Assessing brand switching level and behaviour of growing-up milk products in Java: A structural equation modeling and...

Area of Science:

• Consumer Behavior
• Marketing Strategy
• Socioeconomic Analysis

Background:

• Growing-up milk (GUM) is primarily consumed by children aged 1-3 years from middle and lower socioeconomic classes in Indonesia.
• Understanding consumer brand switching is crucial for GUM manufacturers to maintain market share and customer loyalty.
• Java's population is nearly evenly split between rural and urban demographics, with a significant portion belonging to the target socioeconomic segments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the extent of brand switching among GUM consumers in Java.
• To identify key factors influencing GUM consumer brand switching behavior.
• To compare brand switching patterns between rural and urban GUM consumers in middle and lower socioeconomic strata.

Main Methods:

• A guided interview questionnaire was administered to 419 GUM consumers in East Java and D.I. Yogyakarta.
• Purposive sampling was employed to select research respondents.
• Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and Multigroup Analysis (MGA) were utilized for data analysis.

Main Results:

• The study revealed a high brand switching rate of 57% among GUM consumers in Java.
• Key drivers of brand switching include negative prior experiences (especially defective products), variety seeking, poor product attributes, and customer dissatisfaction.
• No significant difference in brand switching behavior was observed between rural and urban consumers within the specified socioeconomic groups.

Conclusions:

• GUM manufacturers can implement consistent marketing strategies for both rural and urban middle and lower socioeconomic consumers in Java due to similar brand switching behaviors.
• Addressing negative customer experiences and product quality is paramount for enhancing GUM brand loyalty.
• The findings provide actionable insights for GUM market segmentation and promotional campaign development.