The consumer decision-making process is a cognitive state that doesn’t always follow a logical progression. A consumer makes an individual choice that will be influenced by highly unpredictable factors such as attitudes, emotional state, social media, friends’ inner circle, and external experts. Despite this unpredictability, brands have recognized the need to understand this process better to satisfy consumers and their wants and needs. Throughout the stages of exploration, there can be so much noise from competing brands that decision-making can be difficult. Still, typically, this search and discovery process is necessary to filter out other options available. By carefully moving through the level of involvement stages and defining the problem, researching, identifying opportunities, and evaluating choices, the consumer can answer questions that will provide direction towards the ultimate objective.
What are the five stages of the decision-making process?
The consumer decision-making process is deliberate steps that carefully evaluate alternatives for any given product from start to finish. From the beginning, most people are mentally weighing the pros and cons of product comparisons until they eliminate alternatives. During this information-gathering period, the consumers’ thought process generally develops through five stages of cognitive decision planning, beginning with:
Problem recognition
Information search
Evaluation of alternatives
Product choices
Outcomes
Before any purchasing decision, there must be problem recognition. This is the frame of mind where the consumer’s actual state is unsatisfied, and they understand that their ideal state can be raised through alternative external means. At this point, the consumer has “Altered their standard of comparison, and now have a new problem to solve” (Solomon, 2017,9-2). This stage of the process is when early stimuli become the catalyst, forcing consumers to seek a solution for their needs or desires.
As the process advances, the realization of multiple alternatives to choose from becomes the next stage of the selection process. To help make an informed decision, the consumer has to gather enough available data to decide. However, because of alternatives, consumer decisions rely on prior knowledge and past experiences for the first stop of their research. This is where the power of brand awareness comes into play. Brands that have made a lasting impression become the first options consumers seek to evaluate in times of need. Normally, consumers will rely on primary and secondary sources via the internet to overview brand specifics. This fact-finding search will help to answer questions on comparisons of like features and benefits.
At the midpoint of the process is the evaluation of alternatives stage. This is a pivotal point in the selection process where consumers make decisions that will lead to purchases. So, consumers spend considerable time and effort in identifying perceived value that will ultimately result in a choice between alternatives. “Even though most purchasing decisions involve risks,” by filtering through product variations, the consumer arrives at the product they believe will provide the most performance expectations. This positive emotional state results in the consumer moving forward and making the product choice (Gokcek,2019, p.120).
Based on their research, the consumer arrives at the point of product selection. This is the decisive stage in the purchasing experience because the consumer has chosen between the available options. Afterward, come the post-purchase evaluation and expectation measurements. At this point, consumers mentally gauge whether the purchase has successfully raised their actual state to their ideal state.