Relevância da informação de custo total para a tomada de decisão

Abstract

This research has the objective of verify the influence of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) on the consumers decision to purchase a car. An experiment was developed estimating the TCO of four vehicles with an estimated useful life of five years. The final research sample had 330 students, separated in two groups: the control group (without TCO information) and the experimental group (with TCO information). Multinomial logistic regression was used for the analysis. The results showed that the individual who has the TCO information tends to take a distinct decision of the one who do not have. In the control group, it was identified that the preponderant element to the consumer choice is the cost/ benefit attributed by him to the car, which is specific for each individual who takes the decision. It is possible to verify that when the individual has the TCO information, he tends to choose the option with a lower final value. However attributes such as trust in the brand are able to influence the consumer to remain in options that have higher total cost. It is hoped that the results contribute to the practice by highlighting the factors that affect the decision of consumer purchases, generating information for the management of production and costs of producing companies, as well as in a broader perspective, covering the value chain. The intention is to contribute also to the literature, increasing the knowledge about the TCO, when evidencing the influence of the information of the TCO in the decision of purchase of automobiles.