סמינר בשיווק

Liat Hadar, Interdisciplinary center IDC

Extant research demonstrates that consumers seek variety even when it leads to the selection of less preferred options. According to the decision uncertainty account, people diversify when choosing from a menu of options to save time and effort and to resolve decision conflict (Simonson 1990). Consistent with this account, Fox, Ratner, and Lieb (2005) report that category experts, who have stronger intrinsic preferences, are less likely to diversify, compared to novices. The present research examines consumer inferences regarding the level of expertise of diversifiers vs. non-diversifiers, and whether and how these inferences influence behavior. Drawing on previous research, demonstrating that people hold more favorable beliefs regarding diversifiers compared to non-diversifiers (Ratner & Kahn 2002), we predict that diversifiers are judged as more expert than non-diversifiers in the product category, and that, consequently, consumer behavior is more likely to be influenced by the advice of diversifiers than non-diversifiers. The results of seven studies support these predictions and demonstrate their boundary conditions.