There is increasing interest in the problematic behaviour of consumers in budgetary and financial terms. Behavioural change models can help put in place social marketing initiatives in this respect. This paper reveals that the strategies for change used by consumers are fundamentally approach and avoidance strategies. It proposes a model to define the role of decisional balance in the way these strategies are used. This model is applied to groups made up of consumers in similar situations and on a trajectory towards change. The dimensions of change in the transtheoretical model (precontemplation, contemplation, action and maintenance) served as the basis for forming these groups, in line with previous research that adopted this orientation rather than a series of successive and distinct phases in the change process. Our findings have direct implications for our understanding of behavioural change and social marketing actions in this area of study.