The consumer decision-making process begins with need recognition, when stimuli trigger awareness of an unfulfilled want.

If additional information is required to make a purchase decision, the consumer may engage in an internal or external information search.

The consumer then evaluates the alternatives using the additional information and establishes purchase guidelines.

Finally, a purchase decision is made.

Consumer postpurchase evaluation is influenced by prepurchase expectations, the prepurchase information search, and the consumer's general level of self-confidence.

When a purchase creates cognitive dissonance, consumers tend to react by seeking positive reinforcement for the purchase decision, or revoking the purchase decision by returning the product.

Consumer decision maing falls into three broad categories:

1. routine response behavior
2. limited decision making
3. extensive decision making

High-involvement decisions usually include an extensive information search and a thorough evaluation of alternatives.

Low-involvement decisions are characterized by brand loyalty and a lack of personal identification with the product.

 The main factors affecting the level of consumer involvement are:

• previous experience,
• interest,
• perceived risk of negative consequences (financial, social and psychological)
• social visibility.

A purchase decision can be highly involved due to a wide range of factors, including:

• product involvement
• situational involvement
• shopping involvement
• enduring involvement
• emotional involvement.

Cultural influences on consumer buying decisions include:

Culture:  the essential chaacter of a society that distinguishes it from other cultural groups. The underlying elements of every culture are the values, language, myths, customs, rituals, laws, and the artifacts or products, that are transmitted from one generation to the next.

Values: The most defining element of a culture is its values.

Subculture/social class: A culture can be divided into subcultures on the basis of demographic characteristics, geographic regions, national and ethnic background, political beliefs and religious beliefs.

Social factors include such external influences as reference groups, opinion leaders, and family.

Consumers seek out thers' opinions for guidance on new products or services and products with image-related attributes or because attribute information is lacking or uninformative.

Consumers may buse products or brands to identify with or become a member of a reference group, or to follow an opinion leader.

Family members also influence purchase decisions, children tend to shop in similar patterns as their parents.

Individual factors that affect consumer buying decisions include: 

gender: Beyond obvious physiological differences, men and women differ in their social and economic roles, and that affects consumer buying decisions.

age and family life cycle stage: A consumer's age generally indicate what products he or she may be interested in purchasing. Marketers often define their target markets in terms of consumers' life cycle stage, following changes in consumers' attitudes and behavioral tendencies as they mature.

personality, self-concept, and lifestyle: Finally, certain products and brands reflect consumers' personality.

Psychological factors include:

Perception: allows consumers to take action to recognize their consumption problems.

Motivation: is what drives consumers to take action to satisfy specific consumption needs.

Learning: Almost all consumer behavior results from learning, which is the process that creates changes in behavior through experience.

Beliefs/Attitudes: Consumers with similar beliefs and attitudes tend to react alike to marketing-related inducements.

Psychological factors allow consumers to:

• interact with the world around them
• recognize their feelings
• gather and analyze information
• formulate thoughts and opinons
• and take action.