Stages of the adoption process:
The consumer adoption process is constant. Marketing tools
may change, the way consumers discover products may change, and consumer
behaviors may change, but the 5 stages that make up the consumer adoption
process will always remain the same. product awareness, product
interest, product evaluation, product trial, and product adoption.
Stage
1 - Product Awareness
This first
stage is about creating awareness that your product is in the market. It is
important that your company develops a successful avenue for your consumers to
become aware of your product. If consumers do not know your product exists, then
it might as well not exist!
Stage
2 - Product Interest
In this stage
consumers are ready to learn more about your company’s product and / or
service. Your organization must guide the consumer through the interest stage
by providing easily accessible information on your product.
Stage
3 - Product Evaluation
Prior to
purchasing, consumers examine, compare and evaluate the product. Such behavior increases in intensity and need once the item in question is more expensive,
sophisticated and complex, or critical. Consumers are searching for
information.
Stage
4 - Product Trial
This is the
stage where the consumer “kicks the tires”. Nothing helps a consumer make a
decision about your product more than actually trying your product out!
stage
5 - Product Adoption
When the
consumer enters the product adoption phase, he/she is ready to purchase your company’s
product. This is the critical stage that businesses need to get their consumers
to. When the customer is here, you need to make the payment process simple,
intuitive, and pain free.
Five groups into
which customers can be placed it takes them to adopt a new product or service. The five categories are:
- Innovators – those who are the first to adopt a new product or service
- Early adopters – those who adopt a new product or service after the innovators have already adopted it
- Early majority – those who adopt just before the 'average' person
- Late majority – those who eventually adopt through economic necessity or social pressure
- Laggards – those who are last to adopt a new product or service
c) Factors affecting the rate of
adoption
Design teams can use their knowledge of the
theory to create a road map for how they will address critical factors in the
design and marketing of their product.