Cluster Analysis for Better Segmentation: A Study on Branded Female Personal Care Products

T. Suchitra Rani
Consumer behavior has broken new ground over the years. This has become even more relevant in the present- day world, marked up by rapid changes in lifestyles, demographics and the growing importance of social status. Besides consumers, this is of considerable interest to manufacturers, advertisers, research agencies, and students of human behavior. Understanding Consumer behaviour starts with segmentation. With changes in lifestyle, the Indian personal care market has been showing healthy growth rates in recent years. The preferences of Indian consumers are witnessing a shift from the merely functional products to more advanced and specialized cosmetic items. When clustering is applied to data that relates to customer buying habits, gender, age, income, etc. it helps in discovering distinct groups in their customer base. This will help marketers to customize their marketing and product development strategy to each consumer group to increase sales and build brand loyalty.
Introduction easy availability of consumer finance is making the consumer demand better branded Personal Care products. As a result almost all brands are trying to gain the major share of a customers valet. In recent years some of the products like those required for health care and personal care have been able to capture the attention of the customers who are becoming more health and beauty conscious. Be it Garnier Light Matte or Olay whitening or Revlon Whitening cream, in the last one year Indian Cosmetic Market has witnessed the availability of a whole new range of personal care products, with special emphasis on women personal care products. Not only the whitening creams

t the outset it is ultimately the consumer who generates revenue for a company and so, attempts to satisfy the revenue generating consumer has become a concern of paramount importance in this competitive business world. A combination of factors like Information explosion, Product penetration Rural and Urban, Growing pace of innovation, Increasing income levels, Seamless boundaries, Increasing attention to personal care and hygiene, Competitive pricing, Entry of MNCS in the cosmetics market in a big way and

T. Suchitra Rani is Lecturer, Siva Sivani Institute of Management Studies, Secunderabad.

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but many other new variants are being offered by all the major brands in Skin Care and Hair Care . 1 (Consumers preferences are shifting towards higher lifestyle categories like skin care, shampoos, deodorants, anti-ageing solutions, fairness products and mens products in particular. The sector saw the launch of 251 new products last year.) Review of Literature A study by Jai Singh Parmar (2007) conducted in Shimla focussed on understanding the demographic factors that influence the use of cosmetics namely age, occupation and income in the town. It was also found that brand switching was common among cosmetics users, especially when their regular brand was not available. The study also showed that users preferred either home made or herbal cosmetics rather than synthetic cosmetics and had a relatively negative attitude towards synthetic cosmetics. Bhawna Garg (2007) studied five aspects of rural consumers: i) the manner in which rural consumers get information regarding various brands; ii) the consumption pattern of hair oil in the rural areas. iii) the factors influencing the brand choice; iv) the factors affecting the purchasing decision for using hair oil and v) the consumers brand loyalty towards hair oil. To study the brand preference of hair oil, 150 sample consumers were selected in Jhangadi (Mawana) by adopting the convenience sampling method. It was observed that TV advertising had a deep impact on the minds of consumers (47%) from the villages. Fragrance was found to be an important factor (28%) in influencing the purchasing decision for hair oil, followed by attractive packing, small packs and low price. It was also found that the favorite brand of hair oil is Vatika (58%), followed by Keo Karpin and Dabur Amla.
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Urvashi Makkar et al. (2007) observed that the increasing size of the middle-class population in India, representing a growth of disposable incomes, has led to an increase in the demand for cosmetics. The Gen-X has a strong positive attitude towards herbal cosmetics and these consumers are more inclined to purchase higher-priced products. Although Indians are deeply rooted to their traditions and culture, the advent of television and the influence of western culture are changing the tastes and customs of Indians. Vinith Kumar Nair et al (2007) observed that male consumers generally prefer to purchase and select the brand of cosmetics individually. Quality is the major factor influencing the purchase decision of male consumers, who tend to buy cosmetic items from a single shop convenient to them. The study also observed that male consumers buy all their cosmetic items from one shop and that female cosmetic consumers prefer to purchase cosmetics from any convenient shop. It also reveals that one of the main sources of information for females about different brands of cosmetics is friends group. Even though friends play a very important role in the purchases of cosmetics for women, the specific brand selection is mostly done individually. Women consumers tend to buy cosmetic items from any shop or shops convenient to them rather than any particular shop. Quality is given the highest weightage by the women consumers in making purchase decisions, and they tend to spend Rs.101300 per month on cosmetics. Tarang Vaish (2006) observed that any time between 6.00pm to 9.00pm during weekends was considered as the best time to buy cosmetics. The most recalled brands are Lakm, Revlon, LOreal, Maybelline and Garnier in that order. The advertisement recall is high for TV commercials as compared to print ads. The correlation between top-of-mind recall and

Vinith Kumar Nair et al (2007) observed that male consumers generally prefer to purchase and select the brand of cosmetics individually. Quality is the major factor influencing the purchase decision of male consumers, who tend to buy cosmetic items from a single shop convenient to them.

Details obtained from Ficci survey of 2008

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It was observed that 75% of the customers in the cosmetics section during weekends were women, the rest being men. While women spend more on hair care and skin care, men send relatively more on fragrance. Most of the customers are brand loyal.

advertisement recall was found to be high at 0.87. Commercials that feature beautiful celebrities like Aishwarya Rai and Yana Gupta, makes them more popular among buyers of cosmetics and so can be easily recalled. Most of the respondents prefered medium-sized packs while buying cosmetics. In terms of purchase cycle both married and single women were found shopping once in three months while young girls shopped once every month. It was observed that 75% of the customers in the cosmetics section during weekends were women, the rest being men. While women spend more on hair care and skin care, men send relatively more on fragrance. Most of the customers are brand loyal. There is an emerging trend towards the purchase of herbal/natural products, which are perceived to be less harmful, compared to chemical-based cosmetics. This trend is evident among both single and married females but it is more so in the case of middle-aged females. Interestingly it is fast catching up among the youth (18-24 years). G.Kavitha,(2006) observed that Hamam, Sunsilk and Lakme had the highest recall and were also considered as the best brands by the respondents. In the soap market, the fear appeal was effective while in the shampoo category, emotional appeals play a greater role than celebrity in attracting buyers. In the cosmetics segment, the feelgood factor highlighted in the ads plays an important role in generating a positive impact on the cosmetics market. Ben Paul B.Gutierrez (2004) investigates factors that influence planned and impulse purchases of personal care product across six categories. His study utilizes a behavioral measure, rather than an attitudinal measure of planned/impulse purchases and is based on data consisting of 982 product purchases by 502 consumers in urban Philippines. Results show that product category, purchase frequency, brand comparison, and age are significant factors that influence planned

and impulse purchases. The study did not show any relationship between planned/ impulse purchases and attitudinal shopping values, surrogates for retail search strategies. Its implications for retail management have been identified. Ashish Kumar Srivastava et al (2004) have studied the influences operative in the process of decision making in respect of the personal care products for men only based on a survey of 200 consumers in Gorakhpur city, situated in the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh. The sampling units comprised literate men who are above 18 years of age. It was observed that the purchase of the products in question was based on the requirements and preferences of consumers, who cannot be provoked/ induced to buy only one product. This is also evident also from the fact their purchase decisions are mainly determined by their habits and own choice of products and the role of advertisements in influencing consumers to make purchase decisions is relatively less significant. Thus it becomes necessary for the product manufacturers to adopt promotional techniques other than advertising aimed at inducing the consumer to makes a trial purchase of the product, and on being satisfied, develop a preference for it. R.Nandagopal et al (2003) have undertaken a study in Pollachi Taluk of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu to identify the popular brands of toilet soaps and the factors that contribute towards its purchase in the rural area. The study covered as many as 200 rural consumers of toilet soap, who were selected at random. It was observed that the mode of purchase of the toilet soaps by the rural consumer was the Brand Name, which leads to the inference that the brand name of a product is an essential requirement for promoting its sale in the market and also that the level of awareness among the rural consumers about the brand in question is very high. It
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was found that the major source of brand awareness is the word of mouth. The major preferred brands of soap are Hamam under the popular segment, lifebuoy under the economy segment and Lux under the premium segment. An interesting finding was that females use Lux and males prefer Hamam followed by lifebuoy. Kuldeep Singh et al. (2003) has done a study on the factors that determine individual purchase behaviour of toilet soaps and what companies should do to enhance their sales of toilet soaps and at the same time keep the consumers satisfied. The study was conducted on the basis of a sample size of 400 consumers and 100 retailers from Ghaziabad district. Two separate questionnaire were administrated for consumers and retailers. It was observed that most of the consumers enquired about the specific brand of toilet soap they need (by brand name.) In the category of premium toilet soaps, popular toilet soaps and economy toilet soaps, Palmolive, Lux, and Hamam are most preferred brands respectively. The study revealed that Fragrance was the main factor that influenced consumers to buy the toilet soaps of their choice, followed by economic factors and attractive package. Objectives of the study The basic objective of the study is to explore how Cluster Analysis will help in better segmentation of the female branded personal care products in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad The specific objectives of the study are: 1. To assess usage of branded personal care products among female consumers 2. To analyze the different factors involved in making a purchase decision for personal care products.
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3. To study the spending patterns of personal care products consumers. 4. To understand the segmentation in skin care and hair care branded products 5. To understand demographic elements that influence the purchase of personal care products mentioned by consumers. Methodology As mentioned above the present study has been undertaken with the objective of understanding how cluster analysis will help to segment the female branded personal care products in Hyderabad and Secunderabad. It covered 184 respondents belonging to age group, 15 to 60. The questionnaire prepared for the study consisted of two sections, of which one contained questions relating to the personal details of the respondents, and the second contained 12 questions designed to obtain information on details of usage and brand preference and reasons for choosing the brand of skin care products and 6 questions on usage and brand preference and the reasons for choosing the brand of hair care products. The information thus collected was analyzed with the help of cluster analysis, to understand how each product category can be segmented. Scope of the Study As a prelude to understanding the scope of the study undertaken by the author it is appropriate to clearly define the terms, Personal care product and Cosmetics. The National Science Foundation (NSF) defined Personal care product: A non-medicinal consumable product that is intended to be used in the topical care and grooming of the body and hair and that is rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to a body, human or animal, for cleansing, beautifying,
7 It was observed that most of the consumers enquired about the specific brand of toilet soap they need (by brand name.) In the category of premium toilet soaps, popular toilet soaps and economy toilet soaps, Palmolive, Lux, and Hamam are most preferred brands respectively.

promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance without affecting the bodys structure or functions. Personal care products are specifically meant for use in such activities as cleansing, toning, moisturizing, hydrating, exfoliating, conditioning, anointing, massaging, coloring / decorating, soothing, deodorizing, perfuming, and styling. NSF defined Cosmetic: (1) an article intended to rubbed, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing, beautifying, promoting

attractiveness, or altering the appearance, and (2) an article, other than soap, intended for use as a component of any such articles. In order to understand what products fall into the personal care products category, the author explored the definition given by NSF, visited different specialty retail outlets of personal care products like Health and Glow and finally conducted a focus group interview of forty women who usually use the personal care products in their daily lives and identified the four broad categories of personal care products.

Table1: The Personal Care Products fall into four broad categories
S. No. 1 2 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Skin Care Soaps Liquid soaps Sunscreen lotion Body Moisturizer Facial moisturizer Face Wash Facial Scrub Fairness Cream Cleaning milk Face pack Massage cream Deodorant Hair Care Shampoo Henna Hair gel Hair oil Hair colour Hair conditioner Eye Care Mascara Kajal Eye Liner Nail Care Nail cutter Nail paint

Note: Among the four categories of the Personal Care Products the present study was restricted to skin care products and hair care products only.

Results and Discussions Segmentation, according to Kotler means dividing a market into smaller groups of buyers distinct needs, characteristics or behavior who might require separate products or marketing mixes. Whereas a market-coverage strategy in which a firm decides to ignore the market segment
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difference and go after the whole market with one offer is undifferentiated or mass marketing. In the cosmetic industry many brands are being introduced almost every month. Keeping this in view this study is aimed at understanding the extent to which the cluster analyses can be used as a better tool for segmentation. The results show a mixed response. In the case of skin care
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products, three clusters helped to reveal that at least three segments exist in this category while in the hair care category the results of cluster analysis show that mostly only two clusters exist. Interestingly, the second cluster consists of respondents who dont use the products that fall in this category

Skin Care Products In this category of skin care 12 items were taken for purposes of analysis, namely Soaps, Liquid soaps, Sunscreen lotion, Body Moisturizer, Facial moisturizer, Face Wash, Facial Scrub, Fairness Cream, Cleaning milk, Face pack, Massage cream, and Deodorant.

Table 2 Cluster Analysis of Skin Care Products

Cluster 1 Soaps preference Liquid Soaps preference Sun Screen Lotion preference Body Moisturizer preference Face Wash preference Face Mosturizer preference Facial Scrub preference Fairness Cream preference Cleaning milk preference Face Pack preference Massage Cream preference Deodorant preference 1 6 1 1 1 2 1 6 6 1 1 1 2 2 10 8 8 1 9 1 1 1 6 6 6 3 7 1 2 2 9 4 6 6 6 6 6 4

Note: The table details will be discussed in the respective Skin Care Product categories below

Soaps While every respondent used a branded soap the soap market had many branded players , the usage pattern of different products being: Pears 12.0% ,Vievel 10.3%, Dove 20.7%, Lux 10.3%, Mysore Sandal 7.1%, Liril 7.1%, Medimix 13.0%, Chintol 3.3%, Palmolive 3.3%, and told they dont stick to one brand but keep changing, Change 13.0%. Table 3 Soap Brand Preference
Soaps Quality Frequency Percent 95 51.6

Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Friends Recommendation Quality + Affordability Quality + Easy availability Total

15 15 11 9 9 3 19 8 184

8.2 8.2 6.0 4.9 4.9 1.6 10.3 4.3 100.0

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With reference to cluster analysis results of Table 3 soap preference, it was found that three clusters were the best. The clusters were based on: cluster 1 quality (51.6% of the respondent also preferred a soap for quality reasons), cluster 2 discounts (8.2% of the respondent also preferred a soap for quality reasons and offers) and cluster three quality + affordability (10.3% of the respondent also preferred a soap for quality reasons and affordability). While the preferences given were for quality, discounts and offers, friends recommendation, affordability and easy availability, a majority of the respondents purchased a branded soap because they perceived it to be of good quality; whereas a few felt offers and discounts and quality combined with affordability was an important factor in purchasing a branded soap. Thus, from the above three clusters it may be concluded that while for some customers quality is an important factor in making a purchase decision a few others being price conscious and not qualityoriented are attracted by discounts and offers There is a third set of customers who prefer high quality product that are also affordable to get additional benefits in positioning for the same price. Liquid Soaps In the category of liquid soaps the brands that were preferred by the respondents are: Palmolive (13.6%,), Lakme (7.1%,), Lux (11.4%), Dettol 28.8%, Lifeboy (6.5%), Fem(6.5%,) Pears 4.9%. A few (6.5%) of the respondents also changed their brands frequently and a few others (14.7%) dont use any liquid soaps.

Table 4 Liquid Soaps Preference

Liquid Soaps Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Friends Recommendation Quality + Affordability Quality + Easy availability Dont use Total Frequency 79 18 11 4 9 25 3 6 2 27 184 Percent 42.9 9.8 6.0 2.2 4.9 13.6 1.6 3.3 1.1 14.7 100.0

From the above Table three clusters have been identified. i) Cluster 1 respondents preferred quality + discounts and offers (13.6%) as a reason for their purchase of the liquid soaps, ii) the cluster 2 respondents are those that dont use (14.7%) any sort of liquid soaps and iii) cluster 3 respondents, who prefer the brand for its quality (42.9%) . The cluster analysis shows that while some customers select a brand mainly for its quality, others are attracted primarily by discounts and offers. This may be because some of the customers are price conscious while some are value conscious.

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Sunscreen Lotion When the respondents were asked to select their brand they use they selected: Lakme 36.4%, Lotus 4.3%, Ayur 10.9%, Himalaya 11.4%, Garnier 11.4 %, Ever Youth 10.3%, Olay 4.3%, Dont use 10.9%. Table 5 Sun Screen Lotion Cluster Segments
Sun Screen Lotion Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Friends Recommendation Quality + Affordability Dont use Total Frequency 90 15 10 10 6 12 8 13 20 184 Percent 48.9 8.2 5.4 5.4 3.3 6.5 4.3 7.1 10.9 100.0

following brands: Nivea 34.8%, Ayur 20.7%, Ponds 12.5%, Himalaya 11.4%, Vaseline 14.1%, None 6.5. Table 6 Body Moisturizer Preference
Body Moisturizers Quality Discounts & Offers Affordability Easy availability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Affordability Quality + Easy availability Dont use Total Frequency 115 8 15 9 6 11 8 12 184 Percent 62.5 4.3 8.2 4.9 3.3 6.0 4.3 6.5 100.0

From the cluster analysis table 5: three clusters emerged for Sun Screen Lotion category also. Cluster 1 customers are those who prefer a brand because of the quality (48.9%), cluster 2 customers prefer it for quality + affordability (7.1%) and the customers under cluster 3 are those who buy a sunscreen lotion that offers discounts (8.2%), and so may not really have a preference for a particular brand as such but prefer one which gives discounts. If looked at the category of sun screen lotion again we found three segments quality oriented, quality but affordable and third only price conscious. Body Moisturizer When the respondents were asked to select the brand they use they selected the
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From the cluster analysis table 6: three clusters also emerged for Body Moisturizer category. Cluster 1 customers who prefer a brand for its quality (62.5%), cluster 2 customers who do so for its quality + affordability (6.0%)and cluster 3 customers who buy a sunscreen lotion that offers discounts (4.3%), and therefore may not have a brand preference as such but purchase the brand which offers discounts. Thus, in the category of Body Moisturizer we found three segments of customers ; (i)quality oriented customers, ii) customers who prefer a brand not only for its quality but also its affordability and iii) customers who are price conscious .In percentage terms it is clear that in this category Nivea is slightly more popular than the other brands which is costly compared to the Ayur brand, the second largest purchased Body Moisturizer. Face Wash For face wash the brands selected by a certain percentage of respondents (shown
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adjusted to the brand) are; Olay 9.2%, Lakme 14.7%, Ever Yuth 9.2%, Lotus 6.5%, Himalaya 25.0%, Garnier 18.5%, Santoor 6.0 and None 10.9%. Table 7 Face Wash Preference
Face Wash Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Friends Recommendation Quality + Affordability Dont use Total Frequency 117 7 10 12 6 6 6 20 184 Percent 63.6 3.8 5.4 6.5 3.3 3.3 3.3 10.9 100.0

Table 8 Face Moisturizer Preference

Face Moisturizer Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Quality + Discounts & offers Quality + Affordability Quality + Easy availability Dont Use Total Frequency 99 6 9 21 13 3 6 3 24 184 Percent 53.8 3.3 4.9 11.4 7.1 1.6 3.3 1.6 13.0 100.0

From the above cluster analysis (Table 7) only two clusters have emerged for the face wash category (clusters 1 and 2) which give importance only to qualitywith 63.6% of cluster 1 respondents having a preference only for the brand of the best quality The third cluster consists of those respondents who dont use it (10.9%). Interestingily this shows that there is a potential market for customers who could be converted into users of Face Wash. Face Mosturizer In the face moisturizer category the different brands are: : Ayur 14.1%, Ponds 14.7%, Nivea 9.8%, Himalaya 6.5%, Lakme 25.0%, Garnier 11.4%, Olay 7.6% and none 10.9%.

From the above cluster analysis of Face Mosturizer three clusters have emerged as per Table 8:.i) Cluster I customers who prefer a brand for discounts and offers (3.3%), ii) cluster 2 customers who dont use (13.0%) a face moisturizer and iii) Cluster 3 segment of customers who prefer a brand because of its affordability (11.4%). In this category, two customer segments are very important for the marketers: i) those who are looking for discounts and offers and ii) those who prefer a brand because of is affordability. The second segment seems to be a good one for ensuring that the brand is better targeted and positioned . These consumers should be made aware of the fact that these brands suit their pockets. Accordingly, the advertising strategy aimed at targeting these customers should be to inform them that the brand in question is not costly and offers more benefits than the others Anyhow, the manufacturers can also opt

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to target the non-users and convert this segment into users. Facial Scrub Among the 184 respondents in his category the brands selected are: Himalaya 33.2%, Ever Yuth 33.2%, Ayur 17.9% and Dont use 15.8% Table 9 Facial Scrub Preference
Face Moisturizer Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Home Made / Dont use Total Frequency 100 12 16 16 10 29 184 Percent 54 7.0 9.0 9.0 5.2 15.8 100.0

Fairness Cream Under the fairness cream product category the brands selected were: Fair & Lovely, 17.4%, Fair Ever 8.7%, Olay 8.7% and Dont Use 65.2%. Table 10 Fairness Cream Preference
Fairness Cream Quality Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Dont use Total Frequency 44 10 9 1 120 184 Percent 23.9 5.4 4.9 .5 65.2 100.0

From the above cluster analysis (Table 9) of facial scrub only two clusters of customers (clusters 1and 2) have emerged, both of which give importance to quality only, with Cluster 1 consisting of 54% of the respondents. The third cluster belongs to those respondents who dont use the brand (15.8%),which ,interestingly, shows that there is a potential market (15.8%) of customers need to be converted into users of facial scrub. Looking at the nature of this cluster, even though the income of these consumers, their average spending on cosmetics per month and average time spent by them to pick up other cosmetics are the same as that of those in the other clusters two their age group is different from those in these clusters, i.e., 32- 39 years. A proper strategy will have to be designed to convert this segment into users.

From the above cluster analysis (Table 10) of fairness cream only two clusters emerged (Clusters 1 and 3) belongs to those who dont use (65.2%) fairness cream and cluster 2 consists of the respondents who use it because of its quality (23.9%). Thus, a large percentage of customers dont use fairness cream. This is because, unlike in the 1980s when only fairness creams dominated the market, today a consumer is looking for a multi-utility cream and not just one that ensures a fair skin. This might be the reason as to why the usage of fairness creams is comparatively less than that of the other creams. Cleansing Milk The cleansing milk is usually used to remove a persons facial make up, which means that only the respondents, who uses some make up will need it. The different brand usage is as : Lakme 9.8%, Ayur 19.0%, Dont Use 71.2%

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Table 11 Cleaning Milk Preference

Frequency Quality Friends Recommendation Affordability Dont use Total 40 8 5 131 184 Percent 21.7 4.3 2.7 71.2 100.0

From the above cluster analysis (Table 12): two clusters have been formed namely, Cluster 1 which is the group of customers who prefer a brand due to its quality (29.9%). And a combination of, clusters 2 and 3 comprising the customers who dont use the face packs representing 52.7% of the respondents. It was found that more than half of the respondents dont use face pack due to a lack of awareness of the benefits of using the product. For promoting the usage of such a product a two step process needs to be initiated. First, an awareness of the core product and its benefits should be created in the market followed by the branding and advertising of the product. Massage Cream The massage cream brands selected by the respondents are: Ayur 12.0%, Boutique 12.0%, Lakme 6.5% and Dont Use 69.6%. Table 13 Message Cream Preference
Frequency Quality Friends Recommendation Dont use Total 47 9 128 184 Percent 25.5 4.9 69.6 100.0

From the above cluster analysis (Table I1): it is clear that only two clusters emerged. (Clusters 1 and 3) belong to the segment which dont use (71.2%%) this product while the segment belonging to cluster 2 is the one which uses the product and prefers it for its quality (21.7%). Hence, a large percentage of customers dont use cleaning milk and can be encouraged to use it provided they do not use a product like face pack or fairness cream. But unlike in the case of the latter, the purchase of which can be promoted through various means of communication for a product like cleaning milk the demand is not direct. Unless the customer uses some make up she will not use cleaning milk and so, the demand for this product is derived from the use of make up products. Face Pack The face pack brand usage is: Biotique 9.8%, Banjaras 10.9%, Himalaya 20.7%, Ever Yuth, 6.0% and Dont Use 52.7% Table 12 Face Pack Preference
Frequency Quality Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Dont use Total 55 9 12 11 97 184 Percent 29.9 4.9 6.5 6.0 52.7 100.0

From the above cluster analysis (Table 13): two clusters have emerged. i) Cluster 1, which is the group of customers who prefer to buy a product because of its quality (25.5%) and clusters 2 and 3 who are the customers who dont use the face packs, representing 69.6% of the respondents. More than half of the respondents dont use massage cream due to a lack of awareness of the benefits and usage of the product. For such a product a twoJournal of Marketing & Communication

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step process is needed be to encourage the customer to buy it consisting of i) free demonstrations performed in specific places like malls, which should not be restricted to its use alone and ii) the branding and advertising for specific brands once an awareness about the product is generated and its usage begins to pickup. . Deodorant The Deodorant brands selected by the respondents are; Fa 20.7%, Rexona 4.9%, Charlie 7.6%, Yardley 13.6%, Nivea 6.0%, Nike 6.0 %, Oriflame 4.9%, Cutikura 5.4%, and Dont Use 31%. Table 14 Deodorants Cluster Preference
Frequency Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Dont use Total 61 9 11 35 11 57 184 Percent 33.2 4.9 6.0 19.0 6.0 31.0 100.0

Hair Care Products In the hair care product segment six products were covered: shampoo, henna, hair gel, hair oil and hair oil. Table 15: Cluster Analysis of Hair Care Products
Cluster 1 Shampoo preference Henna Preference Hair gel Preference Hair oil Preference Hair conditioner preference Hair color preference 1 2 2 3 1 1 2 1 2 2 3 6 6 3 5 2 2 3 6 6

Note: The table details will be discussed in the respective Hair Care Product categories below

Shampoo The brands selected by the respondents(percentagewise) are: Sunsilk 13.6%, Dove 26.1%, Vatika 12.0%, Pantene 9.2%, Meera 4.3%, Head & Shoulders 3.8%, Garnier 21.2% and Dont Use 9.8% Table 16 Shampoo Cluster Preference
Shampoo Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Frequency 116 12 6 9 23 18 184 Percent 63.0 6.5 3.3 4.9 12.5 9.8 100.0

From the cluster analysis (Table14) of deodorants three cluster are possible: i) Cluster 1, which is the segment of respondents who prefer a branded product for its quality (33.2%), ii) Cluster 2, which is the segment that doesnt use (31%) deodorants and Cluster 3 which represents the segment which uses deodorant that is affordable (19%). Thus, the customers of cluster 3 segment are those that will prefer to buy the brand of deodorants that suit their pocket. The deodorant manufactures should, therefore, target their marketing strategy at this segment.
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Easy availability Dont Use Total

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From the above cluster analysis (Table 16): it is clear that clusters that have emerged are: i) Clusters 1 and 2 representing the group of customers who prefer a brand of shampoo because of its quality(63%), and ii) Cluster 5, which is the set of customers whose brand preference is based on easy availability (12.5%). Thus, an interesting fact that emerges from the cluster analysis is that easy availability of shampoo is one important factor that induces a customer buy the product. 2. Henna The brands selected by the respondents(percentage wise) are: Anoos, 13.0%, Shehnaz 9.8%, Pakeeza 16.8%, Beauty Parlour 13.6%, and Dont use 46.7% Table 17 Henna Cluster Preference
Henna Quality Offers and Discounts Affordability Easy availability Dont use Total Frequency 58 9 3 11 103 184 Percent 31.5 4.9 1.6 6.0 56.0 100.0

Table 18 Hair Gel Cluster Preference

Hair Gel Quality Dont use Total Frequency 30 154 184 Percent 16.3 83.7 100.0

The above cluster analysis (Table 18) clearly shows only one type of segment, which is perhaps because a large proportion of the respondents (83.7%) do not use the product and the number of the remaining customers is too small to be clustered. Perhaps later when customers use it more often different segments can be formed. 5 Hair Oil The brands selected by the respondents are: Parachute 37.5%, Himalaya 8.7%, Navaratan 4.3%, Dabur 12.0%, Anoos 4.3% and Home Made/Local 33.2% Table 19 Hair Oil Preference
Hair Oil Quality Discounts & Offers Friends Recommendation Affordability Frequency 64 9 6 33 11 61 184 Percent 34.8 4.9 3.3 17.9 6.0 33.2 100.0

The above cluster analysis (Table 17} clearly shows that only one type of segment is found, with all three cluster respondents having a preference for brands that are available under, offer and discounts. This is perhaps because henna being a commonly found leaf people feel it should not be highly priced. 3 Hair gel The brands selected by respondents (percentagewise) are; Garnier 8.2%, Loreal 8.2% and Dont Use 83.7%

Easy availability Local Made or Dont use Total

From the above cluster analysis (Table 19) it is evident that for all the three segments formed friends recommendation plays a very important role in the decision to purchase a hair oil brand. Another interesting fact that emerges from the analysis is that the parachute brand is the most preferred brand, with a little less than half of the respondents using it while more

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than one-fourths use a home made or local hair oil. The reason why a home made or local brand is preferred is that most of the branded oils cost twice as much as home made or local brands This explains why friends of respondents are playing an important role in the latters decision to buy a particular brand. The manufacturer needs to take this aspect into consideration while positioning the product through advertisements. Hair Conditioner and Hair Color The hair conditioner brands selected by the respondents are: Loreal 3.3%, Pantene 9.8% , Dove 9.8%, Himalaya 3.3%, Garnier 19.6%, Revlon 3.8%, Biotique 9.2% and Dont use 41.3%. The hair colour brands selected by the respondents are: Loreal 6.5%, Revlon 8.7%, Henna 7.1%, Dont Use 77.7% Table 20 Hair Conditioner Preference
Hair Conditioner Quality Friends Recommendation Affordability Easy availability Dont use Total Frequency 86 9 12 1 76 184 Percent 46.7 4.9 6.5 .5 41.3 100.0

Coming to the cluster analysis of hair conditioner and hair colour there are two clusters: cluster 1 in which the respondents prefer a brand for its quality and cluster 2 in which the respondents dont use it. Looking at the percentage of respondents who do not use the products 77.7%) it is clear that usage is very low there. This might be attributed to the fact that even though these products are projected as lifestyle products today women do not feel that they meet their requirements, especially because the hair colour is now not used for style but to hide the white hair. Also, atleast 7.1% of the respondents use henna for coloring their hair since this is much cheaper than the branded hair colours. The concept of hair conditioner has not caught on in this market. Some use homemade conditioners like curd. Perhaps an intensive efforts on a sustained basis to create an awareness among the women about the benefits of these products will generate the desired market response for these products. Factors that Affect Cosmetic Usage 1 Age Usually the usage of cosmetics changes with age. Its use among young people is restricted, but increases by the time one reaches middle age and again declines among older people. Table 22 Age
Frequency Percent 17.9 28.8 20.7 16.3 16.3 100.0

Table 21 Hair Colour Preference

Hair Colour Quality Dont use Total Frequency 41 143 184 Percent 22.3 77.7 100.0 15-22 23-31 32-39 40 to 50 Above 50 Total

33 53 38 30 30 184

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From the above table it is clear that more than one-fourth of the respondents belong to the age group, 23-31and less than half of them belong to the age group, 32 -39. It also shows that 16.3% of the respondents are from age group, 40-50 and those above 50. Thus it is clear that people across all age groups are using some or the other skin care or hair care product. 2 Income There was a time when families with low disposal incomes refrained from purchasing cosmetics. But today the use of cosmetics has come to stay. Indeed with the rising level of air pollution it has become an integral part of our daily life. It is evident from the fact that in practically every home someone or the other uses cosmetic items. Table 23 Income
Frequency 5000-10000 10000-15000 15000-20000 20000 to 25000 above 25000 Total 22 32 39 51 40 184 Percent 12.0 17.4 21.2 27.7 21.7 100.0

3 Average Spending Table 24 Average Spending

Frequency below 100 below 250 below 500 below 1000 more than 1000 Total 10 60 69 20 25 184 Percent 5.4 32.6 37.5 10.9 13.6 100.0

From the above table it is clear that 37.5 percent of the respondents spend on an average less than Rs 500 on skin and hair care. With the addition of more product categories to those already in the personal care basket the average spending on these products would increase further. Table 25 Average Time Spent
Frequency 0-15mins 15-30mins 30-1hr Total 75 75 34 184 Percent 40.8 40.8 18.5 100.0

The table shows that people from all income groups prefer to use skin care and hair care products and that most of them are in the income group, 20,00025,000 which constitute one-fourths (27.7) of the respondents. It is also clear that even those in the income group of 5,00010,000(12%) purchase personal care products. But a close look at the usage pattern of these brands across different income segments indicates the possibility of differences in the brands used by people belonging to different income groups
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As per the above table most of the respondents take less than 15 to 30mts to select their brand product category only 18.5% take 30-1 hr time to pick the brand of their choice. This is perhaps due to the reason that they already knew which brand to buy and so did not really need any time to think or look into the details. Perhaps if it is for the first time or if a customer is in a trail and error of using cosmetics then they need more time and some times the assistance of an expert to guide them the usage. Conclusion It is interesting to note that all age segments and all income segments are
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using personal care products. However, for few of the product categories home made products are still being used or the respondents dont use them at all. The usage rate of products like liquid soaps, face wash, facial moisturizer, facial scrub, deodorants and body moisturizer is above moderate where on an average of 10% respondents are not using it. But coming to rest of the categories like fairness cream, cleaning milk, face pack, message cream, hair gels, hair colour and hair conditioners nearly more than half of the respondents dont not use at all. In shampoos and hair oil and moisturizers home made products are felt safer than any others. The respondents are using skin care and hair products but the usage of skin care

products seems to be more than the hair care products. The 12 skin care products among the market could be segmented into atleast three with the quality being the dominant factor in the choice of the brand value conscious segment which gives importance to quality, price conscious segment which gives importance to offers and discounts and the non-users. The marketers can look at difference productprice range for the first two segments where as the third segment is a potential segment to be tapped. Coming to hair care product category except for the shampoos and hair oil other product categories seems to have less usage and acceptance so no really segmentation was possible in these product category.

Reference: Books Philip Kotler, Kevin Lane Keller, Marketing Management. Twelfth addition, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007 pp 201 -226. Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong, Principle of Marketingt. Eleventh addition, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007 pp 211 -247 Leon G.Schiffman & Leslie Lazar Kanuk.Consumer Behaviour. 6th Edition. Prentice-Hall India. 2000 Blackwell, Miniard & Engel. Consumer Behaviour. 10th Edition. Thomson South Western. 2006 David L.Loudon & Albert J.Della Bitta. Consumer Behaviour. 4thEdition. Tata McGraw Hill 2002, 10th Reprint 2006. Philip Kotler & Kevin Lane Keller. Marketing Management. 12th Edition. Pearson Prentice Hall. 2007 Del I Hawkins, roger J Best, Kenneth A Coney & Amit Mookerjee. Consumer Behaviour. 9th Edition. Tata McGraw Hill 2007 Articles Jai Singh Parmar and Yashvant Gupta, Consumer Behaviour Towards Cosmetics an Emprical Analysis, Journal of IPM Meerut, Vol 8, No 1 Jan June 2007 pp 17-24. Vinith Kumar Nair, Prakash Pillai R A Study on Purchase Pattern of Cosmetics among Consumers in Kerala, International Marketing Conference on Marketing & Society, 8-10 April, 2007, IIMK Part VI Consumer Markets & Marketing, page 581 -595 Bhawna Garg, Rural Marketing Study of Consumer Behaviour With Reference to Hair Oils, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol.37, No.8, August, 2007. page 22-24 Somnath Chakrabarti and Rajat K.Baisya. Purchase Motivation and Attitudes of Organic Food Buyers. Decision. Vol.34,No.1,January June 2007. Page 1-23 Urvashi Makkar, Amandeep Singh Sehra, Changing Attitude of Consumers From Chemical To Herbal Cosmetics in India, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol.37, No.4, April, 2007. page 3-7 L.Shashikumar Sharma and D.S.Chaubey, Consumer behavior towards mobile service providers: An Empirical Study, The Icfai Journal of Marketing Vol.VI, No. 1, 2007 K.G.S.Narayanan and S.Saravanan, Consumer Behaviour of Small Car Owners A Factor Analytic Approach, SRM Management Digest, April 2007 ISSN 0973-6905 P Baba Gnanakumar The Ethical Value of Brand Feelings in Rural Society A micro level study, International Marketing Conference on Marketing & Society, 8-10 April, 2007, IIMK Part II Co-Operative, Rural & BOP Marketing. Page 130-139 Sameer Kumar, Michele D and Dumonceaux, Comparative Innovative Business Strategies of Major Players in Cosmetic Industry, Industrial Management, Data Systems, Vol: 106, No 3, 2006 pp: 285-306. G.Kavitha, A Study on the Effectiveness of The Advertising Techniques Used in the Personal Care Segment of Women Consumers, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol.36, No.8, August, 2006.page 12-17 Ben Paul B. Gutierrez, Determinants of Planned and Impulse Buying:The Case of the Philippines, Asia Pacific Management Review 2004 9(6), page 1061-1078 Ashish Kumar Srivastava, A.Sengupata, A Peep Into The Mindset of The Consumer: A Study On Mens Personal Care Products, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol.34, No.6, June, 2004, page13-15 Websites http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/publications/data/2002-07-02SonalKureshi-PreetaVyas.pdf Visited on 14th of June 2008 http://www.naukrihub.com/india/fmcg/overview/hair-care/ Visited on 14th of June 2008 http://www.naukrihub.com/india/fmcg/overview/skin-care/ Visited on 14th of June 2008 http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/business/ficci-predicts-16-percent-growth-in-fmcg-sales_10050773.html Visited on 14th of June 2008 http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=134357 Visited on 14th of June 2008

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