The purpose of the activities in Section 1 is to examine the factors that influence consumer purchasing decisions and develop skills as more critical consumers.

In particular, the activities:

examine the role of advertising and marketing, the impact of fashions and trends and the values underlying consumer purchasing decisions
examine the protections the Fair Trading Act provides consumers in prohibiting misleading and deceptive conduct by traders
demonstrate the power young people have as a consumer group.

Section 1 - Documents to Download (PDF Format)

Section 1 - all documents

Section 1 - Individual Documents

Being an ACE Consumer

Activity 1 - Choosing a purchase

Activity 2 - Making a purchasing decision

Activity 2 - Process of making a purchasing decision

Activity 2 - Purchasing decision overview

Activity 3 - Investigating a purchase

Activity 3 - Investigating a purchase - the two-stop shop

Activity 4 - Reflection and evaluation

Students will complete a number of activities that contribute to a summative graphic organiser illustrating the factors that influence a consumer purchasing decision.

Learning intention for students

We will examine and describe the factors that influence people’s purchasing decisions and the process which leads to a consumer decision.

How will we know we have done these things?

We will be able to:

choose an item(s) worth up to $100 for an imaginary purchase
describe factors that influenced the choice of the item(s) for purchase
collate reasons for a purchase choice from members of our class on a mind map
tally reasons for purchase choices of members of our class and record these on a structural overview
examine the steps consumers can take when making a purchase decision and apply these to the decision-making used to select an item/items for the imaginary $100 purchase.

Background information

The main ideas explored in Section 1 are:

When making decisions about what to buy, consumers are influenced by factors such as advertising, marketing, product availability and product information.
A purchasing decision also reflects the unique attributes, values and desires of the consumer. These include individual assets, needs and wants, the degree of influence of peers and trends, and the nature of the wanted goods.
Where businesses are required to provide information, they must meet their legal obligations. Where businesses provide additional information, that information must be accurate. It should not mislead or deceive (trick or lie to) the consumer. (See the Fair Trading Act for more information).