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In this blog we will learn about the continuum of consumer thought processes.
Understanding the consumer's thought processes
This is the one that investigates the different approaches that the consumer takes to decide which product they will finally buy.
1st approach to the continuum of consumer thought processes – Rational Approach.
What does the rational approach mean?
The rational approach is driven by standard economic theory where consumers evaluate their different purchase options relative to their value.
That is, they have a certain budget in mind that they use as a basis for deciding whether to buy something or not and then they maximize their profit limited by that budget constraint.
2nd approach in this continuum of thinking processes – Motivational Approach.
This motivational approach is less rational, being driven by the Freudian and anthological approaches to behavioural decision making. Here, of course, consumers are not at all rational and have unconscious and uncontrollable urges that drive their purchasing behaviour. Under this approach, there are three types of appeals that marketers can appeal to .
In the motivational continuum approach to the decision-making process, the first one that marketers typically use is emotional appeal .
First motivational approach, emotional appeal.
But what do we mean by emotional appeal?
Just as the word implies, emotional appeal targets the emotions that corporate email database the consumer feels when they are engaging in their purchasing behavior. For example, when you go to buy a gift for your father during Father's Day, which is celebrated every year, you might be thinking about your father and what kinds of things he likes. You feel that he has taken care of you throughout your life and therefore you want to buy him a gift that is truly meaningful.
This is where emotional appeals come in and as you can see in this video, it also shows another example where emotional appeal plays a key role in purchasing behavior.
The second, Motivational Focus, is sexual attractiveness.
This is where consumers are most driven by their sexual perspective and preferences.
It is also where purchasing behavior is driven by how consumers feel about product features that are more sexually explicit.
As you could see in the video about sexual appeal, it is very evident that in this case consumers will definitely be more willing to buy the Coca Cola that creates a different sense about sexual orientation in the consumer's mind.
The third motivational approach we are going to talk about is the appeal of fear.
These approaches are typically used by marketers trying to target audiences for public services.
Something like anti-smoking ads, or things like AIDS campaigns, where consumers are made aware of the different problems associated with unprotected sex, among others.
As we will see in the next video, we are going to show a showcase of other occasions where the appeal of fear plays a very important role.
These three attractions are mainly very relevant within the motivational approach.
Although consumers are often not necessarily completely irrational as we saw in these motivational approaches.
3rd aspect of the consumer decision-making process continuum – Limited Rationality.
This is where consumers are not necessarily completely irrational, as we saw in motivational approaches, nor are they completely rational, as in the case of economics-based theory.
This is where consumer decision making is driven more by what we call prospect theory and behavioral sciences.
I hope this information serves as a guide to begin to understand the consumer decision-making process.
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