I. Read the following text and be ready to summarise the main idea

Text 1. Consumer Behavior: The Marketing View.

Marketing professionals have a job to do: they want to influence consumers towards purchasing their organization’s product. To do their jobs, they have to get a clear idea about what makes people want to buy and consume. Most often, their focus is on why a consumer would choose a particular brand of a product, at a particular time and place. Social science research, primarily from psychology and sociology, forms the basis for the standard marketing view of consumer behavior.

Problem recognition. In this stage, the consumer perceives that he has a want or need. The consumer compares his situation to some situation he would consider to be better, and his desire to move to the better situation is aroused. For example, the consumer might feel hungry or feel unsatisfied with her current athletic shoes, which are shabby compared to those in advertisements.

Information search. In this stage, the person seeks information about how this want might be met. She may search her own experience, looking for ways she has satisfied it in the past. Or she might consult external sources of information, like friends, family, newspapers, advertising, packaging, etc. For example, he might be attracted by the photos on the packages of frozen dinners in the supermarket. The packages give him information about the product inside.

Since humans have a limited availability to absorb information and can only assess a limited number of options, this process is likely to be very incomplete—the consumer will generally move on to the next stage knowing only some things about some alternatives.

Evaluation of alternatives. After gathering information, the consumer compares the various alternatives about which he or she has gathered information. Goods and services are said to have attributes (or characteristics) that are the real items of interest to the consumer. The consumer will lean toward the alternative that has the bundle of attributes that most meets his or her desires. For example, the consumer might be interested in how a dinner tastes, in its nutritional value in terms of calories and fat content, and in whether it will satisfy his desire to try new things (or stick to old ones). She will compare brands and decide which one fits her priorities best. If she is deciding on athletic shoes, the fashionableness of various brands may weigh heavily—or even be the overwhelming factor—in his choice.

Purchase decision. Having developed an intention to buy something, the consumer will (barring interference or unforeseen events) follow through and make the purchase.

Postpurchase behavior. After the purchase, the consumer will decide whether he or she is satisfied or dissatisfied with the good or service. Consumption, in the marketing view, is seen as something of a trial-and-error process.

Marketing professionals are interested in all aspects of this process, since each step gives them opportunities to try to sway consumer choices toward their organization’s products. They may try to create new desires, for example, or try to better inform the public about the value of their product. They may improve web sites, to make sure customers aren’t frustrated in making their intended purchases. Or they may inform their own organization of changes in design that could improve customer satisfaction (and thus bring more repeat business).