LIST OF TABLES

Table Content Page.No.

Table 1 Total Respondents 48
Table 2 Age Group Of Respondents 49
Table 3 Education background of the respondent 50
Table 4 Occupation of the Respondent 51
Table 5 Annual family income 52
Table 6 Recall Rates of Various Brands 53
Table 7 Brands available at reasonable price 55
Table 8 Awareness of brand in people 57
Table 9 People perception about Maruti Suzuki Motors 58
Table 10 Respondent first know about Maruti through 59
Table 11 Respondent Opinion About Maruti Advertisement 60
Table 12 Advertisement motivate in buying a product 61
Table 13 Advertisement only sufficient in buying a product 62
Table 14 Total Maruti Models respondent is aware of 64
Table 15 Awareness of new model produced by Maruti 65
Table 16 New model produced by Maruti 66

Table 17 The new model produced by Maruti is really good 67

Table 18 On whole opinion About Maruti 68

LIST OF GRAPHS
Table Content Page.No.
Graph1 Total Respondents 48
Graph 2 Age Group Of Respondents 49
Graph 3 Education background of the respondent 50
Graph 4 Occupation of the Respondent 51
Graph 5 Annual family income 52
Graph 6 Recall Rates of Various Brands 54
Graph 7 Brands available at reasonable price 56
Graph 8 Awareness of brand in people 57
Graph 9 People perception about Maruti Suzuki Motors 58
Graph 10 Respondent first know about Maruti through 59
Graph 13 Advertisement only sufficient in buying a product 60
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Graph 14 Total Maruti Models respondent is aware of 64
Graph 15 Awareness of new model produced by Maruti 65
Graph 16 New model produced by Maruti 66
Graph 18 On whole opinion About Maruti 68

CHAPTER-I

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 INTRODUCTION

Brand Awareness

The likelihood that consumers recognize the existence and availability of a

company's product or service. Creating brand awareness is one of the key steps in

promoting a product.

Brand awareness is an important way of promoting commodity-related products.

This is because for these products, there are very few factors that differentiate one

product from its competitors. Therefore, the product that maintains the highest brand

awareness compared to its competitors will usually get the most sales.

For example, in the soft drink industry, very little separates a generic soda from a

brand-name soda, in terms of taste. However, consumers are very aware of the brands
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Pepsi and Coca Cola, in terms of their images and names. This higher rate of brand

awareness equates to higher sales and also serves as an economic moat that prevents

competitors from gaining more market share.

NEED FOR STUDY

The changing trends in the Indian society lead consumers towards four

wheelers from two wheelers. The four wheeler/car industry is prospering in India with

eleven existing companies and different models are being produced by each of the

company. Maruti Udyog Ltd. being a standard company holds a major share in the Indian

market. With increase in competition it is releasing new models of cars with a less gap

between one and the other. Due to the fewer gaps between one and the other, many

models are left unaware. Thus, this study helps to know the level of brand awareness of

Maruti Suzuki Motors and impact of advertisement in creating brand awareness.

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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

• Primary Objective: The main objective of the study is to know the level of brand

awareness of Maruti Suzuki motors.

• Secondary Objectives:

 To study the level of brand recall and brand recognition rate.

 To study the role of advertisements in motivating people a product

SCOPE OF THE STUDY:

Scope of the study is extended to 13 models of Maruti Suzuki Motors. And the

area of study is Secunderabad and Hyderabad.

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

Source of data:

Secondary data:

Books, Company records and company website.

Primary data:

Structured Questionnaire

Sample size:

150 RESPONDENTS.

Sampling unit:

General public

Statistical tool:

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 Percentages with Pie and Bar Charts.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

• Maruti users are ignored in the survey.

• Findings are confined to specified period

• The study is limited to Hyderabad and Secunderabad areas.

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 CHAPTER-II

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 INDUSTRY PROFILE

Executive Summary:

The Indian automobile industry is currently experiencing an unprecedented boom

in demand for all types of vehicles. This boom has been triggered primarily by two

factors:

(1) Increase in disposable incomes and standards of living of middle class Indian families

estimated to be as many as four million in number; and (2) the Indian government's

liberalization measures such as relaxation of the foreign exchange and equity regulations,

reduction of tariffs on imports, and banking liberalization that has fueled financing-driven

purchases. Industry observers predict that passenger vehicle sales will triple in five years

to about one million, and as the market grows and customer's purchasing abilities rise,

there will be greater demand for higher-end models which currently constitute only a tiny

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fraction of the market. These trends have encouraged many multinational automakers

from Japan, U. S. A., and Europe to enter the Indian market mainly through joint ventures

with Indian firms. This paper presents an introduction to the key players in the Indian

automotive industry, a summary of the recent developments, and an analysis of the

opportunities and challenges facing the various players (Indian and multi-national

assemblers and component makers) in the areas of product development, production, and

distribution.

1.1Introduction to The Indian Automotive Industry

For forty years since India's independence from the British in 1947, the Indian car

market was dominated by two localized versions of ancient European designs -- the

Morris Oxford, known as the Ambassador, and a old Fiat. This lack of product activity in

the Indian market was mainly due to the Indian government's complex regulatory system

that effectively banned foreign-owned operations. Within this system (referred to

informally as the "license raj"), any Indian firm that wanted to import technology or

products needed a license/permit from the government. The difficulty of getting these

licenses stifled automobile and component imports, creating a low volume high cost car

industry that was inefficient, unprofitable, and technologically obsolete. The two

dominant products Ambassador and Fiat, although customized to the poor road

conditions in India, were based on a stale design concept (with outdated features), and

were also fuel inefficient.

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 In the early 1980's, the Indian government made limited attempts at reforming the

automotive industry, and entered into a joint venture with Suzuki of Japan. The joint-

venture, called Maruti Udyog Limited, launched a small but fuel efficient model (called

"Maruti 100"). Priced at about $5,500, the product became an instant hit. The joint

venture now produces three small-car models, a van, and a utility vehicle at a rate of

more than 250,000 a year. Despite being a late entrant, Maruti's vehicles are estimated to

account for as much as 70 per cent of India's car population. In 1991, a newly elected

Indian government took over and faced with a balance-of-payments crisis initiated a

series of economic liberalization measures designed to open the Indian economy to

foreign investment and trade. These new measures effectively dismantled the license raj

which had made it difficult for Indian firms to import machinery and know-how, and had

disallowed equity ownerships by foreign firms. In 1993, the government followed up its

liberalization measures with significant reductions in the import duty on automobile

components. These measures have spurred the growth of the Indian economy in general,

and the automotive industry in particular. Since 1993, the automotive industry has been

experiencing growth rates of above 25%.

1.2 A Brief Introduction to the Top Four Indian Automotive Assemblers

As seen in Table 1, Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL) is the number one Indian

automotive assembler commanding more than a 70% share of the Indian passenger

vehicle market. (It also sells a few thousand jeeps, called Gypsy, which are not included

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in the passenger vehicle data of Table 1.) Most recent data released by MUL show that it

produced a total of 277,000 vehicles in 1995/96 resulting in a turnover of approximately

$2 billion (Rs. 6673 crore, Source: Financial Express, March 30, 1996).

It is also a reasonably profitable venture with after tax profits of about $122

million (a 65 % increase over the previous year). MUL's relatively large production

volumes offer scale economies in production and distribution that pose formidable

barriers to entry. It has also established a solid supplier-base located around India (most

of its assembly is concentrated in Northern India near New Delhi). Its products enjoy

good reputation – in fact, Indian automotive industry observers credit Maruti for the rapid

improvement in quality and supplier capability in this industry. (Until last year, new

Maruti's have to be booked several months in advance!) MUL's product line is

concentrated in the economy car segment, although it has been moving up recently to

cater to the premium market segments by introducing the higher-end Esteem. Occupying

the second position in 1994/95 is Bombay-based Premier Automobiles Ltd. (PAL), which

edged out Calcutta-based Hindustan Motors Ltd. (HM) from the second place. In fact,

PAL produced the Fiat, and HM produces the Ambassador – both products that

dominated the Indian automotive industry for decades. The advent of Maruti has resulted

in the decline of both these firms. PAL's main products are the Premier Padmini (in the

compact car segment) and the NE118 (in the mid-size car segment). Recently, PAL has

rejuvenated itself by entering into joint ventures with Peugeot (for the Peugeot 309), and

with Fiat (for the Fiat Uno).

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 Its close competitor HM continues to produce Ambassadors in small volumes

targeted at the economy/compact car segment. HM also offers a higher end product called

Contessa Classic, and has entered into joint venture agreements with General Motors

(GM) to produce the Opel Astra, and with Mitsubishi to make the Lancer targeted at the

higher-end market. Despite occupying the fourth position and producing passenger

vehicles only in small volumes, Tata Engg. & Locomotive Company Ltd. (TELCO) is

noteworthy, not only because it is a part of the powerful Tata industrial family, but also

because it is one of the few firms with indigenous product development capabilities, and

has been a dominant player in the commercial vehicles segment. (The author, in fact,

worked with TELCO for a brief period in the late 80's in their light commercial vehicles

product development group.) TELCO holds about 70% of the heavy commercial vehicles

market, and (after entering the market late) has also managed to fend off Japanese

competition by gaining about 50% of the light commercial vehicles segment with its in-

house product development. It entered the passenger vehicles market only in 1991-92,

and has quickly established itself in the higher end of this segment with its Estate and

Sierra models.

The firm has entered into a joint venture with Mercedes Benz to assemble the

E220's, and is also said to be planning an entry into the small/economy car segment

challenging Maruti's stronghold. 1.3 A Brief Introduction to the Indian Component

Suppliers Component suppliers are the backbone of an emerging automotive industry. By

all accounts, the Indian component industry, based mostly in the southern city of Madras,

is tiny. The auto component manufacturers association of India (ACMA) estimates that

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$2.1 billion worth of car parts were produced in the financial year 1995, out of which

exports amounted to $228 million.

To put this in perspective, the entire Indian industry's revenue is roughly one-

tenth that of GM's component unit, Delphi automotive systems2. But, the component

market has been growing rapidly at about 25% a year, and is expected to quadruple in

size by the year 2000. This growth has not only been due to the growing demand for

passenger vehicles, but also due to the increasing trend by multi-national OEM's to resort

to global sourcing to improve competitiveness. Leading automotive assemblers and

component makers are increasingly turning to India for components. One of the now

widely-cited examples of this trend is the Indian component firm, Sundaram Fasteners

Limited (SFL), which the author has been studying for the last year. SFL became GM's

largest supplier of radiator caps, and exports about 300,000 caps from its factories in

Madras to GM plants around the world. In 1992, when GM was planning to close one of

its plants in UK., SFL took advantage of the liberalized economic environment in India,

bought the machinery from GM, and relocated them to its plant in Madras.

The company has continued to invest heavily in quality and productivity

improvements, and a tour around SFL's suburban Madras Factory shows a world-class

plant with minimal inventory and rework. The company's workers, trained in statistical

tools and control charts, keep processes under statistical control due to which radiator cap

rejection rate is less than 1% of annual production. The company also has a very skilled

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managerial and engineering workforce, which has helped it develop in-house product

development capabilities.

Using these resources and skills, the firm is now seeking to expand its supply to

other manufacturers in Europe, US, and Asia, and also diversify into other components.

SFL exemplifies the Indian auto components industry, which although small and

fragmented has the competitive advantages of a skilled workforce and low labor costs. It

is estimated that components can be produced about 30% cheaper in India than in the

west. (The top Indian assembler, Maruti, is able to price its cars at about $5,500 because

it sources 90% of its components from Indian suppliers.) Rapid growth and tie-ups with

foreign firms will help Indian auto components suppliers further invest in capacity and

automation and acquisition of the latest know-how, thereby closing the productivity gap

with other world-class component makers. Exhibit 1 shows a few other notable Indian

component suppliers and their exports to OEM's.

2. Recent Developments and Issues Facing the Indian Automotive

Industry

In the past two years, more than a dozen multi-national firms have announced

plans to enter the Indian market. Most of them have formed joint ventures with Indian

firms, while there are exceptions such as Hyundai which plan to form fully-owned units.

Exhibit 2 displays most of these firms and their products planned for the Indian market3.

Despite the large growth potential of the Indian market (analysts expect the growth to

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triple in the next five years), no one expects the industry to sustain the fragmentation

caused by more than a dozen suppliers. Many of these new firms will not enjoy the scale

economies and relationships with suppliers that Maruti does, so they have decided not to

challenge Maruti at its price of $5,500 in the smaller car segment. Most are planning to

produce between 20,000 and 50,000 higher-end vehicles.

The stiffest competition is building up in the mid-sized car range (1,300 cc and

above), where several of these multi-national and Indian companies are planning to go

head-to-head. Although these newly announced vehicles at $12,000 or above remain

expensive by Indian standards and planned capacity exceeds projected demand, new

entrants are betting on the rising incomes of middle-class families. Notably, Daewoo's

new product Cielo, priced at about $15,000 in a joint venture with the Indian firm DCM,

drew 76,000 advance bookings last year – reflecting the pent-up demand in the market.

Amongst the many issues facing the Indian automotive industry, the biggest by far is the

poor road infrastructure. India's road network, comprising of a modest national highway

system (that is only 2% or less of the total roadway length) is woefully inadequate and

dilapidated, and can barely keep pace with the auto industry's rapid growth. Most roads

are single-lane roads built in the 1950's and 60's, and are crowded with two-wheelers,

bullock carts, and even pedestrian humans and cows.

Traffic laws are not well enforced leading to one of the highest per-capita

accident rates in the world. It is to be expected that the introduction of bigger and more

powerful vehicles will only worsen the situation. Upgrading the existing highway system

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is itself expected to cost $30 billion or more, and resource and land constraints prevent

the building of new highways. The Indian 3Conspicuous by its absence from this list of

new entrants is Toyota, which initially had an arrangement with the Hinduja group that

was called off in March, 1996. Toyota is said to be adopting a wait-and-see attitude

government's approach to solving this problem is to privatize the road infrastructure, by

having private firms build and operate tollways. However, it is unclear if this alone will

be able to solve this infrastructure problem of enormous proportions, which can severely

bottleneck future growth.

The significant (about 50%) tariffs imposed on import products and components

combined with the vagaries of currency exchange rates make localization an important

imperative for foreign companies entering the Indian market. Firms are already making a

major effort to localize rapidly; The Daewoo-DCM venture is expected to raise its local

content to 90% by the decade's end. GM's Astra will start with 40% labor content, and go

up to 75% within three years. One challenge to localization is a shortage of component

suppliers with size and sophistication.

Another major uncertainty facing the Indian market is the government's policies

toward foreign investments and joint ventures. As Amsden and Kang [95] note4,

governments play a key role in shaping the growth of the auto industry in emerging

economies (as compared with developed countries). Although many observers say the

economic reforms initiated by the ruling Congress party are not reversible, the difficulties

experienced by Enron Corp. in its investments in the power sector under the hands of the

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opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) do not bode well for other foreign investors.

With elections in mid-1996 expected to return a coalition group to power, it will be hard

for the new government to push the reform measures with the same vigor and pace as the

previous government did. It is even unclear if the group in power will be so positively

inclined to foreign investments and trade as the current government.

3. Discussion of the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Various Players

To analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the various players in the Indian

automotive industry, it is useful to classify them into the following four categories: (1)

Indian Assemblers, (2) Multinational Assemblers (3) Indian Component Makers, and (4)

Multi-national Component Makers. Table 2 presents the strengths and weaknesses of

each of these groups. The Indian assemblers, typified by Maruti, have built a formidable

distribution and after-sales network. They also have an established supplier base, which

gives them cost and delivery time advantages, especially in light of import tariffs and

currency exchange rate fluctuations/ devaluations. Their biggest weakness, with the

exception of TELCO, is the lack of product design capability. In the coming years, they

should focus on acquiring product design and lean production know-how (as the Korean

firms did in the eighties and early nineties [Amsden and Kang 95]). They could acquire

know-how with help from their joint-venture partners, and also with investments in

research and development which at present are at extremely low levels.

Multi-national assemblers could really benefit from their lean production

capabilities in India, where production runs are expected to be small due to the large

number of players entering the Indian market. They could also set themselves apart by

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incorporating safety and comfort features not currently included in Indian-assembled

products. These include seat restraints, airbags, and anti-lock brakes, and comfort

features such as power windows, and central locks. U. S. assemblers have a reputation of

safety, which they could leverage to their advantage. Close cooperation with the joint-

venture partners can overcome the lack of experience with the Indian market, but the

small size of the component supplier base will pose a challenge to their need to localize

rapidly.

Group Strengths Weaknesses

• Established distribution and • Lack of product

after-sales networks, and development capabilities

Supplier base. (except TELCO)

Indian Assemblers • Understanding of the Indian • Brand image especially

market and ability to liaison HM and PAL).

with the government

Lean production capability • Lack of experience with

Multi-national • Ability to design products theIndian market, industry,

Assemblers with differentiating features andGovernment.

• Deep pockets, brand image. • Small component supplier

base and high import

tariffs.

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 • Low cost, skilled workforce •Small Size, Fragmentation

Indian Component • Learning From exports •Lack of know-how in

Suppliers certain areas.

• Size, Deep pockets • Import tariffs, currency

Multi-national • Experience and Know-how in exchange rate fluctuations.

Component technology. • Inexperience with Indian

Suppliers workforce.

Table 2 Strengths and Weaknesses of the Different Groups in the Indian

Auto Industry

As mentioned earlier, the Indian component industry is small and fragmented, but

is growing and learning fast due to exports. It is also estimated to hold a 20-40% cost

advantage over multinational component suppliers who are much larger and are

themselves opening up units in India to take advantage of the lower-cost, skilled

workforce. The Indian component industry needs to invest in capacity and research and

development to stay abreast of competition, when the wage gap closes over time. It is

likely that some of the multi-national assemblers or component makers might buy some

of the small but niche component makers with a reputation for quality.

4. Conclusions

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 The Indian automotive industry, although growing rapidly, is in a state of flux.

The production capacities planned by the new joint ventures currently exceed most

projections, and unless import tariffs come down quickly and the economy grows

remarkably, a shake-out may be expected from the current 20 firms to about half a dozen

major firms turning out finished products by the end of the decade. However, if multi-

national firms decide to use India as a production base from which vehicles are exported

to the rest of the world, more than half a dozen firms may be able to remain profitable in

India. Suzuki has already begun to use its Maruti joint-venture production to export a few

thousand cars to the Middle East and Europe.

However, the production capacities of other emerging economies such as Korea

and China are also predicted to grow significantly in the coming years, so exports may

also face a highly competitive market situation. In this paper, we have presented a brief

introduction to the Indian assemblers and component suppliers. We noted that Indian

assemblers have a tight hold over the small-car market due to their low cost supplier base

and the tariffs levied on import components.

Maruti with its production volumes of over 250,000 enjoys scale economies in

production, distribution, and service that are hard to challenge. As Amsden and Kang

[95] (cited before) and Womack et al.5 note, production volumes do confer several

advantages to a firm. However, new entrants can set themselves apart by offering new

safety and comfort features that are not currently offered in the Indian market. They can

also leverage their low production run (lean) capabilities to stay profitable despite the

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low production volumes. Further, they can combine their reputation with the Indian

industry's lower production costs to produce cars and export them to the global markets.

Many multinationals are already said to be planning such an approach.

For Indian component makers and assemblers, product development capability is

key, in order to rejuvenate their product lines, enhance their reputation, and export their

products to the markets in developed countries. The author is currently pursuing a study

of product development and production systems in the Indian component industry. Since

the plants located in India are very far from the developed markets of the USA, Europe,

and Japan, component suppliers incur significant transportation and inventory carrying

costs in exporting products to global markets. Their situation is worsened by the poor

Indian infrastructure, which leads to frequent power interruptions and long delays in

supply. These companies are adopting innovative techniques to cope with these

uncertainties, which will be a topic of another paper.

The Indian automotive industry, as a whole, is also severely bottlenecked by the

woefully inadequate road infrastructure. Privatization of the road infrastructure, even if

started immediately, can take years to solve this problem. India also experiences an

extraordinarily high number of traffic fatalities, and faces severe pollution problems. As

of April 1, 1996, the ministry of surface transport has set emission norms (that are modest

by international standards), which local automakers say are hard to meet. Multi-national

firms can bring their experience and know-how to bear in these areas, and enhance their

reputation as well as attract customers who are safety conscious and environmentally

aware. This will also result in the gradual reduction of the auto related facilities and

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pollution (due to the diffusion of these practices), thereby contributing to the further

growth of the Indian automotive industry.

A BRIEF PROFILE OF THE COMPANY

MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA LIMITED

(MSIL, formerly MARUTI UDYOG LIMITED)

Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL, Formerly Maruti Udyog Limited) is the

premier car company in India. Maruti Suzuki India Limited was established in Feb 1981.

The company entered into collaboration with Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan to

manufacture cars. Maruti is the highest volume car manufacturer in Asia, outside Japan

and Korea. Despite there being 11 companies now in the passenger car market in India,

Maruti holds about 60% of the total market share. Maruti Udyog Limited, the largest Car

selling company in India, has many unique Service advantages for the customers. It has

bagged the First Position in JD Power Customer Satisfaction Index for the consecutive

two years. The company has also ranked highest in the India Sales Satisfaction Study

Maruti 800, till 2004, was the India’s largest selling compact car ever since it was

launched in 1983. More than a million units of this car have been sold worldwide so far.

Currently, Maruti Alto Tops the sales charts. Due to the large number of Maruti 800s sold

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in the Indian market, the term “Maruti” is commonly used to refer to this compact car

model. Till recently the term “Maruti”, in popular Indian culture, was associated to the

Maruti 800 model.

Vision of the organization

“Leader in the Indian Automobile Industry, creating customer delight and Share Holder’s

wealth; A Pride of India”. This gives an idea even to a layman as to how focused is the

company operating in the market.

HEADQUARTERS : GURGAON, HARYANA, INDIA

State-of-the-art Manufacturing Facilities

The Gurgaon plant comprises of three fully integrated, state-of–the-art production

facilities spread over a sprawling 297 acres. While the three plants have a total installed

capacity of 350,000 cars per year, several productivity improvements over the years have

made it possible to manufacture nearly 6,30,000 cars per year at these facilities alone.

Working towards the goal of making India a global hub for small cars, SMC and

MUL have drawn up an investment plan of Rs 9000 crore in India upto 2010.

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MUL’s fourth car assembly plant & Diesel Plant at Manesar

A brand new assembly plant at Manesar was inaugurated in February 2007.

Starting with an initial capacity of 100,000 cars per year, this plant will be scaled up to

produce 300,000 cars a year by 2010. Adjoining this new facility at Manesar is Suzuki

Powertrain India Limited (SPIL), Suzuki’s Diesel Engine manufacturing facility. This

plant was also inaugurated in February 2007.

These facilities will meet SMC and MUL’s global ambitions and are among

SMC’s best plants worldwide.

Suzuki Power train India Limited’s diesel engine and transmission plant

The diesel engine plant is Suzuki’s first such facility anywhere in the world. This

state-of-the-art plant will produce world class diesel engine and transmissions for cars.

Suzuki Powertrain India Limited (SPIL) is a joint venture company in which

SMC holds 70 per cent equity with the rest held by MUL.

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 This facility has an initial capacity to manufacture 100,000 diesel engines a year.

This will be scaled up to 300,000 engines per year by 2010. The diesel engines

manufactured at this plant will also be exported to SMC’s worldwide operations .

Spread over 600 acres, the Manesar plant facilities also has, for the first time in

the Indian automobile industry, a Suppliers’ Park.

With three fully integrated state-of the-art plants at Gurgaon and the newly

commissioned fourth assembly line at Manesar, Maruti’s production capacity at its peak

Maruti is capable of producing close to a million cars per annum by 2010.

Market Share

Till date, over 6 million (60,00,000 approx.) Maruti cars have rolled out from its

manufacturing facilities.

At the end of 2005-06, Maruti had a market share of about 54 per cent of the

Indian passenger car market. The company sold 5,61,822 vehicles in 2005-06 including

exports of 34784 units. Maruti’s cumulative exports are over 4 lakh units.

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SALES OF AUTOMOBILES

The largest selling car from Maruti's stable, Maruti 800

In the order they were launched:

• Maruti 800: Launched 1983. Largest selling car in India, until 2004.

• Maruti Omni: Launched 1984.

• Maruti Gypsy: Launched 1985.

• Maruti 1000: Launched 1990

• Maruti Zen: Launched 1993 with a facelift in 2003.Production ended in 2006.

• Maruti Esteem: Launched 1994

• Maruti Wagon-R: Launched 1999 Modified 2006

• Maruti Baleno: Launched 1999. Production ended late 2006/early 2007.

• Maruti Alto: Launched 2000. Currently the largest selling car in India

• Maruti Grand Vitara: Launched 2003

• Maruti Grand Vitara XL-7

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 • Maruti Versa: Launched 2004

• Maruti Swift: Launched 2005

• Maruti Zen Estilo Launched in 2006

• Maruti Swift Diesel Launched in 2007

• Maruti Suzuki SX4 Launched in May 2007

• Maruti Grand Vitara Sports Utility Vehicle Launched in July 2007

Why Maruti Suzuki

The Quality Advantage

Maruti Suzuki owners experience fewer problems with their vehicles than any

other car manufacturer in India (J.D. Power IQS Study 2004). The Alto was chosen No.1

in the premium compact car segment and the Esteem in the entry level mid - size car

segment across 9 parameters.

The J.D. Power APEAL Study 2004 proclaimed the Wagon R no. 1 in the

premium compact car segment and the Esteem No.1 in the entry level mid - size car

segment. This study measures owner in terms of design, content, layout and performance

of vehicles across 8 parameters.

A Buying Experience like No Other

Maruti Suzuki has a sales network of 307 state-of -the-art showrooms across 189

cities, with a workforce of over 6000 trained sales personnel to guide our customers in

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finding the right car. The high sales and customer care standards led the company to

achieve the No.1 nameplate in the J.D. Power SSI Study 2004.

Quality Service across 1036 Cities

In the J.D. Power CSI Study 2004, Maruti Suzuki scored the highest across all 7

parameters: least problems experienced with vehicle serviced, highest service quality,

best in-service experience, best service delivery, best service advisor experience, most

user-friendly service and best service initiation experience. 92% of Maruti Suzuki owners

feel that work gets done right the first time during service. The J.D. Power CSI study

2004 also reveals that 97% of Maruti Suzuki owners would probably recommend the

same make of vehicle, while 90% owners would probably repurchase the same make of

vehicle.

One Stop Shop

At Maruti Suzuki, you will find all your car related needs met under one roof.

Whether it is easy finance, insurance, fleet management service, exchange- Maruti

Suzuki is set to provide a single-window solution for all your car related needs.

The Low Cost Maintenance Advantage

The acquisition cost is unfortunately not the only cost you face when buying a

car. Although a car may be affordable to buy, it may not necessarily be affordable to

maintain, as some of its regularly used spare parts may be priced quite steeply. Not so in

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the case of a Maruit Suzuki. It is in the economy segment that the affordability of spares

is most competitive, and it is here where Maruti Suzuki shines.

Lowest Cost of Ownership

The highest satisfaction ratings with regard to cost of ownership among all

models are all Maruti Suzuki vehicles: Zen, Wagon R, Esteem, Maruti 800, Alto

and Omni. The company is proud to have the lowest cost of operation/km (among

petrol vehicles) - the top 5 models are all Maruti Suzuki models: Maruti 800, Alto,

Zen, Omni and Wagon-R.

SNAPSHOT OF MARUTI

Incorporated February 1981

Joint Venture Agreement October 1982
Equity Structure 54.2% Suzuki, Japan, balance with Other Financial

Institution and Public

Sales (No of Cars) 674, 924 including 39,295 exports.

Financial year 2006-07

Sales (Net of Excise) 15.22 INR Billion, $ 2.2 Billion, 425 Billion Yen. *

Financial year 2006-07

Profit After Tax Rs. 15 Billion, $ 3.6 Billion, 41 billion Yen. *

Financial year 2006-07

Employee Strength 4993 of Financial year 2006-07
Facilities Gurgaon: 3 vehicle assembly plants

Manesar: 1 vehicle assembly plant

Head Office in New Delhi, India

Regional offices: 16
Diesel Powertrain Plant Suzuki Powertrain India Limited (SPIL), Joint Venture

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 between Suzuki Motor Corporation 70% Equity the rest is

with Maruti Suzuki India Limited. Global hub for Diesel

engines and transmissions for Suzuki worldwide.

Joint Venture 15 Joint Venture companies, including Suzuki Powertrain

India Limited for component supply.

Product Portfolio 11 models with around 100 variants

Proposed Investments till Rs. 9000 Crores / $ 22.5 billion/ 2589 Billion

2010 Yen of investments planned till 2010 for Capacity

Enhancements and Facility Upgradation *

Network Reach Sales 398 Outlets covering 228 cities

Financial year Service 2421 workshops covering 1193 cities

2006-07 Pre-owned Car Sales 242 dealers covering 148 cities

* $ at the rate Rs 45

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COMPANIE’S PROFILE:
MR.V.Prabhu Kishore founded the “Varun Group” in 1992 at Vishakhapatnam by

establishing Bajaj Auto Dealership from a monthly sale of 200 two & three wheelers

initially, it has reached to a monthly sales volume of 2500units.As of now, approximately

1, 50,000 two & three wheelers are delivered by Varun Motors.

The “Varun Group” took Maruti Udyog Ltd., dealership in 1996 out of sheer

merit with one of India’s largest and most modern automobile showrooms measuring

18000 sft. As of now, it has sold close to 40,000 cars On account of Varun Motors (P)

Ltd, good work at Vizag Maruti Udyog Ltd., awarded Hyderabad sales & service outlet

to Varun Maruti Ltd.

VARUN MOTORS (P) LTD is the number no dealer in sales and service for

Maruti Udyog Ltd in the state of Andhra Pradesh. As on 31st March 2006, VARUN

MOTORS., sold 7744 vehicles in the state and serviced.

“Varun Group” is also involved in hire purchase and finance with its associate

firms, Varun Finance, Varun Leasing & Lakshmi Finance, actively involved in hire

purchase and financial activities to the tune of 850 lakhs.

“Varun Group” is also in construction of residential and commercial Complexes

in Hyderabad, Banglore, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada. So far 5.0 lakh sft. of

residential and office accommodation has been successfully built and handed over to the

buyers by associated Companies viz., Varsha Builders pvt.ltd., Continental Builders.

As of now the “Varun Group” is engaged in such diverse business as dealership of

Vehicles, Hire purchase, Construction, transportation and mobile phones. It has over
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3000employes in its pay roll with an annual turnover of Rs.1020crores outlets in

Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada. It is targeting to achieve a turnover of

Rs.1080crores for the current year making it one of the latest gowing companies in the

state as recognition for our commited customer service we got the ISO 9002

certification.

The Objectives Of The Varun Motors Established Are:

a) To carry on the business of selling and servicing in all kind of cars related to Maruti

Suzuki India ltd.

b) To carry on business of selling spares and accessories of all description and types.

c) To carry on business of buying used cars and selling them.

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Infrastructure:

HYDERABAD: Showroom is situated in the prime locality of Begumpet main

road with a 3500 sft. of built up space. Workshops are located in Begumpet and

Balanagar prime locations. Begumpet workshop is newly renovated machanics.

Balanagar workshop is a state of art construction with a space of 3600 sft.built up area in

3 levels. It is situated just 6kms.away form showroom having MSAIL trained mechanics

and equipped with modern equipments.another 3 sales outlets also located in

Banjarahills, kukatpally, vanasthalipuram, and workshops at Tolychowki, malakpet and

vanasthalipuram.

VISAKHAPATNAM: Show room is situated in the prime locality of Siripuram

with a 17000 sft space. It is one of the biggest showrooms in Maruti dealerships across

the country.Workshops are located one in Siripuram with 1700 sft. And another in

Gajuwaka admeasuring 2500sft. and equipped with MSIL trained mechanics and most

modern equipments.

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Awards:

• All India MGA off take 2002-03 rank-4th by All India dealer’s conference, Kuala

Lumpur.

• Best performance Balance Score Card 2002-03 Cat: 2nd runner-ups.

• Best performance Balance (Zen, Wagon R & Alto) 2002-03.

• Out of 4 major wheeler car showrooms Varun Motors (P) Ltd stands in the 1st

position in selling Maruti cars, Varun Motors (P) Ltd has to maintain this

position.

• The Varun Motors (P) Ltd has framed new strategies to gain all the potential

customers.

• All India top 3rd dealer award by all India dealers conference 2009-10 at

• Awarded continuously six times as a platinum dealer

• Varun Motors (P) Ltd has made a marketing team to target the middle class and

above middle class people as customers for the compact car segment.

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Services Offered:

The following products are offered by Maruti Suzuki:-

1. Maruti 800: Launched 1983. Largest selling car in India, until 2004. Cheapest car
in India . 3 Face-Lifts.(P)
2. Maruti Omni: Launched 1984. 2 Face-Lifts.(P)
3. Maruti Gypsy: Launched 1985.(P)
4. Maruti Wagon-R:Launched 1999, 3Face lifts(p)
5. Maruti Alto: Launched 2000. Currently the largest selling car in India. 2Face-Lift.
({{Tooltip|P|Petrol
6. Maruti Versa (2003-) (P) now discontinued
7. Maruti Zen Estilo(2006-) (P)
8. Maruti Suzuki Swift 1 very small face-lift(2006- ) (P & D)
9. Maruti Suzuki SX4 (May 2007- ) (P )
10. Maruti Grand Vitara Sports Utility Vehicle Launched in (July 2007- ).
Imported(P)
11. Maruti DZiRE Sedan Version of swift launched in (March 2008- ) (P)
12. Suzuki A-Star launched in 2008
13. Maruti Omni Face-Lift in 2009
14. Maruti EECO in 2010

Upcoming models:
1. New Mini-SUV in 2010 Likely to be a four-door Jimny.
2. New Luxury Sedan in 2 Likely to be a production version of the Kizashi.
Future Maruti Suzuki Plans:
1. New Swift in 2011
2. New Alto

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 CHAPTER-III

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THEORETICAL FRAME WORK

Brand Awareness

In general, awareness describes peoples’ perception and cognitive reaction to a

condition or event. Awareness does not necessarily imply understanding as it is an

abstract concept. Awareness may be focused on an internal state, such as an instinctive

feeling, or on external events such as sensory perception Marton and Booth (1997) give

good examples of awareness: People have earlier experience of a certain situation and are

aware of that. They are also aware of who they are, the background to the circumstances,

where being located as well as the emotions to the place, what time of year it is and what

day it is, and also what to do the rest of the day. Even though, there is awareness of

everything at the same time, the intensity varies. Peoples’ awareness is reshaping its

structure constantly, and what we call awareness is the sum of the individual’s

experience. So it is possible to do one thing while still be aware of many other things.

Brand awareness is the capacity of consumers to recognise or remember a brand, and

there is a linkage between the brand and the product class, but the link does not have to

be strong. Brand awareness is a process from where the brand is just known to a level

when the consumers have put the brand on a higher rank; the brand has become the “top

of mind” (Aaker, 1991).

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Figure: Brand awareness

Source: Aaker, 1991, p 63

Anchor to which other associations can be attached is when a new product has to

work to win recognition, because there are few purchase decisions that can be done

without knowledge about the product. Moreover, without attained recognition it is

difficult to learn about the character and advantages of the new merchandise.

With product identification it is easy to create a new relationship to the item. The

explanation of familiarity/linking is that people like familiarity, and knowledge make the

product and brand more well-known and familiar. This contains most of all low-

involvement products like sugar, salt, paper towels, when the knowledge about the brand

often makes the buying decision.

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 The positive association between the number of experience and linking has been

shown in studies. The incentives to this relationship are for example non-figurative

pictures, names and jingles. Substance/commitment can be seen in name awareness

which means existence, promise and matter; things that are important for the buyer. The

consumers do not have to know a lot about the company, but as long as the buyers have

positive brand awareness they will buy the product.

In some cases, the brand awareness and understanding can depend on a buying

situation and do all the effort for consumers in a buying process. The level of brands to

consider is the first level to reach. When buying merchandise is to choose a collection of

trade names to consider – a “consideration set” (Aaker, 1991).

Brand awareness is much about communication. This is how Aaker (1991, p 63)

explains the awareness and recall of a name: “A name is like a special file folder in the

mind which can be filled with name-related facts and feelings. Without such a file readily

accessible in memory, the facts and feelings become misfiled, and cannot be readily

accessed when needed.” Brand awareness is dependent upon both the situation and the

level of achieved awareness.

Figure:Levels of brand awareness

Source: Aaker, 1991, p 62

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1. Brand recognition:

This level is the first stage of brand awareness. It is when the consumers can

recognise a specific brand among others; “aided recall”. Aided recall can also be

explained as a situation where a set of given brand names from a given product class is

shown. The task is then to identify the recognised names. Brand recognition is major

when consumers face the buying procedure.

2. Brand recall:

This is upon the consumers to name the trademark in a product class. Apart from

level one, this is an “unaided recall” since there are not given any examples of specific

brands. The role of brand recall can also be vital for regularly purchased products like

coffee, detergent, and headache remedies, for which brand decisions usually are made

prior going to the store. Further on, in some categories (such as cereal) there are so many

recognised alternatives that the shopper is overwhelmed.

3. Top of mind:

A brand that is “top of mind” is the first brand that consumers think of within a

given product class (Aaker, 1991). Brand awareness is important since a lot of the

consumers feel that if the brand is well known it has good quality. Most important is not

that the brand is well known, it is what it is known for (Melin, 1999). Further, awareness

is a very important brand advantage, but it cannot sell the product, especially not if the

product is new (Aaker, 1991).

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 In the literature there are many facts that show that brand awareness affects

consumer choice and thereby their choice of brand. Lin and Chang (2003) found by their

research that brand awareness had the strongest effect on purchase decision on habitual

behavior of low involvement products. They also wrote that Hoyer and Brown (1990)

examined the role played by brand awareness in consumer decision making process and

found that it was a dominant factor. Likewise, Jiang’s (2004) investigation also shows

that brand name, in other words recognition of a brand, has an impact on consumers’

choice.

Achieving Brand Awareness

Recognition and recall in attaining awareness, engage two responsibilities: to increase the

brand name identity as well as linking the characteristics to the item. This is in particular

vital when the product is new (Aaker, 1991).

Aaker (1991) has set up the following factors concerning how to achieve

brand awareness:

• Be different, memorable: Today, many products seem alike and the communication in

the product clusters is related. Therefore, it is important to differentiate the product,

although, the bond between the product class and the brand has to exist for easier

recognition.

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• Involve a slogan or jingle: There can be a stronger linkage between a slogan and a

brand because it involves a visual feature of the brand. By this, the jingle or slogan is

powerful and can make a big change.

• Symbol exposure: It is important to have a known symbol, because it is easy to

memorize and recall a visual illustration. A logo, either an already existing one or a

developed one, which is connected to the brand, can take a huge part in forming and

keeping awareness.

• Publicity: Advertising is a proficient way to get publicity and make awareness, since it

can be customized to the communication and the addressees.

• Event sponsorship: The primary role of most event sponsorship is to create or maintain

awareness.

• Consider brand extensions: To show the name or the logo on the products, and make

the name more prominent, is one way to increase brand recall. Examples of names that

can be found, promoted, shown and publicized on other products, than the key product,

are Coca-Cola, Heinz and Sunkist.

• Using cues: The package is one of the most important cues to a brand, since that is what

the purchaser sees when buying the product. If not knowing the brand or the product, the

only contact to the brand is the package.

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• Recall requires repetition: It is easier to build up recognition than to build up recall of

a brand. It can be compared to the fact that one can recognize a face of a person but do

not recall the name. Therefore the link between the brand and the product class needs to

be stronger and the brand needs to be more prominent than in the recognition of the

brand. To receive a top of mind recall is even harder.

• The recall bonus: To keep a top position through regular publicity creates brand

awareness as well as a strong brand which in turn leads to decreasing recall of

competitive brands.

To achieve brand awareness, it is important to have a special hallmark because it

is the hallmark that consumers recognise. It is easy to mix up consumer brand and

corporate brand with hallmarks. A hallmark makes it possible to identify a brand. A

hallmark is not the same as a symbol because it is much wider. A brand can have several

hallmarks. They are usually divided into six groups:

1.Word brand, a name or word for example Coca Cola.

2. Design, Coca Cola’s design of the bottle.

3. Sound, the melody of the ice cream truck.

4. Scent, perfumes.

5. Pattern, the square pattern of Burberry.

6. Colour, boxes of film for cameras; Kodak’s boxes are yellow while Fuji’s are green

(Treffner & Gajland, 2001).

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Measuring Brand Awareness

As mentioned above, Keller (2003) claims that brand awareness consists of

recognition and recall and that brand awareness in its turn is a part of brand knowledge.

To measure brand awareness effectively it is important to know where most of the

consumer decisions are made. If many decisions are made at the point of the purchase,

where the brand, logo, packaging etc. are visible, brand recognition measures will be

important. If consumer decisions mostly are made away from the point of purchase the

brand recall measures become more important. The most basic procedure of recognition

is to ask the consumer which one of several listed items they have previously seen or

heard of.

There are different measures of brand recall depending on the types of signals

given to the consumers: unaided recall and aided recall, which are described above. It is

very important to be aware of spurious awareness in measuring brand awareness. It

means that consumers may erroneously claim that they recall something that they really

do not and even claim that they recall something that do not exist (Keller, 2003).

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 CHAPTER-IV

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 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Table: 1

TOTAL RESPONDENDS
Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage
Male 86 57
Female 64 43
TOTAL 150 100

Total Res pondends

43%
Male
Female
57%

The study is equally targeted towards male and female with 57% and 43% respectively.

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 Table: 2

Age Group Of Respondents

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

18-35 110 73
36-50 30 20
ABOVE 50 10 7
TOTAL 150 100

A GE GROUP OF RESPONDENDS

7%
20%
18-35
36-50
A BOV E 50

73%

Most of the respondents are between 18 to 35 years of age with 73%, followed by

36-50 and above 50 with 20% and 7% respectively.

Table: 3

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 Education background of the respondent

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Primary 0 0
Secondary 2 1
Intermediate 14 9
Graduation 80 53
Post Graduation 54 36
TOTAL 150 100

Education background of the respondend

0%

1%

9%
Primary
36%
Secondary
Intermediate
Graduation

54% Post Graduation

Majority of the respondents in my study are graduates with 54%, which is followed by

post graduates, intermediate, secondary and primary

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 Table: 4

Occupation of the Respondent

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

student 44 29
Govt/Private employee 54 36
Business 21 14
Housewife 27 18
Others 4 3
TOTAL 150 100

Occupation of the Respondent

3%
18%
29% student
Govt/Private loyee
Business
14% Housew ife
Others
36%

Majority of the respondents are govt. / private employees i.e. 36%, followed by students,

housewives, and business people with 29, 18 and 14 percent respectively.

Table: 5

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 Annual family income

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

50000- 1 lakh 18 12
1 Lakh to 2 Lakhs 39 26
2lakhs to 5 Lakhs 36 24
5 lakhs & above 57 38
TOTAL 150 100

A nnual f amily income

12%
38% 50000- 1 lakh
1 Lakh to 2 Lakhs

26% 2lakhs to 5 Lakhs

5 lakhs & above
24%

Majority of the respondents are high income people, with 38%, followed by upper middle

class and middle class people with26% and 24% respectively.

Table: 6

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 Recall Rates of Various Brands

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Maruti 150 100

Ford 48 32

Hyundai 73 49

Mitshibutshi 10 7

Tata 59 39

Chevrolet 30 20

Mercedes 18 12

BMW 6 4

Toyota 43 29

Mahindra 23 15

Honda 41 27

TOTAL 150 100

Table: 6 Cont.

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From the above graph it is clear that Maruti is the brand with highest recall rate of 29%

which is followed by Hyundai, Tata, and Ford, and Toyota with the recall rates of 14%,

12%, 10% and 9% respectively. But Maruti is not on the top of the minds of all the

respondents.

Table: 7

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 Brands available at reasonable price

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Maruti 112 75

Ford 14 9

Hyundai 44 29

Mitshibutshi 1 1

Tata 55 37

Chevrolet 6 4

Toyota 4 3

Mahindra 11 7

Honda 18 12

TOTAL 150 100

Table: 7 Cont.

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 Brands available at resonable price

75
80
60
37
40 29
20 9 7 12
1 4 3
0
rd

ta
hi

a
ta
i

a
hi

t
da

l le

dr

nd
ut

ta
Fo

ts

yo
un

ro

in
ar

bu

ho
To

ah
ev
M

hy

hi

m
ch
i ts
m

The above graph depicts that, 75% of the respondents feel that Maruti is the brand which

is available at reasonable price, followed by Tata and Hyundai with 21% and 17% of

respondent poll respectively.

Table: 8

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 Awareness of brand in people

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

150 100
People who are aware
0 0
people who are not aware
150 100
TOTAL

Aw areness of brand in people

0%
People w ho are aw are

people w ho are not

aw are
100%

By the above graph, it is clearly known that Maruti has 100% brand recognition rate.

Table: 9

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 People perception about Maruti Suzuki Motors

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

well known brands 69 46

fuel efficient 51 34
good service 45 30
reliable 30 20
TOTAL 150 100

People perception about Maruti Suzuki Motors

50 46
45
40 34
35 30
30
25 20
20
15
10
5
0
w ell know n fuel efficient good service reliable
brands

Above graph depicts that 46% of people consider Maruti as a well known brand,

followed by 34% of people, who consider it as a fuel efficient brand, 30% feel it a brand

which provide good service and 20% feel it as a reliable brand.

Table: 10

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 Respondent first know about Maruti through

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

TV 53 35
News paper 45 30
Magazine 9 6
Friends & relatives 32 21
Internet 8 5
Others 5 3
TOTAL 150 100

Respondent first know about Maruti through

5% 3% tv
21% 35% news paper
Magazine
friends & relatives
6% internet
30% others

The above graph shows that, 35% of people had first known about Maruti on TV,

followed by news paper, friends and relatives, magazines and internet with 30%, 21%,

6%, and 5% respectively.

Tables: 11

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 Respondent Opinion About Maruti Advertisement

Factors Number of Respondents Likert values

Excellent 26 78

very good 48 96

good 61 61

neutral 13 0

bad 0 0

very bad 2 -4

worse 0 0

TOTAL 150 231

1.54 231/150=1.54

From the above table it is clear that 41% of people feel that Maruti advertisement is good,

32% feel that it is very good, 17% feel that it is excellent and 9% shows neutral opinion.

And no one has expressed negative opinion about the advertisement.

And, as the likert value lies between 2 and 1 i.e. 1.54, it is considered that

respondent opinion about Maruti advertisement is very good.

Table: 12

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 Advertisement motivate in buying a product

Factors Number of Respondents Likert Values

strongly agree 33 66

agree 71 71
neither agree nor
disagree 32 0

disagree 13 -13

strongly disagree 1 -2

TOTAL 150 122

0.81 122/150=0.81

The above table depicts that, 47% of people agree that advertisement motivates them in

buying a product, 22% strongly agrees, 21% showed neutral tendency and 9% felt that

that advertisement doesn’t motivate them in buying a product.

And, as the likert value lies between 1 and 0 i.e. 0.81, it is considered that

respondent Agrees that Advertisement motivates in buying a product.

Table: 13

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 Advertisement only sufficient in buying a product

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Yes, advertisement alone is
sufficient 40 27

Consultant & clarifying doubt 42 28

Talking to dealer 25 17
Friend or relative who already
owns it 39 26

Others 4 3

TOTAL 150 100

The above graph shows the equal ratio of respondents i.e.27% of them feel that

advertisement alone is sufficient in buying a product, and the other 27% feel that talking

to consultant and clarifying doubts is necessary in buying a product, 26% people feel that

talking to the people who already owns the product is necessary.

Table: 14

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 Total brands respondent is aware of, in relation to Maruti Suzuki Motors

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Maruti 800 150 100

Maruti Omni 147 98

Maruti alto 141 94

Maruti Zen 136 91

Maruti wagon R 119 79

Maruti esteem 131 87

Maruti wagon R Duo 85 57

Maruti gypsy 110 73

Maruti baleno 96 64

Maruti versa 109 73

Maruti Zen estilo 116 77

Maruti swift 146 97

Maruti SX4 95 63

Maruti Grand Vitara 86 57

TOTAL 150 100

Table: 14 Cont.

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The above graph depicts that, the models Maruti800, Omni, Alto, Zen, Swift, Esteem has

high level of brand awareness with 100%, 98%, 94% 91%, 97% and 87% of awareness

respectively, where as the models like Wagon R duo, Baleno, Versa, SX4 and Grand

Vitara has low level of brand awareness with 57%, 64%, 73%, 63%, 57% of awareness

respectively

Table: 15

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 Number of people aware of new model produced by Maruti

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

People who are aware 128 85

People who are not aware 22 15

TOTAL 150 100

Number of people aw are of new model produced by Maruti

15%
People w ho are aw are

People w ho are not

aw are
85%

From the above graph, it is known that majority of people i.e. 85% feel that they are

aware of new model produced by Maruti. And only 15% feel that they are not aware of

the new Model of Maruti.

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 Tables: 16

New model produced by Maruti

Factors Number of Respondents In Percentage

Sx4 67 45
Swift 26 17
Wagon R 7 5
Grand Vitara 25 17
Others 25 17
TOTAL 150 100

New model produced by Maruti

17%
Sx4
44% Swift
Wagon R
17% Grand Vitara
5% Others
17%

The above graph shows that 44% of people feel that SX4 is the new model produced by

Maruti and 17% selected Swift and Grand Vitara as the new model produced by Maruti.

Table: 17

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 The new model produced by Maruti is really good

Factors Number of Respondents Likert Values

Strongly agree 1 2

Agree 17 17
Neither agree nor
disagree 6 0

Disagree 1 -1

Strongly disagree 0 0

TOTAL 25 18

0.72 18/25=0.72

Above table depicts that 63% of people agree that the new model produced by Maruti is

really good, and 16% strongly agrees the same.

And, as the likert value lies between 1 and 0 i.e. 0.72, it is considered that

respondent Agrees that the new model produced by Maruti is really good.

Tables: 18

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 On whole opinion About Maruti

Factors Number of Respondents Likert Values

Excellent 32 96
Very good 46 92
Good 61 61
Neutral 9 0
Bad 0 0
Very bad 2 -4
Worse 0 0
TOTAL 150 245

1.63 245/150=1.63

While coming to on the Whole opinion about Maruti, 41% people feel it as a good brand,

31% people consider it as a very good brand, 21% people feel it as an excellent brand and

1% considers it as a very bad brand.

And, as the likert value lies between 2 and 1 i.e. 1.63, it is considered that

respondent’s on the whole opinion about Maruti is very good.

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 CHAPTER -V

FINDINGS

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  Maruti has 100% recognition rate.

 Maruti has 100% recall rate, but it is not on the top mind of all the respondents.

 USP of Maruti is reasonable price, but only 75% of people feel the same with it.

 T.V and News paper are very effective means of advertisement

 Respondent opinion about Maruti advertisement is very good.

 Majority of the respondents Agrees that Advertisement motivates in buying a

product.

 Equal ratio of respondents i.e.27% of them feel that advertisement alone is

sufficient in buying a product, and the other 27% feel that talking to consultant

and clarifying doubts is necessary in buying a product.

 Though majority of the models produced by Maruti has awareness in market, still

there are many brands which the respondents are not aware of.

 Only 17% of people are aware of new model produced by Maruti.

 Majority of the respondents Agrees that the new model produced by Maruti is

really good.

 From the survey it is clear that respondent’s on the whole opinion about Maruti is

very good.

SUGGESTIONS

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  Maruti has good recognition and recall rate but it is not on the top of the mind of

all the respondents. Thus it is clear that it still has scope in creating awareness. It

can be attained by aggressive advertisement and dominate the ads of other brands

with Unique advertisements.

 As majority of the respondents feel that advertisement plays a major role in

motivating and it is the driving factor in buying a product, thus it is essential to

concentrate on advertisement to increase their market share.

 From the survey it is clear that all the models are not equally aware in the market,

this is because of the impact of the previous model produced, i.e. if a model

produced by Maruti becomes very successful then the successive model is left

unaware by most of the people as their concentration is on the successful model,

to over come this problem, Maruti has to use various means to communicate the

people about the new model, some of such means are, Event sponsorships, and

using Sports men as Brand ambassadors etc..

 As on the whole opinion of respondent about Maruti is very good, it need to

maintain it with good Service, Reliabity.

CONCLUSIONS:

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The research work was successfully identifying by the studying the customer satisfaction

on after sales service of Maruti Suzuki in Varun Motors (P) Ltd in Hyderabad. The

conclusion can be drawn from this study may be:-

 Maruti Suzuki is India’s one of the leading automobile manufactures and also the
leader of the market both in terms of volume and revenue generated.

 Taking the sale trend in to account MSIL sold a record number of vehicle
10,18,365 in 2008-09 including 1,47,575 units of export. In 2009 it record a
turnover of INR 20,852.52 crores which rose to 17,860.28 crores.

 Hence Maruti Suzuki India Ltd has captured over all share of 46% in the Indian
car market.

Bibliography:
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Text Books

• Donald S. Tull, Del I. Hawkins, Marketing Research-Measurement & Method

(sixth edition), Macmillan Publishing Company.

• M.K Rampal, S.L.Gupta (2004), Service Marketing- Concepts, Applications and

Cases, Galgotia publishing company, NewDelhi. (Pg. no.397, 398, 293)

• Dr.S.Shajahan(2007), “Service Marketing-Concepts, Practices and Cases From

Indian Environment, Himalaya Publishing House, (Pg.10,11)

Websites:

1. http://www.marutisuzuki.com/ab/aboutus_landing.asp?ch=1&ct=11&sc=0

2.http://images.google.co.in/images?

hl=en&ie=UTF8&q=maruti+suzuki+logo&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi

3.http://images.google.co.in/images?

q=maruti+suzuki+logo&svnum=10&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&ie=UTF-8&imgsz=small|

medium|large|xlarge

4. http://www.marutisuzuki.com/knowing-maruti-suzuki.aspx

5. http://eprints.bibl.hkr.se/archive/00000686/01/Dissertation.pdf

6. http://www.pondiuni.org/DDE/MBA_Project_Work_guidelines2007.pdf

7. http://imvp.mit.edu/papers/96/Krishnan.pdf

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 Annexure I

QUESTIONNAIRE

MARKET SURVEY ON BRAND AWARENESS

Name: _____________________ Age: ____ Gender: M / F

1. Educational Background ____________________

2. Occupation:

1. Student ( ) 2. Govt / Private Employee ( )

3. Business ( ) 4. House wife ( )

5. If others, please specify _____________

3. Annual Income of the family

1) 50,000 to 1 laky [ ] 2) 1 lakh to 2 lakhs [ ]

3) 2 lakhs to 5 lakhs [ ] 4) 5 lakh & above [ ]

4. Please name all the brands of cars you can think of

1. ________________ 2._________________

3._________________ 4._________________

5. Name the brands of cars you can think of that are available at reasonable

Price (USP)?

1._______________ 2._______________

3.________________

6. Do you remember having seen this Logo of a car? Can you identity this logo

7. Complete the following word

M_R_T_ S _Z_ K_
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8. Are you Aware of Maruti?

YES [ ] NO [ ]

9. When you think of MARUTI what comes to your mind? What does MARUTI

Mean to you?

1) Well known brand 2) Fuel efficient

3) Good Service 4) Reliable

10. How did you first hear / know about Maruti?

TV ( ) Friends & Relatives ( )

News papers ( ) Internet ( )

Magazine ( ) other please Specify __________

11. If you have seen the advertisement of Maruti how did you like the advertisement.

Excellent Very good Good Neutral Bad Very bad Worse

( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

12. The advertisement motivated me to buy the car model.

{Strongly Agree} {Agree} {Neither agree/disagree} {Disagree} {Strongly disagree}

( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

13. Is only advertisement sufficient of purchasing the product?

Yes ( ) NO ( )

If No, what other factors motivate you to buy a product

a) By talking to a consultant & clarifying doubts ( )

b) By talking to the dealer of the car ( )

c) By consulting a friend / Relative who already owns that product ( )

d) If other please Specify:-_____________

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14. Please tick the Maruti models you are aware of

Maruti 800 [] Omni [ ] Alto [] Zen Estilo []

Wagon R [] Wagon R Duo [ ] Versa [] Swift []

Esteem [] Gypsy [ ] SX4Maruti [ ] Grand Vitara [ ]

Baleno []

15. Are you aware of the new model produced by Maruti?

Yes ( ) No ( )

16. If yes please specify the model name

SX4[ ] Swift [ ] Wagon-R [ ] Vitara [ ]

Others please specify: - ______________

17. I liked the new model produced by Maruti

{Highly agree} {Agree} {Neither agree/Disagree} {Disagree} {Highly disagree}

( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

18. I would certainly buy Maruti in the next 3-6 months

Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Agree

19. On the whole you opinion about Maruti cars

Excellent [ ]

Very good [ ]

Good [ ]

Neutral [ ]

Bad [ ]

Very bad [ ]

Worse [ ]

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