IMPACT OF BRAND FACTORS ON THE PURCHASE OF VARIOUS BRANDS OF TELEVISION

ABSTRACTMost of the products being sold in the market today are identified by their names. The name which helps the buyers in recalling the product instantly is known as brand name. It is for the purpose of identification of product, it becomes more crucial in the consumer durable market where buying decisions of the consumers are based on the brand perception. It has been rightly said by Al Ries and Jack Trout that Marketing is not a battle of products, It is a battle of perceptions, in their book 22 Immutable laws of Marketing. In order to be perceived first by the buyer, marketers put deliberate efforts in making the product recognizable and perceivable. Branding helps in winning the battle of perception. In general, the Indian consumers were indifferent in choosing the brand, since a lot of close substitutes were available in the market. Due to technological and knowledge up-gradation, today's customers prefer to opt for branded product. When several brands of a particular product, which are similar in quality of performance and external appearance, are available to the consumers brand knowledge, loyalty and trust can create a preference in the minds of consumers. Thus, there is a need to take a re-look at analyzing the purchase intention and buyers' choice towards a particular brand. Under these circumstances an attempt has been made by the researcher to study the impact of brand heuristics, brand knowledge, brand trust, brand loyalty, perceived quality, brand association and brand equity on the purchase intention of various brands of television.Keywords: Brand Heuristics, Brand Knowledge, Brand trust and Brand Loyalty.(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)INTRODUCTION:Most of the products being sold in the market today are identified by their names. The name which helps the buyers in recalling the product instantly is known as brand name. It creates an image in the minds of perspective buyers. It is for the purpose of identification of product, it becomes more crucial in the consumer durable market where buying decisions of the consumers are based on the brand perception.STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:A customer tends to purchase the brand which he can instantly recall at the thought of buying a product. In general, the Indian consumers were indifferent in choosing the brand, since a lot of close substitutes were available in the market. Due to technological and knowledge up-gradation, today's customers prefer to opt for branded product. The consumer's product preference is influenced by the brand services that go with it. It is difficult to imagine that in a normal situation, a consumer will make a purchase without paying enough attention to his needs and desires. But when several brands of a particular product, which are similar in quality of performance and external appearance, are available to the consumers; the various brand factors may create a preference in the minds of consumers. Thus, there is a need to take a re-look at analyzing the purchase intention and buyers' choice towards a particular brand. An attempt has been made by the researcher to study the impact of brand factors namely Brand heuristics, Brand knowledge, Brand trust, Brand loyalty, Perceived quality, Brand Association and Brand Equity on the purchase of specific brands of television.BRAND FACTORS:Brand Heuristics refers to blocking (or attention blocking). Essentially blocking arises from individual's reliance on first impression rather than engaging more complete learning strategies. This process of attention blocking can be present in consumer decision making. Brand knowledge can be defined in terms of two components, brand awareness and brand image. Marketers should take a broad view of marketing activity for a brand and recognize the various effects it has on brand knowledge. Brand trust was defined as the willingness of the average consumer to rely on the ability of the brand to perform its stated function (Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2002). …