This chapter discusses some ideas regarding how to model the changes of the value of misinforming after the wrong purchase decision is made. How the likelihood and impact of the risk changes as a result of adoption of the newly acquired product during the initial period of using it. Changes in assessment of a product's suitability are considered for the two categories of users – optimists and pessimists. The role of encouraging pessimists to purchase the product by providing incentives in the form of warranty that offer free trial period may serve as a bridge to the fourth part of the book.
TopSetting The Stage
Let us assume that a customer bj purchased a new product d, e.g., a new personal computer (PC). The purchase is made in order to address some particular, recognized before the time of purchasing, bj needs to solve for a particular set of problems by using the product d. For example, in the case of purchasing a PC, these problems or works are to develop text documents, to perform simple or complex calculations, to send and receive e-mails, to browse Internet, to play games, or to listen music and watch movies. The PC has characteristics (technical properties), such as CPU’s speed, memory’s capacity, etc., which allow the customer to accomplish her or his work.
There are two stages in the adoption (acceptance) of the new product. The first one is to select the product, to make the purchase decision, and to acquire the product. The second one is to utilize the product. The second stage is related to the initial period of product usage when the buyer discovers whether and how the product satisfies expectations and meets the initially recognized needs, but also what else can be done with product not considered as a reason to buy it at the time of purchasing.
Over the period of learning, the risk that the product will not satisfy the customer’s needs evolves as well. On one hand, the customer learns how the product properties relate to her/his needs, but on the other hand, the client learns what the product could offer, and based on this new information, extends/modifies the set of relevant works and related needs. The case, that the buyer realized that the product is good enough for originally identified works but need a better device from the same category of products to allow accomplishing the newly identified options for usage.
The objective of this chapter is modelling the dynamics of the change of buyer’s attitude toward the new product at the time of its adoption.