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African Journal of Agricultural Marketing ISSN: 2375-1061 Vol. 2 (5), pp. 136-143, May, 2014. Available online at 
www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals 

 

Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. 
 
 
 

Full Length Research Paper 
 

Consumers’ preference for oil brand, oil variants and 
factors influencing purchase decision 

 

*Motilal Kamil Narayana, Mammmohan Sarabhai and Vikram Kumar Khan 
 

School of Food and Agric Business, G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India. 
 

Accepted 6 April, 2014 
 

Consumers around the world vary greatly in age, income, education level, and tastes and understanding 

how these differences affect consumer buying decision is never easy. However, marketing success largely 
depends on the ability to anticipate what buyers will do and what they prefer from available products. 
Today, the highly fragmented Indian edible oil industry with large number of players both from the 

organized and unorganized sectors has resulted in severe competition and as a result, edible oil 
businesses in India have shifted their focus to understand consumer choices better on one side and 

increasingly moving away from products to embracing a structured brand management to achieve 
competitiveness and profitability in the market place. The present study explores the consumers’ 
preference for oil brand, oil variants, and factors influencing the purchasing decision. The study highlights 

that, brand image, price, health consciousness, and quality of a particular brand are the most important 
factors influencing consumers’ decision making for edible oil purchases. 

 
Key words: Brand image, brand preference, edible oils. 

 
INTRODUCTION 
 
The importance of edible oil in daily diet is well recognized 
as a better source of energy as compared to carbo-
hydrates and proteins and as a result it became a part of 
regular food. Edible oils have got higher importance in 
preparation of tasty food, improving texture of food items, 
increasing palatability of food, flavor of food maintenance 
and growth of human body. Thus, edible oils constitute an 
important component of food expenditure in house-holds. 
However, the current per capita consumption levels of 
India (at 13.3Kg/year for 2009-10) are lower than global 
averages (24kg/year). According to the United States  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
*Corresponding Authors. Email: nara.kamil96@gmail.com 

 
department of agriculture (USDA) 2012 report, India’s 
edible oil consumption is expected to grow at 6.5% to 
17.9 million tonnes for the year 2012 to 2013. ICRA 
(2011) documented that the Indian edible industry is 
under penetrated and given the positive macro and 
demographic fundamentals, it has a favorable demand 
growth rate. 

At present the Indian edible oil industry is flourishing 
with rising income levels and living standards of 
consumers coupled with changing consumer lifestyles 
and food consumption pattern, further the current health 
awareness among Indian consumers is increasing 
preferences for nontraditional oils such as soya bean, 
mustard oil, rice bran etc for consumption, since these 
oils with higher levels of saturated fats are considered 
healthier than traditional consuming palm oil. Food and 
drug administration USA (1999) noted that consuming 
soy can be beneficial for health and including soy protein 
in a  healthy   diet  could  reduce the risk of heart disease. 



Motilal et al.         136 
 
 
 
Oils like rice bran and olive are also gaining popularity 
due to their superior health properties, although their 
consumption remains fairly low in absolute terms in India. 
Rice bran oil promotion council (2013) documented that 
with gaining popularity of rice bran oil as a healthy option 
for cooking, its market in the country currently is 
estimated to grow by 15%. ICRA (2011) documented that 
in terms of oil consumption the three largest consumed 
edible oils in India are palm oil with 46% of share, soya 
bean oil (16%), and mustard oil (14%) in total oil 
consumption in 2010 and these oils will be continued to 
account for the bulk of edible oil consumption in the 
country. However, given the presence of large number of 
unorganized participants in the Indian edible oil market, 
the share of branded oil product sales have remained 
low, as most of the low -income consumers opting for 
cheaper oils, which are sold in loose form. As per industry 
data, only about 31% of urban households and about 9% 
of rural households consume branded edible oils, with the 
national average at 16%. Thus, edible oil businesses in 
India are working harder than ever before to achieve 
some degree of differentiation for their products and 
trying to build strong brand image and started highlighting 
the product features with specific brand names offering 
distinct value propositions in the edible oil market and 
helping the quality conscious consumers differentiate and 
choose the products which are best suited to their 
requirements. 
 
 
Consumer buying behavior 
 
Buying behavior differs greatly for the products and 
services, more complex decisions usually involve more 
buying participants and more buyer deliberation. To 
understand how the customers make their buying 
decisions, the marketer must have the knowledge of 
consumer buying behavior based on the degree of buyer 
involvement and the degree of differences among brands. 
Consumer involvement is defined as an un-observable 
state of motivation, arousal, or interest which is evoked 
by a particular stimulus or situation and is considered to 
have drive properties and which influences the search 
process, information processing, and decision making. 
 

Kotler (1994) documented that the degree of buyer 
involvement has been clearly explained in Henry Assael 
(2001) model of buying behavior. Henry Assael catego-
rized four types of buying behavior based on the degree 
of buyer involvement and the degree of difference among 
the brands. As per these parameters, the consumers will 
be engaged in complex buying behavior, dissonance-
reducing buying behavior, variety-seeking buying 
behavior, and habitual buying behavior. In complex 
buying behavior, the consumers are highly involved in a 
purchase and are aware of significant differences among 
the brands. This behavior is often found when the product 

 
 
 

 
is expensive, bought infrequently, risky, and highly self-
expressing. In the dissonance–reducing buying behavior, 
the consumer will be highly involved. But if there is a little 
difference among the brands, then he may end up buying 
on price or convenience. After the purchase, the 
consumer may learn favorable things about other brands 
and hence he or she will be alert to information that 
supports his decision. In the variety-seeking buying 
behavior, the buying decisions of the consumers will be 
marked with low involvement even though there exists a 
significant difference among the brands. This happens 
when the consumers often engage in a frequent brand 
switching process.  

In habitual buying behavior, the consumers have little 
involvement due to the absence of significant brand 
differences and they simply go to the store and reach for 
a brand. If they keep reaching for the same brand it is out 
of habit rather than strong brand loyalty. Most of the 
generic commodity products fall under this category. Here 
consumers do not search extensively for information to 
evaluate and make a decision. Hence, for low involve-
ment brands, the buying process starts with the brand 
beliefs formed by passive learning and followed by 
purchase behavior which may or may not be followed by 
evaluation. As we understand from the Henry Assael 
model of buying behavior the commodity brands fall 
under the habitual buying behavior. 
 
 
Review of literature 
 
It is widely acknowledged among the academicians and 
practicing managers that branding has become a tool of 
strategic importance and studies on importance of brand 
preference were also highlighted in competitive market 
place. The American marketing association (1994) defines 
a brand as a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or a 
combination of them intended to encourage prospective 
customers to differentiate a producer’s product from 
those of competitors. A primary function of the brand is to 
provide convenience and clarity in decision making by 
providing a guarantee of performance and communicating 
a set of expectations thereby offering certainty and 
facilitating the buying process.  

Ambler and Styles (1996) describe two different views 
of defining a brand. The first is the product plus view, 
when the brand is seen as an addition to the product, and 
in this view a brand is also called an identifier. The 
second is the holistic view that communicates the focus 
on the brand itself that is considered to be much more 
than just the product. Broadbent and Cooper (1987) 
indicate that in order to be successful, images and 
symbols must relate to and indeed exploit the needs, 
values, and lifestyles of consumers in such a way that the 
meanings involved give added values, and differentiate 
the brand from other brands. Aaker (1996) indicate that 
strong brands help the firm  establishes  an  identity in the 



 
 
 

 
market place, reduce vulnerability to competitive actions, 
leading to larger margins, greater intermediary co-
operation, and support, and a successful brand image 
enables consumers to identify the needs that the brand 
satisfies and to differentiate the brand from its 
competitors, and it consequently increases the likelihood 
that consumers will purchase the brand.  

Gensch (1987) documented that customers form brand 
preferences to reduce the complexity of the purchase 
decision process. Rossiter and Percy (1987) describe 
brand awareness is essential for the communications 
process to occur as it precedes all other steps in the 
process and without brand awareness occurring, no other 
communication effects can occur. For a consumer to buy 
a brand they must first be made aware of it. Brand 
attitude cannot be formed, and intention to buy cannot 
occur unless brand awareness has occurred. In a 
situation where the consumer is aware of a number of 
brands which fit the relevant criteria, the consumer is 
unlikely to spend much effort in seeking out information 
on unfamiliar brands. Kumar et al. (1987) examined the 
factors influencing the buying decision for various food 
products. Country of origin and brand of the products 
were cross-tabulated against age, gender, and income 
and study revealed that the considered factors were 
independent of age, education and income. The brand 
image seemed to be more important than the origin of the 
product, since the consumers were attracted by the 
brands. Nielsen (1998) conducted a study on consumers 
purchase motives and perceptions on vegetable oil in 
three countries and found that consumers in France 
purchase vegetable oil because of its health benefits 
(attribute). 

This provides the customer a healthy body and physical 
well-being (benefit). They consume this type of product 
because they value good health and a long life. Mc Enally 
and Chernatony (1999) documented that consumers 
brand preferences over time mainly shift due to changes 
in brand identity consisting of brand awareness, purpose, 
differentiation, and offerings and brand image pertaining 
to brand credibility, brand character, consumers' overall 
attitude towards the brand, and consumers' feelings for 
the brand. Li and Houston (2001) documented that price 
level, product variety and marketing communications are 
the important factors acting as promoters of brand 
preference. Rundle-Thiele and Mackay (2001) noted that 
brand preference is important for business as a com-
ponent of brand loyalty and it is also a way to enhance 
sales. Keller (1993) views, brand knowledge is not the 
facts about the brand, it is all the thoughts, feelings, 
perceptions, images, experiences etc that become linked 
to the brand in the minds of customers and two important 
components of brand knowledge are brand awareness 
and brand image where brand awareness is related to the 
strength of the brand node or trace in memory as 
reflected by customers’ ability to recall or recognize the 
brand under   different   conditions   and   brand  image is 

137          Afr. J. Agric. Mark. 
 
 

 
defined as customer perceptions of and preferences for a 
brand, as reflected by the various types of brand 
associations held in customers’ memory. 

Mathur et al. (2003) noted that from a business 
standpoint, the challenge is that customers could change 
their favorite brands by trying products of other brands 
because they are exposed to a variety of attractive 
brands. That is, customers tend to seek better brands of 
products or services, so their brand preference can 
change. For businesses to reduce that risk, they must 
identify what affects brand preference and how to build 
brand preference. Dinlersoz and Pereira (2007) docu-
mented that consumers have a brand preference toward 
an established brand during the firm’s long presence in 
the market and they tend to show little brand preference 
toward a particular brand when they are exposed to a 
new or unfamiliar product category. Singh et al. (2008) 
documented that brand preference refers to the 
consumers’ hierarchical prioritization of the brand as a 
result of their patronage and cognitive comprehension of 
the brand. Suwen and Mark (2008) documented that the 
food habit, location, education of household heads, and 
other demographic variables have significant effects on 
the choice of edible oils for consumption.  

Today, the organized sector in Indian edible oil business 
has emerged as one of the fastest growing sectors in 
recent times creating branded oil sales, though branded 
oils marked currently low in India, both in terms of 
volumes and share, they are expected to grow due to 
improved thrust by major players like Marico Limited, 
Cargill India Private Limited, Adani Wilmar Limited, Ruchi 
Soya Industries Limited, Con Agro Foods, ITC Agro-
Tech, Godrej Foods, Vippy Industries, Prestige Foods, S 
M Dyechem, Vijaya Oils and a few mid-sized, regional 
edible oil companies such as Mantora Oil Products Ltd, 
Modi Naturals, Amrit Banaspati, Tara Health Foods, Priya 
Foods, Healthy Heart Foods, Gemini Oils, KS Oils etc 
offering a larger number of product choices before 
consumers to choose from and given these choices, 
consumers are now able to compare many features such 
as quality, price, and value for money, absorption 
capacity, brand image etc. to decide which product they 
want to buy for their need satisfaction.  

However, it should be noted that, once customers are 
satisfied with a particular product or brand, they purchase 
the product repeatedly, and when a customer repeatedly 
purchases a product, showing favorable attitude towards 
the brand, then consumer becomes loyal. A brand that 
has some level of brand awareness is far more likely to 
be considered, and therefore chosen, than the brands 
which the consumers are unaware. So in order to make a 
consumer to buy or prefer a brand they must first be 
made aware of the brand and focus on maintaining and 
monitoring brand awareness. Thus, there is an immediate 
need for a marketer to know the edible oil brand 
consumers prefer and identify what affects their brand 
preference. 



Motilal et al.         138 
 
 
 

Table1. Classification based on preferred oil brand 

of the consumers 
 

 Preferred Oil Brand (%)100 Total(406) 
 Fortune 6.40 26 
 Healthy Heart 1.47 6 
 Sundrop 9.85 40 
 Gemini 1.47 6 
 Vijaya 9.62 39 
 Gold Drop 51.72 210 
 Priya 2.46 10 
 Naturalle 4.68 19 
 Saffola 2.96 12 
 Others 9.36 38 

 
(Source: Questionnaire) 

 
 
 
Objectives of the study 
 
The objectives of the study are,  
1. To know the most preferred oil brand and edible oil 
variant of the consumers  
2. To examine the present shopping behavior of the 
customers for the preferred oil brand and understand the 
composition of the consumers gender wise  
3. To know the importance the customers attach to 
various attributes for purchasing an oil brand   
4. To appraise the sources of knowing preferred oil brand 
by customers   
5. To study the affect of oil brand sales of consumers on 

promotional offers  

 
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 
 
Both primary and secondary data were collected for research 
survey and the primary instrument for data collection used in this 
study was a questionnaire. Primary data was collected from 406 
respondents in the city of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. The 
sampling method used in the study was random sampling. Data 
thus collected was processed, analyzed and interpreted to draw the 
valid inferences. For analyzing the data and providing the realities 
of the research outcomes suitable statistical techniques were 
employed. 

 
DATA ANALYSIS AND RESULTS 
 
Given the presence of a large number of unorganized 

participants in the Indian edible oil market, the share of 
branded product sales has remained low. However 
branded oils have started focusing on establishing the 

brands. Table 1 refers to the classification based on 
preferred oil brand of the consumers. The responses from 

randomly selected group of 406 consumers are tabulated 
to know the oil brands they prefer. As may be seen from 

the table 51.72% of customers prefer Gold drop oil brand. 
The brands preferred next are Sun drop oil (9.85%), Vijay 

 
 
 

 
oil brand (9.62%) and fortune oil 6.40% of the sample 
consumers.  

A buyer’s decisions are also influenced by personal 
characteristics such as the buyer’s age and life cycle 
stage etc. Table 2 below shows the classification based 
on age of the consumers buying oils. As may be seen 
from the table, most (41.37%) of those, the consumers 
who are buying oil for consumption belong to the age 
group of 26 to 35 years. Those below 25 years of age are 
also to be found in large numbers among the buyers 
(27.59%). However, the consumers of 36 to 45 age 
groups are also found in large numbers (19.46%).  

Table 3 refers to the classification of the customers of 
oil by gender. Husband-wife involvement varies widely by 
product category and by stage in the buying process. 
Buying roles change with evolving consumer lifestyles. 
Traditionally women were the main purchasing influence 
for the family in the areas of food, household products 
etc. But with more women holding jobs outside the home 
the willingness of husbands to do more of the family’s 
purchasing can be witnessed. As may be seen from the 
table 73.40% of buyers who are shopping to purchase 
their preferred oil brand are males.  

The market of Sunflower oil, the fourth most used 
vegetable oil as cooking medium in the world, is 
increasing in India in the recent years. So most of the oil 
brand players in the edible oil category are focusing on 
the production and marketing of Sunflower oil and the 
major thrust is to increase market share especially in the 
sunflower oil category, through continuous brand-
building. Table 4 refers to the classification of the buyers 
of oil by oil variants. We enquired with the sample buyers 
to know the major preferred oil variety bought by the 
consumers. It is observed that majority of edible oil 
buyers 75.36% are buying Sun flower oil variety. 
However, it should not go unnoticed that buyer’s also 
showing preference towards soya bean variety and 
mustard oil variety. 

Convenience stores are small stores that carry a 
number of high turnover convenience goods. In the sub-
continent, they are seen in the form of local kirana shops 
that keep products of daily necessities. They offer a 
number of benefits to buyers, who are their usual 
consumers and super markets are the most frequently 
shopped type of retail store with a large, low-cost, low-
margin, high-volume, self-service store that carries a wide 
variety of grocery and house hold products. Table 5 
refers to the quantity of oil purchased from super markets 
and other stores. As may be seen from the table, the data 
collected by us from those buying preferred oil brands 
shows that the buyers seems to prefer other market 
places such as convenience stores to super markets 
while purchasing the oils. The test of equality of means 
indicates that the mean value of quantity bought from 
other markets is higher than the mean value of the 
quantity bought in super markets. The means are 
statistically different from one another at 5% level of 
significance. So it may be assumed that  consumers view



139          Afr. J. Agric. Mark. 
 
 
 

 
Table 2. Classification based on age of the consumers 

 
     Age of the consumers  

Total(406) 
 

    
15 to 25 26 to 35 36 to 45 46 to 55 More than 55  

      
 

 Total 112 168 79 32 15 406 
 

(%) 27.59 41.37 19.46 7.88 3.69 100.00 
 

(Source: Questionnaire)       
 

    Table 3. Classification of the customers of oil by gender   
 

         
 

    Preferred Oil Brand by gender (%)100 Total(406)   
 

    Male   73.40 298   
 

    Female   26.60 108   
  

(Source: Questionnaire) 
 
 
 

Table 4. Classification of the buyers of oil by oil variants 
 
   Preferred oil brand variant Sunflower Soya Mustard Palm Groundnut Others 

 

   Total(406)  306 10 5 9 59 17  
 

 (%)100  75.36 2.46 1.23 2.24 14.53 4.18 
 

(Source: Questionnaire)        
 

   Table 5. Quantity of oil purchased from super markets and other stores    
 

         
 

     
Description 

Variable - Quantity purchased Variable - Quantity purchased 
 

     from super markets  from other stores   
 

         
 

     Mean  3.484    3.871   
 

     SD  1.649    1.503   
 

     D.F  404       
 

     t-statistic  -2.146**       
 

   **Significant at 5% level of significance       
 

Table 6. Classification based on mean income of the buyers     
 

        
 

   
Description 

Variable - Income of consumers Variable - Income of consumers 
 

   those are buying Gold Drop oil those buying other oil brands  

      
 

   Mean  14,526    21,933   
 

   SD  7,4180    12,5169   
 

   D.F  404       
 

   t-statistic  *-7.3104       
  

*Significant at 1% level 
 
 
 
oil brand as a low-involvement product.  

A person’s economic situation will affect the product 

choice. Table 6 shows  the classification  of oil buyers 

 
 
 
based on the income levels. We tried to examine whether 

the average income of those buying Gold drop oil is less      

than   that   of   the average income of those buying other 



Motilal et al.         140 
 
 
 

 
Table 7. Multi linear regression coefficients of income levels, family size, years of 

schooling for oil quantity 
 

    Variable name Regression Coefficient t-value 
 

    Intercept  1.47381 4.7858  
 

    Income levels  0.001493 0.24045  
 

    No of family members 0.76126 *13.8996  
 

    Years of schooling  -0.05149 *-2.4894  
 

    R²(with F-value)  0.3355    
 

     *Significant at 1% level     
 

Table 8. Classification based on preferred oil and family size of the consumers   
 

       
 

  
Description 

Variable- Family size of the buyers Variable- Family size of the buyers 
 

  who are buying Gold drop oil  who are buying other oil brands  

      
 

  Mean  4.17   3.92  
 

  SD  1.214   1.215  
 

  D.F  404     
 

  t-statistic  **2.0822     
  

**Significant at 5% level 
 
 
 
oils. We expected that the average income of those 
buying Gold Drop oil is less than that of those buying 
other oils because Gold drop oil is low priced in the 
market place. The test of equality of means calculated to 
find the difference in means of incomes showed that the 
mean income of those buying Gold drop oil is significantly 
less than those buying other oils. The t-statistic is 
significant at 1% level.  

Almost every society has some form of social class 
structure. Social class is not determined by a single 
factor, such as income, but is measured as a combination 
of occupation, income, education, wealth and other varia-
bles. We employed the multiple regression technique to 
identify the factors influencing the quantity of oil bought. 
Table 7 above shows the details. It is possible that 
income of consumers, family size, and years of schooling 
can influence the quantity bought. As income increases 
one expects the quantity of oil bought to increase. Simi-
larly as family size increases quantity of oil bought can 
increase and finally as educational level increases people 
may become more health conscious and consume less of 
oil.  

Thus, we expect a positive relationship between income 

and quantity bought and also between family size and 
quantity bought. Years of schooling is expected to have a 

negative relationship with the quantity bought. Our 
regression exercise confirmed these relationships. 

However the independent variable income is not found to 
have to have a significant relationship in quantity bought. 
Family size has a positive relationship with the quantity 

bought. The regression coefficient of  family size is statis- 

 
 
 
tically significant at less than 1% level. The regression 
coefficient corresponding to years of schooling appears 
with a negative sign as expected. It is also significant 
statistically at 1% level. The regression equation is a 
reasonably good fit to the data. This is evident from the 

value of R
2
. The regression equation explains 34% of the 

variation in the dependent variable. The value of R
2
 is 

also statistically significant as seen from the value of F-
ratio which is significant at less than 1% level.  

Family members and size can strongly influence the 
buyer behavior. Table 8 refers to the classification based 
on preferred oil and family size of the consumers. We 
tried to examine if the family size of those buying the 
cheaper Gold drop oil is larger than the family size of 
those buying other costlier brands of oils. We have 
employed the test of equality of means in the process. 
The test supports the above hypothesis. Gold drop being 
less costly compared to other oils it is being bought by 
families whose size is relatively larger. The t-statistic 
showing the difference in means is significant at 5% level. 
The aim of marketing is to meet and satisfy target 
customers needs and wants. Understanding consumer 
behavior and knowing customers are never simple. Table 
9 refers to the classification based on factors influencing 
the purchasing decision. We enquired with the sample 
buyers to know the most influencing factor to purchase a 
particular brand or product. As may be seen from the 
above table quality of a product is the most influencing 
factor to buy a particular oil brand (69.45%). Further it 
can be observed that the shop displays and promotional 
offers, and advertisements can also  influence the  buyers 



141          Afr. J. Agric. Mark. 
 
 

 
Table 9. Classification of buyers based on factors influencing purchasing decision 

 
 Factors influencing purchasing decision (%)100 Total (406) 
 Advertisements 17.00 69 
 Retailer 11.08 45 
 Packaging and Ingredients 2.70 11 
 Shop Display and promotional offers 19.45 79 
 Quality 69.45 282 

 
(Source: Questionnaire) *Some of the customers reported more than one factor 

 
 
 
Table 10. Classification based on Gold Drop customer’s educational qualification and other brands 
 
   Variable- Educational qualification of Variable- Educational qualification 
 Description  customers those buying Gold Drop oil of customers those buying other oil 
   brand  brands 
 Mean 12.71362  14.12435 
 SD 3.3629  2.8495 
 D.F 404    
 t-statistic *-4.53612    

  Table 11. Classification based on non-availability of product   
       

   Preferred brand is not available then (%)100 Total (406) 
   Try another brand 24.13 98  
   Drop the idea of buying it 14.54 59  
   Go to another store 61.33 249  
 

(Source: Questionnaire) 
 
 
 
to some extent (19.45%).  

Marketers in the Indian sub continent have developed a 
socioeconomic classification system (SEC) to segment 
urban households on the basis of the level of education 
and occupation of the chief wage earner of the house 
hold. Marketers are interested in socioeconomic classes 
because people within a given socio economic class tend 
to exhibit similar buying behavior. We tried to examine 
whether those buying Gold drop of oil have undergone 
more years of education or customers who are buying 
other oil brands. As may be seen from the table 10, it can 
be said that, those buying Gold drop brand of oil are 
found to have undergone less years of education than 
those buying other brands, this is validated by test of 
equality of means. The t-statistic for the difference of 
means is 4.53 and it is statically significant at 1% level. 
Those buying other oil brands are relatively more edu-
cated than those buying Gold drop brand of oil. The mean 
years of schooling of the latter group are significantly 
higher than that of former group.  

Producing a product and making it available to buyer 

requires building relationships   not  only  with  customers, 

 
 
 
but also with resellers, in other words successful marke-
ter will focus on partner relationship management. From 
the economic system’s point of view, the role of marketing 
intermediaries is to transform the assortments of products 
made by producers into the assortments wanted by 
consumers. Table 11 refers to the classification based on 
non-availability of product in the store. As may be seen 
from the table, 61.33% of oil buyers seem to go to 
another store if the preferred brand of their choice is not 
available.  

Sales promotion is a tool which could be used in a 
number of situations where the objective is to quickly get 
the brand on top of the consumers mind and invoke a 
spontaneous decision in favor of the brand associated 
with the sales promotion. Sales promotions consist of 
short-term incentives to encourage purchase or sales of a 
product or service. The consumer promotions include a 
wide range of tools from samples, coupons, refunds, 
premiums and point-of-purchase displays to contests, 
sweepstakes etc. Table 12 shows the classification based 
on oil buyers and sales promotion offers. We enquired 
with the  sample  buyers  to  understand  the  affect  of oil 



     

  Table 12. Classification based on oil buyers and sales promotion offers 
       

   Affect of sales Buy more Think for second It will not affect 
   promotions now time purchase  

   Total(406) 257 42 107 
  (%) 100.00 63.31 10.34 26.35 
 

(Source: Questionnaire) 
 
 
 

Table 13. Classification based on oil buyers and preference of packaging 
 

Preference of packaging 1liter Pouch 1 liter Pet bottle 5 liter jar 15 liter jar or can 
Total(406) 119 35 172 81 
(%)100.00 29.31 8.62 42.36 19.71 

 
(Source: Questionnaire) 

 
 
 

Table 14. Classification of consumers on importance they attach to various attributes for purchasing an oil brand 
 

 
Attributes 

Very Imp Imp Neutral Slightly Imp Not Imp 
Total Mean Std. Dev Skewness  

 
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%)  

      
 

 Brand 39.65 50.76 9.35 0.24 0 100(406) 4.29 0.642 -0.421 
 

 Taste 13.54 46.57 36.45 3.44 0 100(406) 3.70 0.741 0.030 
 

 Price 32.27 53.70 13.05 0.98 0 100(406) 4.17 0.681 -0.418 
 

 Healthy 30.80 49.01 18.22 1.97 0 100(406) 4.08 0.750 -0.424 
 

 Absorption 21.42 39.92 36.45 2.21 0 100(406) 3.80 0.794 0.095 
 

 Availability 11.59 48.02 36.20 4.19 0 100(406) 3.67 0.729 -0.024 
  

(Source: Questionnaire) 
 
 
 
brand sales on promotional offers. As may be seen from 
the table it can be highlighted that 63.31% of sample 
buyers are showing interest on sales promotional sche-
mes and purchase more. However 26.35% of customers 
say it will not affect their purchase decision for buying an 
oil brand. It is a welcome development few customers are 
very loyal to their preferred brands.  

Packaging involves designing and producing the con-
tainer or wrapper for a product. Traditionally, the primary 
function of the package was to hold and protect the 
product. Today, however, numerous factors have made 
packaging an important marketing tool as well. Increased 
competition and clutter on retail store shelves means that 
packages must now perform many sales tasks such as 
from attracting attention, describing the product and to 
making the sale. Table 13 refers to the classification 
based on oil buyers and preference of packaging. As may 
be seen from the table 42.36% of oil buyers showing 
preference towards five liter jars. It can also be noticed 
that 8.62% of oil buyer’s also showing preference for one 
liter pet bottles.  

We enquired with the oil buyers to rate on a 5 point 

scale the importance  they  attach  (very  important  to not 

 
 
 
important) on various attributes such as brand name, 
price, taste, health concerns, and absorption capacity of 
oil brand and availability of the brand. Table 14 shows the 
details. As may be seen from the table, the most 
important attribute the customers are attaching to the 
product is brand image mean of the rating being (4.29). 
Next in importance is the price. The mean of the rating for 
this is (4.17). Next in importance is healthy attribute, 
mean being (4.08). 

We tried to examine whether those buying Gold drop oil 
brand are buying in larger quantities compared to those 
buying other brands. As may be seen from the table 14, 
we employed the test of equality of means. It is found that 
the mean quantities of two groups are significantly diffe-
rent from one another. The mean value of the quantity 
purchased of Gold drop brand is 4.00, where as the mean 
of those buying other brands is 3.29. The t-value 
calculated is 4.84 and it is statistically significant at the 
usual 1% level of significance. Thus, the Gold drop oil is 
purchased in larger quantities compared to other brands. 
This could be because the Gold drop oil brand oil is 
relatively less. Therefore price is an important factor in 
influencing the quantity of oil bought. 

Motilal et al.         142 



 
 
 

 
CONCLUSION 
 
The study highlights that buyer’s showing preference 
towards soya bean variety and mustard oil variety. Hence 
the marketer can take mileage of the current health 
awareness to persuade the consumers to accept other 
variants of the edible oils in addition to the sunflower 
variant. Kotler et al. (2005) views that demographic 
variables which are easier to measure are the most 
popular basis for segmenting the customer groups and 
one reason is that consumer needs, wants, preferences 
and usage rates are often highly associated with 
demographic variables.  

It is observed from the study that consumers of 26 to 35 
age groups are shopping for their preferred oil brand, and 
buyers who are shopping to purchase their preferred oil 
brand are males. Hence companies need to focus on 
effective communications to reach these target groups. 
Felzensztein et al. (2004) documented that buying 
intentions are motivated by price and value for money. 
Erdem et al. (2004) view that price notably plays an 
important role in consumers’ brand choices. Gil et al. 
(2007) noted that perceived product value for the money 
can influence consumer’s attitudes toward product brand 
image, affecting consumer intention to buy. Baltas and 
Argouslidis (2007) documented that product quality is an 
important dimension of a brand’s image because it is 
generally the most significant role of brand preference 
and the major purchasing factor.  

Findings suggest that brand image, price, health 
consciousness, and quality of a particular brand are the 
most important factors influencing decision making for 
purchases, and thus the marketer’s value proposition and 
positioning should build around health and value for 
money. The important product decisions in any marketing 
context are product, features, performance, design, its 
presentation, variety, sizes etc and it is observed from the 
study that few oil buyers are showing preference towards 
purchasing one liter pet bottles in addition to five liter jars, 
thus companies need to initiate and focus on the 
availability of these product varieties with maximum 
visibility, because brands with the largest recognition and 
availability are most likely to generate more sales.  

Study highlights that sample buyers are showing 

interest on sales promotional schemes and consumer 
offers. So companies should run effective promotional 
schemes and consumer campaigns not only to attract 

new customers but also to retain existing customers. 
Finally it can be concluded that the marketer of edible oil 

brands must use the four P’s of marketing mix effectively 
and try to convert a low-involvement product into a 

moderate or high-involvement buying process. 

 
Research limitations and future research 
 
One of the limitations of the study is, it is limited to only 

one geographical place, and the brands selected for 
 

143          Afr. J. Agric. Mark. 
 
 

 
inspection were selected because of high familiarity, so 

the future studies are recommended to introduce more 
precise selection criteria. The other research direction 
could be investigations on factors, such as years of 

usage, monthly frequency of purchases and satisfaction 
levels of customers on the brand performance. One more 

research investigation could be to measure where these 
brands are located in the perceptual space of the target 

consumers. 
 
 
Conflict of Interests 
 
The author(s) have not declared any conflict of interests 
 
 
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