Consumer Behavior in His 2005

Consumer Behavior in his 2005 book, Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking, author Malcolm Gladwell argues that hallowed marketing research techniques like focus groups are ineffective. According to Gladwell, we usually react to products quickly and without much conscious thought, so it's better to simply solicit consumers' first impressions rather than getting them to think at length about why they buy.

What's your position on this issue? The power of intuition and having an innate sense of what is consistent and congruent with our own needs, and further, what aligns with our own strengths are illustrated in the book Blink (Gladwell, 2005). it's a fascinating book to read as it provides an entirely different perspective on how people overall and consumers specifically make decisions. The author uses examples of how military campaigns made through intuition and embodying the concepts defined are much more effective compared to their intricately over-planned counterparts.

The author makes a convincing argument throughout the book of using basic intuition to accomplish goals, sense both opportunities and threats, and in general interpret the surrounding environment. After having read the book, I agree with the fundamental precepts of how intuition is more powerful than thorough analysis. Asking consumers for their first impressions and their intuition of the perceived value of products also replicates the actual purchasing process.

The research Gladwell (2005) cites from a commercial perspective is compelling as well, further strengthening the argument of using intuition over extensive analysis. What is fascinating in this regard is the contention that Gladwell makes of "thin slicing" through a significant portion of the book also aligns with theoretical models of how consumers interpret and act on promotional and advertising content as well.

The author also points to examples of how what he calls "rapid cognition" actually has prejudices and preferences already interpreted as part of the perceptual filters each person uses to interpret their environment. Gladwell points to both prejudices for specific types of products, messages, values and preferences for them as an example of how these attributes are part of every person's rapid cognition set of responses. These perceptual filters form the foundation of how a person also interprets advertising and promotional stimuli as well.

In summary, Gladwell (2005) has presented a fascinating set of precepts marketers.