Research Proposal on Consumer Decision Analysis Essay

Primary research objective To determine the factors influencing the consumer decision while buying fruit drinks in the age group 17-30 in the city of Pune. Secondary research objective †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ To determine the product attributes influencing purchase decision of fruit drink brands. To determine the reasons for consuming various fruit drink brands. To determine the most preferred SKU(quantity) in fruit drink category. To determine the most preferred channel in the fruit drink category. Data which research plans to generate Factors influencing the choice of fruit drinks over other beverages. Factors influencing choice of a particular fruit drink brand. Factors influencing the choice of a particular channel in fruit drink category. Value of Information to Management This report aims to generate information on various factors influencing consumer decision while purchasing a fruit drink. Companies can utilise this information for identifying the awareness levels of their respective brands in the fruit drink category. Also companies can evaluate their positioning and promotion strategies based on the factors influencing the choice of a particular fruit drink brand. Companies can also utilise the factors influencing the choice of SKU for managing their portfolio of different SKUs in the fruit drink category. The information on factors influencing the choice of a channel can be used to focus on the growing channels and also in managing existing channels. This report also contains broad based trends on consumer profile, awareness levels, usage patterns and fruit drink category as a whole which can be utilised to make inferences about the future. Research Approach Data collection methods. a) Secondary Research External secondary data has been generated to obtain volume of sales regarding beverage markets, fruit drinks, each of the brands and the positioning of each of the brands. b) Survey Research †¢ †¢ †¢ Data was collected from candidates using questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed in colleges and people on the street. I distributed the questionnaires outside the shops to gather data from people who had come to visit there. I made an online questionnaire and circulated on the internet and gathered results from those. Measurement Instruments: †¢ The measurement instrument in the questionnaire was a five point Likert scale. †¢ †¢ †¢ Apart from details regarding their choice of drink for refreshment, their frequency of visits and the channels they choose, their spending patterns will also be mapped. The data was extracted and put in MS Excel. All the further analysis was then carried out using SPSS. The measurement was designed to get a fair idea about the various attributes and conducted factorial analysis of the important attributes. Samples The aim was to collect 100 samples for the analysis. The samples should be such that they are consumers of fruit drinks. I also tried to get an adequate ratio of men and women in the samples. The main demographics targeted were the younger age group as they are more health conscious and aware of such health drinks. Also I tried to focus more on the college going crowd and young professionals as they would be more interested in trying out new products and were more conscious. Buyers who have been consuming fruit drinks were better able to answer the questions regarding the influencing factors and the reasons for their consumption and purchase. The samples collected from internet have also been very valuable in the research. Analysis Techniques †¢ †¢ †¢ The analysis techniques used have been on SPSS and the tests were performed to ascertain the factors influencing the consumer decision while buying fruit drinks. Factor analysis was conducted to discern out of the 13 factors mainly which factors influence the buying habits of the consumers. Ultimately I identified 5 factors which mainly have an influence. I also conducted correlation tests to find out the various reasons for purchasing any particular brand of fruit drink. The main limitation is the sampling conducted. It was done in a random manner and no particular technique followed. In the first survey a greater number of college students have been surveyed. The data might not be representative of the entire population. Limitations: †¢ †¢ †¢ Various statistical techniques as learned have been implemented and conclusions as best possible have been drawn making few assumptions as and when required. Since no data was on interval or ratio scale it was not feasible to conduct Regression and ANOVA. Factor Analysis The Perceptual mapping for various factor recognized: Rotated Component Matrix(a) Component health and media convenience product features package design hygiene influence range_flavours 0. 112 -0. 069 0. 847 -0. 056 0. 033 availability 0. 011 0. 001 0. 82 0. 009 0. 042 brandambassador 0. 633 -0. 072 -0. 253 -0. 118 0. 3 visual_packg 0. 084 0. 072 0. 062 -0. 023 0. 872 price -0. 14 0. 003 0. 088 0. 691 0. 438 quantityavailable 0. 108 0. 643 0. 041 -0. 181 0. 06 promotionschemes -0. 08 0. 856 -0. 039 0. 172 -0. 032 packetcleanliness 0. 926 0. 004 0. 152 -0. 013 -0. 014 brandvalue -0. 116 0. 794 -0. 159 0. 125 -0. 028 nutritionvalue 0. 778 -0. 074 -0. 043 0. 067 -0. 088 flavour 0. 147 0. 118 -0. 113 0. 779 -0. 261 adfreq -0. 065 0. 8 0. 052 0. 046 0. 066 expirydate 0. 805 -0. 009 0. 244 0. 04 0. 043 Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis. Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization. a. Rotation converged in 6 iterations. The factors recognized after the factor analysis are as under: Factor 1: Health and Hygiene 1. Packet cleanliness 2. Nutrition Value 3. Expiry Date Factor 2: Media Influence 1. Promotion Schemes 2. Brand Value 3. AD Frequency Factor 3: Convenience 1. Range of flavors 2. Availability Factor 4: Product Features 1. Price 2. Flavor Factor 5: Package Design 1. Visual Packaging Attributes those were not important: 1. Brand Ambassador 2. Quantity Available †¢ The perceptual maps show the mapping of different factors in the minds of the customers and the association between them. The data was reduced from many attributes to 5 factors that have similar attributes. The various factors mapped according to the rotated results of factor analysis. The factors were given names based on the attributes in them. These factors were used to form the factor analysis where two factors were mapped on X and Y axis to know the relation between them. †¢ †¢ The factors help the company to know how the product is currently mapped in the customer’s mind. If a target consumer is focused upon then the factors can be changed and a different map can be formed. The attribute brand ambassador and package sizes available are not a major attribute in any of the factors. This justifies the fact that almost all the major fruit drinks are not endorsed by any of the big brand ambassador barring a few such as minute maid pulpy orange (Nikhil Chinappa ) . Also the variety of the package sizes available is not affecting the consumer decision while making a purchase for fruit drinks. †¢ CrossTabs 1. PURCHASE FREQUENCY VS SKU PREFERRED. Crosstab Count SKU 200 ml purchasefrequency 1-3 times 4-6 times more than 6 times rarely Total 25 15 7 11 58 300 ml 2 6 1 1 10 500 ml 5 6 4 5 20 1 litre 2 0 4 6 12 Total 34 27 16 23 100 Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases a. 19. 117a 20. 380 8. 109 100 df 9 9 1 sided) . 024 . 016 . 004 10 cells (62. 5%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 1. 60. Since p value is less than alpha i. e. .05 (95% confidence level), therefore h0 is rejected. This shows that there is high association between purchase frequency and SKU or quantity packs. This is an indication of the fact that people preferring smaller SKUs usually purchase more as compared to others. Thus high association between purchase frequency and SKU (pack sizes ) is established . 2. PURCHASE FREQUENCY VS GENDER purchasefrequency * gender Crosstabulation Count gender male purchasefrequency 1-3 times 4-6 times more than 6 times rarely Total 19 18 12 17 66 female 15 9 4 6 34 Total 34 27 16 23 100 Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 2. 776a 2. 776 2. 387 100 df 3 3 1 sided) . 428 . 427 . 122 a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 5. 44. Since p value is greater than alpha i. e. o. 05 (95% confidence level), therefore there is no association between purchase frequency and gender. 3. CHOICE OF CHANNEL VS FACTORS AFFECTING CHOICE OF CHANNEL channel * reasonforchannel Crosstabulation Count reasonforchannel Pricing channel Retail store Supermarket Cineplex Restaurants Travel Pan shops Others Total 4 4 1 1 1 0 1 12 Ambience 8 6 0 3 2 2 0 21 Nearness 23 6 0 1 1 0 0 31 Service 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 Display 13 6 2 3 1 0 0 25 Reputation 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 Occasion 6 0 0 0 0 0 1 7 Total 54 23 5 9 5 2 2 100. Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 68. 211a 50. 165 1. 108 100 df 36 36 1 sided) . 001 . 059 . 293 a. 43 cells (87. 8%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is . 02. Here p value is less than alpha i. e. 0. 05 (95% confidence level) therefore Ho is rejected. This shows that there is high association between choice of channel and factors affecting the choice of channel. This gives an indication such that those people who consider availability and nearness as their factor affecting the choice of channel might prefer buying fruit drink from retail stores or grocery stores. Thus a high association is established. CROSSTABS OF PURCHASE FREQUENCY VS REASONS FOR HAVING FRUIT DRINKS I conducted crosstabs of purchase frequency with the scores /ranking given by various respondents to the various reasons for drinking fruit drinks such as socialisation, refreshment, enjoyment, mental lift, attitude, basic thirst, taste etc. out of all these crosstabs association was found between two cases. The two cases have been given below: 1. PURCHASE FREQUENCY VS REFRESHMENT purchasefrequency * refreshment Crosstabulation Count refreshment neither agree nor strongly disagree purchasefrequency 1-3 times 4-6 times more than 6 times rarely Total 20 18 9 8 55 disagree 7 6 7 12 32 disagree 5 0 0 2 7 agree 2 1 0 1 4 strongly agree 0 2 0 0 2 Total 34 27 16 23 100 Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 20. 628a 23. 332 . 108 100 df 12 12 1 sided) . 056 . 025 . 742 a. 12 cells (60. 0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is . 32. Since p value is less than alpha (95% confidence level) thus there is high association between refreshment purpose and purchase frequency. This might be an indication of the fact that people drinking fruit drinks for refreshment purpose generally buy more as compared to others. PURCHASE FREQUENCY VS BASIC THIRST purchasefrequency * basicthirst Crosstabulation Count basicthirst neither agree nor strongly disagree purchasefrequency 1-3 times 4-6 times more than 6 times rarely Total 6 11 3 11 31 disagree 15 6 9 9 39 disagree 7 6 0 2 15 agree 5 4 4 0 13 strongly agree 1 0 0 1 2 Total 34 27 16 23 100. Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 20. 262a 26. 177 4. 223 100 df 12 12 1 sided) . 062 . 010 . 040 a. 12 cells (60. 0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is . 32. Since p value is less than alpha (95%) therefore there is high association between purchase frequency and basic thirst /filling purpose. This might be an indication of the fact that people drinking fruit drinks for basic thirst / filling purpose generally buy more as compared to others. Correlation Correlation of the various brands (i. e. Appy, Real, Tropicana etc) was done with various reasons for drinking such as refreshment, enjoyment, vitality, mental lift etc. I tried to identify the various reasons that are correlated with various brands . This activity basically helped us in identifying the perception and connotations of people towards various fruit drink brands. Following are some of the inferences that I established after conducting the correlation analysis. 1. There was a significant correlation between brand Real and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Health †¢ Enjoyment †¢ Attitude 2. There was a significant correlation between brand Tropicana and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Health †¢ Enjoyment 3. There was a significant correlation between brand Maaza and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Attitude 4. There was a no correlation between brand Slice and the various reasons for drinking. 5. There was a significant correlation between brand Appy and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Socialising 6. There was a significant correlation between brand Frooti and the following reasons for drinking: †¢ Taste †¢ Mental lift 7. There was a significant correlation between brand Mangola and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Taste †¢ Mental lift 8. There was a significant correlation between brand Pulpy Orange and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Attitude 9. There was a significant correlation between brand Twister and the following reasons for drinking: †¢ Taste †¢ Mental lift 10. There was a significant correlation between brand Others (ex. Lehberry etc.) and the following reasons for drinking : †¢ Attitude †¢ Basic thirst Conclusion On the basis of the data collected and the tests conducted I have arrived at the following conclusions: With the help of correlation I was able to identify the attributes that consumers associate with the various fruit drinks and which in turn drive their purchase decision for the same. For example Tropicana is associated with health and enjoyment whereas Appy is associated with socialising. These reflect the perceptions of the various fruit drinks in the mind of the consumers. The crosstab between purchase frequency and SKU showed that those purchasing smaller SKU’s purchase more frequently as compared to those who purchased a 500ml or 1litre. On the other hand there is no impact of gender on purchasing frequency for fruit drinks. There is a high association between the channels preferred and the factors affecting these channels. The most important factor came out to be location or nearness of the channel. There is also a high association between purchase frequency and reasons for consuming fruit drinks such as refreshment and fulfilling basic thirst. In factor analysis I found out 5 factors which mainly have an impact on the purchase of a fruit drink. There were two factors which did not have any significant impact. Also, I found out that the most preferred channel for purchase in retail stores. The most preferred SKU is 200ml packs which could be due to convenience. The most preferred drink is Frooti followed by Tropicana and Real. Annexure Perceptual Maps: 1. Health & Hygiene Vs Media Influence 0. 778 health and hygiene -0. 08 0. 926 -0. 116 0. 778 -0. 065 0. 805 media/external influence 0. 856 0. 004 0. 794 -0. 074 0. 8 -0. 009.promotionschemes packetcleanliness brandvalue nutritionvalue adfreq expirydate 2. Health & Hygiene Vs Convenience health and hygiene range_flavours availability packetcleanlines s nutritionvalue expirydate 0. 112 0. 011 0. 926 0. 778 0. 805 convenience 0. 847 0. 82 0. 152 -0. 043 0. 244 3. Health & Hygiene Vs Product Features health and hygiene price packetcleanlines s nutritionvalue flavour expirydate -0. 14 0. 926 0. 778 0. 147 0. 805 product features 0. 691 -0. 013 0. 067 0. 779 0. 04 4. Media Influence Vs Convenience media influence range_flavours availability -0. 069 0. 001 convenience 0. 847 0. 82.promotionschemes brandvalue adfreq 0. 856 0. 794 0. 8 -0. 039 -0. 159 0. 052 5. Media Influence Vs Product Features media influence price promotionscheme s brandvalue flavour adfreq 0. 003 0. 856 0. 794 0. 118 0. 8 product features 0. 691 0. 172 0. 125 0. 779 0. 046 6. Convenience Vs Product Feature convenience range_flavours availability price flavour 0. 847 0. 82 0. 088 -0. 113 product features -0. 056 0. 009 0. 691 0. 779 7. Health & Hygiene Vs Package Design visual_packg packetcleanline ss nutritionvalue expirydate health and package hygiene design 0. 084 0. 872 0. 926 -0. 014 0. 778 0. 805 -0. 088 0. 043 8. Media Influence Vs Package Design media/external package influence design visual_packg 0. 072 0. 872 promotionscheme 0. 856 -0. 032 s brandvalue 0. 794 -0. 028 adfreq 0. 8 0. 066 9. Convenience Vs Package Design range_flavou rs convenience package design 0. 847 0. 033 availability visual_packg 0. 82 0. 062 0. 042 0. 872 10. Product features Vs Package design product features visual_pack g price flavour -0. 023 0. 691 0. 779 package design 0. 872 0. 438 -0. 261 Questionnaire: QUESTIONNAIRE 1. Whom do you buy fruit drinks for? (Tick one) a) Myself b) Family c) Children d) Institutional purposes / social occasions 2. a) b) c) d) 3. a) b) c) d) How often do you have a fruit drink? 1-3 times a week 4-6 times a week More than 6 times a week Rarely (fortnightly ) What quantity do you usually prefer to buy? 200-250 ml (Tetrapak) 300 ml 500 ml bottle 1 litre 4. Through which medium did you come to know about your preferred fruit drink brand? a) Hoardings and banners b) Newspaper and magazines c) TV/radio d) Word of mouth e) Others †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 5. Do the following reasons influence your consumption of fruit drinks? Strongly Disagree Neither Agree disagree agree nor REASONS disagree For social occasions / entertainment It acts as a refreshment. Strongly Agree It provides enjoyment It tastes very good It satisfies my basic thirst and is filling I feel a sense of well being after consuming it It gives me vitality and energy It relaxes me mentally It reflects my attitude 6. Rank the following fruit drinks from 1 to 5, with 1 being least preferred and 5 being most preferred: a) Real †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ b) Tropicana †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ c) Maaza †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ d) Slice †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ e) Appy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ f) Frooti †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ g) Mangola †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ h) Pulpy orange †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ i) Twister †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ j) Others †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 7. How important are the following factors for purchasing a fruit drink? FACTORS Very less Less No important important Influenc e Important Very Important Flavor No. of flavors Availability and Convenience Price Cleanliness of packet/ not damaged Manufacturing date /expiry date Frequency of advertisement Brand ambassador Nutritional value/ calorie content Brand value /brand name SKUs available Promotion schemes/discounts Visual appeal of packaging 8. Which is your most preferred channel for purchasing a fruit drink? a) Retail store/grocery store b) Supermarket/hypermarket c) Cineplex d) Pan shop/kiosks e) Restaurants f) Travel g) Others†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 9. a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) Which is the most important characteristic for choosing the channel? Pricing Ambience Location/ nearness Service Display /merchandising Reputation Occasion Others Personal Details 1. Age a) b) c) d) 17-20 21-24 25-28 29 and above 2. Gender: a) Male b) Female 3. Education a) b) c) d) e) High school Undergraduate Graduate Postgraduate Others.