Effect of product presentation order and purchase quantity on consumers’ additional purchase behavior

We examined how presentation order and purchase quantity affect the purchase intention of consumers and the amount of information they search for in regard to target products. Participants (N = 122) were students at universities in the Republic of Korea who were assigned to 1 of 3 types of experimental condition. The effects of presentation order were tested in conditions where the number of products being purchased was small. The effects of purchase quantity were examined in conditions where the number of products being purchased was larger. Results showed that when a small number of items made up the purchase presentation order this had an effect on purchase intention but did not affect the amount of information the participants searched for about the target products. When participants were purchasing a large number of products this increased the intention to purchase the target product and decreased the amount of information search performed. Our findings in this study have an important implication for irrational consumerism in that buying a large number of products led to consumers more readily making unplanned additional purchases.