The Users Of Pantene Shampoo In Western Marketing Essay

The shampoo market in India has changed significantly since 1960 when it first became a lifestyle product in urban homes. As of 2008, it was a very competitive market with dominant players such as Hindustan Unilever Ltd. and Procter & Gamble Company.

P&G’s hair care business comprises of Pantene, the world’s largest selling shampoo, Head & Shoulders, the world’s No. 1 Anti-dandruff shampoo, Rejoice – Asia’s No. 1 Shampoo, and Wella- international shampoo.

Researchers are engaged in doing research work on consumer products since last five years and the popularity of Pantene shampoo motivated them to undertake the research for identifying the satisfaction level of Pantene amongst the Pantene users. Therefore the responses were collected from 200 Pantene users of western Maharashtra. Convenience sampling method was used to tap the Pantene users from the four cities of Western Maharashtra; Solapur, Kolhapur, Sangli and Satara. Researchers used structured questionnaire to collect the primary data from the respondents. The mean satisfaction scores of different groups of respondents were calculated to find out the highly satisfied group and two-way tables and charts were framed to find out the distribution of respondents of each category with regards to their level of satisfaction. The satisfaction level of Pantene shampoo is derived against different elements such as sex group, age group, price, quality, lather, fragrance, packing, and ability to prevent hair fall.

The study also offers constructive suggestions for improving the satisfaction of the customers. The study will definitely draw the attention of shampoo companies indicating them the problems and prospects of future shampoo market.

Key Words: Shampoo market, Quality, Lather, Hair fall prevention, Packaging, fragrance,

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INTRODUCTION

The shampoo market in India has changed significantly since the 1960s when it first became a lifestyle product in urban homes. As of 2008, it was a very competitive market with dominant players such as Hindustan Unilever Ltd. and Procter & Gamble Company. The market is marked by intense competition from domestic as well as multinational companies.

Shampoo has transformed in the mass product from class product. Procter & Gamble company is pioneer in the field, has been offering a variety of shampoos for the consumers. In 1993, Procter & Gamble Home Products is incorporated as a 100% subsidiary of The Procter & Gamble Company, USA. In 1993, Procter & Gamble India divests the Detergents business to Procter & Gamble Home Products. In June 2000, Procter & Gamble Home Products Limited launched Pantene Lively Clean its unique Pro-Vitamin formula cleans oil-build up, dirt and grime in just one wash, delivering lively, free-flowing and sparkling-clean hair. Pantene originated in Europe in 1947 and came to the U.S. in 1960. In 2010 Pantene shampoos were reformulated and categorized into fine hair, curly hair, medium to thick hair, color hair and classic care.

Pantene offers several shampoos within each of their Solutions categories. For example the Color Hair Solutions category features Color Preserve Shine, Color Preserve Smooth and Color Preserve Volume formulas. There is also Nature Fusion that uses naturally-derived ingredients to cleanse, Relaxed & Natural for women of color, and Restore Beautiful Lengths for long hair

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

The study has been conducted by the researchers with the primary objective of measuring the extent of variation in the level of satisfaction derived by the respondents. The study also offers constructive suggestions for improving the satisfaction of the customers. The study will definitely draw the attention of shampoo companies indicating them the problems and prospects of future shampoo market.

HYPOTHESES:

On the basis of objectives of the study, hypothesis were formulated that various personal factors relating to the sample respondents such as sex group, age group and the opinion of the respondents on price, quality, lather, fragrance, packing, and prevention of hair falling do not significantly influence the satisfaction derived by the respondents.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

The study is based on the primary data colleted from 200 users of Pantene Shampoo from Western Maharashtra. Using Cluster sampling technique, the four major cities of Western Maharashtra, namely Solapur, Kolhapur, Sangli and Satara were selected for conducting survey. 50 respondents from each city were selected using convenience sampling method. Researchers used structured questionnaire to collect the primary data from the respondents. The mean satisfaction scores of different groups of respondents were calculated to find out the highly satisfied group and two-way tables and charts were framed to find out the distribution of respondents of each category with regards to their level of satisfaction.

ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS:

1) The sample respondents belonging to three groups in accordance with their satisfaction scores were found; 38 respondents ( 19% ) out of 200 fall under ‘ Less Satisfied’, 78 respondents( 38%) belongs to ‘Medium Satisfied’ category and 86 respondents (42%) belongs to highly satisfied category.

Chart-I

Chart showing the overall satisfaction level of Pantene

Shampoo users

Less Satisfied

Medium satisfied

Highly satisfied

19%

39%

42%

2) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST GENDER OF PANTENE USER:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by male and female respondents is presented in Table-1. It indicates that mean satisfaction score of the female respondents is 63.68% and the satisfaction scores of the female respondents ranged between 32to 96. The mean satisfaction score of male respondents ins 59.08 and their satisfaction scores ranges between 38 and 87.

Table-1: Gender of Respondents and Level of Satisfaction

Gender

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Female

156

63.68

32 to 96

42(26.92%)

54(34.61%)

60(38.46%)

Male

44

59.08

38 to 87

12(27.27%)

26(59.09%)

6(13.63%)

Total

200

61.38

32 to 96

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-1 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the female respondent is higher than that of the male respondents. It also indicates that the percentages of respondents with low level of satisfaction are the lowest (26.92%) and the percentage of the respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (38.46%) among the female respondents. Hence it can be inferred that the female respondents derive higher level of satisfaction than that of male respondent.

3) Level of satisfaction against age of respondents:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents who belong to various age groups is given in Table-2. It indicates that mean satisfaction score of young respondents (Up to 35 years of age ) is 66.06 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 36 and 96. The mean satisfaction score of the middle-aged respondents (age between 36-45 years) is 64.87 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 31-97. The satisfaction scores of the old age category respondents (above 45 years of age) ranged between 56 and 81 and their mean satisfaction score is 52.96

Table-2: Age group of the respondents and level of satisfaction.

Age

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Young

79

66.06

36 to 96

16(20.25%)

33(41.77%)

30(37.97%)

Middle

98

64.87

31 to 97

29(29.59%)

41(41.83%)

28(28.57%)

Old

23

52.96

56 to 81

9(39.13%)

06(26.08%)

8(34.78%)

Total

200

61.30

31 to 97

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-2 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the young age group respondents is higher than that of the middle and old age group respondents. It also indicates that the percentage of respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (20.25%) and the percentage of the respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (37.97%) among the young age group respondents. Hence it can be inferred that young age group respondents derive higher level of satisfaction than that of the respondents who belong to middle age and old age categories.

4) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST OPINION OF PRICE:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on the price is given in Table-3. It indicates that mean satisfaction score of respondents who admitted that the price is ‘High’ is 53.48 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 33 and 95. The satisfaction scores of the respondents who admitted that the price is ‘Moderate’ ranged between 31 and 97 and their mean satisfaction score is 64.28. The mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the price is ‘Low’ is 64.88 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 39 and 96.

Table-3: Opinion on Price and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on Price

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

High

48

53.48

33 to 95

20(41.66%)

17(35.41%)

11(22.917%)

Moderate

123

64.28

31 to 97

31(25.20%)

52(42.27%)

40(32.52%)

Low

29

64.88

39 to 96

3(10.34%)

11(37.93%)

15(51.72%)

Total

200

60.88

31 to 97

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-3 indicates that the mean satisfaction scores of the respondents who admitted that the price is ‘Low’ is higher than that of the respondents who admitted that the price is ‘Medium’ and ‘High’. It also indicates that the percentage of the respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (10.34%) and the percentage of the respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (51.72%) among the respondents with the opinion that the price is ‘Low’. Hence it can be inferred that the respondents who opined that the price is ‘Low’ derive higher level of satisfaction than that of the respondents who opined that the price is ‘medium’ and ‘high’.

5) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST QUALITY OF PRODUCT

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on quality is given in table-4. It indicates that the mean satisfaction score of respondents who opined that the quality is ‘fair’, is 52.08 and heir satisfaction scores ranged between 32 and 92. The satisfaction scores of the respondents who opined that the quality is ‘good’ ranged between 32 and 94 and their mean satisfaction score is 59.53. The mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the quality is ‘Excellent’ is 70.78 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 41 and 96.

Table-4: Opinion on quality and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on quality

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Fair

45

52.08

32 to 92

17(37.77.%)

20(44.44%)

08(17.77%)

Good

78

59.53

32 to 94

27(34.61%)

30(38.46%)

21(26.92%)

excellent

77

70.78

41 to 96

10(12.98%)

30(38.96%)

37(47.43%)

Total

200

60.79

32 to 96

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-4 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that quality is ‘excellent’ is higher than that of the respondents who opined that the quality is ‘Fair’ and ‘Good’. It also indicates that the percentage of respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (12.98%) and the percentage of the respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest( 47.43%) among the respondents with the opinion that the quality is ‘excellent’. Hence it can be inferred that the respondents who opined that the quality is ‘excellent’ derive higher level of satisfaction than that of the respondents who opined that the quality is ‘fair’ and ‘good’.

6) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST LATHER OF PRODUCT:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on the level of lather is given in table-5. It indicates that mean satisfaction score of respondents who opined that the level of lather is ‘less’ is 55.15 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 32 and 85. the satisfaction scores of the respondents who opined that the level of lather is ‘medium’ is ranged between 38 and 91, their mean satisfaction score is 62.76. The mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the level of lather is ‘high’ is 63.89 and their satisfaction score ranged between 44 and 98.

Table-5: Opinion on lather and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on quality

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Less

18

55.15

32 to 85

8(44.44%)

6 (33.33%)

4(22.22%)

Moderate

124

62.76

38 to 91

25(20.16%)

60(48.38%)

39(31.45%)

high

58

63.89

44 to 98

21(36.20%)

14(24.13%)

23(39.65%)

Total

200

60.06

32 to 98

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-5 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the level of lather is ‘high’ is greater than that of the respondents who opined that the level of lather is ‘medium’ and ‘less’. It also indicate that the percentage of respondents with moderate level of satisfaction is the lowest (24.13%) and the percentage of respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (39.65%) among the respondents who opined that the lather is high. Hence, it can be inferred that the respondents who opined that the level of lather is high derive higher level of satisfaction than that of the respondents who opined that the same is ‘less’ and ‘medium’.

7) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST PACKING OF PRODUCT:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on packaging is given in table-6. It indicates that mean safisfaction score of respondents who opined that packing is less convenient is 55.49 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 31 and 78. The satisfaction score of the respondents with the opinion that packing is convenient ranged between 40 and 89 and their mean satisfaction score is 62.14. the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the packing is more convenient to them is 64.98 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 45 and 96.

Table-6: Opinion on Packing and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on quality

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Less convenient

38

55.49

31 to 78

22(57.89%)

11 (28.94%)

5(13.15%)

convenient

68

62.14

40 to 89

19(27.94%)

32(47.05%)

17(25.00%)

More convenient

94

64.98

45 to 96

13(13.82%)

37(39.36%)

44(46.80%)

Total

200

60.87

31 to 96

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-6 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the packing is more convenient to them is higher than that of the other categories of respondents. It also indicates that the percentage of respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (13.82%) and the percentage of the respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (46.80%) among the respondents who felt that the packing is more convenient to them. Hence it can be inferred that the respondents with the opinion that packing is more convenient to them derive higher level of satisfaction than the other categories of the respondents.

8) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST ABILITY TO PREVENT THE HAIR FALL:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on the ability of the shampoo in prevention of hair fall is given in table-7. It indicates that mean satisfaction score of respondents who expressed that the shampoo has the less ability in prevention of hair fall is 54.32 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 32 and 82. The satisfaction scores of the respondents with the opinion that the shampoo moderately prevents the hair fall ranged between 42 and 91 and their mean satisfaction score is 63.93. The mean satisfaction score of the respondents who expressed that the shampoo highly prevents the hair falling is 65.92 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 45 and 97.

Table-7: Opinion on ability to prevent hair fall and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on quality

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Less

33

54.32

32 to 82

17(51.51%)

8 (24.24%)

08(24.24%)

Moderate

63

62.85

42 to 91

26(41.26%)

23(36.50%)

14(22.22%)

high

104

65.92

45 to 97

11(10.57%)

49(47.11%)

44(42.30%)

Total

200

61.03

32 to 97

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-7 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who opined that the shampoo is highly effective in preventing hair fall is greater than that of the other categories of respondents. It also indicates that the percentage of respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (10.75%) and the percentage of respondents with high level of satisfaction is the highest (42.30%) among the respondents who expressed that the shampoo is highly effective in preventing the hair fall. Hence it can be inferred that the respondents with the opinion that the usage of shampoo prevents the hair falling at the higher level derive higher level of satisfaction than the other categories of respondents.

9) LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AGAINST FRAGRANCE OF SHAMPOO:

The extent of variation in the satisfaction derived by the respondents in accordance with their opinion on the fragrance of shampoo is given in Table-13. It indicates that the mean satisfaction score of respondents who opined that the fragrance is ‘fairly pleasant’ is 58.71 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 32 and 72. The satisfaction scores of the respondents with the opinion that the fragrance is ‘pleasant’ ranged between 41 and 81 and their mean satisfaction score is 62.02. The mean satisfaction score of the respondents who expressed that the fragrance is more pleasant is 64.79 and their satisfaction scores ranged between 43 and 97.

Table-8: Opinion on fragrance of shampoo and level of satisfaction.

Opinion on quality

No. of

Respondents

Mean Satisfaction Score

Range

Level of Satisfaction

Low

Medium

High

Fairly pleasant

40

58.71

32 to 72

24(60.00%)

12 (30.00%)

04(10.00%)

Pleasant

65

62.02

41 to 81

19(29.30%)

27(41.53%)

19(29.30%)

More pleasant

95

64.79

43 to 97

11(11.57%)

41(43.15%)

43(45.26%)

Total

200

61.84

32 to 97

54

80

66

Source: Survey of Pantene Users (Figures in the parenthesis indicate the percentage to the total).

Table-8 indicates that the mean satisfaction score of the respondents who expressed that the fragrance is very pleasant is higher than that of the other categories of respondents. It also indicates that the percentage of respondents with low level of satisfaction is the lowest (11.57%) and the percentage of the respondent with high level of satisfaction is the highest (45.26%) among the respondents who accepted that the fragrance is very pleasant. Hence it can be inferred that the respondents with the opinion that the fragrance is very pleasant derive higher level of satisfaction than the other categories of respondents.

STUDY RESULTS:

The research study conducted to derive the level of satisfaction of Pantene shampoo revealed the following

results

Female respondents derive comparatively higher satisfaction than male respondents.

Young respondents ( 0-35 yrs) derive higher satisfaction as compared to other age group respondents.

The respondents, who perceived the price as ‘low’, derive higher level of satisfaction.

The respondents, who admitted that the quality of the shampoo is excellent, derive higher level of satisfaction.

The respondents, who expressed that the lather is of high level, derive higher satisfaction as compared to others.

The respondents, who expressed that the fragrance of the shampoo is more pleasant, derive higher level of satisfaction as compared to other.

The respondents, who experienced that the packaging is very convenient, derive higher satisfaction.

The respondent who expressed that the shampoo has the high ability to prevent the hair fall, derive higher lever of satisfaction.

SUGGESTIONS

In order to improve the satisfaction derived by the respondents, the following suggestions have been offered by the researchers.

More conditioning agents must be added in the shampoo in order to condition the hair, which will extend the further customer satisfaction.

The introduction of different variety to suit the requirements of dry hair, rough hair, oily hair and most important for dandruff, will improve the customer satisfaction further.

Kids’ shampoo market is upcoming as an potential market. Therefore the separate range of shampoos may be launched to cater this market.

Herbal range of shampoos is another option, which is now becoming the buss word. This will attract the non users who don’t use shampoo due to its chemical content.

If possible, with the help of R&D, the shampoo with dye may be introduced and the same will serve two different purposes. The same will result in improved customer satisfaction.

The effectiveness of hair strengthening agents should be further improved to delight the customers.

CONCLUSION:

In the field of Beauty care, Proctor and Gamble has been one of the pioneers in introducing various products. P&G’s hair care business comprises of Pantene, the world’s largest selling shampoo, Head & Shoulders, the world’s No. 1 Anti-dandruff shampoo and Rejoice – Asia’s No. 1 Shampoo. An attempt has been made by the researchers in the study to assess the level of satisfaction of the users of Pantene shampoo in Western Maharashtra. After the analysis of survey data it is concluded that the Pantene users are satisfied with the Pantene shampoo. Youngsters and Female users are comparatively more satisfied than adult and male users respectively. Pantene users are very much satisfied with the its quality, fragrance, price, ability to prevent hair fall, Packing and lather. Hence it is concluded that the Pantene is rated as best shampoo amongst the Pantene users.

The due consideration for the constructive suggestions offered in this study will result in improved consumer satisfaction and to have an increased market share for the manufacturer also.