CHAPTER - I

INTRODUCTION

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 Introduction

One of the most recognized brand names in the world today, Sony Corporation, Japan, established its
India operations in November 1994, focusing on the sales and marketing of Sony products in the
country. In a span of 23 years Sony India has exemplified the quest for excellence in the world of
digital lifestyle becoming the country’s foremost consumer electronics brand. With relentless
commitment to quality, consistent dedication to customer satisfaction and unparalleled standards of
service, Sony India is recognized as a benchmark for new age technology, superior quality, digital
concepts and personalized service that has ensured loyal customers and nationwide acclaim in the
industry.

In India, Sony has its footprint across all major towns and cities through a distribution network
comprising of over 10400 channel partners, 270 Sony World and Sony Exclusive outlets and 23 direct
branch locations. Moreover, Sony's 19 sales branches cover a total of 450 cities. It has also
developed a network of 270 Sony Center and established 30 warehouses across the country
to manage its supply chain effectively.

A distinctive feature of Sony’s service is its highly motivated and well-trained staff that provides the
kind of attentive and sensitive service that is rare today.

Sony is committed to ensuring that both the products and the marketing activities employed truly make
a difference to people’s lifestyles and offer them new dimensions of enjoyment and an experience
which are like no other.

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 INTRODUCTION OF TOPIC

Consumer behavior refers to the mental and emotional process and the observable behavior of
consumers during searching, purchasing and post consumption of a product o r service.
Consumer behavior involves study of how people buy, what they buy, when they buy and why
they buy. It blends the elements from psychology, sociology, socio-psychology, anthropology and
economics. It also tries to assess the influence on the consumer from groups such as family,
friends, reference groups and society in general. Buyer behavior has two aspects: the final
purchase activity visible to any observer and the detailed or short decision process that may
involve the interplay of a number of complex variables not visible to anyone.

Consumers are mainly focused on the broad-scale adoption of new technologies that can empower
them in previously unimagined ways. As a result, buying behavior of consumer is changing to
adapting to new technological advances so rapidly that marketers or the consumer-based
enterprises sometimes cannot keep pace.

To maintain the pace of consumer for advanced technologies Sony is putting in the effort over the
years in Raipur region and has the limits of possibilities and boggled the mind with its
breakthrough technology. In fact, it won’t be wrong to say that it’sbeen the soul of technology for the
past few years.

Sony cutting-edge digital products have set new standards in entertainment for Raipur customer.
They have enriched and evolved Raipur people ‘s lifestyle. Whether people consider the brilliance
of the Sparkling Wega technology in its color televisions or the incredible color and clarity of
BRAVIA in its LCDs, they are engineering marvels that bring images to life of Raipur people.

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 CHAPTER-2

COMPANY PROFILE

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 Company Profile

Sony is a name synonymous with technological revolutions. Over the last 60 years, the company
has evolved into a luminous brand with a unique selling proposition - technology innovation,
quality and premium. In the last 50 years, the company had already established itself in the field
of hi-tech entertainment. Today, Sony has gone further by becoming a preferred choice for
professional requirements as well, whether it is broadcast media or color monitors. The company's
leadership position in the world, today, is a reiteration of its ability to connect with the customer's
mental space.

Sony is not new to India. Whether it was the television, or the Walkman, a Sony always remained
a must on the wish list of any Indian returning home. This love for the brand culminated in a new
relationship when inspired by a reform friendly Indian business environment, Sony Corporation
decided to set up a 100% subsidiary called Sony India on 16th January 1995.

In a fiercely competitive Indian consumer durables market, Sony India's mission is to "make a
difference in the lifestyles and introduce new dimension to enjoyment. Offer new age technology
and digital concepts; work hand in hand with the domestic industry to produce and sell excellence
and come closer to the Indian customers through committed service."

Since its inception in 1995, Sony decided to have sales and distribution channels, which are
exclusive to Sony India. The business partners are country managers in their own areas. In all the
metros the Company has direct sales operations. The company also has many exclusive Sony
outlets, which showcase products ranging from analog to digital throughout the country.

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 Company Perspectives:

Recognizing that environmental protection is one of the most pressing issues facing mankind
today, Sony incorporates a sound respect for nature in all of its business activities. With this
philosophy, Sony has defined environmental conservation as an important part of its management
strategy. The Sony Group has created a global action plan and conducts environmental
preservation programs. This program has five core components: reducing the environmental
impact of business activities and production processes; designing environmentally sensitive
products and promoting recycling; developing environmental technologies; promoting the
environmental education and full participation of Sony employees; and disclosing environmental
information to the public.

Sony’s History -- Through The Eyes of the Company’s Leaders

Sony Corporation is one of the best-known names in consumer electronics and ranks second
worldwide in electronics behind Matsushita Electric Corporation. Since it was established
shortly after World War II, Sony has introduced a stream of revolutionary products, including
the transistor radio, the Trinitron television, the Betamax VCR, the CD player, the Walkman
portable cassette player, and the PlayStation game console. The company's electronics
segment--which includes audio and video products, televisions, personal computers,
monitors, computer peripherals, telecommunications devices, and electronic components
(such as semiconductors) --generates about two-thirds of the overall revenues. Sales of game
consoles and software account for about 9 percent of revenues. Another 10 percent of
revenues are derived from Sony's music businesses, which include the Columbia and Epic
record labels. About 7 percent of revenues come from Sony's motion picture and television
business, which includes the Columbia TriStar studio. Sony's other major

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 business segment is insurance, from which about 6 percent of revenues originate.

Early History: From Tape Recorders to Transistor Radios to the Trinitron

Sony was founded by a former naval lieutenant named Akio Morita and a defense contractor
named Masaru Ibuka. Morita, a weapons researcher, first met Ibuka during World War II while
developing a heat-seeking missile-guidance system and a night-vision gun scope. After the
war Ibuka worked as a radio repairman for a bomb-damaged Tokyo department store. Morita
found him again when he read in a newspaper that Ibuka had invented a shortwave converter.
In May 1946 the two men established a partnership with
$500 in borrowed capital, and registered their company as the Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo
Kabushiki Kaisha (Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation, or TTK). Morita
and Ibuka moved their company to a crude facility on a hill in southern Tokyo where they
developed their first consumer product: a rice cooker, which failed commercially. In its first
year TTK registered a profit of $300 on sales of less than $7,000.

But as the Japanese economy grew stronger, demand for consumer goods increased. Morita
and Ibuka abandoned the home-appliance market and, with injections of capital from Morita's
father, concentrated on developing new electronic goods. Ibuka developed a tape recorder
fashioned after an American model he had seen at the Japan Broadcasting Corporation.
Demand for the machine, which was introduced in 1950 and was the first Japanese tape
recorder, remained low until Ibuka accidentally discovered a U.S. military booklet titled Nine
Hundred and Ninety-Nine Uses of the Tape Recorder. Translated into Japanese, the booklet
became an effective marketing tool. Once acquainted with its many uses, customers such as
the Academy of Art in Tokyo purchased so many tape recorders that TTK was soon forced to
move to a larger building in Shinagawa.

Norio Ohga, an opera student at the academy, wrote several letters to TTK criticizing the
sound quality of its recorder. Impressed by the detail and constructive tone of the criticisms,
Morita invited Ohga to participate in the development of a new recorder as a consultant.

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 Ohga accepted, and subsequent models were vastly improved.

Constantly searching for new technological advances, Masaru Ibuka heard of a tiny new
capacitor called a transistor in 1952. The transistor, developed by Bell Laboratories, could be
used in place of larger, less-durable vacuum tubes. Western Electric purchased the technology
in order to manufacture transistorized hearing aids. Ibuka acquired a patent license from
Western Electric for $25,000 with the intention of developing a small tubeless radio.

TTK began mass production of transistor radios in 1955, only a few months after they were
introduced by a small American firm called Regency Electronics. The TTK radio was named
Sony, from sonus, Latin for 'sound.' The Sony radio had tremendous sales potential, not only
in the limited Japanese market but also in the United States, where the economy was much
stronger.

Traditionally, international sales by Japanese companies were conducted through trading

houses such as Mitsui, Mitsubishi, and Sumitomo. Although these trading companies were
well represented in the United States, Morita chose not to do business with them because they
were unfamiliar with his company's products and did not share his business philosophy.
Morita traveled to New York, where he met with representatives from several large retail
firms. Morita refused an order from Bulova for 100,000 radios when that company required
that each carry the Bulova name. Morita pledged that his company would not manufacture
products for other companies and eventually secured a number of more modest orders that
assured his company's growth at a measured pace. Another highlight of 1955 was the first
listing of the company's stock on the over-the-counter market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The rising popularity of the Sony name led Morita and Ibuka to change the name of their
company to Sony Kabushiki Kaisha (Corporation) in January 1958. The following year Sony
announced that it had developed a transistorized television, which was introduced in 1960.
That same year, after a business dispute with Delmonico International, the company

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 Morita had appointed to handle international sales, Sony established a trade office in New
York City and another in Switzerland called Sony Overseas.

A subsidiary called Sony Chemicals was created in 1962 to produce adhesives and plastics to
reduce the company's dependence on outside suppliers. In 1965 a joint venture with Tektronix
was established to produce oscilloscopes in Japan.

During the early 1960s Sony engineers continued to introduce new, miniaturized products
based on the transistor, including an AM/FM radio and a videotape recorder. By 1968 Sony
engineers had developed new color-television technology. Using one electron gun, for more
accurate beam alignment, and one lens, for better focus, the Sony Trinitron produced a clearer
image than conventional three-gun, three-lens sets. In what has been described as its biggest
gamble, Sony, confident that technology alone would create new markets, invested a large
amount of capital in the Trinitron.

Also, in 1968, Sony Overseas established a trading office in England, and entered into a joint
venture with CBS Inc. to produce phonograph records. The venture was under the direction
of Norio Ohga, the art student who had complained about Sony's early tape recorder, whom
Morita had persuaded in 1959 to give up opera and join Sony. The company, called CBS/Sony,
later became the largest record manufacturer in Japan. In 1970 Sony Overseas established a
subsidiary in West Germany to handle sales in that country.

1970s: Betamax and the Walkman

After a decade of experience in videotape technology, Sony introduced the U-matic three-
quarter-inch videocassette recorder (VCR) in 1971. Intended for institutions such as television
stations, the U-matic received an Emmy Award for engineering excellence from the National
Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. In 1973, the year Sony Overseas created a French
subsidiary, the academy honored the Trinitron series with another Emmy.

Sony developed its first VCR for the consumer market, the Betamax, in 1975. The

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 following year, the Walt Disney Company and Universal Pictures filed a lawsuit against Sony,
complaining that the new machine would enable widespread copyright infringement of
television programs. A judgment in favor of Sony in 1979 was reversed two years later.
Litigation continued, but by the time the matter reached the U.S. Supreme Court the plaintiffs'
original case had been severely undermined by the proliferation of VCRs, making any legal
restriction on copying television programs for private use nearly impossible to enforce.

During the mid-1970s, competitors such as U.S.-based RCA and Zenith and Japanese-based
Toshiba and Victor Company of Japan (JVC) effectively adopted and improved upon
technologies developed by Sony. For the first time, Sony began to lose significant market
share, often in lines that it had pioneered. Strong competition, however, was only one factor
that caused Sony's sales growth to fall (after growing 166 percent between 1970 and 1974, it
grew only 35 percent between 1974 and 1978).

Like many Sony officials, Akio Morita lacked formal management training. Instead, he relied
on his personal persuasive skills and his unusual ability to anticipate or create markets for
new products. In typical fashion, Sony introduced the Betamax VCR well before its
competitors, in effect creating a market in which it would enjoy a short-term monopoly. At
this stage, however, Morita failed to establish the Betamax format as the industry standard by
inviting the participation of other companies.

Matsushita Electric (which owned half of JVC) developed a separate VCR format called VHS
(video home system), which permitted as many as three additional hours of playing time on a
tape, but which was incompatible with Sony's Betamax. When the VHS was introduced in
1977, Morita was reported to have felt betrayed that Sony's competitors did not adopt the
Betamax format. He appealed to 81-year-old Konosuke Matsushita, in many ways a patriarch
of Japanese industry, to discontinue the VHS format in favor of Betamax. When Matsushita
refused, many believed it was because he felt insulted by Morita's failure to offer earlier
collaboration.

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 Matsushita launched a vigorous marketing campaign to convince customers and other
manufacturers not only that VHS was superior, but that Betamax would soon be obsolete. The
marketing war between Matsushita and Sony was neither constructive nor profitable; both
companies were forced to lower prices so much that profits were greatly depressed. Although
Betamax was generally considered a technically superior product, the VHS format grew in
popularity and gradually displaced Betamax as a standard format. Despite its falling market
share (from 13 percent in 1982 to 5 percent in 1987), Sony refused to introduce a VHS line
until the late 1980s.

In 1979 Morita personally oversaw the development of a compact cassette tape player called
the Walkman. Inspired by Norio Ohga's desire to listen to music while walking, Morita
ordered the development of a small, high-fidelity tape player, to be paired with small,
lightweight headphones that were already under development. The entire program took only
five months from start to finish, and the product's success is now legendary-- Walkman even
became the generic term for similar devices produced by Sony’s competitors.

1980s: CD Player, Video Cameras, CBS Records, Columbia Pictures

During the 1970s, Masaru Ibuka, 12 years Morita's senior, gradually relinquished many of his
duties to younger managers such as Norio Ohga, who was named president of Sony in 1982.
Ohga became president shortly after a corporate reorganization that split Sony into five
operating groups (marketing and sales, manufacturing, service, engineering, and diversified
operations). While not formally trained in business, Ohga nonetheless understood that Sony
was too dependent on an unstable consumer electronics market. In one of his first acts, he
inaugurated the 50-50 program to increase sales in institutional markets from 15 to 50 percent
by 1990.

During this time, Sony's research and development budget consumed approximately 9 percent
of sales (Matsushita budgeted only 4 percent). Another groundbreaking result of

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 Sony's commitment to research and development was a machine that used a laser to reproduce
music recorded digitally on a small plastic disk. The compact disk (or CD) player, introduced
by Sony in 1982, eliminated much of the noise common to conventional, analog phonograph
records. Sony developed the CD in association with the Dutch electronics firm Philips, partly
in an effort to ensure broad format standardization. Philips, which had developed the most
advanced laser technology, was an ideal partner for Sony, which led in the pulse-code
technology that made digital sound reproduction possible. Soon the CD format was adopted
by competing manufacturers; by the mid-1990s it had virtually replaced phonograph systems
as the recording medium of choice.

Early in the 1980s, Morita began ceding some of his duties to Sony's president, Norio Ohga,
the young opera student hired 30 years earlier to improve Sony's tape recorders. Under Ohga,
Sony entered into a new acquisitions phase with the intent of protecting itself from the costly
mistake it had made with Betamax. One example of the changes Ohga brought about was
Sony's video camera, introduced in 1985. Lighter, less expensive, and more portable than VHS
cameras, the camera used 8mm videotape, and was incompatible with both Betamax and VHS
machines. The key difference between this and earlier Sony products was that Sony developed
the new 8mm video format in conjunction with over 100 competitors. While the camera may
have been incompatible with the older Betamax and VHS technologies, Sony ensured that it
would be compatible with the next generation of video cameras. Within three years of its
introduction, the camera captured over 50 percent of the European, 30 percent of the Japanese,
and 20 percent of the North American markets.

In May 1984 Sony purchased Apple Computer's hard-disk-technology operations. As a result

of this acquisition, Sony was able to control about 20 percent of the Japanese market for
workstations, personal computers used in business offices, thus helping to increase the
proportion of its sales derived from institutional customers. Ohga also broke a decades-old
tradition in 1984 when he established a division to manufacture and market electronics
components for other companies. By 1988, fueled by strong sales of semiconductors (once
manufactured only for Sony products), the components division had grown to represent

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 about 11 percent of Sony's total sales.

Sony also sought to gain control of the software end of the electronics/entertainment industry.
On November 29, 1985 the Sony Corporation of America, which operated several assembly
plants in the United States, purchased the Digital Audio Disk Corporation from its affiliate
CBS/Sony. Two years later, Sony purchased CBS Records for $2 billion. CBS Records,
whose labels included Epic and Columbia, was during this time the largest producer of records
and tapes in the world.

Sony had learned through its Betamax experience that a superior product alone would not
ensure market dominance; had Sony been able to flood the market with exclusively Beta-
formatted movies, the VCR battle might have turned out differently. Looking toward the
future development of audio equipment, including digital audio tape (DAT), Sony bought the
record manufacturer with an eye toward guaranteeing that the products it manufactured to
play music would remain compatible with the medium used to record music. The acquisition
marked less of a diversification for Sony than an evolution toward dominance in a specific
market.

Sony sought further diversification in U.S. entertainment companies. In 1988, the company
considered an acquisition of MGM/UA Communications Company, but decided the price was
too high. Then in 1989 Sony made headlines around the world when it bought Columbia
Pictures Entertainment, Inc. from Coca-Cola for $3.4 billion. Columbia provided Sony with
an extensive film library and a strong U.S. distribution system. It also carried $1 billion in
debt, which almost tripled Sony's short-term debt to around ¥8 billion. Industry analysts
applauded the move; when a recession hit the film industry shortly after Sony's purchase,
however, some began to question Sony's ability to deliver its traditionally strong profits.

1990s and Beyond: PlayStation, VAIO, and the Networked Future

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 Sony did deliver, however, posting record earnings in 1990 of ¥58.2 billion ($384 million), a
38.5 percent increase over 1989. In 1992, Columbia Pictures and its subsidiary TriStar jointly
captured 20 percent of the U.S. market share, far above the shares held by competing studios.
By this time the entertainment operation had been renamed Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc.

The complexities of operating a truly multinational corporation, however, began taking their
toll on Sony. Most of the world's largest economies (Europe, Japan, and the United States)
were experiencing a slowdown in the early 1990s. This factor created what Sony called 'an
unprecedentedly challenging operating environment.' Although sales in most of Sony's
businesses increased in 1992, operating income dropped 44 percent to ¥166 billion ($1.2
billion). Net income increased slightly to ¥120 billion.

The ongoing appreciation of the yen against most major currencies had an even more adverse
effect on Sony's bottom line in 1993: net income fell a dramatic 70 percent to ¥36 billion
($313 million) on sales of ¥3.99 trillion ($34.4 billion). Had the yen's value held steady at
1992 figures, Sony's net income would have totaled about ¥190 billion ($1.3 billion).

During that year, Ohga assumed the duties of chief executive in addition to his role as
president. He and Morita responded to Sony's tough economic situation by bolstering
marketing, reducing inventory levels, streamlining operations, and keeping a watchful control
of capital investments. The company also embarked on an extensive reorganization effort with
the goal of decentralizing operations and reducing unnecessary management. Despite these
measures, Sony was unable to stem the slide. Net income plummeted another 50 percent in
1994 to ¥15 billion, on sales of ¥3.73 trillion.

By this time Morita had relinquished virtually all his duties in the company, having suffered
a stroke in late 1993. In Sony's 1994 annual report, his picture and signature were
conspicuously absent from the letter to shareholders, implicitly announcing Ohga's new
leadership position. Under Morita's leadership, Sony's rise to preeminence in the world

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 consumer electronics market was almost entirely self-achieved; Sony outperformed not only
its Japanese rivals, among them associates of the former zaibatsu (conglomerate) companies,
but also larger American firms, which by 1995 had all but abandoned the consumer electronics
market.

In the late 1980s Morita told Business Week that he regarded Sony Corporation as a 'venture
business' for the Morita family, which had produced several generations of mayors and whose
primary business remained the 300-year-old Morita & Company. Under the direction of Akio
Morita's younger brother Kuzuaki, Morita & Company produced sake, soy sauce, and
Ninohimatsu brand rice wine in Nagoya. The company, whose initial $500 investment in TTK
was worth $430 million in 1995, owned a 9.4 percent share of Sony.

In April 1995, Ohga ascended to the chairmanship of Sony, and Morita was made an honorary
chairman. The company's new president was Nobuyuki Idei, a 34-year veteran of the
company, who had founded Sony's French subsidiary in 1970 and had since played a role in
many of the company's major accomplishments, including audio CD technology, computer
workstations, and the 8mm video camcorder.

Sony's success had been a direct result of the wisdom of its founders, who had the talent to
anticipate the demands of consumers and to develop products to meet those demands; Idei's
presidency, some suggested, signaled a new era for the company.

Immediate among Idei's concerns were helping Sony become an integral player in the
information highway industry. He also hoped to help the company establish an industry
standard for DVDs, or digital videodisks, CD-like disks capable of holding full-length films
for play on television screens via players. Once again, Sony had teamed up with Philips to
develop a DVD format, but the partners quickly discovered they were facing a rival format
developed by Toshiba and Time Warner. This rival format quickly gained the support of a
number of the world's consumer electronics powerhouses. Rather than face a replay of the
bloody battle between the Betamax and VHS formats, Sony and Philips in late 1995 agreed
to support the DVD format developed by Toshiba and Time Warner. Sony subsequently

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 introduced its first DVD player in March 1997.

Meanwhile, Sony unexpectedly entered the video game market in the mid-1990s, making an
immediate splash. The development of the Sony PlayStation had actually begun in the late
1980s as a joint project with game giant Nintendo Co., Ltd. Nintendo had agreed to help
develop a new game console that would combine the graphic capabilities of a computer
workstation with Sony's CD-ROM drive, but then pulled out of the project in 1992. Sony
decided to develop the new machine solo, introducing the 32-bit PlayStation to the Japanese
market in 1994 and the U.S. market one year later. It was an immediate and huge success, in
part because of the hundreds of software titles that were quickly available for the console
thanks to Sony's ability to entice top Japanese and U.S. developers to create games for the
PlayStation. By 1998, the PlayStation had grabbed about 40 percent of the worldwide game
market, and Sony's game unit, Sony Computer Entertainment, accounted for 10 percent of the
company's worldwide revenue and a whopping 22.5 percent of its operating income.

Unfortunately, the mid-1990s were also marked by continued problems at Sony Pictures
Entertainment. Top management at the motion picture arm spent hundreds of millions of
dollars on a string of flops, such as Last Action Hero and Geronimo, in addition to spending
lavishly on hiring, studio renovations, and other expenses. Sony ended up taking a $3.2 billion
write-off--one of the largest ever by a Japanese company--related to the entertainment unit
during the fiscal year ending in March 1995; consequently, the company posted a net loss for
the year of $2.8 billion (on sales of $44.76 billion). A major management shakeup occurred
as well.

As Sony attempted to turn around its motion picture unit, in electronics the company surprised
many observers by entering the crowded and low-margin personal computer business in 1997.
That year, through a partnership with Intel, Sony began selling its VAIO line of PCs.
Including both desktop and notebook models, the line received plaudits for its quality but got
off to a slow start in the United States thanks to its above-average price tags. Sony designed
the VAIO computers specifically for the home market, and they sported unique features that
made them particularly well-suited to consumers who owned other

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 Sony products. For example, software and ports were included to allow owners of Sony
camcorders to transfer their home videos to the VAIO PC and to edit and manipulate the
videos in a variety of ways. Sony also continued to stay on the cutting edge in the venerable
television field, introducing its first flat-screen TV in 1996 and its first digital, high- definition
model two years later. Also, in 1998 came the launch of AIBO, a robot dog, which was touted
as having the capability of expressing emotions and learning.

During 1999, a year that saw the passing of company cofounder Morita (the other founder,
Ibuka, died in 1997), Idei launched a sweeping reorganization to position the company for the
future--in Sony's vision, 'the network era of the 21st century.' In March 1999 Sony announced
that it planned to cut its workforce by 10 percent and its manufacturing capacity by one-third
before 2003. The cutbacks were slated for areas where growth had been slowing: analog
televisions, VCRs, and Walkman’s. The company planned to increase the amount of resources
committed to such hot areas as digital products and the PlayStation, as well as placing
increased emphasis on developing software, hardware, and services for the new networks that
were beginning to emerge at the end of the 20th century--home networks, broadband
networks, wireless networks. For Idei, the key for Sony was a historic shift in focus: hardware
had traditionally driven product development, but Idei instead wanted software development
and services to drive hardware design.

Perhaps the first example of such an approach came with the 2000 introduction of the Sony
PlayStation 2. Although it was a technical marvel featuring high-end 3-D graphics and more
processing power than most desktop PCs, the 128-bit PlayStation 2 was much more than a
souped-up version of the original. It was of course designed for game software but it was not
just a game console, having been conceived as a home entertainment center. Its DVD drive
not only played game software but also audio CDs and DVD movies. It had the capability of
connecting to the Internet and as such could be used as a broadband device controlling an
Internet-connected home network. Despite manufacturing difficulties that limited production
during the first year, the PlayStation 2 had a stellar debut, with about nine million units sold
in the first 12 months. The high costs associated with developing and

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 manufacturing the machines, however, depressed profits at Sony for the 2001 fiscal year.
Also, in the wake of its debut came rival Sega's exit from the game console business in favor
of concentrating on developing game titles for other companies' machines, including the
PlayStation 2. Sony continued to face competition in the game field from Nintendo, which
planned to release a new machine in the fall of 2001, and faced the prospect of a new
competitor, Microsoft Corporation, which was also planning a fall 2001 release of its Xbox
machine.

In June 2000 Idei was named chairman and CEO of Sony, while Kunitake Ando, who had
headed the VAIO unit, was named president and COO. Rounding out the new management
team was Teruhisa Tokunaka, a former head of the PlayStation unit, who was named deputy
president and CFO. The new team faced a myriad of challenges in the rapidly changing high-
tech world of the early 21st century. One example was in Sony's music business, which was
being rocked by the industry-wide threat of the rampant and unauthorized downloading of
digital music files over the Internet. Sony joined other music giants in suing Napster, the most
obvious threat to their hegemony. The company also entered into a joint venture with Vivendi
Universal S.A. to develop an online subscription service that would allow music downloads
through what was called a 'virtual jukebox.' Such a service was part of a new push by Sony
into broadband delivery of the audio and video material owned by its content arms. With its
aggressive moves in the areas of games, networking, and delivery of digital content, Sony was
almost certain to remain a frontrunner in the ever-broadening field of consumer electronics
and related platforms and services.

Principal Subsidiaries: Aiwa Co. Ltd. (50.6%); InterVision Inc.; Sony Ichinomiya
Corporation; Sony Inazawa Corporation; Sony Oita Corporation; Sony Enterprise Co., Ltd.;
Sony Kisarazu Corporation; Sony Kita Kanto Corporation; Kibo Industry Corporation; Sony
Chemicals Corporation; Sony Kohda Corporation; Sony Kokubu Corporation; Sony
Communication Network Corporation; Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.; Sony
Components Chiba Corporation; Sony Siroisi Semiconductor Inc.; Sony Life Insurance Co.,
Ltd.; Sony Senmaya Corporation; Sony Assurance Inc.; Sony/Taiyo Corporation; Sony

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 Digital Products Inc.; Sony Denshi Corporation; Sony Tochigi Corporation; Sony Trading
International Corp.; Sony Nagasaki Corporation; Sony Nakaniida Corporation; Sony Neagari
Corporation; Sony Hamamatsu Corporation; Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan) Inc.; Sony
Pictures Television Japan Inc.; Sony PCL Inc.; Sony Finance International, Inc.; Sony Plaza
Co., Ltd.; Sony Precision Technology Inc.; Sony Broadcast Products Corporation; Sony
Broadcast Media Co., Ltd.; Sony Bronson Corporation; Sony Marketing Co., Ltd.; Sony Max
Corporation; Sony Mizunami Corporation; Sony Minokamo Corporation; Sony Miyagi
Corporation; Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc.; Sony Logistics Corporation; Sony of
Canada Ltd.; Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (U.S.A.); Sony Corporation of
America (U.S.A.); Sony Electronics Inc. (U.S.A.); Sony Latin America Inc. (U.S.A.); Sony
Magnetic Products Inc. of America (U.S.A.); Sony Music Entertainment Inc. (U.S.A.); Sony
Pictures Entertainment Inc. (U.S.A.); Sony Argentina S.A.; Sony Comercio e Industria Ltda.
(Brazil); Sony Components Ltda. (Brazil); Sony da Amazonia Ltda. (Brazil); Sony Chile
Ltda.; Sony de Mexico S.A. de C.V.; Sony Corporation of Panama, S.A.; Sony Puerto Rico,
Inc.; Sony de Venezuela S.A.; Sony Austria GmbH; Sony DADC Austria A.G.; Sony Service
Centre (Europe) N.V. (Belgium); Sony Czech, spol. s.r.o.; Sony Nordic A/S (Denmark); Sony
France S.A.; Sony Berlin
G.m.b.H. (Germany); Sony Deutschland G.m.b.H. (Germany); Sony Europe GmbH
(Germany); Sony International (Europe) G.m.b.H. (Germany); Sony Hungaria kft (Hungary);
Sony Italia S.p.A. (Italy); Sony Logistics Europe B.V. (Netherlands); Sony Poland Sp.z.o.o.;
Sony Portugal Ltda.; Sony C.I.S. A/O (Russia); Sony Slovakia Spol. Sr. O.; Sony España,
S.A. (Spain); Sony Overseas S.A. (Switzerland); Sony Eurasia Pazarlama
A.S. (Turkey); Sony United Kingdom Limited; Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
Limited (U.K.); Sony Entertainment Holdings Europe Ltd. (U.K.); Sony (China) Limited
(Beijing); Sony Corporation of Hong Kong Ltd.; Sony International (Hong Kong) Ltd.;
Sony India Limited; P.T. Sony Indonesia; P.T. Sony Electronics Indonesia; Sony Electronics
of Korea Corp.; Sony Electronics (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.; Sony Technology (Malaysia) Sdn.
Bhd.; Sony Philippines, Inc.; Sony Electronics (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.; Sony Industries Taiwan
Co., Ltd.; Sony Video Taiwan Co., Ltd.; Sony Magnetic Products

19
 (Thailand) Co., Ltd.; Sony Mobile Electronics (Thailand) Co., Ltd.; Sony Semiconductor
(Thailand) Co., Ltd.; Sony Siam Industries Co., Ltd. (Thailand); Sony Thai Co. Ltd.
(Thailand); Sony Vietnam Limited; Sony Australia Ltd.; Sony New Zealand Ltd.; Sony Gulf
FZE (United Arab Emirates); Sony South Africa (Pty.) Ltd.

Principal Competitors: Nintendo Co., Ltd.; Matsushita Electric Corporation; Motorola, Inc.;
Hitachi, Ltd.; Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.; Toshiba Corporation; Yamaha
Corporation; Victor Company of Japan, Limited; Sharp Corporation; Bose Corporation;
Samsung Group; Pioneer Corporation; SANYO Electric Co., Ltd.; Canon Inc.; AOL Time
Warner Inc.; BASF Aktiengesellschaft; Bertelsmann AG; Compaq Computer Corporation;
Daewoo Group; Dell Computer Corporation; EMI Group plc; Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.;
Fujitsu Limited; Harman International Industries, Incorporated; International Business
Machines Corporation; Intel Corporation; LG Electronics Inc.; Microsoft Corporation; NEC
Corporation; Nokia Corporation; Oki Electric Industry Company Limited; Viacom Inc.;
Virgin Group Ltd.; Vivendi Universal S.A.; The Walt Disney Company.

20
 Chronology

Key Dates:
1946: Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka found Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo Kabushiki
Kaisha (TTK).
1950: TTK introduces the first Japanese tape recorder.
1955: TTK begins selling Japan's first transistor radio; company goes public.
1958: Company's name is changed to Sony Corporation.
1960: Sony introduces the world's first transistor television.
1968: The revolutionary Sony Trinitron color television debuts; Sony enters
the record business through a joint venture with CBS Inc.
1975: Company launches the Betamax VCR.
1979: The Sony Walkman is introduced.
1982: Sony introduces the first CD player.
1985: Company introduces its first 8mm video camera.
1987: CBS Records, and its Epic and Columbia labels, is acquired for $2
billion.
1989: Columbia Pictures is acquired for $3.4 billion.
1994: The Sony PlayStation debuts.
1997: The VAIO line of PCs for the home market is launched.
2000: The PlayStation 2, featuring enhanced graphics, processing power,
and DVD and broadband capabilities, is released.

21
 Sony story

It was in 1946 that Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita together with a small team of passionate
and committed group of employees started to build “Tokyo Tsushin Kenkyujo” (Totsuko) or
“Tokyo Telecommunications Research Institute” into the billion-dollar global conglomerate
that it is today. The main objective of the company was to design and create innovative
products which would benefit the people.

From early attempts at creating products like the rice-cooker to the later success of creating
Japan’s first magnetic recorder, the innovative company went on to create other hit products
which won the company widespread recognition and international acclaim as a truly global
company known for its quality and innovative products. Significant product milestones
included Japan’s first transistor radio (1955), Trinitron color television (1968), Walkman
personal stereo (1979), Handycam video camera (1989), PlayStation (1994), Blu-ray Disc
recorder (2003) and PlayStation 3 (2006).

The company name of Sony was created by combining two words of “sonus” and “sonny”.
The word “sonus” in Latin represents words like sonic sound. The other word “sonny” means
little son. Used in combination, Sony is supposed to represent a very small group of young
people who have the energy and passion towards unlimited creations and innovative ideas.
With the far-sight of expanding worldwide, it was in 1958 that the company formally adopted
“Sony Corporation” as its corporate name. Easy to pronounce and read in any language, the
name Sony, which has a lively ring to it, fits comfortably with the spirit of freedom and open-
mindedness.

22
 List of SONY Products

BRAVIA

The era of High Definition has arrived and Sony’s Bravia LCD TVs are here to help you
fully enjoy its advantages. Innovation, creativity and technology come into play in the
creation of our LCD TVs, bringing an unprecedented level of realism and stunning clarity to
your movies, both visually and aurally. With slim and stylish designs, Bravia LCDs can fit
anywhere in your home. Additional features like faster response time and PC connectivity
help create the full entertainment experience.

X Series

Precision color reproduction and high-quality screen resolution are the key factors when
creating the Bravia X-Series. Including features like a Full HD (1920 x 1080) LCD panel,
Live Color Creation and Sony‟s intelligent picture enhancement technology- the Bravia
Engine, your movies will come alive. The X-Series also offers astounding stereo sound to
match the spectacular visuals, providing you a wholesome entertainment experience.
Watching movies at home is never the same again.

W Series

The era of High Definition has arrived and Sony’s Bravia LCD TVs are here to help you fully
enjoy its advantages. Innovation, creativity and technology come into play in the creation of
our LCD TVs, bringing an unprecedented level of realism and stunning clarity to your movies,
both visually and aurally. With slim and stylish designs, Bravia LCDs can fit anywhere in your
home. Additional features like faster response time and PC connectivity help create the full
entertainment experience.

23
 V Series

Enjoy stunning image quality and convenience with Sony’s LCD Bravia V-Series, which ontop
of an unprecedented degree of detail, also provides high connectivity, thanks to the HDMI
input that allows you to link up to any other HD sources like Blu-ray players, PlayStation 3
gaming console and HD camcorders. It delivers an uncompressed, all digital audio/ video
interface between your Bravia TV and any HDMI-equipped audio/video components. Turn
your viewing into an incredible experience now.

S Series

The Sony Bravia LCD S-Series follows in the Sony Bravia line of high performance and
stylish LCD TVs. Thanks to Sony’s unique S-PVA technology; you can now enjoy vivid colors,
wide viewing angles and quick response time. Designed to be versatile, the S- Series is
equipped with an extensive range of input interfaces; the PC input allows your TV to double
up as a computer monitor; while with HDMI, you can hook your TV up with other compatible
players. Experience the world of high definition now.

G Series

With Sony’s Bravia LCD G series, you get to enjoy stylish design and superior image and sound
quality. Be it for home or office use, you will find the G-series a great addition. The TVs come
with user-friendly navigation, convenient front mounted controls, and an easily
comprehensible remote control. You can also adjust the angle of the TV to suit viewers‟ position
with the base stand that can tilt, or choose to mount it on the wall with the Sony wall mounting
bracket.

Home Theatre System

Combining the latest in video and audio technologies, Sony has developed a series of Home
Theatre Systems that provides you with an enhanced home theatre experience. Our up-scaling
DVD players ensure the delivery of the best in video performance while our Digital

24
 Signal Processing guarantees a surround sound environment. Some are even compatible with
the latest digital television and have dedicated audio input for connecting to your portable
digital music players.

Cyber-shot (Digital Camera)

Everyone can be a photographer with the wide range of Cyber-shot cameras of Sony that aim
to provide you utmost satisfaction. Packed with plentiful features like Super Steady Shot,
High Sensitivity and Real Imaging Processor, you can be sure that each of our Cyber- shot
cameras delivers a superior performance. To complement their functions, Sony has also
developed a series of accessories that specifically caters to the Cyber-shot range.

Handycam (Video Camera)

It doesn’t matter if you are making family videos, filming documentaries or developing
feature films. Whatever the purpose, we have the right kind of camcorder you need and can
afford. Sony’s Handycam® Camcorders have a variety of different features and functions that
help deliver spectacular video performances of stunning clarity.

VAIO

Combining form, function and the latest in technology, Sony provides a range of IT and
computing devices, storage media, accessories and peripherals to better serve all your IT
needs.

PlayStation

Gaming would not be the same without the invention of the Sony PlayStation series. In
addition to the highly popular PlayStation 2, there’s the handy PlayStation Portable and next-
generation console PLAYSTATION 3. Powerful consoles must be accompanied with
compelling games, and Sony offers games of all genres to match your gaming preference.

25
 X-plod

If you spend long hours in your car every day, it’s important to equip it with enough
entertainment so that you’ll never have a dull moment. Car audio entertainment need not be
limited to just your favorite radio stations or CDs. Thanks to Sony Xplod mobile
entertainment technology, you can enjoy music from more sources. You now can even
experience visual entertainment with our innovative Touch-Screen Multimedia Centre
receiver. Riding the car is never the same experience again.

Hi-Fi System

Audiophiles need look no further than Sony’s selection of high-power Hi-Fi Systems that can
fill your whole room with high quality stereo sounds, thanks to superb speakers and powerful
components.

Sony Ericsson

With Sony Ericsson‟s colorful and innovative collection of mobile phones, you can definitely
find one that will fit into your lifestyle, budget and shows off your character. We’vealso created
a series of handy mobile phone accessories so you can spruce up your mobile phone’s
appearance, prevent it from damage, or enhance its usage

WEGA (CRT) TV

It’s all about features, quality, style and price with Sony’s CRT TVs. Our range of CRTTVs offer
analog and digital high-definition inputs, superior audio features and picture- enhancing
technologies for superior visual and aural results.

26
 Sony: The Leader in Product Innovation

The new millennium is here and Sony has plenty to celebrate. The company’s approach – doing
what others don’t – has paid off, in the form of great products that people covet.

Throughout its history, Sony has demonstrated an ability to capture the imagination and
enhance people’s lives. The company has been at the cutting edge of technology for more
than 50 years, positively impacting the way we live. Further, few companies are as well
positioned to drive the digital age into homes and businesses around the world for the next 50
years and beyond.

Sony innovations have become part of mainstream culture, including: the first magnetic tape
and tape recorder in 1950; the transistor radio in 1955; the world’s first all-transistor TV set in
1960; the world’s first color video cassette recorder in 1971; the Walkman personal stereo in
1979; the Compact Disc (CD) in 1982; the first 8mm camcorder in 1985; the Minidisc (MD)
player in 1992; the PlayStation game system in 1995; Digital Mavica camera in 1997; Digital
Versatile Disc (DVD) player in 1998; and the Network Walkman digital music player in 1999.

Today, Sony continues to fuel industry growth with the sales of innovative Sony products, as
well as with the company’s convergence strategy. Examples include: VAIO notebooks that raise
the bar in both form and function; digital cameras that capture pictures on a floppy disk, CD-
R or Memory Stick; a handheld device that lets you store and view photos as well as moving
photo; Minidisc recorders with a digital PC Link to marry high quality digital audio with
downloadable music; DVD/CD multi-disc changers that playback both audio and video;
digital network recorders that pause, rewind and fast-forward "live" television using a hard-
disc drive; and Hi-Scan flat screen TVs that deliver near HDTV picture quality
through Digital Reality Creation (DRC) circuitry.

But Sony is not just the market leader in consumer electronics.

Through research and development, the company has made considerable inroads in the areas
of professional broadcasting (with the creation of the Betacam, DVCAM, HDCAM and 24P
formats); mobile communications (with digital phones and the CLIE handheld); PCs (with
VAIO notebook and desktop computers); storage and media (with the invention of the floppy
disk, AIT and DTF drives, and the Memory Stick) and, now, the Internet.

Sony’s future brand success will be determined by how the company meets the challenges of

27
 change. Sony has always led the market in terms of innovation. But in a digital networked
world, products will no longer be developed with just hardware in mind. The convergence of
technologies – consumer electronics, computing and telecommunications – is a reality, with
new competitors forming and consumer mindshare up for grabs.

Broadband Network Era

Sony is a corporation with convergence at its very heart. Driven by an integrated business
model, the company is well positioned to bring new benefits to consumers by combining
hardware, software, content and services.

Sony’s approach is to make it possible for consumers to enjoy various forms of content on
both "home networks," consisting of connected electronic devices, and "mobile networks"
that are accessible through mobile terminals.

Products such as the i.LINK® interface and Memory Stick® digital storage media provide
greater connectivity between digital devices and will help create seamless home and personal
networks.

From a hardware perspective, Sony’s strategy is focused on four gateways to the networked
world: 1) Digital televisions and set-top boxes; 2) VAIO personal computers; 3) Mobile
devices, such as the CLIE handheld devices and digital phones; and 4) PlayStation2 game
consoles.

28
 Promoting a World Class Brand

The phenomenal strength of the Sony brand worldwide is surely a testament to the company’s
reputation for producing innovative products of exceptional quality and value. And while
traditional brand theory says brand essence should be narrowed down to one element, Sony
celebrates brand diversity -- with the Trinitron, VAIO and Walkman sub- brands, to name just
a few, each connecting with consumers across various lifestyle segments.

Sony has the brand recognition and marketing savvy to create new product categories and
revitalize mature ones. Look no further than what the company did with the Walkman brand
and for the Minidisc format.

Sony, the company that changed the way the world listens to music with the introduction of
the Walkman personal stereo, again set its sights on transforming the portable music landscape
when it kicked off a comprehensive, integrated marketing campaign to relaunch the Walkman
brand in June 2000.

Titled "The Walkman Has Landed," the marketing campaign, which included broadcast, print
and online advertising; Internet and dealer events/promotions; and grassroots consumer and
public relations components; strategically communicated the lifestyle attributes of the Sony
Walkman line to generation Y, its primary target market.

Additionally, the campaign brought together an entirely new product line up comprised of CD
Walkman, MD Walkman and Network Walkman personal digital audio players.

The company knew that it needed to reinvent the Walkman brand for today’s younger, more
digitally inclined music lovers. (To many, the brand had become generic, representing "older,"
analog-based cassette technology.) Sony promoted a new Walkman ideology based on
personal freedom, independence, imagination and creativity in a way that appealed to new
techno-savvy, style-conscious consumers who favor digital downloading and ripping CDs.
The star of the television commercial from the campaign is an alien character named Plato,
who is "quintessentially diverse and knows how to have fun." His persona offers Gen Y a bit

29
 of humor and a good dose of enjoyment.

Another example of Sony’s ability to reposition itself and its products is found in the Minidisc.
A huge success in Japan, where it has become the dominant recording format, MD did not
become a success in the U.S. until it was marketed as a digital music player that could record
from the Internet. With its inexpensive media and versatility (units are capable of recording
Internet music, tracks from personal CD collections and favorite songs off the radio), MD has
become a gen Y favorite. U.S. sales have increased by more than 40% since the MD to PC link
was introduced.

However, the company doesn’t just rely on brilliantly executed advertising campaigns tosecure
consumer attention. The company utilizes world class public relations to enhance Sony’svalue,
reputation and brand image. Communications campaigns are conducted on both an individual
product and strategic platform basis. This process ensures exposure for the company’s most
important products as well as for the company’s role in key industry issues that cross multiple
product categories and disciplines, including electronic music distribution and digital
television

Brand Values

When remarking about the importance of the Sony brand name, consider this quote from
Chairman of the Board, Norio Ohga: "In April of every year a large number of new employees
join the company. And what I always say to them is that we have many marvelous assets here.
The most valuable asset of all are the four letters, S, O, N, Y. I tell them, make sure the basis
of your actions is increasing the value of these four letters. In other words, when you consider
doing something, you must consider whether your action will increase the value of SONY, or
lower its value."

In the minds of consumers, Sony is one of the world’s greatest brands -- the company was
once again rated the number one brand in the U.S. by the 2000 Harris poll. As noted, much of
the brand equity Sony enjoys is rooted in product innovations.

However, to ensure the future of its brand, the company recently embarked on an extensive,
company-wide initiative in the U.S. designed to foster a common understanding of the Sony
brand among employees, customers and consumers. The project, dubbed Being Sony, was
necessitated because of expansive company growth, an influx of new employees, and
30
 converging business opportunities.

Sony executives felt the need to clearly articulate the meaning and values inherent in the Sony
brand (to both internal and external constituencies), while re-examining the unique
relationship of the brand in American culture.

Despite involvement in disparate businesses, the company’s desire is to leverage the brand
beyond the products -- the primary touchpoint with consumers, and add to the brand’s value by
re-focusing it to the outside world.

In essence, Sony, the box manufacturer, is being replaced by a new Sony – a customer- centric
entity centered around broadband entertainment, yet driven by the venture spirit of Sony
“founding days.

We Help Dreamers Dream

Sony is a company devoted to the CELEBRATION of life. We create things for every kind of
IMAGINATION. Products that stimulate the SENSES and refresh the spirit. Ideas that always
surprise and never disappoint. INNOVATIONS that are easy to love, and EFFORTLESS to
use, things that are not essential, yet hard to live without.

We are not here to be logical. Or predictable. We’re here to pursue INFINITE possibilities. We
allow the BRIGHTEST minds to interact freely, so the UNEXPECTED can emerge. We invite
new THINKING so even more fantastic ideas can evolve. CREATIVITY is our essence. We
take chances. We EXCEED expectations. We help dreamers DREAM.

31
 OBJECTIVE OF THE PROPOSED RESEARCH

 To study the buying pattern of people towards consumer goods.

 To determine the major factors influencing the buying decision process of the target

group.

 To set out some basic marketing implications for the marketers to cater to different

needs of the targets group.

 To have some insights on the relationship between marketing stimuli

and youth responses.

 To serve as guideline for further research in this area

32
 Chapter -3

LITERATURE
REVIEW

33
 Literature review

Consumer Buying Behavior: A Literature Review In order to develop a framework for the study
consumer behavior 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. As described
in this article, a set of dimensions can be identified in the literature, which can be used to
characterize and differentiate, the various perspectives on consumer research. It is argued that
consumer behavior itself emerged as a distinct field of study during the 1960s; and is characterized
by two broad paradigms, the positivist and the non-positivist. The positivist paradigm
encompasses the economic, behavioral, cognitive, motivational/trait/attitudinal, and situational
perspectives; these perspectives are referred to as the traditional perspectives as they pre-date the
development of the non-positivist paradigm. The positivist paradigm, which is still the dominant
paradigm, emphasizes the supremacy of human reason and that there is a single, objective truth
that can be discovered by science. This paradigm regards the world as a rational and ordered place
with a clearly defined past, present, and future. The assumption of rationalism is therefore
fundamental to the traditional perspective.

The opposing, non-positivist paradigm, envelops the interpretive and postmodern perspectives,
which have emerged more recently during the period post-1980 to date. The proponents of this
emerging perspective argue that positivism overemphasizes the rational view and the ideology

34
 of a homogenous social culture and thereby denies the complex social and cultural world in which
consumers live. This paradigm instead stresses, the importance of symbolic and subjective
experience and the idea that consumers construct meanings based on unique and shared cultural
experiences, and thus there can be no single unified world view.

Unsurprisingly, the two paradigms differ in their views on the benefits derived from consumption
and the objectives that underscore consumer research. The traditional, positivist perspective takes
a very utilitarian approach to the benefits from consumption. While the non- positivist
perspectives place much greater emphasis on the symbolic dimensions of choice. The objective
of non-positivist research endeavor is to achieve a better understanding of consumer behavior
with no specific intent to influence consumer processes. Conversely, outcomes of positivist
research are directed toward advancing the goals of marketing practice. By identifying the
paradigmatic shifts within the field, this article aims to identify different streams of thought that
could guide future consumer research.

Introduction

Consumer is the study “of the processes involved when individuals or groups select, purchase,
use, or dispose of products, services, ideas, or experiences to satisfy needs and desires”
(Solomon 1995, 7). In the marketing context, the term „consumer ‟refers not only to the act of
purchase itself, but also to patterns of aggregate buying which include pre-purchase and post-
purchase activities. Pre-purchase activity might consist of the growing awareness of a need or
want, and a search for and evaluation of information about the products and brands that might
satisfy it. Post-purchase activities include the evaluation of the purchased item in use and the
reduction of any anxiety which accompanies the purchase of expensive and infrequently-bought
items. Each of these has implications for purchase and repurchase and they are amenable in
differing degrees to marketer influence (Foxall 1987).

35
 The Traditional Perspectives on Consumer Research

This first section outlines the perspectives that emerged during the traditional-positivist era in consumer
research. Thus, a brief discussion on the early models of buyer behavior, proposed by economists is
presented, followed by a discussion on each of the traditional perspectives in consumer research that
emerged thereafter. These are the behavioral, cognitive, trait, motivational, attitudinal, and situational
viewpoints. Overall, the objective of this section is to outline the features and the central arguments of each
of these perspectives. While a detailed analytical review of the paradigms is presented in section two, at
this stage it is worth noting, that the traditional perspectives while diverse with respect to the many aspects
of consumer behavior they investigate, are fundamentally similar in terms of their philosophical and
methodological bases for undertaking the examination of consumer issues. That is, they are built on the
common foundations of “rationalism” and share allegiance to the principles of a single traditional,
positivist-based approach to consumer research.

The Rational Perspective

The economists were the first to dominate model building, in the area of buying behavior. The
early economic view considered consumer behavior in terms of a single act of purchase itself,
and post-purchase reactions.

Economic theory holds that purchasing decisions are the result of largely “rational” and
conscious economic calculations. Thus, the individual buyer seeks to spend his income on those
goods that will deliver the most utility (satisfaction) according to his tastes and relative prices.
The antecedents of this view can be traced back to Adam Smith (1776). Alfred Marshall (1890)
consolidated the classical and neoclassical traditions in economics, into a refined theoretical
framework which came to be known as the theory of marginal utility. His theoretical work
aimed to simplify assumptions and thereby examine the effects of changes in single variables
(e.g., price) holding all other variables constant.

36
 The Behavioral Perspective

As mentioned above, in contrast to the economic view which underscores the importance of
internal mental processes in consumer decision making, the behavioral perspective emphasizes
the role of external environmental factors in the process of learning, which it is argued causes
behavior. the behaviorists approach the consumer, as a “black box” and thereby assume that
consumer behavior is a conditioned response to external events. The behavioral perspective
therefore focuses on external environmental cues (such as advertising) that stimulate consumer
response through learning. The strategic emphasis, of the behavioral modification theories, for
example, are to devise a set of expanded behavior modification techniques (e.g., respondent
conditioning; operant conditioning; vicarious learning etc.) that can be used to influence,
modify, and control consumer behavior (Peter and Nord 1982). While a number of researchers
have proposed models to study learning principles e.g., Thorndike (1911); Watson and Rayner
(1920), this view is represented by two major approaches to learning: classical conditioning and
instrumental learning.

The Cognitive Perspective

In contrast to behavioral theories of learning, the cognitive perspective stresses the role of
information processing in consumer decision making. This perspective views people as problem
solvers who actively use information from the world around them to master their environment
However, much debate surrounds the issue of whether or when people are actually aware of
these learning processes. On the one hand, there is some evidence for the existence of
unconscious procedural knowledge. That is, people apparently do process at least some
information in an automatic, passive way, which is a condition that has been termed
mindlessness (Langer 1983). Nonetheless, many modern theorists are beginning to regard some
instances of conditioning as cognitive processes, especially where expectations are formed
about the linkages between stimuli and responses. Studies using masking effects, wherein it is
difficult for subjects to learn CS/UCS associations, show substantial reductions in conditioning
(Allen and Madden 1985).

37
 The Evolution of Consumer Research

This section aims to paradigmatically identify the developments within the field of consumer
research. Paradigms in consumer research can be broadly classified as a set of fundamental
assumptions that researchers make about what they are studying and how they study it. As
described below, a set of dimensions as identified by the literature, are employed to characterize
and differentiate, chronologically, the paradigms enveloping various perspectives. To further
support the discussion, this section provides a diagrammatic representation of the evolution of
the field of consumer research6, as identified

Conclusion

Overall, it is argued that the study of consumer behavior is rapidly evolving as researchers
recognize and implement new techniques and trans- disciplinary perspectives to understand the
nature of purchase and consumption behavior. This wider view attempts to study consumer.

BUYER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS ELECTRONIC GOODS

ABSTRACT
Buyer behavior is the outcome of both individual and environmental influences‟ –BOONE
KURTZ. Buyer behavior is a study of how individuals make decision to spend their available
resources (time, money and effort) on consumption related items (what they buy, why they buy,
when they buy, where they buy, how often they buy and use a product or service).

38
 I. INTRODUCTION

Buyer behavior is a study of how individuals make decision to spend their available resources
(time, money and effort) on consumption related items (what they buy, why they buy, When
they buy, Where they buy, How often they buy and use a product or service).

II.FACTORSINFLUENCEBUYERBEHAVIOUR

The major factors influencing buyer behavior are cultural, social, personal and psychological.

III.BUYINGROLES

For many products, it is fairly easy to identify the buyer. Many other products involve a
decision-making unit consisting of more than one person. Five roles people might play in a
buying decision.

1. Initiator: A person who first suggests the idea of buying the particular product or service.

2. Influencer: A person whose views or advice carries some weight in making the final decision.

3.Decider: A person who decides on any component of a buying decision. Whether to buy,
what to buy, how to buy, or where to buy.

4. Buyer: The person who makes the actual purchase.

5. User: A person who consumes or uses the product or service.

A company needs to identify these roles because they have implication for designing the
product, determining and allocating the promotional budget.

39
 IV. PURCHASE DECISION

In evaluation stage, the consumer forms preferences among the brands the choice set. The
consumer may also form a purchase intension to busy the most preferred brand.

V. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

SOCIAL- ECONOMIC CONDITION OF THE RESPONDENTS

VI. BRAND AWARENESS AND PURCHASE DECISION

VII. POSSESSION OF ELECTRONIC GOODS

VIII. CONCLUSION

Despite the basic characteristics of consumers, the behavior pattern of consumers is more or
less similar to each other, particularly in the aspects like quality, preference and decision
making. However, it is evident that the present approaches to draw the attention of customers
are not adequate. The consumers are particular about the appropriate system of distribution and
hence there is a great need for change in the distribution system. It may not be always correct to
say that consumers behave in the same way as it much depends on type of products, quality of
the products and price of the products. Therefore, the producer must be paid special attention at
least with regard to price and distribution system to cover the large number of customers. This
is mainly because of the fact that the buying capacity of the consumers may not be equal to the
buying capacity.

40
 CHAPTER- 4

RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY

41
 RESEARCH METHEDOLOGY

Research methodology is simple framework or plan for the study that is as guide in
collection and analyzing the data. It is the blue print that is followed in completes the study. Thus,
good research methodology ensures the completion of project efficiency and affectivity. Since
there are many aspects of research methodology, the line of action has to be chosen from the
variety of alternatives, to choose the suitable method through the assessment from various
alternatives.

Research can be classified from three perspectives:

1. Application of research study.

2. Objectives in undertaking the research.

3. Inquiry mode employed.

APPLICATION:
From the point of view of application, there are two broad categories of research:

PURE RESEARCH

APPLIED RESEARCH.

Pure research: It involves developing and testing theories and hypotheses that are
intellectually challenging to the researcher but it may or may not have practical application at

42
 the present time or in the future. The knowledge produced through pure research is sought in order
to add to the existing body of research methods.

Applied research: It is done to solve specific, practical questions; for policy formulation,
administration and understanding of a phenomenon. It can be exploratory, but is usually
descriptive. It is almost always done on the base basic research. Applied research can be carried
out by academic or industrial institutions. Often, an academic institution such as a university will
have a specific applied research program funded by an industrial partner interested in that
program.

Objectives:

From the viewpoint of objectives, a research can be classified as

-descriptive
-co relational
-explanatory
-exploratory

Descriptive research: It attempts to describe systematically a situation, problem, phenomenon,

service or program, or provides information about, say, living condition of a community, or
describes attitudes towards an issue.

Co relational research: It attempts to discover or establish the existence of a relationship/

interdependence between two or more aspects of a situation.

Explanatory research: It attempts to clarify why and how there is a relationship between two
or more aspects of a situation or phenomenon.

Exploratory research: It is undertaken to explore an area where little is known or to investigate

the possibilities of undertaking a particular research study (feasibility study / pilot study).

43
 In practice most studies are a combination of the first three categories.
Inquiry Mode:

From the process adopted to find answer to research questions – the two approaches are:

Structured approach
Unstructured approach

Structured approach:

The structured approach to inquiry is usually classified as quantitative research. Here

everything that forms the research process- objectives, design, sample, and the questions that you
plan to ask of respondents- is predetermined. It is more appropriate to determine the extent of a
problem, issue or phenomenon by quantifying the variation, e.g. how many people have a
particular problem? How many people hold a particular attitude?

Unstructured approach:

The unstructured approach to inquiry is usually classified as qualitative research. This

approach allows flexibility in all aspects of the research process. It is more appropriate to explore
the nature of a problem, issue or phenomenon without quantifying it. Main objective is to describe
the variation in a phenomenon, situation or attitude. e.g., description of an observed situation, the
historical enumeration of events, an account of different opinions different people have about an
issue, description of working condition in a particular industry.

44
 HYPOTHESES:

 Consumer shows positive attitude towards the Sony product range.

 Price of Sony Products influences the Consumer Buying behavior.
 Sony is one of Favorite brands among consumers.
 Discount offers motivates consumers to buy Sony products.
 After sales service of Sony is good.
 Consumers are satisfied with quality of Sony products.

THE RESEARCH PROCESS

The research process is similar to undertaking a journey. For a research journey there are
two important decisions to make-

1) What you want to find out about or what research questions (problems) you want to find
answers to;

2) How to go about finding their answers. There are practical steps through which you must pass
in your research journey in order to find answers to your research questions. The path to finding
answers to your research questions constitutes research methodology.

At each operational step in the research process you are required to choose from a
multiplicity of methods, procedures and models of research methodology which will

help you to best achieve your objectives.

This is where your knowledge base of research methodology plays a crucial role.

45
 PROCESS:

1. Formulating the Research Problem

2. Extensive Literature Review

3. Developing the objectives

4. Preparing the Research Design including Sample Design

5. Collecting the Data

6. Analysis of Data

7. Generalization and Interpretation

8. Preparation of the Report or Presentation of Results-Formal write ups of conclusions reached.

46
 Objectives of Research

The objective of the study is to ensure that I as a management student develop in real life for
handling the specific project and also to develop all roundness in various management
activities related to the area of my specialization. This project gives me a substantial
corporate exposure and also serves as a useful tool of interaction with the corporate sector.

The project has been derived from the field of „Marketing‟ and is entitled as “Buying
Behavior/Need Analysis & Generation of Prospective Customer List for Sony Products in
Meerut”. The main idea behind this project is.

To get an overall view of the product sale, promotion and problem faced by SONY Products.

To make a knowledge about the market strategy of SONY in Raipur. .

Sample Size: 100

Primary Data: Questionnaire distributed among 100 customers.

Secondary Data: Internet, Magazines and Newspapers.

47
 CHAPTER -5

ANALYSIS
&
INTERPRETATION

48
 DATA ANALYSIS

1. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE BRAND OF ELECTRONIC

PRODUCTS ?

favorite brands
70

60

50

40

30

20

10

SONY TOSHIBA
SAMSUNG LG
Series 1 60 30 8 2

60 people says that SONY is the favorite brand of electronic products.

30 people says that SAMSUNG is the favorite brand of electronic products.

8 people says that LG is the favorite brand of electronic products.

2 people says that TOSHIBA is the favorite of electronic products.

49
 DATA IN PERCENTAGE:

2%
8%
2%

SONY
30% SAMSUNG
60% LG
TOSHIBA

60 % says that SONY is the favorite brand of electronic products.

30 % says that SAMSUNG is the favorite brand of electronic products.

8% says that LG is the favorite brand of electronic products.

2 % says that TOSHIBA is the favorite brand of electronic products.

50
 2. HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT THE BRAND OF SONY PRODUCTS ?

sonyproducts
120

100

80

60

40

20

0 YES NO
1 100 0

100 people says that they heard about the brand of sony.

51
 3. DID YOU KNOW ABOUT SONY PRODUCTS ?

Sony products
35

30

25

20

15

10

0
BRAVIA CYBER HANDYCA PLAY WALK SONY M
VAIO X-PLOD
SHOT STATION MAN ERICSSON
10 20 4
Series 1 6 15 5 10 30

10 people says that they know about the BRAVIA .

6 people says that they know about the CYBER SHOT.

20 people says that they know about the VAIO.

4 people says that they know about the X-PLOD.

15 people says that they know about the HANDYCAM.

5 people says that they know about the PLAY STATION.

10 people says that they know about the WALK MAN.

52
 4. YOU
W HAVE BUYED IN SONY OR
HAVING INTERESTED TO BUY?

Sony products
25

20

15

10

0
A SHOT VAIO SONY WEGA HEAD
STATI
BRAVI CYBER PLOD YCAM PLAY HI-FI PHON
ERICSS TABLE SONY ES
X- HAND WALK ON
MAN
ON MOBIL
E
Series 1 5 10 15 2 8 5 10 20 2 8 0 15
20

 5 people says that they have purchased BRAVIA or interested to buy.

 10 people says that they have purchased CYBER SHOT or interested to buy.

 15people says that they have purchased VAIO or interested to buy.

 2 people says that they have purchased X-PLOD or interested to buy.

 8 people says that they have purchased HANDYCAM or interested to buy.

 5 people says that they have purchased PLAY STATION or interested to buy.

53
 10 people say that they have purchased WALK MAN or interested to buy.

20 people say that they have purchased SONY ERICSSON MOBILE or interested to

buy.

2 people says that they have purchased WEGA or interested to buy.

8people says that they have purchased TABLET or interested to buy.

0 people says that they have purchased SONY HI-FI or interested to buy.

15 people say that they have purchased HEAD PHONES or interested to buy

15%

20% 8%
5% 2%
10%

54
 5. ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH PRICE RANGE OF PRODUCT OFFERED BY
SONY?

price range of sony

60

50

40
AxisTitle

30

20

10

0
yes no
Series 1 50 50

50 people are SATISFIED with the PRICE RANGE of sony.

50 people are NOT SATISFIED with the PRICE RANGE of sony.

55
 5 ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH SONY PRODUCTS?

quality of Sony products

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10
HIGHLY HIGHLY
SATISFIED INDIFFERENT DISSATISFIED DISSATISFIED
0 SATISFIED
Series 1 18 68 8 6 0

18 people are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

68 people are SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

8 people are INDIFFERENT with the QUALITY of the sony products.

6 people are DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

0 people are HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

56
 DATA IN PERCENTAGE :

0
6%
8% 18%
HIGHLYSATISFIED
SATISFIED
68%
INDIFFERENT
DISSATISFIED
HIGHLYDISSATISFIED

18 % are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

68 % are SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

8 % are INDIFFERENT with the QUALITY of the sony products.

6 % are DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

0 % are HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

57
 5. Are you satisfied with durability of Sony products

durability of sony products

90

80

70

60
AxisTitle

50

40

30

20

10
HIGHLY SATISFIED INDIFFERENT DISSATISFIED HIGHLY
0 SATISFIED DISSATISFIED
78 4 4 4
10

10 people are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

78 people are SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

4 people are INDIFFERENT with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

4 people are DISSATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

 4 people are HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony

products

Series1
58
 DATA IN PERCENTAGE:

4% 4% 10% HIGHLYSATISFIED
4%
SATISFIED
INDIFFERENT
DISSATISFIEDHIGHLY
DISSATISFIED

78%

10 % are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

78 % are SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

4 % are INDIFFERENT with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

4 % are DISSATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony products.

4 % people are HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony

products.

59
 6. RATE THE AFTER SALES SERVICES OF SONY .

after sales services

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
EXCELLENT GOOD AVERAGE POOR VERYPOOR
Series 1 16 54 24 2 4

16 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is EXCELLENT.

54 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is GOOD.

24 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is AVERAGE.

2 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is POOR.

4 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is VERY POOR.

60
 DATA IN PERCENTAGE:

2%
4%
16%

24% EXCELLENT
GOOD
AVERAGE
POOR VERY
POOR
54%

16 % says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is EXCELLENT.

54 % says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is GOOD.

24 % says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is AVERAGE.

2 % says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is POOR.

4 % says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is VERY POOR.

61
 7. WHICH FACTOR INFLUENCE YOU TO PURCHASE THE SONY
PRODUCT?

factors
70

60

50

40
AxisTitle

30

20

10

0 COMPA
PRODU PROMOTI INFLUENC
NY SERVICES PRICE
CT ON ED BY
BRAND
FEATURE ACTIVITIES OTHERS
NAME
Series 1 66 30 0 4 0 0

66 people says that COMPANY BRAND NAME influence them to purchase the

Sony product.

30 people says that PRODUCT FEATURES influence them to purchase the

Sony product.

0 people says that SERVICES influence them to purchase the Sony product.
62
 4 people says that PROMOTION ACTIVITIES influence them to purchase the Sony

product.

0 people says that PRICE influence them to purchase the Sony product.

0 people says that they purchase the Sony product on INFLUENCED BY OTHERS.

Data in percentage:

0
0% 0
4% COMPANYBRANDNAME
30% PRODUCTFEATURE
SERVICES
PROMOTIONACTIVITIES
66%
PRICE
INFLUENCEDBYOTHERS

66 % says that COMPANY BRAND NAME influences them to purchase the Sony

product.

30 % says that PRODUCT FEATURES influence them to purchase the Sony

product.

63
 0 % says that SERVICES influence them to purchase the Sony product.

4 % says that PROMOTION ACTIVITIES influence them to purchase the

Sony product.

0 % says that PRICE influence them to purchase the Sony product.

0 % says that they purchase the Sony product on INFLUENCED BY OTHERS.

64
 8. WHERE DO YOU HEARD OF/GET INFORMATION OF SONY MOST
OFTEN?

information of Sony
70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
TELEVISION NEWSPAPERS MAGAZINES FRIENDS
Series 1 62 8 16 14

62 people says that they get the information of Sony products through TELEVISION.

08 people says that they get the information of Sony products through NEWS

PAPERS

16 people says that they get the information of Sony products through MAGAZINES.

14 people says that they get the information of Sony products through FRIENDS

65
 Data in percentage :

information of sony

14%

16%
TELEVISION
NEWSPAPERS
62%
8%
MAGAZINES
FRIENDS

62 % says that they get the information of Sony products through TELEVISION.

08 % says that they get the information of Sony products through NEWS PAPERS

16 % says that they get the information of Sony products through MAGAZINES.

14% Says that they get information of Sony products through their FRIENDS

66
 11.WHEN YOU PREFER TO BUY SONY PRODUCTS?

preference
56

54

52

50

48

46

44

42
SALESOFFER DISCOUNTOFFER
Series1 46
54

54 people says that they prefer to buy the Sony products on SALES OFFER.

46 people says that they prefer to buy the Sony products on DISCOUNT OFFER.

67
 Data in percentage:

46% SALESOFFER
54%
DISCOUNTOFFER

54 % says that they prefer to buy the Sony products on SALES OFFER.

46 % says that they prefer to buy the Sony products on DISCOUNT OFFER.

68
 12. OVER ALL RATE THE SONY ?

Rating of Sony
70

60

50

40
AxisTitle

30

20

10

0
EXCELLENT GOOD AVERAGE POOR VERYPOOR
Series 1 28 64 6 2 0

28 people rate the sony EXCELLENT.

64 people rate the sony GOOD.

6 people rate the sony AVERAGE.

2 people rate the sony POOR.

0 people rate the sony VERY POOR.

69
 Data in percentage:

rating of sony
2%
6%
28%

EXCELLENT
GOOD
AVERAGE
POOR VERY
64%
POOR

 28%rate the Sony EXCELLENT.

 64% rate the Sony GOOD.

 6% rate the Sony AVERAGE

 2 % rate the Sony POOR.

 0 % rate the Sony VERYPOOR.

70
 CHAPTER – 6

FINDINGS
RECOMMENDATION
CONCLUSION &
LIMITATIONS

71
 FINDINGS

 28%rate the Sony EXCELLENT, 64% rate the Sony GOOD, 6% rate the Sony AVERAGE, 2 %
rate the Sony POOR, 0 % rate the Sony VERYPOOR.

 54 % says that they prefer to buy the Sony products on SALES OFFER, 46 % says that they prefer
to buy the Sony products on DISCOUNT OFFER.

 62 people says that they get the information of Sony products through TELEVISION, 08 people
says that they get the information of Sony products through NEWSPAPER, 16 people says that
they get the information of Sony products through MAGAZINES, 14 people says that they get the
information of Sony products through FRIENDS

 66 people says that COMPANY BRAND NAME influence them to purchase the Sony
product, 30 people says that PRODUCT FEATURES influence them to purchase the
Sony product, 0 people says that SERVICES influence them to purchase the Sony
product, 4 people says that PROMOTION ACTIVITIES influence them to purchase the
Sony product, 0 people says that PRICE influence them to purchase the Sony product, 0
people says that they purchase the Sony product on INFLUENCED BY OTHERS.
 100 people says that they heard about the brand of sony.

 16 people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is EXCELLENT,

54 people says that AFTER SALESERVICES of sony is GOOD, 24
people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is AVERAGE, 2
people says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is POOR, 4 people
says that AFTER SALES SERVICES of sony is VERY POOR.

 10 people are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony

products, 78 people are SATISFIED with the DURABILITY of the sony
products,4 people are INDIFFERENT with the DURABILITY of the
sony products, 4 people are DISSATISFIED with the DURABILITY of
the sony products, 4 people are HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the
DURABILITY of the sony products
 18 % are HIGHLY SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products,
68 % are SATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products, 8 % are
INDIFFERENT with the QUALITY of the sony products, 6 % are
DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products, 0 % are
HIGHLY DISSATISFIED with the QUALITY of the sony products.

72
 CONCLUSION

 Most of the people says that SONY is the favorite brand of electronic products. 100%

says that they heard the brand of Sony.

 Most of the people says that they know about the SONY ERICSSON.

 Most of the people like to buy the Sony products from SONY WORLD.

 Some people like to buy the Sony products from SONY EXCLUSIVE.

 Some people like to buy the Sony products from MULTI BRAND COUNTER.

 Half of the population are SATISFIED with the PRICE RANGE of Sony.

 Most of the people are highly satisfied with the QUALITY of the Sony products.

 Most of the people are highly satisfied with the DURABILITY of the Sony products.

 Most of the people are happy with the AFTER SALES SERVICES of Sony.

 Most of the people says that COMPANY BRAND NAME influences them to purchase

the Sony product.

 Some people say that PRODUCT FEATURES influence them to purchase the Sony

product.

 Most of the people says that they get the information of Sony products through TELEVISION.

73
  Some people say that they get the information of Sony products through NEWSPAPERS

 Some people say that they get the information of Sony products through MAGAZINES.

 Some people say that they get the information of Sony products through FRIENDS.

 Some people say that they prefer to buy the Sony products on DISCOUNT OFFER.

 Some people rate the Sony as EXCELLENT.

 Most of the people rate the Sony as GOOD

74
 Limitations

 The study is in limited sample.

 People working there are not interested in filling the questionnaires.

 It was the tough time to get response from the customers.

 Time was a limitation with the quantum of data collected, hence analysis became
difficult.

 The nature of project, which sometimes entered into personal zones like age, income
etc. created some difficulties during data collection.

 There could have been efforts on a much-detailed scale, but since time was
limited, the scope got limited.

 As simple random sampling methods was adopted, the responders (units)

selected by simple random sampling method was from different places, this
causes a great deal of inconvenience.

 Sample which was taken for this Survey was only 100 due to time
limitation and other constraints.

75
 Recommendation and suggestion

 Only 60 % says that SONY is the favorite brand of electronic products. So

they have to create the awareness of their product to the other 40% people.

 Marketers should have innovated new products with unique features having some

multipurpose utility which could create an appeal to the customers, for example,

company can manufacture those Cyber-Shot cameras having the capacity of 30

to 40 GB hard Disk memory which record up to 20Hrs to 27Hrs of video

Recording as Hard Disk Drive Handy-cam can do.

 In case of price, price of products should not be too high. Marketer should follow

the strategy of „Good quality and services in fewer prices‟. That can attract

customers.

 It was seen that generally customers like to visits those outlets which are

frequently visited by other customers, customers generally prefer Multiband

counters because lots of products can be seen at on place (including Sony

products), so Sony Exclusive have to sharply look on the updated version Sony

products at their showroom.

 Regarding promotion marketers of Sony Exclusive must build up unique

imagery appeal for their Sony products through advertisement.

 More intense research works should be initiated, studying the specific needs and

attributes sorted by the customer for different kinds of product categories.

76
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Kotler Philip, “Marketing Management”,8th Edition, June, 1995, Page no. 172-197.

 Boyd, Westfall, Stasch, “Marketing Research”, 7th Edition, 1998,

The Marketing Research process, Page no. 63-127,311-465.

 Schiffiman Leon G. and Leslie Layas Kanuk, “Consumer Behaviour”,

6th Edition, 1997, Market Segmentation, Page no. 48-64, Consumer

Behaviour, Page no. 376-392, Consumer Decision Making, Page no.

503-508.

 Schiffman-Kanuk Consumer Behaviour- Prentice Hall of INDIA

 Neal Mc, James V, An Introduction to consumer behaviour,New

York, Willey 1973 Sharma, D. D. Marketing research,New Delhi,

Sultan Chand & Sons, 1999

 Kothari, C. R. – Research Methodology, New Delhi, New Age

International (P) Ltd, Edition 2006

 Priyanka Computer Sales, Raipur

 Sony Center, Jaistambh Chowk, Raipur

77
 Webliography:

 http://yanyong91.blogspot.in/2011/02/introduction-of-sony-company.html

 https://news.sel.sony.com/en/corporate_information/sony_brand
 http://compareindia.in.com/companyprofile.php?id=51
 http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/61/Sony-Corporation.html
 http://www.echeat.com/free-essay/Sony-Company-Profile-History-and-Culture-and-
SWOT-27662.aspx
 http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/history.html#page_body_hp
 http://www.sony.co.in/article/212772/section/sonysstory
 http://www.sony.co.in/article/342596/section/sonysstory
 http://www.sony.co.in/article/211979/section/overview

78
 CHAPTER-7

QUESTIONNAIRE

79
QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Name:…………………………………………….

2. Age (in years)

Below 20 ( ) 20 – 35 ( )

3 5 - 50 ( ) 50 Years & above ( )

3. Gender

Male ( ) Female ( )

4. Educational Profile

Up to School level ( ) Up to H. S ( )

Graduates ( ) Post Graduate ( )

5.Family Size

Less than 4 member ( ) 4 to 6 members ( )

More Then 6 member ( )

6.Monthly Income (in Rupees)

Below 10,000 ( ) 15,001 – 25,000 ( )

10,001 – 15,000 ( ) Above 25,000 ( )

7.What are your favorite brands of electronic products?

Sony ( ) Samsung ( )

LG ( ) Toshiba ( )

8.Have you heard the brand of „SONY‟ before?

Yes ( ) No ( )

9.Did you know about SONY Products? (Tick 1 product)

Bravia ( ) Handycam ( )

Cyber-Shot ( ) PlayStation ( )

80
 Vaio ( ) Walkman ( )

X-plod ( ) Sony Ericsson ( )`

10.Which product you have buyed in SONY or having interested to buy it? (Tick 1 product)

Bravia ( ) Handycam ( )

Cyber-Shot ( ) PlayStation ( )

Vaio ( ) Walkman ( )

X-plod ( ) Sony Ericsson Mobile ( )

WEGA ( ) Sony hi-fi ( )

Tablet ( ) Head phones ( )

11.From where you like to buy the SONY Product and Why?
Sony World ( ) Sony Exclusive ( )
Multi-Brand counter ( )

12.Are you satisfied with the price range which offered by SONY?

Yes ( ) No ( )

13.Are you satisfied with the Quality of the Sony products?

Highly satisfied ( ) Satisfied ( )

Indifferent ( ) Dissatisfied ( )

Highly dissatisfied ( )

14.Are you satisfied with the Durability of Sony products?

Highly satisfied ( ) Satisfied ( )

Indifferent ( ) Dissatisfied ( )

Highly dissatisfied ( )

81
15.Rate the after sales services of Sony.

Excellent ( ) Good ( )

Average ( ) Poor ( )

Very Poor ( )

16.Which factor influence you to purchase SONY products?

Company brand name ( ) Promotion activities ( )
Product feature ( ) Price ( )
Services ( ) Influenced by others ( )

17.Where do you heard of/get information of SONY most often?

Television ( ) Magazines ( )

Newspapers ( ) Friends ( )

18.When you prefer to buy Sony products?

Sales offer ( ) Discount offer ( )

Any other (Please specify) …………………………………………….

19.Overall rating for Sony?

Excellent ( ) Good ( )

Average ( ) Poor ( )

Very Poor ( )

18. View about Sony products?

………………………………………………………………………………

82