Factors Influencing Brand Loyalty of Soft Drink

Consumers in Kenya and India

Jairo Kirwa Mise
School of Economics and Business Studies, Maseno University, Kenya
PhD Scholar, University of Kerala India

Prof Chandrasekeran Nair
University of Kerala India

Odhiambo Odera
(Corresponding author)

University of Southern Queensland, Australia and Masinde Muliro
University of Science and Technology, Kenya ( Emai l : ooder a@yahoo. com)

Prof Martin Ogutu
Department of Business Administration,
School of Business, University of Nairobi, Kenya


Abstract
The main purpose of the study was to establish the key factors that influence brand loyalty among soft drink
consumers in the Kenyan and Indian markets. The study was carried out between January 2012 and October
2012. The target group was majorly youth consumers who were sampled from local universities in both countries.
The study established that in India, peer group are more powerful in influencing potential consumers to take soft
drinks while in Kenyan parents play a crucial role. More importantly too, it was established that of the six variables
studied, promotion is the strongest influencing factor among Kenyan soft drinks consumers while in India, brand
quality matters most.

Key words: Brand loyalty, soft drinks, consumers


INTRODUCTION
Soft drink, refers to any class of non-alcoholic beverages, usually but not necessarily carbonated, normally
containing a natural or artificial sweetening agent, edible acids, natural or artificial flavors, and sometimes juice
(Vaux, 2011). The term originated to distinguish the flavored drinks from hard liquor, or spirits. Marketing of
carbonated soft drinks dates back to 17
th
century to imitate the popular and naturally effervescent waters of
famous springs, with primary interest in their reputed therapeutic values. Since then there have been many
diverse brands from different producers (Branske, 2011). Buyers tend to be brand loyal to certain brands and
others are indifferent. Although some consumers are said to be totally brand loyal, others are spuriously loyal,
and others are quite indifferent in their purchase behavior. Whereas most of the studies have occurred in
developed countries, little has been done in underdeveloped and developing nations.
The Indian carbonated industry is worth Rs 60-billion and growing now at 5% annually with a compound annual
growth rate of 4.5% where Coke and Pepsi have a combined market share of around 95% directly or through
franchisees. Kenya's soft drink market is worth approximately 1 billion dollars. A great portion of the market is
dominated by carbonated soft drinks and synthetic juices. The study focused on the youth, who are
predominantly the majority in global population and form major portion of soft drinks consumers. Youth market
is very important and powerful segment of consumer to be considered as a separate section (Ness et al, 2002).
Specific factors that influence the youth in their purchasing behavior pattern has been a serious issue to the
behavioural researchers (Bush et al, 2004). Previous studies have investigated how young adults learn what to
consume and what influences them (Keillor et al, 1996; Moschis & Churchill, 1978). The studies which has been
showed according to the Social Leaving Theory says that the consumer behaviour is affected by lot of sources
such as their family values (Baltas, 1997; Feltham, 1998); financial restraints (Ness et al, 2002; Rowley, 2005;
East et al, 1995) and peer group influences (Feltham, 1998; Ness et al, 2002). Solomon (1994) highlighted that
teenagers will realise the influence of brand loyalty while purchasing differrent kinds of products in their age
and are influenced to buy the product during the age period. Hence the youth or teen may rely on the particular
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age and keep purchasing their favourite brand on that age onwards (Hollander & German, 1992). Previous
research assumes that the youth customers are not much loyal to the brand however, these findings are
relatvely uncertain and creating more argument (Pollay et al, 1996; Spero & Stone, 2004; Roehm & Roehm,
2004). Giges (1991) found the lifestyles and consumption habits of people aged 14-34 around the world to be
similar especially in terms of their consumption of sotf drinks, and footwear. This study sought to examine the
six key factors then rank to establish the most influential factor in the African and Asian markets studied

LITERATURE REVIEW
Substantial numbers of studies have been done on brand loyalty. However most of these studies are based in
the western world and tend to focus on one or two variables only. Little has been done in the developing and
under developed economies. For instance, Bloemer et al (1995) examine the relationship between brand loyalty
and satisfaction levels of the buyer. Equally, Chaudhuri & Holbrook (2001) sought to establish relationship
between brand loyalty and trust developed by the customer. Podoshen (2008) investigates the role of racial
factor on product brand loyalty. Mohammed (2006) studies the influence of price factor on brand loyalty. Mei
Mei et al (2006) investigate the influence of brand name and product promotion.
Angeline (2006) studies the influence of age bracket on brand loyalty in soft drinks segment. In this study six
factors were identified and studied. The first was repeat purchase of the same brand. Repeat purchase is a
behavioral tendency where customers purchase the same product or brand regularly and consistently. When
this happens over time, the customer develops loyalty to the brand due to unique attributes identified during the
frequent purchases. Assael (1995) argues that Loyals use repeat purchasing of a brand as a means of
reducing risk. Another factor is the customer satisfaction after purchase of the brand. J ohnson & Forwell (1991)
define an overall customer satisfaction as the customers rating of the brand based on all encounter and
experiences. Bennett & Thiele (2004) affirm that if the customers experience high level of satisfaction they are
highly to be pre disposed attitudinally to the particular brand and intention to repurchase. Another factor is
product quality. Product quality encompasses the features and characteristics of a product or service that bears
on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs. Romaniuk & Sharp (2003) assume that the more attributes (non-
negative) associated with a product brand; the more loyal consumers are likely to be. Price of the product brand
was another factor considered in the study. Cadogan & Foster (2000) assert that consumers with high brand
loyalty are less price sensitive. The products brand name was also considered as a factor.
According to Keller et al (1998), a famous brand name can disseminate product benefits and lead to higher
recall of an advertised benefit than a non-famous brand name hence leading to high recall and repurchase. The
last factor studied was product promotion. Promotion is a component of a marketing mix which takes the form of
communication between the product and the correct or potential consumers. Several studies (Evans et al,
1996) suggest that promotion, especially in form of a well-targeted advertisement cannot only make the
consumers less price sensitive and more loyal, but also change their knowledge, attitude and behaviors
towards the product. This study sought to examine the six key factors then rank them to establish the most
influential factor in the African and Asian markets studied.

METHODOLOGY
An ex post facto survey research design was adopted in the study. A total of 1312 respondents were sampled
comprising of 434 Kenyans and 878 Indians from selected public universities in India and Kenya. The students
sampled represented 1.2% of the target population in 3 public universities in Kenya and India respectively.
Neuman (2000) argues that for large populations (over 50,000), small sampling ratios (1 %) are possible and
can be very accurate. The study adopted incidental random sampling techniques. Incidental sampling was
used to sample University students who were easy to get. Respondents were selected based on their
availability and willingness to respond (Gravetter & Forzano, 2006). Questionnaire was used to collect the data.
A pilot study was conducted in Baraton University in Kenya and Mahatma Gandhi University in Kerala
(Kottayam) state, India in November 2011. Correlations and multiple regression (MLR) coefficients were
calculated to check the relationship among variables. The following regression equation was fitted to estimate
the influence of various factors that influence brand loyalty among soft drinks consumers in both countries;
e x x x x x x a y
6 6 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1



Where, y =Brand loyalty, x
1 =
Product Quality x
2
=Repeat Purchase (purchase frequency) , x
3
=Satisfaction ,
x
4
=Price , x
5
=Price, x
6
=Product Promotion

FINDINGS
The Relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and product quality
The first objective of this study was to determine the relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty
and product quality.


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Table 1: Product quality
Statement
Response
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree
Strongly
Agree
F % F % F % F % F %
The volume of soft
drink is sufficient
for me
Kenya 91 22.1 70 17.0 130 31.6 64 15.6 56 13.6
India 18 2.8 9 1.4 206 31.6 352 54.1 66 10.1
The components
used by the brand
are satisfactory
Kenya 40 9.7 118 28.6 115 27.9 89 21.6 50 12.1
India 9 1.4 9 1.4 197 30.3 358 55.0 78 12.0
The brand has my
favorite colour
Kenya 51 12.3 84 20.3 90 21.8 114 27.6 74 17.9
India 18 2.8 72 11.1 197 30.3 233 35.8 131 20.1
The brand has
good functional
quality
Kenya 49 11.9 66 16.0 98 23.7 117 28.3 83 20.1
India 0 0.0 9 1.4 224 34.4 279 42.9 139 21.4
My brand is
always available
in the right state
e.g. temperature
Kenya 5 1.2 123 29.8 94 22.8 92 22.3 99 24.0
India 9 1.4 161 24.7 0 0 298 45.8 183 28.1
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

From the Table 1, it was established that 130 (31.6%) respondents from Kenyan market were neutral on the
statement that The volume of soft drink is sufficient for me, while 206 (31.6%) respondents from India were
also neutral. This indicates that similar percentage of respondents from the two countries was neutral on the
statement. On the other hand, 91(22.1%) respondents from Kenyan market strongly disagreed with the
statement but only 2.8 % (18) of respondents from India strongly disagreed with the statement. This determines
that a larger percentage of Kenyan soft drink consumers strongly disagreed that the volume of their preferred
soft drink brand was sufficient contrary to their counterparts from India. There were 70 (17.0%) respondents
from Kenya who disagreed that the volume of soft drink was sufficient for them in contrast to 9 (1.4%)
respondents from India. 64 (15.6%) respondents from Kenya and 352 (54.1%) respondents from India agreed
with the statement that the volume contents of the soft drink brands were sufficient to them while 56 (13.6%)
respondents from Kenya and 66 (10.1%) respondents from India strongly agreed with the statement. From the
responses it can be shown that majority of the respondents in Kenya disagreed that the volume of their soft
drink brands is sufficient for them contrary to their Indian counterparts who majority of them (64.2%) agreed
with the statement. This implies that the Kenyan soft drink consumers are not satisfied with the volume of their
preferred brands contrary to their Indian counterparts who are satisfied with the contents of their brands in
terms of volume.
On the statement that The components used by the brand are satisfactory 28.6% (118) Kenyan respondents
disagreed in contrast to 1.4 % (9) Indian respondents. 27.8% (115) Kenyan respondents were neutral on the
statement in comparison to 30.3% (197) Indian respondents. On the other hand 21.6% (89) Kenyan
respondents agreed with the statement in contrast to 55.0% (358) Indian respondents while 12.1% (50) Kenyan
respondents strongly agreed with the statement in comparison to 12.0% (78) Indian respondents. From the
responses it can be inferred that majority of both Kenyans (33.7%) and Indians (68.0%) were in agreement that
the components used by the brand are satisfactory but the Indian percentage respondents were higher than the
Kenyan percentage respondents by a margin of 34.3%. This demonstrates that the components which are used
to manufacture brands of soft drinks affects the quality of the brand and ultimately may affect customer brand
loyalty.
On the statement that The brand has my favorite colour, 27.6 % (114) respondents from the Kenyan market
agreed with the statement in comparison to 35.6% (233) respondents from India while 20.3 % ( 84) Kenyan
respondents disagreed with the statement as opposed to 11.1% (72) Indian respondents who also disagreed
with the statement. On the other hand, 21.8 % (90) Kenyan respondents were undecided on the statement as
compared to 30.3 %( 197) Indian respondents who were also undecided on the statement. There were 74
(17.9%) soft drink consumers from Kenya who strongly agreed that their brands had their favorite colours. This
was comparable to 20.1% (131) respondents from India who also strongly agreed with the statement. It can
therefore be shown that majority of the soft drink consumers in both Indian (55.9%) and Kenyan (45.5%)
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markets agreed that their brands have their favorite colours, an indication that brand colour affects brand quality
and influences brand loyalty among soft drink consumers in both markets (Kenya and India).
Relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and purchase frequency
The second objective of this study was to establish whether there is a relationship between soft drinks
consumer brand loyalty and purchase frequency. The participants were requested to respond to five point Likert
items in the questionnaire on purchase frequency.


Table 2: Influence of purchase frequency on brand loyalty
Statement
Kenyan Market Indian Market
Mean Std. Deviation Mean Std. Deviation
I purchase my brand regularly 3.0387 1.25545 3.9754 1.04485
The more often I purchase the more I get
attached to it
3.5583 1.08024 3.8971 1.05983
I will buy this brand the next time I need such
a Product
3.6489 1.06818 4.1413 .98528
I intend to keep purchasing this brand 3.8592 .87384 3.9355 .90918
(Source: Research Data, 2012)


From Table 2, it was revealed that the statement that I purchase my brand regularly had a mean of 3.0387
1.25545 in the Kenyan market implying that majority of the respondents from the Kenyan market had a neutral
opinion on the statement while it had a mean of 3.9754 1.04485 in the Indian market indicating that most of
the soft drink consumers from the Indian market were in agreement with the statement. This implies that there
was a significant difference between the Indian and Kenyan market respondents on purchase frequency of their
preferred soft drinks with the Indian respondents agreeing that they usually purchase their brands regularly
while their Kenyan counterparts had mixed reactions with some purchasing their brands regularly and some not
purchasing their brands on regular basis. The findings indicate that the Indian soft drink consumers are truly
loyal to their brands while their Kenyan counterparts are spuriously loyal when it comes to purchase frequency.
On the statement that The more often I purchase the more I get attached to it, it was found out that the Kenyan
market soft drink consumers had a mean of 3.5583 1.08024 while their Indian counterparts had a mean of
3.8971 1.05983. The responses indicated that majority of respondents from both markets were in agreement
with the statement but there was some slight difference on the two means with the Indian market mean being
higher than the Kenyan market mean. This means that the Indian respondents were more in agreement with the
statement than their Kenyan counterparts indicating that the purchase frequency attaches one to the soft drink
influencing the brand loyalty positively (the more one purchases certain soft drink, the more they become truly
loyal to the brand).
On the statement that I will buy this brand the next time I need such a product, it was found out that the
respondents from the two markets were more in agreement with the statement; the Indian market mean (4.1413
.98528) being higher than the Kenyan market mean (3.6489 1.06818). It can therefore be shown that even
though the Kenyan market respondents would prefer buying a certain soft drink brand when they need soft
drinks, their Indian counterparts would more often buy the same brand each time they need a soft drink (truly
loyal). It can therefore be said that the soft drink purchase times and frequency affects positively the brand
loyalty.
On the statement that I intend to keep purchasing this brand, it was found that the Kenyan market soft drink
consumers had a mean of 3.8592 .87384 while the Indian market soft drink consumers had a mean of 3.9355
.90918. The two means were almost equal and both indicated that the respondents from the two markets
were in agreement with the statement. It can be inferred from the two markets that the soft drink consumers are
loyal to their brands as they intend to keep on purchasing their preferred brands therefore as they keep
purchasing their brands, they will be truly loyal to their brands and this will affect the brand loyalty positively as
the consumers in the two markets will keep on purchasing their brands.

Relationship Between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and consumer satisfaction
The third objective was to establish whether there is a relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty
and consumer satisfaction. The participants in the two markets were asked to respond to five point Likert scale
questions on the questionnaire specifically on consumer satisfaction.



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Table 3: Consumer satisfaction means
Statement Market
Response
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree
Strongly
Agree
F % F % F % F % F %
I am fully
satisfied with my
brand
Kenya 9 2.2 78 18.9 47 11.4 131 31.7 148 35.8
India 45 6.9 125 19.2 35 5.4 228 35.0 218 33.5
I will
recommend to
my friends to
buy the same
Kenya 62 15.0 55 13.3 50 12.1 128 31.0 118 28.6
India 90 14.2 98 15.5 35 5.5 203 32.1 207 32.7
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

From Table 3, it was determined that 148 (35.8%) Kenyan respondents strongly agreed with the statement that
I am fully satisfied with my brand in comparison to 218 (33.5%) respondents from Indian market who also
strongly agreed with the statement. 131 (31.7%) Kenyan respondents agreed with the statement with 228
(35.0%) of the Indian respondents who also agreed with the statement. It was further found that 78 (18.9%)
respondents from Kenya disagreed with the statement as compared to 125 (19.2%) of Indian respondents who
also disagreed with the statement. There were 47(11.4%) Kenyan respondents who were neutral on the
statement as opposed to 35 (5.4%) of Indian respondents who were also neutral on the statement. At the same
time 9 (2.2%) Kenyan respondents strongly disagreed with the statement as compared to 45 (6.9%) of Indian
respondents who also strongly disagreed with the statement. This implies that both Kenyan and Indian soft
drink consumers are fully satisfied with their preferred brands and this affects the brand loyalty positively and
therefore it can be inferred that both Kenyan and Indian soft drink consumers are truly loyal to their brands.
On the statement that I will recommend to my friends to buy the same, it was found that 128 (31.0%) Kenyan
respondents agreed with the statement as compared to 203 (32.1%) of Indian respondents who also agreed
with the statement. There were 118 (28.6%) Kenyan respondents who strongly agreed with the statement and
207 (32.7%) Indian respondents this indicates that there was only a small margin on percentages of the
respondents who strongly agreed with the statement from the two markets. Furthermore, 55 (13.3%) Kenyan
respondents disagreed with the statement while 98 (15.5%) Indian respondents also disagreed with the
statement. There were 62 (15.0%) Kenyan respondents who strongly disagreed with the statement while 90
(14.2%) Indian respondents also strongly disagreed with the statement. In addition 50 (12.1%) Kenyan
respondents were neutral on the statement as opposed to 35 (5.5%) of Indian respondents who were also
neutral on the statement. It can therefore be inferred that the respondents from the two markets will recommend
to their friends to buy the same brands they prefer. It can therefore be concluded that the respondents from the
two markets are satisfied with their preferred brands.

The Relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and product price
The fourth objective of this study was to determine the relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty
and product price. The participants in the two markets of India and Kenya were requested to respond to items
on the questionnaire specifically on product price that influence consumer brand loyalty.

Table 4: Product price and its influence on brand loyalty
Statement
Kenyan market Indian market
Mean Std. eviation Mean Std. Deviation
Increases of price will not hinder me
to purchase
3.2397 1.24564 3.0514 1.39830
The brand provides good value for
money
3.3753 1.28171 3.4869 1.33049
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

From Table 4, it can be illustrated that the mean score of the statement that Increases of price will not hinder
me to purchase was 3.2397 1.24564 for the Kenyan consumers while it was 3.0514 1.39830 for the Indian
consumers. The mean scores indicate that there were mixed reactions in both markets on the statement. This
implies that increasing prices of soft drinks in both markets may influence brand loyalty negatively as most
consumers may opt for other products with similar satisfaction. On the other hand, it was found that the
statement the brand provides good value for money to have a mean of 3.3753 1.28171 and 3.4869
1.33049 in the Kenyan and the Indian markets respectively. This indicates that there was a slight difference on
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responses on the two markets concerning the statement with most of the respondents in the two countries in
agreement with the statement while some were neutral on the statement. It may therefore be inferred that the
consumers in both markets are satisfied that the money they pay for their preferred brands have value.

Relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and product promotion
The fifth objective was to establish if there is a relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and
product promotion. To achieve this objective, the participants were requested to respond to items on a Likert
scale in the questionnaire on product promotion.

Table 5: Promotion means in the two markets
Statement
Kenyan Market Indian market
Mean Std. Deviation Mean Std. Deviation
The promotional campaign of the
product appeal to me highly to buy
the product.
3.1695 1.23278 3.4501 1.23483
Ads of the brand attract me to
purchase
3.2518 1.12324 3.3671 1.33662
Window displays are attractive 3.1792 1.16871 3.8909 .94889
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

From Table 5, it reveals that the means of 3.1695 1.23278 and 3.4501 1.23483 were obtained for the
Kenyan and Indian responses on the statement that the promotional campaign of the product appeal to me
highly to buy the product. This indicates that majority of the Kenyan respondents were more neutral on the
statement while the Indian respondents were more in agreement with the statement implying that the
promotional campaigns used to market the soft drinks in India are more attractive to the Indian youths as
compared to the promotional campaigns in Kenya.
The statement that Ads of the brand attract me to purchase had a slight mean difference between the
respondents from the two markets with a mean of 3.2518 1.12324 and 3.36711.33662 for the Kenyan and
Indian markets respectively. It can be deduced that respondents from the two markets were neutral with
majority of them being in agreement with the statement an implication that promotional advertisements may
attract soft drink consumers to consume more of their preferred soft drinks in both Kenya and India.
The statement that window displays are attractive had a mean of 3.1792 1.16871 from the Kenyan
respondents while it showed a mean of 3.8909 .94889 from the Indian respondents. This establishes that the
Kenyan responses were more neutral on the statement and at the same time lower than the Indian responses
which was higher and in agreement with the statement. It can therefore be indicated that window displays
attracts more Indian soft drink consumers to buy their brands but may/may not attract the Kenyan youth soft
drink consumers.

Relationship between Soft Drinks Consumer Brand Loyalty and Brand Name
The sixth objective was to establish whether there is a relationship between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty
and brand name. The participants were requested to respond to items in the questionnaire on brand name.

Table 6: Brand name quality means


Statement
Kenyan market Indian market
Mean
Std.
Deviation
Mean
Std.
Deviation
The brand is reputable. 3.0944 1.29910 3.7296 .97698
Brand Name and image attract me to purchase. 3.1889 1.30465 3.8018 .96032
Brand is selected regardless of price 2.9734 1.20749 3.5452 1.18834
Brand reflects my own personality 3.3390 2.29528 3.8003 .83578
My brand display is attractive to me 3.1574 1.20554 3.9063 .78376
My brand is available in most of all the retail outlets 3.6828 1.26131 3.8679 .78900
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

From Table 6, the statement that The brand is reputable had a mean of 3.0944 1.29910 in the Kenyan
market while in the Indian market it had a mean of 3.7296 .97698. This implies that majority of the
respondents from the Indian market tend to agree that their brands were reputable while those from the Kenyan
market were more neutral on the statement. This indicates that there is a slight difference on the response of
reputations of the soft drink brands between the Kenyan youth consumers and their Indian counterparts with the
Indian consumers indicating higher acceptability than their Kenyan counterparts do.
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The statement that Brand name and image attract me to purchase had a mean of 3.1889 1.30465 in the
Kenyan market indicating that most of the respondents were neutral on the statement while it had a mean of
3.8018 .96032 in the Indian market indicating that most of the respondents were in agreement with the
statement. This implies that the Indian soft drink consumer youths were more in agreement with the statement
as compared to their Kenyan counterparts, an indication that most youths in India are more attracted by the
brand name and image to purchasing their preferred soft drink brands as compared to the Kenyan soft drink
consumers.
The statement that the brand is selected regardless of price had a lower mean of 2.9734 1.20749 in the
Kenyan market as compared to a mean of 3.5452 1.18834 in the Indian market. This implies that even though
the Kenyan responses were neutral on the statement, majority of the respondents disagreed with the statement
indicating that the Kenyan soft drink consumers are affected by the price of the soft drinks. The Indian
responses indicated that majority of the respondents agreed with the statement indicating that regardless of
increase in prices, the Indian youths will continue purchasing their preferred soft drink brands as opposed to
their Kenyan counterparts.
The statement that the brand reflects my own personality had a mean of 3.3390 2.29528 in the Kenyan
market while it showed a mean of 3.8003 .83578 in the Indian market. The means indicate that there was a
difference between the Kenyan soft drink consumers and the Indian soft drink consumers on their responses on
the statement. The Indian soft drink consumers had a higher mean indicating that they were more satisfied with
the soft drinks being associated with them in comparison to their Kenyan counterparts.
The statement that my brand display is attractive to me had a mean of 3.1574 1.20554 and 3.9063 .78376
for Kenyan and Indian markets respectively. This indicates most of the Kenyan respondents were more neutral
on the statement while those from India were more in agreement with the statement an implication that the way
brands are displayed in the Indian market attracts more youth consumers as compared to Kenyan consumers
who are not more attracted by display of brands. On the other hand, the statement that my brand is available in
most of all the retail outlets had a mean of 3.6828 1.26131 and 3.8679 .78900 in the Kenyan and Indian
markets respectively. This indicates that most of the respondents in both the Kenyan and the Indian markets
were in agreement with the statement implying that soft drink consumers in both markets have their preferred
choice of soft drinks available in all the retail outlets. The availability of the soft drinks in the retail outlets in the
two markets has made most of the brands to be consumed at local levels increasing the brand loyalty.

Correlation between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and cultural background
The seventh objective was to establish the correlation between soft drinks consumer brand loyalty and cultural
background within the two markets.

Table 7: Effect of cultural Background on brand loyalty
Group Statistics

Cultur
e
N Mean
Std.
Deviation
Std. Error
Mean
I always insist on my favorite brand and cannot
take any other optional brand (truly loyal)
African 412 2.8495 1.37997 .06799
Asian 651 3.0015 1.62906 .06385
I purchase my brand regularly and i have no
other option
African 412 2.4660 1.20069 .05915
Asian 651 1.7465 1.06640 .04180
I don't stick to one single brand only; i shift from
one brand to another (Brand Switcher)
African 412 1.6408 1.15978 .05714
Asian 651 2.2704 1.37137 .05375
I am not keen on any specific brand and can take
any (Indifferent buyer)
African 411 2.9465 1.21256 .05981
Asian 651 2.6943 1.61634 .06335
(Source: Research Data, 2012)

Results on Table 7, disclose a mean value of 3.0015 1.62906 was obtained in the Indian Market on the
statement that I always insist on my favorite brand and cannot take any other optional brand (truly loyal) while
in the African culture a mean of 2.8495 1.37997 was obtained which was lower than the Asian culture. The
two markets showed respondents from both markets were in agreement with the statement and therefore it
seems that Asians and Africans are truly loyal to their brands.

CONCLUSION
The results of the study indicate there was a statistically positive and significant relationship between product
quality and brand loyalty in the two markets studied with more Indian consumers than Kenyans considering it
important in making choice. This could be explained by the fact that Indian market has more varied varieties of
soft drinks than the Kenyan market.
There was a positive and significant correlation between brand loyalty and customer satisfaction in the two
markets and it can therefore be concluded that customer satisfaction influences brand loyalty. Satisfaction was
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less influential in the Kenyan market than in the Indian market this can be explained by the fact that most
Kenyans consume soft drinks as real food while Indians consider soft drinks as mere refreshments after main
meals. There was a significant relationship between brand loyalty and product price in both markets. However,
Indian consumers were found to be more price sensitive than their Kenyan counterparts. There was a positive
and significant correlation between product promotion and brand loyalty in the two markets. However, Kenyan
consumers were more propelled by promotional campaigns to buy than their Indian counterparts. It was also
established that brand loyalty and brand name were positively correlated and significant in both Kenyan and
Indian markets. The Indians were found to be more sensitive to brand name of the soft drink than their Kenyan
counterparts. On the overall , the study established that the quality of the soft drink (product content, color and
packaging) are considered to be most significant of all the studied factors among Indian consumers, while
among Kenyans have product promotion as the strongest factor.

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