Explains brand choice

Not random but systematic

ASSUMPTION
1. Buying behavior is rational in the sense that it is
within the buyers “bounded rationality” (March
and Simon, 1958) that is his behavior is rational
within the limits of his cognitive and learning
capacities and within the constraint of limited
info
2. Trying to develop a positive theory and not a
normative theory
3. If brand c is systematic then it can be observed
in different ways series of measures of the
buyer’s buying behavior
- Purchase behavior, attitude toward a brand,
comprehension of the brand attention to
impinging stimuli, intention to buy a brand
4. If behavior is systematic, it is cause by some
event -a stimulus- either in the buyer or in the
buyers environment
 this event of stimulus is an input to the system
and purchase behavior is the output

Buying behavior is more or less repetitive

Buyers establish purchase cycles for various prod
wc determine how often he will buy
Durable appliance – cycle is lengthy and purchase
is infreq; food personal-care – cycle is short and p
is freq
Confronted by repetitive brand-choice decisions
the consumer simplifies his task by storing
relevant info and establishing a routine in his
decision process

Elements of a buyers brand-choice decision

Set of motives
Several alternative courses of action
Decision mediators by wc the motives are
matched with the alternatives
3 important notions involved in the definition of
alternatives as brands
The several brands wc become the alternatives ti
the buyer need not belong to the same product
class as defined by industry
Ex. Coffee, tea, to satisfy needs for beverages or
coffee and beer, both belonging to physically
dissimilar product classes
Second the brands which are alternatives of the
buyer’s choice decision re generally small in
number, collectively called his evoked set
Third any 2 consumers may have quite different
altenatives in their evoked set

Decision mediators serve the function of ordering

and structuring the buyers motives and then
ordering and structuring the various brands based
on their potential to satisfy these ordered
motives. Dmed develop the buyers process of
learning about the buying situation. They are
therefore influenced by info from the buyers
environment and even more importantly by the
actual experience of purchasing and consuming
the brand.