Factors Affecting Consumer Buying Decisions of Smartphones

ABSTRACT Purpose – Mobile phones are widely used amongst all age groups and are a fast-growing industry. Companies are penetrating the Asian Market for their growth. Various studies have been conducted on its consumer behavior aspects, but none covers the different facets of the issues involved. The purpose of this study is to get the inputs from various perspectives, in terms of influences, users, usage, satisfaction and replacement. Design/ Methodology – A survey was conducted across different age groups, and respondents belonging to different social and educational backgrounds hailing from different parts of the country. Analysis was done using SPSS software. Findings – The relative market share of major mobile phone manufacturers was ascertained. The usage pattern of mobiles for various apps was studied and it was found that Whatsapp is the most extensively used app followed by Facebook. The consumers look for attributes which were factor analyzed to give us Imperative (Camera, Multimedia, Touch screen, Memory Capacity, Color Display, Attractive Color of Phone, Design of Phone, Model/Style, Web Browsers, Brand Value/Quality, Reliability, New features and Appearance), Auxiliary (Complexity of Operating Systems, Battery Life, Language Keypad, Time taken to Charge, Warranty, Guarantee and Repair) and Trivial (FM Radio, Dual Sim and Domestic Product) factors. The findings also revealed that recommendation for review on the internet and friends influenced more than all other categories. Originality/Value – The Psyche of Indian consumer is different from western consumers in terms of the influences, usage of products and the importance of different attributes. The reluctance of consumer of switching to competitive brands is observed giving direction to the marketing drives of different mobile brand manufacturers. Research Limitation / Implication - The researchers have not considered the qualitative aspects of different apps while looking at only their average duration of usage. The research was conducted using online survey tools and results may vary if the research is conducted using a direct interview method.