In December 2003, I purchased a hiking backpack from Mountain Designs in Bunbury. I spent over a month researching different options and was very happy with my final decision. This purchase is a great example of complex buying behaviour as I was highly involved in the decision making process and there were a large variety of brands and styles to choose from. The process I went through to buy this item included need recognition, information searching, evaluation of alternatives, a purchase decision and post purchase behaviour.
             Need Recognition occurs when the consumer's current state is does not match their ideal or desired state. The consumer therefore recognizes a need and takes sufficient action to rectify the situation. In October 2003 I booked a Round the World Ticket to go traveling for a year. The trip included visiting friends, staying in youth hostels, hiking and working. I recognized that my ideal state was having versatile, convenient luggage with sufficient space that was affordable and readily available and that I therefore needed to purchase something to suit my needs. This need was triggered by internal stimuli, rather than any external initial marketing source.
             A consumers second action in the decision making process is a search for information to narrow down alternatives. This information can come from commercial or personal sources. Commercial sources tend to provide the information, while a personal source may legitimize the purchase and provide an evaluation of the product for the purchaser. My first course of action was to ask friends and acquaintances who had traveled extensively what they used for luggage and how their experiences rated. I purchased backpacking magazines, and participated in Internet forums with fellow travelers. I also visited local camping and hiking stores as well as searched for luggage information on the internet. Unfortunately, I couldn&apos
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