NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes

ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

ASSIGNMENT

1. ONLINE SHOPPING – AN OVERVIEW

 C.K. Sunitha ** Dr. M. Edwin Gnanadhas Ph.D

ABSTRACT

Now a days the life style of the people is different. People feel uncomfortable and time
consuming for going crowded markets. So, E-Shopping is a boon as it saves lot of time.
Online shopping is a process whereby consumers directly buy goods, services etc. from a
seller without an intermediary service over the Internet. Shoppers can visit web stores from
the comfort of their house and shop as by sitting in front of the computer. Online stores are
usually available 24 hours a day and many consumers have internet access both at work and
at home. So it is very convenient for them to shop Online. One of the most enticing factors
about online shopping, particularly during holiday season is, it alleviates the need to wait in
long lines or search from a store for a particular item. Variety of goods are available in online.
So the researcher want to know the preference of the consumers. So fifty respondents were
met and data were collected regarding their preference towards shopping online.

Key Words: Encryption, Preference, Perception, Spammers

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
 Hirschman and Holbrook ,(1982) , suggest that “Motivations of Consumers to
engage in online shopping include both utilitarian and hedonic dimension. Whereas some
Internet shoppers can be described as “problem solvers” others can be termed seeking for
‘fun, fantasy, arousal, sensory stimulation and enjoyment’.”

 Babinetal., (1994) suggest that, “The problem solvers merely shop online in order
to acquire a specific product or service, in which case shopping is considered to be ‘an
errand’ or ‘work’.

 Holbrook (1994) says that, “Their main concern is to purchase products in an

efficient and timely manner to achieve their goals with a minimum of irritation of
irritation. In contrast the second category sees online shopping as ‘enjoyment’ and seeks
for the potential entertainment resulting from the fun and play arising from the
Internet shopping experience for its own sake apart from any other consequence ”

 Childers et al.,(2001) found “ ‘enjoyment’ to be a consistent and strong predictor

of attitude towards online shopping. If consumers enjoy their online shopping
experience, they have a more likely to adopt the Internet as a shopping medium”

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It Is difficult for the online seller to identify the customers’ wants and needs, since potential
customers are large in number. It is important to identify the factors that influence the
customers to prefer online shopping. Therefore, the study is undertaken by the researcher.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The present study has made an attempt to understand the customer’s preference towards
online shopping. Online shopping is an emerging concept in the study area.

This study enables to understand the customer preference towards shopping and provides
insight about online shopping.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
The objective is:

To analyze the preference of the sample respondents.

PERIOD OF THE STUDY: The field of this study is carried out for three months from
December 2013 to March 2014.

METHODOLOGY: This study is carried out on the basis of both Primary and Secondary
Sources. These collection of data were presented in the following sections.

PRIMARY DATA: Primary data were collected by means of systematically prepared

questionnaire from online purchasers in Nagercoil town. In order to carryout statistical
enquires a questionnaire was prepared comprising age, gender, educational qualification,
information about the preference of the respondents.

SECONDARY DATA: Secondary data has been collected from various Books, Journals,
Thesis and websites.

SAMPLE DESIGN:The study is descriptive and analytical. It is descriptive in the sense it

exist at present and it includes facts and findings. It is analytical in the sense it involves
analysis of the collected data and information. The researcher has selected 50 samples from
the customers in Nagercoil town. The relevant data were collected through questionnaires.
The researcher used the method of convenient sampling technique.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

This study has certain limitations.

The area of the study covers only Nagercoil town.

1. Today’s findings may not hold true for the future.

2. The study was only made up of the users of online shopping.

FRAMEWORK OF ANALYSIS:

The collected data were analyzed through Garret’s Ranking, Technique.

NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
CONCLUSION: The researcher made a thorough analysis over the Study of customer
preference towards online shopping with reference to Nagercoil town. It is of the
opinion that , though there are a number of products available in the market , large
number of respondents mostly prefer to purchase Books through online shopping.
Because variety of Books are available while searching online web stores.

REFERENCE:-

1. Babin, B.J., Darden, W.R and Griffin M (1994), “Work and /or fun; measuring
hedonic and utilitarian shopping value, “Journal of consumer Research, Vol. 20, pp
644-656.
2. Childers, T.L., Carr, C.L. Peck, J and Carson, S (2001), “Hedonic and utilitarian
motivations for online retail shopping behavior”, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 77, No. 4.
Pp. 511-535.
3. Hirschman, E.C. and Holbrook, M.B. (1982), “Hedonic Consumption; emerging
concepts, methods and proportions”, Journal of marketing, Vol: 48, No. 3, pp 92-101.
4. Holbrook, M.B (1994), “The nature of customer value; an axiology of services in the
consumption experience”, in Rust, R.T and Oliver, R.L (Eds), service quality; New
directions in theory and practice, sage, New bury park, CA, pp 21-71.

2. CUSTOMERS PREFERENCE TOWARDS ONLINE SHOPPING

*Mrs. R. Kavitha **Dr. Inbalakshm

ABSTRACT.
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
In the age of globalization electronic marketing is of a immense revolution. Over the last ten
years most of the business organizations are implementing to this technology to market their
several products. Online shopping offers an tremendously different shopping experience for
people in developing nations like India. Convenience is one of the main reasons for going
into online shopping. Large discounts and offers provided by the online sellers also appeal to
numerous buyers. This study tries to discover the customer preference towards online
shopping. The data is taken from 156 respondents using convenience sampling method who
use online shopping facilities. The purpose of this study is to scrutinize the preference and
attitudes of customers towards online shopping and the insights of male and female
customers. The study also helps to determine the key factors that affect the buying behavior
of customers. ANOVA, Descriptive analysis are applied to find out the customers’ preference
towards online shopping. The findings of this study indicates that Age, Gender, Income,
Profession and Family structure are critical factors that influence online shopping.

Key words: Online shopping, Customer Preference, ANOVA, Descriptive Statistic

Statement of the problem

This study has been carried out on the title, “ A study on customer’s preference towards
online shopping” . The study talks about the various factors like security, website design, time
convenience, comparability of products – to analyse what are all the factors influencing
online shopping preference.

Review of literature

Thomoson S.H.TEO (2002) has underlined the aspects of online shopping and provides a
better understanding of the potential of electronic commerce. He stated that security and trust
issues are the major deterrents to online purchase. He also stated that to handle security
concerns business could offer cheque payment, payment on delivery terms, money back
guarantees and monthly instalemnt schemes.
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
Gwo-gung Lee and Huiu-Fen Lin Taiwan (2005) examined the relationship among e-service
quality dimensions and overall service quality, customer satisfaction and purchase intensions.
They found that online website design positively affects overall service quality and customer
satisfaction.

Mohammed T.Nuseir3 , et al (2013) stated that lack of high quality and e-promotion restricts
the consumer decision to purchase through Internet.

Nur Ozer Canarslan4 (2013) stated that there is significant difference between the responses
of the participants encountered during online shopping and also problems like issues about
privacy and security, page loading and speed are not highly effective in encountering
problems.

Objectives of the study

(i) To ascertain the most preferred website among the selected websites and the
reasons for preferring them.
(ii) To analyse the factors influencing the customer preference towards online
shopping.

Hypothesis

H0: There is no significant difference between Age, Gender, Marital status, Religion, Area of
residence, and Family structure, and Online shopping preferences.

Methodology

This study is an empirical study based on survey conducted from 156 respondents selected by
using convenient sampling. Primary data have been collected from the respondents by using a
well structured questionnaire and secondary data have been collected through Magazines,
Journals, Newspapers and Internet.

Analysis and Interpretation of data

The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software 16 was used to analyze the
data for this study.
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
Conclusion

In the midpoint of technological improvements people mostly prefer online shopping to

traditional shopping. Online shopping has come to be most popular and is extremely
convenient. Though it is convinent there are various factors like price, quality of the products,
comparison of quality and price between products, mode of payment, security which
customers’ look before online shopping. The online retailers must conscious of these factors
to be successful and keep hold of the customers. Online shopping is growing tremendously in
a positive manner.

References

(1) THOMPSON S.H. TEO (2002) ,” Attitudes towards online shopping and the Internet”
, Behaviour and information technology.

Retrieved from: https://

(2) ‘GWO-Gung Lee , Huiu-Fen Lin Taiwan(2005), “ Customer preferences of e-service

quality in online shopping”, International Journal Of Retail And Distribution
Management.
(3) Mohammed T.Nusier, Nitin Arora, Morad M.A. Masri and Mazhar Gharaibeh
(2013) ,” Evidence of online shopping”, International Review Of Business Research
Papers. Volume6.Number 5, Nov 2010.

(4) Nur ozer canarslan (2013) “A comparision of customers responses to E-service

quality statements: customer encountered Vs not encountered problems”, International
Journal of Business And Social Science.
(5) Kavitha R. and Inbalakshm (2018), “Customers preference towards online shopping”
International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts. Volume6. Issue Number 2, April
2018. ISSSn: 2320-2822.

Retrieved from: https://www.ijcrt 1807300.pdf

NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228

3. Topic : Social Media

Steven Fernandes

ABSTRACT

We have watched rapid developments for branding in social media in the last Couple of years and
the use of these platforms is stronger then ever these days, Reaching audiences worldwide through
multiplatform social media branding
Strategies. Social media can be an opportunity for business to: raise brand awareness, increase sales,
generate brand loyalty and to overall better communicate with customers, helping build long lasting
relationships. This creates a whole
New perspective in the way companies are used to conduct their businesses,
And also on the way we are used to communicate with others and with companies themselves. This
article provides for a literature review on the evolution
Of social media and how it became relevant to brands as a marketing tool to

Generate engagement .
INTRODUCTION: THE BEGINNING OF
SOCIAL MEDIA
Jenkins characterizes social media as a convergence culture: it translates into
Media convergence, participatory culture and collective intelligence. Social media was developed in
this unique combination of these parameters (JENKINS,
2006). Media convergence altered the “relationship between existing technologies, industries,
markets, genres, and audiences” and therefore might be
Considered a paradigm shifting culture. This altered the logic traditional media
Operated on and by which consumer’s process news and entertainment. The
Author believes this convergence is a process, not an end-point and we are already living in this
culture for quite some time now.

Erik Qualman (2009) refers to social media as the age of instant communication
And transparency calling it the glasshouse effect. He defines it as the tool to deal
With the excess information on the Internet: a way to “filter” the information you
Actually are searching for. Marketers no longer need to artificially create and
Push brand messages, they need to listen, engage and react to the potential
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
And current customer needs by embedding the brand in existing conversation.
Marketing and business models have changed and they need to shift to fully
Adapt to the impact and demands of social media. Companies receive feedback from costumers
using social media. Twitter, for example, is highly used to
Answer complaints. Whether those reviews about a product are good or bad, this action is changing
how businesses have to operate. Companies can take
The feedback as an opportunity to act and adjust it to better suit the needs
Of their public. People take their friends and peers opinions when it comes to
Choosing a restaurant, for example, rather then just using a research engine to
Search for it (QUALMAN, 2009).

According to Liana Evans (2010) with the hype of social media, companies think
It is easy to succeed online, thinking that all they need is a Facebook page to hit
Their audience, but that is not enough. People will continue to share conversations and experiences
without a company’s involvement. The appeal for social
Media is cross generations; some of the fast growing demographics are those
Of above 40 years old.
There are different types of social media and the authors refer to: [1] social news
Sites (sites that allow news stories, articles, blog posts, videos and photos to
The community e.g.: Digg, Reddit and NewsVine ); [2] social networking (which
Allows community members to upload photos, create groups, add fans, invite
Friends to events, post comments on photos, videos, tag friends ex: Facebook,
Instagram); [3] social bookmarking (sites that allow you to bookmark and share your favorite
websites with an entire community ex: Delicious and Magnolia); [4] social sharing (a common
feature among social media websites; social
Events; blogs; micro blogging; wikis; forums and message boards) (ibid.).
Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) define social media as “a group of Internet-based
Applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content’’. It Can describe different
types of collaboration applications such as projects (e.g., Wikipedia); blogs/micro-blogs (e.g.,

Twitter); content communities (e.g., YouTube); social networking sites (e.g., Facebook); virtual game
worlds (e.g., World of Warcraft); and virtual social worlds (e.g., Second Life). Li and Bernoff (2008)
categorize six types of social media technologies in the table below :-

SOCIAL MEDIA AND BRANDS

NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
McKee (2010) proposes a social media model (Figure 2). The author divides social media into “The
Social Media Trinity Model”. The model consists of dividing
social platforms into three dimensions by a particular purpose: networking,
conversation and community. This is a business making and brand awareness-
-raising model, in which the brand is at the centre, surrounded by the community, networking and
conversation (ibid.). [1] “Conversation creates opportunities
which creates revenue ”(ibid., p. 183); [2] “Community: Where one can communicate for a wider
audience. A place with participative communication” (ibid.,
p. 187); [3] Networking: Where one can participate in groups relevant to the
industry ( LinkedIn) connecting with other professionals. Connect with friends
and family and even their own brands, musicians, restaurants, etc (ibid., p. 191).

 SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY

It is generally accepted that it is important to have an online presence on the

Web, but how can business be sure that their brands are being relevant in all
Platforms? How can it maintain a position of relevance and consistency in all
The different types of channels?

Christodoulides (2009) states that because of the Internet phenomenon, brand

NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
Strategies have gone through significant transformations. In order to succeed in a
Computer/mobile mediated environment brands need to build relationships, enable interactivity
and better tailor offerings for the online world. McDonald (2007)
Affirms that the social media presence needs to be developed strategically to coordinate the
different views of the organization, its aims and activities, in order to plan

The different opportunities that arise in social media and social networking.
A business-aligned social media strategy addresses how social media and social networking
processes and technologies can be applied to an organization’s
Operations in order to fulfil its goals. Social media are collections of data and
Sources of information, these are developed collaboratively and shared interactively between
individuals and groups (BALDASSARRI, 2011).
Social media strategy is about establishing and nurturing authentic relationships in order to build
loyalty with your institution or brand. Some of these
Steps might include:
Listen to what is being said about the brand/product/service/company on the
Internet, specially your own social media network channels;
- Respond by engaging with people who talk about your brand or organization;
- Establish relationships with people in an honest and transparent way, and
Then keep them in an enthusiastic and engaging way;
Bring to your attention the insights of the people who engage with your
Brand/company. Evaluate that feedback and what implications it might have
For your organization (BOTTLES & SHERLOCK,2011).

CONCLUSIONS :-
As social media is in its ‘infant years’ it is hard to predict what might happen
To brands and users in the process. However, it is already being highly used as
A ROI tool for marketing and branding. Literature indicates that social media
Should have its own separate campaigns, but integrated in the long-term business strategy plan. We
should however make a strategy that targets consumer’s
Adequately in each platform.

Social media is everywhere, in our everyday life, turning the borders between
Our work and spare time more diffuse. Everybody has access to a computer, at
Home or at their workplace, people can use their smartphones to log in the internet from literally
everywhere they go.

Marketers approach branding for social media in a very quantitative way, using
Metrics and analytics to measure, compare, take conclusions and adjust their
Social media strategy efforts. Users are becoming more aware of these marketing tactics and
knowingly or not, allow their data to be used by companies’/
Brands for data analysis and statistical purposes. Eventually users will become
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
More interested in these matters and expect customized experiences and a better engagement with
the brands they follow/like and interact with.
The managing of digital is becoming very important for most organizations.
Companies need to adjust themselves to these new communication medias and
Embrace these new ways of making business and administrate relationships.
Therefore social media needs to embrace design to better craft experiences
With customers. In this new global scene the keywords are: interactivity, personalization,
globalization, integration, approximation, convergence and demo-cratization of information.

In this new era, the consumer has the final word and is the main actor. The consumer now has to be
part of the product being sold, and it is more and more
Becoming the product itself that companies aim to please or have some sort of
Contact with (for e.g.: Facebook holds our information and uses it commercially
To better aim products and services to us as potential consumers – e.g.: advertisements on the right
side of our public wall).

Consumers want to get something in return and there must be an appeal to

Them in order to do that. Advertisement can no longer be understand as a monologue, there has to
be a dialogue with the consumer, and for that to happen
Communication has to go online and it has to make sense in that medium. Designers have the tools,
expertise and skills to make social media branding success a reality. They can improve consumer’s
engagement with the brand; they
Can attract more customers and therefore generate more income. They also can
Make the brand more aware in people’s minds and in their everyday lives, thus
Improving brand equity in general.

REFERENCES
BALDASSARRI, Simone. Social Media Strategy. Available : <http://www.
Simonebaldassarri.com/strategy.html>. Acesso em: 5 dez. 2013.
BERTHON, Pierre R. et al. When customers get clever: managerial approaches to dealing with
creative consumers. Business Horizons, v. 50, n. 1, p.
39–47, 2007.
BEUKER, Ralf; ABBING, Erik Roscam. Two Faces of Social Media: Brand
Communication and Brand Research. Design Management Review, v.
21, n. 1, p. 54–60, mar. 2010. Available: <http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111
/j.1948-7169.2010.00051.x>.
BOTTLES, Kent; SHERLOCK, Tom. Who should manage your social media strategy? Physician
executive, v. 37, n. 2, p. 68–72, 2011. Disponível em: <http://
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21465899>.
BRIGGS, Tom. Social Media’s Second Act: Toward Sustainable Brand Engagement. Design
Management Review, v. 21, n. 1, p. 46–53, mar. 2010. Available:
http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/j.1948-7169.2010.00050.x.
CHRISTODOULIDES, G. Branding in the post-internet era. Marketing Theory, v.
9, n. 1, p. 141–144, 1 mar. 2009. Available: <http://mtq.sagepub.com/cgi/
Doi/10.1177/1470593108100071>. Acesso em: 17 nov. 2013.
NAME: Steven Selvin Fernandes
ROLL NO.: R/BCA-20-228
CORCORAN, Sean. Defining owned, earned, and paid media.