Role of Impulse Buying Behaviour in Purchase Decision of Women

This study delves into the influence of impulse buying behavior on the shopping habits of women, exploring various demographic and emotional factors alongside in-store and online shopping dynamics. The objectives encompass understanding the impact of these factors on impulse buying behavior, identifying in-store influences, and analyzing the role of impulse buying in online shopping. Methodology involved gathering data from 50 respondents through a structured questionnaire. The study's major findings reveal several significant correlations with women's impulse buying behavior. Notably, in-store factors like eye-catching window displays and enticing promotional offers, such as "buy one get one free" and price breaks, positively correlated with impulsive purchases. Moreover, a considerable majority acknowledged the persuasive influence of salespeople in prompting impulsive buying decisions, highlighting the significant role of sales personnel in shaping consumers' purchasing behaviors. In the realm of online shopping, multiple factors emerged as influential in driving impulsive purchases among women. Elements such as product selection, display attractiveness, home delivery options, and special promotional deals demonstrated a substantial impact on impulsive buying behavior in the online sphere. Specifically, the study emphasizes the pivotal role played by product selection, home delivery convenience, and exclusive online deals in influencing impulsive purchasing decisions. In conclusion, this research sheds light on the multifaceted influences of both in-store and online factors on women's impulse buying behavior, highlighting the importance of tailored marketing strategies and the pivotal role of sales personnel in shaping consumers' impulsive purchasing tendencies.


INTRODUCTION
Impulsive buying means making an unplanned purchase.It includes purchasing items that you may or may not need or that you cannot afford.It can be a candy at the convenience store, a cute shirt that seems to be on sale, or even sometimes things like gadgets which you didn't have a budget for but you bought it on impulse because you liked it so much.The study on impulse buying behaviour has many practical benefits and by revealing the relative importance of factors affecting the impulse buying behaviour, the effective marketing strategies can be proposed to increase the volume of impulse purchases.Both manufacturers and retailers are interested in impulse buying because it accounts for a large proportion of consumer purchases in stores.Moreover, they may increase their sales and respective market shares if they better understand what influences consumer buying behaviour.

Factors Affecting Impulse Buying Behaviour Demographic Factors
The demographic segmentation distributes consumers into divisions based on demographic standards such as age, gender, income, education etc.The needs, wants and buying behaviour of customers vary with the age factor.Other demographic factors likewise gender, income, education etc. also have an influence on buying habits.

Emotional Factors
When a buyer decided to purchase without thinking over the matters logically and carefully (i.e.without much reasoning), he said to have influenced by emotional product buying motives.Emotional product buying motives include following: Pride or prestige, Emulation or Imitation, Affection, Thrill, Excitement, Desire for distinctiveness or individuality, Desire for recreation or pleasure, Hunger and thirst, Habit

In-store factors
In-store factors play a significant role in influencing impulse buying behavior among consumers.These factors are often designed and strategically implemented by retailers to encourage unplanned purchases.Here's a brief rundown of some key in-store factors that impact impulse buying: Product Placement and Displays: Items strategically placed at the store entrance, near checkout counters, or in high-traffic areas tend to catch the attention of shoppers, increasing the likelihood of impulse purchases.
Visual Merchandising: Attractive and appealing displays, vibrant colors, well-organized shelves, and eye-catching signage can stimulate impulse buying by drawing attention to specific products.

Sales and Promotions:
Limited-time offers, discounts, or promotions prominently displayed within the store can trigger impulse purchases as customers perceive a sense of urgency or a good deal.
Product Positioning: Placing complementary products next to each other or positioning related items in close proximity can encourage consumers to make additional unplanned purchases.

Sampling and Demonstrations:
Offering product samples or demonstrations can pique interest and create a sense of immediacy, prompting customers to buy on impulse.
Store Layout and Design: Store layouts that encourage exploration and prolong the shopping duration may lead to more unplanned purchases as consumers browse through different sections of the store.
Sensory Stimuli: Factors like music, lighting, and even scent within a store can influence mood and emotions, potentially impacting purchasing behavior.

Packaging and Presentation:
Appealing and innovative packaging can capture attention and stimulate impulse purchases, especially when the product is visually appealing or promises a unique experience.These in-store factors tap into consumers' emotions, desires, and immediate needs, nudging them to make spontaneous purchases they hadn't initially planned.Retailers leverage these strategies to create an environment conducive to impulse buying and capitalize on consumers' impulses and preferences.
Online impulse buying motives shares similarities with in-store impulse buying but is influenced by different factors inherent to the digital shopping experience.Here are some key factors affecting online impulse buying behaviour: Visual Presentation and Design: Eye-catching website layouts, vibrant images, and compelling product displays can draw attention and trigger impulsive buying decisions.
Personalized Recommendations: Algorithms that suggest products based on browsing history, purchase patterns, or preferences can entice customers to make unplanned purchases.
Limited-Time Offers and Deals: Similar to in-store promotions, online flash sales, limited-time discounts, and "buy now" offers create a sense of urgency, encouraging immediate purchases.
One-Click Purchasing: Streamlined checkout processes and saved payment details make it incredibly convenient for users to make impulsive purchases without going through multiple steps.
Customer Reviews and Social Proof: Positive reviews and social validation can influence impulse buying behavior, especially when customers see others endorsing a product.

Retargeting and Remarketing:
Ads that follow users across different websites after they've shown interest in a product can reignite their desire to make a purchase on impulse.
Free Shipping or Added Incentives: Offers like free shipping, bundled deals, or additional gifts with a purchase can prompt impulsive buying decisions to capitalize on perceived value.

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out):
Online platforms often create a sense of FOMO by showcasing limited edition items, exclusive deals, or products in high demand, compelling customers to buy impulsively.
Ease of Comparison and Exploration: Online platforms allow easy comparison between products, which might encourage spontaneous decisions when consumers see a better deal or option.

Mobile Shopping and Apps:
The accessibility of shopping through mobile devices and dedicated apps facilitates quick and impulsive purchases, as users can shop on the go.Understanding these factors, online retailers often employ various strategies to create an environment conducive to impulse buying, capitalizing on the immediacy and convenience of the digital shopping experience.Techniques such as targeted marketing, user-friendly interfaces, and personalized recommendations aim to trigger impulsive purchases and increase sales.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY • To understand the influence of various demographic and emotional factors on impulse buying
behaviour.• To identify in-store factors and the relationship between in-store factors with impulse buying.
• To analyse the role of impulse buying in online shopping.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Impulse buying is a common behaviour today.Our culture of consumption enables us to yield to temptation and purchase something without considering the consequences of the buy.Marketers try to tap this behaviour of customers to boost sales.On the other hand, retailers benefit from the buyer's behaviour by making more sales which multiplies their profits.Understanding the relevance of impulse buying behavior among women in the current scenario can help retailers and marketers tailor their strategies to effectively tap into these tendencies.However, it's also essential to consider responsible consumer practices and promote mindful purchasing to avoid overspending or accumulating items that are not genuinely needed.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This study is designed to assess the role of impulse buying behaviour in buying habbit of women.The accessible population of the study is the women customers of Meenachil thaluk of Kottayam district of Kerala State.In this survey data is collected from 50 women customers.The samples are obtained through convenient sampling technique.Primary data are collected from samples by using questionnaire and interview schedules and secondary data from published sources.Secondary data are collected from various websites, journals, articles, etc.The collected data is analysed by using statistical tools like percentage, Likert scale analysis and chi square test.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
(Yogesh, 2016) studied about the behavioural impulsivity of undergraduate and graduate students in particularly.This study was specifically conducted to provide an insight on the factors and their relationship that trigger the impulsive buying behaviour of students in Kathmandu Valley.The questionnaire was designed in a way to identify the intensions and impulsive buying behaviours of college students.Questionnaire were distributed to 190 respondents.The sample was collected from six different colleges of graduate and undergraduate level.Their study shows that there was a positive relationship between the impulsive buying behaviour of students with variables Tv/media, self-esteem, impulsivity, anxiety and social desirability, but the effect of these variables found moderate.The findings will be useful for the marketing departments of the various industries targeting the youths in their marketing campaigns, efficiently.(Abu, 2014) conducted research to understand and predict the impacts of cultural values and lifestyles on impulse buying behaviour of customers.The data was collected from the respondents of Delhi.A convenient sampling technique was used.A total of 300 questionnaire were distributed and only 250 useable responses were collected back for analysing the data.Data analysis and interpretation was done with the help of SPSS 16 software.The result shows that cultural values and lifestyles of respondents had significant relationship among all variables of cultural values and life styles.The study also found that constructs of the cultural values and lifestyles had significant impact on the impulsive buying behaviour of Indian consumers.The results also shows that impulse buying behaviour is predicted by security, life satisfaction, gender role, financial satisfaction, in group contact and life style variables of cultural values and lifestyles of consumers.(Baran, 2015) aimed to determine the influence of credit usage of Turkish consumer on impulse buying .The questionnaire prepared for the study was implemented on 590 people and remaining 551 questionnaire were subjected to analysis after having been edited.As a result of research analysis, it was conclude that credit card usage has an influence on impulse buying.(Amaran, 2018) did a study to understand the factors influencing impulse buying behaviour of consumers who own credit card.A total of 203 credit card owners participated in this study and the data was obtain through questionnaire.The result indicated only promotional approaches, window display and consumer mood were influence impulse buying behaviour.The marketing efforts for products that fall into impulse buying behaviour category should not segregated according to gender.(Laura, 2017) aimed to explore the phenomenon of impulse buying in fashion industry.The online offline channels are compared to determine which perceived as leading.The result shows that the offline channel is slightly more encouraging impulse buying than online.Social network can have a high impact on impulse buying.Main limitation under this research is only one product type is analysed.Further research is need for shipping refund costs and delayed gratification.This research contributes to the validation of a scale to measure the influence of social media on impulse buying behaviour.This data suggests a varied spectrum of unplanned purchase behavior among customers:
• Additionally, a considerable portion (12%) states that they do "Not Often" make such purchases.This distribution showcases that a majority of customers, around 62% (30% + 32%), engage in unplanned purchases to some extent, while the remaining customers either rarely engage in these purchases (8% "Never") or fall into the extreme categories of "Always" (18%) or "Not Often" (12%).

Tendency to Make Unplanned Purchase Statements mean value
When I go shopping, I buy things that I had not intended to purchase 11.13333333I often spend more money than I decided to spend 10.4I buy more than I had planned to buy 11.46666667It is a struggle to leave nice things I see in a shop 12.2 (Source: primary data) The higher the mean value, the stronger the inclination toward unplanned buying behavior.the mean values indicate a consistent pattern of a moderate to high inclination toward making unplanned purchases among the respondents, especially in terms of buying items not initially intended, spending more than planned, buying more than anticipated, and finding it challenging to resist attractive items in stores."When I go shopping, I buy things that I had not intended to purchase" -Mean value of 11.13:This suggests a relatively high tendency among respondents to make unplanned purchases.On average, respondents occasionally tend to buy items not on their intended shopping list."I often spend more money than I decided to spend" -Mean value of 10.4:This indicates that, on average, respondents tend to exceed their planned budget somewhat frequently during shopping trips."I buy more than I had planned to buy" -Mean value of 11.47:This statement signifies a relatively strong tendency to buy more items than initially planned.On average, respondents frequently end up purchasing beyond their original intentions."It is a struggle to leave nice things I see in a shop" -Mean value of 12.2:This particular statement suggests a strong inclination among respondents to find it difficult to resist purchasing items they find appealing in stores.On average, respondents often struggle to walk away from items they like.The higher mean values for statements related to habitual buying, immediate needs, and mood-driven purchases suggest that these factors strongly influence impulse buying behavior.On the other hand, the lower mean values for retail therapy and imitation of others in shopping indicate a reduced impact of these emotional factors on unplanned purchases.Factors like eye-catching window displays and interesting promotional strategies are perceived to have a substantial impact on consumer behaviour within the store, indicating that these elements significantly contribute to attracting and influencing shoppers.The general design of the shop and arrangements of products also play roles in influencing consumer behaviour but are perceived to have a comparatively moderate impact, suggesting there might be room for improvement or optimization in these areas to further influence shopper decisions and behaviours.Factors such as the variety of products, convenience, attractive product displays, promotional offers, and home delivery options hold considerable sway over online impulse buying behaviors.While payment modes and refund policies are influential, they may have slightly less impact compared to other factors in driving impulsive purchases.These influences helps online retailers optimize their platforms and marketing strategies to capitalize on these factors, ultimately encouraging more impulsive buying behaviors

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
Women's impulse buying behaviour is influenced by a variety of in-store characteristics, including window displays, store image, store design, and promotional offers.These factors are positively correlated with women's impulse buying behaviour.They made impulsive purchases due to window displays and alluring promotional offers like buy one get one free and price breaks.The majority are persuaded to make impulsive purchases by salespeople.It suggests that sales people have a significant influence on consumers' purchasing decisions.Numerous online buying factors, such as product selection, display, home delivery, special deals, ease of use, and so forth, have led to impulsive purchases.Online elements like product selection, home delivery, and promotional deals have a major impact on buyers' impulsive purchases while shopping online.a strong inclination among respondents to find it difficult to resist purchasing items they find appealing in stores.On average, respondents often struggle to walk away from items they like.
Home delivery 12.25

SUGGESTIONS
The following are some suggestions to make use of the benefits of impulse buying behaviour of consumers.
• Stock inexpensive impulsive items close to the register.
• Showcase impulsive purchases next to in-demand merchandise.
• Use the right language to communicate urgency (Eg: Buy Now, Get it before they are gone) • Anticipate your customers' needs.
• Provide product demos or samples.
• Present goods that are in season.
• Train staff to encourage impulse buying.

CONCLUSION
The primary objective of the research was to determine the applicability of young people's impulsive purchasing habits in the current environment.The retail sector is expanding significantly as a result of consumer choices and lifestyle changes.The purchasing habits of Indian customers, particularly the younger generation, have seen significant transformations, with a notable rise in the prevalence of impulse buying.Manufacturers and merchants may effectively leverage consumer irrationality, as it forms the basis of their reasoning.The study makes note of emotional elements like habit, hunger and thirst, sentiments, pride and prestige, and demographic factors like age, gender, occupation and qualification.In-store factors like window display, store environment, promotions offers and influence of sales personnel and online factors like choice of product, home delivery, display of product, convenience and payment mode force customers to buy impulsively.Retailers can effectively use the purchasing impulse generated by these elements to boost sales.The importance of impulse buying is growing daily as a result of industry changes and technological advancements.Given that young people are more likely to adopt new technology and are seen as trend setters, it is reasonable to assume that impulse buying plays a big part in how they purchase.Youth are greatly influenced by the factors of impulse buying, which forces them to make an impulsive purchase.Residing in a digital age where everything we need or desire is just a few clicks away on our smartphones increases the relevance of Impulse buying behaviour as a form of shopping behaviour.
If I see something different, I buy it 3.3 Buying things give me a lot of pleasure 3.2 Sometimes I buy things for the pride or prestige felt by its possession 3 When I am in a down mood, I go shopping to make me feel better 2.7 My desire to imitate others often lead to unplanned purchase 2.6 If I see something I want, I buy it 3.4 I often buy unplanned things for my beloved ones 3.3 If I find something part of my habit, I buy it 3.5 I buy things on a sudden thirst and hunger 3.5 I buy things according to how I feel at the moment 3.5 I sometimes feel that something inside pushed me to go shopping 3 I feel a sense of thrill when I am buying something new 3.2 I feel excited when making an unplanned purchase 3.2 (source: Primary data)