1_Chapter 1 - summary

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Consumer Behavior is the study of the processes involved when individuals / groups select, purchase, use/dispose of products, services, ideas or experiences to satisfy needs and desires.

Theory used by marketers and advertisers to gain insight into both commercial and social interactions that evolve from consumers everyday decisions and lifestyle.

A consumer may purchase, use and dispose of a product, but different people may perform these functions. In addition, consumers may be thought of a role players who need different products to help them play their various parts.

Social media are transforming the way consumers interact with companies and with each other. online commerce allows us to locate obscure products from the around the world, and consumption communities provide forums for people to share opinions and product recommendations. The benefits are accompanied by by potential problems, including the lose of privacy and the deterioration of traditional social interactions as people spend more time online.

Marketing activities exert an enormous impact on individuals. C/B is relevant to our understanding of both public policy issues (ethical marketing practices) and the dynamics of popular culture.

The dark side of consumer behavior includes terrorism, addition, the use of people as products and theft or vandalism (anti consumption).

The positivist perspective emphasizes the objectivity of science and the consumer as a rational decision maker. The interpretivist perspective, stresses the subjective meaning of the consumers individual experience and the idea that any behavior is subject to multiple interpretations rather than to one single explanation.

C/B can be for functional gain or for pleasure. This means that marketers need to understand both the cognitive and emotional processes that consumers undergo.