An Evaluation of Consumers’ Deal-Specific Response to Sales Promotions Based on Their Product Involvement

--Surajit Ghosh Dastidar

Consumer sales promotions (deals) are the key promotional strategies that marketers are employing today to provoke consumers for immediate product purchase. For effective use of deals, it is pertinent for the marketers to understand the consumers’ response to various deals in a given product category. This research has examined whether the deal-prone buyers in a given product category are also the deal-prone buyers for other product categories. Consumers’ deal redemption intention, tested in the case of eight types of deals, using a sample of 410 respondents, has been compared across a low-involvement FMCG product, e.g., shampoo, and a high-involvement durable product, e.g., apparel, to assess whether consumers are consistent, or vary, in their deal proneness across these two product categories. The results depict significant differences in consumers’ deal proneness across the two product categories in the case of a majority of the deal types included in this study. The findings have important theoretical implication and are expected to enable the marketers to strategize the use of various deals effectively, specifically as per their product category.

Profiling Customers in the Hospitality Sector: An Approach Towards Market Segmentation in Hotels and Restaurants in Assam

--Sinmoy Goswami, Panchanan Barman and Suman Sarmah

In order to successfully run hotels and restaurants, there has to be a proper marketing strategy for the various segments of guests/customers. Therefore, this paper has attempted to identify different customer segments in these establishments. A survey was conducted involving 210 hotel guests and 218 restaurant customers in Assam (India). The study revealed 29 parameters that have a significant impact on guests’ overall service experience in hotels. The results indicated three possible clusters (guest segments) in relation to these 29 parameters in hotels. These segments are convenience seekers, accessibility seekers, and quality eatable seekers. The findings of this study also indicated 18 parameters that have a significant impact on customers’ overall service experience in restaurants. It was found that there are three possible clusters (customer segments) with respect to these 18 parameters. These segments are sensible eaters, aesthetic seeking eaters, and quality eatable seekers. Appropriate marketing strategy for each such customer segment may improve the probability of their satisfaction, retention and loyalty. This may guarantee uninterrupted profitability and survivability of hotels and restaurants in future.

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Evaluation of Traditional Marketing Channels of Agricultural Produce: Paddy and Rice

-- Rinalini Pathak Kakati and Moitrayee Banerjee Chakraborty

Agricultural products still reach the consumers by means of traditional marketing channels in most parts of India. This study concentrates on evaluating the efficiencies of traditional marketing channels used by farmers for paddy/rice in Assam. Mainly three traditional channels dominate the agricultural market which are characterized by local agents, small and big millers, besides wholesalers and retailers. Despite the most common observation that farmers always get less returns due to the presence of market intermediaries, the present study shows that for paddy growers of Assam, the farmers’ share in the consumers’ rupee is moderate ranging between 62% and 68%. The farmers’ share has been highest, i.e., 68% of the consumer’s price in Channel 2, because of the farmer taking more marketing initiative of his own. Modified Marketing Index and Shepherd’s Index show that Channel 2 with Marketing Efficiency Index of 2.13 is the best. Here, the farmers’ share is higher due to more marketing initiatives which help the farmers in earning the margin that would otherwise pass on to the local traders. This study would help in formulating the pricing strategies of the corporate retailers for marketing of rice and related products.