Research
A Comparison of Rural and Urban Buying of Consumer Durables
India is one of the fastest growing markets of the world. The potential not only lies in the urban India but in the rural India also. The study has been carried out to differentiate the buying behaviour of rural households from that of urban households. Three durable goods from three different product categories; Television (entertainment product), Refrigerator (home appliance), and an Automobile (twowheeler, motorcycle and car/jeep) have been selected for study. A sample of 411 (204 from urban and 207 from rural areas) households across the Punjab state (India) have been selected on the basis of nonprobability convenience sampling. Overall no significant differences could be observed between rural and urban consumers in terms of their; timing of purchase, buying the same brand of other durable, number of items, and duration of planning before buying. Habitat (rural or urban) has a relation with income for the timing of buying a television, refrigerator, and automobile except in case of buying of an automobile on festive / special occasion, where the income had no relation with habitat. There is a relation between habitat and income in terms of duration of planning for different time periods before the buying of a television and refrigerator. The habitat also reveals association with income in terms of planning for months before buying an automobile. No association has been observed between habitat and income in case of planning for few days, few weeks and years before buying an automobile.
Preference of Retailers – A Comparison of Rural and Urban Households
Cautious Buying: Differences between Rural and Urban Households
Rural markets in India are blossoming. Very few studies have been carried out in rural India for understanding the behaviour of the rural consumer and then customizing the products in accordance to their needs. A comparative study has been carried out to understand how rural and urban consumers buying behavior differ with respect to different types of influences on their buying behavior. The study was based on the sample of 411 (204 from urban and 207 from rural areas) households across the state selected on the basis of non-probability convenience sampling. Three durable goods from three different product categories Television (entertainment product), Refrigerator (home appliance), and an Automobile (two-wheeler, motorcycle and car/jeep) have been selected for study. Overall there are significant differences between rural and urban consumers for all the select products.
Influences on Rural and Urban Consumer Buying
Rural markets in India are big attraction these days. Marketers need to understand rural markets differently. A comparative study has been carried out to understand how rural and urban consumers buying behavior differ with respect to different types of influences on their buying behavior. The study was based on the sample of 411 (204 from urban and 207 from rural areas) households across the state selected on the basis of non-probability convenience sampling. Three durable goods from three different product categories Television (entertainment product), Refrigerator (home appliance), and an Automobile (two-wheeler, motorcycle and car/jeep) have been selected for study. Overall there are insignificant differences between rural and urban consumers for television and refrigerator. However there are considerable differences in case of automobiles.
