Value for money top while selecting grocery store: Nielsen study

Next on the list of factors that help customers decide are cheaper prices than the competition, location, parking space and the store’s environment friendliness

Value for money is the most important criterion for Indian consumers while choosing a grocery shop, says a global online survey conducted by ACNielsen. Around 91 per cent of the Indians who were surveyed voted for value for money.

The survey was conducted in mid 2007; ACNielsen surveyed 26,486 Internet users in 47 markets in Europe, the Asia Pacific, the US and West Asia on the factors that influenced their choice of grocery store. India stands fifth globally among those who chose value for money.

Not just India, ACNielsen found that an overwhelming 85 per cent of global consumers ranked value for money as the most important criterion when choosing a grocery store, outperforming other considerations such as product range, environment friendliness and location/convenience.

Indians ranked a wider selection of high quality brands and products (79 per cent) as the second most important attribute in a grocery store, location (54 per cent) as third, and parking space (54 per cent) as fourth.

“It is interesting to note that consumers in the world’s booming economies like Russia (93 per cent), India (79 per cent) and China (78 per cent) are amongst the few for whom ‘better selection of high quality brands and products’ is very important,” says Rajshree Dave, director, client solutions, The Nielsen Company, India.

Shoppers expect the best of both worlds today from retailers. On the one hand, they are natural bargain hunters and demand good value for grocery currency, and on the other, they expect retailers to stock a wide selection of high quality brands and products.

The survey revealed that price, promotions and perceptions are the most influential factors in helping consumers arrive at a perception of value. Indians associate a store that offers cheaper products and discounts and runs regular promotions (79 per cent) with value for money.

Regionally, shoppers in the Asia Pacific region defined prices published in the store’s own promotional material, the store’s promise to have daily low prices and own research and price comparison across retailers as their most important good value indicators.

Some 64 per cent Indians research and compare prices to decide which store offers them better value for money. Word of mouth scores 58 per cent in helping to make the grocery shopping decision because Indians rely heavily on the opinion of friends and family.

The survey also found that with environmental concerns on the rise, 39 per cent Indians rate a store higher if it offers recyclable bags and packaging for their products. Indians rank second globally – behind China – where choosing a store for its environment friendliness is concerned.