ABSTRACT OF THE PhD THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE UIVERSITY OF PUE A STUDY OF BUYIG MOTIVES AD THEIR EFFECTS O COSUMER BEHAVIOUR I THE CELLULAR MARKET OF SELECTED ITERATIOAL COMPAIES. SUBJECT : COMMERCE ( MARKETIG ) BY HAMID KARAMIA UDER THE GUIDACE OF Dr. M.D. LAWRECE RESEARCH CETRE I COMMERCE, POOA COLLEGE, CAMP,PUE JULY 2007 s
ITRODUCTIO As the mobile phone industry has reached the target of securing its second billion subscribers, the demand for a new generation of handsets with different features have forced manufacturer to pay much closer attention to their device portfolios.so with the intense competition, operators need to work closely with mobile handset makers and software developers to match their handset portfolios according to consumers desires and needs. Businessmen, field workers and other consumers have different wants and desires and they are looking for some features such as ease-of-use, phone book, reminder, push-to-talk, camera phones, multimedia messaging service (MMS), video streaming, audio streaming, etc. This makes it evitable for handset manufacturers, operators and software developers to pay more attention to buying motives of different consumers. The present study is attempting to evaluate the factors influencing handset users in forming purchase decision. This study focuses on the mobile handset features and buying motives and their effects on purchase decision of consumers (postgraduate and research students of Pune university inside the campus). The research design provides a scope for drawing logical conclusions. The study relies mainly on the primary data collected through validated questionnaires. Consumer purchase behaviour for handset, influence in the decision making is more complex. This research explicitly clears the relationship between logical and emotional buying motives with their relative influence on consumer purchase decision. Logical motive is a result from a process in which the individual assesses the expected value of the product through the influence options regarding cost and benefits of using a product available to him and hence it is subjective. Emotional motive is a result from those aspects for the purchase that are indirectly related to the anticipated performance of the product and directly related to the consumer s social and psychological interpretation of the product. t
SCOPE OF THE STUDY : The scope of the study is to identify the product features (logical and emotional) includes the study of mobile handset features, buying motives and buying behaviour of postgraduate and research students of Pune University campus. This study also highlights the difference between logical and emotional motives influencing the purchase decision. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY : The objectives of the study include the following: 1. To investigate, identify, and classify the product features in the mobile handset market of international companies. 2. To study and classify product features based on buying motives in the study area. 3. To investigate and identify buying motives that have more effects on purchase decision. 4. To study the buying behaviour of consumers in the said market. 5. To analyze, identify, and compare logical and emotional buying motives which have more effects on purchase decisions. 6. To analyze demographic characteristics of consumers and their effects on consumer s brand and price preferences in the said market. HYPOTHESES OF THE STUDY : The following are the hypotheses : Hypothesis 1. The importance of Logical-related features of handsets for making purchase decision is more than Emotional-related features as per the consumer s point of view. Hypothesis 2. There is a significant association between consumer income and price preference. Hypothesis 3. There is a significant association between consumer income and brand preference. Hypothesis 4. There is a significant association between age and importance of emotional and logical features of handset: u
Hypothesis 5. The logical buying motives are associated with emotional buying motives. The researcher tested all these hypotheses for : i. for all ii. for men iii. for women SIGIFICACE OF THE STUDY : The study is significant to: 1. Make a systematic effort to understand the consumers needs and wants. 2. Increase the consumer satisfaction. 3. Prepare a plan for developing new products. 4. Give appropriate feedback for corrective actions to the management of companies. 5. Help the marketers to devise and formulate sales promotion programmes(spp) and develop new marketing strategies. ORGAISATIO OF THE STUDY CHAPTER I: It covers definitions, aims and objectives, hypotheses, assumptions and limitations of the study. CHAPTER II: It deals with the review of literature. CHAPTER III: It covers a historical perspective of cellular phones. CHAPTER IV: It focuses on the research design and research methodology. CHAPTER V: It deals with the analysis of data. CHAPTER VI: It represents the findings, summary, and conclusions of the Study. COCLUSIOS TESTIG OF HYPOTHESES Scores : The logical-related and emotional-related scores are calculated by using mean values of responses of appropriate questions. Hypothesis 1: The following hypothesis was tested. v
H 0 (ull hypothesis): Mean of logical-related score = Mean of emotional-related score. H 1 (Alternative hypothesis): Mean of logical-related score > Mean of emotionalrelated Score. The test statistics used to test this hypothesis are t-test and Wilcoxon signed rank test. i. For All : a. Parametric test T-Test: ( t- value= 12.988, P=0.000, mean of logical scores =3.99, mean of emotional scores = 3.69 ) b. on Parametric Test Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test: ( P= 0.000, Z= -11.233, o. of logical ranks =274, o. of emotional ranks= 106, o.of equal ranks= 20, n = 400 ) ii. For Men : a. Parametric test T-Test: (t-value= 9.072, P= 0.000, mean of logical scores = 4,mean of emotional scores = 3.77 ) b. on Parametric test Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test: ( P= 0.000, Z= -8.148, o. of logical ranks = 173,o. of emotional ranks = 80, o. of equal ranks = 20, n = 273 ) w
iii. For Women : a. Parametric test T-Test : (t-value= 9.883,P = 0.000, mean of logical scores = 3.97, mean of emotional Scores = 3.52 ) b. on Parametric Test: Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test: ( P = 0.000, Z = -7.717, o. of logical ranks = 101, o. of emotional ranks = 26, n = 127 ) Conclusion: Mean logical-related score is significantly greater than mean emotional-related score.i.e. logical-related features are more important than emotional-related features. Hypothesis 2 : The following hypothesis was tested: H 0 (ull hypothesis) : Correlation between consumer s income and price preference =0. H 1 (Alternative hypothesis) : : Correlation between consumer s income and price Preference 0. The test statistic used to test this hypothesis is Chales Spearman s on-parametric correlation coefficient. Spearman,s rho test : i. For All : (r = 0.179, P = 0.000, n = 400 ) ii. For Men : The null hypothesis is accepted. (r = 0.072, P = 0.234, n = 273 ) iii. For Women : (r = 0.382, P = 0.000, n = 127 ) x
Conclusion: Correlation between consumer s income and price preference is not equal to zero in case of all respondents and women. However for men this coefficient is significantly equal to zero. This implies that, there is a positive association between income of women and price preference. However high income in men is not associated with high price preference. Hypothesis 3 : The following hypothesis was tested: H 0 (ull hypothesis): There is no association between consumer income and brand preference. H 1 (Alternative hypothesis): There is a significant association between consumer income and brand preference. The test statistic used to test this hypothesis is Chi-square test for association of two attributes (on-parametric test). Chi-Square Test : i. For All : The null hypothesis is accepted. (Chi-square value= 25.761, P = 0.105, n = 400 ) ii. For Men : (Chi-square value= 42.793, P = 0.001, n = 273 ) iii. For Women : The null hypothesis is accepted. (Chi-square value= 17.580, P = 0.129, n = 127 ) Conclusion: There is no significant association between consumer s income and brand preference in case of all respondents and women. However for men there is a significant association between income and brand preference. Hypothesis 4 : The following hypothesis was tested: H 0 (ull hypothesis): Correlation between age and total score of buying motives(logical + emotional) = 0 v/s H 1 (Alternative hypothesis): Correlation between age and total score of buying motives(logical + emotional) 0 y
The test statistic used to test this hypothesis is Charles Spearman s onparametric correlation coefficient. Spearman s rho test : i. For All : The null hypothesis is accepted. (r = -0.05, P = 0.928, n = 400 ) ii. For Men : (r = -0.123, P = 0.043) iii. For Women : (r = 0.290, P = 0.001 ) Conclusion: There is an inverse association between age and importance of emotional and logical features of handset in case of men. However there is a positive association between age and importance of emotional and logical features of handset in case of women. The higher age in men was associated with lower preference for variety of product features.but higher age in women was associated with higher preference for variety of product features. Hypothesis 5 : The following hypothesis was tested: H 0 (ull hypothesis): Correlation between logical buying motives and emotional buying motives = 0 v/s H 1 (Alternative hypothesis): Correlation between logical buying motives and emotional buying motives 0. The test statistic used to test this hypothesis is Charles Spearman s onparametric correlation analysis. The logical buying motives are classified as : a. Health and Safety b. Economy c. Quality d. eed and Conformity e. Time and Effort Saved f. Security While the emotional buying motives are classified as : a. Fashion and imitation b. Amusement c. Convenience and Comfort. z
The following tables show correlation coefficient between logical and emotional buying motives. 1. Table for all Spearman s rho test- onparametric Correlations - Logical Buying Motives and Emotional Buying Motives Correlations Spearman's rho Fashion and Imitation Amusement Convenience and Comfort Health eed and Time and and Saf ety Economy Quality Conformity ef fort sav ed Security.405**.392**.063.439**.368**.192**.000.000.210.000.000.000 400 400 400 400 400 400.343**.361**.226**.511**.441**.380**.000.000.000.000.000.000 400 400 400 400 400 400.629**.615**.354**.773**.721**.519**.000.000.000.000.000.000 400 400 400 400 400 400 **. Correlation is signif icant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). 2. Table for men and women Spearman s rho test- onparametric Correlations for Men and Women Correlations Sex Male Spearman's rho Fashion and Imitation Amusement Convenience and Comfort Health eed and Time and and Saf ety Economy Quality Conformity eff ort sav ed Security.523**.510**.201**.569**.474**.267**.000.000.001.000.000.000 273 273 273 273 273 273.446**.490**.370**.626**.583**.466**.000.000.000.000.000.000 273 273 273 273 273 273.718**.670**.490**.803**.747**.649**.000.000.000.000.000.000 273 273 273 273 273 273 Female Spearman's rho Fashion and Imitation Amusement Convenience and Comfort.112.112 -.274**.172.093 -.014.210.210.002.053.298.878 127 127 127 127 127 127.034.084 -.049.286**.095.142.707.346.582.001.289.112 127 127 127 127 127 127.404**.461**.033.725**.668**.148.000.000.715.000.000.097 127 127 127 127 127 127 **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). i. For All : a. Association of fashion and imitation motives with logical buying motives: aa
I. For quality motive: The null hypothesis is accepted. ( r = 0.063, P = 0.210) II. For health & safety, economy, need & conformity, time & effort saved and Security motive : ( r = 0.405 and P = 0.000, r = 0.392 and P = 0.000, r = 0.439 and P = 0.000, r = 0.368 and P = 0.000,r = 0.192 and P = 0.000 respectively ) b. Association of amusement motive with logical buying motives : ( r = 0.343 and P = 0.000, r = 0.361 and P = 0.000, r = 0.226 and P = 0.000, r = 0.511and P = 0.000, r = 0.441 and P = 0.000, r = 0.380 and P = 0.000 respectively ) c. Association of convenience and comfort buying motives with logical buying motives : ( r = 0.629 and P = 0.000, r = 0.615 and P = 0.000, r = 0.354 and P = 0.000, r = 0.773 and P = 0.000, r = 0.721 and P = 0.000,r = 0.519 and P = 0.000 respectively ) ii. For Men : a. Association of fashion and imitation with logical buying motives: ( r = 0.523 and P = 0.000,r = 0.510 and P = 0.000, r = 0.201 and P = 0.001, r = 0.569 and P = 0.000, r = 0.474 and P = 0.000, r = 0.267 and P = 0.000 respectively ) b. Association of amusement motive with logical buying motives : ( r = 0.446 and P = 0.000, r = 0.490 and P = 0.000, r = 0.370 and P = 0.000, r = 0.626 and P = 0.000, r = 0.583 and P = 0.000, r = 0.466 and P = 0.000 respectively ) bb
c. Association of convenience and comfort motives with logical buying motives : ( r = 0.718 and P = 0.000, r = 0.670 and P = 0.000, r = 0.490 and P = 0.000, r = 0.803 and P = 0.000, r = 747 and P = 0.000, r = 0.649 and P = 0.000 respectively ) iii. For women : a. Association of fashion and imitation motives with logical buying motives : The null hypothesis is accepted. ( r = 0.112 and P = 0.210, r = 0.112 and P = 0.210, r = -0.274 and P = 0.002, r = 0.172 and P = 0.053, r = 0.093 and P = 0.298, r = -0.014 and P = 0.878, respectively ) b. Association of amusement motive with logical buying motives : I. For need and conformity motives : ( r = 0.286 and P = 0.001 ) II. For health & safety, economy, quality, time & effort saved, security motive : The null hypothesis is accepted. (r = 0.034 and P = 0.707, r = 0.084 and P = 0.346, r = -0.049 and P = 0.582, r = 0.095 and P = 0.289, r = 0.142 and P = 0.112 respectively ) c. Association of convenience and comfort buying motives with logical buying motives : I. For quality and security motives : The null hypothesis is accepted. ( r = 0.033 and P = 0.715, r = 0.148 and P = 0.097 respectively) II. For health & safety, economy, need & conformity, time & effort saved motives : (r = 0.404 and P = 0.000, r = 0.461 and P = 0.000, r = 0.725 and P = 0.000, r = 0.668 and P = 0.000 respectively ) cc
COCLUSIO : In general in men and women there is a significant direct (positive) association between logical and emotional buying motives. However it is interesting to note inverse association between the emotional buying motives and quality preference among women. Also there is no correlation between emotional buying motives and security aspects among women consumers. FIDIGS The most important emotional-related features as per the consumers point of view are configuration and elegance. The most important logical-related features as per the consumer points of view are suitable battery, phone book, SMS and reminder. The purchasing decisions of men and women are more affected by logicalrelated features rather than emotional-related features. The highest percentage of positive attitudes of consumers towards handset features is related to configuration feature 97%. The lowest percentage of positive attitude of consumers towards handset features is related to TV feature of handset, 30%. The most negative attitude of consumers towards buying motives is related to the amusement motive, 34.5%. The most positive attitude of consumers towards buying motives is related to quality motive, 84%. The purchasing decisions of more than 80% of respondents are influenced by quality motive. The purchasing decisions of 70% to 80% of respondents are influenced by need and conformity motives, security motives, health and safety motives, time and efforts saved motives, and convenience and comfort motives. The purchasing decisions of 40% to 70% of respondents are influenced by fashion and Imitation motives, economy motives and amusement motives. dd
On the basis of respondent responses the following ranks for 9 buying motives under the study were determined: Buying Motives Ranks Buying Motive % Rank Buying Motive % Rank Quality 84% 1 Convenience and Comfort 71% 6 eed and Conformity 75.25 2 Fashion and Imitation 69.25 7 Security 74.25 3 Economy 65.75 8 Health and Safety 73.5 4 Amusement 46.75 9 Time & Effort Saved 72.75 5 SUGGESTIOS It is ascertained that the consumers while taking decision are more affected by logical buying motives rather than emotional buying motives. Therefore, the R&D committees in companies should pay much attention to this characteristic of consumers. One of the most important issues in this era in marketing is product convergence. In mobile handset market it could be consider as the best combination of different features, which satisfy different consumers needs. The features portfolio should be a combination of logical and emotional features for maximizing consumer s satisfaction. One of the most powerful motivators for purchasing decision in the handset market is quality motive. Therefore, the handset producer companies should focus on this motive. Social status is one of the most important needs of consumers in the handset market. Therefore, the companies should pay much attention to this need. Configuration and elegance are two important features of handsets, which are related to social status of consumers and highly demanded by them. The companies should conduct research periodically to identify the changes in buying motives of consumers with the passage of time. Because with the ee
technological advancements the companies should spend huge amount of money for purpose of product development and technological innovation and that should be spend in the right direction. Allocating necessary budget for purpose of developing the products should be a function of those buying motives that are very important for consumers. The consumers are influenced by both logical and emotional-related product features. Therefore, the mobile handset producers should consider the best combination of two groups features for producing a product. And those features should be highly demanded by consumers and maximize the satisfaction of their needs and desires. The most important handset features as per the consumers points of view should be consider as a basis for doing further research to increase the capability of each handset feature. Classifying product features to two categories, emotional-related and logicalrelated, will help the handset producers to consider both features for producing a product. Therefore, they can satisfy emotional as well as logical related desires of consumers. To allocate different ranks to different buying motives of consumers on the basis of a scientific marketing research, will help the management of companies to focus on the most important buying motives of consumers while making decision regarding produce of a new product. ff