New Media Mania

Any model, by its very nature, is a simplification of reality in order to aid understanding. Consumer decision-making models are no different.

There are two commonly referenced decision-making models:-

The general four-step model (five steps if one includes the decision itself; and six steps if one includes post-purchase evaluation) is as follows:

1. Needs recognition;
2. Information search;
3. Evaluation of alternatives;
4. Purchase decision;
5. Purchase; and
6. Post-purchase evaluation

Another four-step model is AIDA – awareness, interest, desire, and action – which can also be expanded to six steps by substituting “understanding” and “attitudes” for  awareness, and “purchase” and “repeat purchase” for action; or AIUAPR, as follows:-

1. Awareness
2. Interest
3. Understanding
4. Attitudes
5. Purchase
6. Repeat purchase

This post seeks to identify a few problems with the simple models and will recommend a more holistic and representative version of one of them.

The Creative Impulse

Impulse purchases, such as buying a chocolate bar at a supermarket checkout counter, puts the general model of consumer purchasing decisions under pressure. The language used in the general model implies a great deal of forethought and cognitive processing in decision making, whereas in the impulse purchase scenario the consumer in unaware of his/her “need” for chocolate until s/he sees it. Furthermore, any information processing and evaluation of alternatives undertaken by the shopper in this scenario is limited to a scan of the price tags and the choice of chocolates available.

Nevertheless, one can still argue that however it occurs, whether six months in advance or on the spot, a perceived need is indeed registered by the shopper. And, however limited it may be, a certain amount of evaluation is undertaken by the consumer.  Therefore it could be argued that the general model continues to hold water in the impulse purchase situation.

Yet it is the author’s considered opinion that the AIDA model, with its broader concepts of awareness, interest, desire, and action—all which may be instinctual or impulsive, as well as considered—lends itself to more creative interpretations by marketing communicators. AIDA easily applies in all kinds of scenarios, including this example of the impulse purchase. Awareness of and interest and desire for chocolate might simultaneously be encouraged at the check-out by positioning a boxful of bars at eye-level, packaging the bars in bright shiny foil, and pitching them with an image of a gorgeous model’s ecstatic facial expression. And if they’re only a couple of dollars each … Why not?!

Back in 1962, Stern’s sixth and “most significant” conclusion about impulse purchasing was that marketers should “dispense with the idea that this type of buying is basically irrational and, therefore, impossible to influence”. Indeed, some of his other conclusions mention the attention-grabbing strategies commonly employed in today’s retail outlets, such as “impulse buying centers to supplement the heavily trafficked checkout stand”. Stern also discussed the promise of “reminder impulse buying” via “a close tie-in between at-home and in-store advertising”, which jives with more contemporary notions of promotional cues and brand salience.

It Doesn’t Simply Start and End There

Mercer (1996) expands the AIDA (AIUAPR) model of consumer decision making by introducing an earlier starting point and a more desirable ending point in the decision process.

At the top of his model (see Figure 1), Mercer identifies susceptibility as the foundation for any prospective consumer decision. A susceptible consumer, while not yet aware of it, is one who would be open to idea of a new product in his/her life. From the marketer’s perspective, this first step in the process highlights the role of market research and segmentation in identifying and defining new markets. And for marketing communicators, susceptibly is suggestive of the vital concepts of branding and positioning, which, if effective, will usher newly-aware prospects along the road to interest, desire, and beyond.

The ideal end point for marketers is not simply repeat purchases, as are accommodated by the AIUAPR model, but brand loyalty, where future favorable decisions by the consumer are (almost) assured without any significant marketing effort. As an added bonus, loyal customers are sources of powerful word-of-mouth advertising.

External Pressures

Perhaps the most serious weakness of both simple models of consumer decision making is their failure to reference the significant influence external parties have on the consumer.

The obvious omission is of course the marketing communicator and his/her competitors, all of whom aim to convert prospects into loyal customers. Each stage in the decision-making process suggests a different communications objective. And the messages crafted for each can be delivered in all sorts of ways, ranging from above the line advertising to after-sales support calls. Mercer includes these competitive influences in his extended AIUAPR model (see Figure 1) as “vendors”.

The other external parties Mercer includes in his extended AIUAPR model (see Figure 1), which the standard models ignore, are the great personal influencers in a person’s life, such as friends, family, partner, opinion leaders, colleagues, and rivals, all of whom are lumped together as “peers”. A consumer’s peer group may already include people who have experienced the product and thus can provide a trusted testimonial. The group may also include loyal customers, who may be happy to help induct another. In marketing communications strategies, the influencers close to the prospect are often identified as secondary target groups. They can be extremely influential on the decision-making process, especially for high-involvement categories, and are therefore a welcome addition to an expanded AIDA-based model.

Conclusion

Of the two simple consumer decision-making models identified in the introduction to this post, AIDA is the most useful to marketing communicators, if only because it highlights to the practitioner the communications objectives of each step (build awareness, generate interest, etc). However, AIDA can logically be expanded to provide a more holistic model of the target consumer’s world and the marketing communicator’s (hopefully) highly influential place within it.

Figure 1: Mercer’s enhanced AIUAPR model for consumer decision making

Help Me Understand: What Do You Think?

References

Mercer, D.S., (1996), ‘The Decision Making Process’, Marketing, Ch 2, The Customer, pp. 51-56

Stern, H., (1962), “The Significance of Impulse Buying Today”, Journal of Marketing 26, pp.59-60