
probably not be
processed subliminally
• Highly publicized Coke and
popcorn “studies” never
actually took place
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Some Consumer Behavior Issues That Will
Come Up Elsewhere in the Course
• Demographics
(segmentation)
• Lifestyle (segmentation)
• Culture/subculture
(segmentation, international
marketing)
• Diffusion of innovation
(product)
• Attention (promotion)
BUAD 307
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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Organizational Buyers
• Types
• Characteristics
– Industrial
– Reseller
– Government and
non-profit
organizations
– Greater involvement
– Bureaucracy
– Long term
relationships
– Price is important but
may not be the most
important factor
• Purchase types
– Straight rebuy
– Limited decision
making
– Extended decision
making
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CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Lars Perner, Instructor
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