Factors Influencing Customers

Question: Discss about the Factors Influencing Consumers to buying Qoo10 Online in Singapore. Answer: Factors influencing consumers to buying online in Singapore Qoo10 is a company which is formed by joint venture with eBay. It is the largest online market place. It provides online shopping facility. Online shopping behavior is a process in which products and services are offered with the help of internet (Qoo10, 2017). The factors which influence the customers of Singapore in shopping online are as follows: Price Outcome of comparison for infinite choice Price is one of the considerable factors of 4Ps of marketing mix. It is the net amount which needs to be paid by the customer for the benefits to be received from the goods and services (Shrestha, 2016). Price is one of the factors that need to be considered by the customers in case of online purchasing. Furthermore, price is the only factor that leads to generation of income to the company. Customers of Singapore usually prefer online purchasing because of ease in comparison of prices; it helps the consumer in selection of cheaper price. It has been observed that the Singapore customers usually purchases those products and services which are cost effective. However besides cost effectiveness, it is also observed that in Singapore women are more price sensitive as compare to men, while men focus on faster and convenient shopping. When prices are compared on online sites with competitors it affects the purchases of the particular goods and services (Bhasin, 2016). According to the giv en paper, a company must focus on creating customers value by making changes in prices. Singapore customers usually prefer low prices, but in case of low prices set by the company, it can made effect to its perceived value in the minds of the consumer. Low cost can lead to deterioration in quality for the business. Hence to make an effective price strategy the company must set its prices while considering the perceived image of the product or service in the minds of the consumer. It is perceived by the customer that online seller would have lesser cost in comparison to the retailers which are selling their products and services offline. This is due to involvement of warehousing facility, overhead cost, repair and maintenance charges, and rent of the building at offline marketing in traditional marketing. The involvement of these factors in traditional marketing makes the product and services costly. However there are many other charges too which makes changes in the prices of the pr oduct. This is the reason of the consumer opting for online shopping. The customer gets price advantage; besides this he can also compare the prices of the similar product or services at one place only (Charlon, 2015). According to survey conducted by Ernst and Young in 2000, it is the advantage of competitive pricing in case of online buying which influences the customer to shop online. The customer wish to purchase his/her desired product or services at cheaper price but at the same time it is also expected by the customer that the product or service must perceive the desired quality (Hinz, 2016). Convenience Due to evolvement of internet technology, vast changes have been done in online shopping. Internet technology has made possible for the customer to get the full information regarding the desired product or services at one place only, as he do not have to roam around, to find out the best price and quality. This has leaded an advantage to the customers in terms of convenience. It is analyzed that customer is influenced for online shopping because of ease of getting the desired information is a very less time (Freygang, 2016). This saves a lot of time of customers. This is the reason why traditional buying has been reduced in a drastic quantity. It is also analyzed that in case of online buying, price and convenience factor attached to product and services influences the most consumer behavior. In case of online buying, to create convenience for the customer, it is necessary to provide all the required information in the customer local language. If the information would be provided in other language than of customers it would be of no use for customers (Sevim, Hall, 2014). It is observed by the consumer behavior that the customer would find ease to buy online if he/she would get the desired product or services at desired prices, in a less time and with too availability of important information. The customer is highly influenced for shopping online due to convenience factor involved. This is highly suitable for the consumers, who do not have time to search around the various alternatives of his/her desired product or services. It is also analyzed that in comparison to shopping done by men and women, as women wants the desired product or services at lesser price, men wants their desired product or services at faster and convenient mode. Customer influences for buying online because of simplicity and convenience factors involved in it (Nielson, 2016). Furthermore, in online buying customers can buy the desired product or services at any time. Virtual market allows the customers to shop online from their home or office. Besides this, it also provides convenience as they do not need to unnecessary bargain for setting the price of the product at desired level. Online buying is convenient for both customers and business man. This is because customers can indulge into buying its desired products and services by sitting at a couch (Boswell, 2016). Trust In case of online buying, trust means the willingness of customers for the other party that the other party would perform the actions and services in the desired manner as customer wants. Trust and security are considered as most considerable factors in buying online. There is a positive relationship between trust in the online site and intention to purchase. This can be understand as, if the customers of Singapore would have trust in their online site like Qoo10, they would be more likely to purchase the goods and services offered by them (Ipood, 2013). Here trust indicates the level of involvement of perceived risk in the online buying. Hence the online website must find out the measures and try to change them so to increase the level of trust of the consumer and increase sales (Live mint, 2017). Though the customer get the desired price and availability of vast information regarding its uses, special features, comparison with other products, but it does not lays any trust factor i n the minds of the consumer. If the information is provided at local site it would be considered as less important as in comparison to information provided at authorized site like Qoo10. Besides this, the rating and reviews are not to be considered as good source of information. The online buying not influences the customer, because the customer has a fear of trust and security. Customer trust can be increased for the site by providing superior quality at justified price. It has been observed that if the people have trust in the online website, then only they would like to purchase the product. Hence trust in the online sites can be said as barrier in shopping online. In case of customers of Singapore, they would like to purchase from the recognized online site such as Qoo10, as it is a joint venture done by E-bay, which is also a reputed company (Shopping trends). Trust can be considered as risk taking behavior of the customer in the functioning of online website. The more the risk , lesser would be intentions to purchase of the products and services from that site. Trust of the consumers in case of the website can be increased by reputation, size, quality offering, reviews and perceived quality of the products and services in the minds of customer (Lim, Osman, Salahuddin, Romle, Abdullah, 2016). Consumer reviews or experiences affecting buying decision In todays era, mouth publicity has been replaced by reviews which are provided on online websites. While doing online shopping, the consumers usually expects similar prices as of other online shops. Besides form trust in the respective site, the website must have more positive reviews with it. In this, whenever consumer wants to purchase the desired product or services, he/she firstly check out the reviews and recommendations (if provided) on the website (Oritsematosan Ediwn, 2014). If there are some positive reviews then only customer would feel motivated to purchase the goods or services from the respective site. Consumers do not compare the prices between retail outlets and online shops. However consumers usually expect the prices at online shops as lower in comparison of traditional shops. This is so, because of lack of overhead cost to be incurred in case of retail outlets. It has been estimated that, in today era in Singapore, 90% of the consumers analyses the feedback and rev iew of the product and services before purchasing it. Customer gives preference to online recommendations and reviews because they perceive this as the personal recommendation from other customers which have already used the product or services (Nazir, Tayyab, Sajid, Rashid Javed, 2012). Besides this, approximately 31% of the consumers rely on the company which has excellent reviews about its product and services. According to the consumers who prefer online shopping, positive reviews work like a promotion for the company. This means that if a company has positive reviews then there are more chances of the customers to buy its product and services. Approximately 72% of the consumers make decision for purchases just after analyzing the positive reviews about the company. Consumers do not like to take the risk of purchasing the product or services of the company, which has negative reviews. It has been observed that increase in one star of a company can lead to increase in revenue by 5 to 9%, whereas a negative review regarding the company product can lead to loss of 30% of the customers. The reviews and ratings provided by the customer are not being considered as a good source of provider of information. This is because, of biasness involved in the customer ratings and reviews. There are positive relationship between the reviews and experiences of the customer and intention to purchase the product. The more positive reviews would be held by the company, more customers would be contained by the website. Rating done by the consumer regarding the online website will increase the brand image in the minds of consumer and would more influence the buying decision. Ratings can be done in two ways i.e. positive and negative. Is there is a positive rating the website should promote this on social sites, but if the customer has provided negative referencing, it should be taken as a opportunity for the consumers and the management of the respective website should make som e changes to reduce further negative reviews from the customers (Rudolph, 2015). Measurement of online shopping consumer reviews and feedback Measuring the reviews and feedback of the customer in case of online shopping is a qualitative concept. It is a very complex process as it totally depends upon the customer. It might possible that the customer is highly satisfied by the company product, but does not provide rating or provide a negative rating. While in case, when the customer is not satisfied by the company product and services, but still he provides a five star rating. Hence it can be said that providing feedback and ratings for the company offering are biased from the customer. This makes the measurement of reviews and feedback complex for the company. Besides this one of the major point need to be considered while measuring the feedback and reviews is that, majorly rating providing sites are not organized and sometimes they are not true also. Apart from this, there are a large number of reviews, and sometimes are very informative in nature. Hence it is said while measuring the reviews and feedback, the reviewer mi ght face a difficulty in reviewing all the reviews and feedback. There are no specific measures to quantify the online shopping reviews and feedback (Sam Sharma, 2015). There are not any key tools or method from which the reviews and feedback given by the customer can be measured. However it can be measured by applying some electronic meters such as scanners that would measure the purchases made by the customer. Besides this, by measuring the activities and engagement of each and every consumer from the TV, Smartphone, or any other gadget the reviews and feedback can be measured. Consumer buying decision Consumer buying decision is a complex process. This is due to invention of internet technology and availability of huge information. This involves stages starting from problem recognition to after purchase activities. Consumer makes purchasing decision on the basis of personal, situational, social and psychological factors. The consumer buying depends upon a lot of factors besides above stated factors such as: reviews of the product, comparing the product or the services with other companies. Besides this consumer do a lot of analyses over the product and services of the company by its online rating, recommendations. Hence the customer feels difficulty in analyzing the texture, unable to touch the product. It makes the consumer decision making very complex. Furthermore, in case of online shopping, the consumer has a lot of choices. Consumer makes purchasing decision on the basis of analysis over the quality of website design of the company, perceived trust, perceived convenience, and advertising and promotion strategies adopted by the company. In case of tradition shopping the buying decision starts from need or problem recognitions and ends with after purchase services. But in case of online shopping the consumer, he motivates from internal and external simulations (Babar, Rasheed Sajjad, 2014). Here website design plays a considerable role in influencing the customer to purchase the product or service. Perceived trust is when a customer expects that the companys product and services will fulfill the needs of the customer. It is the confidence of the customer in company offerings. In context to convenience, the consumer will prefer the site which is available 24/7.Besides this, some of the products in online marketing can be delivered very easily like books or software, while some of the product cannot be delivered so easily like electrical equipments. In case of online shopping, when the consumer comes across banner ads or online promotion, it attracts the consumer attention towards the company product or services. In online shopping the consumer come across a lot of choices, hence to differentiate the particular product or service from the other companys similar product or services, advertising, and sales promotion programs plays a considerable role (Bauboniene Guleviciut e, 2015). Conclusion By analyzing the given assignment it can be said that one of the factors of influencing the customer for adopting for online shopping is the availability of product and services at all the time. However besides prices, convenience and trust there are many other factors also which influences like cultural factors, gender sector of employment, demographic and psychographic factors and many more. References Babar, A,. Rasheed, A Sajjad, M. (2014) Factors influencing online shopping behavior of consumers, Journal of basic and applied scientific research 4(4) pp (314-320) Bauboniene, Z Guleviciute, G,. 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