Piaras Kelly PR - Public Relations in Ireland

In her book “Why People Buy Things They Don’t Need“, Pamela Danziger points out that the average educational level of American consumers is on the rise. A similar trend can be observed across Europe. Danziger correctly points out that many companies are overlooking the impact this trend is having on the buyer decision process.

A general model of the buyer decision process consists of the following steps:

1. Want recognition;
2. Search of information on products that could satisfy the needs of the buyer;
3. Alternative selection;
4. Decision-making on buying the product;
5. Post-purchase behavior.

A rise in the average educational level affects each of the five steps. Consider the health industry today as an example. Thanks to improvements in education, we’re increasingly aware of the role of our diet in terms of our long term health.

A variety of triggers have made us more aware of our health and appearance than ever before. At the same time, as consumers we are faced with more choice than ever before. There are gyms, diets and a variety of supplements to consider. Looking past the Internet and advice from our peers, we are starting from a very different position than before thanks to a higher education level. As a result, we read nutritional labels; form online groups to discuss topics like MyDietFriends and One Breast Less; and research symptoms prior to visiting our doctor. We are also more aware of our rights as consumers, something which has been further impacted by efforts of groups like the National Consumer Agency in Ireland.

Everyday I find myself using the Internet and conferring with my peers about a variety of decisions. By googling “libsyn” and “switchpod”, I’m coming to a decision about which podcast service to opt for. When discussing holiday options with my friends, I read up on different locations on wikitravel. I no longer purchase books unless they’ve got a good rating on Amazon.com by a number of customers. As Danziger points out, the better educated consumer will be able to discern the ultimate benefits of your product over rival brands.

So what should companies do about this? Simple, look at how consumers are educating themselves and embrace it. Too many industries talk at consumers about technical specifications. Instead they should be talking with them about features they are interested in. The majority of consumers don’t care about things like their computer’s processor speed. They just want to know they can surf the web, listen to music and use Word on it. Most importantly, they want to discuss options with their peers, so empower them.

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