Decision making part 2 (Decision models)
In order to choose a brand or product among several alternatives, consumers will apply decision rules (models) to evaluate brands and use (or not) very simple or more complex decision rules. In general, as decisions are usually very demanding in terms of cognitive work, consumers will have a tendency to simplify their decision process by using short cuts instead of processing all the available information. These decision rules (shortcuts) are called heuristic. They are a very important components of the decision making process in consumer behavior and each of these decision rules will be described hereafter.
We all use common heuristic without even noticing it. For instance, when we always buy the same brand of soft drinks, the heuristic used is brand name. A soon as we see the brand we are loyal to, we choose it. This is our own simplifying rule that allows us not to process any other information for competing brands (price, taste…). Another example of a simplistic heuristic would be to purchase a wine only based on its country of origin. We eliminate all other wines from our decision making process, making it easier.
However, heuristics are not always that simple. Here are the most common heuristics used by consumers classified in two broad categories: Compensatory and non compensatory models.
Compensatory Model
In a compensatory model, the heuristic is quite demanding for consumers as consumers evaluate and compare all available pieces of information and positive features as well as negative features are taken into account before taking the decision. Consumers balance the good and the bad before taking a decision. It is usually used in high involvement situation where a drastic short cut may hinder the decision and overlook some key issues. The most common compensatory rule applies a weighted sum model as depicted in