Project report on Consumer Behavior

A Synopsis on the project

Introduction: A persons behavior changes from place to place and situation to situation or, say
it is very inconsistent. The person when has a need, is willing and able to satisfy the need is
called a CONSUMER. The consumer would go different ways to satisfy its needs depending on
his social, cultural, family, economic and educational background. Consumer is the principle a
priori of business. The efficiency with which a free market system of enterprise operates,
depends upon the extent of consumer understanding possessed by the business community. A
business community that is ignorant of consumer preferences cannot possibly fulfill its
obligations in a meaningful and responsive manner. So here comes the need to study
CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR. Consumer Behavior is broadly defined as the behavior the
consumer displays in searching for, purchasing, using and evaluating products, services, and
ideas which they expect will satisfy their needs. Consumer Behavior is not only the study of
what people consume, but is also the study of who the consumers are, why they consume, how
often they consume, and under what conditions they consume. CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
refers to the buying behavior of ultimate consumers, those persons who purchase products for
personal or household use, not for business purpose. The general structure and concept of
consumer behavior is fragmented into four major categories External influence, Internal
influence, Self concept and lifestyle, Decision making. External influences include culture,
subculture, demographics, social status, reference group, marketing activities and family. Internal
influences include perception, learning, memory, motives, personality emotions, and attitude.

The self concept and lifestyle produce needs and desire, many of which consumption decision to
specify.
Objective of research
Knowledge of consumer behavior is critical for influencing not only product purchase decisions
but also important marketing decisions for commercial firms, nonprofit organizations, and
regulatory agencies. Applications of consumer behavior decisions lie on marketing strategies,
regulatory policies, social marketing, and informed individual. So the main objective of this
project is to find out the different views, Ideas, concepts and behaviors a consumer does before
he or she purchase a product. Essentially the projects aim is to widen the marketers view on
consumers approach in making buying decision.

Research Methodology
Research methodology is considered as the nerve of the project. Without a proper well crafted
research plan, it is impossible to complete a project and reach to any conclusion. The project
was based on survey plan with some questions for the consumers. The main goal of survey was
to collect appropriate data, which work as a base for drawing conclusion and getting result.
Therefore, research methodology is the way to systematically solve the research problem.
Research methodology not only talks of the methods but also logic behind the methods used in
the context of a research study and it explains why a particular method has been used in the
preference of the other methods.
All the data collected is from the primary source in which interview was conducted with
individual on respondent convenient time where several question had asked in the form of
questioner (attached) which consist of question on the demographic details (Age, Gender,

Qualification etc) the culture and subculture and the various ritual and norms, about the family
structure he belongs to and the factor on which he decide to purchase casual/sports attire. Some
of the open ended question also asked abstract the information (i.e who is the decision, initiator,
influencer, payer, user the various source of information and finally the place of purchase).

Research design:
Research design is important primarily because of the increased complexity in the market as well
as marketing approaches available to the researchers. In fact, it is the key to the evolution of
successful marketing strategies and programmers. It is an important tool to study buyers
behaviour, consumption pattern, brand loyalty, and focus market changes. A research design
specifies the methods and procedures for conducting a particular study. According to Kerlinger,
Research Design is a plan, conceptual structure, and strategy of investigation conceived as to
obtain answers to research questions and to control variance.
Types of research are:
Descriptive Research
The type of research adopted for study is descriptive. Descriptive studies are undertaken in many
circumstances when the researches is interested to know the characteristic of certain group such
as age, sex, education level, occupation or income. A descriptive study may be necessary in cases
when a researcher is interested in knowing the proportion of people in a given population who
have in particular manner, making projections of a certain thing, or determining the relationship
between two or more variables. The objective of such study is to answer the who, what, when,
where and how of the subject under investigation. There is a general feeling that descriptive

studies are factual and very simple. This is not necessarily true. Descriptive study can be
complex, demanding a high degree of scientific skill on part of the researcher.
Descriptive studies are well structured. An exploratory study needs to be flexible in its approach,
but a descriptive study in contrast tends to be rigid and its approach cannot be changed every
now and then. It is therefore necessary, the researcher give sufficient thought to framing research.
Questions and deciding the types of data to be collected and the procedure to be used in this
purpose.
Descriptive studies can be divided into two broad categories: Cross Sectional and Longitudinal
Sectional. A cross sectional study is concerned with a sample of elements from a given
population. Thus, it may deal with household, dealers, retail stores, or other entities. Data on a
number of characteristics from sample elements are collected and analyzed. Cross sectional
studies are of two types: Field study and Survey. Although the distinction between them is not
clear- cut, there are some practical differences, which need different techniques and skills. Field
studies are ex-post-factor scientific inquiries that aim at finding the relations and interrelations
among variables in a real setting. Such studies are done in live situations like communities,
schools, factories, and organizations.
Another type of cross sectional study is survey result, which has been taken by me. A major
strength of survey research is its wide scope. Detail information can be obtained from a sample
of large population .Besides; it is economical as more information can be collected per unit of
cost. In addition, it is obvious that a sample survey needs less time than a census inquiry.
Descriptive research includes survey and fact finding enquiries of different kinds of the major
purpose. Descriptive research is description of the state of affairs, as it exists at present. The
main characteristic of this method is that the researcher has no control over the variables; he can

only report what has happened or what is happening. The methods of research utilized in
descriptive research are survey methods of all kinds including comparative and co relational
methods. The reason for using such needs to be flexile in its approach, but a descriptive study in
contrast tends to be rigid and its approach cannot be changed ever now and then.

Data collection methods:

After the research problem, we have to identify and select which type of data is to research. At
this stage; we have to organize a field survey to collect the data. One of the important tools for
conducting market research is the availability of necessary and useful data.
Primary data: For primary data collection, we have to plan the following four important
aspects.

Sampling

Research Instrument

Secondary Data company profiles, their products, journals and various literature
studies are important sources of secondary data.

Data analysis and interpretation

1.

Questionnaires

2.

Pie chart and Bar chart

Questionnaires:
This is the most popular tool for the data collection. A questionnaire contains question that the
researcher wishes to ask his respondents which is always guided by the objective of the survey.
Pie chart:

This is very useful diagram to represent data, which are divided into a number of categories. This
diagram consists of a circle of divided into a number of sectors, which are proportional to the
values they represent. The total value is represented by the full create. The diagram bar chart can
make comparison among the various components or between a part and a whole of data.
Bar chart:
This is another way of representing data graphically. As the name implies, it consist of a number
of whispered bar, which originate from a common base line and are equal widths. The lengths of
the bards are proportional to the value they represent.
Preparation of report:
The report was based on the analysis and presented with the findings and suggestions. The
sample of the questionnaires is attached with the report itself.
Sampling Methodology:
Details of the sampling methodology, we have made questionnaire. The one is made for the
Commuters.
No. of questions in questionnaires for customer:
No. of question related to services offered:
No. of respondents during the research:
Sample unit
Professionals, Business man,
Employees, Student

Analysis:
Q1. How long youre using the this product or service?

07
05
15

a) Less than a year

b) 1-5 years
c) >5 years

Q.2.Tick the appropriate column

SERVICE
a) Excellent
b) Good
c) Fair
d) Bad
e) Very bad

MAINTANANCE
a)

Excellent

b)

Good

c)

Fair

d)

Bad

e)

Very bad
PRICE

a)

Excellent

b)

Good

c)

Fair

d)

Bad

e)

Very bad

PERFORMANCE
a)

Excellent

b)

Good

c)

Fair

d)

Bad

e)

Very bad

Some other methods:

Projective techniques are used when a consumer may feel embarrassed to admit to certain
opinions, feelings, or preferences. For example, many older executives may not be comfortable
admitting to being intimidated by computers. It has been found that in such cases, people will
tend to respond more openly about someone else. Thus, we may ask them to explain reasons
why a friend has not yet bought a computer, or to tell a story about a person in a picture who is
or is not using a product. The main problem with this method is that it is difficult to analyze
responses.
Projective techniques are inherently inefficient to use. The elaborate context that has to be put
into place takes time and energy away from the main question. There may also be real
differences between the respondent and the third party. Saying or thinking about something that
hits too close to home may also influence the respondent, who may or may not be able to see
through the ruse.

Observation of consumers is often a powerful tool. Looking at how consumers select products
may yield insights into how they make decisions and what they look for. For example, some
American manufacturers were concerned about low sales of their products in Japan. Observing
Japanese consumers, it was found that many of these Japanese consumers scrutinized packages
looking for a name of a major manufacturerthe product specific-brands that are common in the
U.S. (e.g., Tide) were not impressive to the Japanese, who wanted a name of a major firm like
Mitsubishi or Proctor & Gamble. Observation may help us determine how much time consumers
spend comparing prices, or whether nutritional labels are being consulted.
A question arises as to whether this type of spying inappropriately invades the privacy of
consumers. Although there may be cause for some concern in that the particular individuals
have not consented to be part of this research, it should be noted that there is no particular
interest in what the individual customer being watched does. The question is what consumers
either as an entire group or as segmentsdo. Consumers benefit, for example, from stores that
are designed effectively to promote efficient shopping. If it is found that women are more
uncomfortable than men about others standing too close, the areas of the store heavily trafficked
by women can be designed accordingly. What is being reported here, then, are averages and
tendencies in response. The intent is not to find juicy observations specific to one customer.
Online research methods. The Internet now reaches the great majority of households in the U.S.,
and thus, online research provides new opportunity and has increased in use.
There are certain drawbacks to online surveys. Some consumers may be more comfortable with
online activities than othersand not all households will have access. Today, however, this type
of response bias is probably not significantly greater than that associated with other types of
research methods. A more serious problem is that it has consistently been found in online

research that it is very difficultif not impossibleto get respondents to carefully read
instructions and other information onlinethere is a tendency to move quickly. This makes it
difficult to perform research that depends on the respondents reading of a situation or product
description.
The consumers shopping record is usually combined with demographic information (e.g.,
income, educational level of adults in the household, occupations of adults, ages of children, and
whether the family owns and rents) and the familys television watching habits. (Electronic
equipment run by firms such as A. C. Nielsen will actually recognize the face of each family
member when he or she sits down to watch).

It is now possible to assess the relative impact of a number of factors on the consumers choice
e.g.,

What brand in a given product category was bought during the last, or a series of past,
purchase occasions;

Whether, and if so, how many times a consumer has seen an ad for the brand in question
or a competing one;

Whether the target brand (and/or a competing one) is on sale during the store visit;

Whether any brand had preferential display space;

The impact of income and/or family size on purchase patterns; and

Whether a coupon was used for the purchase and, if so, its value.

Time frame:
Although the study was carried out with extreme enthusiasm and careful planning there are
several limitations, which handicapped the research viz,
1. Time Constraints:
The time stipulated for the project to be completed is less and thus there are chances that some
information might have been left out, however due care is taken to include all the relevant
information needed.
2. Accuracy:
It is difficult to know if all the respondents gave accurate information;
some respondents tend to give misleading information. It was difficult to find respondents as
they were busy in their schedule, and collection of data was very difficult. Therefore, the study
had to be carried out based on the availability of respondents.