A STUDY ON EXAMINE OF CONSUMER BUYING

BEHAVIOUR OF NITHYA SILKS COTTON INDUSTRIES AT

THIRUPUR

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

TEXTILE INDUSTRY AND CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

In an environment of competitive market, the success of every

industry largely depends on how precisely it can understand the target
consumers. Because, such an understanding is the sole means to
translate the needs and wants of the prospective consumers into
products or services. Regarding textiles, understanding consumer is
the nucleus of its production and marketing, as clothing is the
manifestation of the behavioural aspects of the wearer in its totality.
To make it more clear, the decision regarding buying and using
textiles is the reflection of the rational behaviour of consumers.

The amazing and amusing aspect of the rational behaviour is its

'dynamism' - which is conspicuous because of its magnitude. It is
worth noting here the opinion of Michael De Montaigne 'There never
were in the world two opinions alike, no more than two hairs or two
grains: the most universal quality is diversityl(Montaigne, Michael
De, 1915). The dynamism of rational behaviour postulates
the,formulation and the reformulation of approach, outlook or
perception in resdLct of every sphere of human activity including
consumption. A sagacious marketer, therefore, has to convince
himself that his products / services and sti,ategies are in line with the
dynamic marketingenvironment.

'Marketing is the 'whole business' from the viewpoint of its final

result, that is,from the consumer - point- of- view' (Drucker, P.F.
1973). Unlessa deliberate attempt is
madebythemarketerstoanalyzeandunderstandthebehavioural aspects of
the target consumers, there will hardly be any parity between
production and consumption. 'The study of consumer behaviour began
when marketers realized that consumers did not always act or react as
marketing theory suggested they would' (Schiffman ,G.L and Kanuk,
L.L ,2002).
Consumer

It is expedient to examine the concept of consumer before

discerning the behaviour of the consumer. Who can be a consumer?
Can children be considered consumers? Shouldit be an individual?
These probing questions call for a more realistic aswell as .pragmatic
interpretation of the term consumer. Children are generally regarded
to be incapable of making independent decisions and in that sense they
cannot be labelled as consumers or a consumer unit. However, from
the perspective of'user status', they are the end users of articles like
toys, story books; hence they can be considered consumers at par.
When an individual purchases food or clothing for his family, he may
be more concerned about the welfare of hi s family than a b o u t his
personal welfare or interest.

As the available resources have been utilized for consuming goods 1

services for the family, scan be designated as a consumer unit.
Aconsumer unit is one or more persons who collectively generate
income and allocate it for consumption among the members of the
unit' (Eastwood, D.B,1985). To make it more clear, the terminology
consumer unit connotes households, which include individuals,
families and those who are living together.

Peripherally, consumer behaviour denotes the response of

individuals1 household to different situations1 conditions in respect of
marketing of goodand services. Nothing can 'be substantially evolved
for strategic decision in marketing management, if the concept of
consumer behaviour remains as a mere response in the corpus of
knowledge. Recalling a handful of widely used definitions seem to be
indispensable to get a bird's- eye view of the concept of consumer
behaviour.

Definitions of Consumer Behaviour

'Consumer behaviour is the study and the marketing of products and

of human response to products or services (Kardes, ER, 2002).

'Consumer behaviour is the behaviour that consumers display in

searching for, purchasing, using, evaluating products or services and
ideas that they expect will satisfy their needs' (Schiffman, G.L and
Kanuk, L.L, 2002).

'Consumer behaviour refers to the buying behaviour of final

consumers - individuals and households'(Kotler, Philip and
Armstrong, Gany, 1985).

'Consumer behaviour is the behaviour of the ultimate consumers,

those who purchase products for personal or household use, not for
business purpose' (Ferrell, 0.C and Pride, W.M, 1989).

'The act of individuals households in obtaining and using goods

andservices including the decision processes that pervade and
determine those acts' (Rathor, B .S, 1998).
The cited definitions lay emphasis on the clause that the applicability of
the termconsumer behaviour is completely confined to
theultimate'consumers'.

Overwhelmingly, it is associated with the decision - making process

with regardto buying and using products or services.

Consumer Decision - Making Process

The words of 'Napoleon I' - 'nothing is more difficult, and therefore

more precious, than to be able to decide'(Schiffman, G.L and Kanuk,
L.L 2002) tell us that the decision-making process stands as a colossus
among the routine phenomena in everyday life of people. Consumers
make decisions for deriving the expected level of satisfaction by
purchasing products or consuming services. Manufactures as well as
marketers are found to be inquisitive to understand and analyze the
consumer decision-making process, as it portends the fate of a product
or service in the prevailing market environment. 'Cost' and 'utility' of
the target product or service are the 'dyadic conditions' which
pervade every consumer decision-making process.
Obviously, it varies from context to context and household to
household. However, a typological approach may be made in the
categorization of the consumer decision-making process.
Although the consumer decision-making process varies considerably,
they can be included in one of the three categories: 'routine response
behaviour, limited decision- making' and 'extensive decision making'
(Howard, J. A and Shethu, J.N, 1969). The routine response behaviour
is associated with frequently purchased articles and the consumers
intake the decisions spontaneously. The limited decision making is
applicable in the context of occasional buying. And the consumers are
increasingly interested in gathering the needful information so as to
make the appropriate decision. When unfamiliar and infrequently
bought products have become the target, the consumers adopt the
policy of "think-twice before you leap" and hence very keen in
information - search and processing in order to avoid the post
purchase dissonance.
'Joint decisions' and 'individual decisions' are the later additions to the
classification of consumer decision - making process. The former
represents group involvement while the latter denotes involvement of
a single individual in the decision- making process. 'Joint decision -
making is different from individual decision - making not only in
terms of the unit but also in terms of the processitself' (Park, W.C,
1982).

'Many major consumer decisions are arrived at by consultation or

give-and take among group members' (Katonah,G, 1980). And there
are several stages in the consumer decision-making process for
deriving the expected level ofsatisfaction.

Stages in Consumer Decision -Making Process

Every consumer decision-making process is the meridian of several

phasic stages.

These stages are 'problem or need - recognition, information search,

evaluation of alterative, purchase and post - purchase- evaluation'
(Ferrell, 0.C and Pride,W.M,1989). Both the personal and the non-
personal aspects of consumersmay influence each stage in the
decision- making process.

Where there is a discrepancy between the desired condition and the

actual condition, the consumers locate a problem to be solved or a
need to be satisfied.

Economic advancement, change in the stages of lifecycle,

technological development and socio-cultural environment are the
major contributory factorsthat may arouse the urge for solving a
problem or satisfying a need. Besides, factors like market
environment and promotion campaigns of marketers are instrumental
to accelerating the process of problem- solving or need - satisfaction.
Awareness of a problem induces the consumers to search for
information. Product features, brand, seller and price are the major
subjects, which are to be analysed with the help of the information
obtained from the various sources. Now-a-days, consumers have been
hugged by information explosion; particularly by the coverage given
by the mass media. 'Consumers use decision rules to cope with
exposure to too much information or information overload'

(Owen, R.S and Hargtved, P.C,1993). If consumers are provided with

too much information at a given point of time, it exceeds their
processing limits.

Exposure to information takes the consumers to the world of different

product alternatives. Consumers are usually pre-conditioned by
setting a plethora of characteristic features of the target product in
their mind. In order to get a multi-dimensionpicture of the target
product, they may even consider the opinions and viewpoints of
others. 'Consumers are especially like to note information and to
avoid product or brand that receives negative evaluations'

(Ami, A.S and Schiffman, G, L, 1986). 'When making a purchase -

decision, consumers must judge the relative values of various
alternatives' (Puto,C.P,1987). If the known products or brands are not
corresponding to the rating, the consumers may go in for further
search.
After profiling the characteristic features of the target product1 brand
andevaluating the alternatives, the consumer proceeds to the actual
buying process, by which prospective consumers will become actual
consumers. Perhaps consumers may go for a compromise, if the
products/ brands, which have secured the highest ratings are not
available in the immediate vicinity. Purchase is characterized by
factors like store loyalty, brand affinity, timing and even group-
involvement. 'Consumers may also use a preference formation
strategy that is other-based-in which they allow another person to
make the selection or purchase for them'(Olskavsky, R.W, 1985).
Post-purchase evaluation is the last phasic stage in the decision-
making process. If the product is an expensive one, the consumer will
be keen in evaluating the product. If the evaluation evokes a
dissonance, it causes mental fatigue to the consumers. The
discontented consumers will give word - of-mouth that may
discourage the other prospective buyers. Unless precautionary
measures are taken by the marketers against the injurious word - of -
mouth of the consumers, their existence will be at stake. 'Perhaps the
most important thing for marketers to understand about word -of -
mouth is its huge pckential economic impact' (Walker, C, L995).
Understanding the factors that can exert an influence on the behaviour
of prospective consumersis the short-cut to reach atthis destination.

Factors Affecting Consumer Behaviour

'Consumer behaviour (B) is the result of the interaction of the

consumer's personal influence (P) and the pressure exerted upon him
by the outside factors

in the environment'(E):B='# (P,E)- (Rathor, B .S,1998).

This conveys that the behaviour of consumers is influenced by
cultural, social, personal and psychological factors. It is not imperative
that on all occasions, all the factors have to be at work to mould the
behavioural pattern of consumers. It is interesting to note that the
factors, which are responsible for the behaviour of consumers are
complimentary in character.

Cultural Factors

'The cultural setting of consumers is conspicuously integrated with

their behavioural aspects, because culture envisages distinctive modal
patterns of behaviour, and the underlying regulatory beliefs, norms
and premises'

(Krech,Dand Crutch Field,R.S,

1962).Ingeneral,theculturalbackgroundof consumers acts as the
'control surface' with regard to their consumption process. Choice of
products1 brand, mode of buying, type of vendor selected may be
pointed out as the examples for the interplay between the culture and
behaviour of consumers. In the textile market, culture is a vital factor
that influences the fashion adoption. Now-a-days, cultural trends have
tended to redefine the usage pattern of many a product, ranging from
consumerproducts to spots- symbol products. In a country like
India, cultural normsexceedingly influenced by re1igious doc trines,
have considerable implications on the behavioural aspects of
consumers.
Social Factors

The social characteristics of consumers may be identified as a factor,

which has an enduring impact on consumer behaviour. 'There are
three types of social character; tradition - directed, inner - directed,
and other - directed'

(Riesman, D, 1950). Nevertheless, the interaction between social

factors and consumer behaviour varies from social class to social
class. 'The basic distinction between the middle -class and the
working class is that the latter advanced as a result of group activity
whereas those above them moved forward by individual initiative'
(Shanks and Michael, 1972). In the social set up, consumers get
ample opportunities to interact with others, and to be influenced by
them. The group that exercises influence on consumers is termed
'reference group' in consumer behaviour science. 'Reference group is
any person or group of people that significantly influences an
individual's behaviour '(Enger, J.F, Blackwell, R.D and Minard, P.W,
1999). Over the years, the social set up of every country, including
India, has undergone many transformations. This has evoked changes
in behaviour among consumers regarding volume or frequency of
consumption, product pattern, information search and exposure.
Personal Factors

'There can be free interplay between the personal facts of consumers

such as age or lifecycle stage, occupation, economic situation,
lifestyle, personality and self-concept' (Kotler, Philip and Armstrong,
Garry, 1985) and their behaviour.

The personal factors may influence many aspects of consumers like

thinking, searching, and processing of information, decision- making
and judgement of products or services. For instance, an educated
consumer having a lucrative occupation will be more competent to
take a wise decision with regard to con-summing and using products
or services.

Life Cycle Stage

The behaviour of consumers is subject to radical changes during the

entire life span, because they require different types of products at
different stages of thelife cycle. To quote an example, the
requirements of the elderly are diametrically opposite to those of the
youngsters. 'Over the years, the elderly segment of consumers has
.been widened, as people are enjoying longer and healthier lives'
(Urban and Star, 1991). Similarly, age or life cycle- stage causes
drastic changes in the formation of attitude a perception. 'Now-a-days,
psychological life cycle - stages have also been identified' (Lepisto,
S.L, 1985) by the marketers as an input while designing products as
well as strategies for different market segments.
Occupation

The trenchant changes that have taken place in the market

environment on the global level are due to the changes in the
occupational scene of the consumers.

A sizeable number of consumers have given up agriculture as their

source of income, and have occupationally migrated to other avenues,
particularly 'white-collar jobs'. This has considerably improved the
economic status of consumers; thereby spectacular changes have been
witnessed in the consumption process and pattern. Exposure to
information, preference for brand, store and media habit are some of
the important facets of changes that have been brought about by the
occupational mobility of consumers. Change in media habit true to the
new horizons of occupation is apparent from the enhancement in the
number of readers of dailies and magazines. 'Readership is the
strongest among college graduates and among those in executive-
managerial professions' (Rebacca, P, 1995).

Economic Situation

'During the 1960's, economists began to focus attention on the

economic

Decision-making within the household' (B ecker, G.S, 1965).

Evidently, they had become ready to acknowledge the degree of
influence exerted by the economic situation of consumers on their
behaviour. In the macro sense, it is apt to state that the economic
situation affects the nature of products bought by the consumers. In
the micro sense, it is more apt to spell out that brand choice,
particularly of the 'premium brands', is the net result of the
improvement in the economic conditions of the consumers. Hence,
there are economic reasons for setting 'product standards' for
consumer goods.
Life Style

The major elements of life style are identified by "Plummer", as

'activities, interests, opinions and demographics' (Plummer, J.T,
1974). 'Life style embodies the pattern that develop from the
dynamics of living in society'

(Lazer and William, 1963). As it sketches one's attitude or outlook

and capability for adjustment and being adjusted, it affects
consumption too. The pains taken for information search, interaction
with others, especially with opinion leaders, extent of search for
(product) alternatives, perception about brand, mode of consumption,
and usage pattern often reflect the life-style maintained by the
consumers. Acknowledging the role of life style on the be-havioural
aspects of consumers, marketers have begun using life sty1e as a
criterion or input for market segmentation of many consumer
products.

Personality

According to Tholess, personality is 'covering all the ways in which

one individual can differ from another' (Thouless, R.H, 1967).
'Personality is usually described in terms of traits such as self-
confidence, dominance,sociability, autonomy, defensiveness,
adaptability and aggressiveness' (Kassarjian, S .NandScheffet M.J,
1984). Consumers especially those who belong to the upper stratum in
the society, are exceedingly interested in creating a 'perceived image'
in the environment in which they live. And it is always adherent to
their personality. Accordingly, they may select and use only those
products and services, which are compatible with their image and
personality. The trend of consumers to analyses the 'brand personality'
or 'brand image' may be spelt out as an example of the relationship
between personality factors and the behavioural aspects of consumers.

Self - Concept

'Self-concept' has been defined as 'the sum total of all that a man
can callhis body, traits, and abilities; his material possessions; his
family, friendsand enemies; his vocations and avocations and much
else' (Hall, Calvin, S and Lindzey, 1957). The contributions of an
individual to the society and his social identity are the indicators ofhis/
her self -concept. A rational individual always tries to safeguard his or
her self- concept while he/she is engaged in any kind of activity,
including consumption. This makes it explicit that the behavioural
aspect of consumers is largely affected by their self-concept. A prudent
marketer has to understand the self-concept of his prospective
buyersandthereby their position in the society, before developing
products and designingmarketing strategies.
Psychological Factors

The four identifiable psychological factors that modulate the behaviour

of consumers are 'motivation', 'perception', learning' and 'attitude'.

Motivation

Human needs and motives are 'Siamese twins'. Hence, striking a

precise difference between the two concepts seems to be a hair-
splitting task. 'As Bayton has observed, some psychologists claim that
words such as motives,needs, urges, wishes and drives should not be
used as synonyms; others are content to use them' (Bayton, J.A,
1958). In the absence of acomprehensive conceptual framework,
motivation can be regarded as a desire that springs from the
"unsatisfied needs" of human beings, which leads to a goal-setting.
Motivation activates the behaviour of an individual in adirection
towards a typical activity. 'A motivated organism willengagein an
activity more vigorously and more effectively than an unmotivated
one'

(Hugard, E.R, Atkinson, R.C and Atkinson, R.L, 1978). A forceful

motivationmay instigate individuals to avoid certain things and to
accept certain other things. Regarding consumption of consumer goods,
motivation of individuals increasingly influences decisions on product,
brand, store, information search and size of expenditure. With this
temperament, certain people are seen to be 'risk-averse' and hence
marketers must so carefully design products and services as to tap the
demand potential of such consumers.
Perception

Markinhasdefinedperceptionas'oneofthe elements of cognition- the

processinvolved in knowing' (Markin, R.J, 1969). It is a process by
which an individual gathers, selects, organizes and interprets
information or stimuli into a meaningful and coherent picture of the
world. As perception is more instrumental to developing 'viewpoints'
than in gathering and processing information, it is characterized by a
high degree of diversity. Hence,different consumers who are exposed to
the same market environment may behave differently. In practical
marketing, studying consumer behaviour from the angle of the
perceptual background of consumers generates valuable inputs for
strategic decisions. It is worth mentioning that understanding and
analyzing the perception of consumers has become the decisive factor in
organizing promotion campaigns, since the present promotion imparts
heavy information load to the consumers. It is not likely that consumers
always perceive it positively. In order to overcome this handicap,
information and products as well should be brought to the target
consumers in such a way as to synchronize with their perception. 'In
short, while perception has sensory data at its core, it in turn has a
central role in the cognitive and thinking process' (Bliss, P, 1970).
Learning

From the marketing perspective, 'consumer learning' can be thought of

as 'the process by which an individual acquires, the purchase and
consumptionknowledge and experience that he/she is applying to
future relatedbehaviour'(Schiffman, G . L & ~Kanuk, L.L2002).

It is worthwhile to note the opinion of Winston Churchill 'I am always

ready toI do not always like being taught'. Consumer learning is
anongoing process and every consumer happens to learn something in
his everyday life. Learned consumers possess distinctiveness in many
aspects and are found to be efficient at the market place, because, he/she
has been gathering knowledge about product, brand, media message,
price and economic aspects.

This gives the message that the marketers should equip themselves to
deal with those consumers who are active in learning

Attitude

Attitude influences everyone's life and it affects the way in which

everyone adjusts with, and reacts to, other people, objects or events.
Allport gives the definition of attitude as 'a mental and neural state of
readiness organized through experiences exercising a distinctive or
dynamic influence upon the individuals' (Allport, G, 1935). An
analysis of consumer behaviour from the perspective of consumers'
attitude helps marketers to understand what consumers will do in a
specified condition at a point of time. Attitudinal influence on usage
pattern, frequency of consumption, preference for hyper market,
multiple shopping and predicts/brand insistence has become
conspicuous over the years. In advertising research, for instance, 'the
changing of consumers' attitude towards specific products and services
is considered to be a very useful method of assessing the effect
ofadvertising' (Adler, Allan,G and Donald, L.B, 1965).

Viewing from this perspective, textile industry has to focus on four

thrust areas of the behavioural aspects of the consumers; such as what
the consumers like to buy (product), from where they like to buy
(source of buying) how they keep themselves informed about products
(media exposure) and how they adapt with their environment in the
decision- making process (socio - economic factors).

The Indian textile industry has been producing cotton cloth of quality
made from long staple cotton fibre, since the inception of the
handloom sector. Inorder to cater with the requirements of the
changing environment, the mill sector has started producing a number
of blended and synthetic fabrics. A variety of 'new generation textiles'
which are eco-friendly have been inducted in the market. And the
research endeavours with institutional support spell out that the Indian
mill sector is potential enough to develop improved varieties of fabric
and clothing. However, the marketability of the textile product
depends on how it is perceived by the consumers. This calls for the
analysis of perception of consumers about specifications of their target
product.

The consumers in the textile market have been exposed to different

modes of selling outlets in different market segments. Textile retailers
are competing with one another in occupying a legitimate space in the
perceptual map of the prospective consumers. Often such competition
seems to be a sheer waste.
The consumers may take into account several parameters to perceive a
source of buying as ideal. When a source of buying-is mismatching
with the perception of consumers, it is characterized with a weak sales
potential. This has a special relevance in the case of those textile
manufacturing units, which are active in marketing also.
Information exposure is the salient feature of the modern marketing
environment. This enables the consumers to acquire deep magnitude of
knowledge, which in turn makes them "smart consumers" at the market place. It
is desirable to have a foolproof picture of the information search process of
consumers, to understand their attitudinal aspects. The important outcome of
such an approach is that both the textile manufactures and marketerscan
communicate the meaningful facts and figures to their target consumers very
cffectively. Besides, the modem strategy of two-way communication through
the mass media provides feedback to the producers and marketers; which can
be used a s precious inputs for product planning as well as marketing.

Thc consumers are subject to the influence of their environment. Social,

economic and occupational facets of environment are seen to be highly
dynamic. Its impact ranges from the change in the propensity to consume to the
outlook and approach towards buying and using textiles. The evaluation of the
influence of changes on the behavioural aspects of consumers would equip the
manufac-tures and marketers of textiles to design strategies corresponding to
the pre-vailing socio- economic environment of the target consumers.

In a nutshell, the textile industry must be viewed from the angle of consumers
so as to crop up production and sales. It is worth mentioning here a quote
attributable to Mahatma Gandhi, in which he stresses 'a consumer is the sole
reason for a business or an industry to exist'(The Hindu, July 2003). Since
Mahatma was born in the trading community of Gujarat, he might have sensed
what ought to be the right philosophical mooring for a business or an industry.

Thus, a comprehensive analysis of the behavioural aspects of the

consumersisthe fulcrum, which enables the Indian textile industry to march
ahead. In tunewith this requirement, several vital factors with regard to textile
consumption such as 'product specification', 'preference for source of buying',
influence of advertisement and sales promotion and socio - economic factors of
buyers have been analysed in the following chapters.
INTRODUCTION:

Marketing is the moving and exciting activity in everybody activities.

The sellers, distributors, advertising agencies, consultants, transporters,
financers, store agencies and every one as a counter are part of the marketing
system. Any exchange process be it consumer, goods, intermediary goods,
services of ideas, comes under the preview of marketing. It is very often
regarded that the development of markets and marketing is synonymous with
the economic development of account. Through marketing is an action
discipline. In the ever-growing corporate world, marketing is being regarded as
a crucial element for the success of an Enterprise

The marketing discipline is undergoing fresh re appraisal in the light of the vast
global, technological, economic and social challenges facing todays companies
and countries. Marketing at its best is about value creation and raising the
worlds living standards. Today, spinning companies are those who succeed
most in satisfying, indeed delighting their target customers. As quoted by
P.P.Drucker Marketing is so basic that it cannot be considered a separate
function. It is whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that
is, from the customers point of view. Business success is not determined by the
producer but by the customer".

Philip Kotler has therefore defined marketing as it is a social and managerial

process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want
through creating, offering and exchanging products of values with others.
Many Indian companies espouse a satisfied customer philosophy and describe
marketing as customer-satisfaction engineering. Since the economy in this
country has changed from a primary condition of scarcity to gradual and steady
stage of affluence, largely giving consumers the opportunity to choose among
manyvaried alternatives, satisfaction has become a major concern of business.
Subculture:

social classes are relatively homogeneous and enduring divisions in a society

which are hierarchically ordered and whose members shares similar Values,
interest and behaviour and social classes includes upper class, middleclass and
lower class.

SOCIAL FACTORS:

A persons reference groups consist of all the groups thathave a direct (face to
face) are indirect influence on the persons altitude or behavior. This group to
which the person, belongs and interacts.

Personal Factors:

A consumer decision also influenced by personalcharacteristics notably the

buyers age & life cycle stage, occupation, economiccircumstances, life style and
personality and self concept.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS:

Motivation:

A person has many needs at any given time. Some needs are biogenic. They
arise from psychological states of tension such as hunger, trystand discomfort.

Perception:

Perception is defined ass the process by which an individualselects, organizes,

intercepts, information, inputs to create a meaningful pictureof the world.
NEED FOR THE STUDY:

Consumer behaviour plays a major role for the growth of the company in the
modern market scenario. The basic idea of this study is to find the consumer
behaviour towards Textiles. The needs have to be recognized and necessary
steps have to be taken to make the changes. India is growing rapidly and
changes are dynamic. People are changing, the preference and the demand is
changing. The market also has to change accordingly. The purpose of consumer
behaviour is not only for retaining the customers but also attracting new
customers and increasing the sales also creating and maintenance of brand
awareness. In this competitive market the level of consumer satisfaction decides
the success of any product and any company. The night consumers have to be
targeted and the right strategy should be implemented at the right time. This will
give the desired results.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

The main objective is to determine the current consumer behaviour levels of the
customers with regards to Textiles.

To study and analyze consumer shopping behaviour towards Textiles.

To assess the behaviour level of different type of customers shopping at
Textiles.
To identify what type of strategies are suitable for the company to
reachthe targeted customers.
To find out the factors which influence the consumption of the products
inTextiles.
To identify effective a advertising sources which are influencing
customer purchasing behaviour at Textiles.
To find out how the consumers spent their incomes, time on the
purchasing of the products.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Textiles as six branches in THIRUPUR. My scope is limitation to one Branch

(KACHIGUDA). The scope of the study is to identify the consumer behavior
towards Textiles. It is aimed at enlightening the company about different steps
to be taken up to increase the share of Textiles with regard other competitors
and also to make the company to provide better customer services. The scope of
the study is only confined to the area covered under THIRUPUR and only
confined in studying about the consumer behaviortowads Textiles.
LIMITATIONS:

Time has been a major constraint throughout the study as it has been only
for duration of 2 months.
As this survey was restricted to THIRUYPURthis cannot be stated as an
in depth research on this subject.
Enough care is taken in formulating the questionnaire, still some errors
may creep in. The consumer behaviour varies according to different
products.
Quality verses price was not taken into the consideration.
The project is based on the interview methodology by a stored
questionnaire and the personal skills of the person undertaking the project
affect the results.
 CHAPTER-II

REVIEW OF LITARATURE/CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR:

What is consumer behavior?

Activities people involved in when selecting, purchasing, and using products so

as to satisfy needs and desires. Consumer behavior involves the psychological
process that consumers go through in recognizing needs, findingways to solve
these needs, making purchase decision (e.g., whether or not to purchase a
product and, if so, which brand and where), interpret information,make plans,
and implement these plans (e.g., by engaging in comparison-shopping or
actually purchasing a products).

SOURCES OF INFLUENNCE OF THE CONSUMER:

The consumer faces numerous of influence. Often, we take cultural influences

for granted, but they are significant. An American will usually not bargain with
a storeowner. This, however, is common practice in much of the world. Physical
factors also influence our behaviour. We are more likely to buy a soft drink
when we are thirsty. For example, and food manufacturers have found that it is
more effective to advertise their products on radio in the late afternoon when
people are getting hungry. A persons self image will also tend to influence.
what he/she will buy. An upwardly mobile manager may buy a flashy car to
project an image of success. Social factors also influence what the consumers
buy-often, consumers seek to imitate others whom they Admire, and may buy
the same brands, the social environment can include both the mainstream
culture (e.g., Americans are more likely to have corn flakes/ham and eggs for
brake past than to have rice, which is preferred in many Asian countries) and a
sub culture (e.g., rap music often Appeals to a segment with in the population
that seeks to distinguish itself from the main stream population).Thus sneaker
manufacturers are eager to have there products worn by admired athletes.
Finally, consumer behaviour is influences by learning you try hamburger and
learn that it satisfies your hunger and tastes good, and the next time you are
hungry, you may consider another hamburger.

Personality and self concept

A persons distinguishing psychological characteristics that lead to relatively

consisting and lasting responses to his or her own environment.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS

A persons buying choices are further influenced by four major psychological

factors: motivation, perception, learning, and attitudes.

Motivation

A need that is sufficiently pressing to direct the person to seek satisfaction of

the need.

Perception

The process by which people select, organize, and interpret information to form
a meaningful picture of the world.

Learning

Changes in an individuals behaviour arise from experience.

Beliefs and attitudes

A descriptive thought that a person holds about something is his/her belief. A

persons consistently favourable or in favourable evaluations, feeling, and
tendencies toward and object or idea is attitude. The common tools used to
conduct data analysis range from simple cross tabulations and segmentation
analysis to more sophisticated statistical methods
such as multivariate and logistic regression discriminates analysis and cluster
analysis. In the last few years, optimization tools and machine learning
algorithms such as neural networks and genetic algorithms have also been used
to perform advanced data analysis. The study of consumers helps firms and
organizations improve their marketing strategies by understanding issues such
as The psychology of how consumers think, feel, rason, and select between
different alternatives (e.g., brands, products);

The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment

(e.g., culture, family, signs, media);

The behaviour of consumers while shopping or making other marketing

decisions; Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing
abilities influence decisions and marketing outcome; How consumer motivation
and decision strategies differ between products that differ in their level of
importance or interest that they entail for the consumer; and How marketers can
adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and marketing strategies to more
effectively reach the consumer. Understanding these issues helps us adapt our
strategies by taking the consumer into consideration. For example, by
understanding that a number of different messages compete for our potential
customers attention, we learn that to be effective, advertisements must usually
be repeated extensively. We also learn that consumers will sometimes be
persuaded more by logical arguments, but at other times will be persuaded more
by emotional or symbolic appeals. By understanding the consumer, we will be
able to make a more informed decision as to which strategy to employ.

Behavior occurs either for the individual, or in the context of a

group(e.g.,friends influence what kinds of cloothes a person wears) or an
organization (people on the job make decisions as to which products the firm
should use).

Consumer behavior involves the use and disposal of products as well as the
study of how they are purchased. Product use is often of great interest to the
marketer, because this may influence how a product is best positioned or how
we can encourage increased consumption. Since many environmental problems
result from product disposal (e.g., motor oil being sent into sewage systems to
save the recycling fee, or garbage piling up at landfills) this is also an area of
interest.

Consumer behavior involves services and ideas as well as tangible products.

The impact of consumer behavior on society is also of relevance.

 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The survey technique is intended to secure one or more items of information

from a sample of respondents who are representatives of a larger group. The
information is recorded on a form known as questionnaire. As data are gathered
by asking questions from persons who are believed to have desired information,
the method is known as questionnaire technique.

REASONS FOR WIDE USE OF THIS METHOD:

It can secure both quantitative and qualitative information directly from

the respondents.
It is the only method of directly measuring attitudes and motivations.
It is quite flexible in terms of the types of data to be assembled, the
method of collection or the timing of research.

Meaning of Research

According to D. Slessinger and M. Stephenson in the Encyclopaedia of social

sciences define research as the manipulation of things, concepts or symbols for
the purpose of generalizing to extend, correct or verify knowledge, whether that
knowledge aids in construction of theory or in the practice of apart.
TYPES OF RESEARCH

1. Exploratory Research,

2. Descriptive Research

Descriptive Research:

Diagnostic Research studies determine the frequency with something occurs or

its association with something else. IN this project, information pertaining to
customer needs satisfaction and their demographic profile was collected; hence
it is a descriptive research.

Exploratory Research:

Exploratory research studies are also termed as formulate research studies. The
main purpose of such studies in that of formulating a problem for more precise
investigation or of developing the working hypothesis forms an operational
point of view.

1) Primary data:

Meaning: Primary sources of data are the data which needs the personal efforts
of collect it and which are not readily available. Primary source of data are the
other type of source through which the data was collected.

Following are few ways in the data was collected:

1. Questionnaires:

It is the set of questions on a sheet of paper was being given to the of fill it,
bases on which the data was interpreted.
2. Direct interviewing:

Direct interviewing involved the process where I asked the questions

directly to the customers and I got the feedback.

2) Secondary data:

Secondary sources are the other important sources through which the data was
collected. These are the readily available sources of the data where one had
need not put much effort to collected, because it is already been collected and
part in an elderly manner by some researcher, experts and special.

The secondary sources helpful for the study were

1) Text books like marketing management research methodology Advertisement

and sales promotion etc.

2) Internet was made use for the collection of the data.

3) Newspapers were also referred.

4) Business magazines were referred.

3)Sample size:

By using judgment random sampling technique 100 respondents reselected for

the purpose of the study.

4) Period of study:

The study is undertaken in the duration of 34 days.

5) Research approach:

The survey method was adopted for collected the primary data. Survey research
is systematic gathering of data from respondent through questionnaire.
6)Research instrument:

The data for this research study was collected by survey technique using
interview method guided by questionnaire.

7)Collection of Data:

Questionnaire and personal interviews are the methods that I have used for
collecting the data.

Questionnaire for consumer buying Behaviour

1. Name
2. Age
a. Below 30 years
b. 31-40 years
c. 41-50 years
d. Above 50 years
3.Distribution of respondents by gender?

a) Male
b) Female

4. How long you have been working here?

a) Less than 5 years [ ] b) 5years 10 years [ ] c) More than 10

years [ ]

5. How did you come to know about Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Advertisement
b)Colleagues references

c)Friends/relatives references

d)Any other specify

6)How frequently do you visit Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Once in a week

b)Twice in a week

c)Once in every 15 days

d)Once in a month

7) what is the main purpose of purchase?

a)Personal Usage / consumption

b)To Gift

c)Any other

8) You prefer to go in Sivashakthi textiles with

a)Family members

b)Spouse

c)Friends

d)Others

9) Which mall you like the most in the city

a) Textiles

b)Spencer

c)City central

d)Hyd central

10) What is the reason behind purchasing in Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Good satisfaction over products

b)Reasonable prices

c)More offers

d)Any others

11) How do you rate the pricing of products at Big Bazaar?

a)Expensive

b)Competitive

c)Affordable

d)Reasonable

12) Why do you prefer to shop in Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Availability of adequate stock

b)Convenience of location and timing

c)Offers and discounts

d)Variety of products

13) What more facility would you like to get at Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Membership Card

b)Discount Card

c)Free packing Offers

d)Lucky draw Offer

14) How often do you ask for Assistance from store staff in selecting your
Purchase?

a)Almost Always

b)Frequently

c)Sometimes

d)Never
15) How is your overall experience in Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Excellent

b)Good

c)Poor

16) Would you visit Sivashakthi textiles again?

a)Sure

b)May be

c) Never

17) Do you suggest any one to shop at Sivashakthi textiles?

a)Yes

b) No

18) How, do you suggest to Textile management to making present Sivashakthi

textiles to more attractive?

a)To maintain quality products

b)Reasonable prices

c)Giving more offers and discounts

d)Convenience

19. Mention your satisfaction level for following elements

1)Highly satisfied

2)Satisfied

3)Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied

4)Dissatisfied

1.Location ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
2. Operating time ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

3. Parking facility ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

4. Cleanness of store ( ) ( ) ( )

5. Spacious shop floor ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

6. Easy to locate product ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

7. Quality product ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

8. Promotion offers ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

9. Pricefo the product ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

10. Staff helpfulness ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

11. Flexibility in payment mode ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

12. return of value for money ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )