IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
Satisfaction Level of Tourists towards Online
Shopping with reference to Puducherry
P.BALASUBRAMANI
PhD Research Scholar,
Dep. Of Business Administration,
Annamalai University,
Annamalai nager, Chidambaram- 608001,
Tamilnadu, India.
Abstract
The paper describes the advantages, benefits and
features of online shopping in public and private
enterprises in puducherry. While the concept of online
shopping is prevalent in the tourism and travel industry,
it is difficult to promoting and in an operating
environment where the entire business strategy is based
on an online system for flexible traveling. Present
here the study of e-based services in travel and tourism
industry especially online shopping in tourism industry
like hotel, motel, and etc., its successful online shopping
implementation strategy and how its made tourist
satisfaction towards e-shopping. First we describe online
shopping benefits and futures provided by tourism and
travel industry briefly differentiate two closely related
industries. Then the analysis shows tourist satisfaction
through online shopping in puducherry. Online
shopping is user-friendly, convenient, trust and security
to saving lot of things to tourist. Finally we conclude by
satisfaction of tourist towards online shopping in
puducherry.
Definition
Online shopping is the process whereby consumers
directly buy goods or services from a seller in real-time,
without an intermediary service, over the Internet. It is a
form of electronic commerce. An online shop, e-shop, e-
store, internet shop, web-shop, web-store, online store, or
virtual store evokes the physical analogy of buying products
or services at a bricks-and-mortar retailer or in a shopping
centre. The process is called Business-to-Consumer (B2C)
online shopping. When a business buys from another
business it is called Business-to-Business (B2B) online
shopping. (Liang and Lai 2000).
Introduction of Puducherry
The Union Territory of Puducherry (formerly
known as Pondicherry) comprises four coastal regions viz-
Puducherry, Karaikal, Mah and Yanam. Puducherry,
Karaikal and Yanam are situated on the East Coast, while
ISSN: 2249-9563
DR.A.RAJAMOHAN
Professor,
Dep.Of Business Administration
Annamalai University,
Annamalai nager, Chidambaram,
Tamilnadu, India.
Key words: online shopping, benefits and feature of
online shopping, important online shopping website,
tourist satisfaction towards online shopping.
I. Introduction of online shopping
Online shopping is the process of buying goods
and services from merchants who sell on the Internet. Since
the emergence of the World Wide Web, merchants have
sought to sell their products to people who surf the Internet.
Shoppers can visit web stores from the comfort of their
homes and shop as they sit in front of the computer.
Consumers buy a variety of items from online stores. In
fact, people can purchase just about anything from
companies that provide their products online. Books,
clothing, household appliances, toys, hardware, software,
and health insurance are just some of the hundreds of
products consumers can buy from an online store. Many
people choose to conduct shopping online because of the
convenience. For example, when a person shops at a brick-
and-mortar store, she has to drive to the store, store until
she locates the products she needs.
Mahe is on the West Coast. Puducherry is the Capital of
this Union Territory and one of the most popular tourist
destinations in South India. A French colony until 1954,
this coast-hugging town with colonial buildings, churches,
statues and systematic town planning still preserves much
of the colonial ambience. Puducherry has been described by
National geographic as "a glowing highlight of sub
continental sojourn". Puducherry is also a popular weekend
destination, which can be reached easily from the nearby
cities such as Chennai and Bangalore. With its wide and
relatively flat streets, Puducherry is easily explored on foot
or by bicycle.
II. Important Shopping In Puducherry
Anglo French Textiles, Shruthi Show Room,
Mission Street
Neelgris, Mission Street.
Ammudasurabi, M.G Road.
Pudumai, Splendor, Beach Road.
87
 IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
Sunday Market, M.G. Road & J.N. Street.
Casablanca, Near Balaji Theater.
Auroville Boutique, J.N. Street.
AuroShika, Rue de la Marine.
Hand Made Paper Factory, S.V. Patel Salai.
Important Online shopping web sites
Grab The Best Everyday Online Deals Share. Shop
& Save Up to 90%
www.dealsandyou.com/Shopping-deals
Huge Selection of Items, Discount Prices. 100%
Safe-Reliable Delivery
www.HomeShop18.com
Always the Best Deals in Your City. Heavy
Discount. Shop Risk Free Now!
www.snapdeal.com.
Shop till you drop. Search & find stores & malls in
your city now.
www.Getitmalls.com/find malls
Choose from Huge Range of Branded Products
with great Offers. Buy Now
www.Shopping.Indiatimes.com
Online customers use to make payments
Debit card
Credit card
Billing to mobile phones
Direct debit in some countries
Electronic money of various types
Gift cards
Postal money order
Wire transfer/delivery on payment
III. Benefits of online shopping
Online shopping is one of the greatest aspects of the
internet today. By choosing to shop online you will be able
to enjoy many benefits, some of which are self explanatory,
others that are not so apparent. With this article, we will
begin with the less apparent benefits of online shopping.
Many people are unaware that they have the ability to save
even more money by shopping at an online retailer. You
see, just as actual department stores are always in
competition with each other, so are online retailers. They all
fight among each other in order to offer consumers the best
deal, in order to lure them to their products.
With online shopping, you, the consumer, benefit
greatly from this never ending battle of the retailers.
Everyone is always in search for a great deal, online
shopping can offer you just that. Another excellent example
ISSN: 2249-9563
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
of the money saving benefit is what is called "Online
ONLY" deals. These are deals that are typically offered by
retailers that also possess offline sales structures. The
benefit of this is that they will often offer extensive
discounts and savings only to those who purchase specific
items online.
Other benefits that only online shopping can offer
you include the ability to avoid the holiday rush, the
waiting in line, the weather elements, traffic, and having to
carry all of the shopping bags around. Sounds relaxing do it
not? It should, often times shopping within a mall or
department store can become such a hassle that it is not as
fun as it once You should take advantage of online
shopping for a variety of reasons such as, saving time - you
do not have to drive anywhere, you can often purchase an
item(s) with just a simple click of a button. You can stay
within the comfort of your home and find that perfect gift
no matter if it is rare or readily available. If you have not
joined the ever growing population of online shoppers, this
is your opportunity. With online shopping, you save money,
time, and effort all with the click of a mouse.
IV. Statistics of online customers in the world
Online sales are expected to hit $211 billion this
year. That is a rise of 20 percent over last year and comes
just three years after the industry hit the $100 billion
milestone, according to the 2006 State of Retailing Online
report from Shop.org and Forrester Research.
Online customers
In recent years, online shopping has become
popular. In order to shop online, you must have access to a
computer as well as a credit card or debit card. Shopping
has evolved with the growth of technology. According to
research found in the Journal of Electronic Commerce, if
one focuses on the demographic characteristics of the in-
home shopper, in general, the higher the level of education,
income, and occupation of the head of the household, the
more favorable the perception of non-store shopping.,
Enrique. (2005) The Impact of Internet User Shopping
Patterns and Demographics on Consumer Mobile Buying
Behavior.
Online Consumer expectations
The main idea of online shopping is not just in
having a good looking website that could be listed in a lot
of search engines or the art behind the site. It also is not
only just about disseminating information, because it is also
about building relationships and making money. A majority
of consumers choose online shopping for a faster and more
efficient shopping experience. Organizations, which want
people to shop more online with them, should consume
88
 IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
extensive amounts of time and money to define, design,
develop, test, implement, and maintain the website.
Organizations that want to keep their customers or gain new
ones should try to get rid of all mistakes and be more
appealing to be more desirable for online shoppers. And
this is why many designers of web shops consider research
outcomes concerning consumer expectations. Research
conducted by Elliot and Fowell (2000) revealed satisfactory
and unsatisfactory customer experiences.
Consumer Satisfaction in online shopping
Consumer satisfaction is the focus of the
investigation in only three articles. It can be defined as the
extent to which consumers. Perceptions of the online
shopping experience confirm their expectations. Most
consumers form expectations of the product, vendor,
service, and quality of the website that they patronize
before engaging in online shopping activities. These
expectations influence their attitudes and intentions to shop
at a certain Internet store, and consequently their decision-
making processes and purchasing behavior. If expectations
are met, customers achieve a high degree of satisfaction,
which influences their online shopping attitudes, intentions,
decisions, and purchasing activity positively. In contrast,
dissatisfaction is negatively associated with these four
variables (Ho and Wu 1999; Jahng et al. 2001; Kim et al.
2001).
IV. Research Methodology
The present study is based on primary and
secondary data. Primary data have been collected from 100
respondents through structured questionnaires. The
respondents comprise of both foreign and domestic tourists
to Puducherry. Secondary data have been collected from
various books, magazines, journals, news papers and
websites.
A. Sampling Method
The sampling technique followed in this study is non-
probability convenient sampling. Simple random techniques
are used to select the respondent from the available
database. The intent of this research is to analyze the
importance of the satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping with reference to puducherry.
B. Research Design
This research work is designed to arrive at relevant,
accurate, reliable, valid and current inferences to identify
and address the issues. The present paper attempts to draw
concrete recommendations to aid destination planners and
designers in Puducherry as regards enhancing the
management techniques in tourism the study evaluates the
important and advantages of online shopping to tourist and
ISSN: 2249-9563
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
its offered to the tourists in the context of satisfaction of
tourists towards online shopping in puducherry.
C. Objectives of the study
To known about the online shopping.
To known about benefits and advantages of online
shopping.
To know about the satisfaction level of tourist
towards online shopping in puducherry.
D. Major Hypotheses
H0: There is no significant relationship between
tourist satisfactions towards online shopping in
Puducherry.
H1: There is a significant relationship between
tourist satisfactions towards online shopping in
Puducherry.
E. Review of Literature
Na Li and Ping Zhang, Syracuse University, (2002): the
study entitled Consumer Online Shopping Attitudes and
Behavior: An Assessment of Research In this paper, the
author has defined a general framework to analyze the
online shopping consumer attitude and behavior. The
current status of studies of online shopping attitudes and
behavior is investigated through an analysis of 35 empirical
articles found in nine primary Information Systems (IS)
journals and three major IS conference proceedings.
Taxonomy is developed based on our analysis. A
conceptual model of online shopping is Presented and
discussed in light of existing empirical studies. Finally they
conclude by attitudes, intention to shop, decision making,
online purchasing and customer satisfaction towards online
shopping. Mary Wolfinbarger, Mary Gilly, University of
California Irvine: the study entitled Consumer
Motivations for Online Shopping The main aim of the
study However, goal oriented motives are more common
among online shoppers than are experiential motives. This
study investigates the motivation of online business and
also concluded the process and way of online purchasing
behavior and the motivation.
F. Scope of the Study
Tourism in many a destination is instrumental in
effecting an economic boom. Branding of destinations is of
utmost importance given the business environment.
Creating an image and maintaining it depends on the facets
of management online shaping in tourism industry. The
scope of the study includes analyses of the contemporary
status of e-tourism marketing and online shopping
importance and benefits to the tourism its concerns in
89
 IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
puducherry. The study also evaluates the advantage of
online shopping and the e-based marketing to improvement
of destination development in tourism organization.
G. Area of Research
The research work has been carried out in the
main city of Puducherry and does not cover the territorial
administration in Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam as they are
just emerging destinations. The study focuses on
Pondicherry Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC)
and the Private tourism enterprises in Puducherry. The
major potentials and advantages of planned and controlled
online shopping promotion and making satisfaction of
tourist in Puducherry configures in this work.
H. Questionnaire Construction
The questionnaire for the research was divided
into two parts: the first part deals with the demographic data
of the respondents and the second part of the questionnaire
includes the variables pertaining to various dimensions of
satisfaction of tourist towards online shopping in tourism
industry in the form of independent statements. These
statements are measured through the five point Likert scale.
7. Result & discussion
Data analysis
Table -1
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
I. Data Collection
The study is broadly conceptual and descriptive in
certain aspect, and the primary data was collected from
respondents using structured questionnaires. The sample
size for the study is 100 and all the items in each
questionnaire were measured with a 5.point interval scale,
i.e., 1=strongly agree to 5=strongly disagree. The researcher
had met the respondents individually with questionnaires
and collected the requisite information by interacting with
them. In order to supplement the primary data, the
researcher had also collected the secondary sources from
books, journals, published articles, websites, India tourism,
and statistical reports and data from Pondicherry Tourism
and the private organizations.
J. Statistical Techniques
The data collected from the above sources were
analyzed with the help of SPSS .16. Mean, median,
standard deviation and frequency analysis are done with
help of SPSS software. The data were analyzed by cross-
tabulation. Graphical presentation of the results is featured
for better understanding of the output.
.463
Gender .998 Not significant
Education
1.621 .090 Not Significant

Under the table shows demographic data of the Occupation 1.342 .201 Not significant
Respondents and mean, Monthly
Median. .774 .694 Not significant
income
Variables Mean Median Nationality 2.189 .014 significant
Age 2.15 2.00 Not significant
Marital statues 1.008 .454
Gender 1.47 1.00
Frequent
Marital status 1.59 2.00
traveler 2.298 .010 Significant
Education 1.89 2.00
Field of work 3.10 4.00 You can see from the output that the ANNOVA value is
Monthly 1.95 2.00 significant (p<.05). There are significant significance
income differences in the demographic data of the tourists towards
Nationality 1.34 1.00 online shopping, and the results show that tourist largely
undecided on these issues.
Frequent 1.37 1.00
Traveller According the table there is significant relationship
between tourists age and satisfaction of tourist towards
Table 2 online shopping ANNOVA F- value 1.819 with a
Table Shows ANNOVA Value for Demographic Value significance value .049. At the level of .05.
and defining variables overall considering
There is no significant relationship between tourists gender
Significant/Not and satisfaction of tourist towards online shopping.
Variables F-value p-value
Sig. ANNOVA F- value .998 with a significance value .463. At
age the level of .05.
1.819 .049 significant

ISSN: 2249-9563 90
 IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
There is no significant relationship between tourists
qualification and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value 1.621 with a significance
value .090. At the level of .05.
There is no significant relationship between tourists
occupation and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value 1.342 with a significance
value .201. At the level of .05.
There is no significant relationship between tourists
monthly income and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value .774 with a significance
value .694. At the level of .05.
There is significant relationship between tourists
nationality and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value 2.189 with a significance
value .014. At the level of .05.
There is no significant relationship between tourists
marital status and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value 1.008 with a significance
value .454. At the level of .05.
There is no significant relationship between tourists
frequent traveler and satisfaction of tourist towards online
shopping. ANNOVA F- value 2.298 with a significance
value .010. At the level of .05.
Findings and recommendation
Provisions of online shopping facilities are
available in puducherry.
There is a significant difference of opinion
towards online shopping basis demographic
factors of tourists. The foreign tourists having
more level of satisfaction on online shopping. And
also the advertisement and awareness dishonest.
The domestic tourist is middle level of satisfaction
in online shopping in puducherry.
Recommendation
Awareness of online shopping is low among the
rural tourist.
Improve more awareness regarding online
protection and security to the both international
and domestic tourist.
Conclusion
In this paper has argued that the satisfaction level
of tourists towards online shopping. The core argument of
this paper is to build conceptualization of online shopping
in puducherry and its benefits and importance also
ISSN: 2249-9563
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
explained in this paper. Focus of online shopping in tourism
industry. And its have essential thing of tourism
development in India. And also found the challenges and its
impact of online shopping in puducherry. As per the
analyze and the interpretation showing the present position
of inline shopping in puducherry.
References
1) Arnold, E. J. and Wallendorf, M. "Market-
Oriented Ethnography: Interpretation Building and
MarketingStrategy Formulation," Journal of
Marketing Research, (31) November 1994, pp.
484-504.
2) Babin, B. J., Darden, W. R., and Griffen, M.
"Work and/or Fun: Measuring Hedonic and
Utilitarian Shopping Value," Journal of Consumer
Behavior, (20), March 1994, pp. 644-656.
3) Batra, R. and Ahtola, O. T. "Measuring the
Hedonic and Utilitarian Sources of Consumer
Attitudes," Marketing Letters, (2), April 1991, pp.
159-170.
4) Bellman, Lohse and Johnson, E. "Predictors of
Online Buying Behavior," Communications of the
ACM, (42:12), December 1999, pp. 32-38.
5) Bloch, P. H., Sherrell, D. L. and Ridgeway, N.
M."Consumer Search: An Extended Framework,"
Journal of Consumer Research, (13), June 1986,
pp. 119-126.
6) Deighton, J. "The Future of Interactive Marketing,
Harvard Business Review, November 1, 1996,
Reprint 96607.
7) Elliot and Fowell (2000) he conducted a survey
online consumer expectation.
8) Glaser, B. and Strauss, A. The Discovery of
Grounded Theory, Chicago: Aldine,
1967.Hirschman, E. "Experience Seeking: A
Subjectivist Perspective of Consumption," Journal
of Business Research, (12) March 1984, pp. 115-
136.
9) Hirschman, E. and Holbrook, M. G. "Hedonic
Consumption: Emerging Concepts, Methods and
Propositions," Journal of Marketing, (46) summer
1982, pp. 92-101.
10) Hoffman, D. L. and Novak, T. P. "Marketing in
Hypermedia Computer-Mediated Environments:
Conceptual Foundations," Journal of Marketing,
60(3), July 1996, pp. 50-68,
91
 IRACST- International Journal of Research in Management & Technology (IJRMT),
11) Hoque, A. Y. and Lohse, G. "An Information
Search Cost Perspective for Designing Interfaces
for Electronic Commerce," Journal of Marketing
Research, (36), August1999, pp. 387-394.
12) Journal of Electronic Commerce Enrique (2005)
The Impact of Internet User Shopping Patterns.
13) Schubert, P., and Selz, D.Web assessment-
measuring the effectiveness of electronic
commerce sites going beyond traditional.
14) Marketing paradigms. Proceedings of the 32nd
Hawaii International Conference on System
Sciences, 1999.
15) Solomon,K,"RevengeoftheBots,"TheIndustryStand
ard,www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,7
624,00.html, November 15, 1999.
16) Kelly, K. New Rules for the New Economy: 10
Radical Strategies for a Connected World, New
York: NY, Penguin Books, 1998, pp. 105-106.
Vol. 1, No.2, December 2011
Issues and a Research Tool," European Journal of
Marketing, (32:7/8) 1998, 713-723.
25) Na Li and Ping Zhang, Syracuse University,
(2002): Consumer Online Shopping Attitudes and
Behavior: An Assessment of Research.
26) Ray port, J. F. and Sviokla, J.J. "Exploiting the
Virtual Value Chain," in Creating Value in the
Network Economy, ed. Tap Scott, D., and Boston,
Massachusetts: Harvard Business School
Publishing, 1999, pp. 35-54.
27) Rebstein, D. J. "Who's Buying on the Internet and
How Long Will They Be Loyal," Presentation at
the World According to E: e-Commerce and e-
Customers, Marketing Science Institute
Conference, December 2-3, 1999.
28) Schlosser, A. E. and Kanfer, A. "Interactivity in
Commercial Web Sites: Implications for Web Site
Effectiveness," Working Paper, Vanderbilt
University, 1999.

17) Klein, L. "Evaluating the Potential of Interactive 29) Sherry, J. "A Socio cultural Analysis of a
Media through a New Lens: Search versus Midwestern Flea Market," Journal of Consumer
Experience Goods, Journal of Business Research, (17), June 1990, pp. 13-30.
Research, (41), 1998, 195-203.
Websites
18) Liang, T., and Lai, H.Electronic store design and
consumer choice: an empirical study. Proceedings 1. www.wikipedia.com
of the 33rd Hawaii. 2. www.nic.in/Pondicherry
3. www.pon.nic.in
19) Mary Wolfinbarger, Mary Gilly, University of 4. www.2dix.com
California Irvine Consumer Motivations for 5. www.googleschoar.com
Online Shopping
20) Mick, D. G. and Fournier, S. "Paradoxes of
Technology: Consumer Cognizance, Emotions,
and Coping Strategies," Journal of Consumer
Research, (25), September, 1998, pp. 123-143.

21) Miles, M. B. and Huberman, M. Qualitative Data

Analysis, 2d Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications, 1994.

22) Miles, M. B. and Huberman, M. Qualitative Data

Analysis: A Sourcebook of New Methods, Beverly
Hills, A: Sage Publications, 1984.

23) Modahl, M. Now or Never: How Companies Must

Change Today to Win the Battle for Internet
Consumers, New York, NY: Harper Business,
2000, pp. 28-35 and p.132.

24) Montoya-Weiss, M. M., Massey, A. P. and

Clapper, D. L."On-line Focus Groups: Conceptual

ISSN: 2249-9563 92