1.

Who is involved in the decision making process? What is the decision making process
for Metabical?
Since Metabical is a prescription drug Ior weight loss which can only be bought
via a prescription, the
overweight patients
are not the only decision makers involved
.
The
healthcare providers
are also decision makers in this process Ior they are the ones who prescribe thedrug
.
The
consumer decision making process
(J
.P
aul
P
eter & Donnelly, Ch3, p
.49)

Ior Metabicalgoes through Iive stages:

a)

Perceiving or recognizing a need.
A
ccording to the case, 65 oI
A
mericans are overweight
.
Many perceive themselves as socialoutcasts
.
Here Metabical ties in with a variety oI needs in Maslows hierarchy oI needs: the
needIor belongingness and love Ior companionship
.

A
Iter all no one likes being excluded
.
xclusioncan also negatively impact ones selI esteem
.
So it also ties in with the need Ior selI esteem andselI actualization since excess
weight negatively impacts hiring, wages, and job promotion
.

-
)

A
lternative Search:
O
nce the need Ior love and belonging, and selI esteem isrecognized the overweight
individual collects inIormation Irom marketing sources like ads,or public sources
like newspapers and magazines
.
The consumer might even ask his healthcare provider about it
.
He/she might even ask their overweight Iriends i
.
e
.
group sources whotried many diet drugs beIore
.
Then the consumer processes inIormation aIter having beenexposed to it, having
been attentive, and having understood and retained its message
.
c
)

A
lternative Evaluation:
The consumer here compares Metabical to the other c
competitive products:
O
TC products, product
A
lli, ephedra
.
Here he/ she would see that
O
TC products have several side eIIects since they do not go to the stringent FD
A
approval
.
phedra Ior instance is linked to several cases oI heart death
.

A
lli although FD
A
approvedhas side eIIects like liver damage iI consumed with too much Iat, while
Metabical has theleast side eIIects
.

A
lso consumers would consider the 3$ price oI the Metabical with respectto others,
the beneIits that go with it like the 2
4
month support program oI Metabical which
is longer than
A
llis

He/ She would start comparing which one makes you lose more weightand lets you
keep it oII

Purchase:
A
Iter evaluating all the choices, the consumer would decide to buyMetabical

Post purchase evaluation:

where the consumer might experience consumer dissonance,or concerns over
whether his/her choice was the best one

oing through this decision making process would help marketers understand the
satisfiedand unsatisfied needs of the consumers.
The unsatisIied needs are: the need Ior a saIeeIIective weight loss product which
was expressed by the Iocus groups in the case

Since the decision making process also includes health care providers

Health care providers have to

perceive or recognize the need for Meta
-
ical too.
From xhibit

, it isshown that overweight and obesity percentages rise every year

Health care providers would liketo see their patients put oII the weight Ior good
and establish healthy eating liIestyles

Toaddress this need, the marketing plan put Iorth the 2

month support program which guarantees patients long term eIIects, and helps
them change their eating habits and behaviors to achieve ahealthy outcome

Then comes the

A
lternative search component:
health care providers caneasily search inIormation about metabical since they are
well immersed in the medical Iield, andthey have medical representatives who pass
by them to inIorm them oI their products be itmonthly or weekly

A
s Ior the
A
lternative evaluation
health care practitioners are aware oI theside eIIects oI the other products in the
market as compared to FD
A
approved Metabical

However Metabical salespeople can provide them with the latest up to date
research Irom the journal oI
A
merican Medical
A
ssociation regarding the side eIIects oI other products, and theadvantages oI
Metabical

A
s
or Purchase
, since health care provider would be the oneconvincing the patient to take
Metabical, he should be totally convinced Irom the medical sensein terms oI short
term and long term beneIits

The important issue here is to build

awareness o
I Metabical Ior the consumer, and then makesure that the consumer knows enough
inIormation about it

The more the advantages oI saIety,FD

A
approval and long term results due to the support program are advertised the easier
it becomes Ior the consumer to
like
Metabical, and
prefer
it over
A
lli, or others

O
nce it becomes

in the consumers consideration set he/she might develop the conviction to buy it,
and eventually purchase it at the end

This
hierarchy of effects model
helps in knowing where to Iitadvertising

Media and the TV ads would spread knowledge and awareness to consumers
(Directto consumer advertising

A
lso the print ads in medical journals would help raise awarenessamongst medical
practitioners

The promotions like the inIormational pamphlets and the twohigh proIile medical
education events would also help in contributing to health care provider
preference.
The viral marketing campaign: Metabical Challenge contest and the contestant
blogsin the social networking sites would greatly enhance consumer knowledge
and preIerence aswell

To succeed; its important to understand this hierarchy oI eIIects: THINK, F,

and D
O
that the consumer goes through