al bachio, consumer behavior
TRANSCRIPT
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VidarHalvorsen
2010
AlBacio
;aconsumerexperience
A restaurant is not a restaurant without customers.
This report gives a picture of the restaurant Al Bacio in
Angeles City; an Italian restaurant build, owned and
run by an Italian, famous for his keen eye on the
details. Through use of the Consumer behavior
matrixes of black box and Consumer decision-making
model, the report aim to uncover some of the reasons
behind the clienteles reasons for coming, reason for
returning and reasons for referrals.
Vidar Halvorsen
Student # 10992766
In partial fulfillmentsof therequirements
Of the Marketing Management Course
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1.1 BACKGR UNDLate October 2010, we (the writer and friends) took a trip to Angeles to pay a visit to a friend of ours.
He is an Italian who owns a small restaurant off Perimeter road in Angeles City. Thou the city has
some well deserved bad reputation, this restaurant, Al Bacio, has a reputation for unrivalled quality
of food, great atmosphere and service quality which can match the best of international restaurants.
Being a marketer at heart, I wanted to analyze the customer experience through empirical methods,
to see if these held in a scenario like Al Bacio.
1.2 THE RESTAURANTThe restaurant has a distinct Italian feeling even as one enters
it, with white concrete walls, arched windows and a wall of
wine set strategically as a focal point. The interior is simple
and gave my friends a feeling of being in an Italian winery
(Co
n
d b
on
o
h
nd
). Floors were tiled with
terracotta brown tiles, seemingly imported from Italy, along
with distinct character giving items like genuine wine barrels,
an Italian bodega style bar and Italian espresso machine.
All the windows have white, thin drapes, to douse the strong
daylight, and give guests the break they need to relax and
concentrate onenjoying the setting, the company and, as we will
later see, the food. A special feature which the owner has
invested in is the wall
image visibly in the image
to the left. Most guests are
impressed by the quality of a digital image, and the scenery
it shows. When, as we were, presented with the fact that
this is not digital, but hand painted scenery from a local artist,
it adds to our understanding that the owner of this restaurant
invested much in the
p
n
he wants his customers to have, opposed to other restaurants
nearby which seemed to have adopted a fast in, fast out approach, a well known business idea in
this area of Angeles.
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1.3 THE GR UPThis day we were 6 individuals from 4 different nations; one of them being an Italian himself, which
would give us ample opportunities for a varied and complete customer feedback.The demographics
of the group were as follows:
1. Norwegian, 37 years, Male2. Filipino, 35 Years, Female3. Italian, 42 years, Male4. German, 29 years, Female5. Caribbean, 27 years, Female6. Nigerian, 39 years, Male
1.4
ENU
The menu in Al Bacio is focused on Italian. Ranging from the starters to main courses, desserts,
snacks and even coffee, everythingbut a very few pinoy adapted courses wereItalian.
Starters had some 15 choices, with dishes like Ho
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ad
p
nah and
h
av
o
!
" B
#
Ca
pa
o ! which were highly recommended by the waiter.
The Main courses were varied with fish and meat, pasta and naturally pizza. The selection on pasta
and pizza were naturally the majority, but we noticed a few alternatives for the local palate. The
reason for this was, as our waiter explained: We hav $
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The choices in desserts were a selection of what can best be described as a Christmas for food lovers.
All the most well known and tastiest Italian desserts were present. From C
B
u
, (
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u"
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o
$ $
and G
a$o, it was all there. Me, being a former restaurant chef knew I would have to take
myself out of the customer experience model as I was already bias, and would hardly give a
representative feedback. I addition, being a former chef I knew what to expect both from
presentation, content and expected flavours.
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1.5 BEHAVIOR MODELSIn this report we will first present the general Aida
3
od4
5
6
1which is closely linked to the bu
7
4
8
D4 9 ision p
8
o9 4 ss
2. This model is closely linked with the AIDA Model which will then lead focus on th 4
B5
a9
@
BoA 3
od4
5 3, a more comprehensive consumer decision making model.
This, combined with the general marketing process we assume Al Bacio have gone through to grow
to where they are, will give us a good image of what behavioural models the restaurant plays on to
attract, service and retain customers.
1.5.1 THE DECISION MAKINGPROCESS INCHOOSING STARTERSThe AIDA shows us the basics of customer decision making; Attention, Interest, Desire, Action.
For the starters my friends (I took myself out off this process as mentioned above) had excellent help
from the staff who acted more as advisors and ambassadors than the average waiter. As the waiter
approached us, we were asked if we were ready to order or if we nB B
dBdso
C
Bh
B
D
p to dB E
idB F
. In
terms of the AIDA process this action worked as a catalyst in the attention level. Instead of simply
pointing out the bestsellers, our waiter asked us if we had any preferences in terms of flavour. For
the meat lovers, this being 2 of our friends and myself, we were advised to consider the Carpaccio.
Its meatsushistyle! See-thG
ough-thinslicedfrozen meat,paintedwith extravirginolive oil,
flavouredwithonlysaltandpepper. We thenaddalittleArugulasaladinthe middle foracrispy
complementarytaste,andconclusivelywe addfreshgratedParmesanDelParma F overitanda few
capers foracontrastingsourtwist. All 3 of us ordered this instantly. In terms of process we see the
following:
Theory framework:
EnH
iIon
P Qntal FactoI s BuyersBlackBox Buyers
ResponseMarketinR
Sti P uli
Environ.Stimuli Buyers
Characteristics
DecisionProcess
Product Economic Attitudes Problem
Recognition
Price Technological Motivation Information Productchoice
1http://changingminds.org/disciplines/sales/methods/aida.htm
2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buyer_decision_processes#Models_of_buyer_decision_making
3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumer_behaviour
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search
Place Political Perception Alternative
evaluation
BrandChoice
ProSotion Cultural Personality Purchase
Decision
DealerChoice
Demographic Lifestyle Post-purchase
behavior
PurchaseTiming
Natural Knowledge PurchaseAmount
Inpracticetheframeworkemployedlookslikethis:
Practical Framework: - generaluntilDecisionprocess,indiT
idual (theAfrican)fromDecision
processtillResponse.
EnT
ironmental Factors BuyersBlackBox Buyers
ResponseMarketing
Stimuli
EnT
iron. Stimuli Buyers
Characteristics
DecisionProcess
Product:
Starter;Carpaccio
Economic:
Highpriced,but
valueformoney.
Attitudes:
Opentonew
experiences,and
familiarwith
ItalianCuisine.
Positiveattitude
totherestaurant.
Problem
Recognition
Price:
215Peso
Technological
N/A
MotiT
ation
Lookingfora
culinary
experience,and
hungry.
Information
search
Productchoice:
BeefCarpaccio
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Natural
N/A
Knowledge:
Familiarwith
Italianfood,but
mostlyfromthe
Makati
restaurants.Only
onehasbeento
Italy,andassuch
Onlyonecan
actuallyfunction
asabenchmark
forthe
experience.
PurchaseAmount
Whatweseeinthismodelishowthedecisionmakingismadeincombinationwiththecustomers
AIDA Attentiontothemenusofferings;interestFuelledbytheWaitersadvice,Desirefor
CarpacciofromtheWaitersdescription,andactionintermsoforderingCarpaccio.
Weseehowthedecisionmakingprocessintheblackboxishighlyinfluencedbytheactionsofthe
waiter,whointermsactsasasalesmanandadvisor.Playingonthebasicneedsofsustenance,
combinedwiththedesiresofthecustomerswantformeat,thewaiterusedadescriptive approach
tointerestthecustomer(intermsofmentalpresentationandflavours),whichleadstoall3males
orderingtheCarpaccio.Postpurchasebehaviourisequalwiththeguest(theAfrican)aswiththe
otherindividualsofthegroup.Wewereallinhighspiritsasthewaiterentertaineduswith
descriptionsofthewineherecommended;althoughHouse-red,agenuineItalianwine,whichhe
presentedthestoryoftheregionfor.
Inpost-purchasewealsolookatthedishofchoiceitself;howitwaspresented,howtheflavours
were,andhowtheexperienceofthemalegroupwas.
TheCarpacciowerepresentedonasquareplatter, withahealthy
redcolouronthemeat,driedoffsotherewerelittlebloodto
discouragetheguests,brushedwith Extra Virginoliveoil,drizzled
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withfreshParmesanandseasonedwithcoarsesalt,groundpepperandafewcapersmadeitagreat
andappetizingview.
Oneofthefemalesinthegroupraisedquestionsabouttheflavourofrawmeat,fearingthetaste
ofbloodbeingthedominant.OurAfricanfriendquicklyeasedherqualmsasheexplainedthe
thinnessoftheslicestookawaytherawmeatflavour,givingitmorethetasteofamediumcookedbeef,whiletheoilandparmesanandcapersaddedcontrastswhichmadehismouthwater.Thispost
purchasebehaviourledtothefemalesofthegroupaskingforsamples,whereallbutoneagreedthe
Carpacciobeingasurprisinglytastydish. TheWinerecommendedbythewaitergavearich,flowery
complimentingtastetoitall,whichthegroupwerehighlyappreciatetothewaiterfor.
Theother(notdetailedinthispart)startersthatwereorderedwere1CesarSalad,1Spinachand
CheeseRavioliandoneMinestronesoup.
MainCourses:
Thegroupweremorefragmentedinthedecision
makingprocessintermsofMainCourse.Themenuwas
richwithchoices,Pasta,Pizza,Beef,Fish,Chickenanda
fewPinoyrelateddishes(nonechosen).
ThebasicDecisionmakingmodelapplieshereaswellas
itdidwiththeDecisionmakingprocessinthestarters.
However-nowthatthegrouprealizedtheyhada
knowledgeablesourceofinformation(andintermsadvertising;unknowntothemajorityofthe
group);theprocesschangedabitinmarketingterms.Fromthebasicmodelofdecisionmaking,the
waiternowtakeontheroleofinformationandadvertising,asthegroupconsciouslyseekshimoutto
getadvise(andintermsadvertising).
Marketingmakeuseofadecisionmakingmodelincludingadvertising,especiallyonline/interactive
advertisingandinfluences.Therefore,weincorporatetheModelfor RationalDecision maV
ing for
online (interactive) Purchases.4
ThisModelincorporatesknowledgeandbeliefs
onthesideofpre-purchasebeliefsandpurchase
beliefs,andbehaviour/action influencesonthe
4http://jiad.org/article65
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pre-purchasesearchleadingtothepurchaseitself.
Thelinks(betweenboxesH)indicatevariousinformationthatgivesweighttothenextchainof
eventsleadingtopurchase.
Inthiscasethecatalystofinteractive(online)influenceisthewaiter.Bynowthegroupknowheisa
sourceofinteractiveknowledge(resource),andisactivelyusinghimintheirdecisionmakingprocess.
WewillillustratethisthroughthedecisionmakingprocessoftheCaribbean29yearoldFemale.This
individualisfamiliarwithCaribbean,CreoleandAsianfoodingeneral,Italianfoodinperipheral.She
hastastedthestandardsofSpaghettiandLasagne,butnotinagenuineItalianrestaurantbefore.Her
choiceinstarterswasRavioli,adishshehaspreviouslytastedinotherrestaurants,butwhichgave
heraneye-openingexperiencehere.ThewaiterwasaheavyinfluenceonherchoiceofStartersand
shewasrelyingonhisexplanationsindecidingherMainCourse.Westartbyacknowledgingher
newfoundknowledgeandbeliefsongenuineItalianfoodbeingfartastierandenjoyableasshes
beenusedto.Sheappliescertainweighsofimportanceofwhatsheknows;combinedwiththe
informationthewaitersuppliesher. Inotedthewaiterdidnotdirectlyrecommendanycourse,but
guidingthefemalethroughherstatedchickenpreferences.In VerticalboxH1athefemales
preferencescombinedwiththeinformationsuppliedbythewaiter,leadshertoadeeperbeliefand
expectationonwhatalternativesshewillendupchoosingfrom.H1c Establishesapurchase
preference,whichaddstofinaldecision..H1btellsusherinitialpreferencesforChickenwillassigna
heaverweightothatsectionofthemenuthanothers.H2aandH2bisinfluencedbytheinteractive
advertisingmadebythewaiter,thementalimagesheseedsinhermind,andcausehertofocuson
Chickensectionofthemenu,whilefilteringoutareaslikepizzaandpasta.Thereare3itemsonthe
Chickenmenu,onebeingthepinoyalternative,2beingpureItalianchoice.Concentratingnowon
thepre-purchaseSEARCH(pre-purchasesearchbeliefsandpurchasebeliefsbeingfulfilled,The
Behaviournowislinkedtowhatchoiceshehasaccumulatedthemostweightsto(h3),whichleads
toherPurchase/decision.
InthissettingshechosethePolloItaliano,chickenbreastmarinatedinItalianherbs, grilledover
woodcoalandservedwithasautedtomatoesandvegetables.
The flavouris justamazing! The meatisstilljuicyanddripping,yetfullofherbalflavoursandahint
ofsmoW
e from the charcoal. Combinedwiththe tomatotaste inthe sautedvegetables,itmaW
es my
taste buds euphoric!
Bynowthegrouphasalsobeenservedtheirrespectivemaindishes.2Pizzas(CalzoneandPizza
Parma)1Fish,and2Pasta(ArrabiataandPastaCarbonara).Thegroupisverysatisfiedwiththeir
choices,thespeedofthedeliveryandtheflavours.Theonlycomplaintwehavesofarisfromthe
Germanfemalewhofeelsshechosethewrongdish.Sheexplainstheresnothingwrongwiththe
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dish,butsherealizesherchoiceoffishleftherwantingfortheChickenorderedbytheCaribbean
female.Thewaiterofferstohavethechefmakehalfaportionofthedish,forhalftheprice,butthe
Germanfemaledecidestostaywithherdish.
FortheDessertpartofthemealweturntotheconsumerdecision-makingprocess,weusethe
matrixexplainedbyTheDecisionmakingmodel.Stillthisiscontainedwithintheblackbox
framework,butnowwiththeadditionalsituationalvariableofthegroupessentialbeingfull.
Decidingondessertonthisstageholdslessweighthatstarterandmaincourse.Combiningthe
DecisionmakingmodelandtheRationalDecisionModel,,weseehowNeedisnowfarlower,butstill
apparentasthereisaneedforasweetround-offtotheexperience,combined(onadvicefromthe
waiter)withalittleliquortotopofftheflavourandsettlethestomach.
TheNeedsrecognitionpartissettledwithonly4of6individualsoptingforadessert,and2of6
optingfor
liquor
and
coffee,
and
2
with
only
an
espresso
as
an
end
to
the
meal.
In
terms
we
see
the
needforinformationontermsofespressobeingveryshort.Theeconsumersherehadsubstantial
priorknowledgeandthereforehadlittleuseforfurtherinformation/advertising fromthewaiter.
Intermswethenseeastrongrelationbetweenpre-purchasebelies,andthepurchasebeliefs,but
lessemphasisontheprepurchasesearch
leadingtoapurchase.
Forthosewhooptedfordessert,therewasan
interactiveinformationsearchbetweenthe
infointhemenuandthatofthewaiter,
(mediumweightintermsoftherational
decisionmakingprocess),whiletheevaluation
weighsvs.theneedsalsowereweak.Infact
therewassignificantdiscussionthroughoutthedecisionprocesswhetherornottooptfordessertat
all.Inhereweseetheevaluationbeingheavilyinfluencedbyadvertising(thewaiter),who
influencedwithoutpressuringthegroupmembers.TheGermanFemalewerestillnotfullafterher
fishmeal,soconsideringherinformationtothewaiteraboutenjoyingcreamyflavours,headvised
heronTiramisu;acreamycakeandamaretto/coffeeflavoureddessert.Theothermemberchose
ItalianGelato,realicecream,withberriesoftheseason.Thischoicewasinfluencedbythewaiteras
theGermaninformedhimshewantedsomethinglightincomparison,butstillauniquelyItalian
experience.
GoingbacktotheModel,analyzingthepost-purchaseevaluation,feedbackswereuniformlypositive.
Whenaskedaboutunhappycustomers,thewaiterconfessedtherewouldalwaysbecustomerswho
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werenotentirelysatisfied.Mostly,heexplained,thiscameaboutwhenpriorexperienceswerethat
oftheindustrialrestaurantslikeSbarros, Jolibeepastaandalike.Customerswhocametothe
restaurantexpectingthesameflavours,andpreferringthe same flavoursaswith pinoypastatypes,
andSbarroItaliandishes,usuallyweredissatisfied.Intermsthisthencamedowntoopposing
concepts,wherethecustomerhadlearnedtobelieveindustrialItalianfoodbeingthenorm,andassuch,specialityrestaurantbeingtheabnormal.Wefoundnoreasontocontradictthatstatement.
1.6 THEORETIC FRAMEWORKDecisionmaking Process/model
5:
Figure4.1Blackboxmodelofconsumerbuyingbehavior
Source: Keeganetal.(1992,p.193)
Theessenceofthemodelisthatitsuggestsconsumerswillrespondinparticularwaystodifferent
stimuliaftertheyhave 'processed' thosestimuliintheirminds.Inmoredetail,themodelsuggests
thatfactorsexternaltotheconsumerwillactasastimulusforbehavior,butthattheconsumer's
personalcharacteristicsanddecision-makingprocesswillinteractwiththestimulusbeforea
particularbehavioralresponseisgenerated.
Itiscalledthe 'blackbox' modelbecausewestillknowsolittleabouthowthehumanmindworks.
Wecannotsee whatgoesoninthemindandwedon'treallyknowmuchaboutwhatgoesonin
there,soit'slikeablackbox.Asfarasconsumerbehaviorgoes,weknowenoughtobeableto
identifymajorinternalinfluencesandthemajorstepsinthedecision-makingprocesswhich
consumersuse,butwedon'treallyknowhowconsumerstransformallthesedata,togetherwiththe
stimuli,togenerateparticularresponses.
5http://www.marcbowles.com/courses/adv_dip/module12/chapter4/amc12_ch4_two.htm
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GeneralDecisionmaking model6:
Researchsuggeststhatcustomersgothroughafive-stagedecision-makingprocessinany
purchase.Thisissummarizedinthediagrambelow:
Thismodelisimportantforanyonemakingmarketingdecisions.It forcesthemarketerto
considerthewholebuyingprocessratherthanjustthepurchasedecision(whenitmaybe
toolateforabusinesstoinfluencethechoice!)
Themodelimpliesthatcustomerspassthroughallstagesineverypurchase.However,in
moreroutinepurchases,customersoftenskiporreversesomeofthestages.
Forexample,astudentbuyingafavoritehamburgerwouldrecognizetheneed(hunger)and
gorighttothepurchasedecision,skippinginformationsearchandevaluation.However,the
6http://tutor2u.net/business/marketing/buying_decision_process.asp
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modelisveryusefulwhenitcomestounderstandinganypurchasethatrequiressome
thoughtanddeliberation.
Thebuyingprocessstartswithneedrecognition.Atthisstage,thebuyer recognizesa
problemorneed(e.g.Iamhungry,weneedanewsofa,Ihavea headache)orrespondstoa
marketingstimulus(e.g.youpassStarbucksandareattractedbythearomaofcoffeeand
chocolatemuffins).
Anarousedcustomerthenneedstodecidehowmuchinformation(ifany)isrequired.If
theneedisstrongandthereis aproductorservicethatmeetstheneedclosetohand,then
apurchasedecisionislikelytobemadethereandthen.Ifnot,thentheprocessof
informationsearchbegins.
Acustomercanobtaininformationfromseveralsources:
Personalsources:family,friends,neighbors etc
Commercialsources:advertising;salespeople;retailers;dealers;packaging;point-of-sale
displays
Publicsources:newspapers,radio,television,consumerorganizations;specialistmagazines
Experientialsources:handling,examining,usingtheproduct
Theusefulnessandinfluenceofthesesourcesofinformationwillvarybyproductandby
customer.Researchsuggeststhatcustomersvalueandrespectpersonalsourcesmorethan
commercialsources(theinfluenceofwordofmouth).Thechallengeforthemarketing
teamistoidentifywhichinformationsourcesaremostinfluentialintheirtargetmarkets.
Intheevaluationstage,thecustomermustchoosebetweenthealternativebrands,products
andservices.
Howdoesthecustomerusetheinformationobtained?
Animportantdeterminantoftheextentofevaluationiswhetherthecustomerfeels
involvedintheproduct.Byinvolvement,wemeanthedegreeofperceivedrelevanceand
personalimportancethataccompaniesthechoice.
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Whereapurchaseishighlyinvolving,thecustomerislikelytocarryoutextensive
evaluation.
High-involvementpurchasesincludethoseinvolvinghighexpenditureorpersonalrisk for
examplebuyingahouse,acarormakinginvestments.
Lowinvolvementpurchases(e.g.buyingasoftdrink,choosingsomebreakfastcerealsinthe
supermarket)haveverysimpleevaluationprocesses.
Whyshouldamarketerneedtounderstandthecustomerevaluationprocess?
Theanswerliesinthekindofinformation thatthema rketingteamneedstoprovide
customersindifferentbuyingsituations.
Inhigh-involvementdecisions,themarketerneedstoprovideagooddealofinformation
aboutthepositiveconsequencesofbuying.Thesalesforcemayneedtostresstheimportant
attributesoftheproduct,theadvantagescomparedwiththecompetition;andmaybeeven
encouragetrialorsamplingoftheproductinthehopeofsecuringthesale.
Post-purchaseevaluation - CognitiveDissonance
Thefinalstageisthepost-purchaseevaluationofthedecision.Itiscommonforcustomersto
experienceconcernsaftermakingapurchasedecision.Thisarisesfromaconceptthatis
knownascognitivedissonance.Thecustomer,havingboughtaproduct,mayfeelthatan
alternativewouldhavebeenpreferable.Inthesecircumstancesthatcustomerwillnot
repurchaseimmediately,butislikelytoswitchbrandsnexttime.
Tomanagethepost-purchasestage,itisthejobofthemarketingteamtopersuadethe
potentialcustomerthattheproductwillsa tisfyhisorherneeds.Thenafterhavingmadea
purchase,thecustomershouldbeencouragedthatheorshehasmadetherightdecision.
Conceptual ModelofRationalDecision Making7:
7http://jiad.org/article65
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Conceptual Path Model of Rational Decision Making
Severalbarrierstoactualonlinepurchase have been reported,includingconsumerconcernsand
transactionanxiety(KorgaonkarandWolin 1999),paymentsecurityanddistributionissues,
perceptionsofinformationalratherthantransactionalvalue ofthe Internet(ZengandReinartz 2003),
lackof face-to-face contactinonline shopping (Timesof India 2000),as wellasproductfactorslike
needforphysicalexperience (e.g.,perfumes)andcomplexityofpurchase (e.g., realestate). However,
itis equallyevidentthate-shoppingisbecominganincreasinglyglobalphenomenon withover 15% of
globalInternetuserstransactingonline,and18% intendingtodosointhe nextsix months (TNS
Interactive-GlobaleCommerce Report2002). In manyconsumersurveys,convenience,interactivity,
andshopping ease are often mentionedasprimaryreasons forthe growthofconsumers'e-shopping
activities (Ghose andDou 1998; GVUsurvey1998; KorgaonkarandWolin 1999). While some consider
onlythe finalactofbuyingaproductonline asdefiningthe transactionalnature of e-shopping,others
include an entire range ofactivities frompurchase-relatedinformationsearches,use ofprice and
brandcomparisontools,use ofonline couponsanddiscounts,andinteraction with marketing
personnelvia websites,toactualpurchase andpost-purchase use ofthe Internet. This expansive
definitionofonlinepurchase activitiescanbe brokendownintothree basic,stagedcomponentsof
consumerdecision making--pre-purchase searchandevaluation,actualuse/purchase,andpost-
purchase interaction.
Thisstudymodeledtwoofthe three decisionstages withinthe e-shoppingcontext:pre-purchase
searchandevaluation,andactualpurchase.
Thisconceptisapplicableinthiscaseasthewaiteractsastheinformationportal,andinfluences
throughinformationandverbalinformationthefunctionofadvertingandinteractiveinformation.