March 2020
Article
Journal of Retailing

The Role of Numbers in the Customer Journey

By: Shelle Santana, Manoj Thomas and Vicki Morwitz

Format:Print

Abstract

At each stage in customers’ journeys, they encounter different types of numeric information that they process using different judgment strategies. Relevant numbers might include budgets, price, product attributes, product counts, product ratings, numbers in brand names, health and nutrition information, financial information, time-related information, and others. This manuscript provides a review of the vast array of numerical information presented to consumers at different stages of the customer journey. It also identifies several different types of judgment strategies that consumers use to evaluate numeric information. It includes a discussion of how consumers use these judgment strategies during the pre-purchase, purchase, and post-purchase stages of the customer journey, highlighting unanswered questions that identify new research opportunities. Implications for practice and research are identified.

Keywords

Numbers; Heuristics; Numerical Cognition; Pricing; Customer Journey; Information; Consumer Behavior

Citation

Santana, Shelle, Manoj Thomas, and Vicki Morwitz. "The Role of Numbers in the Customer Journey." Journal of Retailing 96, no. 1 (March 2020): 138–154.