Dynamics of rural consumer behaviour in Kerala

Abstract

The ultimate objectives of marketing strategies are to motivate the consumer to buy a product. Consumer behaviour studies will help the businessmen to evolve suitable marketing strategies. The study entitled The Dynamics of Rural Consumer Behaviour in Kerala has undertaken with the objectives of assessing the socio economic profile of rural consumers, to examine the pre purchase, purchase and post purchase behaviour towards consumer durables and non durables and to identify the factors influencing the consumer choice towards the selected items. The scheme of the study consists of seven chapter viz. introductory chapter, theoretical framework chapters on rural marketing and consumer behaviour, three analytical chapters and concluding chapter. Primary and secondary data were collected for the study. Primary data were mainly used for analyzing the objectives. A multi stage sampling procedure was used to collect data from 300 respondents, 100 each from South, central and North zones of rural Kerala. Product selection was confined to five durables and ten non durables (two each from five categories). For the purpose of analysis the statistical tools like percentage, indices, Kendal s W Test, and#967;2 Test, Friedmans test etc. were used. The findings of the study expose the dynamic consumer behavior pattern of rural consumers in Kerala. The study highlights the facts that, price conscious, rural consumers are shifting to quality conscious consumers, their preference towards low-unit packing, the concern for security aspects of durables like after sale service and guarantee/warrantee offers and the differences in the factors influencing the purchase choice of consumer durables and non durables. The above findings stress marketers to provide quality goods at reasonable prices, need for low unit packing, necessary for opening more sales service centers in rural areas and also for framing separate rural marketing strategies for durable and non-durable products.