INTRODUCTION

We all have to make choices. One of those most important decisions made in our life are based on the market - buying goods. No one buy goods unless they have a problem, a need or a want. The Consumer Decision Making Model can be applied with any economics decision you have to make. The goal in creating this model was to analyze how individuals sort through facts and influences to make decisions that are logical and consistent for them. Think like an economist with this convenient tool. The CDP model consists of seven major stages: Need recognition, search for information, prepurchase evaluation of alternatives, purchase, consumption, post-consumption evaluation and divestment. The aim of this paper is to discuss these processes with reference to a product and analyze the reason why marketers should understand the CDP model. 1. Need recognitions Need recognitions is the most important factor which leads to buying of products and services. Need in fact is the catalyst which triggers the buying decision of individuals. It occurs when an individual senses a different between what he or she perceives to be the ideal versus the actual state of affairs. Need recognition depends on how much discrepancy exists between the actual state (the consumers current situation) and the desired state (the situation the consumer want to be in). Consumer buy things when they believe a products ability to solve a problem are worth more than the cost of buying it. Imagine having to buy yourself a new cell phone. The first step in this process is of course to recognize that you need a new cell phone. For another example, a man currently feeling thirsty (actual state) and he want to eliminate this kind of feeling (desired state) will experience need recognition when the discrepancy between the two states is of sufficient magnitude. As indicate above, need recognitions often occurs for reasons outside a company control but it is possible for business to influence need recognitions. Marketers must understand consumers needs to have better idea of where to target with new and improved products, more effective communication programs and more userfriendly distribution channels. The marketer should study the consumers to find answers to some important questions. These are: what kinds of needs or problems arise? What is the root of these needs or problems? And how they led the consumers to a particular product? In this first stage, marketers often communicate a need, thereby raising consumers awareness of unperceived needs or problems.
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Back to the example of need a cell phone, when consumer may have an idea of which phone he or she would like to purchase, he or she probably wants to do some research in order to narrow down a few alternatives. 2. Search for information If the discrepancy between the desired and the actual state is of a sufficient magnitude, the consumer will move into the second stage where information is sought to locate purchase alternatives, to clarify buying goals (evaluation criteria), and to determine to what extent the alternatives measure up to the goals. In this phase, the consumer may start by determining whether there is sufficient stored information that may be generalized to the problem at hand. If not, and the problem is important enough, the consumer may start an external search process. In the example of purchasing new cell phone, consumer may go online to investigate manufacturers, resellers, and independent consumer organizations, he/she will ask his/her friends and colleagues for advice, and visiting a few stores to find out more information. The amount of searching a consumer does will depend on the strength of his drive, the amount of information he starts with, the case of obtaining more information, the value he places on additional information, and the satisfaction he gets from searching. The consumer can get information from any of the following sources: * Personal sources which include family, friends, neighbors, acquaintances; * Commercial sources which include advertising, salespeople, dealers, packaging, displays; * Public sources which include mass media, consumer-rating organization; * Experimental sources which include handing, examining, using the product. The relative influence of these information sources varies with the product and the buyer. Generally, the consumer receives the most information about a product from commercial sources-those controlled by the marketer. The most effective sources, however, tend to be personal. Personal sources appear to be even more important in influencing the purchase of services. Commercial sources normally inform the buyer, but personal sources legitimize or evaluate products for the buyer. For example, doctors normally learn of new drugs from commercial sources, but turn to other doctors for evaluative information. The consumers awareness and knowledge of the available brands and features increases as they get more and more information. In designing marketing mix, a company should have the objective of making the target customers aware of its brand. Consumers sources of information should be carefully identified and the importance of each source should also be assessed.

Companies benefit from an understanding of consumer search in many ways. Companies want to know how much they should charge in order to maximize their profitability. They also need to know how much attention they should give to the prices charged by competitors in setting their own price. Consumer search also affects promotion strategy and determines what happens during purchase, it is important for companies to understand the relationship between various search activities and the particular brand purchased. 3. Pre-purchase evaluation of alternatives At this stage of buyer decision process, the consumer uses information to evaluate alternative brands. A marketer must know how the consumer processes information to arrive at brand choices. Consumers do not always follow a simple and single evaluation process. Rather several evaluation processes are in practice. Consumer evaluation processes can be explained with the help of some basic concepts. It is assumed that each consumer sees a product as a bundle of product attributes. For cell phones, product attributes might include cooling appearance, size, applications, price and other features. Consumers will pay more attention to those attributes relevant to their needs. Secondly, it is the importance of depending upon their needs and wants. Thirdly, the consumer will develop a set of brand beliefs about where each brand stands on each attribute. The set of beliefs consumers hold about a particular brand is called brand image. Based on the consumers experience and the effects of selective perception, distortion, and retention, the consumers beliefs may differ from actual attributes. Fourthly, the consumers expected total product satisfaction will vary with the changes at the levels of different attributes. Fifthly, the consumer develops attitudes toward the different brands through some evaluation procedure. Consumers use one or more of several evaluation procedures, depending on the consumer and the buying decision. Marketers should study buyers to know how they actually evaluate brand alternatives. Marketers can take appropriate steps to influence the buyers decision if they know what evaluative processes are followed by the buyers.Some of the critical questions that marketers need to answer are:

What detailed product information does the customers need when evaluating product alternatives? Which product evaluation criteria will customers use and which are most important to the customers? Which concerns will the customers have about the products and how can we address them proactively? How can we encourage customers to contact the sales and support department if they have further questions?
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4. Purchase At this stage of buyer decision process, the consumer actually buys the product. We have discussed earlier that the consumer forms purchase intention in the evaluation stage. Usually the consumer will buy the most preferred brand. But two factors might influence the purchase intention and decision. The first factor is the attitudes of other people related to the consumer. The second factor is unexpected situational factors. The consumer may form a purchase intention based on factors such as expected price and expected product benefits. However, unexpected events may alter the purchase intention. These impulse sales, bought by customers in an often whimsical manner, can be prompted by point-of-purchase displays, a sale price on related product or just seeing a new product in the shop. Consumer use in-store influence to guide product and brand choice made within the store. Thus, preferences and even purchase intentions do not always lead to actual purchase choice. When consumers do make a purchase, they allocate their attention during information process and purchasing because consumers need to be selective since the capacity is limited. Gaining consumers attention can be challenging for marketers. 5. Consumption Physical consumption is concerned with the use of the product or service to satisfy the buying goals. For non-durable goods and services, the consumption may be completed in a short time. For durables, such as appliances and houses, the consumption may occur continuously over many time periods. In practice, the actual physical depreciation in a given period may be hard to determine. Indeed, there are a number of different ways to think about consumption. With the consumption behavior, an understanding requires more than simply distinguishing between those who consume and who dont. Besides, consumption behavior can take forms and directions that are decidedly counterproductive. The term compulsive consumption refers to those practices that, though undertaken to bolster self-esteem, are inappropriate, excessive and disruptive to the lives of those who are involved. The failure or success in any business is dependable upon the behaviour of the end-user or consumer who finally uses the product or any services. This is again vital not only to the producer of the final goods but also the intermediaries who play a major role in carrying the product from initial level to the final level. The understanding of consumer behaviour helps in identifying the weak points and also reflects the positive aspect of any business. It helps the marketer to take vital decisions with respect to designing of future marketing strategies. The question of What kind of promotional offers or marketing campaigns need to be undertaken. The consumer behaviour also has effects on the entire social network which again helps an rganization to target a specific audience or set of

customers. Above all, the behaviour of consumers gives the nation a different face, either good or bad. 6. Post-consumption evaluation. At this stage of buyer decision process, consumers take further action after purchase based on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. What determines whether the buyer is satisfied or dissatisfied with a purchase? The answer lies in the relationship between the consumers expectations and the products perceived performance. If the product falls short of expectations, the consumer is disappointed; if it meets expectations, the consumer is satisfied; if it exceeds expectations, the consumer is delighted. Consumers form their expectations on information they receive from sellers, friends and other sources. If the seller overstates the products performance, consumer expectations will not be met, and dissatisfaction will occur. The wider the gap between expectations and performance, the greater the consumers dissatisfaction is. This implies that sellers claim about the products performance should be genuine so that buyers are satisfied. The degree of satisfaction felt is then believed to be stored in the consumer's mind as part of an "attitude". In almost all purchases, consumers experience cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance occurs when consumer often second guess their purchase decision, especially for expensive items. Consumers are happy with the benefits of the chosen brand and forget the benefits of brands not bought. On the other hand, they feel unhappy about the demerits of the chosen brand and remember the benefits of the brands not chosen. This occurs when consumer make a comparison after consumption their purchased products. Thus, consumers experience some post-consumption dissonance for every purchase. So, to reduce cognitive dissonance a company should measure customer satisfaction regularly. The company should seek out and respond to customers complaints. In addition, the company can take other steps to reduce consumer post-purchase dissatisfaction and to help customers feel satisfied about their purchases. For example, Toyota writes or phones new car owners with congratulations on having selected a fine car. One of the ads of Toyota is that I love what you do for me, Toyota! which showing the satisfied consumer of Toyota. 7. Divestment It is the last stage of the Consumer Decision Making model. After the products consumption, consumers have several options such as recycling, reselling of outsight disposal. When the person in the first example of cell phone finished unsung the phone he/she purchased, he/she can choose to sell it to another consumer, trade it in on another cell
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phone or through it away. With other products, consumers find themselves having to dispose of packaging and product literature as well as the product itself. Consumers' environmental concerns about divestment may affect product choice. Understanding divestment decision can help marketers to promote the product, increase sales and hence gain more profitability.

CONCLUSION
Once marketers feel confident about customers' needs and concerns, the next challenge is to decide how to present the information to the customers in a way that supports the decisionmaking process. Some products will benefit from comparison charts, some from interactive product demos; some needs lots of detailed product images In conclusion, understanding the decision-making process, and how specific customers engage with specific products, is a prerequisite for any marketers with an ambition to turn visitors into customers.