IMR JAN 2013 - Indira Institutes

CHANGING ATTITUDE OF CONSUMERS:A STUDY AMONG URBAN WORKING WOMENAnilkumar.N* and Jelsey Joseph**(*Research Scholar & Chief manager,**Dean, Dept of commerce & Business management,Karpagam University, Coimbatore)AbstractConsumer attitude is a learnt predispositionto respond to an object or act consistently in afavorable or unfavorable manner and isshaped by one's values and beliefs which arelearnt. However Values are personally orsocially preferable modes of conduct orstates of existence that are enduring. Incontrast , beliefs are consumer's subjectiveperception of how well a product or brandperforms on different attributes. The variousapproaches to change the consumer attitudeare like Changing beliefs about the extent towhich a brand has certain attributes;Changing the perceived importance ofattributes; and adding new attributes to theproduct etc.. Only by changing theconsumer's attitude can they be influencedto enact a merchandise transaction in themodern marketing mileau. Hence theimportance of attitude change is ofparamount importance to marketers who areconsumer centric in the modern age oftencustomizing the products/services to matchthe tastes of the consumer by properpositioning and targeting strategies. In thisstudy the consumer attitude towards twodifferent class of products like the FMCG andWhite goods are contrasted among theworking women in an urban habitat ,theKochi metro in Kerala which is thecommercial hub and leading test marketingsite in India .Over the past decade, Kochi hasevidenced substantial growth insales/consumption of both FMCG andDurables with a noticeable change inconsumer attitude on spending/consumption of goods for family use(affinityfor modernity with higher buying power),which is explored herein. The various facets ofthe working/Career women as Consumerare brought out , with substantialcontribution towards their current consumerbehavior to enable facilitate appropriatePUSH-PULL marketing strategies on theFMCG - Durables, which are bundles ofattributes.Keywords: Consumer attitude, TPB, Katzfunctional theory,attitude change,attitude function, TAM, FMCG, White goods,Consumption motive,Salient Attributes,Benefits.IntroductionAttitude as a behavioral construct is a learntpredisposition to respond consistentlytowards an object(product or service) in afavorable or unfavorable manner.Directpersonal experience with a product/service isan important factor in the formation ofattitudes. Consequent attitudes developedtend to be strong, more enduring & resistantto change while those attitude formed as aresult of indirect experience like exposure toAds/brands. Apart from direct personalexperience ,reference groups like family,friends, close relatives, mediapersons/celebrities influence a consumer'sattitude formation. In high involvement32 Indira Management Review - July 2012