GSBS6005 · Principles Of Marketing Strategy
Consumer Behaviour and the Decision Process
This chapter is the heart of the consumer-behaviour weeks (3-4) and one of the named case-study topics. Consumer behaviour covers everything people do when obtaining, consuming and disposing of products, and every purchase runs through the Buyer Decision Process — need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase, consumption and post-consumption evaluation. The marks are never in defining a stage; they are in applying the framework through the case facts: mapping a buyer onto the process, classifying and defending involvement, explaining the need-recognition gap, and tying benefits to Maslow tiers as argued prose, not bullet points.
What this chapter covers
- 011. Consumer behaviour — obtaining, consuming and disposing (scope is wider than 'why people buy')
- 022. The Buyer Decision Process — six stages (+ a 7th, divestment / disposal)
- 033. Need recognition — the desired-vs-actual gap must cross a recognition threshold
- 044. Information search — internal vs external; marketing- vs non-marketing-controlled; the consideration (evoked) set
- 055. Evaluation of alternatives — evaluative criteria; salient vs determinant attributes; heuristics
- 066. Post-purchase — satisfaction vs dissatisfaction; cognitive dissonance; the Customer Journey Map
- 077. Involvement & perceived risk — habitual → limited → extended; the six risk dimensions; the ELM (central vs peripheral)
- 088. Motivation & influences — Maslow's hierarchy, push/pull, utilitarian/hedonic; internal (OCEAN, AIO) vs external (culture, reference groups, family roles)
Map a buyer onto the decision process and classify involvement
- +2Need recognition (2). The trigger is a perceived gap between Daniel's desired state (independent mobility now that he is earning) and his actual state (no car). The gap is large and sustained, so it crosses the recognition threshold and motivates action.
- +2Information search (2). Internal recall plus heavy external search: non-marketing-controlled sources (owner reviews, safety ratings, parents, a mechanic friend) alongside marketing-controlled listings. This wide search signals an effortful, risk-aware buyer.
- +2Evaluation of alternatives (2). The consideration set narrows to a few models scored on evaluative criteria; reliability and safety are the determinant attributes (the ones that actually swing the choice), while styling is merely salient.
- +2Purchase, consumption & post-consumption (2). He buys the reliable hatchback, begins using it, then second-guesses the price when a cheaper newer model appears — classic cognitive dissonance at the post-consumption stage.
- +3Involvement, defended (3). This is extended / high involvement: high perceived financial, performance and social risk, a three-week search, test drives and multiple sources, processed via the ELM central route. The length of the process and the risk — not the dollar value alone — justify the classification.
- +1Dealer's post-purchase risk (1). Dissonance threatens negative reviews and lost referrals; the dealer should reduce it with reassurance — a service plan, a warranty reminder and a follow-up check-in — to convert a one-off buyer into a loyal, advocating customer.
Key terms
- Consumer behaviour
- The activities people undertake when obtaining, consuming and disposing of products and services — a scope wider than 'why and how people buy', deliberately including consumption and disposal.
- Buyer Decision Process
- The staged journey of a purchase: need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase, consumption and post-consumption evaluation (plus a 7th divestment / disposal stage); marketers can intervene at every stage.
- Need recognition
- A perceived gap between the desired (ideal) state and the actual state; a need is recognised only once that discrepancy crosses a threshold. Marketers either raise the desired state or dramatise the actual-state shortfall.
- Salient vs determinant attributes
- Salient attributes are the ones a buyer notices; determinant attributes are the few that actually decide the choice. Winning on determinant criteria is what swings the purchase.
- Cognitive dissonance
- Post-purchase doubt or regret, strongest after high-involvement buys; managed by setting realistic expectations and providing reassurance (reviews, guarantees, onboarding).
- Involvement (habitual / limited / extended)
- The time and effort a consumer exerts in a decision — a continuum driven by perceived risk, not a switch. Speed does not equal low involvement: a fast, high-stakes buy can still be high-involvement.
- Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)
- Predicts the persuasion route: high involvement uses the central route (argument quality, durable attitude change), low involvement uses the peripheral route (source cues and emotion, weaker and shorter-lived).
- Maslow's hierarchy of needs
- Five tiers, bottom-up — physiological, safety, belonging/love, esteem, self-actualisation; a tier only motivates once the tiers below are fairly satisfied. Exam tasks map specific product benefits to specific tiers.
Consumer Behaviour and the Decision Process FAQ
What is the difference between salient and determinant attributes?
Salient attributes are the features a consumer notices or thinks about; determinant attributes are the smaller set that actually decide the choice. A car's colour may be salient, but its safety rating is often determinant. Examiners reward students who identify the determinant criteria in a case and argue that the brand should compete there, rather than listing every attribute as if all matter equally.
How do I explain need recognition for full marks?
Do not just say 'the buyer recognises a need.' State the mechanism: a perceived gap between the desired (ideal) state and the actual state, which must cross a recognition threshold before the buyer acts. Then name the marketer's lever — either raising the desired state (aspiration) or dramatising the actual-state shortfall — and apply it to the specific case facts.
Does a fast purchase mean low involvement?
No. Involvement is about perceived risk and effort, not clock time. A panicked, high-stakes buy made quickly can still be extended / high involvement, while a leisurely browse of cheap snacks is low involvement. Always classify the level and defend it against the obvious wrong answer, citing risk and the amount of search and comparison.
How is consumer behaviour assessed in GSBS6005?
It is one of the named Part II case-study topics in the open-book Mid-Term Quiz (Week 6) and recurs in the online-invigilated final's case section. You will be given a buyer scenario and asked to apply the decision process, involvement and motivation frameworks through the case facts — as a logical argument in full prose, not as bullet points or a rehash of the case.
What is the Elaboration Likelihood Model and which route applies when?
The ELM says persuasion takes one of two routes. High-involvement buyers process via the central route, where argument quality and evidence drive durable attitude change. Low-involvement buyers process via the peripheral route, where source cues, emotion and repetition matter but produce weaker, shorter-lived change. A common trap is putting the routes backwards — low-involvement products (snacks, detergent) are sold with peripheral cues, not detailed argument.
How do I use Maslow's hierarchy in an answer?
Map specific product benefits onto specific tiers, bottom-up: price to physiological, security and warranty to safety, community and shared identity to belonging, status and recognition to esteem, and self-expression to self-actualisation. Remember a tier only motivates once the lower tiers are fairly satisfied, and use the mapping to justify which benefit a marketer should lead with for a given segment.
Exam move
Treat this chapter as a reusable case-study engine rather than a list of terms. For any buyer scenario, default to walking the six-stage decision process, allocating roughly equal marks per stage, then layer on an involvement classification you explicitly defend by perceived risk, and finish with the post-purchase implication where dissonance and loyalty marks live. Drill the high-yield mechanisms the marks hide in — the desired-vs-actual gap and threshold for need recognition, salient vs determinant attributes for evaluation, and the central-vs-peripheral ELM route for persuasion — and practise mapping product benefits onto Maslow's tiers on real Australian brands. Above all, write in argued prose that applies theory through the case facts: the lecturer penalises bullet points and fact-rehashing, so for every claim name both the framework and the case evidence that supports it.
