| Course | MT459 Consumer Behavior |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 7 |
| Paper type | Social influence analysis |
| Length | About 940 words, 6 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MT459 Unit 7
Creators for Awareness, Friends for the Decision, One-Star Reviews for Elimination: An MT459 Unit 7 Social Influence Analysis
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
MT459: Consumer Behavior
Unit 7 Social Influence Analysis
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Linwood Pet Supply, its customers, the reviews and the videos are composite; the sources cited are real.
Why Stages
Asking buyers what influenced their purchase produces a blurred answer, because different sources do different jobs at different points. A video that first made someone aware of a product and a friend who persuaded them to buy it are both influences, but they work differently. This analysis assigns each influence to one of three stages: awareness, persuasion and elimination.
Three Sources of Evidence
The first source is a composite survey of the 58 customers who special-ordered a self-cleaning litter box through Linwood Pet Supply over twelve months, with three questions: how the box first came to their attention, what tipped the decision and which sources they consulted along the way. The second is a sample of 1,200 customer reviews across the five best-selling self-cleaning models, charted by star rating and coded for the reasons given in low ratings. The third is a set of 40 creator videos about these models, coded for whether the creator received a free unit or an affiliate link and whether that was disclosed.
Awareness: Creators
Twenty-seven of the 58 buyers, 47 percent, first heard of self-cleaning boxes from a creator's video, most often a short clip of a box raking itself after a cat leaves. Ten first heard through search results or online ads, thirteen from a friend or relative and eight in a store. Creators dominate first awareness because their videos show the product working, something a static ad or a shelf cannot do, and because their content reaches people who were not looking for a litter box.
Persuasion: People Who Own One
Asked what finally decided them, 24 buyers, 41 percent, named a friend or relative who owned a working unit. Fifteen named reviews, eight a creator, six a Linwood employee and five something else. Many of the 24 had seen the friend's box in person and watched the friend's cat use it.
This fits the distinction Deutsch and Gerard (1955) drew between informational influence, accepting others' information as evidence about reality, and normative influence, conforming to others' expectations. For a $549 purchase whose main risk is that the cat will refuse it, a friend's working unit is the strongest available information: proof that a real cat accepted a real box. Katz and Lazarsfeld (1955) described a two-step flow in which media reach people through trusted individuals, and here the creators started the process while friends finished it.
Creators made people aware of the boxes, but a friend's cat using one made them buy.
Elimination: One-Star Reviews
Forty-eight buyers, 83 percent, said they read one-star reviews before choosing, and most described using them to rule models out rather than to choose one. The review sample shows why one-star reviews are so useful for this. Ratings across 1,200 reviews form a J shape: 52 percent five stars, 14 percent four, 7 percent three, 6 percent two and 21 percent one. Five-star reviews say little beyond "my cat loves it." One-star reviews name specific failures: a cat that refused the unit, a rake that jammed on clumps, an app that lost its connection, a waste drawer that smelled. Chevalier and Mayzlin (2006) found that negative reviews affect sales more strongly than positive ones, and the buyers here used them as a checklist of risks.
Creator Disclosure
Of the 40 creator videos, 31 had received a free unit or included an affiliate link that paid the creator for purchases. Fourteen disclosed this clearly in the video, nine mentioned it only in a description below the video and eight did not disclose it at all. Viewers may weigh a creator's enthusiasm differently if they know the creator was paid, and the low rate of clear disclosure suggests many did not know.
Implications for Linwood
Three implications follow. First, Linwood cannot easily influence awareness, which comes mostly from creators, but it can influence persuasion: a program inviting customers who own a working unit to share their experience, or a store demonstration with an employee's own cat on video, would supply the proof a friend now supplies. Second, staff should know the common one-star complaints for each model and recommend accordingly, since buyers are already using those complaints to eliminate options. Third, if Linwood works with creators, it should require clear disclosure in the video itself, because hidden payments could undermine the trust the store depends on. Solomon (2020) notes that reference groups shape purchases most when a product is visible and risky, and a self-cleaning box is both.
A Note on Timing
The three stages also differed in time. Buyers who first saw a creator video reported waiting a median of about five weeks before buying, and most said they did nothing until they saw a friend's unit or heard a friend describe one. Elimination through one-star reviews happened last, usually in the final few days. The sequence matters for the retailer: by the time a buyer reaches the store, awareness and much of the persuasion have already happened elsewhere, and the store's role is mainly to help with the final elimination.
Limits
The survey relies on buyers' memory of where they first heard of a product, which Unit 1 showed can be unreliable. The 58 buyers special-ordered through one store and may differ from those who bought online. And the review sample covers five models only.
References
Chevalier, J. A., & Mayzlin, D. (2006). The effect of word of mouth on sales: Online book reviews. Journal of Marketing Research, 43(3), 345-354. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.43.3.345
Deutsch, M., & Gerard, H. B. (1955). A study of normative and informational social influences upon individual judgment. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 51(3), 629-636. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0046408
Katz, E., & Lazarsfeld, P. F. (1955). Personal influence: The part played by people in the flow of mass communications. Free Press.
Solomon, M. R. (2020). Consumer behavior: Buying, having, and being (13th ed.). Pearson.
What the MT459 Unit 7 assignment asks for
MT459 Unit 7 asks how other people shape consumer choices in one product category. Avoid a single question about what influenced a purchase, which blurs different sources doing different jobs. Instead, separate influence into stages, such as awareness, persuasion and elimination, and gather evidence for each. Useful sources include customer surveys, review samples and creator or influencer content, each coded with stated rules. Connect each stage to a concept, such as informational and normative influence, opinion leaders or the weight of negative information. If paid endorsements are involved, check how clearly they were disclosed. Close with implications for a marketer or retailer and the limits of your evidence, including what buyers can accurately remember. About seven pages with a stage table and two or three evidence sources is a common scope for this assignment.
How this MT459 Unit 7 example is built
Linwood's analysis opens by explaining why influence is split into stages. The three evidence sources are described: the 58-buyer survey, 1,200 reviews and 40 creator videos. Awareness comes first, with creators leading at 27 buyers. Persuasion follows, with friends and relatives deciding 24 purchases, explained through Deutsch and Gerard and Katz and Lazarsfeld, under a highlighted line separating creators' reach from friends' proof. Elimination comes next: the J-shaped ratings and the specific failures named in one-star reviews, with Chevalier and Mayzlin. A section codes creator disclosure. Implications for Linwood include a customer-owner program, staff knowledge of one-star complaints and disclosure rules, citing Solomon on visible, risky products. A note on timing shows awareness preceding purchase by about five weeks, and the limits recall Unit 1's lesson about memory.
Reading the MT459 Unit 7 grading rubric
Social influence analyses earn credit by separating what different sources do. Instructors reward a staged structure supported by evidence at each stage over a list of influences. Coding rules for reviews and creator content, stated in advance, show method. Connecting each stage to a specific concept demonstrates understanding rather than recall. Attention to disclosure of paid endorsements is increasingly expected and shows ethical awareness. Practical implications tied to particular stages, such as where a retailer can and cannot intervene, show application. Acknowledging the limits of self-reported influence, especially memory of first awareness, shows critical thinking. A clear central table assigning sources to stages helps the grader. Classic and recent research on word of mouth and social influence should both appear.
Common MT459 Unit 7 mistakes, and how to avoid them
The commonest Unit 7 weakness is asking buyers what influenced them and reporting the answers as a single list. Another is treating all online content as one source, so creators, reviews and friends' posts blur together. Students often name concepts like opinion leaders without showing how they fit the evidence. Review samples are sometimes described without any coding. Paid endorsements are frequently ignored. Implications tend to recommend more social media without saying which stage that would affect. Before submitting, check that each stage in your analysis has its own evidence and its own concept. Then ask which stage the retailer can actually influence, and make sure your recommendations aim there rather than at the stage that happens entirely outside the store.
Get an MT459 Unit 7 example written to your instructions
Name the product category under study in Unit 7, or the one you shop in most, and attach the instructions with the grading rubric. Include any data you can reach, such as reviews or a few buyer interviews. The first custom analysis costs nothing and is back within 24-48h, each influence tied to the stage where it worked. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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MT459 Unit 7 questions, answered
How does informational influence differ from normative influence?
Informational influence is accepting others' behavior or opinions as evidence about what is true or good, as when a friend's experience convinces you a product works. Normative influence is conforming to fit in or gain approval. Both can shape one purchase. Deutsch and Gerard's 1955 study is the usual source, and your course text will likely define both.
Can I count influencer posts as social influence?
Yes. Creators often act as reference points for people who will never meet them, which is why many course texts treat them as a modern form of opinion leadership. Note whether a post discloses payment or free products, since that affects how audiences may read it, and avoid assuming either way without checking.
How do I show influence rather than just claim it?
Tie each claim to evidence of timing or behavior: when a buyer first encountered a source, what they did afterward, and what they say decided them. Asking about distinct moments, first awareness and final decision, usually reveals more than asking what influenced them overall. Quote respondents where possible and report how many gave each answer.
Where can I find a free MT459 Unit 7 sample paper?
The full MT459 Unit 7 analysis is printed on this page, separating awareness, persuasion and elimination in 58 self-cleaning litter box purchases.
Who decided most purchases in the MT459 Unit 7 sample?
A friend or relative who owned a working unit, named by 41 percent of buyers, since seeing a real cat use the box answered the main risk.