5 STAGES OF BUYING BEHAVIOUR PROCESS

Stages in Buying Behaviour Process 

Consumer buying process involves various steps as follows

1. Need/Problem Recognition

2. Information Search

3. Evaluation of Alternatives

4. Purchase Decision

5. Post Purchase Behaviour

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1. Problem Recognition: Needs could be simple or complex. Unsatisfied needs create tension and discomfort which can be solved by consuming a product or service. Needs could arise from both internal factors and external factors. Consumer identifies the need or problem that he is experiencing Marketers should identify the situations that raise the need amongst the consumer.

2. Information Search: If the product purchase is complex, then the consumer is likely to spend more time in searching the information about the product. This is mostly in case of expensive and infrequent purchases. A consumer can search for information in two ways: heightened attention and active information search receives passive information.

Marketer can collect information from various sources like:

1. Personal sources
2. Commercial sources
3. Public sources
4. Experiential sources

In both the cases, consumers get information from the given sources. Marketers should identify the information sources and importance to assure processing of their brand's information.

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3. Evaluation of Alternatives: It is very important for marketers to understand the criteria on which the buyers evaluate the alternatives to reach the final product. Buyers use different evaluative criteria in choosing different products and services This means one buyer uses different criteria to evaluate alternatives of different products.

1. Retailer attributes
2. Product attributes
3. Product attributes and benefits 
4. Attributes importance
5. Brand image
6. Utility function

4. Purchase Decision: Consumers make decisions to buy a product or service from the chosen alternatives after evaluation. It is not necessary that a consumer will adopt only one method to choose a product. Consumers are likely to buy the most preferred brand. But sometimes, few intervening factors may influence the decision and shift the buyer to some other brand. There are two factors that affect the purchase decisions. They are:

1. Other's attitude
2. Unanticipated situational factors

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5. Post-purchase Behaviour: The final stage is the post-purchase evaluation of the product bought by the buyer. To manage the post-purchase stage, it is the job of the marketers to persuade the potential customer that the product will satisfy his or her needs after buying the product. After the purchase, consumer may or may not be satisfied with the performance of the product or service. If the consumer is satisfied he will buy the same brand again but if the buyer is not satisfied he will not buy the same brand. So marketers should make sure that the consumers have a favourable experience after the purchase of the product. The customer should be encouraged that he or she has made the right decision.

After the purchase, if the buyer finds the product is not up to his expectations he will be dissatisfied. If the performance is up to the expectations he will be satisfied, and if the buyer finds the product above his Expectations, he will be delighted.