Word of Mouth

Universit Des Mascareignes
The Effectiveness of Word-of-Mouth on Consumer Buying Behaviour: a Case Study of

J.Kalachand
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE-INTRODUCTION............................................................................. 3
1.0 Introduction..................................................................................................... 3
1.1 Company background........................................................................................ 3
1.2 Research Questions............................................................................................ 4
1.3 Research Objectives........................................................................................... 4
1.4 Conclusion....................................................................................................... 4
1.5 Summary of the project...................................................................................... 5
CHAPTER TWO- LITERATURE REVIEW..................................................................6
2.0 Introduction..................................................................................................... 6
2.1 Marketing........................................................................................................ 6
2.2 Marketing........................................................................................................ 7
2.3 Marketing Communications................................................................................ 8
2.4 Marketing Integrated Communication Strategies.....................................................8
2.4.1 Push and Pull Strategy.................................................................................... 8
2.4.2 Promotion.................................................................................................... 9
2.4.3 Types of Promotion...................................................................................... 10
2.5 Word of Mouth................................................................................................ 11
2.6 Consumer Behaviour........................................................................................ 12
2.7 Consumer Buying Behaviour............................................................................. 12
2.8 Viral Marketing............................................................................................... 14
2.9 Conclusion..................................................................................................... 15
CHAPTER THREE- METHODOLOGY.....................................................................16
3.0 Introduction................................................................................................... 16
3.1 The Research Design........................................................................................ 16
3.1.1 Types of Research........................................................................................ 16
3.1.2 Sampling................................................................................................... 17
3.1.3 The research Instrument................................................................................ 18
3.2 Administration of questionnaires.........................................................................19
3.3 Limitations of the study.................................................................................... 20
3.4 Elimination of Bias........................................................................................... 20
Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha
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3.5 Conclusion..................................................................................................... 20
CHAPTER FOUR- FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS..........................................................21
4.0 Introduction................................................................................................... 21
4.1 Analysis 1....................................................................................................... 21
4.2 Analysis 2....................................................................................................... 22
4.3 Analysis 3....................................................................................................... 23
4.4 Analysis 4....................................................................................................... 24
4.5 Analysis 5....................................................................................................... 25
4.6 Conclusion..................................................................................................... 25
CHAPTER FIVE- CONCLUSION.............................................................................. 26
5.0 Introduction................................................................................................... 26
5.1 Conclusion..................................................................................................... 26
CHAPTER SIX- RECOMMENTATION......................................................................27
6.0 Introduction................................................................................................... 27
6.1 Recommendation............................................................................................. 27
References.............................................................................................................. 29
Appendices
CHAPTER ONE-INTRODUCTION
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1.0 Introduction
Word of mouth is also known as WOM Marketing. Nowadays, word of mouth is becoming an
important marketing tactic. Word of mouth both negative and positive can have a profound
impact on consumer behaviour. If utilized correctly, it can go a long way to promote products
or service and build a perception created through this method can persist for a long time and
adversely effect to the marketing. Therefore the effect of word of mouth can be harsh as well
as beneficial (Solomon, 1996).
Consumer behaviour is a relatively young field of study. The first textbooks on consumer
behaviour were written in the 1960s. The field of consumer behaviour explores why people
make certain purchasing decisions, what products and services they buy, where they buy
them, how they use them, the frequency with which they purchase them, and the consumer
decision process in action. One of the important means of spreading information is word of
mouth.
1.1 Company background

In April 1967, Mr. Jayramdas Kalachand suffered a stroke. His son, Mr. Ramesh Kalachand,
then aged only 17, steeped in to manage the business. In December 1968, J. Kalachand & Co
Ltd. was formed.
In 1976, a rise in the export price of sugar caused an improvement in the purchasing power of
Mauritians as salaries went up by 30-40%. This was beneficial to business and Kalachand
Building (Lord Kitchener St.) was erected and opened at Port Louis, the capital, in November
1977. It was, in fact, the biggest shop at that time in Port Louis. In 1985, the founding father
of the Company died.
Mr. Ramesh Kalachand was later joined by his brother, Mr. Ashok Kalachand (the Financial
Director) and Mr. Gilbert Chavry (the Executive Director). The fourth generation is already in
place as, few years back, Mr. Ravi Kalachand, the Managing Directors son joined the
business and has recently been nominated as an Executive Director of the Company. Recently
Mr. Aakash Kalachand, the Finance Directors son in turn came on board. Both hold the post
of Executive Directors of the Company.
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To date, J. Kalachand & Co. Ltd. possesses a network of 25 sales outlets representing a
formidable distributive force at the service of our suppliers and of our customers alike.
J.Kalachand & Co Ltd., today, is a Company, which employs a workforce of more than 680
persons to ensure the smooth running of its activities with at least 17% of them in after-sales
service.
1.2 Research Questions
Can Word Of Mouth be considered as a communication tool?

Does Word Of Mouth have any impact on Consumer Buying Behaviour?
Do customers give more importance to negative or positive Word Of Mouth?
1.3 Research Objectives

The purpose of the research is to study the impact of word of mouth on Consumer Buying
Behaviour at J.Kalachand. The research aims to answer the following research questions:
To examine word of mouth marketing impact on individuals buying decision.
To get the first-hand knowledge about others ideas and opinions have power to
change anyone perception about using products.
To check whether consumers give more importance to negative word of mouth rather
than positive.
1.4 Conclusion
In this chapter we identified the research questions and research objectives, describe the
company history and describe the two main component of the study.
1.5 Summary of the project

This study is to understand the value and assess the factors influencing consumer buying
behaviour. It consists of the following chapters:
Chapter 1: Introduction
Overview of the topic and organisation background
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Chapter 2: Literature Review
This chapter contains important research material gathered from what scholars think of the
research topic.
Chapter 3: Methodology
This chapter defines all the methods, procedures and techniques used to gather and analyse
information for the study.
Chapter 4: Findings and Analysis
In this chapter all the graph, charts and tables for the analysis and findings of the
questionnaire are represented
Chapter 5: Conclusion
In this chapter there is the main discussion on word of mouth as per our study throughout the
whole study.
Chapter 6: Recommendation
This chapter shows all the strategies that J.Kalachand can use in the future.
CHAPTER TWO- LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 Introduction
Behaviour is the response to the stimulus presented by the environment, individual as a
consumer shows different behaviour under different circumstances and at different points of
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time. Due to the changing patterns of consumer behaviour, it is always a challenge for
companies to identify the taste and preferences of customers.
Consumer behaviour has always been of great interest to marketers. The knowledge of
consumer behaviour helps marketers to understand how much consumers think, feel and
select from alternatives like products, brands and the like and how the consumers are
influenced by their environment, the reference groups, family, and the salespersons and so on.
This chapter will provide an overview of the explanation of the term consumer behaviour,
word of mouth, promotional mix and most importantly consumers reaction to word of mouth
towards their purchase at J.Kalachand.
2.1 Marketing
Marketing is present everywhere. Formally or informally, people and organizations engage in
a huge number of activities that could be called marketing. Good marketing has become an
increasingly vital ingredient for business success. Marketing deals with identifying and
meeting human and social needs. One of the shortest definitions of marketing is "meeting
needs profitably."
Philip Kotler (1994) defines marketing as the science and art of exploring, creating, and
delivering value to satisfy the needs of a target market at a profit. The American Marketing
Association (1994) offers the following formal definition: Marketing is an organizational
function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to
customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and
its stake holders.
2.2 Marketing
One traditional description of marketing activities is in terms of the marketing mix, which has
been defined as the set of marketing tools the firm uses to pursue its marketing objectives.
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McCarthy (1992) classified these tools into four broad groups, which he called the four Ps of
marketing: product, price, place, and promotion.
Once a company has decided on its positioning strategy, it is ready to begin
planning the details of the marketing mix. The marketing mix consists of everything the
Organization can do to influence the demand for its product or service. The
marketing mix consists of four elements are:
Product or service the features, designs, brands and packaging offered, along with
post-purchase benefits such as warranties and return policies.

Price the amounts of money consumers have to pay to obtain the product or servic
e, including the list price, discount allowances and payment methods.

Place the distribution activity of a company that make the product or service availa
ble through specific stores and non-store outlets to target consumers.

Promotion the advertising, sales promotion, public relations and sales efforts desig
ned to build awareness of and demand for the product or service.

An effective marketing strategy blends all the marketing mix elements into a coordinated
program designed to achieve the companys marketing objectives.
2.3 Marketing Communications

Marketing communication is defined as a collective term for all the various types of planned
messages used to build a brand-advertising, public relations, sales promotion, direct
marketing, personal selling, packaging, events and sponsorship, customer service and product
placement (Ouwersloot & Duncan, 2008, p. 8). In fact, the marketing communications
functions help build a brand by connecting a company with its customers and influencing the
information processing activities of stakeholders (Blythe, 2006; Ouwersloot & Duncan,
2008).
According to Kotler and Keller (1994), "Marketing communications are the means by which
firms attempt to inform, persuade, and remind consumers - directly or indirectly - about the
products and brands that they sell." Marketing communications are messages and related
media used to communicate with a market. Marketing communications is the "promotion"
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part of the "marketing mix" or the "four Ps": price, place, promotion, and product. It can also
refer to the strategy used by a company or individual to reach their target market through
various types of communication.
2.4 Marketing Integrated Communication Strategies

2.4.1 Push and Pull Strategy
There are three main strategies when it comes to marketing communication plan, and they are
the three Ps; push, pull and profile. Promotional strategies to get a product or service to the
market can be roughly divided into two separate parts.
Kotler and Keller says that a push strategy uses the manufacturers sales force, trade
promotion money, and other means to induce intermediaries to carry, promote, and sell the
product to end users. It is about pushing your products to them with as little advertising as
possible. An example of this would be direct selling and exhibitions where a great deal of
personal selling is involved
Kotler and Keller further stated that a pull strategy uses advertising, promotion and other
forms of communication to persuade consumers to demand the product from intermediaries.
In other words, it is more costly as to encourage customer to demand more free samples and
coupons are givens and competitions are also organized. This is a good strategy if product
demand is high, customers use the brand as part of their purchase decision, or you can
differentiate your product based on emotional feelings
2.4.2 Promotion
Promotion is a tool that is used by the retailers or manufacturers to invite consumers and
purchase more or tries a service or product. The result of the sales promotion is the used of
high quantity stock, inviting many new customers and more increase in sales. Chandon,
Wansink, and Laurent (2000) indicated that sales promotion may be attractive for highly
promotion prone consumers for reasons beyond price savings. Many consumers switch
brands so that they could receive greater deals that imitate and strengthen their smart buyer
self-perception, and these consumers are favourably promotion prone, these consumers make
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an attempt to try a new product or service that have been promoted.. Sales promotion means
any activity that is utilize by the producer to encourage retailer, wholesaler as well as make
customers to purchase a brand and increase sales force to aggressively sell it. The term sale
promotion refers to several types of selling incentives and methods indented to yield
immediate sales effects (Totten & Block, 1994).
2.4.3 Types of Promotion

A successful product or service means nothing unless the benefit of such a service can be
communicated clearly to the target market. An organizations promotional mix strategy can
consist of:
Types
of Explanation
Promotion
Advertising
Public
Any non-personal paid form of communication using any form of mass media.
Involves developing positive relationships with the organization media public.
Relations
The art of good public relations is not only to obtain favorable publicity within
the media, but it is also involves being able to handle successfully negative
Sales
attention.
Commonly used to obtain an increase in sales short term. Could involve using
Promotion
Personal
money off coupons or special offers.

Selling a product service one to one
Selling
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Direct Mail
Is the sending of publicity material to a named person within an organization
Direct mail allows an organization to use their resources more effectively by
allowing them to send publicity material to a named person within their target
segment. By personalizing advertising, response rates increase thus increasing
the chance of improving sales. Listed below are links to organization who's
business involves direct mail.
Internet
Promoting and selling your services online using various forms of online
Marketing
Sponsorshi
marketing techniques such as banner advertisements, videos or social media.

Where you pay an organization to use your brand or logo. This organization
usually has a high profile so that you know that your brand will be seen by a
large audience. Most common use of sponsorship is with sporting events. The
2012 Olympics being held in London is being sponsored by a number of
organizations such as McDonalds and Coca-Cola as the event will attract a
worldwide audience that will run into hundreds of millions.
(http://www.learnmarketing.net/promotion.htm)
2.5 Word of Mouth

In todays competitive environment, delivering high-quality service is vital to achieve a
sustainable competitive advantage. Many researchers have indicated that customers
satisfaction leads to their sharing experiences with others (vanHaaften, 2011; Zairi, 2000;
Zeqiri, 2011).
Defining word of mouth precisely however has proven difficult (Carl, 2006; Nyilasy, 2005).
Arndt (1967, p. 291) defines it as face-to-face communication about a brand, product or
service between people who are perceived as not having connections to a commercial entity.
Moreover, the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association (2009) defined word-of-mouth (WOM)
as the passing of information from person to person by oral communication. It is the
sharing of information through telephone calls, text messages, social media or face-to-face
communication. WOM or the voice of the customer (Grffin and Hauser 1993) is one of the
most effective tools for generating sales and future cash flows. Organizations widely use
WOM-based strategies such as buzz marketing and viral marketing. Research shows that
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WOM is a low cost, trustworthy way of communication in acquiring and retaining customers
(Villanueva et al. 2008).
Figure 1: Word Of Mouth strategy
(Word of Mouth Marketing Strategy (CBC-2010))
2.6 Consumer Behaviour

To better understand the choice of brand from consumers perspective it is important to have
an idea of the consumers behaviour and their view of brands Uggla (2001) explains two
different types of consumer behaviour. The consumers who have cognitive behavior are
rational and logical consumers and while the experience oriented consumers have more
emotional motives for buying a product. In other words, cognitive behaviour buyers think
well before purchasing a product. They will look at all the opportunities and advantages that
the product can bring to them. Compared to those to act emotionally without calculating
much they just buy the product as they have a crush on it.
2.7 Consumer Buying Behaviour

A consumers buying behaviour is influenced by factors such as cultural, social, age, personal
and psychological and personality. Consumer behaviour is the study of the processes
involved when individuals or groups select, purchase, use, or dispose of products, services,
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ideas, or experiences to satisfy needs and desires (Solomon 1995, 7). Engel, et al. (1986, 5)
define consumer behaviour as those acts of individuals directly involved in obtaining, using,
and disposing of economic goods and services, including the decision processes that precede
and determine these acts.
(Framework of consumer decision-making (pride et al 1997))

Figure 2: Buyer Decision Process
It is important to be familiar with the theories about consumer buying behaviour when
making a research about choice of brand. According to Soderlund (2001), the consumer
buying behaviour depends on which intentions, attitudes, preferences, effort to commitment
and way of identifying the consumers have.
As seen in the buying decision process model above, consumers normally go through five
stages of their life before deciding whether to purchase or not. Consumers do not pass
through all these stages at every purchase. In routine purchases, that is, for low involvement
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products, consumers usually skip some stages. In a small purchase, for example every day
commodities, such as washing machine powder, information search and evaluation of
alternatives are often skipped. However, the figure shows all the considerations consumers
take when facing a new complex purchase situation.
Consumer buying behaviour differs much depending on what kind of product the consumer
will purchase. There is a big difference in involvement when buying compared to toothpaste.
Kotler et al., (1999) have made a buying behaviour model with four different buyer
behaviours.
Figure 3: Four Types of Buyer Behaviour
(Kotler et al. 1999, p251)
Consumer buying behaviour differs much depending on what kind of product the consumer
will purchase. There is a big difference in involvement when buying a car compared to
toothpaste. A car is a high involvement product. It is expensive and information should be
gathered whereas when purchasing toothpaste, information is not gathered.
2.8 Viral Marketing
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Viral Marketing is very powerful way of promoting any complex and unusual products. It is
the most effective when promoting experiential, complex and unusual products. These criteria
does not met with the given most packaged goods on products, benefit will be given by
marketers. Marketing by word of mouth could have effect on consumers and their buying
decisions. The study examines the impact. Further, examine to know that how word of mouth
can manipulate with consumers decision.
There are many literatures discussing word of mouth and respondent interest in products is
the most important influencing factor. Main three concerns of researchers who investigate the
phenomenon are exposed by word of mouth communication:
i) The kind and frequency of word of mouth behaviour,
ii) Impact of word of mouth on product evaluation and
iii) The effect of word of mouth on social relationship.
All articles have been studied. The thought of understanding consumers buying behaviour is
mutual in marketing (Solomon., 1993; Wilkie, 1994; Engel, Blackwell, & Miniard, 1995;
Assael, 1992; Loudon & Della Bitta, 1993; Kotler, 1997).
Telephone interviews were conducted with one hundred fifty people of Metropolitan County
in the northeast area of the United States. Result showed that retailers had some qualities that
were more likely to be circulated by consumers. More they also found that the customers
class describes Market Mavens (person who have information about much products and
location retailers than do other customers). They created methods for retailers to propagate
information to market mavens (like sending free samples of products). Spangenberg &
Giese (1997) were less involved in the frequency and types of word of mouth communication
and, instead, concentrated on the effects of word of mouth behaviour on product evaluation.
At a large Midwestern University an experiment was conducted using undergraduate students
attending and introductory marketing course.
2.9 Conclusion
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This chapter illustrates the theories of past research who has considered the term Word Of
Mouth, Marketing, viral marketing and Consumer Buying Behaviour in a successful
company. The next chapter will be Research Methodology.
CHAPTER THREE-METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction
Methodology can be defined as the overall approach that the research process will take. The
purpose of this chapter is to present the procedures, methods and techniques adopted in the
research work. Research work most often than not is appraised based on the quality and
accurateness of the analysis and information it provides at the end.
However, this is
dependent on the nature of data collected during the research. As a result, this chapter looked
at how data were gathered for the research. The methodology enlightened on the sampling
techniques and primary research
3.1 The Research Design

A descriptive survey research design was chosen to investigate the impact of word of mouth
on consumer buying behaviour at J.Kalachand. More specifically it addressed the following
research question: the effectiveness of word of mouth on consumer buying behaviour: a case
study of J.Kalachand
3.1.1 Types of Research
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Data collection in a research is the stage where the necessary data useful according to the
purposes and objectives of the research are gathered from the field. The ways for gathering
these data is what is termed data collection methods. The main source of data used for the
research work was primary sources. The methods used in collecting primary data include
questionnaire, and observations. The study made use of primary data at the chapter four,
which is the analysis stage.
3.1.1.1 Primary Research

Primary Research is the process of gathering information directly from individuals who have
access to it. It is often undertaken after the researcher has gained some insight into the issue
by reviewing secondary research or by analysing previously collected primary data. For our
study primary research was used by means of questionnaires.
3.1.2 Sampling
A process used in statistical analysis in which a predetermined number of observations will
be taken from a larger population. The methodology used to sample from a larger population
will depend on the type of analysis being performed, but will include simple random
sampling, systematic sampling and observational sampling.
The sample should be a
representation of the general population.

The basic concern in terms of sampling was the representativeness of concepts rather than the
statistical representativeness. In order to achieve such a requirement, what Strauss and Corbin
(1990) refer to as theoretical sampling was adopted. This means that the sample included
only as many respondents as was needed to saturate the categories being studied.
According to this principle, respondents were included in the sample in asmuch as the
information they were likely to provide was theoretically relevant. According to the authors,
... theoretical relevance indicates that certain concepts are deemed significant because:
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-
They are repeatedly present or notably absent when comparing incident after incident;
and
Through the coding procedures they earn the status of categories (Strauss and
Corbin, 1990, p. 177)
3.1.2.1 Sampling techniques

Random sampling
Random sampling technique is used in this study. In random sampling process every element
from population has equal chance to be selected as a subject. Even the sampling process
could sometimes become huge and costly. The questionnaires formation was structured. For
collecting reliable data for reliable analysis, every individual was requested to respond to the
opened-ended and closed-ended questions.
3.1.3 The research Instrument

In this study personally administered questionnaires have been used as the research
instruments. The core advantage of this is that within a short period of time all completed
response were collected. A questionnaire to which respondents recode their answers is a preformulated set of question. For this research data was collected by using questionnaires.
Questionnaire is an appropriate way to collect the data specifically. Finally the questionnaire
was the combination of close-ended and multiple choice questions. For this purpose
individuals were requested to answer the selected questions related with word of mouth
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marketing and its influence on buyers decisions. Name, age, gender and marital status were
inquired to the respondent for data collection process.
3.1.3.1 Questionnaire construction

The questionnaire was invented by Sir Francis Galton. A questionnaire is a list of research or
survey questions asked to respondents, and designed to extract specific information.
Questionnaires have advantages over some other types of surveys in that they are cheap, do
not require as much effort from the questioner as verbal or telephone surveys, and often have
standardized answers that make it simple to compile data. It serves four basic purposes
1. To collect the appropriate data.

2. To make data comparable and amenable to analysis
3. To minimize bias in formulating and asking questions
4. To make questions engaging and varied.
3.1.3.2 The questionnaire items

This questionnaire consists of 31 questions divided into of two parts; part A and part B
Part A: The personal information consists of 9 questions, 7 are multiple choice questions and
1 close ended question.
Part B: The general questions consist of 22 questions, 9 are close ended questions and 13 are
multiple choice questions.
This questionnaire was customised for the general public.
3.1.3.3 Pilot study
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A pilot study is a research project that is conducted on a limited scale that allows researchers
to get a clearer idea of what they want to know and how they can best find it out without the
expense and effort of a complete study. They are used commonly to try out survey questions.
A pilot study of 5 questionnaires was done among our class members.
3.2 Administration of questionnaires.

For this study the respondents were randomly selected within the area of Triolet,
Morcellement St Andre and Flacq to collect the data and to know about the views the general
public. Questionnaires were divided at household. As the sample size 70 respondents were
selected. The final survey was administered to household and within the area of Triolet,
Morcellement St Andre and Flacq. The questionnaire was a self administered questionnaire
(SAQ) that is a questionnaire that has been designed specifically to be completed by a
respondent without intervention of any members of the research for collecting the data. The
SAQ has been distributed in person to the general public.
3.2.1 Collection of questionnaires

The SAQ was collected on the next day from the respondents.
3.2.2 Data analysis

Data analysis involves a series of recorded statement into descriptive statements. In this
research the data will be analysed using excel to design the charts.
3.3 Limitations of the study

Sample size
As we were targeting the entire population of Mauritius it was difficult to find a large
sample size in limited time scale.
Time constraints
As we are our semester early we lack time.
Financial constraints
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As we are still students we lack financial means.
3.4 Elimination of Bias

Fourteen questionnaires were eliminated as ten were not properly filled and four respondents
did not return their questionnaires.
3.5 Conclusion
In this chapter we covered types of research, sampling, the research instrument, the pilot
study, the data analysis and limitation of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR- FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

4.0 Introduction
The findings and analysis chapter is being considered to be another significant chapter. It will
indicate the answers of the research question. This section comprises of rough data, tables,
charts and graphs. This chapter covers the presentation of responses, analysis and findings of
data collected from the questionnaire.
4.1 Analysis 1
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Nature of Job and Income Level

24
25
20
12
15
14
10
Number of respondents
22
Temporary
Permanent
0
0
Income Level
According to the analysis 52 (92.9%) of the respondents have a permanent job whereas 4
(7.1%) of the respondents work temporarily. This can lead to an increase in revenue at
J.Kalachand if ever people do not spread negative word of mouth as most of the respondents
are financially secure.
4.2 Analysis 2
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Respondents customers at J.Kalachand
Number of Respondents
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
36
10
Yes
2
No
How often respondents visit J.Kalachand
The diagram above shows the number of respondents who are customers at J.Kalachand and
how often they visit showrooms. According to our analysis, 52 (92.9%) respondents are
customers whereas 4 (7.1%) are not customer at J.Kalachand. The highest numbers of
respondents visit J.Kalachand occasionally.
4.3 Analysis 3
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20
18
18
16
14
12
Male
10
8
Female
8
6
6
4
2
0
4
2
Agents0
Others
Friend& Relatives
0
Social Media
0
Other Specify
As depicted in the chart above, the majority of respondents influenced are through friends
and relatives. This clearly shows that they tend to believe people who they know rather than
believing advertising. There are more female buyers than males as females tend to believe
their close one and get easily influenced. Hence, according to the marketing concept, they
believe word of mouth rather than agents, social media and other specify.
4.4 Analysis 4
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Awareness
14
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
8
6
4 4
2
8
Flyers & Newspaper
Radio & Television
Social Media
Friends & Relatives
00
0 0
000
Age
The figure above shows the age differences of respondents and by which means are they
aware of the new products at J.Kalachand. According to the analysis, highest level of
respondents is between 21 to 35 years and it is through their friend and relatives that they are
aware about the new products at J.Kalachand.
Therefore, it can be said that people spread information through their friends and relatives
which means word of Mouth.
4.5 Analysis 5
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Purchase Decision that would be affected

No
4
24
Yes
Purchase Decision
No
6
Yes
22
10
15
20
25
30
This diagram shows the number of customers who had received feedbacks about J.Kalachand
and whose purchase decision will be affected if they receive negative feedback. This shows
that there are many people talking about J.Kalachand. It can be positive and negative saying
as well. So, J.Kalachand must meet the level of its customers so as they can spread positive
word of mouth so as to increase revenue.
4.6 Conclusion
In this chapter we analysed and calculated the data received from the survey. The data are
presented above using charts. According to our analysis, it can clearly be said that word of
mouth plays a vital role in the 21st century.
CHAPTER FIVE- CONCLUSION

5.0 Introduction
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This chapter contains the detailed review and discussion of the findings with regard to the
research question and objectives. These analysis help us to answer the research questions.
5.1 Conclusion
The main objective of this research was to investigate the effects of Word Of Mouth on
Consumer Buying Behaviour. For this purpose data were collected through the general public
using questionnaires. The final result shows that people of different gender, ages, marital
status and of different income level tend to buy any item rely on others comments, opinions
and others word of mouth to take any decision.
According to our survey we found that people prefer word of mouth to any other form of
communication and they know about new product through friends and relatives that is word
of mouth thus J.Kalachand must be aware that word of mouth is an important part of the
marketing strategy.
The questionnaire shows us that individuals decision could be effected by negative word of
mouth. This is a real fact that bad impression of any product can be created by one bad
experience which proves that negative word of mouth could have undesirable effects but
positive word of mouth could create a magical impression or image of products. Word of
mouth has a direct positive effect on consumer buying behaviour.
Finally, these findings provide interesting insights into buying behaviour for J.Kalachand
consumers.
About the effective use of word of mouth, there is an agreement if word of mouth being a
contributing factor in sale of products. It is accepted through the survey that word of mouth
is a persuasive means to promote a product also formulating favorable decision regarding
buying of personal items.
CHAPTER SIX- RECOMMENTATION

6.0 Introduction
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J.Kalachand
Based on the above-mentioned findings of the study, the following are recommended for
future enhancement of the development of J.Kalachand.
6.1 Recommendation
According to our study, we would like to recommend J.Kalachand these strategies below:
Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a system for managing a company's
interactions with current and future customers.
Now more than ever, the customer is king. In today's competitive business landscape,
recognizing this fact is imperative for J.Kalachands success. To help J.Kalachand cope
with the ever-increasing customer demands, they should use CRM. As marketers can also
access the necessary business intelligence to better understand which campaigns are
working and which customers to target with a specific offer.
J.Kalachand must build good relations with its customers to earn their loyalty and ensure
their commitment to talk about the merits of the company and its products in all forums.
Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility is a management conception whereby companies integrate
social and environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions with their
stakeholders.
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J.Kalachand
CSR will help J.Kalachand to make customers think more highly of it. If customers like
and admire J.Kalachand, they are likely to buy more products; they will share their
enthusiasm with friends and be less willing to change brands.
Brand Management
Brand Management is the activity of controlling the promotion of a particular brand of goods.
J.Kalachand must choose the best communication tool that they are comfortable to
implement in as this will reach to their intended audience.
Corporate Branding
Corporate branding refers to the practice of promoting the brand name of a corporate body, as
opposed to specific products or services. The activities and thinking that go into corporate
branding are different from product and service branding because the scope of a corporate
brand is typically much larger.
J.Kalachand could add significant value in terms of helping the entire corporation and the
management team to implement the long-term vision, create unique positions in the
market place of the company and its brands. Hence a corporate branding strategy can
enable the corporation to further leverage on its tangible and non-tangible assets leading
to branding excellence throughout the corporation.
References
Engel, J.F., Blackwell, R.D., and Miniard, P.W. (1986). Consumer Behavior, 5th edition.
Dryden.
Kotler, P. (1994), Marketing Management, 8th Ed., Prentice Hall.
Kotler et al., (1999). Principle of Marketing, 2nd Ed., New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
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J.Kalachand
Kotler, P and Keller, K.L, (2006), Marketing Management, 12th ED., Pearson Prentice Hall.
Marketing mix 4 Ps (McCarthy). (Oct 21, 2013). Retrieved from
http://www.toolshero.com/marketingmix-4p-mccarthy/
Ouwersloot, A & Duncan, T.(2011) Integrated Marketing Communications, European
Edition, McGraw-Hill Education, UK.
Roberts, A. (n.d.) The 3 Ps of Marketing Communication. Simply Digital Marketing.
Retrieved from http://www.simplydigitalmarketing.com/3-ps-of-marketing-communication
Sderlund, M. (2001). The loyal customer. Malm: Liber Economy.
Solomon, M.R. (1995), Consumer Behavior, 3rd Ed., Prentice Hall Stayman.
Solomon, M.R. (1995), Consumer Behavior, 3rd Ed., Prentice Hall Stayman, D.M. and
Deshpande, R. (1989), Situational Ethnicity and Consumer Behavior, Journal of Consumer
Research, 16, December, pp. 361-371.
Solomon, N. (1996, July 1). The medias favorite think tank. Retrieved from FAIR:
http://fair.org/extra-onlinearticles/the-medias-favorite-think-tank/
Totten, J.C. and Block, M.P. (1994) Analyzing Sales Promotion: Text & Cases: How to
Profit.
Wansink, B and Laurent, G. (2000) A Benefit Congruency Framework of Sales Promotion
Effectiveness.
Word of mouth: Kotler on marketing. (2009, 6 November). Retrieved from
http://www.marsdd.com/mars-library/word-of-mouth-kotler-on-marketing/
https://scholar.google.com/
http://www.jkalachand.com/default.aspx
http://kshitij-help.com/knowledge-base/Marketing-management/Marketing.aspx
http://www.learnmarketing.net/promotion.htm
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Universit Des Mascareignes

The Effectiveness of Word-of-Mouth on Consumer Buying Behaviour: a Case Study of

Universit Des Mascareignes

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

1.1 Company background

Universit Des Mascareignes

1.2 Research Questions

Can Word Of Mouth be considered as a communication tool?

1.3 Research Objectives

1.5 Summary of the project

Universit Des Mascareignes

CHAPTER TWO- LITERATURE REVIEW

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

post-purchase benefits such as warranties and return policies.

e, including the list price, discount allowances and payment methods.

ble through specific stores and non-store outlets to target consumers.

ned to build awareness of and demand for the product or service.

2.3 Marketing Communications

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2.4 Marketing Integrated Communication Strategies

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2.4.3 Types of Promotion

money off coupons or special offers.

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marketing techniques such as banner advertisements, videos or social media.

2.5 Word of Mouth

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Figure 1: Word Of Mouth strategy

(Word of Mouth Marketing Strategy (CBC-2010))

2.6 Consumer Behaviour

2.7 Consumer Buying Behaviour

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(Framework of consumer decision-making (pride et al 1997))

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Figure 3: Four Types of Buyer Behaviour

(Kotler et al. 1999, p251)

2.8 Viral Marketing

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

3.1 The Research Design

3.1.1 Types of Research

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

3.1.1.1 Primary Research

The sample should be a

representation of the general population.

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes

3.1.2.1 Sampling techniques

3.1.3 The research Instrument

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3.1.3.1 Questionnaire construction

1. To collect the appropriate data.

3.1.3.2 The questionnaire items

3.1.3.3 Pilot study

Pazal Natasha, Polydor Marie Joyce & Rheedaye Poojha

Universit Des Mascareignes