Model of Consumer Behavior Consumers make many buying decisions every day. Most large companies research consumer buying decisions in great detail to answer questions about what consumers buy, where the buy, how and how much they buy, when they buy, and why they buy. Marketers can study actual consumer purchases to find out what they buy, where, and how much. But learning about the whys of consumer buying behavior is not so easy- the answers are often locked deep within the consumer’s mind. “For companies with billions of dollars on the line, the buying decision is the most crucial part of their enterprise,” states one consumer behavior analyst. “yet no one really knows how the human brain makes that choice.” Often, consumers themselves don’t know exactly what influences their purchases. “Buying decisions are made at an unconscious level.” Says the analyst, “and … consumers don’t generally give very reliable answers if you simply ask them, ‘Why did you buy this?”
