Once the alternatives have been evaluated, the consumer firms up their resolve to proceed through to the actual purchase. For example, the consumer might say to his/herself, "Yes, I will buy Brand X one day." This self instruction to make a purchase is known as "purchase intent." Purchase intentions are a strong, yet imperfect predictor of sales. Sometimes purchase intentions simply do not translate into an actual purchase and this can signal a marketing problem. For instance, a consumer may wish to buy a new product, but may be unaware of the retail outlets that stock it, so that purchasing cannot proceed. The extent to which purchase intentions result in actual sales is known as the "sales conversion" rate.