Disrupt Consumer Decision-Making to Realize Growth

by Jeremy Cochran

Every day, consumers make countless choices without even realizing it. Whether it’s selecting a familiar cereal brand from the shelf, ordering the same coffee every morning, or automatically reaching for a preferred brand of dog food, these decisions feel effortless. For brands, however, this habitual behavior presents a significant challenge. If sales are stagnant or declining, understanding why consumers aren’t choosing a product more frequently becomes a complex puzzle—especially when consumers themselves struggle to articulate their decision-making process.

At the heart of this challenge lies the reality that many purchasing decisions occur without much conscious deliberation. Instead of carefully weighing each option, consumers rely on mental shortcuts that allow them to make quick, efficient choices. The key to influencing these decisions is not simply to persuade consumers with traditional marketing messages, but to understand how automatic decision-making works—and how brands can subtly reshape these processes to capture attention and drive consideration.

The Science Behind Automatic Thinking

Consumer decision-making is shaped by two distinct modes of thinking:

• SYSTEM 1 THINKING: Fast, instinctive, and subconscious. This is the brain’s default mode for routine decisions—grabbing a go-to cereal, selecting a usual brand of laundry detergent, or choosing a favorite soft drink without a second thought.
• SYSTEM 2 THINKING: Slow, analytical, and effortful. This mode is activated for complex or high-stakes decisions—comparing insurance policies, researching a new laptop, or deciding on a major purchase like a car.

Research suggests that up to 98% of daily choices fall within System 1, meaning most marketing efforts must compete in a space where habit and familiarity dominate. The question for brands is: How do you break through these habitual, automatic thought patterns and introduce something new?

An effective way to examine decision-making is through the Goals-Beliefs-Choices (GBC) framework which peels back the layers to understand a consumer’s goals and beliefs tied to their choice in any given situation.

Decoding Consumer Decisions with the GBC Framework

The GBC framework provides a structured way to understand and influence consumer behavior by identifying the subconscious patterns behind consumer decision-making. At its core, every consumer choice is influenced by two key forces:

• MINDSET: The internal factors shaping the decision, including:
  • Goals: The underlying need or desire driving the choice, such as convenience, health, or indulgence.
  • Beliefs: The consumer’s convictions about themselves, products, and the world, such as “Cereal is only for breakfast.”
• SITUATION: The external factors influencing the decision, including:
  • Context: Where and when the decision is being made (e.g., in a grocery store vs. online shopping).
  • Options: The choices available at the moment of decision.
  • Cues: Elements that push consumers toward one choice over another, such as packaging, placement, or promotions.

By mapping out these components, brands can better understand why certain choices feel automatic and, more importantly, how to disrupt them in ways that encourage new behaviors.

Applying the GBC Framework: A Cereal Example

Consider a cereal brand looking to expand consumption beyond breakfast by positioning its product as an afternoon snack. Through the GBC lens, the consumer’s decision-making process might look like this:

• Goal: The consumer seeks a quick, satisfying snack after work.
• Belief: Cereal is seen as a breakfast food, not an afternoon option.
• Situation: At home, the consumer is looking for a convenient snack and would usually reach for granola bars, and pretzels as more appropriate options.
• Cue: Advertising and packaging reinforce cereal’s breakfast identity, leading the consumer to overlook it as a snack choice.

The challenge here isn’t convincing consumers that cereal is delicious or nutritious—it’s about shifting their subconscious decision-making process so that cereal enters their consideration set at the right moment.

Using Behavioral Science to Influence Choices

Once brands understand the subconscious drivers behind consumer decision-making, they can devise strategies and tactics to shift choices in a more favorable direction. In the case of the cereal brand, potential interventions could include:

• Reframing Messaging: Introducing marketing that positions cereal as a versatile, all-day snack, such as “A crunchy, satisfying treat for any time of day.”
• Product Innovation: Offering single-serve, portable packaging that makes cereal more convenient for snacking.
• Retail Strategies: Placing cereal near other snack foods to prompt re-evaluation at the point of purchase.

This approach is not about forcefully changing consumer habits but about working with natural decision-making processes to create subtle shifts in perception and behavior. It helps marketers focus their resources more effectively instead of wasting time and effort on initiatives or messages that won’t truly reach the consumer.

Case Study: Pet Food and the Power of Reframing

A leading pet food brand faced a similar challenge when trying to increase sales of its wet food products. Despite strong brand loyalty, sales remained stagnant because consumers viewed wet food in a limited way:

• They perceived it as less flavorful than dry food.
• They only considered it when making a deliberate diet change for their pet.
• They purchased pet food on autopilot and weren’t aware that the brand had both wet and dry options.

Using the GBC framework, the brand identified opportunities to disrupt these habits:

• Messaging Adjustments: Reframing wet food as a flavorful and enriching option rather than a dietary necessity.
• Product Pairing: Offering wet/dry combination packs to encourage trial and showing both wet and dry in advertisements and messages.
• Retail Enhancements: Improving in-store placement and packaging to capture consumer attention.

By shifting perceptions and creating the right cues at the right moments, the brand is now able to disrupt the consumers’ decision-making process to increase wet food purchases.

Final Thoughts

Market research often relies on asking consumers about their preferences, but when most decisions happen subconsciously, self-reported insights can be incomplete. Consumer decision-making may seem complex, but it follows identifiable patterns. By understanding these patterns, brands and insights professionals can craft smarter strategies that do more than just stand out—they influence behavior in meaningful ways.

If you’re interested in learning more about decision mapping and consumer behavior, I’d love to connect. Reach out to our team at info@burke.com.

Interested in reading more? Check out Jeremy’s other articles:

Reflections for Success in 2025

Top Takeaways from IA CRC 2024

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Source: Feature Image – ©littlewolf1989 – stock.adobe.com