A study on consumer behavioural attitude towards online shopping

1.1Executive summary The growing use of Internet in India provides a developing prospect for online shopping. If E-marketers know the factors affecting online Indian behavior, and the relationships between these factors and the type of online buyers, then they can further develop their marketing strategies to convert potential customers into active ones, while retaining existing online customers.

This project is a part of study, and focuses on factors which online Indian buyers keep in mind while shopping online. This research found that information, perceived usefulness, ease of use; perceived enjoyment and security/privacy are the five dominant factors which influence consumer perceptions of Online purchasing.

Consumer behavior is said to be an applied discipline as some decisions are significantly affected by their behavior or expected actions. The two perspectives that seek application of its knowledge are micro and societal perspectives.

The online purchasing behavior of online shoppers and factor influencing online shopping behavior and its future perspective. Internet is changing the way consumers shop and buy goods and services, and has rapidly evolved into a global phenomenon. Many companies have started using the Internet with the aim of cutting marketing costs, thereby reducing the price of their product and service in order to stay ahead in highly competitive markets.

Companies also use the Internet to convey, communicate and disseminate information to sell the product, to take feedback and also to conduct satisfaction surveys with customers. Customers use the Internet not only to buy the product online, but also to compare prices, product features and after sale service facilities they will receive if the purchase the product from a particular store. Many experts are optimistic about the prospect of online business.

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In addition

to the

tremendous

potential

of

the

E-commerce

market,

the

Internet provides a unique opportunity for companies to more efficiently reach existing and potential customer. Although most of the revenue of online transactions comes from B2B commerce, the practitioners of B2C commerce should not lose

confidence. It has been more than a decade since business-to-consumer Ecommerce first evolved. Scholars and practitioners of electronic commerce constantly strive to gain an improved insight into consumer behavior in cyberspace. Along with the development of E-retailing, researchers continue to explain E-

consumers behavior from different perspectives. Many of their studies have factors or assumptions which are based on the traditional models of consumer behavior, and then examine their validity in the Internet context.

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CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION TO SUBJECT

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1.2 Introduction Internet is changing the way consumers shop and buy goods and services, and has rapidly evolved into a global phenomenon. Many companies have started using the Internet with the aim of cutting marketing costs, thereby reducing the price of their products and services in order to stay ahead in highly competitive markets. Companies also use the Internet to convey communicates and disseminate information, to sell the product, to take feedback and also to conduct satisfaction surveys with customers. Customers use the Internet not only to buy the product online, but also to compare prices, product features and after sale service facilities the will receive if they purchase the product from a particular store. Many experts are optimistic about the prospect of online business.

In addition to the tremendous potential of the E-commerce market, the Internet provides a unique opportunity for companies to more efficiently reach existing and potential customers. Although most of the revenue of online transactions comes from business-tobusiness commerce, the practitioners of business-to-consumer commerce should not lose confidence .It has been more than a decade since business-to-consumer E-commerce first evolved. Scholars and practitioners of electronic commerce constantly strive to gain an improved insight into consumer behavior in cyberspace. Along with the development of Eretailing, researchers continue to explain E-consumers behavior from different perspectives. Many of their studies have posited new emergent factors or assumptions which are based on the traditional models of consumer behavior, and then examine their validity in the Internet context.

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1.3Theoretical Foundation The Internet has developed an into a new distribution channel and online transaction are rapidly increasing. This has created a need to under how the consumers perceive online purchasing. Price, Trust and Convenience were identified as important factors. Price was considered as to be a most important factor for a majority of the students. The internet has created a paradigm shift of the traditional way people shop. A consumer is no longer bound to opening a times or specific location. So he can become active at virtually any time any place and purchase the products or services.

The internet is relatively a new medium for communication and the information exchange that has present in everyday life. The number of internet user is constantly increasing which is also signifies that online purchasing is increasing. The rapid increasing is explained by the consumer behavior. The internet is considered a mass medium that provides the consumers with purchase characteristics as no other medium. Certain characteristics are making it more convenient for the consumer compared to the traditional way of shopping, such as the ability to any time view and purchase products visualize the needs with products and discuss products with other consumers. Online shopping is the process of consumer go through the when they decide the shop on the internet.

The internet has developed into a new distribution channel and the evaluation of this channel. E-commerce has now identified. Using the internet to shop online has become one of the primary reasons to use the internet combined with searching for products and finding the information about them. Therefore internet develop the companies also use the internet to convey, communicate and disseminate information, to sell the product, to take feedback and also to conduct satisfaction surveys with customers. Customers use the Internet not only to buy the product online, but also to compare prices, product features and after sale service facilities they will receive if they purchase the product from a particular store. 5 |Page

Many experts are optimistic about the prospect of online business. Due to the rapid development of the technologies surrounding the Internet, a company that is interested in selling products from its web site will constantly has to search for an edge in the fierce competition. Since there are so many potential consumers, it is of the out most importance to be able to understand what the consumer wants and needs.

1.3.1Online Shopping In India It is a fact that a great online shopping revolution is expected in India in the coming years. There is a huge purchasing power of a youth population aged 18-40 in the urban area.

1.3.2Rising Connectivity If we observe the growth of Internet Subscribers from the above graph,

it is

getting doubled year by year. The usage of internet in India is only 4% of the total population. This is also getting increased day by day as the costs of computers are decreasing and net penetration is increasing. The cost of internet usage is also getting lower, with good competition among the providers. Wi-Fi & Wimax system has also started in India. This will increase the usage as it goes more on wireless internet. Indians are proving every time that they can beat the world when it comes to figures of online shopping. More and more Indians are going to online shopping and the frequency of India’s online buying is crossing the overall global averages.

1.3.3Few Factors That Boost Online Shopping in India  Rapid growth of cybercafés across India  Access to Information  The increase in number of computer users  Reach to net services through broadband  Middle-class population with spending power is growing. There are about 200 million of middle-class population good spending powers. These people have very little time to spend for shopping. Many of them have started to depend on 6 |Page

internet to satisfy their shopping desires.

1.3.5

Few Facts about Online Shopping The figures from IAMAI show that the internet users in India will grow to 200 million

by 2011. Around 25% of regular shoppers in India are in the 18-25 age groups, and 46% are in the 26-35 year range.  Indian online matrimonial sector is worth around $230 million  Worldwide E-commerce is only growing at the rate of 28%, since India being a

younger market, the growth of e-commerce is expected at 51% in the coming years.  In line with global trends finally India has also started shopping online these days. As per the study by IAMAI online shopping in India has rose from $11million in 1999-2000 to $522 million in 2007 and it is expected to rise above $700 million by end March 2010.

1.3.5 Changing Attitude towards Online Shopping: “Awareness, Future Demand Focus for Emerging Markets & Current Issues” Malls springing up everywhere and yet people are E-shopping! And not in small numbers either. Consumers are more rational nowadays and have ability to get the choices from the market. Awareness among the consumers is spread through internet. The number of internet users is increasing day by day which attracts people who have an option to buy online. It was never thought that Indians would go in for e-shopping in such a big way. Ticketing, travel bookings and even books and movies seem fine to buy online. Knowing that in India sizes vary from brand to brand and quality is inconsistent, even of some electronic items, how is it that there are people buying these items online? In India there are some segments of people who have not yet tried purchasing over internet.

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CHAPTER-2 Review of Literature

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2.1 Review of literature Petrovic Dejan (2006) in his study on Analysis of consumer behavior online explained that the most relevant behavioral characteristics of online consumers and examine the ways they find, compare and evaluate product information. Comparison of the newly collected survey data with the existing consumer behavior theory resulted in detection of a number of issues related to a specific consumer group. The purpose of this report is to translate these findings into a set of implementation activities on strategic and technological level. Execution of these recommendations will result in better conversion of visitors into customers and encourage customer loyalty and referrals. The focus group of this study will be young adults aged between eighteen and thirty-four interested in buying a mobile phone or a related product Shun &Yunjie (2006) in their study showed that there are product types, which are more likely to be sold online such as software, books, electronics and music. Reason for this is that when purchasing these types of products, one does not require personal inspection and most, if not all features, can be outlined in the product description and images. Most products in the mobile phone family belong to this category. According to the recent research on consumer behavior on the Internet users (Cotte, Chowdhury, Ratenshwar& Ricci, 2006), there are four distinct consumer groups with different intentions and motivations: 

Exploration



Entertainment



Shopping



Information

Music Videos, Lyrics - Daily updated collection of music videos and lyrics. Majority of young adults interviewed for purpose of this research tend to be active information seekers. A high level of technological confidence within this group tends to be an encouraging factor when it comes to product information research online. The following analysis presents both, focus group results and 9 |Page

behavioral theory in a parallel fashion divided into two main research topics: Information Retrieval and Search Patterns Perception of Product Information Online These two areas is mutually dependent and particularly important in a market where consumers have the power to choose the right product from a number of competing suppliers. Wellstructured product information that cannot be found easily online is as much of a problem as is having easily accessible information that does not meet the consumer's expectations

Anders Hasslinger; Selma Hodzic; Claudio Opazo (2008-02-01) in theirstudy they showed that developed into a new distribution channel and online transactions are rapidly increasing. This has created a need to understand how the consumer perceives online purchases. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine if there are any particular factors that influence the online consumer. Primary data was collected through a survey that was conducted on students at the University of Kristianstad. Price, Trust and Convenience were identified as important factors. Price was considered to be the most important factor for a majority of the students. Furthermore, three segments were identified, High Spenders, Price Easers and Bargain Seekers. Through these segments we found a variation of the different factors importance and established implications for online book stores.

Harris Interactive (2009) in their study of online customer experience. The survey found that online customer experience reached an inflection point in 2009. The percent of consumers who have experienced problems when conducting transactions online showed its first substantial decrease in five years -- from approximately 87% in all previous Tealeaf surveys to 80% in 2009. While the percent of consumers experiencing online transaction problems, at 80%, remains high (the potential online shopping dollars impacted by transaction problems rings up at $47.6 billion), this improvement points to a 10 | P a g e

growing business focus on delivering better customer experiences. The survey sheds light on forces driving this accelerated online customer experience focus, including the down economy and increased consumer power due to experiencesharing via social media. It also examines consumer behavior when transacting online, call center behavior related to online issues and mobile commerce. Verticals represented in the findings include retail, insurance, travel and financial services.

San Francisco, CA – 6th October 2009 - the leader in online Customer Experience Management software (CEM), today announced the results of the 5th annual survey of online consumer behavior, commissioned by Tealeaf

and conducted by Harris Interactive® [results available at

www.tealeaf.com/Harris]. The survey found that 48% of U.S. online adults say that they are now conducting more online transactions than they did in the past given the current economic climate. However, 80% of adults who have conducted an online transaction in the past year experience problems when doing so in 2009. Previous Tealeaf surveys have consistently shown that approximately 87% were affected. This improvement over prior years may be attributed to a growing business focus on delivering better online customer experiences. While this reported decline in online transaction issues is good news, online customer experience is still very much a work in progress. The percentage of consumers affected by issues such as error messages (38%), endless loops (19%) and login problems (28%) is still extremely high. 1 Further; the resulting business impact is significant, as 32% of those who experience issues when conducting transactions online.

Bikramjit Rishi (2010) in their study on online shopping is an innovative 11 | P a g e

option of distribution available in the hands of marketers. It is innovative and creative because marketers can experiment with it in form, content, visibility and availability. In India online shopping is considered as a relevant alternative channel for retailing and it is now an important part of the retail experience. This research study is an empirical study to find out the motivators and decisional influencers of online shopping. The sample has been selected from the youth population as this group of people actually use internet to buy online. The study highlights that reliability; accessibility and convenience are the major motivator factors which motivate the Indian consumer to buy online. Similarly, reluctance and preference are the two decisional factors which influence the decision. Kamali and Loker (2002), in their study Internet retail sales represent a new and increasingly vital commercial milieu. E-commerce or electronic commerce saw sales revenues grow 12.1 percent in 2001 to $31.4 billion a figure expected to reach $81.1 billion by 2006 (Kamali & Loker, 2002). While it is clear that many more consumers are electing to shop online than in the past a shift in behavior that may be due to the sense that online shopping is safer and more secure than it was initially and to the adoption of alternative shopping avenues. This essay will examine these issues, arguing that browsers become buyers in cyberspace as perception of safety, product quality, and retailer reliability increase an idea also advanced by Li, Luo, Lepkowaska-White and Russell .

Atanasov (2001) in their study it is anticipated that the worldwide market for business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-commerce will total $3.1 trillion in 2004 as compared to $350.4 billion in fiscal 2000-2001. Among the most profitable products and services sold online are consumer goods such as books, videos, music, computers and other tech products, and travel (Schmerken, 2001). Other profitable sectors include investment transactions, which Schmerken (2001) considers to have generated a wave of corporate spending on e-commerce. The Internet and its myriad e-commerce or marketing sites, represents what researchers believe to be the security concerns of online shoppers and potential shoppers. These 12 | P a g e

researchers and others reported that online buyers are also concerned about security issues when making online purchases. Though many consumer concerns regarding the inherent safety of financial transactions online have been resolved through the development of sophisticated encryption programs, many consumers require

additional assurance that their financial data will be held in confidence. Other security issues that were identified by Mauldin and Arunachalam (2002) focus on retailer disclosures, information risk, product risk, and familiarity with the retailer and the product. Generally, Mauldin and Arunachalam (2002) found that intent to purchase rather than merely browsing online increases in direct association with a sense of security and comfort. Retailers who offer their products online are therefore advised to emphasize product disclosure and retailer disclosure and reduced information risk in their e-commerce sites. Though most online retailers do provide clear descriptions of security procedures, some Internet shoppers still avoid using credit cards online. Overcoming resistance to this fear is one of the key tasks that must be under taken.

Ogenyi Ejye Omar, Alan Hirst (2006) in their study they evaluates women's attitude as an overall inclination towards apparel shopping online via email questionnaire. Its findings suggest that women generally show positive attitudes towards shopping online for apparel. Women who shop for apparel online are aware of some of the discouraging features of online shopping, but these features do not deter them from buying online. The implication for online retailers is that they should focus on making the experience of online shopping more accommodating and more user -friendly. This is important because the positive features of online shopping ('convenience', 'usefulness', 'ease of use', and 'efficiency') appear to be more important than the negative features ('lack of security', 'privacy of information' and 'online fraud').

Ruiliang Yan, John Wang (2009) in their research it provides a useful framework to help business marketers identify the effect of consumer online 13 | P a g e

purchase costs on firm performances in online and traditional channel competition. A game theory model is developed to determine the optimal strategies for online and traditional retailers. We demonstrate that consumer online purchase costs always have a valuable impact on firm profits, and further show that consumer online purchase costs always have a much more valuable impact on firm profits whenever the traditional retail transaction costs and the product web-fit change. We also find that consumer online purchase costs have a greater impact on the retailer's profits in a Stackel berg competitive system than in a Bertrand competitive system. Based on our results, managerial implications are discussed and probable paths of future research are identified.

Scott M. Smith, Chad R. Allred, William R. Swinyard (2008) in their research paper they discusses online shopping in context of diffusion of innovation theory. It proposes that online shopping is a discontinuous innovation whose adoption rate is influenced by several of Rogers' (2004) diffusion deterrents. A new 12 -item 'Computer Competence Index' (CCI) is proposed and tested using data from an internet - administered US probability study of 1800 online users. EShoppers are profiled using a tertile split of the CCI. Each tertile's demographics, computer activities, computer - oriented lifestyles, and online purchase activities are reported. Evidence is presented that concepts related to the diffusion of innovation may explain resistance in the growth of online shopping.

A.M. Sakkthivel (2009) in their research paper aims to identify the impact of demographics on consumer buying behavior towards online purchase of different products based on the involvement and investment (High, Medium and Low). It attempts to unearth the impact of the demographics on online purchase which is at present relatively limited. It would help the marketers to identify the demographic profile of consumers which is otherwise not known due to the intangible nature of internet. The findings would help the marketers to design their offerings based on the demographic profile of online consumers and would help the

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online marketers to identify and segment the online consumers which will enhance their focus and eventually leads to financial growth.

Jianwei Hou, Cesar Rego (2007) in their study in traditional auctions, it is often assumed that bidders are a homogenous group. However, since most online bidders are average consumers instead of professional bidders, we suspect that online bidders are a heterogeneous group. The purpose of this paper is to explore the types of online bidders based on their real bidding behaviour in the context of consumer-to-consumer online auction market. A cluster analysis is employed and four types of online bidders are finally identified in a private value auction, namely, goal-driven bidders, experiential bidders, focused bidders, and opportunistic bidders. The profile and performance of each group are also discussed.

Tomomi Hanai, Takashi Oguchi (2009) in their study to investigate what kind of information contributes to trust formation in online shopping. Twentyseven female undergraduate students were recruited and asked to evaluate the trustworthiness of 20 online shopping websites. All the online shopping websites dealt with branded products where there is greater emphasis on the trustworthiness of online shops or products. The results show that information described on the websites was classified into two categories, firstly, information about the shop and its procedures and services. Secondly, the concrete information necessary for the consumption process, such as payment information and return information, which heightens the reliability of these shops.The term “brand” originally refers to a “description or trademark which indicates a type of product made by a particular company.” However, in modern Japanese society it refers to those branded products that are perceived to have a higher quality than other similar products. Thus, the term “brand” authenticates that its products belong to a high-class, and the people

who possess these branded products are regarded as “exclusive people” through the “basking-in-reflected glory process” (Cialdini, Borden, Thorne, Walker, Freeman, & Sloan, 1976). The branded products interest female young people and recently they have been more inclined to purchase them via online shopping. However, they tend to refrain from purchasing these products via online 15 | P a g e

shopping due to their distrust of it. Consequently, it becomes more and more important to analyse what kind of information contributes to trust formation in online shopping. Female Undergraduat Students‟ Attitudes toward Branded

Products First, we introduce several surveys for determining the attitude towards, and ownership of, branded products among female young people, especially female undergraduate students in Japan, who are the target group of this study. Infoplant (2007) showed that nearly half of all people are interested in some branded products. Although branded products generally attract the attention of various kinds of people, young females are especially interested in branded products. Infoplant (2007) revealed that more than 60% of females under 20 years of age and nearly 80% of females in their twenties have purchased some branded products. Furthermore, the percentage of people who usually buy new branded products is about 20% among females under 20 years of age and more than 10% in females in their twenties.

David Anderson (02 .02 .2006) in their research carried out by a consumer behaviour researcher at Henley Management College has investigated what drives people to search online. The findings reveal that convenience, time-efficiency and personal control are the key drivers for consumers to search online, rather than cost. It also shows that the relationship between traditional and online retailing outlets needs to be more unified E-shopping has changed the face of retail, and surfers are now looking for spring sale bargains. This is following a bumper eChristmas, where Internet shopping soared almost 50% during the 10- week run-up to Christmas 2005 (IMRG). However, the new findings reveal that convenience

and personal control are the key drivers for consumers to search online. Dr Susan Rose, from Henley Management College, said: “What motivates online shoppers is the ability to shop, where, when and how they like. Nowadays people can shop over their Shreddies in the morning. The research, that analyses data from 304 electrical goods Internet shoppers, provides businesses with a guide to getting the information highway buzzing with potential customers. Big-ticket items such as digital TVs, cameras, or iPods now feature on our e-shopping list. The Internet provides a rich source of information about brands and retail channels that enable us to search and find information to help us with our final purchase decision. For businesses there are 16 | P a g e

some steps to help them embrace the Internet revolution with success. A key factor driving Internet use for „online window shopping‟ is its usefulness in our personal lives. The Internet frees time and makes the information search process, Research suggests that people search online for some goods, yet buy from a traditional high street retailer, or look around for goods in shops, then take their search online. In turn, it is essential for retailers who operate both on and off line to ensure that they embrace a joined up process that appears seamless to the customer. Some retailers have still to successfully unite the two retailing methods - this is key to contemporary customer service. Factors such as how much the medium challenges us mentally and our confidence to navigate and understand the technology can turn us on or off the idea of browsing online for products. A clear divide is appearing between the occasional online shopper and the regular experienced user. Concerns about how easy the system is to use have almost disappeared for online shopping enthusiasts, but for occasional users e-tailing sites need to be easy to navigate. Websites must be accessible and operate efficiently. The research found that the expectation of getting a good financial deal is still a strong motivator to seek out products online, but this is secondary to the importance but, many people steer clear of electronic buying because of security worries. Only once online retailers can reassure customers about fraud and privacy will the online shopping curve really take off. Worries about the risk involved, in terms of financial transaction and privacy remain. A move from „big brands‟ to „bargains‟ may only take place once.

Rajeev Kamineni (JAN 1999) in their study The World Wide Web can changehuman behavior and human interactions to a very large extent. Web based shopping behavior is one major example to point out the trends in this direction. This study is of a very exploratory nature and it intends to establish the differences between several web - based shoppers from different parts of the world. Several critical factors associated with online shopping behavior will be explored. A cross cultural data set will be collected and an illustrative description of the shoppers will be provided. As a final step the cross cultural differences between several shoppers will be explored. One question which will run as a theme throughout the course of this paper is, “Will the traditional 17 | P a g e

consumer behavior theory and research be altered by the advent of web based shopping?” There is a huge difference between a physical store and its electronic counterpart. A help button on the home page of the web-shopping site replaces the sales clerks‟ friendly advice and service. The familiar layout of the physical store becomes a maze of pull down menus, product indices and search features. Now more than ever, the promise of electronic commerce and online shopping will depend to a great extent upon the interface and how people interact with the computer. At the same time, there are some inherent difficulties in maintaining an online inventory. In a regular store, the managers can pull out a product from the shelf if they feel that it is not fast moving or has no demand. This is a privilege that cannot be extended to the online retail store.

Anita desai (2003) in her sudy E-tailing is the practice of selling retail goods on the internet. It is the abbreviated version of “electronic retailing” which essentially constitutes business to consumer transaction. While the concept of online retailing or e-tailing is no longer in its nascent stage; it continues to evolve, as advanced e-commerce applications act as a potent catalyst in the development of e-tailing.

The idea of online retailing or e-tailing which almost every net-savvy individual is familiar with; offers a convenient mode of shopping online and the consumer gets to choose from a diverse range of products and services as opposed to the analogous physical shopping experience. Furthermore, online retailers or etailers get to expose and sell their products to a global audience through their estores. The E-commerce industry plays a vital role in its growth and development. The consumer or buyer is usually provided with detailed information and description of the product which helps them make a judicious choice before making an online purchase. For consumers who face a paucity of time or want a diverse range of products to choose from, e-tailing proves to be an ideal option. Every e-tailer wants his/her share of domain amidst the vast World Wide Web galaxy. Due to the intense competitory quotient involved, every e-tailer out there wants 18 | P a g e

to offer their customer/buyer a smooth and pleasant shopping experience. Therefore, e-tailing is just not restricted to putting up products for sale for consumers to buy. As consumers today are well-informed, it is understood that they would make a well informed decision as well. This involves a fair amount of product research, price comparison and checking the credibility of the estore.

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CHAPTER-3 NEED, OBJECTIVES, SCOPE & METHODOLOGY

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3.1 Need The need of this research is to identify and get insight into what main factors the online consumer takes into consideration when most he buy products on internet what affects their shopping behavior, basic need of this research is to find out what are the main factors affect the online consumer when considering and making a purchase over Internet.

3.2 Objective of the study  To study the online shopping behavior of customers  To study the factors influencing online shoppers and consumers  To study the customer’s level of satisfaction with regard to online shopping

 To examine whether customers prefer online shopping to physical stores.

3.3

Scope of the Study and Methodology

3.3.1 Scope of the study

At any given time there are millions of people online and each of them is a potential customer for a company providing online sales. Due to the rapid development of the technologies surrounding the Internet, a company that is interested in selling products from its web site will constantly has to search for an edge in the fierce competition. Since there are so many potential consumers, it is of the out most importance to be able to understand what the consumer wants and needs. The importance of analyzing and identifying factors that influence the consumer when he or she decides to purchase on the Internet is vital. Since the Internet is a new medium for there have been new demands set by the consumer. That is why it is crucial for the online retailers to know what influences.

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the online consumer. Analyzing consumer behavior is not a new phenomenon. The renowned marketing expert Philip Kotler has published several works on the topic of consumer behavior theories. These theories have been used for many years not only to understand the consumer, but also create a marketing strategy that will attract the consumer efficiently Hence, understanding and identifying the consumer is closely related to the directions a company will take with their marketing strategy. These theories can also be applied to identify the online consumer and to create certain consumer segments. However, some distinctions must still be made when considering traditional consumer behavior and online consumer behavior. Since online retailing is a new retailing medium and online consumer behavior is diverse from traditional consumer behavior, one must identify what influences the online consumer. Analyzing the process that the online consumer goes through when deciding and making a purchase over the Internet, shows some factors that consumers consider these factors need to be identified and taken into account by online retailers in order to satisfy consumer demands and compete in the online market.

3.3.2Research Methodology Data for this study was collected by means of a Survey conducted in Chennai city. The sample size was 200.The Questionnaire (shown in Annexure) was used Mainly to test the model proposed for Attitude towards online shopping. The type of research was both exploratory as well as Descriptive. Likert five point scales ranging from Strongly Agree to strongly disagree was used as a basis of Questions. We took around eleven different factors by studying the existing models of consumer attitudes that play an important role in online purchase, and then proposed a model leading to online shopping. This model was then tested in our research by the percentage analysis in msexcel.

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3.3.3Research Strategy When collecting data to approach the purpose of a research there are two ways in which the data can be collected. In order to acquire a General knowledge about the topic, secondary data is primarily used and is one of the ways by which data can be collected. The second way to collect data is the primary data collection. Usually when a study is conducted, secondary data is not sufficient enough and needs to be completed with primary data which is collected by the research.

3.3.4 Descriptive Research Method We will conduct our research in order to collect primary data and reach the objective of the Dissertation. We will also be discussing which different types of Methodologies that were used. Since our research is of descriptive character our primary intention was to collect primary data and analyze it. By doing so we found the factors Price, Trust and Convenience. We then collected primary data through a survey. The main purpose of the survey was to collect data about Online Consumer Behavior and the significance of the established factors, Price, Trust, and Convenience In order to be able to find and establish Online Consumer Segments, Consumer Traits and Online Behavior had to be identified.. 3.4 Sample Design The factors that we intended to examine can be applied to and investigated at any population that uses the Internet and buys online products Online. Since there are time and resource restraints, a specific Population had to be identified in order to generalize and create relevant segments. We decided that the sample size should contain over 200 respondents and we collected answers from 200 respondents. The populations for this research are professionals & students at Chennai city. The city was chosen on a convenience basis. Convenience sampling involves using samples that are the easiest to obtain and is continued until the sampling size that is need is reached.

We will attempt to collect as many respondents as possible but 23 | P a g e

since we will be

studying students & professionals we assume that there will be little variation in the population making it more approved to generalize the response rates. Type of Research: Descriptive Research Sample Size:-200.

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CHAPTER- 4 DATA ANALYSIS

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Q1. To know the age of the respondents?

Figure 1.1

INTERPRETATION The above diagram shows us the percentage in the age of respondents. As it shows that from age 15-20 the number of respondents are31 % and from age of 20 -25 it is 48 % and from 25-30 it is 14% this is the above data which is shown by the this pie chart. Table 1.1

Age 15-20 20-25 25-30 30& above

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%of respondents 31 48 14 7

Q2 To know the gender of the respondent

Figure 2.2

INTERPRETATION As our respondents are mostly from the students and professional in chennai city who uses cards. I use to get more data from males as they were ready to give their experiences, it this graph itself is showing more percentage of males rather than females, the percentage of male respondents is 86% and percentage of female respondents is only 14%.

Table 2.2

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Gender

Respondents

Male

86

Female

14

Q3 TO KNOW THE DEMOGRAPHY WHETER RESPONDENT LIVE IN RURAL OR URBAN AREA

Figure 3.3

INTERPRETATION The above diagram is showing the percentage of demography of respondents and what is the percentage of respondents who lives in rural or urban region, the above diagram is showing that 76% of the respondents are from urban areas and 24% of the respondents are from rural area.

Table 3.3

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Address

Respondents

Rural

24

Urban

76

Q4 TO KNOW THE OCCUPATION OF THE RESPONDENTS

Figure 4.4

INTERPRETATION This graph help us to know the occupation of the respondents, this is to know that which segment of people are buying more products on the internet whether they are the segment of students

government employees or professional, the above graph shows that the

segment of the students i.e. 90% of the students are using internet and use to buy online products.

Table 4.4

Occupation

No of respondents

Student Professional Govt.employee Self employed Others

90 4 Nil 5 1

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Q5. TO KNOW THE MONTHLY INCOME OF THE REPONDENTS?

Figure 5.5

INTERPRETATION This above graph shows the percentage of monthly income of the different respondents, and it show that less than 10000 income respondents have buyed more online products because most of them are students and they use to buy music Cds, gadgets, laptops.

Table 5.5 Income Less than 10000 10000-20000 30000-40000 30000-40000 40000 & above

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%of respondents 60 22 15 3 0

Q6 TO KNOW WHETHER RESPONDENTS HAVE THEIR OWN INTERNET CONNECTION

Figure 6.6

INTERPRETATION This graph show us the percentage of respondents who have their own internet connections, its shows that 65% of respondents have their own internet connections and 35% people don’t have their own internet connection.

Table 6.6

Internet connection Yes No

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% respondents having internet Connection 65 35

Q7

TO KNOW WHAT MOTIVATES PEOPLE TO DO ONLINE SHOPPING

Figure 7.7

INTERPRETATION This graph shows us what motivates the people to buy internet, as from above result we found out that no travel to shop is the main thing which motivates the people to buy products online.

Table 7.7

What motivates you to Buy online Easy payment No hidden cost

% of Respondents

Wide range of products No travel to shop

10 47

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37 5

Q8 TO KNOW WHETHER CONSUMERS ARE GETTING COMPETITIVE PRICE

Figure8.8

INTERPRETATION This diagram shows us that whether online marketers are giving competitive price or not and result which is came is that most of the people thought that online marketers are providing competitive prices than physical stores. And result shows 67% of people says that it provides competitive prices and only 27% people says no.

Table 8.8

Do you feel that the online marketers Are providing competitive prices

% respondents

Yes No Cant,say

67 27 6

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Q9 What products do you buy online

Figure 9.9

INTERPRETATION The above graphs gives result that most of time people use to buy books25% but the margin with other things is very less as music Cds have percentage of 20 and mobile 23%So this graph shows us this useful data .

Table 9.9

What products you buy on internet

% Respondents

Books Music t-shirts Mobile Laptop

24 25 12 23 20

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Q10 DO YOU FEEL THAT ONLINE SHOPPING IS BETTER THAN SHOPPING AT PHYSICAL STORE

Figure 10.1

INTERPRETATION After analyzing the above graph shows that the people are in favour of that online shopping is better than physical store, The percentage of people who says online shopping is better is 45% and the people who says it not good is 38 %. Still the percentage of people who says yes is more than other who says no.

Table 10.1

Do you feel that online shopping is better than shopping at physical brick mortar store Yes No Cant ,say

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% Respondents 45 38 12

Q11 WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING STORES HAVE YOU VISITED

Figure 11.1

INTERPRETATION This graph shows that 35% people use to visit e-bay for online shopping,40% use to go at amazon.com because % of people who buys books is more than any other products so people mostly visits amazon.com, 16 % people do at yahoo shopping and for other people use to visit at BestBuy and others.

Table 11.1

Which of the following stores have you visited online e-bay Yahoo shopping Amazon Best buy Others

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% of Respondents 35 16 40 10 4

Q12 WHAT FACTORS HELP YOU TO DECIDE WHICH SITE TO USE FOR

ONLINE SHOPPING

Figure 12.1

INTERPRETATION This diagram shows us what affects people to buy products on internet and it shows that 32% people came to know about shopping sites through online advertisements. And they attracted towards it and start getting products from there. And 20% people decision is affected by special offers by the offers and the discounts given by the sites.

Table 12.1

What factors help you to decide which site is use for online shopping Search engine Personal recomdations Special offers on sites Online advertising TV advertising 37 | P a g e

% of respondents 18 10 20 32 17

Others

3

Q13 HOW YOU MAKE YOUR PAYMETS ON THE INTERNET

Figure 13.1

INTERPRETATION This diagram shows that mostly people uses credit card to pay their payments 78% people use to pay by credit/debit card and 5% through bank transfer and 15% through pay pal and 2 from paypal.

Table 13.1

How do you make your payments online Credit card/ debit card Bank transfer Pay pal Other

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%of respondants 78 5 15 2

Q14 HAVE YOU FACE ANY PROBLEMS WHILE SHOPPING ONLINE

Figure 14.4

INTERPRETATION This graph shows that whether people faces any problem while doing online shopping or not and the result shows that 48% people says that they have faced problem while buying online and 28% people says that they don’t face any problem and 14 says that we can’t say.

Table 14.4 Have you any problems while shopping online Yes No cant say

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% of respondents 48 28 14

CHAPTER 5 Findings Suggestions and Conclusion

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Findings  Researcher found that most of the time youngster who are from the age of 20-25 shops a lot on the net rather than other age limits. People used to do online shopping because of its convenience.  The three factors that were found show a significant in influencing online

shoppers and consumers. The general distribution showed that the price was the primary factor for the entire sample population, and that second factor was trust was closely followed by convenience.



Researcher segments the respondents through different variables found that a

segment were mainly trust oriented and the respondents had a high positive attitude towards purchasing books online.  Other was mainly price and convenience oriented therefore took the most

consideration to the opinions and experiences of the Reference groups. As they low disposable income and were somewhat convenience oriented when acquiring information about low prices, chose to label them price easers.  The main thing which is very common in the most of the people about online shopping is its risk of privacy i.e. hacking of account number getting passwords and all.

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Suggestions  As came to know after researching on this topic researcher recommend that, the

online sellers have to make their payment transparent, and as people are coming on their sites and they are buying their products.  Retailers have to give more discounts to their customers so that they can visit

again and again to their site and it also helps to make people more aware about the low rick shopping of the net.  Transaction of money is very slow they have to make it fast so that customer dont

have to face much problem to pay for the product, if customer is going to face some problem he is not going to visit our site and buy products.  The online advertisement must made for products in other website must have direct link for purchasing site.  The retailers must make sure that their website is out of malwares and virus

attacks. Following implications should be followed  Discount price  A transfer and reliable retailer  Fast transactions  Focus on customer satisfaction

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CONCLUSION Increased Internet penetration, a hassle free shopping environment and high levels of Net savings see more and more Indians shopping online. But at the same time the companies need to reduce the risks related to consumer incompetence by tactics such as making purchase websites easier to navigate, and introducing Internet kiosk, computers and other aids in stores. The goal is not to convert all shoppers to online purchasing, but to show them its an option. In addition to above, efforts need to be taken to educate the online buyers on the steps that need to be undertaken while making an online purchase. Moreover, the feedback of an online buyer should be captured to identify flaws in service delivery. This can be done through online communities and blogs that serve as advertising and marketing tools and a source of feedback for enterprises. I found that it is a challenge for E-marketers to convert low frequency online buyers into regular buyers through successful website design and by addressing concerns about reliable performance. Thus, the online retailing raises more issues than the benefits it currently offers. The quality of products offered online and procedures for service delivery are yet to be standardized. Till the same is done, the buyer is at a higher risk of frauds.

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