Editing Consumer behaviour (section)

=== Information search ===
[[File:Customer journey with touchpoints English.png|thumb|left|Customer purchase decision, illustrating different communications touchpoints at each stage]]

During the information search and evaluation stages, the consumer works through processes designed to arrive at a number of brands (or products) that represent viable purchase alternatives.  Typically consumers first carry out an internal search and scan their memory for suitable brands. The '''evoked set''' is the set of brands that a consumer can elicit from memory and is typically a very small set of some 3- 5 alternatives.<ref>Reilly, M. and Parkinson, T.L., "Individual and Product Correlates of Evoked Set Size For Consumer Package Goods", in Elizabeth C. Hirschman and Moris B. Holbrook (eds), ''Advances in Consumer Research,''  Vol. 12, Provo, UT: Association for Consumer Research, pp 492–497, Online: http://acrwebsite.org/volumes/6440/volumes/v12/NA-12 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728195104/https://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/6440/volumes/v12/NA-12 |date=28 July 2020 }}</ref> Consumers may choose to supplement the number of brands in the evoked set by carrying out an ''external search'' using sources such as the Internet, manufacturer/brand websites, shopping around, product reviews, referrals from peers and the like. The readiness of information availability has raised the informedness of the consumers: the degree to which they know what is available in the marketplace, with precisely which attributes, and at precisely what price.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Clemons |first=Eric K. |date=2008 |title=How Information Changes Consumer Behavior and How Consumer Behavior Determines Corporate Strategy |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/40398715 |journal=Journal of Management Information Systems |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=13–40 |doi=10.2753/MIS0742-1222250202 |jstor=40398715 |issn=0742-1222|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The fact that a consumer is aware of a brand does not necessarily mean that it is being considered as a potential purchase. For instance, the consumer may be aware of certain brands, but not favourably disposed towards them (known as the ''inept set''). Such brands will typically be excluded from further evaluation as purchase options. For other brands, the consumer may have indifferent feelings (the ''inert set'').<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kakkar |first1=Pradeep |title=Inert Set or Inferred Set? A Comment |journal=Journal of Marketing |date=July 1976 |volume=40 |issue=3 |pages=59–60 |doi=10.1177/002224297604000312 |s2cid=167299845 }}</ref> As the consumer approaches the actual purchase, they distill the mental list of brands into a set of alternatives that represent realistic purchase options, known as the ''[[consideration set]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Roberts |first1=John |title=A Grounded Model of Consideration Set Size and Composition |journal=Advances in Consumer Research |date=1989 |volume=16 |pages=749–757 |url=https://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/5967/volumes/v16/NA-16 }}</ref>  By definition, the consideration set refers to the "small set of brands which a consumer pays close attention to when making a purchase decision".<ref>Howard, J. A. and Sheth, J.N., ''The Theory of Buyer Behaviour,'' New York: Wiley, 1969</ref> This ultimately leads to a ''choice set'' which includes the alternatives that are strong contenders for purchase.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marketing Reading: Consumer Behavior and the Buying Process ^ 8167 |url=https://store.hbr.org/product/marketing-reading-consumer-behavior-and-the-buying-process/8167 |access-date=2024-03-01 |website=HBR Store |language=en}}</ref>

Specific brand names enter the consumer's consideration set based on the extent to which they satisfy the consumer's purchasing objectives and/or the salience or accessibility of the brand at the time of making the purchase decision.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Shocker |first1=Allan D. |last2=Ben-Akiva |first2=Moshe |last3=Boccara |first3=Bruno |last4=Nedungadi |first4=Prakash |title=Consideration set influences on consumer decision-making and choice: Issues, models, and suggestions |journal=Marketing Letters |date=1 August 1991 |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=181–197 |doi=10.1007/BF00554125 |s2cid=189942892 }}</ref> By implication, brand names that are more memorable are more likely to be accessible. Traditionally, one of the main roles of advertising and promotion was to increase the likelihood that a brand name was included in the consumer's evoked set.<ref>Business Dictionary, http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/evoked-set.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130095237/http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/evoked-set.html |date=2016-11-30 }}</ref> Repeated exposure to brand names through intensive advertising was the primary method for increasing ''top-of-mind [[brand awareness]]''. However, the advent of the Internet means that consumers can obtain brand/product information from a multiplicity of different platforms. In practice, the '''consideration set''' has assumed greater importance in the purchase decision process because consumers are no longer totally reliant on memory. This is marketing, which could be defined as "the process by which companies create value for customers and build strong customer relationships, in order to capture value from customers in return."<ref>Kotler P. & Keller, K. (2006). Marketing Management. Pearson Prentice Hall, New Jersey</ref> This definition strongly implies that the relationship is built upon an exchange and the "creation" of value. This means that a need is built for a consumer, with the product presented or advertised to them through an analytical study of the user's patterns of consumption and their behaviours and habits. The implication for marketers is that relevant brand information should be disseminated as widely as possible and included on any forum where consumers are likely to search for product or brand information, whether traditional media or digital media channels. Thus, marketers require a rich understanding of the typical consumer's [[touchpoint]]s.