A

Project Report
on
Consumer Decision Making
With special reference to R.K. Enterprises

Submitted in Partial Fulfilment for the Degree of

Bachelor of Business Administration

S.S.JAIN SUBODH P.G.(AUTONOMOUS) COLLEGE,JAIPUR

(2018-19)

SUBMITTED BY SUBMITTED TO
Prashant Chhetri Dr. Aishwarya Singh
B.B.A. V Semester

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the Project Report entitled “Consumer Decision Making with
special reference to RK Enterprises” is a record of project work done independently
by Mr. Prashant Chhetri under my guidance and supervision and that it has not
previously formed the basis for the award of any degree, fellowship or associate ship.

Dr. Aishwarya Singh

Associate Professor
S.S. Jain Subodh P.G. (Autonomous) College
Jaipur

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 DECLARATION

I, Prashant Chhetri student of BBA Semester V hereby declare that the project work
presented in this report is my own work and has been carried out under the
supervision of Dr. Aishwarya Singh of S.S Jain Subodh P.G.(Autonomous) College.

This work has not been previously submitted to any other university for any
examination.

Prashant Chhetri

S.S.JainSubodh P.G.(Autonomous)College

Jaipur

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It is not often in life that you get a chance of appreciating and expressing your
feelings in black and white to thank the people who have been a crucial part of your
successes, your accomplishments, and your being what you are today. I take this
opportunity to first of all thank the Faculty at S.S. Jain Subodh
P.G.(Autonomous)College, especially Dr. K.B.Sharma,Principal, and Dr. Rita Jain,
Head, Department of BBA for inculcating and instilling me the knowledge, learning,
will-power, values and the competitiveness and professionalism required by me as a
management student.

I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Aishwarya Singh (Faculty Guide) for
educating me silver lining in every dark cloud. His enduring efforts, guidance,
patience and enthusiasm have given a sense of direction and purposefulness to this
project and ultimately made it a success.

I express my sincere and heartiest thanks to everyone who has contributed towards the
successful completion of the Project.

Last but not the least; I would like to thank my family: my parents for supporting me
spiritually throughout my life.

The errors and inconsistencies remain my own.

Prashant Chhetri

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 Chapter 1

Introduction of the topic

1.1 Consumer Decision Making Process

The Consumer or Buyer Decision Making Process is the method used by marketers to
identify and track the decision making process of a customer journey from start to
finish. It is broken down into 5 individual stages, each stage providing a base which in
turn influences the outcomes of the other subsequent steps.

With regard to smart phones, the decision making process of a consumer can be
tracked in the following manner.

Step 1:Recognition of the problem

The first stage of the process is working out what exactly you or the customer needs.
The customer feels like something is missing and needs to address it to get back to
feeling normal. If you can determine when your target demographic develops these
needs or wants, it would be an ideal time to advertise to them.

In the following problem, it can be seen that our Smartphone were looking and feeling
like a little worse for a normal and satisfying use. So, we acknowledged the need for a
new Smartphone.

Step 2 : Searching of information

This is the search stage of the process. One that is continually changing from old
fashioned shopping around to the new shop front which is Google (other search

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engines are available - apparently). Information is not only gathered about stuff and
on things but from people via recommendations and through previous experiences we
may have had with various products.

In this stage a customer is beginning to think about risk management. A customer

might make a pro’s vs. con’s list to help make their decision. People often don’t want
to regret making a decision so extra time being put into managing risk may be worth
it.

In our case, we can “google” smart phones, and searches such as “what is the best
Smartphone for budget ?” among other searches as well as remembering that we
didn’t like Micromax or Lava Smartphones and had a nasty experience with a Spice
Smartphones many years back.

Step 3: Evaluation of alternatives

This is the time when questions start being asked. Is this really the right product for
me do? Do I need a different product? If the answers are either “No it’s not right” or
“yes I need a different product” then stage 2 may recommence. The stage 3 to 2
transition may happen several times before stage 4 has been reached.

Once the customer has determined what will satisfy their want or need they will begin
to seek out the best deal. This may be based on price, quality, or other factors that are
important to them. Customers read many reviews and compare prices, ultimately
choosing the one that satisfies most of their parameters.

Step 4: The stage of purchase

The customer has now decided based on the knowledge gathered what to purchase
and where to purchase what they desire.

At this stage a customer has either assessed all the facts and come to a logical
conclusion, made a decision based on emotional connections/experiences or
succumbed to advertising/marketing campaigns, or most likely a combination of all of
these has occurred.

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In our customer journey we purchased a Xiaomi Smartphone as we had a wonderful
experience with them previously, they were well priced on the market and the
marketing around budget users,by providing aggressive specifications on their
phones, has always linked them to being the best option for “real value for money
smart phones”. The positioning of the product also lent itself to where they were
purchased, an electronics retail outlet, rather than an exclusive Xiaomi outlet.

Step 5: Post purchase evaluation

The review stage is a key stage for the company and for the customer likewise. Did
the product deliver on the promises of the marketing/advertising campaigns? Did the
product match or exceed expectations?

If a customer finds that the product has matched or exceeded the promises made and
their own expectations they will potentially become a brand ambassador influencing
other potential customers in their stage 2 of their next customer journey, boosting the
chances of your product being purchased again. The same can be said for negative
feedback which, if inserted at stage 2, can halt a potential customer’s journey towards
your product.

To finish our customer journey – we very much like the Smartphoneswhich we have
chosen – we would recommend them to a friend, and on purchasing our next
Smartphone, we would probably make a similar brand or product choice. Our
satisfaction has made us a brand ambassador for the company who created our
wonderful Smartphone.

So there is the Consumer Decision Making Process in stages with the story of our last
Smartphone purchase. More or less, the basic outline of every consumer Decision
Making Process is the same, with ample scope of variations along each step.
However, it is important to note that some steps can be bypassed by the consumer,
depending on his information constraints. Moreover, the consumer can also change
the hierarchy of the process, depending on his convenience.

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1.2 Factors affecting Consumer Decision Making Process
Various factors influence the decision-making process of a consumer. Some of these
are internal factors, or personal influences that are individualistic in nature. These
factors are not visible, though they influence the consumer to a great extent. Learning,
perception, motivation, attitude, self-concept etc. are some such factors. The
processes by which these factors influence consumers have to be examined and
understood by the marketer by conducting appropriate research.

The effect of these factors cannot be verbalized by the consumer, as he may not be
able to realize their influence on him. For instance, motivation is one such factor
about which traditional surveys reveal little, as the consumer is not able to tell the
exact reasons for opting for a particular choice. Qualitative, exploratory research
using alternative methods such as projective techniques, word completion tests are
used to ascertain consumer motivations.

Some important factors affecting consumer Decision Making Process are :

1.Perception

Perception is the process by which a person selects, organizes and interprets sensory
stimulation to form a meaningful picture of the world. It is the process by which a
consumer makes sense of the information that he receives.

Exposure is the first step in the process of perception. The consumer has to first come
across the stimulus or be exposed to it, to interpret it. Attention is the next step in this
process.

2.Selective attention

Exposure is the first step in the process of perception. The consumer has to first come
across the stimulus or be exposed to it, to interpret it. Attention is the next step in this
process.

Customers screen those stimuli that are not meaningful to them or they are not
consistent with their experiences and beliefs. Consumers attend to only a small
percentage of the communication to which they are exposed to.

Customers pay more attention to stimuli that contrast with their background than to
stimuli that blend with it.

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Size, colour, position and movement of the stimuli also affect attention.

Customers also notice those images that relate to their needs and those that provide
surprises.

3.Selective distortion

Consumers process the information they have paid attention to. Consumers assign
meanings to these stimuli while interpreting them.

Consumers distort information, attitudes and views. They may pretend that they
misheard the message or they can discount the message source. Therefore, it is
important to present the message clearly and use a highly credible source to minimize
distortions.

Distortion can occur as people interpret the some information differently. For
instance, a cheaper price may signify low quality to one consumer and value for
money to another.

4.Selective retention

Only a selection of messages is retained in the customer’s memory. These messages

are in line with the consumer’s existing beliefs and attitudes.

Selective retention reduces cognitive dissonance. For instance, when reading reviews
of a recently purchased car, only positive messages are remembered.

The message about the product from word of mouth and advertising must be
consistent to prompt retention.

Perception depends on the customer, the stimulus and the situation.

Thus, the same message can be perceived differently by different individuals.

The quality of the stimulus can be enhanced to improve the probability of exposure,
attention and retention. Communication should be designed in a manner so as to
enable distortion-free perception.

The same consumer can perceive the some communication differently in varying
circumstances. For instance, price off during festival con be interpreted as on event

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related discount, whereas price offs at other times can be judged as poor brand
performance.

Many phenomena related to consumers are driven by the process of perception – for
instance, brand image, satisfaction, evaluation of brands and marketing
communication. Consumers form perceptions related to several marketing variables
such as price, attributes and their importance, country of origin of brands, corporate
brands, salespeople etc.

5.Learning

Learning is any challenge in the content or organization of long time memory and is a
result of information processing. Perceptual processes lead to additions in memory, if
the interpreted information is retained. The customer’s memory acts as the internal
information source in the decision making process.

6.Classical Conditioning

When the relationship between a stimulus and response is used to cause a learning of
the different stimulus to the same response is known as classical conditioning. The
repetitive appearance of the unconditioned and conditioned stimulus ensures that the
removal of the unconditioned stimulus evokes the same response.

In advertising, humor which is known to elicit a pleasant response may be used in the
belief that these favorable feelings will be associated to the product. Use of heavy
metal music when advertising a soft drink imbues the brand with youthfulness and
strength connotations.

The creation of brand personality involves using relationships that already generate a
desired positive response from the intended target audience. Such images are
combined with the brand to create the personality of the brand. The use of colors,
symbols, country of origin images, music in creating brand image are associated with
classical conditioning. The use of celebrity endorsements is also based on the belief
that the positive image of the celebrity would rub off on the brand image.

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7.Operant Conditioning

Learning also occurs through operant conditioning. Operant conditioning is positive

or negative reinforcement upon the performance of some behavior. Sales promotions
such as the use of free samples, coupons, price offs are instances of operant
conditioning. If the consumer likes the product, he may purchase it the next time,
which is positive reinforcement.

If he does not like it, he negatively reinforces this learning by not repeating the brand
purchase or even spreading negative word about it. A series of rewards may be used
over time to encourage repeat buying of the product (coupons). Repeat purchase
behavior is shaped by application of repeat reinforcers so that consumers will have
learnt that buying the product is associated with pleasurable experiences.

However, the product or brand offered by the marketer should be its own reward.
Artificial rewards offered over a period of time may make the customer expect such
rewards for buying the brand. He may also become conditioned to buy the product for
the reward, and not for the intrinsic rewards offered by the product.

Repeat purchase behavior is shaped by application of repeat reinforcers so that

consumers will have learnt that buying the product is associated with pleasurable
experiences.

8.Cognitive Learning

Cognitive learning is the development of beliefs and attitudes without reinforcement.

This type of learning primarily involves communication of benefits offered by a
product to the intended target audience The display of information and learning route
is rational in nature. Rote learning is learning without conditioning in which
companies repeat their messages that are primarily of a rational nature. Consumers are
repeatedly exposed to such messages and thus learn about the company’s offerings.

9.Modelling/Vicarious learning

Vicarious learning involves learning from others without direct experience or reward.
This type of learning involves copying others or modelling oneself on observed

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behavior in anticipation of certain rewards. It is the promise of the reward which
motivates in advertising. The ones who are copied may be product experts, admired
for achievements, socially upmarket, or leaders with desirable value

The ‘admiring glance’ can be used to signal approval of the type of clothing being
worn. Consumers may imagine that the same may happen to them if they dress in a
similar manner. The desire to copy thus stems from the consumer’s need to belong or
seek affiliation, make correct decisions, uphold similar values, or one’s aspirations in
life that can be achieved by emulation.

10.Reasoning

Reasoning involves high involvement situations. Some advertising relies on the

recipients to draw their own conclusions.

Result of learning is the creation of product positioning. The objective is to create a

clear and favorable image or impression in the mind of the customer. The company
has to ensure that customers continue to learn about its products through advertising,
publicity, sales promotion, salespersons‘ visits, and through their own experience with
the products. It is only through learning that the customers form perceptions about the
company and its products.

11.Motivation

The basic process of motivation involves needs that inspire actions to accomplish
goals of fulfilling a need or reducing a drive.

12.Belief and Attitude

Belief comprises thoughts about a product or a brand based on one or more choice
criteria. A consumer believes that Swatch offers international quality watches, or a
particular hotel has good room service.

A belief is not factual, is a perception which may or may not be factually correct.
Misconceptions about products can be harmful to the sale of brands. A consumer

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might think that a brand of durables is expensive because of the advertising imagery
that it uses. He may not check the actual price of the brand at all. The company’s aim
should be to ward off the misconceptions about their brand.

An attitude is an overall favorable or unfavorable evaluation of a product. The

consequence of a set of beliefs may be positive or negative attitudes towards the
product. They may be developed as a part of information search activities and/or
result of product use.

Attitudes play an important role in product design through the designer’s efforts of
matching product attributes to customer beliefs and attitudes. They also play an
important role in persuasive communications from the company which tries to
reinforce positive beliefs and attitudes, correct misconceptions and establish new
beliefs. Customers’ attitudes and beliefs impact pricing in the way that the company
tries to match price with customer’s beliefs about what a good product should cost.

13.Personality

Personality is the inner psychological characteristic of individuals that leads to

consistent response to their environment. If marketers can identify the personality
profile of the target market, advertising can show people of the same type using the
product. Personality types could be extremes such as Introvert-Extrovert, Sociable-
Loner, Competitive-Cooperative, etc.

Brand personality is the characterization of brands as perceived by customers. Brands

may be characterized as ‘ for young’ like MTV or Levi’s. By creating a brand
personality, a marketer may appeal to those people who value that characterization.
Customers prefer the brands that either match their own personality or portray
personalities that they aspire for. For instance, a laptop conveying efficiency and
productivity could be identical to an executive’s personality. Apparel brands
conveying success and material wealth could be aspirational for young executives.

14.Lifestyle

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Lifestyle is the pattern of living as expressed in a person’s activities, interests and
opinions. Lifestyle analysis groups consumers according to their activities, values,
and demographic characteristics such as education and income.

Lifestyles have been found to correlate with purchasing behavior. A company may
choose to target a particular lifestyle group with a particular product offering and use
advertising which is in line with the values and beliefs of this group.

15.Life Cycle

Disposable income, purchase and purchase requirements may vary according to life
cycle stages. Not all people follow the classic family life cycle stages. Consumer’s
priorities regarding which products to buy, undergoes changes in different stages of
the life cycle. His attitude towards life also changes.

A teenager is most bothered about his appearance, pleasing his peer group members
and having fun in life along with building a career. A middle aged career person who
is recently married is bothered about securing the family’s financial future, buying a
house etc. Parents in a family with young children are most concerned about the
future of the children and their comforts. In all these stages, a person’s spending
pattern varies.

For teenagers, food, entertainment and appearance would be the main areas where
money is spent. Among newly married couples, spending on house and furnishings,
car, household essentials may be the areas where money is spent, and for couples with
children, their education, comforts is where the money goes. Therefore, in various
stages of the family life cycle, priorities about where to spend money, changes. The
attitudes also undergo changes, with teenagers typically reflecting ego-centrism and a
carefree nature, and a full-nest family driven by responsibility and safety concerns.

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1.3 Models of consumer Behaviour

We have already seen that there are many factors which influence the decision-
making of

consumers. There are various consumers models which help in the understanding of
consumer behaviour. These are listed below. We shall discuss these briefly.

1. Economic Model

In this model, consumers follow the principle of maximum utility based on the law of
diminishing marginal utility. The consumer wants to spend the minimum amount for
maximising his gains.

Economic man model is based on:

Price effect: Lesser the price of the product, more will be the quantity purchased.

Substitution effect: Lesser the price of the substitute product, lesser will be the utility

of the original product bought.

Income effect: When more income is earned, or more money is available, more will
be the quantity purchased. This model, according to behavioural scientists, is not
complete as it assumes the homogeneity of the market, similarity of buyer behaviour
and concentrates only on the product or price.

It ignores all the other aspects such as perception, motivation, learning, attitudes,
personality and socio-cultural factors. It is important to have a multi-disciplinary
approach, as human beings are complex entities and are influenced by external and
internal factors discussed above. Thus, price is not the only factor influencing
decision-making and the economic model according to scientists have shortcomings.

2. Psychological Model

Psychologists have been investigating the causes which lead to purchases and
decision-making. This has been answered by A.H. Maslow in his hierarchy of needs.
The behaviour of an individual at a particular time is determined by his strongest need

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at that time. This also shows that needs have a priority. First they satisfy the basic
needs and then go on for secondary needs.

The purchasing process and behaviour is governed by motivational forces. Motivation

stimulates people into action. Motivation starts with the need. It is a driving force and
also a mental phenomenon. Need arises when one is deprived of something. A tension
is created in the mind of the individual which leads him to a goal directed behaviour
which satisfies the need. Once a need is satisfied, a new need arises and the process is
continuous.

3. Pavlovian Learning Model

This model is named after the Russian Physiologist Ivan Pavlov. He experimented on
a dog and observed how it responded on the call of a bell and presenting it with a
piece of meat. The responses were measured by the amount of saliva secreted by the
dog. Learning is defined as the changes in behaviour which occur by practice and,
based on previous experience. This is important to marketers as well.

The learning process consists of the following factors:

Drive

This is a strong internal stimuli which impels action. Because of the drive, a person is
stimulated to action to fulfil his desires.

Drives can be innate (in-born) which stem from physiological needs, such as hunger,
thirst, pain, cold, sex, etc. Learned drive, such as striving for status or social approval.

Cause

Causes are weak stimuli that determine when the buyer will respond. We have:

(a) Triggering Cues: These activate the decision process for any purchase.

(b) Non-triggering Cues: These influence the decision process but do not activate it.

These are of two kinds:

1. Product cues are external stimuli received from the product directly, e.g., colour

of package, weight, style, price, etc.

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2. Informational cues are external stimuli which provide information about the
product, like advertisement, sales promotion, talking to other people, suggestions of
sales personnel, etc.

Response is what the buyer does, i.e., buys or does not buy.

Reinforcement

Thus, when a person has a need to buy, say clothing, and passes by a showroom and is
attracted by the display of clothing, their colour and style, which acts as a stimulus,
and he makes a purchase. He uses it, and if he likes it, an enforcement takes place and
he is happy and satisfied with the purchase. He recommends it to his friends as well,
and visits the same shop again. Learning part, thus is an important part of buyer
behaviour and the marketer tries to create a good image of the product in the mind of
the consumer for repeat purchases through learning.

4. Input, Process and Output Model

This is a simple model of consumer behaviour, in which the input for the customer is
the firm’s marketing effort (the product, price, promotion and place) and the social
environment. The social environment consists of the family, reference groups, culture,
social class, etc. which influences the decision-making process. Both these factors
together constitute the input in the mind of the consumer.

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Need recognition

When one is aware of a want, tension is created and one chooses a product to satisfy
his needs. There is also a possibility that a person may be aware of a product before
its need is recognised. This is indicated by the arrows going both ways from the need
to the product and vice-versa.

Product awareness

Product awareness can be had from advertisement or exposure to different types of

media or by the social circle. The awareness and the need leads to the building of
interest. In some cases, the interest may also breakdown and, the decision process also
stops or may be postponed for the time being.

Evaluation

Evaluation may consist of getting more information about the product and comparing
and contrasting it with other products. This can be done theoretically or by taking a
trial. Once the evaluation is completed, the consumer’s interest may either build up
and he has intentions to buy, or he may lose interest and the decision process may
again stop or be postponed.

Intention

Once there is intention to purchase the product, the consumer goes ahead and acts or
pur-

chases the product. Once the product is purchased, it is used to fulfil the need and, the
more the product is used, the more the consumer becomes aware of the positive and
negative points of the product.

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Post-purchase behaviour

If, after the purchase and use of the product the customer is satisfied, he is happy and
goes in for repeat purchases or recommends the same to his friends and
acquaintances. If, however, the customer is dissatisfied, he discontinues further
purchase of the product and builds a negative attitude towards it, which may be
harmful to the company.

The post-purchase behaviour is very important for the marketeer and the company
because it leads to proper feedback for improvement and maintaining the quality and
features desired by the product. If the customer is very happy with the purchase, he
forms a good impression about the product and the company.

5. Sociological Model

This is concerned with the society. A consumer is a part of the society and he may be
a member of many groups in a society. His buying behaviour is influenced by these
groups. Primary groups of family friends and close associates exert a lot of influence
on his buying. A consumer may be a member of a political party where his dress
norms are different. As a member of an elite organisation, his dress requirements may
be different, thus he has to buy things that conform to his lifestyles in different
groups.

6. Howarth Sheth Model

This model is slightly complicated and shows that consumer behaviour is complex
process and concepts of learning, perception and attitudes influence consumer
behaviour. This model of decision-making is applicable to individuals. It has four sets
of variables which are:

(i) Input

(ii) Perceptual and learning constructs

(iii) Outputs

(iv) Exogenous or external variables.

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Input

Some inputs are necessary for the customer for making decisions:

These inputs are provided by three types of stimuli as shown in Fig. 20.4.

(a) Significative stimuli: These are physical tangible characteristics of the product.
These

are price, quality, distinctiveness, services rendered and availability of the product.
These are essential for making decisions.

(b) Symbolic stimuli: These are the same as significate characteristics, but they
include the perception of the individ555ual, i.e., price is high or low. Quality is upto
the mark or below average. How is it different from the other products, what services
can the product

render and, what is the position of after sales service and how quickly or easily is the
product available and, from where.

(c) Social stimuli: This is the stimulus provided by family, friends, social groups, and

social class. This is important, as one lives in society and for the approval and
appreciation of the society, buying habits have to be governed.

Perceptual and learning constructs

These constructs are psychological variables, e.g., motives, attitudes, perception

which influence the consumer decision process.

The consumer receives the stimuli and interprets it. Two factors that influence his
interpretation are stimulus-ambiguity and perpetual bias.

Stimulus ambiguity occurs when the consumer cannot interpret or fully understand
the meaning of the stimuli he has received, and does not know how to respond.
Perceptual bias occurs when an individual distorts the information according to his
needs and experiences.

These two factors influence the individual for the comprehensions and rating of the
brand. If the brand is rated high, he develops confidence in it and finally purchases it.

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Output

By output we mean the purchase decision. After purchase there is satisfaction or

dissatisfaction.

Satisfaction leads to positive attitude and increases brand comprehension. With

dissatisfaction, a negative attitude is developed. The feedback shown by the dotted
line and the solid lines shows the flow of information.

Exogenous or external variables

These are not shown in the model, and do not directly influence the decision process.
They influence the consumer indirectly and vary from one consumer to another.
These are the individual’s own personality traits, social class, importance of purchase
and financial status.

All the four factors discussed above are dependent on each other and influence the
decision-making process. The model though complicated, deals with the purchase
behaviour in an exhaustive manner.

7. Engel-Blackwell-Kollat Model

It consists of four components:

(i) Information processing

(ii) Central control unit

(iii) Decision process

(iv) Environmental influences.

Information processing

A shown in the diagram the information processing consists of exposure, attention,

comprehension and retention of the marketing and non-marketing stimuli. For

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successful sales, the consumer must be properly and repeatedly exposed to the
message. His attention should be drawn, such that he understands what is to be
conveyed and retains it in his mind.

Central control unit

The stimuli processes and interprets the information received by an individual. This is
done by the help of four psychological factors.

(a) Stores information and past experience about the product, which serves as a
standard for comparing other products and brands.

(b) Evaluative criteria which could be different for different individuals.

(c) Attitudes or the state of mind which changes from time to time, and helps in
choosing the product.

(d) The personality of the consumer which guides him to make a choice suiting his
personality.

Decision process

This chapter is dealt with later in the text, and consists basically of problem
recognition, internal and external search, evaluation and the purchase. The decision
outcome or the satisfaction and dissatisfaction is also an important factor which
influences further decisions.

1.4 Introduction of smartphones:

A Smartphone or smart phone is a mobile phone with an advanced mobile operating
system which combines features of a personal computer operating system with other

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features useful for mobile or handheld use. They typically combine the features of a
cell phone with those of other popular mobile devices, such as personal digital
assistant (PDA), media player mind GPS navigation unit. Smart phones are used to
make phone calls and send text messages but they can also be used for accessing the
internet and check your emails, search the internet and much more. A Smartphone
can:
 Make voice calls.
 Make video calls.
 Access the internet and browse the web Take photos, and upload them to the
web.
 Navigate with GPS, if the phone has GPS built-in.
 Play back music and video stored on the phone.
 Manage your contacts and appointments.
 Send emails.
 Play in-built games.
 Run new applications and games downloaded for the internet.
In current era, many Smartphone makers manufacture different kinds of smart phones
to cater to various needs of different sections of customers. Some popular Smartphone
players of today are Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, LG, Huawei, Oneplus and Oppo.

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1.5 History of smart phones

The development of the Smartphone was enabled by advances in MOSFET (metal-

oxide-silicon field-effect transistor) semiconductor device fabrication. The MOSFET
(MOS transistor), invented by Mohamed Attalla and DawonKahng at Bell Labs in
1959, is the basic building block of computing devices such as smart
phones. MOSFET scaling, where MOS transistors get smaller with decreasing power
consumption, enabled very large-scale integration (VLSI) technology, with
MOS transistor counts in integrated circuit chips increasing at an exponential pace, as
predicted by Moore's law. Continuous MOSFET scaling eventually made it possible
to build portable smart devices such as smart phones during the 1990s–2000s.A
typical Smartphone is built from billions of tiny MOSFETs as of 2019, used in
integrated circuits such as microprocessors and memory chips,[6] as devices, and
as thin-film transistors (TFTs) in mobile displays

Advances in MOSFET power electronic technology also enabled the development of

digital wireless mobile networks, which are essential to the Smartphone. The wide
adoption of power MOSFET, LDMOS (lateral diffused MOS) and RF CMOS (radio
frequency CMOS) devices led to the development and proliferation of digital wireless
mobile networks in the 1990s, with further advances in MOSFET technology leading
to increasing bandwidth during the 2000s.Most of the essential elements of wireless
mobile networks are built from MOSFETs, including the mobile transceivers, base
station modules, routers, RF power amplifiers, telecommunication circuits, RF
circuits, and radio transceivers, in networks such as 2G, 3G and 4G.

Another important enabling factor was the lithium-ion battery, which became
indispensable as an energy source for smart phones. The lithium-ion battery was
invented by John Goodenough, RachidYazami and Akira Yoshino in the
1980s,[13] and commercialized by Sony and Asahi Kasei in 1991.

Forerunners: In the early 1990s, IBM engineer Frank Canova realised that chip-and-
wireless technology was becoming small enough to use in handheld devices. The first
commercially available device that could be properly referred to as a "Smartphone"
began as a prototype called "Angler" developed by Canova in 1992 while at IBM and
demonstrated in November of that year at the COMDEX computer industry trade
show. A refined version was marketed to consumers in 1994 by BellSouth under the

24
name Simon Personal Communicator. In addition to placing and
receiving cellular calls, the touch screen-equipped Simon could send and
receive faxes and emails. It included an address book, calendar, appointment
scheduler, calculator, world time clock, and notepad, as well as other visionary mobile
applications such as maps, stock reports and news.

The IBM Simon was manufactured by Mitsubishi Electric, which integrated features
from its own wireless personal digital assistant (PDA) and cellular
radio technologies. It featured a liquid-crystal display (LCD) and PC
Card support. The Simon was commercially unsuccessful, particularly due to its bulky
form factor and limited battery life, using NiCad batteries rather than the nickel–metal
hydride batteries commonly used in mobile phones in the 1990s, or lithium-ion
batteries used in modern smart phones.

The term "smart phone" or "Smartphone" was not coined until a year after the
introduction of the Simon, appearing in print as early as 1995, describing AT&T's
Phone Writer Communicator.

PDA/ Phone hybrids: Beginning in the mid-late 1990s, man people who had mobile
phones carried a separate dedicated PDA device, running early versions of operating
systems such as Palm OS, Newton OS, Symbian or Windows CE/Pocket PC. These
operating systems would later evolve into early mobile operating systems. Most of the
"smart phones" in this era were hybrid devices that combined these existing familiar
PDA OSes with basic phone hardware. The results were devices that were bulkier
than either dedicated mobile phones or PDAs, but allowed a limited amount of
cellular Internet access. PDA and mobile phone manufacturers competed in reducing
the size of devices. The bulk of these smart phones combined with their high cost and
expensive data plans, plus other drawbacks such as expansion limitations and
decreased battery life compared to separate standalone devices, generally limited their
popularity to "early adopters" and business users who needed portable connectivity.

In March 1996, Hewlett-Packard released the OmniGo 700LX, a modified HP

200LX palmtop PC with a Nokia 2110 mobile phone piggybacked onto it and ROM-
based software to support it. It had a 640×200 resolution CGA compatible four-shade
gray-scale LCD screen and could be used to place and receive calls, and to create and
receive text messages, emails and faxes. It was also 100% DOS 5.0 compatible,

25
allowing it to run thousands of existing software titles, including early versions
of Windows.

In August 1996, Nokia released the Nokia 9000 Communicator, a digital cellular PDA
based on the Nokia 2110 with an integrated system based on the PEN/GEOS 3.0
operating system from Geoworks. The two components were attached by a hinge in
what became known as a clamshell design, with the display above and a physical
QWERTY keyboard below. The PDA provided e-mail; calendar, address book,
calculator and notebook applications; text-based Web browsing; and could send and
receive faxes. When closed, the device could be used as a digital cellular telephone.

In June 1999 Qualcomm released the "pdQ Smartphone", a CDMA digital PCS
Smartphone with an integrated Palm PDA and Internet connectivity.

Subsequent landmark devices included:

The Ericsson R380 (December 2000) by Ericsson Mobile Communications, the first
phone running the operating system later named Symbian (it ran EPOC Release 5,
which was renamed Symbian OS at Release 6). It had PDA functionality and limited
Web browsing on a resistive touch screen utilizing a stylus. While it was marketed as
a "Smartphone",users could not install their own software on the device.

The Kyocera 6035 (February 2001), a dual-nature device with a separate Palm OS
PDA operating system and CDMA mobile phone firmware. It supported limited Web
browsing with the PDA software treating the phone hardware as an attached modem.

The Nokia 9210 Communicator (June 2001), the first phone running Symbian
(Release 6) with Nokia's Series 80 platform (v1.0). This was the first Symbian phone
platform allowing the installation of additional applications. Like the Nokia 9000
Communicator it's a large clamshell device with a full physical QWERTY keyboard
inside.

Handspring's Treo 180 , the first Smartphone that fully integrated the Palm OS on a
GSM mobile phone having telephony, SMS messaging and Internet access built into
the OS. The 180 model had a thumb-type keyboard and the 180g version had a
Graffiti handwriting recognition area, instead.

26
Japanese cell phones: In 1999, Japanese wireless provider NTT Do
Como launched I-mode, a new mobile internet platform which provided data
transmission speeds up to 9.6 kilobits per second, and access web services available
through the platform such as online shopping. NTT Do Como’s i-mode used cHTML,
a language which restricted some aspects of traditional HTML in favor of increasing
data speed for the devices. Limited functionality, small screens and limited bandwidth
allowed for phones to use the slower data speeds available. The rise of i-mode helped
NTT DoCoMo accumulate an estimated 40 million subscribers by the end of 2001,
and ranked first in market capitalization in Japan and second globally.

Japanese cell phones increasingly diverged from global standards and trends to offer
other forms of advanced services and Smartphone-like functionality that were
specifically tailored to the Japanese market, such as mobile payments and
shopping, near-field communication (NFC) allowing mobile wallet functionality to
replace smart cards for transit fares, loyalty cards, identity cards, event tickets,
coupons, money transfer, etc., downloadable content like musical ringtones, games,
and comics, and 1seg mobile television. Phones built by Japanese manufacturers used
custom firmware, however, and didn't yet feature standardized mobile operating
systems designed to cater to third-party application development, so their software
and ecosystems were akin to very advanced feature phones. As with other feature
phones, additional software and services required partnerships and deals with
providers.

The degree of integration between phones and carriers, unique phone features, non-
standardized platforms, and tailoring to Japanese culture made it difficult for Japanese
manufacturers to export their phones, especially when demand was so high in Japan
that the companies didn't feel the need to look elsewhere for additional profits.

The rise of 3G technology in other markets and non-Japanese phones with powerful
standardized Smartphone operating systems, app stores, and advanced wireless
network capabilities allowed non-Japanese phone manufacturers to finally break in to
the Japanese market, gradually adopting Japanese phone features like emojis, mobile
payments, NFC, etc. and spreading them to the rest of the world.

Early Smartphones: Phones that made effective use of any significant data
connectivity were still rare outside Japan until the introduction of the Danger

27
Hiptop in 2002, which saw moderate success among U.S. consumers as the T-
Mobile Sidekick. Later, in the mid-2000s, business users in the U.S. started to adopt
devices based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile, and then BlackBerry smart phones
from Research In Motion. American users popularized the term "CrackBerry" in 2006
due to the BlackBerry's addictive nature. In the U.S., the high cost of data plans and
relative rarity of devices with Wi-Fi capabilities that could avoid cellular data network
usage kept adoption of smart phones mainly to business professionals and "early
adopters."

Outside the U.S. and Japan, Nokia was seeing success with its smart phones based
on Symbian, originally developed by Psion for their personal organisers, and it was
the most popular Smartphone OS in Europe during the middle to late 2000s. Initially,
Nokia's Symbian smart phones were focused on business with the Eseries, similar to
Windows Mobile and BlackBerry devices at the time. From 2006 onwards, Nokia
started producing consumer-focused smart phones, popularized by the entertainment-
focused Nseries. Until 2010, Symbian was the world's most widely used Smartphone
operating system.

Form and Operating system shifts : The touch screen PDA-derived nature of
adapted operating systems like Palm OS, the “Pocket PC” versions of what was
later Windows Mobile, and the UIQ interface that was originally designed for pen-
based PDAs on Symbian OS devices resulted in some early smart phones having
stylus-based interfaces. These allowed for virtual keyboards and/or handwriting input,
thus also allowing easy entry of Asian characters.

By the mid-2000s, the majority of smart phones had a physical QWERTY keyboard.
Most used a “keyboard bar” form factor, like the BlackBerry line, Windows
Mobile smart phones, Palm Treos, and some of the Nokia Eseries. A few hid their full
physical QWERTY keyboard in a sliding form factor, like the Danger Hiptop line.
Some even had only a numeric keypad using T9 text input, like the Nokia Nseries and
other models in the Nokia Eseries. Resistive touchscreens with stylus-based interfaces
could still be found on a few smart phones, like the Palm Treos, which had dropped
their handwriting input after a few early models that were available in versions
with Grafitti instead of a keyboard.

28
The late 2000s and early 2010s saw a shift in Smartphone interfaces away from
devices with physical keyboards and keypads thatcome with large finger-
operated capacitive touchscreens.

By the mid-2000s, the majority of smart phones had a physical QWERTY keyboard.
Most used a “keyboard bar” form factor, like the BlackBerry line, Windows
Mobile smart phones, Palm Treos, and some of the Nokia Eseries. A few hid their full
physical QWERTY keyboard in a sliding form factor, like the Danger Hiptop line.
Some even had only a numeric keypad using T9 text input, like the Nokia Nseries and
other models in the Nokia Eseries. Resistive touchscreens with stylus-based interfaces
could still be found on a few smart phones, like the Palm Treos, which had dropped
their handwriting input after a few early models that were available in versions
with Grafitti instead of a keyboard.

The first phone of any kind with a large capacitive touch screen was the LG Prada,
announced by LG in December 2006. This was a fashionable feature phone created in
collaboration with Italian luxury designer Prada with a 3” 240x400 pixel screen.

In January 2007 Apple Computer introduced the iPhone. It had a 3.5" capacitive touch
screen with twice the common resolution of most Smartphone screens at the time, and
introduced multi-touch to phones, which allowed gestures such as "pinching" to zoom
in or out on photos, maps, and web pages. The iPhone was notable as being the first
device of its kind targeted at the mass market to abandon the use of a stylus,
keyboard, or keypad typical of contemporary smart phones, instead using a large
touch screen for direct finger input as its main means of interaction.

The iPhone’s operating system was also a shift away from previous ones that were
adapted from PDAs and feature phones, to one powerful enough to avoid using a
limited, stripped down web browser requiring pages specially formatted using
technologies such as WML, cHTML, or XHTML that previous phones supported and
instead run a version of Apple’s Safari browser that could easily render full websites
not specifically designed for phones.

Later Apple shipped a software update that gave the iPhone a built-in on-device App
Store allowing direct wireless downloads of third-party software. This kind of
centralized App Store and free developer tools quickly became the new main
paradigm for all Smartphone platforms for software development, distribution,

29
discovery, installation, and payment, in place of expensive developer tools that
required official approval to use and a dependence on third-party sources providing
applications for multiple platforms.

The advantages of a design with software powerful enough to support advanced

applications and a large capacitive touch screen affected the development of another
Smartphone OS platform, Android, with a more BlackBerry-like prototype device
scrapped in favour of a touch screen device with a slide-out physical keyboard, as
Google’s engineers thought at the time that a touch screen could not completely
replace a physical keyboard and buttons. Android is based around a modified Linux
kernel, again providing more power than mobile operating systems adapted from
PDAs and feature phones. The first Android device, the HTC Dream, was released in
September 2008, with both a 3.2” capacitive touch screen and a hardware keyboard
that was revealed when the user slid the screen open. By 2010 the majority of Android
phones were touch screen-only.

The iPhone and later touch screen-only Android devices together popularized the
Smartphone form factor based on a large capacitive touch screen as the sole means of
interaction, and led to the decline of earlier, keyboard- and keypad-focused
platforms. Other Smartphone manufacturers soon started projects to replace their
existing operating systems with new ones that could support touch interfaces on larger
screens and web browsers that could render full web pages. Microsoft, for instance,
discontinued Windows Mobile and started a new touch screen-oriented OS from
scratch, called Windows Phone. Nokia abandoned Symbian and partnered with
Microsoft to use Windows Phone on its smart phones. Palm replaced their Palm
OS with webOS. BlackBerry Limited, formerly known as Research In Motion and
known for phones with a full qwerty keyboard below the screen, made a new platform
for touch screen phones based on QNX, BlackBerry 10.

By the mid-2010s, almost all smart phones were touch screen-only and had discarded
legacy mobile operating systems for more recently developed ones that were more
powerful.

Camera improvements: The first commercial camera phone was the Kyocera Visual
Phone VP-210, released in Japan in May 1999. It was called a "mobile videophone" at
the time, and had a 110,000-pixel front-facing camera. It could send up to two images

30
per second over Japan's Personal Handy-phone System (PHS) cellular network, and
store up to 20 JPEG digital images, which could be sent over e-mail. The first mass-
market camera phone was the J-SH04, a Sharp J-Phone model sold in Japan in
November 2000.[68][69] It could instantly transmit pictures via cell
phone telecommunication.

By the mid-2000s, higher-end cell phones commonly had integrated digital cameras.
In 2003 camera phones outsold stand-alone digital cameras, and in 2006 they outsold
film and digital stand-alone cameras. Five billion camera phones were sold in five
years, and by 2007 more than half of the installed base of all mobile phones were
camera phones. Sales of separate cameras peaked in 2008.

Many early smart phones didn't have cameras at all, and earlier models that had them
had low performance and insufficient image and video quality that could not compete
with budget pocket cameras and fulfil user's needs. By the beginning of the 2010s
almost all smart phones had an integrated digital camera. The decline in sales of
stand-alone cameras accelerated due to the increasing use of smart phones with
rapidly improving camera technology for casual photography, easier image
manipulation, and abilities to directly share photos through the use of apps and web-
based services. By 2011, cell phones with integrated cameras were selling hundreds of
millions per year. In 2015, digital camera sales were 35.395 million units or only less
than a third of digital camera sales numbers at their peak and also slightly less than
film camera sold number at their peak.

In 2007 the Nokia N95 was notable as a Smartphone that had a 5.0 Megapixel (MP)
camera, when most others had cameras with around 3 MP or less than 2 MP. Some
specialized feature phones like the LG Viewty, Samsung SGH-G800, and Sony
Ericsson K850i, all released later that year, also had 5.0 MP cameras.

By 2010 5.0 MP cameras were common; a few smart phones had 8.0 MP cameras and
the Nokia N8, Sony Ericsson Satio, and Samsung M8910 Pixon12 feature phone had
12 MP. In 2009 the Samsung Omnia HD was the first phone with 720p video
recording. A 14-megapixel Smartphone with 3x optical zoom was announced in late
2010. In 2012 Nokia announced the Nokia 808 PureView, featuring a 41-megapixel
1/1.2-inch sensor and a high-resolution f/2.4 Zeiss all-aspherical one-group

31
lens. 1080p video recording on a Smartphone was achieved in 2011, and 2160p (4K)
video recording in 2013.

In 2017 Apple introduced the iPhone 7 Plus, one of the phones to popularize a dual
camera setup. The iPhone 7 Plus included a main 12 MP camera along with a 12 MP
telephoto camera which allowed for 2x optical zoom and Portrait Mode (Bokeh) for
the first time in a Smartphone.

In early 2018 Huawei released a new flagship phone, the Huawei P20 Pro, with one of
the first triple camera lens setups. In late 2018, Samsung released a new mid-range
Smartphone, the Galaxy A9 (2018) with the world's first quad camera setup.
The Nokia 9 PureView was released in 2019 featuring a penta-lens camera system.

Modern advanced smart phones have cameras with optical image stabilisation (OIS),
larger sensors, bright lenses, and even optical zoom plus RAW images. HDR,
"Bokeh mode" with multi lenses and multi-shot night modes are now also
familiar. Many new Smartphone camera features are being enabled via computational
photography and multiple specialized lenses rather than larger sensors and lenses, due
to the constrained space available inside phones that are being made as slim as
possible.

Display improvements: In the early 2010s, larger smart phones with screen sizes of
at least 5.5 inches diagonal, dubbed "phablets", began to achieve popularity, with the
2011 Samsung Galaxy Note series gaining notably wide adoption. In 2013, Huawei
launched the Huawei Mate series, sporting a 6.1-inch HD (1280x720) IPS+ LCD
display, which was considered to be quite large at the time.

Some companies began to release smart phones in 2013 incorporating flexible

displays to create curved form factors, such as the Samsung Galaxy Round and LG G
Flex.

By 2014, 1440p displays began to appear on high-end smart phones. In 2015, Sony
released the Xperia Z5 Premium, featuring a 4K resolution display, although only
images and videos could actually be rendered at that resolution (all other software is
upscaled from 1080p).

New trends for Smartphone displays began to emerge in 2017, with both LG and
Samsung releasing flagship smart phones (LG G6 and Galaxy S8), utilizing displays

32
with taller aspect ratios than the common 16:9 ratio, and a high screen-to-body ratio,
also known as "bezel-less design". These designs allow the display to have a larger
diagonal measurement, but with a slimmer width than 16:9 displays with an
equivalent screen size.

Another trend popularized in 2017 was having a display that contained a tab-like cut-
out at the top-centre—colloquially known as a "notch"—to contain the front-facing
camera, and sometimes other sensors typically located along the top bezel of a
device. These designs allow for "edge-to-edge" displays that take up nearly the entire
height of the device, with little to no bezel along the top, and sometimes a minimal
bottom bezel as well. This design characteristic appeared almost simultaneously on
the Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone, which featured circular tabs for their
cameras, followed just a month later by the iPhone X, which used a wider tab to
contain a camera and facial scanning system.

Smart phones with foldable displays were theorized as possible once manufacturing
costs and production processes were feasible. In November 2018, the startup company
Royole unveiled the first commercially available foldable Smartphone, the
RoyoleFlexPai. Also that month, Samsung presented a prototype phone featuring an
"Infinity Flex Display" at its developers conference, with a smaller, outer display on
its "cover", and a larger, tablet-sized display when opened. Samsung stated that it also
had to develop a new polymer material to coat the display as opposed to glass. Early
examples of foldable phones from other manufacturers became the subject of rumors
in early 2019; Samsung officially announced the Galaxy Fold, based on the
previously-demonstrated prototype, in February 2019 for an originally-scheduled
release in late-April.

In 2019, 4.7-inches to 5.5 inches have become the industry standard size, with most
companies abandoning smaller, under 4.7-inch displays.

Other developments in the 2010s:

2011

The first Smartphone with a fingerprint reader was the Motorola Atrix 4G in
2011.[106] In September 2013, the iPhone 5S was unveiled as the first Smartphone on
a major U.S. carrier since the Atrix to feature this technology.

33
2012

In 2012, Samsung introduced the Galaxy S3 (GT-i9300) with retrofittable wireless

charging, pop-up video playback, 4G-LTE variant (GT-i9305) quad-core processor.

2013

In 2013, Fairphone launched its first "socially ethical" Smartphone at the London
Design Festival to address concerns regarding the sourcing of materials in the
manufacturing followed by Shiftphone in 2015. In late 2013, QSAlpha commenced
production of a Smartphone designed entirely around security, encryption and identity
protection.

In October 2013, Motorola Mobility announced Project Ara, a concept for a modular
Smartphone platform that would allow users to customize and upgrade their phones
with add-on modules that attached magnetically to a frame. Ara was retained by
Google following its sale of Motorola Mobility to Lenovo, but was shelved in
2016. That year, LG and Motorola both unveiled smart phones featuring a limited
form of modularity for accessories; the LG G5 allowed accessories to be installed via
the removal of its battery compartment, while the Moto Z utilizes accessories attached
magnetically to the rear of the device.

2014

Microsoft, expanding upon the concept of Motorola's short-lived "Webtop", unveiled

functionality for its Windows 10 operating system for phones that allows supported
devices to be docked for use with a PC-styled desktop environment.

2015

Samsung and LG used to be the “last standing” manufacturers to offer flagship

devices with user-replaceable batteries. But in 2015, Samsung succumbed to
the minimalism trend set by Apple, introducing the Galaxy S6 with a non-user-
replaceable battery. In addition, Samsung was criticised for pruning long-standing
features such as MHL, MicroUSB 3.0, water resistance and MicroSD card support, of
which the latter two came back in 2016 with the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge.

As of 2015, the global median for Smartphone ownership was 43%. Statista forecast
that 2.87 billion people would own smart phones in 2020.

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2016

Major technologies that began to trend in 2016 included a focus on virtual

reality and augmented reality experiences catered towards smart phones, the newly
introduced USB-C connector, and improving LTE technologies.

2018 In 2018, the first smart phones featuring fingerprint readers embedded
within OLED displays were announced, followed in 2019 by an implementation using
an ultrasonic sensor on the Samsung Galaxy S10.

35
1.6 Advantages of smart phones

1. With a Smartphone, waiting for things becomes less of a pain because you can keep
yourself entertained; for example, you can read the news, play games, listen to music
or watch a movie. It can make your commute to the office or those four hours waiting
to get seen in A& E just fly by.

2. Complaining about products and services becomes a whole lot easier when you can
do it through Twitter and Facebook on your Smartphone. Many companies now use
social media as a part of their customer service. It makes it quick, easy and you can do
it anywhere.

3. Having a Smartphone makes it much more convenient to check your email, social
media or even your bank account while on the go. Need to look at your bank balance
before making a purchase? Not a problem.

4. With a Smartphone, you’re no longer going to get in hot water using your
company’s computer to chat with your friends whilst you are at work. Instead, you
can keep your conversations away from the business’s network, protect your privacy
and stay within your employer’s IT usage policy.

5. With so many public Wi-Fi hotspots popping up, smart phones enable you to cut
down your reliance on your phone network to get connected. This means you can do
more surfing without the need to eat into your data allowance. Do be careful though,
not all hotspots are secure.

6. Smart phones can be great for drivers. You can use Smartphone apps, like Google
Maps, as Satnavs, helping you get to your destination and avoid traffic jams. You can
even connect your phone to your car’s audio system and blast out your favourite tunes
whilst you’re driving.

7. If you are out and about looking for something to do, smart phones can be the ideal
tool to find the perfect entertainment or restaurant. Using apps like Foursquare, you
can get up to the minute information on where to go and what to do – all based on
your current location. You can also find reviews and even get money off vouchers.

36
8. As a Smartphone is essentially a small screen computer, it means you can carry out
a wide range of tasks when on the go, for example, you can use your phone to order
your groceries, write a report, turn on the central heating and play Angry Birds.

9. As your apps can connect to and sync in the cloud, you can have access to all your
information and files, no matter where you are. Using online storage, such as Google
Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox, you can get hold of important information
wherever you are. And by using the huge variety of apps available, you can do things
like publish a blog post, edit your photos or update a spreadsheet.

37
1.7. Disadvantages of smart phones

1. Phones can be addictive and spending too much time on them can make you
socially isolated from the real world. You should avoid becoming obsessed with
constantly checking it. Resist the urge as it can develop into compulsive behaviour.

2. Overuse of smart phones has led to the development of a Smartphone etiquette.

There are certain social situations where it is just not acceptable to have a phone. For
example, it’s not considered polite to interrupt a conversation to check an incoming
text, nor do many people feel it’s appropriate to take a phone out when at the dining
table. In other words, don’t let your Smartphone habits turn you into a rude person.

3. You will lose your Smartphone. Several times a day. You’ll leave it in the car, at
the office, down the side out of the sofa, under the duvet. And when you try to ring it,
either the battery will have gone, or you’ll left it on silent. Don’t worry, it turns up-
usually.

4. Smart phones are expensive. If you just have to have the latest all singing, all
dancing model then you will be paying either a large sum to buy the phone outright or
quite a bit for your monthly contract. In addition, there are costs for different services
and charges for buying apps. It all adds up. Calls are also more expensive over mobile
networks than over home phones.

5. There are security risks with smart phones. You store lots of personal information
on mobile phones and many of the apps log you in automatically, giving anyone with
your phone access to your online accounts. If your phone does not have an adequate,
password protected, screen lock, then all this information is at risk.In addition, there is
also the risk your phone can be hacked or even spied upon.

6. Hello, burglar, I’m on holiday! There are some apps that allow friends to track your
location using your phone and if their phone gets stolen, it’s easy for the thieves to
find out that you are away from home. Of course, you can make it easier for them by
posting a photo of you on Facebook, sunning yourself on the beach.

7. Storage can be a problem. Smart phones are small so there isn’t space for a huge,
built-in hard drive. Although you can buy a sizable SD card for your music, images
and videos, the vast majority of your apps and the data they download will be stored
on the phone’s internal storage by default.You can move the apps’ data to your SD

38
card, however, whenever the app updates (and most do so veryregularly), it will
reinstall everything back on the internal storage again. In effect, this limits the number
of apps you can have installed at any one time.

8. Danger, Water! Although there are a few waterproof phones beginning to appear on
the market, it is safe to say that the vast majority of smart phones don’t get on too
well with liquids. You’ll be surprised at how many get dropped down the toilet, in the
bath or in the sink. If yours gets wet, turn it off or remove the battery as soon as
possible to try to prevent it shorting. The most common remedy, though it doesn’t
work for everyone, is to stick it in a bag of rice for 24 hours to soak up any water.
Check out the many YouTube videos for help. The best solution is to contact the
manufacturer or your vendor.

9. Smart phones are not indestructible or childproof. Besides falling down the toilet,
the biggest problem we tend to have is dropping them and the result is often a
smashed screen. Whilst you can buy a replacement screen and have a go at mending it
yourself, the results are often poor. Getting it done professionally is the best option
but it also very expensive. You can massively reduce the risk of smashing the screen
by not lending your phone to your kids.

10. On a serious note, perhaps the biggest disadvantage of having a Smartphone is

that you put yourself at risk of someone trying to rob it from you. There have been
instances of people being badly assaulted by thieves stealing phones and this is much
more likely if you are flashing the latest, must-have phone. Luckily, a new technology
which allows stolen phones to be deactivated remotely after being lost or stolen has
reduced the number of thefts taking place. The best solution, however, is to keep your
phone in your bag or pocket when in public. Out of sight, out of mind.

39
1.8 Future prospects of smart phones

1. Mind control:In the initial days of mobiles, we used to control it by a physical

keypad. Now keypads are eventually displaced by touchscreens.
In recent times, services like Google assistant, Siri and Samsung Bixby are helping us
to interact with devices using our voice. The next stage of this evolution can be the —
 mind control. Mind control would allow you to perform every task you can do via
touch or voice with your mind. This technology would allow us to perform each task
which we are doing with touch or voice. With just the thoughts, you would be able to
edit images, play music, play futuristic games and a lot of other things. We are still
years away from building anything like this, but researchers and scientists are making
progress in this direction. One example is Facebook developing a tool that will allow
us to type with the mind.

2. Over the air charging: A bitter truth: Battery life of most smart phones suck. Even
if your phone has a massive battery of 4,200 mAh, it’ll not last more than 2 days.
Either you use wireless charging pad or conventional chargers to get the juice back.
Well, this will not be the case in the future. You would be able to charge your smart
phones over-the-air from a great distance with the help of powerful transmitters. Like
the cell towers, these transmitters can be placed everywhere just to make sure, your
devices never get out of juice. The WattUp Mid Field transmitter is the first step to
such technology. Though It can charge your phone from a 3 feet distance, we can
hope for a longer charging distance in the future.

3. Colour changing smart phones: While buying a new phone you don’t go only for
specifications, but choosing the color is a struggle in its own. Pink, black, blue, white
but which one should you choose? You might like all of them or none of them. In
future, you would not have to choose the color. Imagine a Smartphone with glass-like
transparent back and you can change the settings to get your desired color. Wouldn’t
this be amazing?

4.Stretchable phones: Flexible displays will be the next big thing in future
Smartphone technologies. With Samsung Galaxy Fold, RoyoleFlexPai and Huawei
Mate X, we have already seen the trailer. In future, you might be able to stretch or
decrease the size of Smartphone display according to your needs. You can stretch
your phone from corners to watch a video or you can decrease the size by folding it

40
while traveling. Work has already started in this field of technology but we are still a
long way away.

5. E-ink and OLED: OLED displays offer a great experience for playing games and
watching videos. But they are not favored as a reading display. E-ink technology
provides a perfect experience if you want to read something. Though OLED has
features like blue light and night mode, it doesn’t match the quality of E-ink display.
In future smart phones would have both displays. One single tap and you will change
OLED to E-ink. Unfortunately, for the time being nothing of this sort is possible.
Apple has already filed a patent for such sort of technology and we can expect this in
the near future.

41
 Chapter 2

Profile of the Company

2.1 Profile of R.K. Enterprises

Overview: R.K. Enterprises is a Jaipur based trading organisation which deals in

electronics and fashion apparels. The main office of R.K. Enterprises is located in
Chandpole Market, Jaipur. The organisation is a trustworthy name for providing good
and premium products at affordable prices. R.K. Enterprises is a retail aggregator,
which means that it purchases goods from wholesalers and sells it to the retail
customers. The company has retail stores in Chandpole Market Area, Vidhyadhar
Nagar and BadiChaupad..

History: R.K. Enterprises was established in the year 2003 by Divakar Kant Gupta, a
businessman hailing from Sikar. Mr. Gupta was a veteran in the apparel industry,
because of his family business was of garment industry. Mr. Gupta had an
entrepreneurial mindset, and started the garment business in Chandpole area in the
year 2002. He also continued to oversee his family business based in Sikar.

In 2005, Mr. Gupta withdrew from his family business and started concentrating on
his new business in Jaipur. The city area of Jaipur was a fertile area for business, with
many new potential entrepreneurs coming in the area, expanding and creating new
businesses. Mr. Gupta was no different, jumped into the opportunity with both hands.
He established the business firm named R.K. Enterprises, in the name of his father
Mr. Ramesh Kant Gupta. In his earlier days, Mr. Divakar used to purchase garments
and other related items from big wholesalers and selling it to retail consumers.

With fruitful dedication, Mr. Gupta was able to consolidate trust as well as profits
from the consumers. It was time to expand the business. In 2006, he established the

42
R.K. Trading Company, and entered into agreements with various garment factories
operating in the outskirts of Jaipur as well as within its boundaries. This resulted in
R.K. Trading Company getting a good supply of garments. Now, the firm was
catering to the needs of not only suppliers, but also supplying garments to various
wholesalers as well as other retail users. This was indeed a big jump for the
entrepreneur. He decided to name all his retail stores by the name R.K. Enterprises.

In the year 2011, with Android and Apple iPhone becoming a runaway hit, the
smartphone industry was the most breakout industry. In the city of Jaipur, many
businessmen were gaining profits and capturing prominence. Mr. Gupta decided to
take the risk and enter the smartphone market. With a capital investment of Rs 20
lakhs, he established two retail stores of smartphones in Chandpole and BadiChaupad.
Luckily, these stores also accumulated profits.

In the year 2013, Mr. Gupta invested Rs 10 lakhs to set up a new retail store at
Vidhyadhar Nagar. This was another idea born from his entrepreneurial mindset.
Contrary to his earlier garments business, the store specialised in readymade suits,
men wear, kids wear and women wear. The premium qualities of these products were
a good attraction in Vidhyadhar Nagar.

There is a popular saying that ups and downs are the part and parcel of life, and so, is
of business. Excited by the rapid boost in income by the sales of smartphones, Mr.
Gupta decided to upgrade his facilities in BadiChaupad area to a whole new
electronics store. Moreover, he decided to open a new retail store of garments in
Vaishali Nagar area. However, the retail store had to be closed for some reasons.
Moreover, the only fully electronics store of the company suffered losses and had to
be closed down within two years of its inception.

In the year 2017, R.K. Enterprises, Chandpole had a major milestone when it became
the preferred partner of Xiaomi. It was the first store to do so in Jaipur city area and
one of the first to do so in the district of Jaipur.

The success of selling smartphones has compelled Mr. Gupta many times to make a
refurbished full electronics retail store, given the credibility of R.K. Enterprises.
However, Mr. Gupta is soon planning to enter into heavy machinery business, which
requires a heavy capital investment as well.

43
2.2 Vision of R.K. Enterprises

The vision of R.K. Enterprises is to create a hustle free, personalized and cooperative
atmosphere for the customers, in order to give them maximum satisfaction on every
level.

The organisation also strives to take care of every possible factor that consumers are
scared or sceptible about, and to eradicate misunderstandings to create a safe and
secure atmosphere for unrivalled consumer purchasing and shopping.

2.3 Motto of R.K. Enterprises

At R.K. Enterprises, the motto is “maximum care, maximum here”. The organisation,
since its first day of inception, is based on the trust and the credibility its customers
have weighted upon them. The organisation reflects this principle of trust in its
activities by treating every customer as if they are their relatives. When trust meets
willingness, a magical phenomenon occurs. This very phenomenon is R.K.
Enterprises.

2.4. Business activities of R.K. Trading Company

R.K. Trading Company is the mother organisation of R.K. Enterprise. The company
started out as a garment store, but has marched on its way to become a popular name
in the city of Jaipur.

Presently, R.K. Trading Company is working on three key fields:

44
Garments business: The garment business was the first business that R.K. Trading
Company ventured upon. The organisation has ties with various garments factories on
the outskirts of Jaipur, as well as within the boundaries of the district, which supplies
it with finished products. The company sells the products in in its retail stores at
Chandpole and BadiChaupad. The Company also sells its products to various retail
stores as well as to some wholesalers in the city area of Jaipur.

The company is looking to venture in producing its own line of products. The idea,
though, is in the starting phase and cannot be validated for sure.

Smartphone business: The smartphone business was the second business that R.K.
Trading Company ventured upon. Since 2011, the company is an active name in the
trading and marketing of various smartphones in the Pink City. The company
procures its smartphones from Noida, where most of the smartphones are made in
India. The organisation sells the products in its stores at Chandpole and BadiChaupad.

The company has various agreements with leading smartphone makers in India like
Samsung, Xiaomi and Oppo. The company is a preferred partner with Xiaomi India
Inc., and has all smartphones available from the brand. These products are basically
procured by authorized suppliers of these companies.

Apparel business: The apparel business is the last business that the company
ventured upon. Since 2013, the company has been selling various apparels in its retail
store of R.K. Enterprises at Vidyhadhar Nagar. The company purchases all the
products from various wholesalers involved in the business, and located in Jaipur,
Ahmedabad, Surat and Bhopal. The store houses various brands like Raymond’s,
Tommy Hilfiger, United Colors of Benetton, to name a few.

2.5. Future plans of R.K. Trading Company

Mr. Divakar Gupta took the entrepreneurial plunge in 2005, leaving his family
business back home in Sikar and coming to Jaipur. His first business started without a
proper store. Almost fifteen years later, the size of business has for sure changed. The

45
company now has diversified its business in various fields. However, as the business
is an ever growing concern, the company is ready to continue the series of changes.

Presently the organisation is trying on various levels to diversify the business by

entering into new markets. Some potential ideas which are included are:

Industrial equipment industry: Industrial equipment industry deals with various

heavy machinery and capital goods like assembly lines, chain roles, machines, robotic
sub parts etc. These equipments are essential in laying capital incentive industries that
can support manufacturing.

R.K. Trading Company is in starting talks with various suppliers of such goods. If
everything goes right, the company can enter into partnership with these suppliers.

Garments product line: For many months now, R.K. Trading Company is now
trying to launch its own garment line. Garment business holds a special place in the
heart of Mr. Gupta, who wants to enumerate this feeling by launching an exclusive
garment line of his own.

Electronics store: The idea of an electronic store was a first time fail for the
company. However, with the smartphone business still in the profit, R.K. Enterprises
may soon see a full fledged electronics store, a massive upgrade in its line of
Smartphone. Moreover, it’s previous failure can actually give valuable suggestions
following which, same mistakes can be avoided.

2.6. Some popular products at R.K. Enterprises

The smartphone store of R.K. Enterprises in Chandpole is a delight to watch out for. It
takes pride in housing smartphones across all budgets, functions, varieties and brands.

Some famous smartphone models present in the store are:

46
Xiaomi MI 9: Xiaomi MI 9 is the latest flagship smartphone to be rolling out from
the factory of the Chinese smartphone giant, Xiaomi. Unlike other popular
smartphone devices, MI 9 is a Chinese market centred smartphone, and is not
available for sale in India. Only very few selected partners in India home this flagship
beast, and R.K. Enterprises is one of them. However, the phone has to pre- booked on
very special requests.

Redmi Note 7 pro: Redmi Note 7 pro is the best selling smartphone in India for the
year 2019. The phone is manufactured by Xiaomi. The phone comes packed with a
Super AMOLED full HD screen with a 48 MP dual camera setup. The smartphone is
powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 675.

Oneplus 7 pro: Oneplus 7 pro is the latest flagship device offered by Oneplus. The
phone is a 6.74 quad HD screen with a Super OLED display. The phone comes
packed with the latest 90 hZ refresh rate, a near bezel less display with a pop up
camera. The phone houses the latest Snapdragon 855 processor, and features a 5G
model with upto 12 GB of RAM.

2.7 Overview of the Industry

The Smartphone market is poised to take off in India, with an urban market that is
ripe for replacement from a feature phone to a Smartphone and a keen younger
population with high levels of technological awareness waiting to adopt new
technology.

There are many drivers for this market, with the concept of the convergence taking
prime importance in the consumer mindset. The application development community
plays a key role in subscriber adherence to service contracts and handset models, as a
thriving content community forms an attractive value proposition for consumers who
are constantly seeking applications, which allow them to interact with people and
organize their life.

47
With Smartphone shipment in India growing year on year and 54 million handsets
expected to be sold in India in 2020, this market is set to experience steady growth
.With the overall mobile market seen to be contracting , the Smartphone market is
likely to be the future growth engine.

With the introduction of 4G in India, the Smartphone market is expected to see an

increase in the uptake, as consumers would adopt a Smartphone to support the data-
intensive applications that can be supported on a 4G network.

Technology adoption in India

• In emerging markets such as India, price sensitivity is extremely high, which slows
the rate of adoption among the larger population.

• With India’s overall mobile penetration rate of 71.1 percent, the addition of users in
terms of penetration will be seen from the lower end of the demographic, which can
be seen as a deterrent to the adoption of smart phones by new users.

• The lower price points in certain Smartphone handsets are expected to drive more
feature phone users to look at budget smart phones as an accessible option.

• With regard to the replacement market in India, the urban younger demographic is
likely to become a key target segment to accelerate the rate of adoption.

• With a plethora of new devices with advanced technologies being released in the
Indian market and the brand building that has been carried out by handset
manufacturers, increasing consumer acceptance and faster technology adoption are
being seen in the market.

Pricing Trends

• With the market getting highly competitive and new handset versions being
witnessed every three months, prices for smart phones seem to experience a
significant decrease, as newer versions are added to the product portfolio mix.

• The market is likely to see a diverse price range depending on the feature set that
can vary from Rs.5000 to Rs.150000

48
• The mid-range segment for the price range of Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 18,000 is expected
to see many new entrants trying to make a foray into this highlypromising price
segment, in order to capture the growing middle segment market.

• Over the three-year period of 2017 to 2019 , Players like Xiaomi, Honor (subsidiary
of Huawei), Realme (subsidiary of Oppo), Samsung, Oppo and Vivo have
continuously launched a wide variety of Smartphone products, bringing near flagship
technologies in every new variant.

• Another common pricing trend that can be continuously seen in the Indian market is
the introduction of lesser known Smartphone brands packing flagship hardware and
software at almost half of the price of the flagships. Hence, they are called as Flagship
Killers. Oneplus was the first flagship killer. Today, many flagship killers have
become very popular in the market, like Redmi K20 pro, Poco f1 and Asus Rog.

49
 Chapter 3
Research Methodology
This project is based on the survey. The main objective of the survey is to know about
consumer decision making process of smartphone in India. The report clearly
mentions objective of the study and the research methodology utilized, the primary
data and secondary data. The data collection method used is structure non-disguised.

3.1 Objectives of study:

1. To know about the process of consumer decision making.

2. To know about which factors are involved in consumer decision making.
3. To know about the steps involved in consumer decision making.
4. To know about the various methods consumers use to buy smartphones.
5. To collect some information about the smartphone industry in India.
6. To know the differences between various smartphone brands.
7. To compare between different models of smartphones in India.
3.2 Data sources:

One of the most basic differentiations is between collecting primary data or secondary
data. Secondary data collection is any information we may have used, but which has
not been specifically collected for the current marketing research. But marketing
research typically requires a lot of current data that is not available through the
secondary means. The methodology used for the secondary data that is already
collected may be unknown thus validity and reliability of the data is not known.

Primary data collection is the data that is collected specifically for the project
undertaken from the real respondents such as consumers, dealers, and other people
associated to the research.

The valuable data for the research has been taken from the given source;

Primary data

The data was collected from:

50
1. Customer Surveys – A carefully structured questionnaire used to measure customer
attitudes, levels of perception, intentions to purchase etc.

2. The questionnaires have been filled online and through personal interview.

3.3 Sampling:

The data was to be collected only from random consumers. A questionnaire was
prepared and interviewing with consumer. A decision has to be taken concerning a
sample unit before selecting the number of samples. It may be geographical as well as
individual.

Sample Size:I took 57 consumers as my respondents. They were selected by random

sampling method because in this case systematic sampling is not possible since one
cannot say whether a person has a smartphone or not.

3.4 Research instrument:

For doing the survey research, structured questionnaire with closed-ended and open-
ended questions were used.

Mode of survey: The mode of survey of consumers was the filling up of the
questionnaires.

3.5 Limitationsof study:

Every project report has limitations; our project which was “Consumer Decision
Making of Smartphones“also faced certain limitations.

We observed the following limitations:

 The data collection was based on the opinion of respondent and it may change
from time to time.
 The sample size is very limited due to time constraints.
 Many respondents were biased in their responses
 Few respondent were not interested in answering
 The data collected cannot be free from errors, since some of the respondents
failed to give correct information. Unwillingness of respondent to provide
information.

51
 The research has a number of limitations which must be acknowledged
.Mainly this study was conducted in particular area with limited number of
respondent.
 Data analysis may be not accurate because of the complexity of the statistical
tools employed to get required data.
 Interpretation of the data is generalised and may not reflect every personal
instance.
 The data collected was only for the specific purpose of completing this
specific project.
 The data collected above are specific in nature, and thus may not hold good
for other research topics.

52
 Chapter 4

Analysis and Interpretation

Q1. Do you own a Smartphone?

Response No. of respondents

Yes 50

No 7

Table 1.1

Do you own a smartphone?

yes no

12%

88%

Figure 1.1

Interpretation: From the following data, it can be clearly seen that:

 88% of the respondents use a Smartphone

 12% of the respondents don’t use smart phones.

53
Q2. What is the brand of the Smartphone you are currently using?

Smartphone brand Number of users

Xiaomi 17

Samsung 9

Vivo 8

Others 15

Table 4.2

Smartphone brand
Xiaomi Samsung Vivo Others

31% 35%

16% 18%

Figure 4.2

Interpretation: From the following data, it is clearly seen that:

1. The percentage of respondents using smart phones of brands of Xiaomi is

35%.
2. The percentage of respondents using smart phones of brands of Samsung is
18%.
3. The percentage of respondents using smart phones of brands of Vivo is 16%.
4. The percentage of respondents using smart phones other than the brands
mentioned before is 31%.
Q3. Since how long are you using Smartphone

54
Duration No. of respondents

Less than 1 year 2

Between 1 and 2 years 10

Between 2 and 3 years 17

More than 3 years 21

Table 4.3

Familiarity with smartphones(in

years)
<1 year 1-2 year 2-3 year >3 year

4%

42% 20%

34%

Figure 4.3

Interpretation: From the given data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 4 per cent of the respondents said that they know about smart phones for a
period of less than one year.
2. 20 per cent of the respondents said that they know about smart phones for a
period between one and two years.
3. 34 per cent of the respondents said that they know about smart phones for a
period between two and three years.
4. 42 per cent of the respondents said that they know about smart phones for a
period of more than three years.
Q4. What is the price of the current Smartphone?
Price of Smartphone Number of respondents

55
Less than 5000 14

Between 5000 and 10000 20

Between 10000 and 20000 12

More than 20000 4

Table 4.4

Price of the current

smartphone(in Rs.)
<5000 5000-10000 10000-20000 >20000

8%

28%
24%

40%

Figure 4.4

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 28 per cent of the respondents have a Smartphone costing less than Rs 5000.
2. 40 per cent of the respondents have a Smartphone costing between Rs 5000
and Rs 10000.
3. 24 per cent of the respondents have a Smartphone costing between Rs 10000
and Rs 20000.
4. 8 per cent of the respondents have a Smartphone costing above Rs 20000.

56
Q.5. How often do you change your Smartphone?

Time taken No. of respondents

Less than 1 year 5

Between 1 and 2 years 13

Between 2 and 4 years 22

More than 4 years 10

Table 4.5

Time taken to change smartphone

<1 year 1-2 year 2-4 year >4 year

10%
20%

26%

44%

Figure 4.5

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be seen that:

1. 10 per cent of the respondents change their Smartphone every year.

2. 26 per cent of the respondents change their Smartphone in a period between
one year and two years.

3. 44 per cent of the respondents change their Smartphone in a period ranging

between two years and four years.

4. 20 per cent of the respondents change their Smartphone in a period of more

than four years.
Q6. What is the your favourite known technology in a Smartphone?

57
Pop up front camera 15

Reverse charging 8

In-display fingerprint scanner 17

Others 10

Table 4.5

Favourite smartphone
technologies Pop up front
cameras
Reverse
charging
20%
30% In display
fingerprint
Others
34% 16%

Figure 4.6

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be clearly seen that :

1. 30 per cent of the respondents said that their favourite technology in a

Smartphone was Pop up cameras.
2. 16 per cent of the respondents said that their favourite technology in a
Smartphone was Reverse Charging.
3. 34 per cent of the respondents said that their favourite technology in a
Smartphone was In display fingerprint scanner..
4. 20 per cent of the respondents said that their favourite technology in a
Smartphone was other than those technologies mentioned before.
Q7. Which channel of distribution you used to purchase your
Smartphone?

58
Channel of distribution No. of respondents

Online purchasing 12

Offline purchasing 38

Table 7.1

Mode of purchase
Online Offline

24%

76%

Figure 7.2

Interpretation:From the above data, it can be seen that:

1. 76 per cent of the respondents said that they had purchased their Smartphone
from offline mode of purchase.
2. 24 per cent of the respondents said that they had purchased their Smartphone
from online mode of purchase.
Q8. If used online mode of purchase, from where have you purchased
your Smartphone?

Method of purchase No. of respondents

59
Company ‘s website 1

e-Commerce website 6

Retailer’s website 1

Third party resellers 4

Table 4.8

Mode of online purchasing

Company website e- Commerce website Retailer website Third party website

8%
34%

50%
8%

Figure 4.8

Interpretation: From the given data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 8% of the respondents said that they purchased the Smartphone from the
Company’s website.
2. 50% of the respondents said that they purchased the Smartphone from an e-
Commerce website.
3. 8% of the respondents said that they purchased the Smartphone from the
company retailer’s website.
4. 34% of the respondents said that they purchased the Smartphone from third
party’s reseller.
Q9. If used offline mode of purchase, from where have you
purchased your Smartphone?

Method of purchase No. of respondents

60
Electronics store 22

Company chain store 5

Third party resellers 7

Others 4

Table 4.9

Sales
Electronics store Company chain store Third party resellers Others

11%
18%

58%
13%

Figure 4.9

Interpretation: From the given data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 58% of the respondents said that they have purchased their Smartphone from
an electronics store.
2. 13% of the respondents said that they have purchased their Smartphone from
the Company chain stores.
3. 18% of the respondents said that they have purchased their Smartphone from a
third party reseller.
4. 11% of the respondents said that they have purchased their Smartphone from
sources other than the above mentioned sources.
Q10. What persuaded you to purchase your current Smartphone?

Factor of Persuasion No. of respondents

Advertisement 28

61
Sales Promotion 7

Recommendation from family and friends 10

Others 5

Table 4.10

Factor of persuasion
Advertisement Sales Promotion Recommendation from family and friends Others
10%

20%
56%
14%

Figure 4.10

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 51% of the respondents came to know about their Smartphone through

advertisement.
2. 16% of the respondent came to know about their Smartphone through sales
promotion.
3. 14% of the respondent came to know about their Smartphone through
recommendation from family and friends.
4. 10% of the respondent came to know about their Smartphone through other
modes of information.
Q11. What is your favourite Smartphone brand?

Smartphone brand No. of respondents

Xiaomi 6
Apple 14

62
 Samsung 17
Others 13

Table 4.11

Favourite smartphone brand

Xiaomi Apple Samsung Others

12%
26%

28%

34%

Figure 4.11

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 12 % of the respondents have Xiaomi as their favourite Smartphone brand.

2. 28 % of the respondents have Apple as their favourite Smartphone brand.
3. 34 % of the respondents have Samsung as their favourite Smartphone brand.
4. 26 % of the respondents have brands other than the brands mentioned before
as their favourite Smartphone brand.

63
Q12. Why do you like the brands you choose above?

Reason for the choice of Brand No. of respondents

Premium Brand 17

Value for money 5

Build quality 15

Functions and Performance 13

Table 4.12

Reason for chosing favourite smartphone

brand
Premium brand Value for money Build quaity functions and performance

26% 34%

30%

10%

Figure 4.12

Interpretation: From the following data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 34% of the respondents chose their favourite brand because it is a premium

brand.
2. 10% of the respondents chose their favourite brand because it’s smart phones
gives value for money.
3. 30% of the respondents chose their favourite brand as this because it has
Smartphone that have a superior build quality.
4. 26% of the respondents chose their favourite brand because it’s Smartphone
gives superior performance and advanced features.
Q13. What will you do if your favourite model is not available?

64
Decision No. of respondents

Postpone the purchase 7

Purchase different model of same brand 11

Purchase a model from the preferred 6

brand

Purchase some compatible model 26

Table 4.13

Purchasing decisions when favourite model is

not available
Postpone Model of same brand Model of prefered brand Compatible model

14%

52% 22%

12%

Figure 4.13

Interpretation: From the following data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 14 % of the respondents said that in case their favourite model is not available,
they will postpone the purchase.
2. 22 % of the respondents said that in case their favourite model is not available,
they will purchase different model of the same brand.
3. 12 % of the respondents said that in case their favourite model is not available,
they will purchase a Smartphone from their preferred brand.
4. 52 % of the respondents said that in case their favourite model is not available,
they will purchase a Smartphone compatible with the model they were earlier
looking to purchase.
Q14. Do you read the terms and conditions on the retail box cover?

65
Response No. of respondents

Detailed 14

Partial 18

Never 18

Reading terms and conditions of the

smartphone
Detailed Partial Never

36% 28%

36%

Interpretation:From the above data, it can be seen that:

1. 36% of the respondents said that they always read the terms and conditions
written on the retail cover box of the Smartphone.
2. 28% of the respondents said that they always read the terms and conditions
written on the retail cover box of the Smartphone.
3. 28% of the respondents said that they always read the terms and conditions
written on the retail cover box of the Smartphone.

Q15. At what level you think that your Smartphone gives ‘value for
money`?

66
Response No. of respondents

Very High 16

High 21

Average 9

Low 4

Table 4.15

Sales
Very high High Average Low

8%
18% 32%

42%

Figure 4.15

Interpretation: From the above data, it can be clearly seen that:

1. 32% of the respondents said that they think their Smartphone give them very
high value for money.
2. 42% of the respondents said that they think their Smartphone give them high
value for money.
3. 18% of the respondents said that they think their Smartphone give them
average value for money.
4. 8% of the respondents said that they think their Smartphone give them low
value for money.

67
 Chapter 5
Summary of Findings

5.1 Conclusions:

In the following study on consumer decision making, the respondents gave interesting
and thought provoking replies to the questions asked to them. These replies, enriched
with the use of statistical tools, have enabled us to draw important conclusions from
them.

The conclusions drawn from the study are as follows:

1. Majority of the people use Smartphone: Based on the study of the sample, it
is clear that majority of the people use Smartphone. A huge majority, as much
as 88 per cent of the respondents claimed that they possess a Smartphone. A
huge minority, as low as 12 per cent of the respondents claimed that they do
not possess a Smartphone.
This proves that a large number of people of India have access to Smartphone.

2. The largest Smartphone brand by market share is Xiaomi: Based on the

study of the sample, it is clear that Xiaomi is the largest Smartphone brand of
India by market share. The majority of the sample, comprising of 35 per cent
of the respondents said that they own a Smartphone of Xiaomi. The sample
also revealed that Samsung and Vivo are also a popular choice for Smartphone
purchase, with both comprising a respondent count of 18 per cent and 16 per
cent respectively.
This proves that Xiaomi is the leading Smartphone brand of India, with Samsung and
Vivo as potential competitors.

3. Smartphone is a fairly familiar concept: Based on the study of the sample, it

is clear that Smartphone are a fairly familiar concept in India. The majority of
the sample, comprising of 96 per cent of the respondents claimed that they

68
 know about smartphone for more than one year, with respondents claiming
that they know about smartphone for a period between one and two years, two
and three years and more than three years amounting to 42, 34 and 20 per cent
respectively. However, only 4 per cent of the respondents said that they know
about Smartphone for less than one year.
This proves that smartphone is an understandable concept with the people of India.

4. Budget smartphones are the most sought after: Based on the study of the
sample, it is clear that budget Smartphone are the most sought after in the
market of India. The majority of the sample, comprising of 40 per cent of the
respondents claimed that they possess a smartphone on the budget side, with
the price range between Rs 5000 and Rs 10000. Smartphone on the lower end
of the budget are also a hit, with 28 per cent of the respondents claiming that
they own a smartphone with a price lesser than Rs 5000.
The study also revealed that the smartphones with a price range of above 20000 are
very unpopular, with only 4 per cent of the respondents claiming the statement.

5. Smartphone have a slow upgrade rate: Based on the sample, it is clear that
Smartphone have a slow upgrade rate in the market of India. The majority of
the sample, comprising of 44 per cent of the respondents claimed that they
change their smartphone in a period ranging between two and four years.
Further 20 per cent of the respondents claimed that they change their
Smartphone in a period of more than four years. However, only 10 per cent of
the respondents said that they change their smartphone every year.
This proves that the people of India usually stick to their smartphone for a good
period of time, and that Smartphone have a low upgrade rate.

6. In display fingerprint scanner is the most popular Smartphone

technology: Based on the sample,it is clear that In display fingerprint scanners
are a rage in the new smartphones. The majority of the sample, comprising of
34 per cent of the respondents said that their favourite technology in a
smartphone was In display fingerprint scanner. A close 30 per cent of the
respondents also claimed that their favourite technology in a smartphone was

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 pop up front cameras. However, only 16 per cent of the respondents claimed
that their favourite technology in a smartphone was Reverse Charging.
It clearly proves that revolutionary technologies like Indisplay fingerprint scanning
and pop up cameras are becoming popular in the smartphone market of India.

7. \Offline channels of distribution contribute significantly more than their

online counterparts: Based on the study of the sample, it is clear that offline
channels of distribution are more used to purchase Smartphone than the online
channels of distribution. A huge majority of the sample, comprising of 76 per
cent of the respondents said that they have purchased their Smartphone from
an offline channel of distribution. Only 24 per cent of the respondents said that
they purchased their smartphone from an online channel of distribution.

8. e-Commerce websites are the most popular sources of purchase in the

online channel of distribution: Based on the study of the sample, it is clear
that e-Commerce websites are the most popular source of purchase in online
channel of distribution. A majority of the sample, comprising of 50% of the
respondents claimed that they have purchased their smartphone from an e-
Commerce website. The respondents claiming that they have purchased their
smartphone from the Company’s website and the retailer’s website stood at a
tie of 8 per cent respectively.
Another interesting thing that can be noted is that a large section of the sample,
comprising of 34 per cent of the respondents also have claimed to purchase a used
smartphone from a third party reseller.

9. Electronics stores are the most popular source of purchase in the offline
channel of distribution: Based on the study of the sample, it is clear that
electronics stores are the most popular source of purchase in online channel of
distribution. A majority of the sample, comprising of 58% of the respondents
claimed that they have purchased their smartphone from an electronics store.
The respondents claiming that they have purchased their smartphone from the
company chain stores stood at13 per cent.

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Another interesting thing that can be noted is that a large section of the sample,
comprising of 18 per cent of the respondents also have claimed to purchase a used
smartphone from a third party reseller.

10. Advertisement is the main persuasive factor of purchase: Based on the

study of the sample, it is clear that advertisement is the main persuasive factor
of purchase of smartphone. A clear majority of the sample, comprising of 56
per cent of the respondents claimed that they have purchased their smartphone
because of advertisement. The second most important factor of persuasion of
purchase of the smartphone is recommendation from family and friends,
which was agreed by the 20 per cent of respondents.
It proves that the opinion of families, friends and relatives also affects the opinion of
the buyer.

11. Samsung and Apple are the most favourite smartphone brands: Based on
the study, it is clear that Samsung and Apple are the most favourite brands of
Smartphone. Samsung got the majority of votes of the sample, with 34 per
cent of the respondents claiming it as their favourite brand.
Apple was a close second, with 28 per cent of the respondents claiming that their
favourite smartphone brand is Apple.

12. Brand Name and build quality make a popular smartphone brand: Based
on the study, it is clear that the two most important factors which make a
smartphone brand more appealing is its brand name and the build quality of its
smartphones. A majority of the sample, comprising of 34 per cent of the
respondents claimed that the premium brand name makes a favourite
smartphone brand.
The factor of build quality took the second place, with 30 per cent of the respondents
claiming that it is the most important factor in making premium smartphone.
It proves that while premium brand name still dominates a popular smartphone brand,
build quality has got a real potential.

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 13. Buyers will purchase compatible models, if their favourite model is not
available: Majority of the sample, comprising of 52 per cent of the
respondents, stated that they will purchase a comparable or compatible model,
if their favourite smartphone brand is not available. The second most preferred
option is to purchase different model of the same brand, with 22 per cent of
the respondents claiming the fact. Minority of the sample, comprising of only
12 per cent of the responded that they will postpone the purchase in this case.
This clearly proves that buyers will buy a compatible or contemporary model of
smartphone, if the model they are looking for is not available.
14. Smartphones generally give high value for money: Majority of the sample,
comprising of 74 per cent of the respondents, agreed that their Smartphone is
giving them high value for money, meaning that Smartphone is providing
great specifications at aggressive prices. 42 per cent confirmed this statement,
while 32 per cent of the respondent even upgrading the statement by claiming
that their smartphone is giving them very high value for money.
A minority of the sample, comprising of only 8 per cent of the respondent also of
this statement, stating that their smartphone give them low value for money.
This proves the fact that most people are convinced that their smartphones are giving
them high value for money.

15. Buyers generally read Terms and Conditions on the retail box of
smartphone: Majority of the sample, comprising of 72 per cent of the
respondents confirmed that they read detailed terms and conditions on the
retail box of the smartphone. There was a tie, with 36 per cent of the
respondents each read detailed terms and conditions and partial terms and
conditions. However, the minority of the sample, comprising of 28 per cent of
the respondents did not read terms and conditions at all.
This proves that generally the buyers tend to read Terms and Conditions on the retail
box of the smartphone.

5.2 Recommendations:

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1. Entry of new smartphone models is necessary: The study reveals that the
smartphone market in India is growing at an astonishing pace. Most of the people are
laying their hands on smartphone. Overall the situation to flourish in this area is ripe.

To make the best use of this fertile moment, new smartphone models have to be
entered into the market on a regular basis. This is so because competitors will
continue to try and capture this market, and it is a proven fact that newness brings
uniqueness. If the consumers can see new models flourishing in the market every day,
they will be aware of the situation and hence, decide to buy a new smartphone.

2. Marketing of new brands in the budget price segment: The study reveals that
Xiaomi is the most successful smartphone in the budget smartphone brand in India.
Thus, it possesses unrivalled credibility with the consumers. Thus, in order to make a
promising brand, smartphone companies have to do a healthy work in the budget
segment, since budget segment is the segment where most sales of smartphones are
done, and this area is under the influence of Xiaomi.

The cheat code to capture this market is to provide quality specifications in the
smartphone at very aggressive prices, which the leader of this area has shown again
and again. As the saying goes, “Understanding the game of the best in the business
and to better it is the best thing to do in the business.”

3. New technologies in smartphones are welcomed: The study reveals that

smartphones are basically an understandable concept with the people of India. This
means that the technologies present in the smartphones can be interpreted by the
consumers, and thus, new technologies can be successfully rolled forward in the
upcoming smartphones.

Rolling out new technologies will serve a two- fold purpose, first it will increase the
practices of innovation, and second, the smartphone models can disrupt markets by
becoming the pioneer of new technologies. For Example, Vivo became a pinnacle of

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innovation after the introduction of revolutionary technologies like pop up cameras
and in display fingerprint scanner.

4. Increasing expenditure on promotion of smartphones: The study reveals that

smartphones in India are suffering from slow upgrade rate, meaning that consumers
are sticking to a particular smartphone for period of over two years. This essentially
means that smartphone makers can lose on heavy finance sources, since their
technologies will become obsolete before the consumers can actually purchase the
smartphone and try them out.

To save smartphone companies from such unpleasant conditions, it is recommended

that they should invest more liberally on the promotion of their products. Increased
investment in promotion will serve a twofold purpose- first, it will increase the sales
of the products, thereby increasing revenue, and second, the smartphone makers can
invest more on new innovations without the fear of running their ideas obsolete
without being used.

5. Maintaining high supply in the offline channels of distribution: The study

reveals that offline channels of distribution are giving way more sales than their
online counterparts. This means that the relevancy of retail stores has not fade away,
but has maintained it with grace. The smartphone makers should make note of this
and continue to maintain high supplies of their products in the offline channels of
distribution.

Further, the study has revealed that third party resellers have gained prominence in the
offline market by providing used smartphones on highly cut down prices. The retail
stores should make notes of this and provide good and convenient reselling facilities.
This will benefit both the store as well as the consumer.

6. Improving product portfolio on e-commerce websites and to improvise on

company website: The study reveals that the consumers, when purchasing
smartphone online, are giving more attention to popular e-Commerce websites rather

74
than the company’s official website. This can be traced to the fact that consumers
want to have a look at many options, a serious defect found on the company’s official
website. It is also found that such websites claim to give serious discounts on
purchase of products from their platform.

Thus, it is recommended that smartphone companies should get more involved in

building a niche for their products with e- Commerce websites, as they bring a great
revenue. Moreover, the companies should give quality discounts on their official
website. This will result in less traffic turnover and consequently, less turnover on
other smartphone brands.

Chapter 6

Appendices

6.1 Bibliography

Reference links:

https://www.marketingstudyguide.com/limitations-of-customer-satisfaction

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://en.m.wikipedia.or
g/wiki/Smartphone%23History&ved=2ahUKEwjD8cyTmeblAhX1Q3wKHQaSAEsQ
ygQwAHoECAUQBQ&usg=AOvVaw0cWEfo27pTXLlaXtqD04sj

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.marketingtut
or.net/consumer-decision-making-process-
stages/&ved2ahUKEwi5uaiamublAhWN7XMBHUn4CHIQFjAXegQIDBABusgAOv
Vaw0CGA8lhKjTKgsqeg5fWTjr

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://isngs.com/factors-
influence-buying-

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decision/&ved=2ahUKEwjfwM_FmublAhVx7XMBHVU3B2cQFjAOegQIBBAB&u
sg=AOvVaw3QlJEUNDsLXxPkV6r6XjPG

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.management
studyhq.com/factors-affect-decision-making-
process.html&ved=2ahUKEwjfwM_FmublAhVx7XMBHVU3B2cQFjAQegQIAhAB
&usg=AOvVaw2l8RtA5YmChF6P_ApGAcNR

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.eukhost.com
/forums/forum/general/technology-forum/17752-10-advantages-and-disadvantages-
of-having-
smartphone&ved=2ahUKEwiimc3pmublAhVjIbcAHeXiCgcQFjAGegQIBhAB&usg
=AOvVaw3iOoLmmf4Yy0FeDm9SfndZ

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://hackernoon.com/th
e-future-technologies-in-smartphones-6f139e3d2cf2&ved=2ahUKEwjesoaAm-
blAhXJH7cAHQxQDy0QFjANegQIDhAz&usg=AOvVaw0mXY1ngAKCddZnwM-
GfgeY

Books:

1. Sharma, Chouhan, Saini- consumer Behaviour, RBD, Jaipur

2. Alenas, AHR- Marketing Research
3. Schiffman, Leon.GKanuk,L.L – Consumer Behavior
4. Loudon , David L – Consumer Behavior, Tata Mc Graw Hill
5. Batra, Satish .K,-Consumer Behavior, Excel Books
6. Solomon, Michael R – Consumer Behavior, Pearson
7. Lindquist, Jay D Sirgy, M. Joseph -Consumer Behavior, Biztantra

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6.2. Questionnaire

Q1. Do you own a smartphone?

A. Yes
B. No
Q2. What is your name?

Q3. What is your gender?

A. Male
B. Female
C. Others
Q4. What is your age?

Q5. Please specify the model of the smartphone you are using

Q6. Since how long are you using smartphone

A. Less than 1 year

B. 1-2 Year

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 C. 2-4 years
D. Above 4 years
Q7. At what price you purchased your smartphone?

A. <5000
B. <15000
C. <25000
D. >25000
Q8. How often do you change your smartphone?

A. Less than 1 year

B. 1-2 year
C. 2-4 year
D. Above 4 years
Q9. What is your favourite smartphone technology?

A. Infrared Blaster
B. Reverse Charging
C. In-display finger print scanner
D. Pop-up front camera
E. Multi rear cameras
F. UFS Storage
G. Personal AI assistant
Q10. Which channel of distribution you used to purchase your Smartphone?

A. Online

B. Offline

Q11. If used offline mode of purchase, from where have you purchased your
Smartphone?

A. Company’s website

B. e- Commerce website

C. Retailer’s website

D. Third party resellers

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Q12. If used offline mode of purchase, from where have you purchased your
smartphone?

A. Electronics store
B. Company chain stores
C. Third party resellers
D. Others
Q13. How you came to know about your smartphone

A. Mass media advertisement

B. Online advertisement
C. Recommendation from friends
D. Recommendation from family and relatives
E. Display advertisement
F. Others
Q14. What is your preference smartphone brand

A. Apple
B. Samsung
C. Oneplus
D. Xiaomi
E. Vivo
F. Oppo
G. Asus
H. Motorola
I. Others(please specify)
Q15. Why you like the brands you choose above?

A. Advertisement
B. Price
C. Appearance
D. Functions
E. Quality
Q16. What will you do if your favourite model is not available?

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 A. Postpone the purchase
B. Prefer some other model of the preferred brand
C. Prefer some model of the same brand
D. Purchase some compatible model
E. Others(please specify)

Q17. Do you read terms and conditions on the box of smartphone?

A. Always
B. Sometimes
C. Never
Q18. At what level you think the brand gives ‘value for money’?

A. High
B. Average
C. Low
D. Not sure

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