Consumer Decision Making Process for Laptop Purchase - Analysis

This assignment provides a comprehensive analysis of the consumer decision-making process, using the purchase of a laptop as a case study. It begins with problem recognition, where the consumer identifies a need for a new laptop, followed by the identification of available alternatives. The paper delves into the evaluation of purchasing alternatives, considering factors such as price, features, and reliability, and discusses the consumer's final decision to buy a specific laptop. It also includes the post-purchase decision stage, focusing on customer satisfaction and the impact of product delivery and quality on the brand's image. The assignment concludes with a discussion of potential issues that may arise during the purchase process, such as price discrepancies. References to relevant academic sources support the analysis.

Consumer Decision Making
Process
Purchasing A Laptop
Student’s name
Institution Affiliation(s)

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Introduction
Consumer decision-making process
involves five key steps which include:
a) Problem recognition
b) Identification of the available
alternatives
c) Evaluation of those alternatives
d) Final decision to buy a product and
e) Post-purchase decision.

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a) Problem Recognition
As Adhikary (2014) states, “with most customer
buying process models, the approach begins with
the determination by the consumer that he or
she has a need or a want that must be fulfilled”.
At this stage of consumer buying process,
consumers identify their needs and then carryout
a search for the available alternatives (Peng et
al., 2016).
My need and desire is to own a new laptop
gadget which will give me the ability to be able
to do more research than ever before.

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b) Identification of the Available Alternatives
When purchasing a laptop, I will research the
products online to find out what brands have
the best beginning components included in the
package such as:
Hard drive size
Processor size
Random virtual memory availability, and
External outlets such as USB ports, SD ports
and wireless access, all built in, along with a
DVD with full capabilities (Cansu, 2013).

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c) Evaluation of Purchasing Alternatives
As a consumer, I will look for price,
features, functionality, shape, and
reliability in order to choose the
laptop that suits my needs.
Customers usually choose such
company to buy the product from
which can deliver them with superior
quality product (Conner, 2016). For a
laptop, I will be going for one from
Dell, Hp or Samsung.

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d) Final decision to buy the Laptop
This is the fourth stage of the
consumers’ decision-making process.
At this stage, a person goes on to buy
a particular product from a selected
company (Anderson & O’Connor, 2019).
The more welcoming the response of
the company will be, the more the
customer will be satisfied with the
product, as well as with the company
(Willman, 2017).

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e) Post-Purchase Decision
This is the last stage in the consumer buying
process. At this stage, a company evaluates
the satisfaction level of the customers. “After
the order is received the purchasing company
may spend time reviewing the results of the
purchase” (Willman, 2017).
When the product is delivered to the customer
properly, it increases the level of customer
satisfaction, whereas poor delivery and lack of
product quality affects the image of the
product manufacturing company in the
market(Hicks, Steele, & Spencer, 2013) .

Possible issues that would occur during the purchase
process
Different pricing for the same product.
If the product is the same price at all
the contracted stores but available
online for cheaper, then chances are
that I will order online instead of going
to a physical store to make the
purchase, unless it is just to look at
the physical model before making the
purchase online . 8

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References
Adhikary, A. (2014). Advertising: A Fusion Process between Consumer and Product. Procedia Economics and
Finance, 11, 230–238. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2212-5671(14)00191-9
Anderson, C. L., & O’Connor, E. L. (2019). The effect of the health star rating on consumer decision-making.
Food Quality and Preference, 73, 215–225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2018.11.005
Cansu, C. (2013). The Consumer Decision Making Process as It Relates to Replaying a Laptop Computer.
American Academic & Scholarly Research Journal, 5(6), 129–154. Retrieved from: https://
www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-3193317421/the-consumer-decision-making-process-as-it-relates
Conner, M. (2016). Drivers of Decision-Making: Models of Consumer Decision-Making. In Reference Module
in Food Science. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-100596-5.03358-8
Dumitru, M. (2015). Important Elements in Consumer’s Decision-making Process. Procedia Economics and
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Faulds, D. J., Mangold, W. G., Raju, P. S., & Valsalan, S. (2018). The mobile shopping revolution: Redefining
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doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2017.11.012
Gumilar, I., Rizal, A., Sriati, & Putra, R. S. (2018). Analysis of consumer behavior in decision making of
purchasing ornamental freshwater fish (case of study at ornamental freshwater fish market at Peta Street,
Bandung). IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 137, 012081.
https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/137/1/012081

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References Continued.
Hicks, J., Steele, J., & Spencer, M. (2013). Decision Making Processes and Outcomes [Research article].
https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/367208
Komal, R., & Jha, M. (2014). Consumer buying decisions models: A descriptive study. International Journal of
Innovation and Applied Studies, 6, 2028–9324.
Peng, H., Xia, S., Ruan, F., & Pu, B. (2016). Age Differences in Consumer Decision Making under Option
Framing: From the Motivation Perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 7. https://
doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01736
Pescher, C., Reichhart, P., & Spann, M. (2014). Consumer Decision-making Processes in Mobile Viral
Marketing Campaigns. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 28(1), 43–54. https://
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Stankevich, A. (2017). Explaining the Consumer Decision-Making Process: Critical Literature Review. Journal
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Willman, H. (2017). The future of consumer decision making. European Journal of Futures Research, 5(1),
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