Marketing Chap 5

Problem Recognition is the initial step in the purchasing decision, is perceiving a difference between a person's ideal and actual situations big enough to trigger a decision.
Ex: finding an empty milk container, noting as a first year college student your high school clothes are not in style, or realizing your laptop isnt working properly.

When recognizing a problem a consumer begins to search for information. First you scan your memory for previous experiences with products or brands called internal search. Or a consumer may undertake an external search needed when past experiences or knowledge is is insufficent, the risk of making a wrong purchase decision is high and the cost of gathering information is low. The primary sources of external information are personal sources, such as relatives and friends whom the consumer trust, public sources including various product rating organizations such as consumer reports, governmental agencies, and TV :consumer programs" and market dominated sources such as information from sellers including advertising company websites, sales people, and point of purchase displays in stored.