Columbia International Publishing

Journal of Globalization and Business Management

(2016) Vol. 3 No. 1 pp. 18-28
doi:10.7726/jgbm.2016.1002
Research Article

Impact of Electronic Media on Purchasing Decision

among Youths with Special Reference to Fairness Cream

Priyanka Khare 1*, and Syed Haider Ali 2

Received: 19 February 2016; Accepted: 5 August 2016; Published online: 5 November 2016

The author(s) 2016. Published with open access at www.uscip.us

Abstract
A rapid advancement in the Electronic Technology in sharing the information and its wide reach in Lucknow
city helps in promoting the products and making buying decision. Electronic media such as Television (TV),
Radio, Internet are providing the innovative ways to approach customers. Television and Radio being the
mass media instruments for promoting the product not only for literates but illiterates as well. Youths are
now accessing internet through different medium such as laptop, personal computer, mobile, tablets which
provides marketers an easy way to approach them. A sample of 180 youths was selected for the study from
Lucknow city. On the basis of collected data, we examined the impact of electronic media for fairness cream
on the youths since they are more concerned about their skin complexion. The study also examines the
gender wise opinion for electronic media in their buying decision and the perceived credibility of electronic
media.

Keywords: Customer preference; Electronic Media; Purchase Decision; Product brand

1. Introduction
In the era of technological revolution,the electronic media has remerged by technological
advancement.In the last two decades there is an increase in the use of fairness cream among asian
countries, specially in the young generation. They are more consious about their beauty, colour
complextion and their look.Since young generation are more information seeker ,they collect
required information from different sources such as mass media,print media,social media and
electronic media to know the credibility of electronic product.There is a drastic increase in the
usage rate of fairness cream.People associate white colour with symbol of beauty which has
increased a trend of liking towards fair skin.Cosmetic industry is thus availed with a vital
oppurtunity to expand the market of fairness cream.The companies are promoting their product
with fear appeal ,evoking the feeling of insecurity due to dark complexion .There is fascination

*Corresponding e-mail: priyanka.khareincvns@gmail.com

1 Dr A.P.J Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow, U.P., India
2 Business Administration at K.M.C.U.A.F, University, Lucknow, U.P., India

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among youth for fairness.Electronic media is playing an important role in promoting product, since
Television(TV), Radio and Internet is becoming most acceptable media for youth. The accessibility
of Internet by youth has provided the marketers a medium to capture them and share the response
of consumers.Electronic media is becoming reliable source of informational media for youth.

2. Electronic Media and Purchase Decision

Electronic media includes all those media which use electronic medium to communicate with
consumers such as Television, Radio and Internet.Due to the increase in its usage it is gaining
popularity among consumeres.Electronic media is having its own advantages over the other media
such as easy accessibility,mass capture of target customers,increases interaction between
consumers and companies.Todays youth are informational seeker and electronic media provide an
ease in their need recognition by generating external stimuli among consumers when they are
exposed to creative audio and visual advertisement. Further it assists in the search of information
required as the need of Consumers. In the clutter of advertisement,Consumers can easily evalute
the product through different electronic media.Internet has provided easy accessibility in
comparing the product online.Finally the consumers can make their purchase decision.

3. Fairness Cream Market in India

The cosmetic Industry is emerging rapidally in the last two decades due to increasing fashion and
beauty orientation among people specially youth.The people are now more conscious for their body
shape,size and colour.India is having total fairness cream market of approximately Rs. 3000 crore
(Bhatt 2014).The Asian countries specially India is fascinated by fair colour of skin.There are a
number of fairness cream brands available in market such as Fair & Lovely, Vicco turmeric, Garnier
light, Fairever,fairone etc. which are mostly targeted on female but Fair & Lovely introduced
fairness cream for males followed by other companies.

4. Review of Literature
This literature review highlights an overview of previous studies related with electronic media and
purchasing decision of youth consumers.The study is also helpful in examining the impact of
electronic media on youth.This review will provide an insight to the marketers in making further
marketing strategy towards target consumer. Te'eni-Harari and Hornik (2010) examined product
involvement at different age group and revealed that product involvement of adolescents are
positively influenced by subjective product knowledge. Increasing age of young consumer make
them more conscious about knowledge and product information. Age negatively influence product
involvement of young people. Patel (2014) studied preference for fairness cream and revealed that
Fair & Lovely is mostly preferred among all the cream. Consumer prefers quality and current
fashion product rather than price factor. According to him fairness and recognition are the most
accepted attributes by consumers. Friends advertisement and word-of-mouth are the influencing
factor in purchasing of product. According to Raja and Kumar (2014) men are also becoming
conscious about their look and they mostly prefer Garnier fairness cream and their purchase
decision is mostly influenced by Television media.

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Shoaib et.al (2012) examined the purchase behaviour of Pakistani customers influenced by mass
media such as TV and it was found that they were more responsive towards advertisement which
was endorse by their familiar Indian stars because they build a brand identity with the product and
retain the product.Hasan (2015) concentrated his study on the impact of TV advertisement on both
genders by examining the relationship between TV advertisement and consumer behavior in a city
of Pakistan .The study was also focused on rural and urban residential area. The study reveals that
TV advertisement had likely more impact on females and rural areas due to family decision in
buying the product.

Arulkumar(2013) studied pre-purchase behaviour of rural and urban customer influenced by TV

advertisement and found it different on the basis of their attitude towards promotion.This study is
helpful in making further marketing strategy for the target customers.Mathew & Aswathy (2014)
examined the FMCG of HUL and studied the impact of TV advertisements on its product.Their
studies revealed that TV advertisement had positive impact on buying decisions of customer and in
recent, it had its own importance in the marketing of the product. Further Bisht (2013) also
revealed from her study that there is a positive relationship between TV advertisement and
purchase decision of youth, since they are more informational conscious so they give emotional
response to the advertisement rather than enviornmental response .The study also reveals that TV
advertisement also leads to trial purchase. Sonkusare (2013) concentrated her study on women by
specially focusing the study on FMCG product. The results from the study show that the women are
influenced by the television advertisements followed by radio advertisement in comparison to
other media. According to the study they are influenced by word of mouth advertisement. Bhatti &
Fiaz (2016) concentrated their studies on TV as electronic media due to its popularity .Their study
also examines the impact of celebrity endorsement on purchasing behavior of consumers
.According to the study majority of respondents were exposed to TV advertisements and celebrity
advertisement was having positive impact on mindset of cosumers.TV plays a significant role in
celebrity endorsement due to its high exposure and hence fulfills the purpose.

According to Pirzada(2014) electronic media, social media and purchasing pattern have a positive
relationship.Lifestyle and purchasing pattern of pakistani customer is influenced to the large extent
by TV advertisement, electronic and socil media,this is due to their intense trust on media. The use
of TV and social media like facebook is increasing for the entertainment purpose so specially youth
are influenced by it. Sadhasiva & Nithya (2015) studied the impact of television advertisement and
online advertisement on consumers through secondary data and revealed that both media have a
positive impact on the mind of customers in making their preferences ,perception ,attitude and
modifying behavior of customers.TV advertisement was found ahead of online advertisement due
to more physical approach of TV in comparison to E-services for the product.

Kumar and Bansal(2013)examined that TV is the most effective media in inducing adolescent to
buy a particular product.Since TV has more creative capability to demonstrate a product through
the use of shape, size, colour,appearance,sound and motion.They consider it as the source af getting
information of theproduct.According to Prithviand Dash(2013). TV is the most effective medium
among Radio, Print and Web advertising for making purchase decision. Importance of Internet
advertising is also growing due to increased usage of internet as a social media specially by young
generation. Rehmani and Khan(2011) focussed their studies in understanding purchase intension
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of customers due to E-media which can be further helpful in knowing their purchase decision.
According to their studies social media is becoming more effective than other media due to its
increasing popularity.Rajendran &PG (2015) examined consumer buying pattern in reference to
fairness cream and found that users were satisfied with the performance of fairness cream.There
were different factors which were responsible for preferring fairness cream such as quality
advertisement,fragrence etc but still focus should be on providing product at lower cost with less
chemical content for improving customer satisfaction.

5. Objective
1. To examine the impact of electonic media on the youth purchase decision making.
2. To study the gender wise opinion for electronic media on their purchase decision.
3. To study perceived credibilty of electronic media.

6. Material and Methods

The study is conducted in two phases.First phase isexploratory in nature for which primary data
collected through different research articles and journals for knowing the impact of electronic
media on purchase decision of customers and their perception regarding electronic media.In the
second phase descriptive research was done to collect primary data from consumers.A sample size
of 180 respondents were used for collecting information from male (90) and female (90)
consumers of the age group between 15-35 from different regions of Lucknow . All the customers
are using fairness cream.

The convenience sampling was used to select respondents for this study and the data was collected
through personal interview. Awell structured close ended questionnaire was used as a research
tool to collect the primary data.

The SPSS software was used for the analysis of the data. The data was presented in a tabular form
to accomplish the purpose of the study. The Z test statistic is used as a statistical tool for testing the
equality of proportions in two groups.

There are some limitations in this study which is given as follows:

The study is confined only to male and female consumers of Lucknow city.
Respondents do not disclose their personnel information and perception towards different
electronic media and usage of product.

7. Research Hypothesis
H1 : There is no significant difference and positive relationship between genders for influence in
purchasing decision.
H2 :There is no significant difference between genders for a different factors effecting the purchase
decision.

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H3:There is no significant difference between genders for perceived credibility of electronic media
for decision of youth.
H4: There is no significant difference between genders in choosing different brand of the product.
The gender wise demographic profile of the respondents has been prepared and It is observed that
there are more females(44.4%) in the age group 15 to 20 than the males(26.7%) while 51.11%
males belongs to age group 20 to 25 than only 38.88% females in this age group. The distributions
of male and female customers are almost same in the case of qualification, place of residence, type
of family and occupation. Hence the demographic profile of the data collected for males and females
do not differ significantly and both the groups may be treated as belonging to same group.
Demographic profile of respondents

Age group Male Female

15-20 24 (26.67) 40 (44.44)
20-25 46 (51.11) 35 (38.88)
25-30 09 (10.00) 06 (06.67)
30-35 11 (12.22) 09 (10.00)
Qualification
High school or equivalent 15 (16.67) 24 (26.67)
Intermediate 06 (06.67) 02 (02.22)
Graduate 51 (56.67) 45 (50.00)
Post-graduate 18 (20.00) 19 (21.11)
Residence
Rural 19 (21.11) 27 (30.00)
Urban 71 (78.89) 63 (70.00)
Type of family
Nuclear 46 (51.11) 60 (66.67)
Joint 44 (48.89) 30 (33.33)
Occupation
Home-maker 00(00.00) 10 (11.11)
Student 64 (71.11) 62 (68.89)
Private job 20 (22.22) 09 (10.00)
Govt. & Admin.Services 03 (03.33) 06 (06.67)
Unemployed 03 (03.33) 03 (03.33)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

8. Result and Discussion

The use of fairness cream is made by males and females according to their need and different
occasions. Several types of response are obtained by respondents regarding the use of fairness
cream. From Table 1 it is observed that the fairness cream is always used by females (54.44%) than
males (27.78%). The always use of fairness cream in females is highly significant (P<0.001) than
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always use of fairness cream by the males. The males using rarely fairness cream (22.22%) is
significantly higher (P<0.001) than the only 6.67% females using rarely fairness cream. There are
only 26.67% males and 23.33% females who sometimes use fairness cream. On different occasions
oftenly only 23.33% males and 15.56% females uses fairness cream. There is no significant
difference between the percentage of females and males using oftenly or sometimes fairness cream
at different occasions (Table 1).

Table 1 The distribution of the response of customers regarding the occasion for the use of fairness
cream

Type of response Male Female

Never 00(00.00) 00(00.00)
Rarely 20(22.22)*** 06(06.67)
Sometime 24(26.67) 21(23.33)
Often 21(23.33) 14(15.56)
Always 25(27.78) 49(54.44)***
Figures in parenthesis give %, *: P<0.05, **: P<0.01, ***: P<0.001

The source of information for the fairness cream is received by the customer by TV, Radio and
Internet. From Table 2, we observe that the information regarding fairness cream has been
obtained by 73.33%males and 77.78% females from TV, which is the maximum. The second source
of information for the use of fairness cream is Internet, which is used by 23.33% males and 20%
females. Only 3.33% males and 2.22% females have radio as a source of information for fairness
cream. It is observed that there is no significant difference in the information received by the
different sources of information as TV, Internet and Radio by males and females (Table 2).

Table 2 The distribution of the response of customers regarding most often source of information
for fairness cream

Source of information Male Female

Television 66(73.33) 70(77.78)
Radio 03(03.33) 02(02.22)
Internet 21(23.33) 18(20.00)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

Several types of fairness cream are used by the males and females. The information from the
electronic media regarding the use of fairness cream influences the purchase of fairness cream of
different brands. The Table 3 shows the distribution of different brands of fairness cream used by
male and female customers. The maximum 36.67% males are using Garnier while maximum 51.1%
females are using Fair & Lovely cream. The males are using mainly Nivea cream (21.1%), Fair &
Lovely 20% and Emami17.78% other than Garnier. The females are using 6% to 8% Garnier and
Emami, L'Oral and Nivea and 13% other creams, other than Fair &Lovely cream. The use of Fair &
Lovely is significantly higher in females than in males (P<0.001) while the use of Garnier is
significantly higher (P<0.001) in males than in females.
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The use of Emami is found to be significantly higher in males than in females. The use of Nivea is
significantly higher in males than in females the percentage of females using other cream is
significantly higher than the males (P<0.001). The use of L'Oral is also significantly higher in
females than in males (P<0.001) (Table 3).

Table 3 The distribution of response of customers regarding the brand of fairness cream purchased
due to influence of electronic media

Type of Brand Male Female

Fair & Lovely 18(20.00) 46(51.11)
Garnier 33(36.67)*** 06(06.67)
Emami 16(17.78)** 06(06.67)
Fairever 02(02.22) 02(02.22)
Fairone 02(02.22) 02(02.22)
LOral 00(00.00) 07(07.78)*
Nivea 19(21.11)** 06(06.67)
Revlon 00(00.00) 03(03.33)*
Any other 00(00.00) 12(13.33)***
Figures in parenthesis give %, *: P<0.05, **: P<0.01, ***: P<0.001

The choice of the fairness cream also depends on the different factors such as price, quality, brand,
promotional offers and word of mouth. The Table 4, gives the distribution of male and female
customers giving the weight to the different factors of choice.

The maximum 47.78% and 56.67% males and females give their preferences to the brands and the
next maximum 33.33% and 34.44% males and females support to the quality of the product. Only
12.22% males and 5.56% females give importance to the price of the product. Further no significant
difference is observed in the opinion of males and females regarding the choice of product which
they are purchasing (Table 4).

It is also important to know that the opinion of males and females regarding the reliability of TV
advertisement for fairness cream. From Table 5, we see that the maximum (36.67%) males and
(46.67%) females agree on the TV advertisement and 30% males and 23.38% females are neutral
to the TV advertisement. It is also observed that 21.11% females and 14.14% males strongly agree
with the TV advertisement for fairness cream. Only 12.72% males strongly agree with the TV
advertisement for the fairness cream which is significantly higher than the females opinion in this
regard (P<0.001). No significant difference is found in the opinion of males and females for other
type of responses for the TV advertisement for fairness cream (Table 5).

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Table 4 The distribution of response of customers regarding factor influencing purchase decision
while buying fairness cream

Type of response Male (frequency) Female (frequency)

Price 11(12.22) 05(05.57)
Quality 30(33.33) 31(34.44)
Brand image 43(47.78) 51(56.67)
Promotional offers 02(02.22) 02(02.22)
word of mouth 01(01.11) 00(00.00)
Availability 03(03.33) 01(01.11)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

Table 5 The distribution of response of customers regarding reliability of Television advertisement

of fairness cream

Type of response Male (frequency) Female (frequency)

Strongly agree 13(14.44) 19(21.11)
Agree 33(36.67) 42(46.67)
Neutral 27(30.00) 21(23.33)
Disagree 06(06.67) 08(08.89)
Strongly disagree 11(12.22)*** 00(00.00)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

Though the percentage of customers using Radio as a source of information is very low still it is
important to know their opinion regarding the reliability on advertisement through Radio for
fairness cream. It is observed that the maximum 43.33% males and 24.44% females are neutral to
the advertisement through Radio (P<0.001) and 30% males and 31.11% females only agree for the
reliability of advertisement through Radio. It is also observed that 20% males and 30% females
disagree with the advertisement through Radio. Only 3.3% males and 11.22% females strongly
disagree with the advertisement through Radio (P<0.05) (Table 6).

Table 6 The distribution of response of customers regarding reliability of Radio advertisement of

fairness cream

Type of response Male (frequency) Female (frequency)

Strongly agree 03(03.33) 11(12.22)*
Agree 27(30.00) 28(31.11)
Neutral 39(43.33)** 22(24.44)
Disagree 18(20.00) 27(30.00)
Strongly disagree 03(03.33) 02(02.22)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

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From Table 7, we observed that there are about 57.77% males and 46.44% females who never or
rarely use purchasing through telephonic orders through media. Only 30% males and 36.67%
females sometimes used online shopping through media. Only 15.56% females and 6.67% males
use online shopping through media always (P<0.05) (Table 7).

Table 7 The distribution of response of customers regarding preference of consumer to buy

fairness cream through teleshopping

Type of response Male (frequency) Female (frequency)

Never 34(37.77) 31(34.44)
Rarely 18(20.00)* 09(10.00)
Sometime 27(30.00) 33(36.67)
Often 05(05.56) 03(03.33)
Always 06(06.67) 14(15.56)*
Figures in parenthesis give %.

From Table 8, we observed that male (95.56%) as well as female (93.33%) customers are favorable
to the opinion that electronic media is more effective than the print media. There is no significance
of difference between the opinion of males and females in this regard.

Table 8 The distribution of response of consumers regarding electronic media is more effective
than print media

Type of response Male respondents Female respondents

Yes 86(95.56) 84(93.33)
No 04(04.44) 06(06.67)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

From Table 9, we observed that males (93.33%) and females (97.78%) have opinion that TV is
more effective than Radio. The difference between the opinion of males and females are found to be
insignificant.

Table 9 The distribution of response of consumers regarding TV is more effective than Radio

Type of response Male respondents Female respondents

Yes 84(93.33) 88(97.78)
No 06(06.67) 02(02.22)
Figures in parenthesis give %.

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9. Conclusion
On the basis of the study conducted for the use of fairness cream for the male and female customers
belonging to Lucknow, U.P., we observed the following conclusions:

1. The use of fairness cream always in practice is found to be significantly higher in female
than in males.
2. The male and female customers mostly use TV and next internet as a source of information.
3. The brand Garnier is mostly used by the males while Fair & Lovely brand is mainly used by
the females.
4. Most of the males than as well as females have choice of fairness cream mainly depending
on the quality and brand of the product.
5. Most of the males and females are found to agree with the advisement through TV.
6. The males and females almost equally agree and remain neutral on the advertisement
through radio.
7. The females are found to purchase of the product sometimes or always through online
shopping through media than males.
8. The male and female customers are of the same opinion that electronic media is more
effective than the print media and TV is more effective than radio in formatting the
advertisement for fairness cream.

Finally we conclude that advertisement through TV and electronic media has a major role in
promoting the fairness cream. Males are more prevalent in purchasing through online. The popular
brands of cream depending upon then quality are mainly used by males as well females.

Acknowledgement
The authors are grateful to Prof B.B. Khare, Department of Statistics, B.H.U., Varanasi, U.P. for
providing statistical guidance during the preparation of the research paper.

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