a study on factors affecting customers investment towards
a study on factors affecting customers investment towards
a study on factors affecting customers investment towards
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
106<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
A STUDY ON FACTORS AFFECTING CUSTOMERS INVESTMENT<br />
TOWARDS LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES<br />
ABSTRACT<br />
MS. BABITA YADAV*; DR. ANSHUJA TIWARI**<br />
*Research Scholar,<br />
Faculty of Commerce,<br />
R.D.V.V, Jabalpur.<br />
**Assistant Professor,<br />
Faculty of Commerce,<br />
Barkatullah University, Bhopal.<br />
Human life is a most important asset and life insurance is the most important type of insurance<br />
which provides financial protecti<strong>on</strong> to a pers<strong>on</strong> and his family at the time of uncertain risks or<br />
damage. Life insurance provides both safety and protecti<strong>on</strong> to individuals and also encourages<br />
savings am<strong>on</strong>g people. Lic of india plays a vital role in the welfare of human well-being by<br />
providing insurance to milli<strong>on</strong>s of people against life risks such as uncertain death or accident.<br />
The present exploratory and descriptive based <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> was selected with an objective to identify<br />
those <strong>factors</strong> which influence <strong>customers</strong> policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong> and also analyze the preferences<br />
of <strong>customers</strong> while life policy <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>-making. Various insurance related <strong>factors</strong><br />
have been discussed in the paper. The data for the <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> has been collected from both primary<br />
and sec<strong>on</strong>dary sources. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> area is limited to jabalpur district, of madhya pradesh and<br />
sample size is 150 policyholders of lic and different private life insurers have been selected<br />
through a stratified and purposive sampling method. Researcher has taken few hypothesis based<br />
<strong>on</strong> demographic and insurance based preference <strong>factors</strong> and tested them with the help of various<br />
statistical tools like chi-square, correlati<strong>on</strong> and weighted average method. The analyzed data has<br />
been presented in the form of table, bar graphs and pie-charts. Lic is the most accepted and<br />
popular brand in life insurance, the market share of private insurers are gradually increasing with<br />
people trust and better services offered by them are some of the main findings of the <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g>.<br />
Insurance companies should spread more awareness about life insurance, reducti<strong>on</strong> in premium<br />
amount and giving more attenti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> need based innovative products are some of the suggesti<strong>on</strong>s<br />
provided by the researcher. The paper c<strong>on</strong>cludes with that demographic <strong>factors</strong> of the people<br />
play a major and pivotal role in deciding the purchase of life insurance policies.<br />
KEYWORDS: Customers, Life Insurance Policies, LIC, Investment, Socio-Ec<strong>on</strong>omic Factors.<br />
______________________________________________________________________________<br />
INTRODUCTION<br />
Life insurance is a must for every<strong>on</strong>e because life is very precious. With a populati<strong>on</strong> of over <strong>on</strong>e<br />
billi<strong>on</strong>, nati<strong>on</strong>al and internati<strong>on</strong>al life insurance companies, see india as a land of opportunities<br />
and a market for big business. Until 1999, the business of life insurance in india was the
107<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
m<strong>on</strong>opoly of life insurance corporati<strong>on</strong> of india (lic). Privatizati<strong>on</strong> witnessed dynamic changes in<br />
the insurance industry and most of the private insurance companies are joint ventures with<br />
recognized foreign players across the globe. Customers are the main pillar of life insurance<br />
business. Every company tries to attract and retain existing <strong>customers</strong> to keep their profits high.<br />
The proper understanding of <strong>customers</strong>, their needs and expectati<strong>on</strong>s help insurance providers to<br />
bring improvement in product as well as services offered. When compared with the developed<br />
foreign countries, the indian life insurance industry has achieved <strong>on</strong>ly a little because of low<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sumer awareness, poor affordability, delayed customer services, lack of suitable products. In<br />
today’s cut throat competiti<strong>on</strong>, it becomes essential for life insurers to provide better customer<br />
services, spread more awareness, emphasis <strong>on</strong> need based innovative products and reas<strong>on</strong>able<br />
price. So that, every individual may avail the benefits of insurance and protect their lives against<br />
future uncertainties.<br />
REVIEW OF LITERATURE<br />
Athma. P and kumar. R (2007) in the research paper titled “an explorative <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> of life insurance<br />
purchase decisi<strong>on</strong> making: influence of product and n<strong>on</strong>-product <strong>factors</strong>". The empirical based<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> c<strong>on</strong>ducted <strong>on</strong> 200 sample size comprising of both rural and urban market. The various<br />
product and n<strong>on</strong>-product related <strong>factors</strong> have been identified and their impact <strong>on</strong> life insurance<br />
purchase decisi<strong>on</strong>-making has been analyzed. Based <strong>on</strong> the survey analysis; urban market is<br />
more influenced with product based <strong>factors</strong> like risk coverage, tax benefits, return etc. Whereas<br />
rural populati<strong>on</strong> is influenced with n<strong>on</strong>-product related <strong>factors</strong> such as: credibility of agent,<br />
company’s reputati<strong>on</strong>, trust, customer services. Company goodwill and m<strong>on</strong>ey back guarantee<br />
attracts many people for life insurance.<br />
Girish kumar and eldhose (2008), published in insurance chr<strong>on</strong>icle icfai m<strong>on</strong>thly magazine<br />
august 2008 in their paper titled "customer percepti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> life insurance services: a comparative<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> of public and private sectors", well explained the importance of quality services and its<br />
significance in raising customer satisfacti<strong>on</strong> level. A comparative <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> of public and private<br />
sectors help in understanding the customer percepti<strong>on</strong>, satisfacti<strong>on</strong> and awareness <strong>on</strong> various life<br />
insurance services.<br />
Jayakar (2003) in his <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> emphasized that new products innovati<strong>on</strong>; distributi<strong>on</strong> and better use<br />
of technology are helping the new private life insurers to take market share away from lic, a <strong>on</strong>ly<br />
company before liberalizati<strong>on</strong> of insurance industry. With the privatizati<strong>on</strong> of insurance sector<br />
and with the entrance and cut throat competiti<strong>on</strong> with the private sectors gaining an ever<br />
increasing edge over the public sector.<br />
Narayan. H. Jai (2009), in an article has made an emphasis <strong>on</strong> importance of customer in the<br />
business of insurance. He explained in phase of growing market competiti<strong>on</strong>, there is an intense<br />
need to go bey<strong>on</strong>d mere efficiency in designing products. To understand the customer’s needs<br />
and to c<strong>on</strong>vey what they have to offer would perhaps bring in higher efficiencies in customer<br />
service. Insurance business revolves around the customer and fair treatment to <strong>customers</strong> is need<br />
of an hour to win their loyalty and trust. In a service based organizati<strong>on</strong>s, customer service is the<br />
most dominating feature that differentiate and gives good return to the insurers. Proper dealing
108<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
with customer complaints, effective customer grievances handling mechanism and fast claim<br />
settlement procedure are some of the ways through which satisfacti<strong>on</strong> level of <strong>customers</strong> can be<br />
increased. Hence to serve the <strong>customers</strong> promptly and effectively is the key success of a life<br />
insurance business.<br />
praveen kumar tripathi (2008), in his summer training project report titled “customer buying<br />
behavior with a focus <strong>on</strong> market segmentati<strong>on</strong>” c<strong>on</strong>duct a research based <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>on</strong> buying<br />
pattern in the insurance industry with a special focus <strong>on</strong> hdfc standard life insurance. The various<br />
segments of the markets divided in terms of insurance needs, age groups, satisfacti<strong>on</strong> levels etc<br />
were taken into account to know the customer percepti<strong>on</strong> and expectati<strong>on</strong> from private insurers.<br />
NEED OF THE STUDY<br />
The insurance industry is <strong>on</strong>e of the fastest growing industries in the country and offers<br />
abundance growth opportunity to the life insurers. When compared with the developed foreign<br />
countries, the indian life insurance industry has achieved <strong>on</strong>ly a little because of the lack of<br />
insurance awareness, ineffective marketing strategies, poor affordability and low <strong>investment</strong> in<br />
life insurance products. The huge and ever rising populati<strong>on</strong> levels in our country provide an<br />
attractive opportunity but still nearly 70% indian lives is un-insured. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> is basically<br />
intended to discover and examine the <strong>factors</strong> <strong>affecting</strong> <strong>customers</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong> <strong>towards</strong> <strong>investment</strong> in<br />
life insurance policy.<br />
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY<br />
1. To explore the various <strong>factors</strong> influencing customer <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong> in life insurance.<br />
2. To <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> and analyze the impact of various demographic <strong>factors</strong> <strong>on</strong> <strong>customers</strong> life insurance<br />
<strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
3. To evaluate preferences of the <strong>customers</strong> while taking life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
4. To <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> and rank the <strong>factors</strong> resp<strong>on</strong>sible for the selecti<strong>on</strong> life insurance as an <strong>investment</strong> opti<strong>on</strong>.<br />
5. To offer suggesti<strong>on</strong>s for popularizing life insurance am<strong>on</strong>g the pubic at large.<br />
HYPOTHESIS<br />
1. Age and income has no significant impact <strong>on</strong> the customer life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
2. Occupati<strong>on</strong> and gender are independent of the customer life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
3. There is an immense need to focus <strong>on</strong> product innovati<strong>on</strong> and <strong>customers</strong> need based policies for<br />
market expansi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
4. Lic is the most trusted and preferred brand am<strong>on</strong>g other life insurance companies.
109<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY<br />
The present <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> is an exploratory and descriptive type of research <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g>. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> aims to find<br />
out the <strong>factors</strong> influencing <strong>customers</strong> life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong> and their preferences at<br />
the time of policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>. In order to c<strong>on</strong>duct this <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g>, 150 policyholders of jabalpur<br />
district have been surveyed for a period of <strong>on</strong>e year from july 2009 to july 2010 and<br />
questi<strong>on</strong>naire method was used for data collecti<strong>on</strong>.<br />
SOURCES OF DATA<br />
The data for the <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> has been collected from both primary and sec<strong>on</strong>dary sources. The primary<br />
data has been collected through a well-drafted interview schedule. The sec<strong>on</strong>dary data has been<br />
collected from irda annual reports, insurance journals, magazines and insurance website.<br />
DATA COLLECTION METHODS<br />
The data collecti<strong>on</strong> method used to obtain the desired informati<strong>on</strong> from primary sources has been<br />
through direct interview, and questi<strong>on</strong>naire has been used as an instrument.<br />
RESEARCH PLAN<br />
Target populati<strong>on</strong> and universe: jabalpur district<br />
Sampling unit: life insurance policyholders<br />
Sampling method: purposive sampling<br />
Sample size: 150<br />
STATISTICAL TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES<br />
For measuring various phenomena and analyzing the collected data effectively and efficiently to<br />
draw sound c<strong>on</strong>clusi<strong>on</strong>s, a number of statistical techniques including chi-square, correlati<strong>on</strong>,<br />
weighted average score have been used for the testing of hypotheses.<br />
DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATIONS<br />
FACTORIAL ANALYSIS AT JABALPUR<br />
The resp<strong>on</strong>dents of different age groups, occupati<strong>on</strong>, income and gender for <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> have been<br />
selected through purposive sampling method in order to achieve the research objectives.<br />
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF THE RESPONDENTS<br />
Socioec<strong>on</strong>omic <strong>factors</strong> such as age, income, occupati<strong>on</strong> and gender are some of the important<br />
determinant in the decisi<strong>on</strong> of life insurance. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> is c<strong>on</strong>ducted with reference to the<br />
<strong>customers</strong> of jabalpur district, madhya pradesh. The demographic profile of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents is
110<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
analyzed <strong>on</strong> the basis of age, m<strong>on</strong>thly income, gender and occupati<strong>on</strong>. The distributi<strong>on</strong> of sample<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>dents is shown in table no. 1 and it is quite evident from the table that a majority of the<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>dents (52%) fall in the age band of 30-40 years. Out of 150 sample drawn, 108 (72%) are<br />
male and it depicts the dominati<strong>on</strong> of male in the life insurance sector. Occupati<strong>on</strong>-wise, around<br />
44% resp<strong>on</strong>dents are govt. Employee followed by private/businessman, professi<strong>on</strong>als, agriculture<br />
occupied resp<strong>on</strong>dents with 18.6%, 14.6% and 22.8% respectively.<br />
TABLE 1<br />
DEMOGRAPHIC DETAILS OF THE RESPONDENTS<br />
(IN PERCENTAGE)<br />
Basis Resp<strong>on</strong>dents Percentage<br />
20-30 39 25.3<br />
Age<br />
30-40 78 52<br />
40-50 30 20<br />
Above 50 03 2<br />
Total 150 100<br />
M<strong>on</strong>thly income<br />
5,000-10,000 18 12<br />
10,000-15,000 29 19.3<br />
15,000-20,000 48 32<br />
20,000-25,000 32 21.3<br />
Above 25,000 23 15.3<br />
Total 150 100<br />
Occupati<strong>on</strong><br />
Govt. Class employee 66 44<br />
Businessman/private 28 18.6
111<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
Professi<strong>on</strong>als 22 14.6<br />
Agriculture 34 22.8<br />
Total 150 100<br />
Gender<br />
Male 108 72<br />
Female 42 28<br />
Total 150 100<br />
Source: primary data<br />
Age and customer <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong> in life insurance<br />
H1: age and income has a significant impact <strong>on</strong> the customer life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
TABLE 2<br />
CALCULATION OF COEFFICIENT CORRELATION BETWEEN AGE OF<br />
RESPONDENTS & LIFE INSURANCE INVESTMENT DECISION<br />
Age X Dx=( x-<br />
40)<br />
Dx2 Y Dy(y-38) Dy2 Dxxdy<br />
20-30 25 -15 225 39 1 1 -15<br />
30-40 35 -5 25 78 40 1600 -200<br />
40-50 45 5 25 30 -8 64 -45<br />
Above 50 55 15 225 03 -35 1225 -525<br />
Total 160/4=40 0 500 150/4=37.5 0 2890 785
112<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
here, the value of correlati<strong>on</strong> (r)<br />
Correlati<strong>on</strong> ( r) = 785/1202.08=0.65<br />
since the calculated value of r is positive, it is c<strong>on</strong>cluded that there is a significant relati<strong>on</strong>ship<br />
between age and customer insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>. Hence age affects the customer life<br />
policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
TABLE 3<br />
CALCULATION OF COEFFICIENT CORRELATION BETWEEN MONTHLY<br />
INCOME OF RESPONDENTS & LIFE INSURANCE INVESTMENT DECISION<br />
M<strong>on</strong>thly<br />
income<br />
X Dx=( x-<br />
175))<br />
Dx2 Y Dy(y-<br />
30)<br />
Dy2<br />
Dxxdy<br />
5000-10,000 7500 -100 10000 14 -16 256 -1600<br />
10,000-<br />
15,000<br />
15,000-<br />
20,000<br />
20,000-<br />
25,000<br />
Above<br />
25,000<br />
12500 -50 2500 37 07 49 -350<br />
17500 0 0 54 24 576 0<br />
22500 50 2500 29 -1 1 -50<br />
27500 100 10000 16 -14 196 -1400<br />
Total 87500/5=17500 0 25,000 150/5=30 0 1078 3400<br />
here, the value of correlati<strong>on</strong> (r) correlati<strong>on</strong> (r) = 650/3612.4= 0.65<br />
Since the calculated value of r is positive, it is c<strong>on</strong>cluded that there is a significant<br />
relati<strong>on</strong>ship between m<strong>on</strong>thly income and customer insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>. Hence<br />
income is <strong>on</strong>e of the important determinants in customer life policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
H2: occupati<strong>on</strong> and gender are independent of the customer life insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
CHI-SQUARE TEST: chi-square test is applied to test the goodness of fit, to verify the<br />
distributi<strong>on</strong> of observed data with assumed theoretical distributi<strong>on</strong>. Therefore it is a measure to<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> the divergence of actual and expected frequencies; karl pears<strong>on</strong>’s has developed a method<br />
to test the difference between the theoretical (hypothesis) & the observed value. The researcher
113<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
has used chi-square test to test the impact of occupati<strong>on</strong> and gender <strong>on</strong> customer <strong>investment</strong><br />
decisi<strong>on</strong><br />
TABLE 4<br />
CALCULATION OF ASSOCIATION BETWEEN OCCUPATION OF RESPONDENTS<br />
AND LIFE INSURANCE INVESTMENT DECISION<br />
Occupati<strong>on</strong> Investment decisi<strong>on</strong> Total<br />
High Medium Low<br />
Govt. Service 38 22 6 66<br />
Businessman/private<br />
service<br />
18 8 2 28<br />
Professi<strong>on</strong>als 14 6 2 22<br />
Agriculture 21 9 4 34<br />
Total 91 45 14 150<br />
chi – square test (x 2 ) = (o – e)2 / e<br />
Degrees of freedom = v = (r – 1) (c -1)<br />
were,<br />
here x 2 calculated= (o – e) 2 / e= 14.09<br />
at 5% level of significance for 6 df, the calculated value of chi-square is 12.59<br />
Since the chi-square calculated > chi-square tabulated, it is c<strong>on</strong>cluded that there is a no<br />
significant associati<strong>on</strong> between occupati<strong>on</strong> and customer insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>. Hence<br />
occupati<strong>on</strong> does not influence the customer life policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>.
114<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
TABLE 5<br />
CALCULATION OF ASSOCIATION BETWEEN GENDER OF RESPONDENTS AND<br />
LIFE INSURANCE INVESTMENT DECISION<br />
Gender Investment decisi<strong>on</strong> Total<br />
High Medium Low<br />
Male 72 28 8 108<br />
Female 26 10 6 42<br />
Total 98 38 14 150<br />
here x 2 calculated= (o – e)2 / e= 1.66<br />
at 5% level of significance for 2 df, the calculated value of chi-square is 5.99<br />
Since the chi-square calculated < chi-square tabulated, it is c<strong>on</strong>cluded that there is a significant<br />
associati<strong>on</strong> between gender and customer insurance <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong>. Hence gender influence<br />
customer life policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
PREFERENCE OF THE POLICYHOLDERS<br />
PREFERENCE TOWARDS LIFE INSURANCE COMPANIES<br />
TABLE 6<br />
Resp<strong>on</strong>ses<br />
No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
Percentage<br />
L.i.c. 82 54.6<br />
Hdfc standard life insurance 10 6.6<br />
Icici prudential 16 10.6
115<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
No. of Resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
Sbi life 22 14.6<br />
Bajaj allianz 12 8.0<br />
Others 08 5.3<br />
Total 150 100<br />
GRAPH 1<br />
90<br />
80<br />
82<br />
70<br />
60<br />
50<br />
40<br />
30<br />
20<br />
10<br />
10<br />
16<br />
22<br />
12<br />
8<br />
0<br />
LIC<br />
HDFC<br />
Standard life<br />
ICICI<br />
Prudential<br />
SBI life Bajaj Allianz Others<br />
No. of Resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
Interpretati<strong>on</strong>: it is revealed from the table no. 6 and graph no. 1 , a majority (55%) of the<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred to buy policy from lic, followed by the 14.6% and 10.6% of resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
preferred to buy from sbi life insurance, icici prudential life respectively. Remaining 8% and<br />
10.6% of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred bajaj allianz and hdfc standard life insurance respectively.<br />
The left 5.3% resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred other than these life insurance companies. Thus it can be<br />
inferred that lic of india is the most preferred life insurance company and majority of them prefer<br />
government-owned lic for getting insured because of security. The other private life insurance<br />
companies are having less percentage of share and those who prefer private insurers are because<br />
of better customer services and high returns.
116<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
No. of Resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
TYPE OF POLICY<br />
TABLE 7<br />
Policy types No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents Percentage<br />
Endowment 23 15.3<br />
Term plan 15 10.0<br />
Unit linked 47 31.3<br />
M<strong>on</strong>ey back 56 37.3<br />
Others 09 6.0<br />
Total 150 100<br />
GRAPH 2<br />
60<br />
56<br />
50<br />
47<br />
40<br />
30<br />
20<br />
10<br />
23<br />
15<br />
9<br />
0<br />
Endowment Term plan Unit Linked M<strong>on</strong>ey Back Others<br />
No. of resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
INTERPRETATION: it is quite evident from the table no. 7 and graph no. 2 , there are various<br />
types of life insurance policies with customized features and value additi<strong>on</strong>s catering to the needs<br />
of specific target segments. That a majority (38%) of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred m<strong>on</strong>ey back<br />
policy, followed by 31.3% of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred unit linked plans and 15.3% preferred<br />
endowment plans. Out of 150 samples drawn, <strong>on</strong>ly 10% of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents preferred term plans.<br />
Thus it can depict that am<strong>on</strong>g many plans available, the most preferred <strong>on</strong>e am<strong>on</strong>g the mass is<br />
m<strong>on</strong>ey back plan. This plan helps you to withdraw your m<strong>on</strong>ey at regular intervals and still
117<br />
No. of Resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
staying insured. This plan is famous for its high liquidity advantage. The other product gaining<br />
popularity is ulip’s (unit linked insurance plan), as its serve multiple purpose, it give high<br />
returns, tax benefit, life insurance , critical illness cover and is admired for its flexibility for<br />
paying premium amount.<br />
THE MOST ATTRACTIVE FEATURES OF POLICY<br />
TABLE 8<br />
Resp<strong>on</strong>ses No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents Percentage (%)<br />
M<strong>on</strong>ey back guarantee 39 26<br />
Larger risk coverance 28 18.6<br />
Easy access to agents 18 12<br />
Low premium 23 15.3<br />
Company’s reputati<strong>on</strong> 42 28<br />
Total 150 100<br />
GRAPH 3<br />
45<br />
40<br />
35<br />
30<br />
25<br />
20<br />
15<br />
39<br />
28<br />
18<br />
23<br />
42<br />
10<br />
5<br />
0<br />
M<strong>on</strong>ey back<br />
guarantee<br />
Larger risk<br />
coverance<br />
Easy access to<br />
agents<br />
Low premium<br />
Company’s<br />
reputati<strong>on</strong><br />
No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents
118<br />
No. of Resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
INTERPRETATION: it is evident from the table no. 8 and graph no. 3 , when the<br />
policyholders were asked to rank the features of policy that attracts the most their order of their<br />
preference as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. A majority (28%) of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents believes that company<br />
reputati<strong>on</strong> is the most influencing factor in policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>, followed by the 26% of<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>dents influenced with m<strong>on</strong>ey back guarantee, 18.6% influenced with larger risk coverage.<br />
Remaining 15.3% and 12% of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents are influenced with low premium rates and easy<br />
access to agents respectively. Hence reputati<strong>on</strong> of company is the main influencing factor during<br />
policy purchasing decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
PEOPLE WOULD LOOK FOR INSURANCE COMPANY<br />
TABLE 9<br />
Resp<strong>on</strong>ses No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents Percentage<br />
A trusted name 72 48<br />
Friendly service & resp<strong>on</strong>siveness 27 18<br />
Good plans 45 30<br />
Accessibility 06 4<br />
Total 150 100<br />
GRAPH 4<br />
80<br />
70<br />
72<br />
60<br />
50<br />
45<br />
40<br />
30<br />
27<br />
20<br />
10<br />
6<br />
0<br />
A trusted name<br />
Friendly service &<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>siveness<br />
Good plans<br />
Accessibility<br />
No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents
119<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
INTERPRETATION: it is revealed from the table no. 9 and graph no. 4 , that a majority<br />
(48%)of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents look for a trusted name in a company for insurance. 30% resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
look for a good plans and 18% looks for a friendly service and resp<strong>on</strong>siveness. Remaining 4%<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>dents looks for an ease of accessibility in a company for insurance. Hence it can be<br />
inferred that trust is very important factor, which a majority of <strong>customers</strong> looks before buying<br />
policy from an insurance company.<br />
RANKING VARIOUS FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR INVESTMENT IN LIFE<br />
INSURANCE PRODUCTS<br />
During the <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g>, it was found that the investors generally invested in life insurance due to the<br />
reas<strong>on</strong>s like tax benefit, risk coverage, saving, return, insurance services, premium charges,<br />
security. During the survey, the resp<strong>on</strong>dents were asked to rank these <strong>factors</strong> and the data<br />
obtained is presented in table no. 10.<br />
TABLE 10<br />
Factors resp<strong>on</strong>sible for <strong>investment</strong> in life insurance<br />
Ranking<br />
<strong>factors</strong><br />
No. Of resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
Total<br />
1 2 3 4 5 150<br />
100 36 5 9 0 150<br />
Tax benefit<br />
18 42 36 33 21 150<br />
Risk<br />
coverage &<br />
saving<br />
15 9 39 33 54 150<br />
Security<br />
with high<br />
return<br />
3 18 21 44 64 150<br />
Insurance
120<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
Services<br />
Premium<br />
12 39 48 27 24 150<br />
Charges<br />
now, for analyzing the various <strong>factors</strong> resp<strong>on</strong>sible for <strong>investment</strong> in mutual funds, ranking<br />
is d<strong>on</strong>e <strong>on</strong> the basis of weighted scores (table 7). Scoring is d<strong>on</strong>e as per the following scale: rank<br />
1 – 5 weights,<br />
Rank 2 – 4 weights, rank 3 – 3 weights, rank 4 – 2 weights and rank 5 – 1 weights.<br />
TABLE 11<br />
Ranking of various <strong>factors</strong><br />
Factors Weighted score Mean value Rank<br />
695 4.63 1<br />
Tax benefit<br />
453 3.02 2<br />
Risk coverage & saving<br />
348 2.32 4<br />
Security with high return<br />
302 2.01 5<br />
Insurance services<br />
Premium charges 438 2.92 3
121<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
INTERPRETATION: it is revealed from the table no. 10 and table no. 11, which am<strong>on</strong>g the<br />
surveyed people, majority of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents invest in life insurance for tax benefit, followed by<br />
the risk coverage & saving, premium charges, security with high return and insurance services<br />
can be ranked as 1 st , 2 nd , 3 rd , 4 th and 5 th respectively. Thus it can be depicted that tax benefit is<br />
the main c<strong>on</strong>cern of <strong>customers</strong> while making <strong>investment</strong> in insurance policy.<br />
FINDINGS<br />
1. The c<strong>on</strong>sumer decisi<strong>on</strong> to purchase insurance product from different insurance companies<br />
can be affected by several <strong>factors</strong> like age, gender and income level. From the analysis, it is<br />
inferred that resp<strong>on</strong>dents bel<strong>on</strong>ging to the age group between 30 to 40 years (which<br />
c<strong>on</strong>tribute 52% to the total resp<strong>on</strong>dents) found to be more interested in buying a life<br />
insurance policy as compare to other age group.<br />
2. Out of 150 samples drawn, a majority (54.6%) of policyholders have shown preference<br />
<strong>towards</strong> lic followed by sbi life insurance with (14.6%) am<strong>on</strong>g the private players. Therefore<br />
lic has the maximum no. Of policyholders and rank as 1 st am<strong>on</strong>g other insurance companies,<br />
followed by sbi life (14.6%), icici prudential (10.6%), bajaj allianz (8.0%) and hdfc standard<br />
life with 6.6%.<br />
3. The features of policy that attracted policyholders can be ranked as follows: company<br />
reputati<strong>on</strong>, m<strong>on</strong>ey back guarantee, risk coverage, low premium and easy access to agents as<br />
1 st , 2nd, 3 rd , 4 th and 5th respectively. Thus it can be inferred that goodwill of the company is<br />
the most influencing factor while policy buying decisi<strong>on</strong>.<br />
4. It is found from the analysis that out of 150 resp<strong>on</strong>dents, majority (37.3%) resp<strong>on</strong>dents<br />
preferred m<strong>on</strong>ey-back policy of lic. This is followed by the unit linked plan of private<br />
insurers (31.3%) and endowment plans (15.3%). Only 10% of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents have shown<br />
interest <strong>towards</strong> term plan. Hence in present days people are more interested in such policy<br />
which gives higher return al<strong>on</strong>g with the risk coverage benefit.<br />
5. It is evident from the above <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> that most (54.6%) of the resp<strong>on</strong>dent's have opted for lic<br />
policies because of safety and rest of the resp<strong>on</strong>dent's opted for private players for higher<br />
returns. Am<strong>on</strong>g private insurers, sbi life insurance holds 14.6% market share, followed by the<br />
icic prudential and bajaj allianz with 14.6% and 8.0% respectively. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> reveals the fact<br />
that lic still holds the major share of the life insurance market.<br />
6. A large no. Of the resp<strong>on</strong>dents (48%) said that they look for trusted name in a company<br />
for insurance, followed by good plans, friendly service and accessibility with 30%, 18% and<br />
4% respectively.<br />
SUGGESTIONS<br />
1. In present competitive world, customer satisfacti<strong>on</strong> has become an important aspect to<br />
retain the <strong>customers</strong>, not <strong>on</strong>ly to grow but also to survive. Customer service is the critical
122<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
success factor and private insurers through their best services would be able to repositi<strong>on</strong> and<br />
differentiate itself from lic.<br />
2. Private insurers should emphasis more <strong>on</strong> advertising and building brand awareness<br />
through different modes of communicati<strong>on</strong>. This will help in spreading insurance awareness<br />
am<strong>on</strong>g the comm<strong>on</strong> man.<br />
3. To achieve greater insurance penetrati<strong>on</strong>, the healthier competiti<strong>on</strong> has to be intensified<br />
by both the sectors and they should come up with new innovative products to offer greater<br />
variety or choice to the <strong>customers</strong> and also make improvement in the quality of services and<br />
sell products through appropriate distributi<strong>on</strong> channel to win-win situati<strong>on</strong> for both the<br />
parties.<br />
4. Insurance companies should devise policies which provide effective risk coverage rather<br />
than focusing <strong>on</strong> the tax benefits and also encourages them for l<strong>on</strong>g term <strong>investment</strong> in<br />
insurance.<br />
5. Life insurance companies should come up with innovative tailor-made products with<br />
high risk cover, more return and low insurance premium to attract more number of<br />
<strong>customers</strong>.<br />
CONCLUSION<br />
life insurance is an important form of insurance and essential for every individual. Life<br />
insurance penetrati<strong>on</strong> in india is very low as compare to developed nati<strong>on</strong> where almost all the<br />
lives are covered and stage of saturati<strong>on</strong> has been reached. Customers are the real pillar of the<br />
success of life insurance business and thus its important for insurers to keep their policyholders<br />
satisfied and retained as l<strong>on</strong>g as possible and also get new business out of it by offering need<br />
based innovative products. There are many <strong>factors</strong> which affect <strong>customers</strong> <strong>investment</strong> decisi<strong>on</strong> in<br />
life insurance and from the <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> it has been c<strong>on</strong>cluded that demographic <strong>factors</strong> of the people<br />
play a major and pivotal role in deciding the purchase of life insurance policies.<br />
REFERENCES<br />
1. Athma, p. And kumar, r. (2007)) " an explorative <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> of life insurance purchase decisi<strong>on</strong><br />
making: influence of product and n<strong>on</strong>-product <strong>factors</strong> ", icfai journal risk & insurance, vol.<br />
Iv, october 2007, pg. No 19-21.<br />
2. Eldhose.v and kumar. G (2008), “customer percepti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> life insurance services: a<br />
comparative <str<strong>on</strong>g>study</str<strong>on</strong>g> of public and private sectors", insurance chr<strong>on</strong>icle icfai m<strong>on</strong>thly magazine<br />
august 2008, pg. No 32-36.<br />
3. Jayakar. R (2003), “covering lives”, business today, june 8, pp. 68.<br />
4. Imtiyaz.vasi do (2007), “retenti<strong>on</strong> of the <strong>customers</strong> is the essence of insurance business”,<br />
insurance times, feb. 2007, pg. No 20.
123<br />
www.indianresearchjournals.com<br />
IRJC<br />
Internati<strong>on</strong>al Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research<br />
Vol.1 Issue 7, July 2012, ISSN 2277 3622<br />
5. Narayana. J (2009), “role of crm in life insurance business”, irda journal, april 2009<br />
6. Tripathi. P.k (2008), "customer buying behavior with a focus <strong>on</strong> market segmentati<strong>on</strong>”,<br />
summer training project, chandigarh business school mohali, page no. 42-46. .<br />
7. V.g.murugan (2012) “evaluati<strong>on</strong> of investors behavior <strong>towards</strong> mutual funds”, internati<strong>on</strong>al<br />
journal of multidisciplinary management studies, vol.2 issue 1, january 2012, pg. No. 278-<br />
280<br />
8. Irda annual reports.<br />
9. Www.irda..com<br />
10. www.scribd.com<br />
11. Www.citehr.com