A STUDY ON WOMEN CONSUMER ATTITUDE OF PURCHASING COSMETICS

PRODUCTS

P NIVEATHITHA1, M SHOPIA RUBI 2

Student, Dept. of Management Studies , Valliammal College For Women,

Affiliated by University of Madras, Chennai, Tamilnadu , India.

ABSTRACT

The Objective of this research paper is to study women consumer buying behaviour towards
cosmetic products. Hence, companies are interested to know about women consumer’s
attitude towards cosmetics so as to devise strategies to win over competition. The
research question is “what kind of attitudes do the women customers have towards
purchasing behaviour of cosmetic products?” This study is attempted to reveal the
women consumers preference, satisfaction and Attitude towards the cosmetic products,
Factors influencing and Impact of media which permit the women consumers to buy
the cosmetic products. culture and there is no statistically significant difference in
dimension of Personal and psychological. An Interview schedule was framed and collected
responses from 140 female consumers of Anna Nagar by using convenience sampling
method. The data has been analyzed by One Sample T Test , Chi-square test and Garrett
Ranking Test. In the end of the study implications and conclusion were provided.

Keywords: women consumer, satisfaction, personal and psychological

INTRODUCTION

Understanding behaviour of women consumers is a key to the success of business

organizations. The word “cosmetics “is derived from the Greek word kosmetikos
which means “skilled at decorating “. The U.S., the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), which regulates cosmetics, defines cosmetics as "intended to be applied to the
human body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance
without affecting the body's structure or functions." Consumers buy products according to
their needs, preferences and buying power. Women consumer buying behaviour depends
on his perception, self concept, social and cultural background and their age and
family cycle, their attitudes, beliefs values, motivation, personality, social class and
many other factors that are both internal and external (kotler and keller,2009). Specifically,
the attitudes of women consumers can have a significant effect on buying behaviour.
we found that women are spending more on cosmetics as they are actively earning and
spending money on grooming themselves. Besides, rural India is also showing its willingness
to look attractive (Indian Cosmetic Sector Forecast to 2015, RNCOS).This paper examines
the influence of attitude on cosmetics buying behaviour.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

In order to develop a framework for the study consumer behaviour it is helpful to begin
by considering the evolution of the field of consumer research and the different
paradigms of thought that have influenced the discipline.

A1-Ashban and Burney (2001) found that cosmetics buying behaviour literature in
developing countries in general is inadequate and ambiguous. As it is known from Theory
of Reasoned Action and Theory of Planned Behaviour, attitudes have considerable
impact on behaviour (Ravikumar, 2012).When xamining the influence of attitude on
behavioural intention; the results indicate that attitude positively affects behavioural
intention. (Shih-I Cheng, Hwai-Hui fu, Le Thi Cam Tu, 2011).Choo, chung & pysarchik,
(2004) have argued that there is a direct causal relationship between attitudes and behaviour.

Schiffman and Kanuk (2004) revealed four different views are considered for understanding
consumer decision making process and behaviour. They are ‘economic view’, ‘passive view’,
‘emotional view’ and ‘cognitive view’. Despite the various studies on these four types
of decision making but it can be considered as a valid argument that these four behaviours
exist while making the buying decision and provide the guideline for the analysis of
consumers accordingly by the marketers

Briney (2004) describes an interesting trend among Indian cosmetic consumers, while other
global countries are taking to the traditional Indian herbal and ayurvedic applications for
beauty solutions, Indian consumers are increasingly looking to international personal care
brands as lifestyle enhancement products, in the belief that the association with and use of an
international brand confers one with a sophisticated and upper class image.

Shahzad Khan (2012) explained that attitude is the conduct, nature, temperament , thought
and way of behaving. It can be positive or negative and perform a very essential function in
purchasing a product.

Debiprasad Mukherjee (2012) conducted a study entitled ‘Impact of celebrity endorsement

on brand image’. This study shows that consumers report higher self-brand connection
for brands with images that are consistent with the image of a celebrity that they aspire to be
like, particularly in the case when the image of the celebrity and the brand match.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 To analyze the women consumers preference towards cosmetic products.

 To study factors affecting buyers decision for purchasing cosmetic products.
 To investigate the women consumers insight on cosmetic products.
 To study the influence of Income Level of the respondents on consumer buying
behaviour dimensions
 To study brand preference for cosmetic products.

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HYPOTHESIS

H1: There is no significant association between the respondent’s age and preference of
cosmetics.

H2: Consumer’s levels of satisfaction towards the cosmetics they using are not vary from one
another.

H3: significant difference in the ranks provided by respondents to the Statement related to
cosmetic products.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Area of the Study: The study area is restricted to Anna Nagar, Chennai 102 Tamil
Nadu; this area is always prominent for producing yarn.

Sources of Data: The study is taken by using both primary and secondary data. The primary
data has been collected by using an interview schedule and the secondary data has
been collected from magazines, journals and Internet.

Sampling Method: A total of 140 respondents from Anna Nagar were chosen.
Convenience Sampling Technique has been adapted for primary data collection.

Tools for Analysis: The collected primary data has been sorted carefully by using tables for
perfect representation. For the purpose of analysis, the following statistical tools have been
used;One Sample T Test , Chi-square test and Post hoc test.

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Table 1: Demographic Profile of the Female Respondents

S. No Women Consumer’s Demographic Variables No. ofResponses (%)

1 Age
<18 34 14%
19-29 46 58%
30-45 18 38%
> 46 12 8%
2 Educational Status
No Formal Education 6 8%
School Level / Diploma 27 27%
Under Graduate 58 58%
Post Graduate 19 29%
3 Occupation Status
Student 44 34%
Business 12 10%
Employee 32 27%
Housewife 35 29%
The Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) for

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Table 2: Tabulation of Women Consumer’s Responses

Women Consumers Preference towards Cosmetic Products

S. No Preference towards Cosmetic Products No. of Responses (%)

1 Chemical 38 33%
2 Ayurvedic 49 48%
3 Both 43 51%
Factors That Influence Women Consumers To Buy Cosmetic Products
S. No Influencing Factors No. of Responses (%)
1 Quality 40 32%
2 Brand Reputation 6 8%
3 Skin concern 52 41%
4 Friends/Family 12 6%
5 Status Symbol 18 15%
Impact of different advertising medium on women consumers
S. No Advertising Medium No. of Responses (%)
1 Television/Radio 65 72%
2 Newspaper/Magazine 15 12%
3 Internet 20 17%
Satisfaction Levels of Women Consumers towards their Cosmetic Products
S. Levels of Satisfaction No. of Responses (%)
No
1 Very High 56 51%
2 High 32 25%
3 Moderate 20 18%
4 Low 19 16%
5 Very Low 15 12%
Women Consumers Insight on Cosmetic Products
S. No Statements No. of Responses (%)
1 I prefer purchasing well known brands of cosmetics 33 2 18 24 16
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2 Higher the price of a cosmetic, the better its quality 26 31 12 33 18
3 Once I like a brand, I stick with it 52 34 12 18 4
4 Highly cautious towards using new brands 38 27 15 24 16
5 Most advertised cosmetics brands are good choice 22 19 26 31 22
Source: Primary Data

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Chi-square test

Value df Asymp.Sig.(2-sided)
Pearson Chi-Square 8.372* 6 .212
Likelihood Ratio 7.794 6 .240
Linear-by-Linear .001 1 .971
Association
N of Valid Cases 120
a. 3 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5.The minimum expected count is 2.10.

Source: Computed Data

The above table shows the p value (0.212) which is greater than the assumed value of 0.05
(Level of Significance). Hence H1 is accepted. Therefore, there is no significant association
between the respondent’s age and preference of cosmetics.

One Sample T Test

Test Value=0

t df Sig(2- Mean 95% Confidence Interval

tailed) of the Difference
Difference
Lower Higher

Level of Satisfaction 25.846 119 .000 3.32500 3.0703 3.5797

towards their Cosmetic
Products

Source: Computed Data

The above table shows the p value (0.000) which is lesser than the assumed value of 0.05
(Level of Significance). Hence H2 is rejected. Therefore, Consumer’s levels of
satisfaction towards the cosmetics they using are vary from one another.

Garrett Ranking Test

S.No STATEMENTS Total Average Rank

Score
1 I prefer purchasing well known 6534 54.67 3
brands of cosmetics
2 Higher the price of a cosmetic, the 5893 51.50 4
better its quality
3 Once I like a brand, I stick with it 7360 61.33 1
4 Highly cautious towards using new 6883 54.83 2
brands
5 Most advertised cosmetics brands 5712 51.27 5
are good choice
Source: Computed Data

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The above table represents that the statement “OnceI like a brand, I stick with it” is ranked
one by high number of respondents. This table clearly indicates that there is a
significant difference in the ranks provided by respondents to the Statement related to
cosmetic products. Hence H3is rejected.

FINDINGS

Around 55% of respondents prefer both chemical and Ayurvedic based cosmetic
products irrespective of their age, education and occupation status. 43% of the
respondents are influenced by the factor of ‘skin concern’ to use the cosmetic products and
followed by the factor ‘quality’ which influences 33% of consumers to use cosmetics.
Advertising medium - ‘Television/Radio’ created an impact on 75% of women consumers to
buy cosmetic products. 32% of women consumers are very highly satisfied with the cosmetic
products they make use of. There is no significant association between the respondent’s
age and preference of cosmetics. , Consumer’s levels of satisfaction towards the cosmetics
they using are vary from one another. There is a significant difference in the ranks
provided by respondents to the Statement related to cosmetic products.

CONCLUSION

After analysis we found that small differences exist in the income level that implies the
different groups prefer or opinion differs on consumer buying behaviour. Every person
plays multiple roles in their daily life, professional role or social role. Each of these
roles has a certain effect on consumers buying behaviour. This study has provided a
platform for the corporate to think on different dimensions what consumers prefer,
which make them in deciding on Marketing Mix of different products, like modify
the product or change in product design, fixing of price that better suit the targeted
audience, appropriate promotion mix namely sales promotion, advertising, publicity and
personal selling, and finally change in distribution channel. Classy promotional mix can
facilitate in drawing customers with regular offers which should also come up with the
new trend. Irrespective of age, women consumers prefer the cosmetic products, so the
producers could target all age category of consumer’s to prop up their products.

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