When Digital Exposure Meets Everyday Buying: Understanding Consumer Behaviour in FMCG

Rithik Bhattacharjee

No jtycr_v1, SocArXiv from Center for Open Science

Abstract: Consumers today may discover a product on social media, encounter it repeatedly through digital advertising, and still make the final purchase from a neighbourhood store. This study explores the relationship between digital exposure and everyday consumer behaviour in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. Using a consumer survey dataset containing 26 usable responses, the study examines purchase frequency, purchase channels, exposure to social-media promotions, reported influence of online advertising, customer satisfaction, and recommendation intention. The findings show that social-media exposure is relatively common, while reported influence of online advertising is more mixed. Traditional retail remains important, with kirana stores and supermarkets accounting for most reported purchase channels. Mean satisfaction was 3.92 out of 5 among respondents with valid satisfaction scores, while recommendation intention was predominantly positive. Exploratory statistical analysis did not identify a statistically significant association between online-ad influence and recommendation intention (χ² = 0.26, p = 0.61), nor a statistically significant relationship between satisfaction and recommendation intention (Spearman ρ ≈ 0.21, p ≈ 0.31). The findings suggest that digital visibility should not automatically be interpreted as behavioural influence. Consumer decisions appear to involve a broader combination of digital communication, product experience, purchasing convenience, availability, and customer service. Given the small and youth-concentrated sample, the study is exploratory and does not claim population-level generalizability. The paper highlights the need for larger and more diverse studies examining how digital engagement interacts with the wider FMCG consumer journey.

Date: 2026-09-24
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:osf:socarx:jtycr_v1

DOI: 10.31235/osf.io/jtycr_v1

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