A STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS ONLINE SHOPPING WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO RATNAGIRI CITY, MAHARASHTRA – INDIA

Miss. MeenalKhandake and Miss. NaziyaMaldar. Asst. Professor,GogateJoglekar College,(Affiliated by University Of Mumbai.)Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History

Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce, refers to the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the internet and other computer networks. Internet is the rapidest growing media during the past decade. It has changed the look of new era. Especially, online shopping is a rapidly growing e-commerce area. Online stores are usually available 24 hours a day, and many consumers have internet access both at work and at home. A successful web store is not just a good looking website with dynamic technical features, listed in many search engines but it always look forward for consumer satisfaction. This study aims to establish a preliminary assessment, evaluation and understanding of the characteristics of online shopping. An effort has been made to investigate online consumer behaviour, which in turn provides E-marketers with a constructional framework for fine-tuning their E-businesses' strategies.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Introduction:-
Internet is changing the way consumers shop and buy goods and services and has rapidly evolved into a global phenomenon. Many companies have started using the Internet with the aim of cutting marketing costs, thereby reducing the price of their products and services in order to stay ahead in highly competitive markets. Companies also use the Internet to convey, communicate and disseminate information, to sell the product, to take feedback and also to conduct satisfaction surveys with customers. Customers use the Internet not only to buy the product online, but also to compare prices, product features and after sale service facilities they will receive if they purchase the product from a particular store. Many experts are optimistic about the prospect of online business. In addition to the tremendous potential of the E-commerce market, the Internet provides a unique opportunity for companies to more efficiently reach existing and potential customers. It has been more than a decade since business-to-consumer E commerce first evolved. Scholars and practitioners of electronic commerce constantly strive to gain an improved insight into consumer behavior in cyberspace. 7. The work of Kim and Park (2005) using U.S. samples suggests that their positive attitudes as well as willingness to search for pre-purchase information leads to a strong likelihood that they will buy online. Online shoppers, are required to have computer skills in order to use the Internet for shopping. Hence, those who are not comfortable with using the computer, will likely do their shopping at the traditional store, modern shop, or discount store (Monsuwe , 2004) because it will be faster shopping there than in the Internet shop.
8. Goldsmith and Flynn (2004) state that the home catalog is another traditional selling channel where people can shop at home because of the varieties of products offered in the catalog. They can order through the phone or by mail. It is convenient except that they are not able to touch and feel products before purchasing.

Objectives Of The Study:-
The objective of this research study is to investigate online consumer behavior, which in turn provides E-marketers with a constructional framework for fine-tuning their E-businesses' strategies. The specific objectives of this research are: 1. To analyse the consumers awareness about online shopping. 2. To know the various factors which motivate a consumer towards online shopping. 3. To analyse the kind of goods they purchase online. 4. To know the problems they face during online shopping.

Research Methodology:-
The research is based upon primary and secondary data both. The primary data was collected through a questionnaire designed exclusively for the study. Secondary data was taken from research papers, Journals, magazines and websites.
Sample size and area:-Samples were collected from consumers and buyers of online shopping of Ratnagiri city. A target of 100 respondents was set, and all of them return complete questionnaire with their suitable choice. Therefore all 100 questionnaires were entertained for final analysis and data interpretation.

Tools for analysis:-
For data analysis, simple charting and tabulation tools are used to understand the behaviour of the respondents for online shopping. Less than 15  15 -30  30 -45  Above 45  02 76 16 6

Figure 1
From the above diagram, it is interpreted that maximum respondants are from the age between 15 to 30where as the respondents of age between 30 to 45 are relatively low.

Figure 3
The above chart and diagram shows that the shoppers having average family income in between 50,000-2,00,000 per annum gives more preference to online shopping. This may be because of attractive discounting offers offered by shopping sites. Also the shoppers whose annual family average income is in between 2,00,000-5,00,000 also spends more on online shopping.

Figure 4
It is interpreted that out of the total respondents 3% are using the internet less than a year. 7% of the respondents are using for the past 1-2 years. 21% of the respondents are using internet for the past 2-4 years whereas majority of respondents that is 69% have been using the internet for more than 4 years. Above 500000

Average Annual Family Income
Average Annual Family Income

Using internet period
Less than one year 1-2 Years

2-4years
More than 4 years Usage of internet for online shopping:-Never occasionally Often Very often 2 47 30 21

Figure 5
The above chart shows that 47% of the respondents use internet occasionally whereas 30% use often and 21% use internet very often.

Which factor motivates for online shopping:-
Saves time Convenience Price Product quality Not Applicable 101 27 34 18 01

Figure 6
The study showed that 100% of the shoppers prefers online shopping as it saves time whereas 34 % shoppers gets attracted towards prices offered. 27% shoppers who think convenience is the main driving force while 18% of the shopping had been done for whom quality was the main orientation for shopping online. According to the chart 88% of the respondents use Smartphone for online shopping, 28% use laptop and PC, 6% use tablets whereas 2% use I pads for online shopping.

Figure 9
According to the study, it is depicted that 2% of the respondents strongly agree that the information given about the product on the site is sufficient. 46% of the respondents agree with the statement, 41% are neutral, 6% disagree whereas 5% of the respondents strongly disagree with the statement.

Figure 10
According to the research, 57% of the respondents prefer Amazon, 36% prefer Snapdeal, 14% prefer Flipcart and Myntra, 2% prefer Ebay whereas 8% prefer other sites for online shopping.

Figure 11
The above chart depicts that majority of the respondents that is 82% use cash on delivery option for payment, 19% use credit cards, 14% use bank transfer, 4% use bank transfer whereas 15% uses personal cheque and other methods of payment for online shopping.

Satisfaction level of online shopping:
Satisfied Very much satisfied Not satisfied Can't say Not Applicable 68 10 3 20 2

Figure 12
The study helped to found out that 68% of the respondents were satisfied with online shopping, 3% were not much satisfied, and 20% were neutral whereas 2% of the respondents were not satisfied with online shopping.

Satisfation level of online shopping
Satisfation level of online shopping

Figure 13
According to the chart 41% of the respondents felt the delay in delivery as the problem of online shopping. 26% of the respondents regard cheap quality product as the problem. 17% of the respondents regard product damage to be one of the problems of online shopping whereas 22% feel that there are other problems associated with online shopping.

Figure 14
The approximate amount willing to be spent on a single online purchase by majority of the respondents that is 38% is around Rs1000-3000. 35% of the respondents are ready to spend less than 1000 whereas 16% are ready to spend around Rs5000-10000. The % of respondents who are willing to spend 3000-5000 is 14% whereas 7% of the respondents are ready to spend more 10,000 on a single purchase.

Amount to be spend on a single purchase (Rs)
Amount to be spend on a single purchase

Conclusion:-
The e-commerce is one of the biggest things that have taken the business by a storm. It is creating an entirely new economy, which has a huge potential and is fundamentally changing the way businesses are done. It is believed that electronic commerce will become a huge industry in the coming years and online shopping is now becoming a significant part of the consumer's daily life to meet their never ending requirements in a convenient way. Online shopping is picking up and is becoming a trend. More consumers are indulging into internet shopping as seen by the research because of the value proposition it offers to a customer such as convenience, 24x7 shopping, doorstop delivery, a broad product selection and the ever-expanding range of unique and unusual gift ideas as well as increased consumer confidence in shopping on the internet is increasing. The main motivating factor seen during the research was the convenience and customer service which drives the people to online shopping. As a result today they are buying airline and railway tickets, books, home appliances, electronic gadgets, movie tickets, etc by logging on to a web site, than driving up to a store. As the research suggests that increase in usage of internet increases the online shopping so there is a need to increase in broadband penetration as it accelerates the growth of online trade. A huge buyers and sellers across demographics are shopping online because of the changing lifestyles and shopping habits. It is seen that despite the immense possibilities available on the internet it is mainly used for mailing, chatting and surfing. E-mail applications still constitute the bulk of net traffic in the country.