The factors influencing consumer choice of smartphone: rural community in Kota Marudu, Sabah / Nurasyikin Abdul Rahman and Cassie Raynie Janin

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that influence the consumer choice of smartphone in the rural community in Kota Marudu Sabah and its association with social influence concern, product features concern, necessity concern, and service provider concern. The data is collected through self-administered questionnaire, and cluster sampling method. A total of 70 samples was collected from the rural area located in Kg. Taginambur Baru, Kota Marudu Sabah, Malaysia. The findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between all variables with purchasing decision, which indicates that the factors influence the consumer choice of smartphone in rural community in Kota Marudu Sabah is influenced by social influence concern, product features concern, necessity concern and service provider concern. The findings of this study are limited by the number of respondents, area and location, and the absence of other methods to obtain the results other than secondary research and questionnaire. This study is important for marketers to understand the consumer's choice of Smartphone to be more competitive.

Keywords: Social Influence Concern, Product Features Concern, Necessity Concern, Service Provider Concern, Consumer Choice, Smartphone, Rural Community