Consumer Preferences and Purchase Decision-Making For Micro-Packs - An Empirical Study

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Consumer Preferences and Purchase Decision-making for Micro-packs-- An


Empirical Study

Article  in  Vision-The Journal of Business Perspective · July 2016


DOI: 10.1177/0972262916652806

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Vision
20(3) 1–13
Consumer Preferences and Purchase © 2016 MDI
SAGE Publications

Decision-making for Micro-packs— sagepub.in/home.nav


DOI: 10.1177/0972262916652806

An Empirical Study http://vision.sagepub.com

Preeti Mehra1
Raghbir Singh2

Abstract
This study offers and validates a comprehensive approach to explain and predict the beliefs influencing consumer needs and the motiva-
tions behind their purchase decisions. The study aims at understanding the consumers purchase intentions on the basis of responses
given by the respondents. In order to attain these objectives, a sample of 500 respondents belonging to three cities of Punjab: Jalandhar,
Amritsar and Ludhiana; and Union territory of Chandigarh was drawn. Non-probability convenient sampling was adopted for select-
ing the respondents. It was however found that reasons such as ‘a big pack is difficult to store’ and ‘difficult to handle’ primarily lead
them to prefer a micro-pack. ‘Advertisement on print and electronic media’ was the most preferred source of information and ‘past
performance’ of a micro-pack was the most significant attribute while making a purchase decision. ‘Wide assortment of a single brand’
emerged as the most persuasive effort undertaken by retailers for building customers perceptions towards a brand. A store that was
the most ‘Neat and tidy’ was the most favoured one. Respondents expressed that in case of an unfortunate purchase, they preferred
to ‘forget about it’ and switched to another brand when they were ‘impressed by the advertisement of a new brand’.

Key Words
Micro-packs, FMCGs, purchase intentions, decision-making

Introduction a breakdown in the sales of its products (Gupta & Mehra,


2006). In this strategy, many players launched smaller-
A progressive line of theory embraces that to understand sized versions of their premium and mid-priced products
what consumers hunt in products, the marketers need to by providing assortment, which enhanced affordability of
observe past plain product attributes (Walker & Olson, the expensive products at a low budget (Gupta & Mehra,
1991). The theory suggests that consumers tend to buy a 2010). In India, shampoos were probably the first products
product not just for the sake of buying it but with the to be offered in sachets (Bhatnagar, 2005). Fast-moving
hope of seeking benefits from the products and anticipate Consumer Goods have engulfed the market with sachets
that they will add worth to their lives (Gutman, 1982). of shampoos, ketchups, jams, soaps, snacks, hair oils and
Consumer decision-making is a mental process. This infers numerous other daily use items (Trendwatching, 2003).
that though a choice cannot be comprehended, we can Micro-pack is a inventive way of marketing consumer
determine from visible behaviour of a consumer the type of goods in developing countries, where innumerable custom-
decision that has been made. A consumer goes through five ers might only be able to buy, for instance, one sachet of
stages during a purchase process: problem/need recogni- a shampoo rather than a whole bottle (Krishnan, 2006).
tion, information search, evaluation of alternatives, pur- Micro-packs are available in the form of single-use sachets
chase and post-purchase behaviour (Kotler, 2015, p. 131). or small bottles and cost only around `0.50–10 (Gupta &
An attempt has been made in the article to study the rele- Mehra, 2012). These are available both in big as well as
vant stages in context of micro-packs. small stores. Micro-packs are primarily targeted at lower
Fast-moving Consumer Goods Sector (FMCGs) adopted income groups, travellers and children (Chakravarty, 2004;
a new concept called ‘Micro Packs’, after the sector faced Gupta & Mehra, 2014). For consumers, small packs made

1 Research Scholar, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India.


2 Ex Professor, Department of University Business School, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India.

Corresponding author:
Preeti Mehra, 120, Dilbagh Nagar, Jalandhar, Punjab, India.
E-mail: [email protected]
2 Vision 20(3)

abundant sense, as they cost less than their big counter- that theories of consumer behaviour theorized that con-
brands in all product categories (Bhatnagar, 2005; sumers always made deliberate decisions regarding the
Ramalingam, 2001). The concept of sachetization could be things they purchased. The authors stated that the choices
tracked back to the old paan walas (Ramasubramanium, of a consumer were the result of a clear need and helped in
2010). Fast-moving Consumer Goods offering shampoos the determination of the product of choice. The authors
believed that persuading the consumer to take the primary also mentioned that human behaviour either began as an
step of using shampoos in place of soaps was the most unplanned progression or occurred totally outside of deli-
challenging step. Once this was done, then upgrading the berate attentiveness. Non-conscious goal search had an
consumer to bigger packs was not considered to be that impact on the attitudes, goals and thoughts of the consumer
difficult (Krishnan, 2006). Small packs were favoured for without their attentive minds. In light of the evidence that
various reasons. First, in place of using the contents of a unconscious behaviour occurred initially, this article
large pack where the wholesomeness could perish, using suggested a new model of comprehending consumer
small packets helped in keeping the content fresh. The behaviour. This model incorporated both deliberate and
study pointed out that partial use of a big pack is sure to unintentional psychological developments to signify how
divest it of freshness. Second, small packs meant smaller consumers take decisions regarding brand purchase in their
expenditures (Kamath, 2009). Bossar packaging (2011) everyday lives.
underlined the importance of sachet packaging and empha- Park (1982) observed that price plays a unique role at
sized that it has brought a revolution in the FMCG sector various stages of choosing a product. The study stressed
and escalated the commercialization of their products. that the role of element ‘price’ in choice behaviour is gene-
The study also pointed out the benefits of sachets for the rally presented, as it is seen in situations in which complete
pharmaceutical sector, which required high accuracy of information about other product traits is available with the
dose and the assurance of protection of the product in consumer. The study recommended that consumers held
optimal situations. different perceptions about price and used it in separate
ways. Laplaca (1974) attempted to separate unit pricing as
Review of Literature buying motivation and attempted to determine its affect on
the decision principles of a homemaker. It was observed
Micro-packing is relatively a new and unexplored field and
that where brands were observed as heterogeneous, the
very few empirical studies are available in this area. There
brand that was priced higher offered a great reduction in
is hardly any experimental study (evidence) in the country
the purchase risk. On the other hand, where customers sup-
concerning the buying behaviour of consumers regarding
posed that there was little variance among brands, they
micro-packs. Therefore, we have reviewed some studies
were equally satisfied with all. The author indicated that
based on consumer behaviour, factors influencing decision-
information about the price caused more buyers, to picking
making and sachet marketing in general.
the product with the lowest price. It was elaborated by
Scott (1978) emphasized on how consumer’s behaviour
Seiders and Costley (1994) that there survived a new breed
in a particular time phase shaped the basis for his conse-
of consumers, which willingly shuffled from one store to
quent actions and attitudes. The significance an individual
the other, taking buying decisions severely influenced by
ascribed to his experiences was of prominence in foresee-
ing and describing subsequent actions. The study empha- the price of products. The study observed that consumers
sized that learning from past behaviour was not a simple, tended to change their reference point for a lower price.
spontaneous response but a complicated process in which Ampuero and Vila (2006) had explored consumer per-
things learnt from previous experiences were reliant on ceptions in order to design product packaging so that it
many intermingling factors. These factors might be situa- may help in impressing a consumer. The research exhibited
tional factors, which affect the perception of the consumer that consumers were greatly influenced by the packaging
and his behaviour in current as well as future time frame. of a product while making purchase decisions. Bhatt (2007)
The study proposed that more research needed to be carried was of the opinion that it was the size of a product package
on the self-perception process and its implications on the that mattered the most these days. The author stated that
behaviour of the consumer. Ratchford (2001) observed that with an increase in the competition and the aspirations of
widespread study has been done on the extent of a con- the consumers, all companies had started believing that
sumer’s knowledge but much less has been researched small is beautiful. Kumar (2014) focused on the impor-
upon the relationship between knowledge and consumer tance of consumer behaviour with regard to personal care
choice. The study investigated these relationships by category. He acknowledged that the main urge of human
considering consumer knowledge as human capita and behaviour, either individual or organizational, was the fulfil-
assumed it to affect the information search and consump- ment of its needs and wants. The author further pointed out
tion activities. This framework was used to explain con- that an individual gets impressed by new and tempting
sumer search behaviour, lifestyle, choices, loyalties and ideas and is ready to spend more for them. He recom-
consumption patterns. Martin and Morich (2011) stated mended innovation in packing for the benefit of the
Mehra and Singh 3

companies as he was of the view that attractive packaging strategy included advertisement, heavy sales promotion
had been able to capture the consumer’s attention by break- and personal selling. The authors pointed out that the strat-
ing through the competitive clutter and could be used as a egy of micro-packs could be used as an effective pull
tool for successful marketing of a product. strategy. By providing the customer the advantage of
McEllany (1998) analyzed the relationship among life small quantity at lesser price, the company inspired the
cycle, gender, income, age, perceived time pressure and customer to try a product again and again. Singh et al.
related it with the buying of convenience type products. (2011) suggested that sachet marketing involved the
The study, however, found that income became a signifi- designing of a product; it is packaging and finally selling a
cant factor in influencing purchase of convenience prod- product in a small pack and a low price to the consumers.
ucts as their prices increased. The study results clearly The author pointed out that the emphasis of sachet market-
indicated that the relationship among income, life cycle ing was not just on the design or the pricing of a product
and ownership of convenience products is more complex but on the whole marketing system, from packaging to
than expected and cannot be termed as a linear relation- pricing and from distribution to delivery. Weeks (2012)
ship. It was observed that income accounted for a number described in his study that consumers were very careful
of significant differences in the purchase behaviour. As about their spending and out of the various strategies that
income augmented, so did the tendency of the respondents were being employed by the marketers, the offering of
to own a convenience product. small pack had been the best, but in order to sustain there
Putrevu and Kenneth (1999) investigated the dimen- was a need to contemplate the expectations, needs and
sions of grocery search on a random sample. The study purchase behaviour of targeted customer.
revealed that eight types of search dimensions existed in The foregoing review of literature illustrates that re-
the sample. These were printed product evaluations, adver- searchers in the West have paid some attention to purchase
tised specials, the number of stores visited, coupons, com- decision-making. But, in India, there is dearth of such
parison of brands, unit prices, word of mouth and checking studies. Examination of preferences and purchase decision-
of price tags. The study also highlighted the demographic making for micro-packs remains a less thoroughly explored
differences between the segments and stressed that pres- area and hardly any comprehensive study has been con-
ence of search characteristics and demographic profiles ducted so far to abridge the gaps in the existing literature.
can enable marketers to have a better understanding of More specifically, research is required to answer simple yet
the type of target consumers, who are probable to search pertinent questions related to ‘why do consumers prefer
for their product and in what ways thus enabling better micro packs over big packs?’ and ‘what factors do they
promotional efforts. consider in buying micro packs and selecting the store for
Kancheva and Marinov (2014) examined the role of purchase?’ Hence, in this regard, this study is designed to
family members in purchase decision-making. The authors fulfil the needs of marketers as well as the academicians.
termed that family decision-making was a complex phe-
nomena. It was the outcome of personal wants, needs and
resources of all the family members; therefore, any pur-
Objectives
chase decision taken in a family was collaborative. Belch The model of micro-packing is a result of a persistent
and Willis (2001) emphasized that values of the society testing being undertaken by FMCG companies in order to
had undergone a drastic change due to continuous changes deliver something novel to the customers in terms of quan-
in internal and external factors surrounding the family. As tity and quality. For this concept to become a vital success,
a result, depleting the equal participation of both the spouse companies need to comprehend the proper application of
in family decisions, the wives have come to command an this strategy. The specific objectives of the study are as
upper hand. follows:
Changco et al. (2009) conducted a study to examine
how companies had embraced sachet-marketing strategies 1. To outline the motives that lead consumers to prefer
to adapt to the budding demand of consumers. For the a micro-pack to a big pack.
purpose, in-depth interviews were conducted with five 2. To determine the factors which are contemplated in
marketing managers of multinational companies such as buying micro-packs and selecting the store for
Procter and Gamble and Hindustan Unilever Limited to purchase.
understand how sachets were positioned in the Indian 3. To figure the relative influence each source of infor-
market. The insights derived from these interviews implied mation has on the subsequent purchase decisions.
that companies used sachet marketing for increasing the
rate of trials, managing the promotional expenditures,
delivering value across market segments and accomplish-
Research Methodology
ing product line balancing. It was examined by Gupta and This is an endeavour to study preference and decision-
Mehra (2010) that for enhancing its sales, an FMCG making for purchasing micro-packs of selected product
company might opt for a push or pull strategy. Push categories among the consumers. The study has been
4 Vision 20(3)

conducted under a broad framework of the following questionnaire personally to the consumers coming out
hypothesis: of these stores and collect information based on their
‘There are no significant differences among the respon- shopping experiences.
dents belonging to different income categories with respect For data analysis, there can be a host of variables, which
to certain issues of preferences and decision making for can affect the factors influencing consumer preferences
micro packs’, considered in this study. and purchase decision-making for micro-packs. But for the
In order to explore the various issues relating to the pur- present study, only income variable has been considered
chase of micro-packs, four product categories have been for analysis. The rationale of choosing this variable is that
taken into consideration for the study, namely, personal most of the FMCGs take the path of least confrontation
care, food and beverages, household care and healthcare. when they enter India by targeting the early adopters, nor-
Personal care products category is comprised of products mally found in the higher strata of the income class. Once
such as Shampoo, Facial Cream, Bathing Soap, Toothpaste, the infiltration of these companies into the higher income
Talcum Powder and Hair Oil. Food and beverages products classes reaches a stable state, they focus on targeting
category covered Instant Noodles, Candies/Chocolates, the lower income classes. Low-cost sachets have been the
Chips, Tea Leaves, Coffee, Jams and Sauces. Household most successful strategy in capturing lower income seg-
care products included Detergents and Dish Wash. Syrups/ ments (Joshi, 2014). This has necessitated the analysis of
Ointments/Tablets were considered in the healthcare prod- data with reference to this variable, as it seems to be impor-
ucts category. tant in determining consumers’ preferences and buying
The population of the study is comprised of three cities behaviour. The four income categories considered for anal-
of Punjab: Amritsar, Ludhiana and Jalandhar; and Union ysis are I1 (respondents having monthly income below
territory of Chandigarh. These three cities represent the tra- `20,000); I2 (respondents having monthly income between
ditional and regional division of Punjab: Amritsar repre- `20,000 and 40,000); I3 (income between ` 40,000 and
senting Majha region, Ludhiana representing Malwa and 60,000); and I4 (income above ` 60,000). The data have
Jalandhar representing Doaba region. These cities are also been analyzed through Kruskal–Wallis (K–W) (H test) and
having people from different demographic background chi-square test.
and comprise a reasonable share of urban and rural popula-
tion. Capital city Chandigarh being more cosmopolitan Validity and Reliability
was chosen. The study also required a perspective of the
people from different income categories and it was easily The reliability of the questionnaire was tested using a pilot
obtained. Moreover, limitations of time and resources test. The test was conducted on a sample of 50 respondents.
accounted for the geographical concentration to these Data collected were analyzed using Statistical Package for
cities. A sample of 550 respondents comprising of 100–140 the Social Sciences (SPSS). ‘Correlation matrix’ and ‘view
from each city was planned. However, after scrutiny of the alpha if item deleted’ were viewed. The reliability coeffi-
filled questionnaires, 500 were found fit for analysis; cient (alpha) value was more than 0.70, thus signifying a
others were not complete or lacked seriousness in response suitable level of internal reliability. The validity of the
and hence weeded out. Thus, the final sample was 500 questionnaire was tested with the help of a readability test.
respondents comprising of 126 respondents from Jalandhar,
111 from Amritsar, 134 from Ludhiana and 129 from the Analysis and Interpretation
capital city Chandigarh. For selecting the respondents,
non-probability convenient sampling technique was Need to Buy Micro-packs
adopted as it well suits exploratory studies like this (Tull & In order to examine whether any significant difference
Hawkins, 1996, p. 544). However, an effort was made to exist among the respondents belonging to various income
include respondents across different demographic vari- categories with respect to reasons for not preferring big
ables to make the sample representative. The unit of the packs, the following null hypothesis has been tested.
study was an individual (representing the family) as certain
products are used individually and the whole family HO-1: There is no significant difference among the res-
uses some. pondents belonging to different income groups
regarding their preferences for various statements
indicating reasons for not preferring big packs.
Measures
Data were collected personally from the respondents by In order to have an insight into the reasons behind
using a pre-tested, structured and non-disguised question- buying micro-packs, six statements have been used. All the
naire. The information was gathered from the consumers statements have been measured on a five-point scale (from
visiting general merchant stores/chemist shops, organized strongly agree to strongly disagree). The responses were
retail stores, departmental stores, provision stores, nearby coded from 5 to 1, 5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = neither
street stores, etc. The purpose was to administer the agree nor disagree, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree.
Mehra and Singh 5

Table 1. Reasons for Preferring Micro-packs over Big Packs (overall and income-wise mean scores and F-ratio)

Overall I1 I2 I3 I4
Sr. No. Statements Means Means Means Means Means F-ratio
S1 A big pack is difficult to store, so I started using 4.52 4.43 4.51 4.58 4.56 1.38
(smaller) micro-packs
S2 I find the handling of big packs difficult 4.56 4.53 4.47 4.65 4.64 1.40
S3 Once opened, a big pack has to be consumed 4.74 4.76 4.64 4.86 4.74 1.67
in single usage
S4 More wastage occurs in a big pack 4.60 4.67 4.43 4.7 4.67 1.59
S5 In case of food and beverages, the contents of a 4.75 4.77 4.7 4.78 4.78 1.40
big pack get spoiled very quickly
S6 I have to spend lesser on the purchase of a micro-pack 4.50 4.53 4.37 4.59 4.57 1.76
and its price does not disturb my budget
Total (N) 500 127 156 120 97
Source: Primary data collected personally.

Table 1 shows the mean scores for the overall sample as well marketers to unearth the most appropriate mix for each
as for different income categories and F-ratios in general. target class and to safeguard supreme and successful
On analyzing Table 1, it is observed that most of the response. The respondents were asked to rate the various
respondents have shown strong agreement with the state- sources of information in terms of importance while buying
ments, ‘In case of food and beverages, the contents of a big micro-packs. Further, in order to examine whether there
pack get spoiled very quickly’ (MS = 4.75), ‘Once opened, existed any significant differences among the respondents
a big pack has to be consumed in single usage’ (MS = 4.74) belonging to different income groups with respect to
and ‘More wastage occurs in a big pack’ (MS = 4.60) as the ratings of different sources of information while consider-
mean scores are close to 5. Most of the respondents ‘agree’ ing purchase of micro-packs, the following null hypothesis
with the statements, ‘I find the handling of big packs diffi- has been tested.
cult’ (MS = 4.56), ‘A big pack is difficult to store, so
I started using (smaller) micro packs’ (MS = 4.52) and ‘I HO-2: 
There is no significant difference among the
have to spend lesser on the purchase of a micro pack and respondents belonging to different income
its price does not disturb my budget’ (MS = 4.50). It can, groups regarding their preferences for different
therefore, be implied that consumers consider all reasons sources of information considered in the choice
as imperative for buying micro-packs over bigger packs.
of micro-packs.
The responses have further been analyzed to determine
the respondents’ level of agreement with respect to diffe-
To determine the degree of importance given to the
rent income categories. The results in Table 1 illustrate that
sources of information by different income categories, the
irrespective of the income categories, respondents have
weighted average scores were computed by assigning
shown their agreement for all statements with mean scores
more than 4 in all the cases. Summing up, it is observed weights 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 to ‘most important, ‘important’,
that respondents, irrespective of the income categories, ‘neither important nor unimportant’, ‘unimportant’ and
‘strongly agree’ that ‘a big pack is difficult to store’, ‘dif- ‘most unimportant’ in that sequence. Table 2 shows the
ficult to handle’, ‘has to be consumed in a single usage’ mean scores for the overall sample, as well as for different
‘leads to more wastage’ and ‘leads to spoiling of food and income categories and F-ratios in general.
beverages’; so they prefer a micro-pack. The responses in Table 2 indicate that respondents
F-ratios in Table 1 reveal that statistically there is no consider almost all the sources of information imperative,
significant difference among the respondents of different as all these help them in decision-making. ‘Advertisement
income categories regarding their ratings towards reasons on print and electronic media’ (MS = 4.52) and ‘Friends,
of not preferring big packs. Therefore, the null hypothesis family and neighbour’s suggestions’ (MS = 4.05) have
that there is no significant difference among the respond- turned out to be the ‘important’ sources of information with
ents belonging to different income groups regarding their mean scores being 4 or higher. Respondents have rated
preferences for various statements indicating reasons the sources such as ‘Dealers/Company recommendations’
behind not preferring big packs is accepted. (MS = 3.52) and ‘Product bundling’ (MS = 3.15) as ‘neither
important nor unimportant’. ‘Display of the product’ (MS
= 2.68) has been considered as ‘unimportant’ by most
Sources of Information of the respondents.
Consumers react differently to various techniques of adver- In a nutshell, it has been found that irrespective of
tising and sales promotion. It is the responsibility of the income categories, the importance given to various sources
6 Vision 20(3)

Table 2. Sources of Information Considered in Buying Micro-packs by the Respondents (overall and income-wise mean scores)

Overall I1 I2 I3 I4
Sr. No. Statements Means Means Means Means Means F-ratio
1 Advertisement on print and electronic media 4.52 4.54 4.54 4.53 4.44 1.62
2 Display of the product 2.68 2.69 2.77 2.47 2.78 4.71*
3 Dealers/company recommendations 3.52 3.45 3.62 3.38 3.61 2.66
4 Family/friends/neighbour’s suggestions 4.05 4.07 4.07 4.11 3.91 1.76
5 Product bundling 3.15 3.14 3.16 3.09 3.23 1.66
Total (N) 500 127 156 120 97
Source: Primary data collected personally.
* The p-value for this aspect is less than the assumed p-value.

of information is generally high. Respondents like to make with various types of uncertainties while searching for
choices based on personal opinions, which they form with information about a product. In order to have an insight
the help of cues provided by the marketer in the form into the attitude of respondents towards uncertainties in
of advertisements. If they were unable to do so, they prefer general, five types of uncertainties have been used. All the
taking opinions from friends and family, which act as uncertainties have been measured on a 10-point scale (from
their reference groups. Few people, however, prefer taking high to low). The responses were coded from 10 to 1 (10 =
direct consultation from dealers and company. The strategy high and 1 = low). Table 3 shows the scores for the overall
of display, if planned effectively, can have a tremendous sample.
effect on the mindset of the consumers. An impressive Table 3 indicates that most of the respondents think that
display acts as a pull strategy and tempts the consumers they are faced with higher uncertainty about the ‘availabil-
to make an immediate purchase and also revisit the store ity of other micro packs of the same product’ while choos-
for future acquisitions. Innovative strategies by marketers ing a micro-pack for purchase. Most of the respondents
such as free samples and product bundling coupled with have agreed that ‘Uncertainty about the company image’
impressive displays can evoke the mindset of the affect them ‘moderately’ while searching for information.
respondents.
The F-ratios reveal that there are no significant differ-
ences among the respondents belonging to different income
Factors Considered for Micro-pack Choice
categories, with respect to their rating towards different In order to measure the relative importance of factors con-
sources of information considered in buying micro-packs, sidered while buying micro-packs, the respondents were
as the p-value for these aspects is more than the assumed asked to specify, on a three-point scale, their preference
p-value. The differences in ‘display of product’ are signifi- towards certain factors. The responses were coded from 3
cant among respondents belonging to different income to 1, 3 = always, 2 = sometimes and 1 = never. Table 4
categories at 5 per cent level of significance. represents the overall and income-wise means scores and
F-values regarding the respondents’ responses to different
characteristics influencing the choice of micro-packs.
Uncertainty Faced in Decision-making The responses in Table 4 indicate that most of the
It is generally established that uncertainties can sneak into respondents ‘always’ pay attention to the ‘Past perfor-
our decision-making processes, calling into question the mance of a micro pack’ (MS = 2.90), ‘Attributes/features
excellence of a decision. A consumer may be confronted of the available micro packs’ (MS = 2.88), ‘Company

Table 3. Extent of Uncertainty Faced by Respondents While Choosing a Micro-pack for Purchase

Sr. No. Statements 10—High 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1—Low


S1 Uncertainty about the availability of other 115 93 75 62 49 32 15 20 27 12
micro-packs of the same product
S2 Uncertainty upon choosing a micro-pack, when 105 104 87 85 60 25 12 10  9  3
alternatives are available
S3 Uncertainty about reliability of the information 55 53 60 75 70 52 59 41 31  4
available about a micro-pack
S4 Uncertainty about store image from where 50 56 61 58 62 51 41 55 42 24
purchase is being done
S5 Uncertainty about the company image 65 61 70 64 66 51 45 31 25 22
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Mehra and Singh 7

Table 4. Different Factors Considered for Buying Micro-packs (income-wise mean scores and F-ratio)

Overall I1 I2 I3 I4
Sr. No. Statements Means Means Means Means Means F-ratio
S1 I pay attention to the attributes/features of 2.88 2.86 2.87 2.87 2.95 1.56
the available micro-packs
S2 I give more importance to the brand popularity 2.71 2.69 2.71 2.73 2.71 1.76
S3 Past performance of a micro-pack matters the most 2.90 2.88 2.87 2.91 2.96 1.86
S4 The company image is most essential while 2.74 2.76 2.71 2.75 2.75 1.56
buying a micro-pack
S5 If the retailer describes the attributes of a 1.96 1.98 1.99 1.93 1.95 1.66
product, it influences my purchase decision
S6 Packaging attributes including material quality 2.33 2.33 2.33 2.33 2.33 0.06
design matters the most.
Total (N) 500 127 156 120 97
Source: Primary data collected personally.

image’ (MS = 2.74) and ‘Brand popularity’ (MS = 2.71) important by most of the respondents during micro-pack
with the mean scores being close to 3. Respondents feel selection.
that ‘Packaging attributes including material quality, F-ratios indicate that there is no significant difference
design’ (MS = 2.33) and the retailer describing the ‘attri- among the respondents of different income categories
butes of a product’ (MS = 1.96) capture their attention regarding their rating with respect to factors considered for
‘sometimes’. buying micro-packs.
Income-wise analysis reveals that respondents, irre-
spective of their income categories, ‘always’ feel that the Outlet Selection for Final Purchase
‘past performance of a micro pack matters the most’, with
mean scores of 2.88, 2.87, 2.91 and 2.96 for income cate- An attempt has been made to determine what type of
outlets consumers select while purchasing a micro-pack.
gories I1, I2, I3 and I4, respectively. Respondents have also
An effort has also been made to determine whether they
stated that while selecting micro-packs, they ‘always’ con-
prefer a particular type of store for a specific category of
sider, ‘Attributes/features of the available micro packs’,
micro-packs. For this purpose, the respondents were given
‘Company image’ and ‘Brand popularity’ with mean scores
an option of five types of outlets. Furthermore, the analysis
near to 3 for all the income categories. Respondents of has not been done on the basis of income as no significant
lower (I1 and I2) as well as higher income categories (I3 and difference was found in the behaviour of different income
I4) have mentioned that ‘If the retailer describes the attrib- groups. Product category-wise responses in this respect are
utes of a product’, it ‘sometimes’ affects their decision. presented in Table 5.
Summing up, the study reveals that most of the res- Table 5 shows that in the personal care products cate-
pondents ‘always’ pay attention to the ‘product attributes’, gory, the most favoured outlet for buying a micro-pack
‘past performance’ and ‘company image’ while buying is ‘organised retail stores’ (80 per cent). Most of the
a micro-pack. ‘Brand popularity’, ‘packaging attributes’ respondents also prefer visiting ‘departmental stores’ (70.2
and ‘retailer’s descriptions’ are ‘sometimes’ considered per cent). ‘Organised stores’ have been preferred more

Table 5. Outlet Visited for Final Purchase

Sr. No. Outlet Type Personal Care Food and Beverages Household Care Healthcare
1 General merchant stores/chemist 274 303 358 298
shops (54.8) (60.6) (71.6) (59.6)
2 Organized retail stores 400 419 386 80
(Easy day, Reliance, etc.) (80.0) (83.8) (77.2) (16.0)
3 Departmental stores 351 344 249 96
(70.2) (68.8) (49.8) (19.2)
4 Provision stores 62 98 144 195
(12.4) (19.6) (28.8) (39.0)
5 Nearby street shops 235 396 236 125
(47.0) (79.2) (47.2) (25.0)
Total (N) 500 500 500 500
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Note: Percentages are more than 100 because of multiple responses.
8 Vision 20(3)

probably because of the large variety of brands housed by Further, income-wise analysis reveals that the two factors
them. In the food and beverages products category, major- that have been ranked as most important by respondents of
ity of the respondents (83.8 per cent) have chosen ‘organ- all income categories are ‘neat and tidy look of the store’ and
ised retail stores’ as the most favoured destination for ‘reputation of the store’. Respondents of the lower income
buying micro-packs probably because of the immense category I2 (WR = 190) are more influenced by ‘particular
variety housed by them. Departmental stores/chemist brand carried on by the store’, thus depicting that respond-
shops’ and ‘nearby stores’ seem to be more preferred as ents of lower income categories are comparatively more
they house a large variety of micro-packs of food and brand loyal than those of the highest income category I4. For
beverages. In the household care products category, the the higher income categories, ‘the reputation of store’, its
most favoured outlets among most of the respondents are ‘neat and tidy look’ and ‘pleasantness of shopping experi-
‘organised Retail Stores’ (77.2 per cent). In the health- ence’ matters much more than other factors.
care products category, the first choice among most of the The results of the K–W statistic reveal that there is a
respondents is ‘general merchant stores/chemist shops’ significant agreement among respondents belonging to dif-
(59.6 per cent). ferent income categories with respect to their ranking
towards ‘nearness of the store’, ‘availability of variety of
brands in the store’, ‘neat and tidy look of the store’, ‘repu-
Factors Influencing Store Selection tation of store’, ‘pleasantness of the shopping experience’,
There are several factors that a consumer considers before ‘availability of credit facilities’ and ‘particular brand
deciding upon a store from where to carry on the final pur- carried on by the store’ as the p-value for these aspects is
chase. In an attempt to underline the importance attached more than the assumed p-value. The rankings of the
to store selection, eight factors were identified. Respond- respondents differ significantly with respect to ‘acquaint-
ents were asked to rank these factors in order of their pre- ance with the store owner’ as the p-value for this aspect is
ference. Table 6 shows the overall as well as income-wise less than the assumed p-value.
weighted ranks given by the respondents towards reasons
that assist in store selection.
The results from Table 6 illustrate that ‘neat and tidy
Efforts of Retailers and Their Role in Build-
look of the store’ (WR = 1,028) has been ranked as the most
ing Brand Perceptions
important reason of visiting a specific store by majority In this ever-progressing world, it is crucial to have an upper
of the respondents. ‘Reputation of store’ (WR = 978) and hand over your competitors. Retailers and appearances of
‘pleasantness of the shopping experience’ (WR = 875) are the retail environment play a significant role in building
the other two factors that follow. The other reasons that are consumer’s perception towards a brand. The circumstance,
preferred more are ‘nearness of the store’ (WR = 654), in which a brand is seen, influences the brand’s image.
‘availability of credit facilities’ (WR = 588), ‘particular Display in a store might elicit diverse customer responses.
brand carried on by the store’ (WR = 578) and ‘acquaint- In an attempt to highlight the importance attached to
ance with the store owner’ (WR = 573). ‘Availability the efforts of retailers, six parameters were identified.
of variety of brands in the store’ (WR = 432) has been Respondents were asked to rank these parameters in order
given relatively lesser importance by the respondents. This of importance. Table 7 shows the overall as well as diffe-
explains that the respondents enjoy visiting a store that rent income-wise weighted ranks given by the respondents
is neat and tidy and makes their shopping experience towards efforts initiated by retailers, which may help to
pleasant. build their brand perceptions.

Table 6. Overall and Income-wise Weighted Ranking Scores for Factors Influencing Store Selection

K–W
Sr. No. Reasons Overall I1 I2 I3 I4 (H test) P-value
1 Nearness of the store 654 143 248 199 64 1.531 0.675
2 Availability of variety of brands in the store 432 70 193 84 85 1.871 0.63
3 Neat and tidy look of the store 1028 296 354 203 175 2.231 0.526
4 Reputation of the store 978 224 383 230 141 7.82 0.05
5 Pleasantness of the shopping experience 875 185 362 208 120 6.447 0.092
6 Availability of credit facilities 588 149 245 131 63 2.784 0.426
7 Acquaintance with the store owner 573 141 220 130 82 8.501 0.037*
8 Particular brand carried on by the store 578 159 190 173 56 1.873 0.61
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Note: K–W (H test) values have been derived on the basis of original rankings.
* The p-value for this aspect is less than the assumed p-value.
Mehra and Singh 9

Table 7. Overall and Income-wise Weighted Ranking Scores for Efforts Undertaken by Retailers in Building Brand Perception

K–W
Sr. No. Overall I1 I2 I3 I4 (H test) P-value
1 Impressive display of products 988 187 430 230 141 1.541 0.675
2 Using a more organized store layout 871 173 377 172 149 4.758 0.190
3 Providing brochures to customers to take home 574 175 182 154 63 10.29 0.016*
4 Adopting advertising campaigns that used bright 575 127 237 128 83 3.122 0.373
colours and/or snappy background music181
5 Free trial of product 573 162 181 161 69 3.791 0.285
6 Wide assortment of a single brand 859 223 315 172 149 2.202 0.532
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Note: K–W (H test) values have been derived on the basis of original rankings.
* The p-value for this aspect is less than the assumed p-value.

The analysis of the overall responses in Table 7 shows customers to take home’ among the different income cate-
that the service that has been rated by the respondents as gories as the p-value for this aspect is less than the assumed
most important for a store to inhibit is ‘impressive display p-value.
of products’ (WR = 988). It is not only the presence of an
impressive display but also ‘using a more organised store Purchase Dissonance and Resulting Actions
layout’ (WR = 871) and ‘wide assortment of a single brand’
(WR = 859) that has been desired by the respondents. The extent of dissonance immensely depends upon specific
Overall, the respondents expect a store to house a wide traits being possessed by the customer and the variables
assortment of a single brand and display and organize instigating dissonance. Further, in order to examine whether
impressively. any significant difference exist among the respondents
The income-wise analysis reveals that respondents, irre- belonging to various income categories with respect to
spective of their income categories, have ranked ‘wide actions undertaken as a result of purchase dissonance, the
assortment of a single brand’ and ‘impressive display of following null hypothesis has been tested.
products’ as most important efforts undertaken by retailers
for building customers perceptions towards a brand. HO-3: There is no significant difference among the res-
The results of the K–W statistic reveal that there is no pondents belonging to different income groups
significant difference among the respondents belonging to regarding their preference towards actions under-
different income categories with respect to their ranking taken as a result of purchase dissonance.
towards ‘impressive display of products’, ‘using a more
organised store layout’, ‘adopting advertising campaigns The respondents were asked that if they happen to be
that used bright colours and/or snappy background music’, dissatisfied with a brand/product, what follow-up action
‘free trial of product’ and ‘wide assortment of a single they undertake. They were given four options and were
brand’ as the p-value for these aspects is more than the asked to select any one action that they usually undertake.
assumed p-value. The rankings of the respondents differ Table 8 gives the overall and income-wise responses in this
significantly with respect to ‘providing brochures to respect.

Table 8. Actions Undertaken by Respondent’s as a Result of Purchase Dissonance (overall and income-wise frequency distribution
of respondents)

Sr. No. Actions Resulting from Dissonance Overall I1 I2 I3 I4


1 Return the pack to the place of sale and 109 24 32 24 29
demand an exchange (21.8) (18.9) (20.5) (20.0) (29.9)
2 Along with return demand a refund 133 42 40 26 25
(26.6) (33.1) (25.6) (21.7) (25.8)
3 Demand for a reduction of price paid for the 66 17 21 16 12
pack from the retailer (13.2) (13.4) (13.5) (13.3) (12.4)
4 Forget about the purchase 191 44 63 54 30
(38.2) (34.7) (40.4) (45.0) (30.9)
5 Any other 1 0 0 0 1
(0.2) (0) (0) (0) (1.03)
Total (N) 500 127 156 120 97
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Note: Chi-square value = 27.83; d.f. = 12, significant at 5% level of significance.
10 Vision 20(3)

Table 8 presents the frequency distribution of respond- Brand Switching Intentions of the
ents for actions undertaken as a result of purchase disso- Respondents
nance. Most of the respondents (38.2 per cent) have stated
that they tend to ‘forget about the purchase’ after a dissatis- Brand switching is instigated by the desire to try a new
fied purchase. Whereas 26.6 per cent of the respondents brand. This personality trait is possessed by innovators.
have stated that they ‘along with return demand a refund’ The urge to try a new brand may also be present, irrespec-
when dissatisfied with a micro-pack, 0.2 per cent of the tive of a great level of gratification with the prior used
respondents have cited actions apart from the ones listed. brand (Faison, 1977; Hirschman & Wallendorf, 1980). For
When further inquired, they mentioned that they preferred consumers who have had a contenting experience with a
spreading a negative word about the product they were brand, the used brand may become too known and monoto-
dissatisfied with rather than returning the product or nous leading to a disappointment and thus brand switching
demanding an exchange or refund. However, on the whole, (Howard & Sheth, 1969).
overlooking an unscrupulous purchase and moving on is In order to examine whether any significant difference
the strategy preferred by most of the buyers. exist among the respondents belonging to various income
Income-wise analysis indicates that no clear-cut differ- categories with respect to reasons behind brand switching,
ences can be seen in the preference of the respondents the following null hypothesis has been tested.
belonging to different income categories with respect to
action taken after post-purchase dissatisfaction. In a nut- HO-4: There is no significant difference among the res-
shell, almost all the respondents surveyed have expressed pondents belonging to different income groups
their agreement with ‘forget about the purchase’ option in regarding their preferences for various statements
case of dissatisfied purchase. A very few number of respond- indicating reasons for brand switching.
ents agree to ‘demand for a reduction of price paid for the
pack from the retailer’, in case of an dissatisfied purchase. In order to ascertain the reasons behind brand switch-
The results of the chi-square test show that the hypothesis ing, the respondents were asked, ‘if they happened to
—‘There is no significant difference among the respond- switch over to another brand, apart from dissatisfaction
ents belonging to different income groups regarding their from the earlier brand, they did it because of what reasons’.
preference towards actions undertaken as a result of Eight options were listed and they were asked to tick the
purchase dissonance’—cannot be retained. The chi-square one that has affected them the most. Table 9 shows the
value is greater than the table value with 12 degrees of overall and income-wise responses in this respect.
freedom (d.f.) at 5 per cent level of significance. Statistically, Table 9 shows that the main reason behind switching to
there are significant differences among respondents a new brand among most of the respondents has been cited
belonging to different income categories with respect as ‘impressed by the advertisement of a new brand’ (29.4
to actions undertaken by them as a result of purchase per cent). 19.2 per cent of the respondents give ‘change of
dissonance. requirement’ as the reason behind their brand switching.

Table 9. Reasons for Brand Switching (overall and income-wise frequency distribution of respondents)

Sr. No. Reasons of Brand Switching Overall I1 I2 I3 I4


1 Non-availability of old brand 46 14 16 10 6
(9.2) (11.0) (10.2) (8.3) (6.2)
2 Urge to try a new brand 88 29 33 13 13
(17.6) (22.8) (21.1) (10.8) (13.4)
3 Increased price of old brand 24 9 4 9 2
(4.8) (7.1) (2.5) (7.5) (2.1)
4 Impressed by the advertisement of a new brand 147 36 35 40 36
(29.4) (28.3) (22.4) (33.3) (37.1)
5 Change of requirement 96 18 36 20 20
(19.2) (14.1) (23.1) (16.7) (20.6)
6 Just for change 51 10 12 18 11
(10.2) (7.8) (7.7) (15.0) (11.3)
7 Friend’s experience with a brand 48 11 18 10 9
(9.6) (8.6) (11.5) (8.3) (9.3)
8 Any other 2 2 0 0 0
(0.4) (1.57) (0) (0) (0)
Total (N) 500 127 156 120 97
Source: Primary data collected personally.
Note: Chi-square value = 24.13; d.f. = 21, significant at 5% level of significance.
Mehra and Singh 11

Another 17.6 per cent indicate that they switched over and if it was not done then the quality of the contents
because of their ‘urge to try a new brand’. 10.2 per cent of were affected. Small packs fulfilled their needs of fresh
the respondents shifted to the present brand ‘just for consumption. Difficulty of handling and storing bigger
change’. The same percentage shifted to the present brand packs was also cited as a motivation behind preference for
because they felt touched by the example of their ‘friends smaller packs. A small pack offers ease of convenience,
experience with a brand’. Other reasons for quitting the use handling, storage and disposability along with benefits of
of their previously preferred brand are ‘non-availability of low cost.
old brand’ (9.2 per cent) and ‘increased price of old brand’ The subjective characteristics of a micro-pack are given
(4.8 per cent). 0.4 per cent of the respondents have also more significance before making a purchase. Sound repu-
cited reasons apart from the ones listed as the motive tation of a brand, its past performance, image of the
behind their changing of a brand. When further inquired, company offering it, persuasive advertisements and credi-
they cited the reason to be ‘pressure from children’ espe- ble sales efforts by the retailers are the factors that are
cially in case of products that featured children in them contemplated more while buying micro-packs. Objective
such as ‘Candies’, ‘Jams’ and ‘Toothpastes’. characteristics such as the attributes/features of the avail-
The income-wise analysis manifests that the respond- able micro-packs have also been considered as imperative
ents of all the income categories I1, I2, I3 and I4 give while making a purchase decision. Characteristics such as
‘impressed by the advertisement of a new brand’ as the the packaging of a micro-pack have however been given
main reason behind their brand switching. Respondents of lesser significance.
lower income categories I1 (22.8 per cent) and I2 (21.1 per In the present study, a clear preference towards the
cent) have been found to be relatively more affected by the ‘organised retail formats’ is depicted. Altering demograph-
‘urge to try a new brand’ than respondents of (high income) ics, awareness and urbanization have instigated customers
categories I3 (10.8 per cent) and I4 (13.4 per cent). Similarly, to choose from modern retail outlets to neighbourhood
respondents of lower income categories tried a new brand stores. A clear preference towards an organized layout,
more because of ‘non-availability of old brand’ in compari- convenient access to products and a suitable display has
son to higher income categories. Proportionately, higher been exhibited.
number of respondents of higher income categories I3 (15.0 Respondents value choices based on personal opinions,
per cent) and I4 (11.3 per cent) indicate that they shifted to which they form with the help of cues provided by the
their present brand ‘just for change’ as compared to their marketer in the form of advertisements. Opinions of refer-
counterparts from lower income categories I1 (7.8 per cent) ence groups and consultation from dealers are relatively
and I2 (7.7 per cent). Respondents, irrespective of their less preferred while buying small packs.
income categories, have agreed that ‘friend’s experience The idea of micro-packs has progressed very well but
with a brand’ and ‘increased price of old brand’ hardly lead new dimensions should be added to this encouraging
them towards quitting their old brand. This above analysis model. The foregoing discussion discloses that consumers
clearly indicates that most of the respondents irrespective are quite malleable towards micro-packs. The innovators
of their income levels switch to new brands after getting exhibit loyalty towards micro-packs because they are
impressed by an advertisement of a new brand. offered an opportunity to try latest products, variants and
The results of the chi-square test show that the flavours. On the other hand, non-innovators prefer them
hypothesis—‘There is no significant difference among the because of the benefits of ease of carrying, travelling, hand-
respondents belonging to different income groups regard- ling and storage. Micro-packs of eatables and Healthcare
ing their preferences for various statements indicating products are preferred to their counter bigger packs as they
reasons for brand switching’—cannot be retained. The chi- save from the difficulties of expired compositions and
square is greater than the table value with 21 d.f. at 5 per perishability. Most consumers trust that micro-packs
cent level of significance. Statistically, there are signi- provide value for money and in certain cases, if this does
ficant differences among respondents belonging to diffe- not happen they are willing to shell out more money per
rent income categories with respect to reasons for brand millilitre also. There are certain consumers who fancy
switching. buying a micro-pack that is popular. This implies that pro-
motions play a vigorous role in shaping the buying prefer-
ences of consumers. Pacing up advertising, sales promotion
Conclusion and Implications and constituting a separate sales force for marketing micro-
The study highlighted certain motives that lead consumers packs can prove to be an excellent way to thrust up sales on
to prefer a micro-pack to a big pack. Spoilage of contents, part of the companies. A final touch can be added by main-
if kept over longer periods especially in case of food and taining organized retail outlets housing wide assortments
beverages, was the main reason that instigated respondents of micro-pack brands. Adoption of these strategies can
to buy smaller packs. They were of the view that once result in a significant augmentation in the sales of all
opened a bigger pack had to be consumed immediately FMCG products.
12 Vision 20(3)

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for FMCG companies. Retrieved from on 3 Feb 2011, http:// Preeti Mehra is a research scholar with Guru Nanak Dev
thehindubusinessline.com
University and has about seven years of teaching experi-
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roles in basic commodity groups purchase decision-making. ence to marketing students at postgraduate and undergrad-
Annales Universitatis Apulensis Series Oeconomica, 16(1), uate levels. She has organized and attended various national
156–161. and international seminars and has expertise in the field of
Kotler, P. (2015). Marketing management—millennium edition. micro-branding and rural marketing. She has published
New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India Private Ltd. several research papers in various journals of national and
Krishnan, A. (2006, June 6). Brand buyouts boost homegrown international repute. In addition, she has worked with
FMCGs. Retrieved on 5 March 2010, from http://thehindu United Nations Industrial Development Organization
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(UNIDO) and assisted in several projects associated with
Kumar, A.H. (2014). Role of packaging on consumer buying
behavior with special reference to personal care products.
the sports cluster of Jalandhar.
Indian Journal of Applied Research, 4(10), 342–345.
Laplaca, P.J. (1974). The effect of unit pricing on product demand Raghbir Singh is a retired professor from University
and perceived product satisfaction. Advances in Consumer Business School, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.
Research, 1, 9–16. He has worked as the Head, Department of Commerce and
Mehra and Singh 13

Business Management, Dean, Faculty of Economics and Global Business Review, Young Consumers, Journal of
Business and Dean, Academic Affairs of the university. He Food Products Marketing, Society and Business Review,
has 40 years of teaching and research experience. He has Journal of Competitiveness, Foreign Trade Review, Manage-
supervised 21 PhD and eight MPhil dissertations. He ment and Labour Studies and Metamorphosis. He has com-
has published more than 85 research papers in various pleted a major research project sponsored by All India
journals of national and international repute, which include Council for Technical Education (AICTE). His areas of
Academy of Marketing Science Review, Journal of Marketing interest include marketing management and consumer
Intelligence and Planning, Management Review, Decision, behaviour.

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