In marketing, advertisements or salespeople can activate a consumer's purchase decision process by .a. showing the shortcomings of competing (or currently owned) products. b. manipulating a customer's want into a need. c. shifting the consumer's focus from internal search to external search. d. creating a sense of irony or amusement. e. promising product attributes that exceed the actual product potential.

The correct answer is the option B: manipulating a customer's want into a need.

Explanation:

To begin with, in the field of marketing there are several instruments that can be used in order to obtain the customer's attention, such as the advertisements and the salespeople. Moreover, these two types of tools can generate in the client a shift in his behavior that makes him feel that his desire or want is now a new need that must be satisfy. Therefore that the advertisements tend to capture the people's attention with bright colors and wonderfull and desired situations. And the salespeople tend to push the clients into buy some items that may complement the primary product that they are buying.

A) showing the shortcomings of competing (or currently owned) products.

Explanation:

When a salesperson shows you the shortcomings of the products or services that you currently own, it means that they are pointing out the defects of those products. E.g. you own a car that consumes a lot of gas, but you didn't notice how inefficient your car was until the salesperson tells you that new cars consume 30% less gas.

Since you now know that you have a product that is not so good as you thought, you realize that you have a problem. Once you realize a problem, your buying decision process starts (problem recognition is the first step in the buying decision process).

answer; is usually (less than) the socially optimal level of consumption;