CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR TOWARDS ONLINE JEWELLERY SHOPPING

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1 CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR TOWARDS ONLINE JEWELLERY SHOPPING Prof.Jiger Manek 1, Dr.Ruta Khaparde 2 1,2 Special Reference with Mumbai Market SEC A&B ABSTRACT The previous research done on jewellery markets are 1) Retailers importance in selling Branded Jewellery in Mumbai 2) The growth of the Branded Jewellery market in India 3) Indian Gems and Jewellery Market - Future Prospects to ) The impact of recession on the jewellery industry The study has been done to find out the change of preference within consumers towards online shopping of jewellery. The study would also help to find out the consumer preference and their buying behavior towards Online shopping of jewellery, this study would help emerging companies to understand the market of online shopping and accordingly set the Business and Marketing strategies to channelize the growth aspects within jewellery industry. I. INTRODUCTION The online jewellery market has emerged as one of the fastest growing industries in Asia. This industry has been majorly driven by factors such as growing base of internet users, rising awareness among the users and lucrative prices of online jewellery. It has been observed that now majority of the Asian population is quite familiar with the internet and its widespread uses. Due to the convenience provided by online jewellery, customers can compare the jewellery offered by different companies easily. Asia online jewellery market has displayed a CAGR of 62.2% during the period In India, the market has evolved over the years, with metropolitan cities such as Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune and Bangalore driving growth in the Indian market. Customers are intrigued by lucrative prices of online jewellery. Additionally, major players are offering certificates of authenticity in the Indian market in order to build customer confidence. Young Indians falling in the age group years are driving demand for online jewellery in the country. The competition in India online jewellery market has remained concentrated among few major players though there are more than 20 e-commerce companies operating in this domain. Owing to the nascent size of the market, the players have been hesitant to make an entry into the market but several offline vendors have started selling their inventory through marketplace business model. The market for Indian online jewellery market is dominated by Carat Lane. The scenario is slightly different in China as demand for online jewellery is increasing rapidly in lower tier cities in China. However, security concerns with respect to purchasing goods online continue to deter consumers 109 P a g e

2 from purchasing jewellery online. The average ticket size for online jewellery is significantly lower online relative to offline sales. Additionally, major players are operating online shops through marketplaces such as Tmall and Tencent. The online jewellery market in Singapore, Japan and Indonesia is at a nascent stage as very few players are offering jewellery online. The market size of online jewellery in the aforementioned countries is significantly lower relative to India and China. The Asian Online jewellery market will continue to be dominated by China due to its large internet population and rising personal disposable income of the population. China would be followed by India as extensive advertising by major players will drive the demand for online jewellery in the country. Singapore is an ideal location for online jewellery due to its robust e-commerce market. Additionally, cross border sales in the country provide enormous opportunities for online retailers operating in the country. Online jewellery in Japan has not gained popularity as yet despite a large e-commerce market. The Japanese prefer to purchase jewellery at offline stores. Thus, the Japanese market offers fewer opportunities as compared to contemporaries. The Indonesian online jewellery market is extremely small as very few players are operating in the market. However, the country has immense potential as the average ticket size of online jewellery is significantly higher relative to established markets such as India and China. II. LITERATURE REVIEW Due to technological innovations, the traditional way of shopping has become insufficient for individuals. Individuals now prefer easy ways to reach brands and stores and it can be said that that 'The Internet has fundamentally changed customer's notions of convenience, speed, price, product information and service. As a result, it has given marketers a whole new way to create value for customers and build relationships with them' (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012; 532). Mehul Choksi - MD Gitanjali Group The Gems & Jewellery sector have been playing a very important role in the Indian economy and has been contributing to 6% to 7% of the country's GDP, apart from large scale employment generations and foreign exchange earnings. However, I am pleasantly surprised by the fact that the value created by Gems & Jewellery sector estimated at about INR 1,00,000 crores is as high as the apparel sector and much higher than many other sectors in India. The steps taken by the Indian Government to liberate Indian Gems & Jewellery sector in the 90's, is one of the important reason for the increase export contribution by this sector. The liberalization has also resulted in shift from the unorganized to a more organised set of players which resulted in greater transparency and adaption of higher quality and design standards. The recent steps taken by Government to restrict import of gold is definitely having a negative impact on Gems & Jewellery sector and we hope that this is only a short term measure and the Government quickly removes restrictions on gold consumed for jewellery manufacturing. The gems and jewellery industry plays an important part in the Indian economy. In addition to boasting a large online gems and jewellery market, India has a unique situation in terms of both demand and supply. E-commerce provides consumers more choices, more information and more ways to buy. Moreover, e- commerce will remain as a medium to sell products, services and content over the internet (Korper and Ellis, 2001; 1). 110 P a g e

3 According to the latest data, more than two billion people use the internet worldwide which equals to 30 percent of the world's population. Furthermore, individuals spend 5 percent of their total time on the internet with online shopping activity. (We are social, 2012). Due to technological innovations, the traditional way of shopping has become insufficient for individuals. Individuals now prefer easy ways to reach brands and stores and it can be said that that 'The Internet has fundamentally changed customer's notions of convenience, speed, price, product information and service. As a result, it has given marketers a whole new way to create value for customers and build relationships with them' (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012; 532). III. OBJECTIVE & SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The gems and jewelery industry occupies an important position in the Indian economy and is one of the fastest growing industries in the country. Hence the research conducted would help me 1) To understand the awareness about online shopping of jewellery 2) To know the consumer preference towards online shopping of jewellery 3) Understanding potential growth within online jewellery shopping 4) To study the need of education in reference to online jewellery shopping 3.1 Hypothesis 1) Educated consumers prefer online jewellery shopping 2) The preference among consumers towards online shopping has increased 3) Buying online jewellery is cheaper in terms of making charges 4) Commodity Market has an impact on online jewellery shopping 3.2 Research Methodology The data for this research project is collected through questionnaire. A structured questionnaire is framed as it is less time consuming, generates specific and to the point information, easier to tabulate and interpret. Moreover respondents prefer to give direct answers. Both type of questions i.e. Open ended and closed ended, is used. IV. COLLECTION OF DATA a) Primary Data: They were the main source of data collection. The method of collection of primary data would be direct personal interview through a structured questionnaire. b) Secondary Data: It was collected from internal sources. The secondary data was collected from the articles, news papers, management books, and the internet. V. SAMPLE SIZE Since it is not possible to study whole population of Mumbai within SEC A&B, hence only 100 consumers were interviewed falling under SEC A&B residing in mumbai. 111 P a g e

4 5.1 Data Interpretation and Analysis About 60% consumers are graduate, 22% are post graduate and rest 18% non-graduate. About 86% consumers are aware about online jewellery shopping Only 9% consumers have experienced online shopping About 90% consumers agreed that they find flexibility of time as one of the most convenient factor in terms of Online shopping. The consumers who have experienced online shopping : 41% consumer preferred 18% from 11% from 10% from 7% from titan.co.in, 5% from 4% from and 4% About 80% consumer came to know about online shopping from Television, 11% from Radio, 7% from Social Network sites and rest from other channels of communication. 69% consumers say they find more patterns in online shopping 93% consumers feel trust factor plays vital role in online shopping About 60% consumer say online jewellery making charges is less as compared to retail jewellery shops. 33% of consumer prefers Diwali, 28% of them said Dussehra, 16% of them said Akshay-Tritiya, 14% of them said Gudipadwa and 9% of them said other occasions they prefer. About 42% consumer said education of consumer has no impact towards online shopping and rest said it has impact. 60% of the consumer felt education on online jewellery shopping will have positive impact towards their buying behavior. 112 P a g e

5 74% of the consumers feel that commodity market has impact on their buying behavior. VI. CONCLUSION 1. The trend of online jewellery shopping has been preferred by consumers. Educated consumers prefer online jewellery shopping. 2. It seems website of Gitanjali was preferred by maximum consumers towards opting for online jewellery shopping 3. Consumers are finding more designs available while online shopping, which makes their shopping experience more attractive. 4. Festival seasons has experienced the maximum sale, that means traditional approach still continues in certain aspects and Diwali seemed to be the festival where maximum number of consumer prefer shopping. 5. The Consumers are aware about the facts regarding online jewellery shopping has less making charges in comparison retail shopping. 6. Trust factor plays vital role from consumer s point of view towards online jewellery shopping. 7. Commodity market has impact on consumer buying behavior. 8. Education on online jewellery shopping is required to have positive buying behavior towards online shopping VII. RECOMMENDATIONS 1. There is a huge need in online jewellery shopping industry in regards to the education to consumer about technical online shopping of jewellery. 2. Since trust factor is the important reason why consumer lack in terms of preference of online jewellery shopping, companies should take initiatives to built up that trust factor and make them educate about all the certification program and technicalities involved while online jewellery shopping. 3. Companies need to come up with more and more communication through media and other channels to create awareness about online jewellery shopping. 4. Young educated generation prefers online shopping, which can be used as the weapon by companies and start mode of educational communication to tab the other market that motivates buying pattern of online jewellery. 5. Online website companies need to communicate about the positive aspects such as less making charges, built up a trust factor, more availability of designs and assurance of quality and many other aspects that can attract the consumer. 6. Since maximum number of customers visit retail shop because of the trust factor rather than service and other means, companies have better opportunity of making their products available to the nearest retail jeweler, after online bookings of jewellery. 113 P a g e

6 7. Since retailers have started coming up with different marketing campaigns apart from general discounts on making charges, Online companies have better scope to implement such campaigns at larger scale. 8. Major focus of online companies should be during festive seasons like Diwali, wherein maximum consumers prefer buying jewellery. 9. Time factor such as 24hrs online shopping, with all the other flexibilities of mode of payment can play vital role for companies to pull consumers towards Online shopping. BIBLIOGRAPHY Secondary data collected from the Internet and Books: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) IM148.htm 8) 9) 10) 11) PK Korgaonkar, Consumer Shopping Orientations, non-store retailers & Consumers Patronage intentions in Journal of The Acadamy of Marketing Science, 1994 Springer. 12) Korper, S., Ellis, J. (2001), Setting the vision, The e-commerce book, building the e-empire, San Diego: Academic Press. 13) Kotler, P., Armstrong, G. (2010), Principles of Marketing, (13th edition), New Jersey: Pearson Education. 14) Kotler, P., Armstrong, G. (2012), Principles of Marketing, New Jersey: Pearson Education 15) We are social (2012), [online] Available at: P a g e