Customers’ Awareness towards Post Office Schemes –

A Study in Erode City

Dr.P.Janaki¹, Mrs.B.Sindhu²

¹Head and Associate Professor, Department of Commerce(Banking and Insuranse),Vellalar College for Women (Autonomous), Erode, Tamil Nadu, India

²Ph.D Research scholar , Department of Commerce, Vellalar College for Women (Autonomous),Erode,

Tamil Nadu,India..

*Corresponding Author E-mail: sindhucommercenasc@gmail.com

ABSTRACT:

Post office saving system provides depositors an access to bank, a safe and convenient method to save money and to promote saving. Investment culture refers to the attitude, awareness and institutions in placing their savings in various financial assets. One of the major investments done here is on advertising. To remain competitive in the market it is necessary to understand and to influence the behavior of the investor. Behavior of the investor is influenced by many factors like return, safety, liquidity, convenience etc. The banks provide loans to retailers and wholesalers for their inventory. The study attempted focusing the attitude of investors on post office saving scheme, various schemes provided through post office, level of awareness of investors in post offices schemes.

KEYWORDS: Investors, Schemes, Post office, Savings etc.

INTRODUCTION:

Apart from banks, FD and all other small saving schemes are also provided by Post Offices. The investment avenues have undergone many folds after the policy of liberalisation, privatization and globalisation of Indian Economy in the year 1991. While comparing the rate of interest offered by the State Bank of India fixed deposits for a tenure of five years and post office term deposits for the same tenure, the difference comes to around 1.2%. If we define Organizational Excellence (OE) as a means of measuring customer’s, employer’s and shareholder’s (stakeholders) satisfaction simultaneously within an organization in order to obtain a comprehensive evaluation of the organizational performance, it becomes clear that knowing what drives the satisfaction of the key organizational stakeholders is the path that leads to success of a business in the future. (Kanji, 2007). The demand generated by the customer’s side which is only being satisfied by organization.

Thus, there is need to find the customers’ preference towards post office schemes in Erode city.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

Holosagi (2018), explored the investors motivational factors for the investment in the postal was to meet domestic purpose to be secure at old age and their preference was to be at regular and safety, local accessibility and easy manageability as well the researcher suggested that government can create more awareness among the rural people about the postal investment schemes and its benefits availed through it, as it has not reached the people properly.

Vembu (2018), revealed that the most of the rural women were interested in investing their savings in the post office because of the immediacy of post office located in their residing location and also stated that the officials creates attentiveness to the rural people for investing their money in the post office. So, that creates a growth of the postal sector. The study found that the most of the investors were invested in the post office savings schemes only for the purpose of tax relief.

Brookings (1996) points out customer, customer loyalty and distribution channels in the property market that are associated with the capital.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM:

The little and family financial specialists establish a fundamental fragment of the Indian currency showcase and more prominent comprehension of the financial specialists inclinations and the conduct of these speculators is extremely indispensable in the strategy definition on improvement and guideline of these investment funds market to guarantee the advancement and insurance of premiums of little and family unit financial specialists. The study also aims to study the awareness of post office schemes and problems faced by the customers’ while utilizing the post office services.

OBJECTIVES:

· To measure the customers’ awareness towards various services offered by Indian post office located in Erode district.

· To know the problems faced while using services of Indian post office.

· To offer the suitable suggestions for further development.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

This is an empirical study based on primary data. Convenient sampling technique has been adopted for collection of primary data. Required data have been collected from the selected 200 sample respondents.

FRAMEWORK ANALYSIS:

For the present study, collected primary data have been analysed with statistical tools like Chi-Square test, Garrett’s Ranking Technique.

Word of Mouth:

Word of mouth is spreading verbal information from one person to another person. Behavior intention is affected by word of mouth (Mosavi and Ghaedi, 2012).

Customer Loyalty:

The concept of loyalty has evolved over a period of time. In the earlier research at around 1970s, loyalty was mainly viewed as a behavioural component consisting of repeat purchasing behaviour. However, this view changed with a number of researchers arguing the adequacy of purchasing behaviour to measure loyalty (De Ruyter, 1998).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:

Table 1 CHI – SQUARE TEST RESULT

Factor	Degrees of Freedom	Calculated x ²Value	Table Value at 5% level	Null hypothesis Accepted/Rejected
Age	4	2.707	9.49	Accepted
Gender	2	1.770	5.99	Accepted
Educational Qualification	6	13.644	12.6	Rejected
Marital Status	2	1.875	6.031	Accepted
Occupational Status	6	2.373	12.6	Accepted
Monthly Family Income	4	3.243	9.49	Accepted
Monthly Family Expenses	4	3.263	9.58	Accepted
Nature of the family	2	1.665	5.68	Accepted
Size of the Family	3	2.679	5.56	Accepted
Place of the Residence	3	2.438	5.345	Accepted

NS: No significant @ 5% level

From the analysis the study found that, Table 1 shows that the association between the Independent variables of age, gender, marital status, occupational status, monthly family income, monthly family expenses, nature of family, size of the family and place of the residence are insignificant and educational qualification is significant.

Table 2 Problems of the investors (Garrett Ranking Technique)

Weighted Score Points (W)		5	4	3	2	1	Total Score (∑WX)	Weighted Average Score (`X W)	Rank
RANK Problems		I	II	III	IV	V	Total Score (∑WX)	Weighted Average Score (`X W)	Rank
Lack of employees support	X	67	33	15	26	59	623	41.53	II
Lack of employees support	WX	335	132	45	52	59	623	41.53	II
Low interest	X	29	39	32	46	54	543	36.2	V
Low interest	WX	145	156	96	92	54	543	36.2	V
Lack of information	X	25	29	50	64	32	551	36.73	IV
Lack of information	WX	125	116	150	128	32	551	36.73	IV
Delay in processing	X	20	46	57	45	32	577	38.46	III
Delay in processing	WX	100	184	171	90	32	577	38.46	III
Huge formalities in documentation	X	59	53	46	19	23	706	47.6	I
Huge formalities in documentation	WX	295	212	138	38	23	706	47.6	I
TOTAL		200	200	200	200	200

(Note: X= Number of respondents; W= Weighted score point)

From the above analysis, the Table 2 reveals that out of the various factors huge formalities in documentation is less is given first rank with weighted average score of 47.6 and the second rank is given to lack of employees support with the weighted average score of 41.53. It is followed by delay in processing whose weighted average score is 38.46; lack of information with the weighted average score of 36.73, low interest with 36.2

RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS:

· Better to increase non - postal savings scheme services for more number of customers.

· National saving scheme, Indra Vikas Patra these schemes were preferred by the most of the customers but they can attain very low rate of interest comparing with the banking sector, may be increasing rate of interest and attracts more number of rural customers’.

CONCLUSION:

In India, there were various savings and investing schemes and opportunities available for individuals. The Indian economy is currently passing through significant historical phase of economic development. In rural areas awareness about post office deposits schemes were very low and majority of the people were had awareness about saving schemes through agents. Post office is the biggest service found establishment in the nation country individual were contributing a very unsafe condition, when they spare in the causal segment. Thus, the study highlights the need to create awareness on the schemes provided by the Post Office schemes to make a successful and profitable in the long run and achieve the vision and mission of the Post Office. Post office therefore, has to re-model its services and offer better schemes to attract more number of investors.

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Received on 23.12.2022 Modified on 17.07.2023

Asian Journal of Management. 2024;15(1):69-71.

DOI: 10.52711/2321-5763.2024.00012