A Project

On

A study on consumer behaviour with reference to pharmaceutical retail industry.

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Business Administration

in

Marketing

By

Sagar Gupta

Enrollment No. A60006418084

Under the guidance of

Dr. Malay Ghosh

Assistant Professor

Amity Business School

Amity University Madhya Pradesh, Gwalior
April 2021
 Amity Business School
Amity University Madhya Pradesh, Gwalior

Declaration

I hereby declare that the work, which is being presented in the research paper, entitled, “A
study on consumer behaviour with reference to pharmaceutical retail industry. ” in partial
fulfillment for the award of Degree of BBA) submitted to the Amity School of
Communication, Amity University, Madhya Pradesh is a record of my own investigation
carried under the guidance of Mr. Malay Ghosh, of Amity School of business

I have not submitted the matter present in this report anywhere for the award of any other
Degree.

Sagar Gupta
Date: (Enrollment No. – A60006418084
 i

Acknowledgement

I am very much thankful to our honorable Vice Chancellor Lt Gen. V. K. Sharma AVSM
(Retd) for allowing me to carry out my practical training. I would also like to thank Prof. (Dr.)
M. P. Kaushik, Pro-Vice Chancellor, and Amity University Madhya Pradesh for his support.

I extend my sincere thanks to Prof. (Dr.)Anil Aashist , HOI, Amity School of Business, Amity
University Madhya Pradesh, Gwalior for his guidance and support for the selection of appropriate
industry for my practical.

I am also very grateful to Mr. Malay Ghosh , Assistant Professor, Amity School of Business,
Amity University Madhya Pradesh for their constant guidance and encouragement provided in
this endeavor.

Sagar Guta
Date: (Enrollment No. – A60006418084)
 ii
ABSTRACT

The health of its people is a matter of importance for any responsible

government. This is primarily achieved through ensuring adequate
standards of nutrition, housing, and hygiene. The government has
additionally to ensure the provision of an effective and affordable health
care system. This must deliver adequate medical resources that are
readily available for those who fall ill. Cardiovascular disease is the
major cause of mortality in the Western world. Thus, it is incumbent on
the government to provide health care for those who suffer from
cardiovascular disease. There is a further obligation to promote a healthy
life-style in the community by providing dietary advice and discouraging
avoidable risk factors (e.g., smoking). Life-style changes are not easy
and may be insufficient to beneficially influence the risk factors for
cardiovascular disease. The pharmaceutical industry, therefore, plays an
integral role in health care delivery by providing doctors with the
medicines to manage those patients who suffer from cardiovascular
disease, for whom life-style changes have not provided the answer. In
most European countries, the pharmaceutical industry operates within
tight government regulatory confines which define efficacy and safety of
medicines. In those countries where there is a socialized health care
policy, the prices of medicines are regulated by the government.

Thus government intervention in most European countries is a fact of life

for the industry, and the manner in which it exercises its powers will
have a critical effect on whether the intervention is a help or hindrance.

iii
 CONTENTS

Declaration by student i
Acknowledgement ii
Abstract iii
Contents iv

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Literature Review

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

Chapter 4: Result & Disscussion

Chapter 5: Conclusion

Chapter 6: Summary

iv
 Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background

With the pharmaceutical business growing and with some expertise during a
pharmaceutical operating environment, the author has chosen to explore this field
more through analysis. The pharmacy sector has its attention-grabbing structure as
drugs costs are constant all told pharmacies, and thus they lack in price war as
compared to stores of the daily trade goods trade. these days there are more product
choices as more generic medicines take off on the market and challenge original
product with their lower price. Hence, the main target of the research is on
pharmacy customers and their client behaviour with regard to pharmacies and
similarly worthd over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, therefore medicines that aren't
on prescription. The analysis is restricted to unlisted medicines as a result of they're
product that are accessible to all or {any|to any or all} shoppers which are
publicised publicly. The research helps to know current behaviour of pharmacy
customers and offers an insight to the 4P’s of marketing; product, place, price and
promotion. The results aid to understand the pharmaceutical market a bit higher and
to achieve data on pharmacy customers within the capital region.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

Consumer behaviour may be a topic of nice interest for marketers as a result of a

command of this field are often crucial in terms of selecting the proper selling
strategy, so create business prosperous . client behaviour will be seen consistent
with Solomon because the information of a method that a personal or a gaggle
undergo to satisfy a need, by choosing and shopping for still as victimisation and
disposing product. This process in not solely relating to products because it can
likewise be concepts and experiences that satisfy the need. a similar plan is
additionally supported by Kotler . If a company is aware of however the clients will
react to totally different selling stimuli, then they'll adapt such methods which will
provide them the specified outcome in terms of consumer response. information of
consumer behaviour helps corporations to work out their marketing mix, the four
P’s of marketing; product, price, place and promotion. consistent with Kotler these
four classes represent stimuli that customers are exposed to and which will have an
effect on their behaviour.

A elementary reason for a company to exist is to satisfy the requirements of

consumers. a corporation that succeeds to try and do thus are often victorious and
therefore, it's of nice importance to understand what the necessitys and needs of the
buyers are. A information of consumer behaviour helps to explore and understand
these needs and wants. each consumer has biological needs that are essential for
survival, adore food, water and shelter.

These needs develop into wants once the consumer will make a choice from totally
different choices that each one satisfy the need however otherwise have differences.
the necessity for food will be happy by totally different food product and also the
consumer’s needs will categorical with which kind of product the buyer prefers to
satisfy that need. to grasp the consumers’ needs and their behaviour a hierarchy of
needs was developed by man of science Abraham Maslow. even though his theory
is criticized for not being totally pliable to any or all cultures, it still helps to show
however consumers’ needs will vary counting on their life situation. consistent with
Maslow’s hierarchy pyramid the individual includes a ought to fulfil specific needs
at very cheap of the pyramid to be able to climb up to the top. When the
psychological desires are met the individual will satisfy his or her needs of safety,
then needs of belongingness, then ego needs and last self actualization.

Elements of influence

Consumer behaviour and how they buy products and services are affected by a
variety of factors. When studying customer behaviour, companies must take
environmental, socioeconomic, personal, and also psychological considerations into
account.
Cultural influence

Culture has a great influence on consumer behavior, and culture is one of the most
influential factors. Culture is the foundation of a person's values, insights, and
behaviors. It is learned from other members of the community or school and
institutions that play an important role. These characteristics define what the
consumer appreciates or wants, and therefore affects his behavior. Culture is also
made up of various subcultures, which group people according to nationality, race,
geographic location, religious belief or religious belief.Their shared values. By
targeting specific cultures or subcultures, the company can adapt its marketing mix
to the needs and values of that market segment. Consumers are more likely to
accept products that conform to their values, preferences, customs, and cultural
norms. However, culture is constantly evolving, and values, social structures,
worldviews and other cultural cornerstones will change over time.Society is divided
into social classes that make members of society have similar social status and
behaviors. These categories show social hierarchy and have many factors. And
education, but this is only a factor that affects a person’s classification in society.
Determining the exact social class is not always easy or obvious.As people climb
the corporate ladder or even move to lower occupations, social class will also
change over time. In addition, new family relationships can lead to rapid changes in
a person's status and social class (hence, consumers of the same social class often
communicate with each other), and lead a similar lifestyle. They may have the same
job, similar hobbies, and behave in the same way.Their social class can be seen as
an indicator of the purchasing power and availability of certain products related to
their income level, lifestyle and social norms related to their social status.
Therefore, social class is used as a form of subdivision and decision-making.
Targeted market.

As Solomon pointed out, social classificationism is not only a measure of wealth,

but also an indicator of how that wealth is used and how it is used to determine
status.
Social influence

A consumer’s shopping for behaviour is additionally stricken by the individuals

around. Family may be a sturdy entity that has an influence on buying behaviour.
This includes each the fogeys, further because the mate kids} with whom the patron
may more often pay time with. Through the upbringing, parents teach their children
regarding love, self-esteem, economics, politics then forth. With this steering the
influence of the parents doesn't stop to have an effect on the kid even when the
child not lives with the parents, and thus will have an influence on the consumer’s
behaviour throughout life.

The opinion of a mate and children will directly have an effect on and guide the
buying decision. in keeping with Kotler there's however, a giant distinction of
influence by a spouse looking on the merchandise category, and there are many
buying roles that someone can take on. the customer isn't continually the user, and
so the acquisition could also be created for somebody else keeping that person’s
opinions in mind. The instigator is that the one who comes up with the concept of
shopping for a particular product or service, whereas the influencer is the one
who’s opinion matter and is taken into thought once creating a buying call. the
ultimate decision regarding whether or not or to not buy, and how, once and what to
shop for is created by the decider. .

There also are different reference teams additionally to family that have an effect
on a consumer’s behaviour and opinions. Like family, these groups will be primary
groups with whom there's oftentimes interaction on a non-formal level. Hence, to
primary reference groups can be counted as an instance friends, colleagues and also
people who free time is usually spent with. Secondary reference groups even have
an influence on the behaviour and may be diagrammatic by groups akin to religious
teams and business associations, with whom there's less frequent and a lot of formal
interaction. as a result of the role and standing that a shopper holds in society or
inside a reference cluster due to social class, occupation or group role, there are
expectations from different group members that the person is anticipated to
measure up to. as a result of the will to show the given role properly in accordance
with the society’s and other people’s expectations, people tend to adapt themselves
and their behaviour consequently to suit in with this role or image.

This role will modification looking on things or environment. a private will attack
totally different roles once outlay time with different people, akin to a task of a
child, boss or parent. All of those factors have an influence on the consumer’s
behaviour and therefore the buying choices that are made.

Personal influence

In addition, consumers can be segmented according to their personal characteristics

and personality types that affect their consumer behavior. Research can discover
the personality characteristics shared by users of certain products, and then use
specific characteristics to describe and group consumers. Group them according to
their sociality, stubbornness, aggressiveness or adaptability, because these
characteristics enable them to reflect similarities in behavior. Consumer behavior is
not only affected by personality and personal qualities, but also by consumer self-
esteem. How the consumer sees himself and how he values his own characteristics.
Self-concept is related to shopping behavior, because a person’s things often show
his appearance or appearance. Self-concept to consider when writing or
understanding marketing strategies. The true self-concept shows how a person sees
himself. In addition, a person has an ideal sense of self-worth, which reflects their
desire to see their ideal state.

Coupled with the self-esteem of others, this shows how a person views
others.Therefore, consumer behavior will be affected by any of these three self-
assessments. Consumers can take actions based on their own views, the people they
want to be, or the views of others. The true self-esteem of consumers is better than
their self-esteem. When consumers compare themselves with what they see in
advertisements, advertisements can have a huge impact and affect consumer self-
esteem and self-esteem. People displayed in products and advertisements, thus
forming their personal brand image of the product.
 When choosing between available products, this brand image influences the
consumer's decision. Consumers of the same age or the same age group often have
a lot in common in terms of tastes, opinions and activities. They go through similar
life experiences and life stages, which shape their attitudes and tastes. As a result,
the behaviors of the same age group may have similarities and may not be suitable
for consumers of different age groups. Differences in behavior between age groups
can take many forms, such as inequality in the purchasing power of the amount of
currency used. Brand loyalty and other aspects in certain product categories. Age
groups may react differently to advertisements. Knowing these differences, the
company can decide which products to advertise on and how to adjust its language
to the target audience.Consumers' consumption patterns, currency distribution and
product choices are based on lifestyle.

The lifestyle is completely unique and characterized by the vital interests of

consumers. Due to different lifestyles. Even if consumers have many similar
factors, such as social class, leisure and cultural interests, there will be behavioral
differences in life. These contrasts represent unique lifestyles that influence the way
consumers consume. Lifestyle consumers may prefer certain types of food and
choose foods according to the lifestyle represented by the product itself. From a
consumer's point of view, this is because an understanding of consumer behavior
can explain which type of food is associated with consumers of a particular lifestyle
and which food suits their tastes. Lifestyle is capricious and will change over time.
This change will also change the way of consumption.

Psychological influence

Motivation is accustomed describe one’s behaviour and it can be seen because the
reason behind one’s actions. Motivation is what drives people to realize an exact
goal. once the buyer feels a need, there's tension that the consumer needs to
eliminate by satisfying that specific need. If the drive to achieve that goal is robust
enough the consumer can possess a motivation that drives and pushes him towards
its realization. .In accordance to a theory made public by Sigmund Freud, shoppers
don't seem to be totally alert to their true motivations and are not continuously able
to make a case for them.
Freud’s theory points out that unconscious motives that have their roots within the
individual’s childhood have an effect on the buyer’s selections. the idea
additionally acclaims that customers might base their product choice on a product’s
symbolic meaning, so as to be able to satisfy a need that's not acceptable however
which the consumer will notice symbolised in an appropriate product. . Abraham
Maslow on the opposite hand, explains motivation through his graded pyramid
wherever consumers are intended by wants that have a unique classification which
are a part of a hierarchy . With the help of the five senses; taste, smell, sight, touch
and hearing, consumers interpret their surroundings. With the process of choosing,
organizing and interpreting stimuli consumers create their own perception. Because
the perception of a person differs to one another, the buying behaviour does as well.
Consumers are drawn to products not only by their practical function but also by
the hedonic features of the product. The added value that a competitor’s product
has can simply be the emotional value that it has for the customer. Learning is a
relatively permanent change in behaviour and customers learn through experiencing
things on their own or by gaining experience through observation. It is a constantly
ongoing process and learning occurs even if it is not deliberately intended. Through
the process of learning the buying behaviour of the consumer evolves and is subject
to change.

purchasing process

Before consumers choose a product, they evaluate the various options available. In
this process, the various product attributes assigned by consumers to each product
variant can be evaluated and their importance can be determined. The evaluation of
alternatives can be very extensive, because consumers can create different rules to
help them make decisions, promote their adoption and reduce the amount of
information processed.

Consumers use their own personal heuristics to limit other options. These rules can
be of different types and reflect different assumptions or ideas. They can be related
to their personal views on the product and the company, whether it is to correlate
product familiarity with product quality, or how to interpret product quality based
on indicators obtained from appearance. product. Some consumers tend to judge a
book based on the cover of the book, usually linking high prices with high quality,
or forming beliefs about product attributes based on its country of origin.
Companies sometimes use advertisements to associate their products with feelings
of nostalgia, and sometimes even with sadness and nostalgia for the past, because
these emerging feelings cause consumers to choose one product over another. In
some cases, shopping behavior will become a habit, without the need for consumers
to make a decision.

This buying habit may be caused by brand loyalty. In this case, consumers have a
firm and positive feeling about a particular brand and therefore make a conscious
decision to purchase products from that particular brand. The personal connection
with the brand will develop over time, enhancing habitual buying behavior and
reducing the possibility of customers switching to another brand. For other
consumers, the usual buying behavior is usually caused by their unwillingness to
participate in the decision-making process. Out of habit when buying products. In
the absence of a strong personal connection with a product or brand, consumers
tend to switch to another brand. The reason for changing the product may be the
ability to easily purchase another product due to better availability or better price.

All product purchases are unplanned, and purchase terms and conditions may cause
the buyer to purchase products that the consumer did not purchase. Sometimes,
when consumers cannot resist buying a product they suddenly desire to buy, they
will buy spontaneously. If there is no planned purchase but the purchaser is forced
to purchase, he can also purchase spontaneously. Souvenir products in the store,
because consumers are eager to buy or for other reasons to prompt consumers to
buy. It is not easy to measure the impact of advertising on consumer behavior and
sales.You can compare advertising costs and sales results with previous experience,
or you can spend different amounts of money on similar locations to place ads to
measure the difference between the sales results generated by each location. As we
all know, many consumers do not remember the advertisements they saw.

This really worries advertising companies because they have reason to believe that
at the time of purchase, consumers may not know the product being advertised or
the product being advertised. remind. However, the influence on the buying
behavior of consumers who can remember the advertisement is not always positive.
Consumers usually don’t just remember their favorite ads, evoke strong emotions
or convey messages they believe. And there are opposite advertisements. These
deleted advertisements may have adverse effects and may cause consumers to avoid
using this product.
Marketing of pharmaceuticals

There are variations in legislation concerning selling of prescribed drugs to

practitioners and to shoppers or end users. The law prohibits marketing of
medicative merchandise on prescription, to consumers. Prescription medicines can
solely be marketed to practitioners like doctors and pharmacists who would like
info concerning the products they'll visit or recommendation to patients. solely
prescription-free medicines is directly marketed to finish users, the consumers.
Some general rules of pharmaceutical selling apply notwithstanding the
merchandise being prescription-free or a prescription medicine. before any
marketing the product must receive a licence and be licensed to be marketed. The
marketing cannot by any suggests that be misleading, and also the communicated
information must be in line with the data expressed on the package leaflet. what is
more the ad has to contain all necessary information so as to use the product
properly, and it's to market and encourage a rational usage of the product similarly
as encourage to rigorously scan the package leaflet or instructions. All
advertisements should provides a clear message that it's question of associate
advertisement, which the publicized product may be a medicative product.

Decision making process

Consumer decision-making has always been a topic of great interest to

researchers. About 300 years ago, Nicholas Bernoulli, John Van
Neumann and Oscar Morgenstern began to think about consumer
behavior. These economists only looked at purchasing behavior, the
resulting model. One theory is the "utility theory", which assumes that
consumers consider the expected results of their choices. Consumers are
regarded as rational decision makers who only care about their own
interests.

Although the current research involves many factors that affect consumer
decision-making, these factors can be seen as the need to identify, search
for information, find alternatives and evaluate accordingly, purchase
intention, purchase behavior, consumption and final decision. The
process includes five stages: problem identification, information
retrieval, evaluation, decision-making and later decision-making process
is a process that takes place every day; however, it has a greater effect
every day; however, if the purchase is important to consumers, for
example, the purchased goods are expensive, or have a negative impact
on health or self-esteem, and they have The impact is even greater.
However, products that are not as important as chewing gum will not go
through this complicated process. When this happens, consumers will try
to identify the problem and make a decision without spending too much
time gathering information and evaluating other options.

Decision making process stages

Four stages of the decision making process-

 Problem recognition: there's a drag for customers once their state differs
from the state they might prefer to experience. meaning that they need a
necessity that's not satisfied.

 Information search: so as to unravel a drag the rummage around for

alternatives starts so these desires will be meet.

 Judgment and decision making: when the identification of the matter and
also the rummage around for alternatives completed, the analysis of
 alternatives ought to currently take place, supported the potential options.
this implies that a choice concerning whether or not a complete satisfies a
necessity must be made.

 Post- decision processes: once the choice is created and also the product
purchased, it's time for the last step, knowing if the buyer is happy with a
product or service. If someone is satisfied with a product will have a positive
reaction and advocate it to his/her friends, or repeat the purchase. once a
person is dissatisfied, can have a negative reaction and build a grievance or
perhaps come the merchandise.

Model of Consumer Behaviour

Types of buying

The purchase decision varies from person to person. It all depends on

people's needs. Various factors affect the type of purchase. These authors
divide purchasing decisions into four categories: complex purchasing
behaviors; discordant, reducing purchasing behaviors; habitual purchasing
behaviors and purchasing behaviors related to finding diversity.

The categories are classified according to differences between engagement

and brands:

 Complex purchase behavior: purchase participation is high, and there

are significant differences between brands. As a consumer in this
situation, you will learn in the process of developing product benefits,
building relationships, and ultimately making smart purchases. This
situation will appear in products such as high prices and low quality
risks. A good example is buying a mobile phone or laptop. Both
products are expensive and there are many brands that make buyers
feel uncomfortable when choosing a particular brand.Reduce

 detuned behavior: It occurs when consumers rely heavily on

expensive, rare, and risky products. However, you will see subtle
differences between the two brands. In the post-purchase stage,
consumers may feel discomfort and notice the disadvantages of the
purchase. The seller should pay attention to post-purchase
communication by providing obvious help. An example of this type of
purchase is a sofa. For kitchen cabinets, consumers will rate the
difference based on the price range.
 Habitual shopping behavior: There is very little customer loyalty, and
the differences between brands are small. Consumers tend to have less
contact with cheap products. The level of search for information is
very low, and consumers do not pay attention to brand characteristics
or make thoughtful decisions about which brand to buy. On the other
hand, if they keep receiving information while watching TV or reading
a magazine, they will choose the brand because they are familiar.
Since you have created some kind of icon and visual image in their
minds, buyers can also identify the products they are connected to
when buying. To promote products, marketers often use prices and
promotions.A good example is a lighter, where consumers only search
and buy without brand loyalty. Seek

 diversified buying behavior: Although the brands are very different,

consumers' participation in this case is low. I really like this brand.
Brands appear because there are more varieties than dissatisfaction.
Consumers will change for a particular shower gel, and although they
are satisfied with the current brand, they still change.
 CHAPTER-2
LITERATURE REVIEW

Kumar, KM. Krishna (2006) 22 studied consumer's perception about

promotional strategies adopted by marketers of fast moving consumer goods
in Kerala. The level of awareness about various sales promotion strategies,
their attractiveness to consumers and their effectiveness in creating brand
awareness, trial purchase, repeat purchase and brand loyalty were some of
the issues addressed. The data were collected fi-om 300 consumers from
different parts of the state. Various mathematical and statistical tools were
used for anlysing the data including Chi-square test, t-test, ANOVA and
Duncan test.

According to thi findings of the study consumers behaivour to different

categories are very much aware of the various sales promotional strategies
adopted by marketers. Further, of the different tools used for sales promotion,
price-offs and gifts and complements are most attractive to consumers. More
over, for creating brand awareness, trial purchase, repeat purchase and brand
loyalty, gifts and complements, fiee samples, price-offs and premium offer
respectively are the best tools suggested.

Alvarez, Begofia, Rodolfo, Vttzquez, Casielles (2005) 23 examined the

influence that sales promotion has on brand choice behaviour. A regional
consumer panel was used for collecting necessary information for the study.
The authors report that promotion is a tool that can help manufacturers andor
retailers in the achievement of their objectives (try the brand, help to decide
what brand to buy, etc.). Immediate price reduction is the technique that
exerts greatest influence on the brand choice process. It is possible that the
consumer perceives a promotion, for example, coupons or rebates, but does
not modifl his or her behaviour. In this case, manufacturers andor retailers
will be investing their resources in promotional actions that do not have any
effect on the consumer. More over promotions based on price have the
greatest effectiveness.

Bailey, Anthony, Ainsworth (2005) 24 studied the impact of gender and

company reputation on consumer attitudes towards, and perceptions of
companies involved in non-fulfillment of promotions. The results of an
experimental study indicated that companies influence how consumers
perceive brands and companies involved in non-fulfillment of promotional
deals. Companies with positive reputations do not suffer as adversely as
those with negative reputations. Gender has an impact on perceptions of the
credibility of companies involved in non-fulfillment, but does not affect
brand attitudes, patronage intentions or switching intentions. Among women,
there were greater differential effects of company reputation on their attitude
as compared to the case with men, where the differential effects were not as
great.

Peter, R. Darke and Cindy, MY. Chung (2005) 25 examined the extent
to which different promotional fiames increased perceptions of deal value.
Results of the study showed that negative equity inference moderates
discount framing effects and undermines deal value, particularly when no
assurance of product quality was provided. Every-day-low-price offers were
also vulnerable to negative quality inference, while fiee gifts fiames
maintained quality perceptions and increased deal value. Product trial acts to
further magnify promotional fiaming effects.

Vyas, H. Preeta (2005) 26 attempted to study consumer preferences

with respect to sales promotion in FMCG category. It was found that sales
promotion offers which is unique, which offers immediate incentive
preferably of price-cut nature is likely to appeal to all consumer segments.
Janiszewski, Chris and Mrcus, Cunha (2004) 27 examined the argument
that the impact of price discount on the perceived attractiveness of the
product bundle depends on which product is discounted i.e., the discounts are
effective when they are assigned to the product that will receive the most
weight in the overall evaluation of the bundle. Results of six studies show
that the perceived value of the discount may also depend on referent specific
to each product.

Soo-Jiuan, Tan and Seow, Hwang, Chua (2004) 28 investigated the

impact of fiaming through the use of a vague scarcity restriction ("while
stocks last") on consumer's perception of promotional offers involving
different claim formats (tensile price claim such as "save up to 60 percent"
versus non-tensile price claim such as "save 60 percent") and different
amount of price discounts. The findings show that framing the sales offer
with such a vague scarcity restriction and using a tensile claims format
improve the consumer's perceived informational value of the offer, only if
exaggerated price discounts are involved.

Alain, dlAstous and ValMe, Landreville (2003) 29 report the results of

an experimental study where four characteristics of premium-based sales
promotions were manipulated in the context of a computer purchase. These
characteristics are: the attractiveness of the premium, the extent to which it
fits the product category, the reception delays of the premium, and the
mention of its value. The results show that these factors had interactive
effects on consumer reactions
 CHAPTER- 3

RESEARCH AND METHODOLOGY

The current thesis is focused on descriptive analysis methods, which means it is

based on secondary data obtained from various established sources.

The material available in the public domain on different websites such as

newspapers, magazines, journals, and various web-based outlets has been gathered
and analysed in order to draw any useful conclusions.
 CHAPTER-4
RESULT & DISCUSSIONS

Retail pharmacy is an especially regulated profession and thanks to the varied

restrictions placed on this profession comparable to Single Exit evaluation (SEP)
and restricted advertising of scheduled medication, retail pharmacies realize it
very difficult to grow revenue and profitability. within the drugss and connected
Substance management Act one zero one of 1965, Tsabalala-Msimang (2010)
states that no one shall advertise any drugs or scheduled substance purchasable
unless such promotion complies with prescribed requirements. Medicine is
outlined in the Act as “any substance or mixture of gear used or purporting to be
appropriate to be used or factory-made or sold in use of the diagnosis, treatment,
mitigation, modification or interference of disease, abnormal physical or
psychological state or the symptoms therefrom in man; or restoring, correcting or
modifying any bodily or psychic or organic perform in man and includes
veterinary medicine”, 2010).

In India, the advertising of medicines from schedule zero to schedule one is

allowable to the overall public however the advertising of medicines from
schedule 2 to schedule vi isn't allowed underneath the Medicines Act and rules
(Marketing Code Steering Committee, 2008). These regulations create an
environment in retail pharmacies where only fast-moving consumer goods
(FMCG) and schedule 0 and schedule 1 medication is permitted to be advertised.
Therefore, promotional material is limited to these items.
MARKETING PRICIPLES AND AUTHORITY IN PHARMACY

The healthcare pharmaceutical industry has agreed to incorporate the Marketing

Code (MCA) into a highly regulated environment to ensure fair and consistent
application across the industry. According to Article 18C of the Pharmaceutical
Law No. 101 of 1965, the Minister, after consulting the pharmaceutical industry
and other relevant parties, has the power to formulate regulations on the sale of
drugs, procedural substances and medical devices, including mandatory codes of
conduct. Authority in 2014 The health care company has agreed to subscribe to the
Indian Medical Device Marketing Code in accordance with the principles of self-
regulation set out in this code. The application of this code is entrusted to the
Marketing Code Administration MCA. It is important to ensure that health
professionals and the public have access to the basic information they need so that
they can access the health products they need and use and prescribe health products
in a way that is beneficial to the patient’s health. Morally advanced drugs, listed
substances and medical equipment play an important role in this process and must
be controlled and ensured.

The pharmaceutical industry planning its activities must comply with high ethical
standards and comply with applicable laws, regulations and professional
requirements. Compliance with the Guidelines ensures that ethical advertising
practices are followed when planning medical devices, pharmacists, pharmacists,
prescription drugs and promotional activities (Office of Marketing Guidelines). The
Department of Health (DOH) and the pharmaceutical industry have the
responsibility and responsibility to provide high-quality and affordable patient care
throughout India, while ensuring the provision of healthcare and medical equipment
information. Product associations merged and adopted the MCA Rules to
demonstrate the industry’s commitment to sell health care products to the general
public and health professionals.To this end, they also strive to ensure that
marketing is conducted in a responsible, professional and ethical manner in
accordance with the requirements of the MCA (Marketing Regulation Authority).

Offer and acceptance

A valid bid and a valid acceptance are required for the conclusion of a valid
contract in India, according to common law. Advertisements, on the other hand, are
commonly known as invitations to do business rather than legally binding deals. In
India, the buyer makes the bid, and the deal is only established until the buyer
accepts the offer.

Advertisement of price and price tickets

In India case law, it is argued that a price ticket should be considered as a bid in
general, and that any issues with the particular price ticket should be resolved by
reading the relevant implicit words displayed on the price ticket .

When it comes to the self-service setting in India neighbourhood pharmacies, the

bid and approval occur when the customer tenders the price to the cashier and when
the customer removes the item from the counter, even though the price is already
marked on the shelf. Nonetheless, under the Consumer Protection Act, intentional
advertisement with a misleading price will be called detrimental advertising.

Puffing, warranties and misrepresentation

A warranty is a statement made at or at the time of a contract's signing. Failure to
comply with the warranty is called a breach of contract, and the consumer is
entitled to restitution in this case. A puff is sales talk that no sensible person can
take serious and, as a rule, is not actionable. When a description becomes a credible
assertion, though, the statement is no longer a puff and must be a statement of fact
rather than belief.

PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES IN TERMS OF THE CONSUMER

PROTECTION ACT

Barnard defines promotional practises as actions taken by a retailer or distributor to

advertise a product, service, or brand. It also involves advertisement or marketing
via platforms such as television, radio, and blogs, as well as personal sales via
platforms such as door-to-door sales or merchandise, service, and brand promotion
via newspapers, media, or event sponsorship. With this in mind, the ultimate aim of
any advertising activity is to maximise product and service revenue while also
raising customer awareness of the brand.

PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITY

When researching the subject, there are several different reasons for promotional
behaviour. Phillip Kotler, a marketing guru, describes marketing as "the science
and art of discovering, generating, and providing value to meet the needs of a target
group at a profit." Unmet expectations and preferences are identified through
marketing. It determines, calculates, and quantifies the size and benefit opportunity
of the defined sector. It determines the market markets the business is ideally suited
to serve and develops and promotes the required goods and services”. As a result,
all customers, including those in retail pharmacies, need promotional activity.

TYPES OF PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITY CURRENTLY IN USE

The retail setting needs promotional methods that are centered on the particular
shopper targeted Associate in Nursingd it's important that the platform used is
that the correct path to the specified consumer.

Digital promotions are giving the additional ancient retailers like pharmacies a run
their cash and these traditional businesses then have confidence customers
physically visiting their stores for services offered and that they ought to make
sure that their promotional activities are value-adding and have the most effective
likelihood of not solely attracting customers, however rather keeping them as
semipermanent shoppers. Chad (2017) wrote an article concerning widespread
promotions however with a particular concentrate on current eminent ventures as
utilized by numerous proved leaders. Current promotional activities utilized by
eminent firms and leaders are in short delineated below-

Offer delivery specials

In India, the online presence of most corporate retail stores poses a significant
challenge to all pharmacy businesses, including corporate and independent retail
pharmacies. Existing pharmacies must improve their game in order to stay
successful. Delivery discounts are a fantastic offering to use because they can ease
any concerns a consumer may have about taking their orders home. This service
would bring value to the retailer's operation and reduce the chance of consumers
switching to an online retailer or a nearby rival that does provide distribution.

Optimize promotions online for local searches

Retail pharmacies who depend on foot traffic can't rely on word of mouth to thrive,
but they need to be sure that their clients can look for goods and services in their
neighbourhood even though they aren't in the shop. The shop will appear at the top
of internet searches with the aid of regional digital marketing. It's critical to provide
location information, photographs, directions, and operating hours on a dedicated
website and Facebook profile.

Promotional pricing for the consumers

There are a few common promotional pricing concepts that can be used in the shop,

• Markdowns imply that premiums on a wide variety of goods are discounted for all
consumers. When accompanied by promotional campaigns, this is usually
successful.

• If you know that such items are in high demand, you should use loss leaders. To
entice shoppers into the market, these items are then sold at a deep discount. It's
also a perfect way to get more foot traffic when selling overstocked goods.

• Bundle pricing is a smart way to give customers the impression that they are
getting a good deal.

Offer the consumer free sampling

Wing (2015) believes that demo pieces are inexpensive to manufacture but are a
significant source of increased sales for both online and offline retailers. Customers
may like the offering and be impressed with the use of the product if brands have a
risk-free proposition, and further purchases may be produced as a result.

ELEMENTS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATION MIX

Marketing strategies include several options, some of which include advertising,

public relations and promotions, personal sales and promotions, all of which are
market-specific. The combination of these elements is called a marketing
communication mix, designed to meet the needs of the target market. Marketing
can be broadly described as a series of steps that are used to deliver value that
customers can remember and build relationships with, provide business for them,
and create revenue for them.

The marketing mix has a significant impact on the business. Bay’s research
confirms that having an organization that applies a marketing mix to its business
strategy will help increase the company’s sales and profits. Confusion-that is, price,
product, location, and advertising-is seen as a controllable tool that can greatly
meet customer needs.

Once all the elements are clearly understood, business providers can influence
potential and existing customers to continue their business, but most importantly,
become loyal customers. Marketing mix is considered to be the most basic concept,
which needs to be clearly understood before formulating effective marketing
strategies. Factors that affect the marketing mix include product, location, price,
and advertising, all of which can have a significant impact on purchasing decisions.

Advertising

Advertising is a form of non-personal mass communication that gives those

responsible for creating and delivering advertising messages a great deal of control,
but the ability of advertising to persuade the target audience to think or behave in
certain ways is suspect. the impact on sales is extremely difficult to measure.
Advertisements are also not credible, as the public believes less in messages
delivered through advertising than they do in messages received through other
tools.

Sales Promotion

Sales promotion refers to a variety of marketing tactics that are often used tactically
to bring value to a product or service with the aim of and sales and collecting
marketing data. Sales marketing, like advertisements, is a nonpersonal means of
persuasion, but it has the advantage of being able to reach smaller markets. It is
manageable, because although it must be compensated for, the resulting costs will
be much smaller than ads.

Personal Selling

Personal sale is historically thought of as an interactive contact mechanism that

entails people, often representing an organisation, engaging in face-to-face
interactions in order to advise, encourage, or remind an entity or party to take
suitable action as directed by the sponsor's representative. A salesperson
communicates with each customer one-on-one, allowing for immediate feedback.
In most cases, the costs of human contact are very high.

Public Relations

The art and science of analysing patterns, forecasting their results, counselling
organisations' leadership, and initiating proposed programmes of action that can
benefit both the organization's and the public interest is known as public relations.
This description implies that public relations should be seen as part of a larger
business plan, which is explored in depth in The growing popularity of public
relations, especially advertising, illustrates the high level of trust that this mode of
communication commands. The distribution of messages by third-party sources
such as magazines, websites, or television programmes is referred to as publicity.

Direct Marketing

In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the use of direct marketing
for businesses. It denotes a change of emphasis from mass to individualised
communication. Direct mail, telemarketing, and the rapidly growing field of digital
communications are examples of through-the-line communications.

Types of product

 Brand medicines
 Generics medicines

Brand medicines

The word "brand name medicine" refers to medicines that can only be
manufactured and marketed by the corporation that owns the copyright. Typically,
brand-name drugs are granted a patent lasting about 20 years, providing protection
to the corporation that invested in the new product's research, production, and
marketing.

Generics medicines

Generic medications are brand-name prescription replicas with the same doses,
benefits and side effects, administration method, risks and protection, and power as
the initial medicine; this means that the pharmacological effects are equivalent to
those of brand-name products.

Generics must prove that they are bioequivalent to the labelled original. The term
"bioequivalence" refers to the requirement that the generic release the active
ingredient at the same time and to the same degree as the brand-name drug.
 CHAPTER-5
Conclusion

 There are two main types of important products in the pharmaceutical

market: brand-name drugs and generic drugs. Compared with other
countries. The market is based on three main players: the country, doctors
and patients. Some of the main challenges in the industry are government
price controls, the cost of new product launches, and the increasing number
of people influencing product choices, which means they are no longer
important.

 Other sources of information are pharmacists, patient groups, and mainly the
Internet. Here, the consumer behavior of pharmacy customers was examined
to find out the factors that constitute the basis of consumer behavior and
decision-making, and influence their choice of pharmacies and their choice
of non-prescription and non-prescription drugs at similar prices.

 Consumers in metropolitan areas and all age groups. , Bottom and no. The
research was almost exclusively conducted in selected pharmacies, but it also
targeted residents of single-story buildings and friends of the author.

 The study can investigate how consumers contact pharmacists in pharmacies,

and how pharmacists are aware of their impact on customers and how they
use their knowledge to help them make decisions. The first research
objective provides excellent guidance for advertising strategies.

 Every pharmacy that wants to increase sales and gross margins should
develop its strategy based on the results of this research.
 Correlation shows you what to do. Each correlation can be applied to the
shopping situation in the store and used to manage the store. On how to best
work with your customers.

 An example of a strong association between promotional gifts and in-store

displays can be applied to stores. When companies use in-store display
services, in order to get the best results, they must provide customers with
some form of gift. .

 The fourth goal of the survey shows that respondents would rather shop in
company pharmacies than in private pharmacies. Therefore, independent
pharmacies must adopt more aggressive advertising measures in order to
provide their consumers with a more comfortable shopping experience. The
supplements should be reviewed based on the results of this research.

 As sales resources, consumers prefer free products, coupons, and incentives

in pharmacies. For their respective advertising campaigns, all pharmacies
should consciously strategize in this direction.

 Given the clear positive associations between promotional behaviours such

as in-store demonstrations and promotional purchasing behaviour, as well as
in-store demonstrations and loyalty and incentives, there is definitely room
for stores to combine these strong correlating factors in their approach.

 The analysis shows results that answer the research queries on pharmacy
customers’ choice of pharmacy and selection of unlisted medicines,
supported the choices printed within the form that's used.

 The research will suggests that pharmacy location is incredibly important and
shoppers are very probably to use a particular pharmacy several times. It
conjointly showed that the opinions and suggestions of the pharmaceutical
employees are important for the selection of unlisted medicines.
 Chapter 6

SUMMARY

 This chapter aims at presenting a summary and discussion of the main

conclusions that were reached through the research. This study analysed the
 buyer behaviour in retail pharmacies within the numerous retail pharmacy
chains.

 The study disclosed various promotional activities that the shoppers in retail
pharmacies like on top of others. sturdy positive and negative correlations
were found between variety of known factors which is able to guide
managers and homeowners of those specific retail pharmacies in their future
promotional campaigns.

 Thus, the conclusion of this study is that each one pharmacies, each severally
in hand and corporate, got to first off accommodates all moral and legal
needs of promoting and promotions in pharmacy and second align their
promotional strategy with their consumer preferences. By doing in order that
they are probably to govern the buyer behaviour in their stores to such a
degree that their revenue will increase considerably and sustainably.

 The research was found to be extremely useful in understanding consumer

behaviour in retail pharmacies in India, especially in terms of promotional
activity. Consumers continue to use discount cards at major corporate
pharmacies, which presents a significant opportunity for small pharmacies in
the future.

 The objective of all paid promotion should be to induce indications.

 each social media broadcast formed need to be connected to a landing page
and therefore, the landing page to embrace a choice .

REFRENCES

 Alain, dlAstous and Valdrie, Landreville (2003), "An Experimental

Investigation of Factors Affecting Consumers' Perceptions of Sales
 Promotions", European Journal of Marketing, Volume: 37, Number
11, pp. 1746 - 176

 Alverez, Begoiia and Casielles, Vhquez, Rodolfo (2005), "Consumer

Evaluations of Sales Promotion: The Effect on Brand Choice", European
Journal of Marketing, Vol. 39, Number: 1 pp. 54 - 70.

 Bailey, Anthony, Ainsworth (2005), "Non-Fulfillment of Promotional

Deals: The Impact of Gender and Company Reputation on Consumers'
Perception and Attitudes", Journal of Retailing and Consumer services,
Vol. 12, Issue 4, July, pp. 285-295

 Darke, R Peter. and Chung, MY. Cindy (2005),"Effects of Pricing on

Consumer Perception: It Depend on How You Frame It", Journal of
Retailing, Vol. 8 1, Issue 1, pp. 35-47.

 Janiszewski, Chris and Mrcus, Cunha (2004), "The Influence of Price

Discount Framing on the Evaluation of a Product Bundle", Journal of
Consumer Research, 30, March, pp. 534-546.

 Kumar, KM. Krishna (2006) "Consumer Perception About

Promotional Strategies Adopted By Marketers: A Study with
Reference to Fast Moving Consumer Goods in Kerala", PhD. Thesis,
University of Calicut, April.

 Tan, Soo-Jiuan and Chua, Hwang, Seow (2004), "While Stocks Last!"
Impact of Framing on Consumers' Perception of Sales Promotions",
Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 2 1, Number: 5, pp. 343 - 355.

 Vyas, H. Preeta (2005), "Measuring Consumer Preference for Sales

Promotion Schemes Through Conjoint Design in FMCG Sector",
 Working Paper, NO. 2005-09-08, IIM, Ahmedabad.

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Submission Information

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Title DISSERTATION
Submission/Paper ID 264616
Submission Date 22-Apr-2021 11:53:41
Total Pages 30
Total Words 6936

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