Nat. Volatiles & Essent.

Oils, 2021; 8(5): 9861-9872

CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR ON HEALTHCARE

PRODUCTS AND MEDICAL DEVICES DURING COVID-19
PANDEMIC PERIOD - A NEW SPOTLIGHT

1Dr.S.Vaidheeswaran, 2Mr.K.Karmugilan
1
Associate Professor, Department of Management Studies,
Manakula Vinayagar Institute of Technology, Puducherry, India.
2
Assistant Professor, Department of Management Studies,
Manakula Vinayagar Institute of Technology, Puducherry, India.
ABSTRACT

The present research study attempted to understand and analyze the consumer buying behaviour especially on
healthcare products and devices during the COVID-19 pandemic period. The objectives of the study include the buying
behaviour and perception of the consumers towards healthcare products and devices and the factors influencing their
purchase behaviour. The research study is descriptive in nature. A well structured questionnaire was framed and used
to collect the primary data from 110 respondents. The data collected was then analysed using simple statistical tools like
percentage method, weighted average method and correlation analysis and the results were interpreted. Concluding
remarks and suggestions have been made based on the findings.

Keywords: Consumer Buying Behaviour, Healthcare Products, COVID-19 Pandemic, Market Potential, Portable health
check-up devices

INTRODUCTION :

COVID-19 outbreak has changed all kind of people in many ways. This pandemic has drastically
affected the life of many people, their attitude towards life, ambitions, desires, future plans etc.
People have struggled even to survive due to the deadly virus, COVID-19. People became panic in
the pandemic. They have started relying on all kinds of sources especially the social media to get
the relevant information about the novel corona virus. The younger generation has faced this kind
of pandemic for the first time. Many nations have accelerated their research towards discovery of
new drugs and vaccines. Some of them are in the stage of testing their vaccines discovered and
wearing mask has been made mandatory. The common people have become more cautious ever
before to fight with the COVID-19 virus. They have become more health conscious and as
consumers, they have started buying and consuming more healthcare products. A Recently
conducted KPMG survey from 1000 consumers in the United States reveals that the consumer
purchase behaviour and patterns are changing in a rapid manner due to the impact of COVID-19
pandemic. Survey respondents indicated that many of them have shifted to online purchase which
will remain even after the pandemic. The pandemic has changed their buying intention and
behaviour upside down. Traditional, pure, hygienic and natural products have started occupying
the consumers’ basket while shopping. They were forced to purchase unbranded products
sometimes due to non-availability of their preferred brands. They were bound to buy and use new
basic healthcare products like digital thermometer, ply mask, examination gloves, surface
disinfectant spray, incentive spirometer, pulse oximeter and sanitizer etc. regularly to stay away
from the deadly corona virus. Some of the companies have gone for related diversification by
producing new healthcare products in their own/already well established brands. In the early times

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of COVID-19 outbreak, consumers were suffering with non-availability of essential healthcare

products but now-a-days the supply of branded products is well established in the market.
Moreover, test at home will be safe in this pandemic which will provide more scope for selling
healthcare devices such as sugar test meter, blood pressure meter, thermometer, COVID-19 test
kit, pulse oximeter etc. These factors have raised the need of studying the consumer buying
behaviour on healthcare products and devices during this COVID-19 pandemic period. The study
also helps to understand market potential for selected health check-up devices. The current study
has been taken to study about the impact of COVID-19 on the consumer buying behaviour towards
health care products at Puducherry region in India.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

1. Bharat Patil and Nerita Patil (2020)1 in their study ‘Impact Of COVID-19 Pandemic On Consumer
Behaviour’ found that all the respondents could not go with online purchase due to outbreak
restrictions. Almost all the respondents accepted the purchase of alternative brands during
lockdown. Moreover, the tendency of storing more essential goods was increased among the
consumers during the lockdown period as they faced shortage of essential goods sometimes. The
respondents admitted their buying behaviour was affected due to lockdown and they were
influenced by the News related to pandemic caused by COVID-19.
2. Harshal Varade and Simran Makhija (2020)2 in their Review study Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic
Situation on Consumer Buying Behaviour in Indian Market have concluded that consumers must
adopt the new habits of buying for a long time; they have to make it as a part of their culture even
after this pandemic and they have to use mask and sanitizers in long run. The authors also
expressed their hope that consumers buying behaviour will become normal after this pandemic
period but it will not demolish from their lives.
3. Prangyan Pradeepa Mohanty and Biswa Mohana Jena (2020)3 in their study on the Impact of
COVID-19 on Consumer Buying Behaviour at Cuttak District identified that consumers were
spending more money on purchasing health products and food products. They faced with the
problems of increased price levels of goods and unavailability of certain products in the market. In
the pandemic period, their spending habits were increased due to changed consumer buying
behaviour.
4. A.Butu, i.Bruma, L.Tanasa et al. (2020)4 in their research article ‘The Impact of COVID-19 Crisis upon
the Consumer Buying Behaviour of Fresh Vegetables directly from Local Producers, Case Study: The
Quarantined Area of Suceava County, Romania’ confirmed the hypothesis that the COVID-19
pandemic induced significant changes buying behaviour of consumers of fresh vegetables and
moreover the consumers decided to place online orders of fresh vegetables supplied directly by
the producers. Consumers preference towards the digital devises used to gather information, order
and make payments proves that the change is visible in their buying intension.
5. Vijay,C., Nivetha,.(2020)7 in their study Coronavirus (COVID-19) Impact of Consumer Buying
Behavior with special reference to Chennai City identified the fundamentally changed consumer
behaviour due to coronavirus, consumers bought more fruits and vegetables and spent more
money on health and hygiene products. They also found that the crisis affected the brand
preference, shopping behaviour and purchasing decision of the consumers.
6. Hao,N., Wang,H.H. and Zhou,Q. (2020)6, in their research study ‘The impact of online grocery
shopping on stockpile behavior in COVID-19’ found that fresh food e-commerce channels are most

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likely to be associated with panic stockpile behaviours of the consumers than offline channels in
logistic management with the government assistance due to possible supply shortages. They also
suggest that online channels may have diverse impacts on the panic stockpiling behaviours of
consumers during the extreme situations and they need to develop efficient supply chains to be
more resilient to extreme conditions.
7. Satish Warpade, Ganesh Pandit Pathak, (2020)5 in their research study observed that consumers
face difficulties during the lockdown and changed their buying behaviour. They changed their
preference for Grocery, FMCG and Bakery items. Moreover they preferred unorganised retailers
and online platform, for that availability, safety and security were found as the major reasons.
8. Sayyida, Sri Hartini et al. (2021)5 in their research ‘The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Retail
Consumer Behaviour found that the Global pandemic due to COVID-19 forced many people to rely
on the digital media to get product information before buying. The online retail sales data from the
developed countries like US, UK, Germany, Canada, France and Latin America shows that, when
compared to the offline sales in physical stores, online retail sales are much lower which contribute
not even one third of the total sales in the pandemic period.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY :

1. To know the demographic and socio-economic profiles of the respondents.

2. To understand the perception of consumers towards healthcare products and devices during the
pandemic period.
3. To analyze the factors influencing consumer buying behavior on healthcare products in COVID-19
time.

RESEARCH DESIGN:

To understand the consumer purchase behaviour towards the healthcare products and the factors
influencing in the pandemic period, descriptive research design has been used in this study. In this
study, the population refers the people belong to Puducherry City. The sample size taken for this
study is 110. A well structured questionnaire was framed with likert scale questions to collect the
primary data from the respondents based on the objectives framed. The secondary data used in
this study were collected from journals, newspapers and internet. Probability sampling – Simple
random sampling method was used in this study to collect the primary data.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study has its own limitations based on, the location of study, sample size, focus on selected
attributes and factors, period of study and scope for generalization.

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION :

The collected primary data was then analysed using Percentage Analysis and Weighted
Average Method. The framed hypothesis was tested with Correlation and the results are discussed.
Percentage Analysis :

Table No.1

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Frequency Distribution of Demographic / Socio-Economic Variables

Demographic Variable Group Frequency Percentage

up to 30 28 25.5
31-40 15 13.6
Age 41-50 34 30.9
above 50 33 30.0
Total 110 100
Married 74 67.3
Marital Status Single 36 32.7
Total 110 100
Education Up to school level 19 17.3
ITI/diploma 24 21.8
UG 43 39.1
PG 24 21.8
Total 110 100
Occupation Private employee 35 31.8
Business 22 20.0
professionals 19 17.3
Others 22 20.0
Total 110 100
Annual Income up to 2 lacs 15 23.6
2 to 5 lacs 43 35.5
5 to 8 lacs 44 35.5
above 8 lacs 8 5.5
Total 110 100

Table No.2
Financial Situation during the Pandemic/lockdown Period
Financial Situation Frequency Percent
Improved 15 13.6
Remains the same 43 39.1
Worsen 44 40
Don't know 8 7.3
Total 110 100

The above table shows that 13.6% of the respondents’ financial situation has improved, 39.1% of
the respondents’ financial situation remains the same, 40% of the respondents’ financial situations
got worse, and the remaining 7.3% of the respondents don’t know about the status of their
financial situation during pandemic.
Table No.3

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Prime Purpose of Using Recommended Healthcare Products

Prime Purpose Frequency Percent
To be safe in this
pandemic period 63 57.3
Government rule 39 35.5
Others compulsion 8 7.3
Total 110 100

From the above table it is inferred that 57.3% of the respondents are using the healthcare products
to keep them and their family safe in this pandemic period, 35.5% of the respondents are using to
follow Government rules and 7.3% of the respondents are using for Others’ compulsion.
Table No.4
Buying Pattern of Healthcare Products during COVID-19 Time
Buying Pattern Frequency Percent
Bulk purchase 19 17.3
Based on need without stock out 56 50.9
Based on need and allowing stock out sometimes 35 31.8
Total 110 100

The above table shows that 50.9% of the respondents buy the healthcare products Based on need
without stock out and 17.3% of the respondents’ buying pattern is bulk purchase.

Table No.5
Mode of Purchase of the Healthcare Products
Purchase
Mode Frequency Percent
Online 45 41
Retail outlet 65 59
Total 110 100

From the above table it is inferred that 45% of the respondents purchase through online and the
remaining 65% of the respondents purchase from retail outlet.

TABLE No.6
Most Bought and Consumed Healthcare Products

Products Response * Rank Weight Total Rank

Mask 61*5=305 9*4=36 9*3=27 12*2=24 19*1=19 411 1
Sanitizer 8*5=40 63*4=252 20*3=60 15*2=30 4*1=4 386 2
Hand Wash 11*5=55 16*4=64 61*3=183 9*2=18 13*1=13 333 3
Disinfectant 12*5=60 14*4=56 10*3=30 61*2=122 13*1=13 281 4
Personal Protective 18*5=90 8*4=32 10*3=30 13*2=26 61*1=61 239 5
Equipment

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From the above table, it is found that Mask is the most bought and consumed healthcare product
followed by Sanitizer, Hand Wash, Disinfectant and Personal Protective Equipment.

Table No.7
Well aware of using Healthcare products
Response Frequency Percent
Strongly agree 27 24.6
Agree 73 66.4
Neither agree nor
disagree 7 6.3
Disagree 3 2.7
Total 110 100

The above table shows that 66.4% of the respondents agree that they are well aware of using
healthcare products whereas 2.7% of the respondents disagree with that.

Table No.8
Test at Home using portable medical devices will be safe in the pandemic period

Response Frequency Percent

Strongly agree 23 20.9
Agree 57 51.8
Neither agree nor
disagree 15 13.7
Disagree 11 10
Strongly disagree 4 3.6

The above table shows that 51.8% of the respondents agree that test at home with portable
medical devices will be safe in the pandemic period where as 10% of the respondents disagree with
that.

Table No.9
Purchase Behaviour of the Portable Medical Devices available in the market
Medical Device I am I have it I don’t I don’t know
planning to already need about the
buy product
Pulse Oximeter 17 (15.5%) 72 (65.5%) 8 (7.3%) 13 (11.8%)
BP Checkup Kit 29 (26.4%) 31 (28.2%) 31 (28.2%) 19 (17.3%)
Sugar Test Kit 51 (46.4%) 22 (20%) 19 (17.3%) 18 (16.4%)
Thermometer 77 (70%) 28 (25.5%) 5 (4.5%) 0 (0%)
COVID-19 test kit 12 (10.9%) 5 (4.5%) 61 (55.5%) 32 (29.1%)

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From the above table it is evident that 65.5% of the respondents already have pulse oximeter,
28.2% of the respondents already have BP Check-up kit, 46.4% of the respondents are planning to
buy Sugar Test kit, 70% of the respondents are planning to buy Thermometer and 29.1% of the
respondents are not aware of the product COVID-19 Test kit.
Table No.10
Influenced to buy the particular brand healthcare product being used

Source of Information Frequency Percent

Television 39 35.5
Newspapers / magazines 27 24.5
Radio 14 12.7
Social media and internet 26 23.6
Other Sources 4 3.6
Total 110 100.0
Factor Frequency Percent
Family members 36 32.7
Friends 27 24.5
Neighbours /colleagues 29 26.4
Retailers 9 8.2
Advertisement 9 8.2
Total 110 100
From the above table, it is inferred that 32.7% of the respondents are influenced by their family
members to buy current brand of healthcare product being used whereas 8.2% are influenced by
the retailers.

Table No.11
Source of Information getting about healthcare products

From the above table, it is known that 35.5% of the respondents are getting information about
healthcare products through Television whereas 23.6% are getting information from social media and
internet.

Table No.12
Thinking about Affordability of Health Care products while buying

Frequenc
Response y Percent
Strongly agree 21 19.1
Agree 55 50.0
Neither agree nor disagree 20 18.2
Disagree 9 8.2
Strongly disagree 5 4.5
Total 110 100.0

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The above table shows that 50% of the respondents agree that they don’t mind about their
affordability while buying necessary healthcare products whereas 8.2% of the respondents
disagree with that.

Table No.13
Consulting with others to buy healthcare products

Freque Perc
Response ncy ent
Strongly agree 8 7.3
Agree 40 36.4
Neither agree nor
33 30
disagree
Disagree 17 15.5
Strongly disagree 12 10.8
Total 100.
110
0

From the above table, it is known that 36.4% of the respondents agree that they use to consult
discuss with others to make comparison between different brands of healthcare products whereas
15.5% of the respondents disagree with that.

Table No.14

Attributes of Health Care products considered while buying

Factors Frequency * Rank Weight Tota Ran

l k
Quality& 59* 15* 12* 7*3 9*2 8*1 524 1
Reliability 6 5 4
Price 9*6 7*5 7*4 65* 14* 8*1 348 4
3 2
Availability 7*6 14* 62* 10* 8*2 9*1 415 3
5 4 3
Promotiona 15* 9*5 6*4 7*3 5*2 68* 258 6
l Offers 6 1
Ease of use/ 6*6 8*5 7*4 10* 67* 12* 280 5
comfort 3 2 1
Safety& 14* 57* 16* 11* 7*2 5*1 485 2
Importance 6 5 4 3

From the above table it is evident that respondents consider Quality and Reliability as the most
important attribute of the healthcare product while making their buying decision followed by
Safety & Importance, Availability, Price, Ease of Use/Comfort and Promotional Offers.

CORRELATION :

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Analysis of opinion of the respondents regarding becoming more health conscious due to COVID-
19 and buying more healthcare products:

HYPOTHESIS :

H0: There is no significant relationship between ‘Becoming more health conscious due to COVID-
19’ and ‘Buying more healthcare products due to COVID-19’

H1: There is a significant relationship between ‘Becoming more health conscious due to COVID-19’
and ‘Buying more health care products due to COVID-19’

TABLE No.15
Became More Health Conscious Due To Covid-19

Frequenc Percen
Response y t
Strongly agree 30 27.3
Agree 37 33.6
Neither agree nor disagree 25 22.7
Disagree 16 14.5
Strongly disagree 2 1.8
Total 110 100.0

TABLE No.16
Buying More Healthcare Products Than Before

Frequenc Percen
Response y t
Strongly agree 37 33.6
Agree 46 41.8
Neither agree nor disagree 18 16.4
Disagree 9 8.2
Strongly disagree 0 0
Total 110 100.0

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Table No.15 Correlation Analysis

Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Inference:

The above table indicates that the Correlation is significant at 0.01 levels. So, the null hypothesis is
rejected. Hence there is a significant relationship between ‘Became more health conscious due to
COVID-19’ and ‘Buying more health care products due to COVID-19’. Since R=0.291, we can infer
that both the variables have positive correlation.

FINDINGS OF THE STUDY :

Purchase Behaviour and Perception

 Many (57.3%) of the respondents’ prime purpose of using recommended Healthcare products is to
keep them and their family safe in the pandemic period.
 Half (50.9%) of the respondents buying pattern is based on need without stock out.
 65% of respondents buy the healthcare products at retail outlets.
 One third (33.6%) of the respondents agreed that they have become More Health Conscious Ever
Before Due To COVID-19.
 Majority (41.8%) of the respondents agreed that they are buying more healthcare products than
before.
 Mask is the most purchased healthcare product followed by Sanitizer, Hand wash, Disinfectant and

Correlations
Becoming
Health Buying more
Conscious Healthcare Products
Becoming Pearson Correlation 1 .291**
Health Sig. (2-tailed) .002
Consciou
N 110 110
s
Buying more Pearson Correlation .291** 1
Healthcare Sig. (2-tailed) .002
Products N 110 110
PPE, for the respondents.
 Two third (66%) of the respondents agreed that they are aware of using the Healthcare products.
 Half of the (51.8%) of the respondents agreed that Test at home using portable medical devices
will be safe in this pandemic period.
 Nearly two third (65.5%) of the respondents are having Pulse Oximeter.
 More than one fourth (28.2%) of the respondents have Blood Pressure kit.
 Majority (46.4%) of the respondents are planning to buy Sugar Test kit.

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 70% of the respondents are planning to buy Thermometer.

 29.1% of the respondents are not aware of the product COVID-19 Test kit.

Factors influencing:

 Nearly one third (32.7%) of the respondents are influenced by family members to buy the particular
brand of Healthcare products.
 Majority (35.5%) of the respondents getting information from television.
 Many (45%) of the respondents agree that they don’t mind about their affordability while buying
health care products.
 More than a third (36%) of the respondents agree that they use to consult / discuss with others to
make comparison between different brands of healthcare products.
 Regarding the factors looked at while buying healthcare products, respondents considered Quality
and Reliability as the most important attribute followed by Safety & Importance, Availability, Price,
Ease of Use/Comfort and Promotional Offers.

From the Test of Hypothesis:

 There is a significant relationship between ‘Became more health conscious due to COVID-19’ and
‘Buying more health care products due to COVID-19’.

SUGGESTIONS :

 As many of the respondents purchase at retail outlets and half of the respondents’ buying pattern
is based on need without stock out, the retailers are advised to keep sufficient stock of the
healthcare products all the time.
 As two third of the respondents agree that portable healthcare devices are safe in this pandemic
period to test at home, they may be promoted well to improve the usage.
 The sellers of the healthcare products may keep in their mind the influential factors of consumers
for promoting the products.

CONCLUSION :
The study intended to understand the buying behaviour of consumers towards healthcare
products and devices, consumer’s perception and the factors influencing purchase during COVID-
19 pandemic. Respondents have become more health conscious than before due to COVID-19 and
started consuming more healthcare products. Family members influenced more in the purchase of
specific brand of healthcare products. Information regarding health care products was obtained
mostly from television. People do not consider more about their affordability and look for quality
and reliability while buying the healthcare products. Pandemic has widened the market for various
medical devices and health care products. The outcome of this study may be useful for further
exploration especially in the areas of consumer awareness and perception towards portable health
check-up devices used to test at home during COVID-19 outbreak.

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