Decision Making Criterions in Marketing Research

Criteria decision making analysis whether multiple or simple is a sub topic in marketing research that explicitly considers multiple criteria in decision –making environments. Whether in our daily lives or in professional settings, there are typically multiple conflicting criteria that need to be evaluated in making decisions. Costs or price is usually one of the main criteria.

 Optimism or Maximax Criterion the Maximum Decision

This is diametrically opposed to the maximize decision criterion. It is also called Hurwitz criterion (suggested by Leonid Hurwitz). This criterion finds the alternative that matches the maximum outcome or consequence for every alternative strategy. The decision maker first locates the maximum outcome within every alternative strategy and then selects the alternative with the maximum number. Since this decision criterion locates the alternative with the highest gain, it has been called an optimistic decision criterion.

 Criteria Decision Making under Risk

It is conservative approach under which the decision maker attempts in maximizing the minimum possible profits. In other words, the strategy for which minimum pay-off is maximum is chosen under this criterion. This may be achieved by selecting the act (row) due to which row minimum is maximum in the pay-offs matrix. For problems in which costs are being minimized, maximum approach is reversed. In this case, the decision maker first finds the maximum cost for each act and then selects the minimum of the maximum. e.g. minimax criterion. Then decision maker with a pessimistic attitude, i.e. one who always thinks what worst will happen if a particular act is chosen.

Decision Making Model

In this situation, the decision maker faces several events. But he is supposed to have believable evidential information, knowledge, experience or judgment to enable him to assign probability values to the likelihood of occurrence of each state of nature.  For decision problems involving risk, the most popular method (or decision criterion) for evaluating the alternative strategies is expected monetary value of the expected payoff. That is, either the maximization of expected profit or minimization of expected regret.


Research shows that customers go through five distinct stages in decision–making process as discussed earlier on. Models are important for anyone making marketing decisions. It forces marketer to consider the whole buying process rather than just the purchase decision (when it may be too late for a business to influence the choice). Buyer behaviour implies that customers pass through all stages in every purchase.

However, in more routine purchases, customers often skip or reverse some of the stages.
An “aroused” customer then needs to decide how much information (if any) is required. If the need is strong and a product or service that meets the need close to hand, then a purchase decision is likely to be made there and then, if not the process of information search begins through right decision making models.

 Classic Model of Decision Making

This is a prescriptive approach that tells marketers and managers how they should make decisions. It assumes that managers are logical and rational and that their decisions will be in the best interest of the organization. In contrast to the classical marketing decision making model, the administrative model argues that decision makers have incomplete and imperfect information, are constrained by bounded rationality, and tend to “satisfies” when making decisions.