Factors Affecting Consumer Buying Behaviour Of Two Wheelers In Kathmandu Valley

Introduction

Background of the study

In developing country like Nepal, where public mode of transportation is not much convenient and comfortable and increasing amount of traffic jams has created a demand for two wheelers. People prefer buying two wheelers as it is affordable, convenient and easy to ride in the streets of Nepal. Consumer behaviour is comparatively a new field of study. The firm’s focused on final markets are immersed highly in competitive systems. As the seller’s market has disappeared and buyer’s market has come up, this led to paradigm shift of the manufacturer‘s attention from product to consumer and specially focused on the consumer behaviour. The transformation of marketing concept from mere selling concept to consumer-oriented marketing has resulted in buyer behaviour becoming an independent discipline. Consumer buying behaviour basically comprises of consumer’s attitudes, preferences, intentions and their decisions that affects their buying pattern. It includes difference disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, and economics as well. The growth of consumerism and consumer legislation has therefore given more importance to the consumer.However, as every consumer is different and their buying behaviour is affected by different factors, this heterogeneity among people has made understanding consumer behaviour a challenging task to marketers. Hence marketers felt the need to obtain an in-depth knowledge of consumers buying behaviour. The knowledge acts as an imperative tool for marketers to forecast the future buying behaviour of consumers and devise marketing strategies to create long term consumer relationship.

Two Wheelers are emerging as a major component of Nepal’s automobile market and they account for a significant share of annual sales. Most of the brands like Honda, Suzuki, Hero, Yamaha, Bajaj, Mahindra etc sell the large number of two wheelers in the country. These two wheelers not only come in various affordable price ranges but also with different designs and features. In 10 years of time the nation has seen a huge boom in the use of two wheelers by its citizen. The two wheeler has become an important mode of transportation, it has become the most popular and in demand among all consumer classes except the most affluent ones who would prefer four wheeler. Two wheelers increasing demand and popularity has led companies to enhance itself with new stylish designs, focus on fuel efficiency.

Statement of the Problem

As there is increasing demand of two wheelers in Nepalese market, various Indian brand motorcycles, scooters have entered the market and have made a market share. For consumers there are lot of varieties of brands to choose from while making a buying decision of two wheelers. Mostly youths are seen to be more driven and attracted towards the two wheelers as it affordable and convenient and for some it even has a style quotient. But what exactly are the factors that actually lead an individual to buy a motorbike/scooter of a particular brand?

Objective of the study

The major objective of the study are as follows:

General Objective: To analyze the factors affecting buying preferences of two wheelers in Nepal.

Specific Objective:

• To analyze impact of price on buying preferences of two wheelers
• To analyze impact of design on buying preferences of two wheelers
• To analyze impact of comfort on buying preferences of two wheelers
• To analyze impact of mileage on buying preferences of two wheelers
• To analyze impact of after sales service on buying preferences of two wheelers
• To analyze impact of brand on buying preferences of two wheelersю

Research Question

• What is the relationship between price and buying preferences of two wheelers?
• What is the relationship between design and buying preferences of two wheelers?
• What is the relationship between comfort and buying preferences of two wheelers?
• What is the relationship between mileage and buying preferences of two wheelers?
• What is the relationship between after sales services and buying preferences of two wheelers?
• What is the relationship between brand and buying preferences of two wheelers?

Significance of the Study

Nepalese Automobile Industry has undergone tremendous change from the earlier times. Over the years the consumer behaviour toward the two wheeler has changed drastically and has become more dynamic. This makes the organizations to understand the various impact that consumer behaviour have on marketing strategies and on sales.

Literature Review

Past Literature Review

Megharaja (October 2014) in their study entitling ‘Customers’ opinion towards Hero-Honda Splendor bike’ with the objective to know the customers’ expectations towards Splendor bike. In his findings, the respondents were satisfied with appearance and style of bike and its performance. Respondents gave more emphasis on the maintenance cost rather than the purchase cost. According to his finding more than half the respondents wanted change in the features of the bike, whereas more many thought that the price charged was high for the product, on the other hand almost all were satisfied with the current services provided by the company 97% of the respondents were still expecting more mileage from the bike. Based on his findings he suggested to reduce prices of the two wheelers to target medium income people to provide service warranty and increase the number of service centres.

Keshav & Samadhan (August 2014) in their study topic ‘Pre-purchase behaviour amongst the youth for two wheelers with special reference to Mumbai city’ focused on finding out the impact of various parameters which affect buying decision and know the existing marketing strategies of two wheeler companies. It was found from the study that most of the young individuals prefer bike that was aesthetically appealing and cost effective.

In a study conducted by Tamilmozhi & Satheeshkumar (September 2013), the study found out that the Yamaha has superior technology, Around 60% consumers belonged to students category Also the most influencing factor was found to be mileage per litre. Yamaha was favoured compared to Hero- Hondo due to its speed, on the other hand respondents seem to buy the motorbikes based on the design, its style and model as well. However as Hero-Honda has more demand than Yamaha, it was suggested to increase the sales and distribution channels to meet the heavy demand. Also as per the research most of the youths seemed to be attracted towards hero-Honda range of bikes, it was also suggested to increase the design and model keeping in mind the middle aged individuals and to target that segment. In case of Yamaha bikes, it was suggested to lower the price to attract more consumer and to improve technological aspect for TVS bikes.

In a study conducted by Vijaya & Jayachitra (October 2011) under ‘Customer perception with two wheelers’ with the objective to understand about the customer perception towards Hero-Honda vs. TVS and Bajaj motorcycles Based upon the suggestions the findings were: Hero Honda should introduce eco friendly bikes. The company could also take measures to lower the price of genuine spare parts so that the customers can buy genuine spare parts. Bajaj should focus on improving the image of its two wheelers for women category and different steps should be taken by TVS to improve its brand image, the brand also needs to work on its mileage and input in the latest technology to stay in the completion with Bajaj and Hero-Honda.

Vickram (May 2010) concentrated his research in ‘A study on the consumer preferences and their satisfaction towards TVS two wheelers in Chennai city’ to identify the user satisfaction level on various aspects of TVS bikes. He used different variables that were found to be influencing satisfaction level such fuel efficiency, seat comfort, aesthetic look, clutch wires etc. It was found in the consumers’ survey that they looked at 5 criteria’s such as fuel efficiency, price, reliability, style and power. It was concluded from the study that satisfaction has a positive effect on the brand loyalty their motivation to recommend and suggest the brand to others. He further suggested to improve the different other aspects such as technological, mileage, power, design, looks, safety measures and ergonomics and also focus on developing customer relationship management.

Soni and Abhishek (2012) in their combined study on “Consumer behaviour of rural and urban areas of district Jodhpur, Rajasthan towards two wheeler bikes.” The objective of the study was to identify the factors which influence the consumers buying behaviour. The factors taken for purpose of research were product quality, size, colour, design, weight, credit facility, family, and advertisements. Based on the research findings taken from the sample of 100 respondents from rural and urban population from Jodhpur, it was found that consumer preference was more toward mileage factor at the time of purchase and the least preferred was style and performance. And price was important factor for 34% in urban, followed by 30% in rural. Additionally, family also played an important role especially spouse which influenced most of the purchasing decisions in urban area whereas on the other hand friends seemed to have an influencing role in purchasing decision in rural area. was found as most important factor, which influences urban consumer’s purchase decision, and in rural, friends have more influence on purchase decision. Based on the market review among different promotional medium, advertising was considered as most powerful medium and among it television constitute to the most powerful and influencing consumers buying decision.

Review of Nepalese Literature

In a research conducted by Riya Malla for “Fatcors Affecting Brand preferences of Scooters among women consumer in Kathmandu Valley”, it is found that majority of the respondents considered comfort, mileage and design as the top three important factors that influence brand preference of scooters. Factors such as price, mileage, comfort level, colour variety, design, size of fuel tank and spare parts supply have significant role in the brand preference of scooters, which means a favorable change in these factor can lead to brand preference of the customers. Whereas, resale value and durability are factors which have no significant relationship with brand preference of scooters among women consumers.In a study conducted by Hikamt Subedi “ (Subedi)” on Bajaj and Yamaha motorbikes both have greater presence in market as compared to others. They tend to influence their consumers in terms of marketing in greater degree. It was found that average no. of people were found to be consciousness regarding the brand. It was found that average no. of people were found to be consciousness regarding the brandit was found that majority of people were of habitual of buying products by inspection and by influence rather than by following the brands except on the parts of “motorbikes”.

Research Gap

There are few researches done on the aspect of two wheelers in the Kathmandu valley. The two wheeler industry is increasing with growing competitors challenging with new features, design and price. This has created a competition and challenge for marketer to devise marketing strategies. With this view in mind not much of the research has been conducted in Nepalese market that helps companies to understand the factors affecting the buying behaviour of customers. With the help of findings from different researchers and this research as well, it will help depict the factors affecting the buying behaviour of two wheelers in Kathmandu valley and the significance of factor that is most likely to affect the said purchasing decision.

Conceptual Framework and Hypothesis

Price

In recent context, Nepalese are not sensitive with the pricing of two wheelers. Price factor plays minimum role in purchase decision of two wheelers. Rather than price, people are more concern towards comfort, design and market trend. The automobile dealers introducing cheaper two wheelers in the market have tremendous pressure on meeting sales target.

Design

Designs of the vehicle have played key role as determinants for influencing buying decision among the consumers. There are huge numbers of youth attracted towards two wheelers and their buying decision is influence by the design of the vehicle rather than its price.

People are ready to pay huge sum of amount to procure two wheelers which look fancy. Cheaper two wheelers with high performance value are sold lesser than expensive two wheelers with average performance with eye-catching designs.

Comfort

With design, comfort to use factor plays important role. Comfortable two wheelers are priced higher in the market, and their sales growth has always been in increasing trend. Usually, vehicle are purchased with long term vision, hence consumer pays more than average price for comfortable two wheelers.

Mileage

Consumer belonging in youth group are irresponsive with this factor. Mileage to them, play less role than design and comfort in buying decision. Whereas, consumer belonging to mid age group are very sensitive with mileage of the vehicle. With the growing traffic around the city and price of fuel, consumer tends to choose two wheelers with better mileage.

After Sales Service

After sales service has always been priority for the consumers. Automobiles with numerous service stations give consumer positive message regarding after sales service. After sales service have been key factor in retention of new brands in market. Electric two wheelers have not gained popularity due to lack of after sales service and service station.

Brand

Brands have been key factors in influencing buying decision. Brand with regional presence are less chosen. Brands such as KTM DUKE has gained popularity among youth in very short span of time due to its presence in international market.

In other hand, brand such as TVS has not gained as much popularity among consumers irrespective of its marketing due to its regional presence.

Research Methodology

Research Design

The research design adopted for this study is descriptive based on survey study. This study mainly aims factors influencing buyers behaviour of two wheelers in the Nepalese market. The data and information collected from the survey of the consumer are rearranged, tabulated, analyzed, and interpreted according to the need of the study for attaining the stated objectives. It will use primary data collected from different individuals with the help of questionnaire.

Population and Sampling

All the consumers having two wheelers in Kathmandu Valley are considered as the population of this study. Samples of two wheelers users will be taken for this study through non probability sampling technique. Under this technique convenience sampling would be used to minimize the complexity. The respondents will include people from different homogeneous groups: Students, Private and Government Employees, Business Person and Unemployed. The people selected for this study would be above 16 years, living in Kathmandu valley. The sample population included would therefore be from different age group, income group and occupation.

Nature and Sources of Data

For the purpose of the research both qualitative and quantitative data will be collected. The sources of data will be past researches, newspaper, articles, journals, questionnaires with individuals.

Data collection techniques and toolsThe data will be collected from different secondary sources such as past research paper, journals, articles, newspaper. Also for collecting primary sources of data, a 5 point Likert scale questionnaire will be developed based on the factors to collect information from consumers. On the basis of the data collected the information will be tabulated and analysed to generalize the findings of the research.

Data Analysis Procedure

The data collected for the research will be analysed using difference statistical tools such as mean, median, standard deviation and a t-test will be used for analysing the results of the study. The data collected will be analysed using statistical software such as SPSS and also for tabulations and programs such as MS Excel will be used.

Ethical Considerations

The ethical considerations that will be considered while conducting the research will be

1. The participants will be clearly informed about the purpose of the study and use of the study.
2. The confidentiality and privacy of the participants will be maintained.
3. Participants will be given freedom whether they want to participate in the research or not
4. No pressure will be made on the individual to participate in the research.

Conclusion

As we know the preferences, taste and priorities of each individual is changing with the change in technology and time. There have been phenomenal changes in the consumer buying behaviour which has led to a new discipline of study. There are different factors that can affect the consumer buying behaviour some of which will be closely researched and studied in this study. Thi study will therefore help bring out a new paradigm in the understanding the field of two wheeler which in turn will help marketers organizations, consumers, new businesses as well as for future researches.