MINI PROJECT REPORT

ON

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ON MARUTI SUZUKI

Submitted by

SUNNY PAL

Under the guidance of

DR RASHI SAXENA

(Assistant Professor)

in partial fulfilment of the requirements

for the award of the Degree of

MASTERS OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

2021-2023
Of

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University

STEP-HBTI KANPUR

RAJPUT GATE, HBTU EAST CAMPUS

NAWABGANJ, KANPUR, UTTAR PRADESH

MARCH,2022

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 DECLARATION

I undersigned, hereby that the project titled CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ON MARUTI

SUZUKI submitted in partial fulfilment for the award of Degree of Master Administration of
A P J Abdul Kalam Technological University is a bonafide record of work done by me under
the guidance of Dr. RASHI SAXENA, Assistant professor STEP HBTI KANPUR. This
report has not previously formed the basis for the award of any award, diploma, or similar title
of any University.

Date- ---------------

SUNNY PAL

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 STEP HBTI KANPUR

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the report titled “CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ON MARUTI

SUZUKI” being submitted by SUNNY PAL in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the
award of the Degree of Master of Business Administration is a bonafide record of the project
work done by SUNNY PAL of STEP HBTI KANPUR .

Dr. RASHI SAXENA SUNNY PAL

(assistant professor)

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Through this acknowledgement I express my sincere gratitude towards all those people who
helped me in this project, which has been a learning experience.

This space wouldn’t be enough to extend my warm gratitude towards my project guide DR.
RASHI SAXENA for her efforts in coordinating with my work and guiding in right direction.

I escalate a heartfelt regards to our Institution Director Prof. CK Tiwari for giving me the
essential hand in concluding this work

It would be injustice to proceed without acknowledging those vital supports I received from my
beloved classmates and friends, without whom I would have been half done.

I also use this space to offer my sincere love to my parents and all others who had been there,
helping me walk through this work

SUNNY PAL

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 INTRODUCTION

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

MEANING

Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in marketing, is a measure of how

products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. Customer
satisfaction is defined as "the number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose
reported experience with a firm, its products, or its services (ratings) exceeds specified
satisfaction goals.” In a survey of nearly 200 senior marketing managers, 71 percent responded
that they found a customer satisfaction metric very useful in managing and monitoring their
businesses.

It is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is often part of a Balanced
Scorecard. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers, customer
satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of business
strategy.

"Within organizations, customer satisfaction ratings can have powerful effects. They focus
employees on the importance of fulfilling customers’ expectations. Furthermore, when these
ratings dip, they warn of problems that can affect sales and profitability. These metrics quantify
an important dynamic. When a brand has loyal customers, it gains positive word-of-mouth
marketing, which is both free and highly effective."

Therefore, it is essential for businesses to effectively manage customer satisfaction. To be able

do this, firms need reliable and representative measures of satisfaction.

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"In researching satisfaction, firms generally ask customers whether their product or service has
met or exceeded expectations. Thus, expectations are a key factor behind satisfaction. When
customers have high expectations and the reality falls short, they will be disappointed and will
likely rate their experience as less than satisfying. For this reason, a luxury resort, for example,
might receive a lower satisfaction rating than a budget motel—even though its facilities and
service would be deemed superior in 'absolute' terms.

The importance of customer satisfaction diminishes when a firm has increased bargaining power.
For example, cell phone plan providers, such as AT & T and Verizon, participate in an
industry that is an oligopoly, where only a few suppliers of a certain product or service exist. As
such, many cell phone plan contracts have a lot of fine print with provisions that they would
never get away if there were, say, a hundred cell phone plan providers, because customer
satisfaction would be way too low, and customers would easily have the option of leaving for a
better contract offer.

There is a substantial body of empirical literature that establishes the benefits of customer
satisfaction for firms.

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PURPOSE OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Customer satisfaction provides a leading indicator of consumer purchase intentions and

loyalty." "Customer satisfaction data are among the most frequently collected indicators of
market perceptions. Their principal use is twofold:"

"Within organizations, the collection, analysis and dissemination of these data send a message
about the importance of tending to customers and ensuring that they have a positive experience
with the company’s goods and services."

"Although sales or market share can indicate how well a firm is performing currently,
satisfaction is perhaps the best indicator of how likely it is that the firm’s customers will make
further purchases in the future. Much research has focused on the relationship between customer
satisfaction and retention. Studies indicate that the ramifications of satisfaction are most strongly
realized at the extremes." On a five-point scale, "individuals who rate their satisfaction level as
'5' are likely to become return customers and might even evangelize for the firm. (A second
important metric related to satisfaction is willingness to recommend. This metric is defined as
"The percentage of surveyed customers who indicate that they would recommend a brand to
friends." When a customer is satisfied with a product, he or she might recommend it to friends,
relatives and colleagues. This can be a powerful marketing advantage.) "Individuals who rate
their satisfaction level as '1,' by contrast, are unlikely to return. Further, they can hurt the firm by
making negative comments about it to prospective customers. Willingness to recommend is a
key metric relating to customer satisfaction."

CONSTRUCTION OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Organizations need to retain existing customers while targeting noncustomers. Measuring

customer satisfaction provides an indication of how successful the organization is at providing
products and/or services to the marketplace.

Customer satisfaction is measured at the individual level, but it is almost always reported at an
aggregate level. It can be, and often is, measured along various dimensions. A hotel, for example,
might ask customers to rate their experience with its front desk and check-in service, with the

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room, with the amenities in the room, with the restaurants, and so on. Additionally, in a holistic
sense, the hotel might ask about overall satisfaction 'with your stay.

As research on consumption experiences grows, evidence suggests that consumers purchase

goods and services for a combination of two types of benefits: hedonic and utilitarian. Hedonic
benefits are associated with the sensory and experiential attributes of the product. Utilitarian
benefits of a product are associated with the more instrumental and functional attributes of the
product (Batra and Athola 1990).

Customer satisfaction is an ambiguous and abstract concept and the actual manifestation of the
state of satisfaction will vary from person to person and product/service to product/service. The
state of satisfaction depends on a number of both psychological and physical variables which
correlate with satisfaction behaviors such as return and recommend rate. The level of satisfaction
can also vary depending on other options the customer may have and other products against
which the customer can compare the organization's products.

Work done by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry between 1985 and 1988 provides the basis for
the measurement of customer satisfaction with a service by using the gap between the customer's
expectation of performance and their perceived experience of performance. This provides the
measurer with a satisfaction "gap" which is objective and quantitative in nature. Work done by
Cronin and Taylor propose the "confirmation/disconfirmation" theory of combining the "gap"
described by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry as two different measures into a single
measurement of performance according to expectation.

The usual measures of customer satisfaction involve a survey with a set of statements using a
Likert Technique or scale. The customer is asked to evaluate each statement and in term of their
perception and expectation of performance of the organization being measured. Their satisfaction
is generally measured on a five-point scale.

"Customer satisfaction data can also be collected on a 10-point scale."

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"Regardless of the scale used, the objective is to measure customers’ perceived satisfaction with
their experience of a firm’s offerings." It is essential for firms to effectively manage customer
satisfaction. To be able do this, we need accurate measurement of satisfaction.

Good quality measures need to have high satisfaction loadings, good reliability, and low error
variances. In an empirical study comparing commonly used satisfaction measures it was found
that two multi-item semantic differential scales performed best across both hedonic and
utilitarian service consumption contexts. According to studies by Wirtz & Lee (2003), they
identified a six-item 7-point semantic differential scale (e.g., Oliver and Swan 1983), which is a
six-item 7-point bipolar scale, that consistently performed best across both hedonic and
utilitarian services. It loaded most highly on satisfaction, had the highest item reliability, and had
by far the lowest error variance across both studies. In the study, the six items asked respondents’
evaluation of their most recent experience with ATM services and ice cream restaurant, along
seven points within these six items: “please me to displeased me”, “contented with to disgusted
with”, “very satisfied with to very dissatisfied with”, “did a good job for me to did a poor job for
me”, “wise choice to poor choice” and “happy with to unhappy with”.
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A semantic differential which is a four-item 7-point bipolar scale, was the second best
performing measure, which was again consistent across both contexts. In the study, respondents
were asked to evaluate their experience with both products, along seven points within these four
items: “satisfied to dissatisfied”, “favorable to unfavorable”, “pleasant to unpleasant” and “I like
it very much to I didn’t like it at all”.

The third best scale was single-item percentage measure, a one-item 7-point bipolar scale . Again,
the respondents were asked to evaluate their experience on both ATM services and ice cream
restaurants, along seven points within “delighted to terrible”.

It seems that dependent on a trade-off between length of the questionnaire and quality of
satisfaction measure, these scales seem to be good options for measuring customer satisfaction in
academic and applied studies research alike. All other measures tested consistently performed
worse than the top three measures, and/or their performance varied significantly across the two
service contexts in their study. These results suggest that more careful pretesting would be
prudent should these measures be used.

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Finally, all measures captured both affective and cognitive aspects of satisfaction, independent of
their scale anchors. Affective measures capture a consumer’s attitude (liking/disliking) towards a
product, which can result from any product information or experience. On the other hand,
cognitive element is defined as an appraisal or conclusion on how the product’s performance
compared against expectations (or exceeded or fell short of expectations), was useful (or not
useful), fit the situation (or did not fit), exceeded the requirements of the situation (or did not
exceed)

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AWARDS FOR COMPANY

Awards for 2010

Ritz got following awards

Awards for 2009

Ritz got following awards

J.D. ASHIA PASAFIC REPORT

Maruti Suzuki Ranks Highest in Automotive Customer Satisfaction in India for a 13th
Consecutive Year.

SINGAPORE: 31 October 2012 — For a 13th consecutive year, Maruti Suzuki ranks highest in
customer satisfaction with authorized dealer service in India, according to the J.D. Power Asia
Pacific 2012 India Customer Service Index (CSI) Studies released on 31 October 2012.

The study, now in its 16th year, measures satisfaction among vehicle owners who visited their
authorized dealership service center for maintenance or repair work during the first 12 to 24
months of ownership, which typically represents the warranty period. Overall satisfaction is
determined by examining seven measures (listed in order of importance): problems experienced;
service quality; user-friendly service; service advisor; service initiation; service delivery; and
inservice experience.

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 The study finds that vehicle owners increasingly consider faster turnaround in service,
door-step service and alternate transportation arrangements post vehicle drop-off as essential to
satisfaction.

Satisfaction is significantly higher among vehicle owners whose dealership provides an

alternate form of transportation while their vehicle is being serviced than among those who do
not receive this service. Correspondingly, during the past three years, the gap in satisfaction
between these two groups of customers has increased by 41 points. The expectation for this
service continues to outpace the delivery of it from dealerships by nearly 29 percent.

Door-step service for vehicle owners also contributes to higher satisfaction scores.
Overall satisfaction is 43 points higher among owners whose vehicle is picked up from and
dropped off at their home or work by the dealership than among those who take their vehicle to
the dealership service center themselves.

"Vehicle owners view the service process as an essential errand that needs to be
completed," said Mohit Arora, executive director J.D.Power Asia Pacific. "With increasing stress
of the daily commute, time commitments and other complexities in their daily life, owners highly
appreciate the actions that dealers take to mitigate the effort required for service."

Overall customer satisfaction with the dealership service experience has increased by 10
points from 2011 to 834 in 2012, demonstrating that operational improvements continue to
remain a focus for the industry. Satisfaction has improved in all five factors, with the largest
increase in the service quality factor.

The study also finds that during the past three years, there has been a significant reduction
in the cost of maintaining and repairing vehicles, which correlates to the improvement in the
overall quality of vehicles being produced. In 2012, vehicle owners have experienced
significantly fewer problems, compared with 2010. This year, 10 percent of owners have
experienced a problem with their petrol-fueled vehicle during the initial 12 to 24 months of
ownership, down from 17 percent in 2010. Similarly, the percentage of owners who have

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experienced a problem with their diesel-powered vehicle has declined to 14 percent in 2012 from
24 percent in 2010.

"While reduction in the number of problems experienced during ownership has

contributed to the reduction in the cost of vehicle maintenance and repairs for owners, the overall
cost of running vehicles has gone up," said Arora. "Fuel price increases are the primary reason
for the rising costs, especially for petrol models, for which a 13 percent reduction in the cost of
maintenance has been offset by a 31 percent increase in the cost spent on fuel between 2010 and
2012."

Maruti Suzuki ranks highest in customer satisfaction with dealer service for a 13th
consecutive year, with a score of 879 points. Maruti Suzuki performs particularly well across all
factors. Mahindra is the most improved make in 2012, significantly improving across all five
factors of service operations.

Vehicle owners who are highly satisfied with dealer service tend to have higher levels of
advocacy and loyalty to the dealership and the brand. Among owners who are highly satisfied
with their service experience at the dealership (service satisfaction scores averaging 930 and
above), 93 percent indicate they "definitely would" revisit their service dealer for post-warranty
service. In contrast, only 38 percent of less-satisfied owners (service satisfaction scores
averaging 768 and below) say the same. Similarly, 85 percent of highly satisfied owners indicate
they "definitely would" purchase their next vehicle from the service dealer, compared with just
31 percent of those who are less satisfied.

The 2012 India Customer Service Index Study is based on evaluations from 7,594 vehicle
owners. The study was fielded from May to August 2012 and includes owners who purchased
their vehicle between May 2010 and August 2011.The Company takes great pride in sharing that
customers have rated Maruti Suzuki first o in Customer Satisfaction Survey conducted by
independent body, J.D.Power Asia Pacific. It is 13th time in a row.

The award mirrors the company's commitment towards "Customer Obsession".

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 The company vouches for customer satisfaction. For its sincere efforts it has been
rated (by customers) first in customer satisfaction among all car makers in India for nine
years in a row in annual survey by J D Power Asia Pacific.

JD POWER ASIA PACIFIC CSI INDEX

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Maruti Suzuki ranks highest in customer satisfaction with dealer service for a 13th consecutive
year, with a score of 879 points. Maruti Suzuki performs particularly well across all factors.
Mahindra is the most improved make in 2012, significantly improving across all five factors of
service operations.

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AWARENESS OF CUSTOMERS

KEY INITIATIVES FOR SATISFYING CUSTOMERS

• Car pickup & delivery facility for women car owners

Quote Unquote: "The study finds that vehicle pickup and delivery before and after service
has a strong impact on customer satisfaction. In particular, customers who say that their vehicle
was picked up from their doorstep before service and delivered to the same point after service are
notably more delighted with their after-sales service experience, compared with customers who
do not receive this service...."

• Car Safety device: Immobilizer

The company used technology to meet customer needs and even delight them. Following
feedback that the company's cars were more prone to theft owing to their resale value, the
company worked on an anti-theft immobilizer or "I-Cats;" system for all its new cars.

• Setting up "Express Service Bays" & "2 - Technician Bays"

As the name suggests the company set out to delight its customers by offering them faster
car service by introducing new concepts such as Express Service Bays & 2- Technicians Bays.
These are done for customers who are hard pressed for time.

Both the initiatives undertaken in this direction have helped improve customer interface and also
helped increase the productivity and capacity of existing workshops.

• Mega Camps

• The company aggressively conducts 'Mega Camps' throughout the country round the
year. Activities undertaken during a mega camp include complimentary car wash, AC &
Pollution check up, oil and fuel top ups, wheel alignments etc.

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Apart from mega camps workshop camps like A/C checkup camps, PUC and general check-up
camps, Locality camps , Pre monsoon camps etc are also regularly conducted as part of customer
connect initiatives.

• Service at your Door Step through Maruti Mobile Support

Another unique initiative is the door step service facility through Maruti Mobile Support.
Maruti Mobile Support is a first of it's kind initiative and is expected not only to help the
company reach out customers in metro cities but also as a mean to reach semi urban /rural areas
where setting up of new workshop may not be viable.

• Complete Car Needs

The company's effort of providing all car-related needs -- from learning to drive a car at
Maruti Driving Schools to car insurance, extended warranty and eventually exchanging
the existing car for a new one -- under one roof at dealerships also enhances customer
satisfaction.

• Ground clearance of some cars for rural area

SWOT ANALYSIS

• STRENGTH

Maruti Udyog limited (MUL) is in a leadership position in the market with a market
share of 48.74

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Major strength of MUL is having largest network of dealers and after sales service
centers in the country.

Good promotional strategy is adopted by MUL to transfer its thoughts to the people about
its products.

Maruti Suzuki recorded highest number of domestic sales with 9,66,447 units from
7,65,533 units in the previous fiscal. It recently attained the 10million domestic sales
mark.

Strong Brand Value and Loyal Customer Base are big strengths for MUL

• WEAKNESS

Low interior quality inside the cars when compared to quality players like Hyundai and
other new foreign players like Volkswagen,Nissan etc.

Government intervention due to having share in MUL.

Younger generations started getting a great affinity towards new foreign brands

The management and the company’s labor unions are not in good terms. The recent
strikes of the employees have slowed down production and in turn affecting sales.

Maruti hasn’t proved itself in SUV segment like other players

• OPPORTUNITIES

MUL has launched its LPG version of Wagon R and it was a good move simultaneously

MUL can start R&D on electric cars for a much better substitute of the fuel.

Maruti’s cervo 600 has a huge potential in tapping the middle class segment and act as a
strong threat to Nano

New DZire from Maruti will capture the market share and expected to create the same
magic as Maruti Esteem(currently not available)

Export capacity of the company is giving new hopes in American and UK markets

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 Economic growth of the country is constantly increasing and the government is working
hard to increase the gdp to double digit.

• THREATS

MUL recently faced a decline in market share from its 50.09% to 48.09 % in the previous
year(2011)

Major players like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Tata has lost its market share due to many
small players like Volkswagen- polo. Ford has shown a considerable increase in market
share due to its Figo.

Tata Motors recent launches like Nano 2012, Indigo e-cs are imposing major threats to its
respective competitor’s segment

China may give a good competition as they are also planning to enter into Indian car
segment

Launch of Hyundai’s H800 may result in the decline of Alto sales

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Table 1. Showing Occupation of Customer-

Occupation No.of Respondent

Businessman
Private Employee
Govt Employee
Professional

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Interpretation –

It is observed that, 44% customers are doing the Business and 32% customer are the employee in
private sector, 14% are Government employee and 10% are professionals.

QUES. 2 Table showing Age of the Maruti Suzuki’s Customer

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\

Interpretation –
It is observed that, 5% customer’s age is between the 20-25 years, 40% in 26-34 years, 30% in
35-44 years and 2% customers above 45 years.

QUES. 3 Table showing Pre-Sales satisfaction level of the customer.

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Interpretation –
It is observed that, 35% of the customers are highly satisfied with the Pre-sales services and 3%
are dissatisfied with the Pre sales services.

QUES. 4 Table showing customers opinion about the Maruti’s vehicles for Value for
Money

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Interpretation –
42% of the respondents are of opinion that vehicles are as per expectation & 20% are of the
opinion that the vehicle are below expectation.

QUES. 5 Table showing Post-Sales satisfaction level of the customer.

Respondent Remark

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Interpretation –
It is observed that, 45% of the customers are highly satisfied with the Post-sales services and 5%
are dissatisfied with the Post sales services.

QUES. 6 Table showing customer priority with respect to characteristic.

Aspect

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Interpretation –
It is observed that, 26% of the customers preferred Mileages as first preference and 6% preferred
safety.

QUES. 7 Table showing customer remark about services.

Respondent Remark

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Interpretation
It is observed that, 50% of the customers are higly satisfied with the services, and 13%
are not satisfied.

QUES. 8 Table showing customer expectation for improvement in Maruti Suzuki.

Respondent Remark

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Interpretation –
46% of the customers are of opinion that Maruti should improve in quality.

QUES. 9 Table showing customer’s repurchase intention.

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 Respondent Remark
Yes 74

No 26

Interpretation –
It is observed that, 74% of the customers are ready to repurchase the Maruti’s car, 26% are not
ready to purchase the car.

QUES. 11 Table showing customer’s recommendation intention.

Respondent Remark

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Interpretation –
It is observed that, 72% of the customers are ready to recommend the car to the friends and
relative, 28% are not ready to recommend the car to the friends and relatives.

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 FINDING

It is observed that
• The prospective segment is from the business and self employed class.

• The company should concentrate on the age group 26-34.

•
• Maruti should continue to maintain the standard of the service.
• It is observed that, 42% of the respondent are of opinion that vehicles are as per
expectation, and 20% are saying its below expectation.
• Company should improve its post sales service.
• The customer highest priority is for the mileage.
• Customer are highly satisfied with the service which help in customer retention
• It is observed that, 46% of the customers are of opinion that Maruti should improve in
quality, and 16% of the opinion that Maruti should improve in price.
• Customers are highly satisfied which help in customer retention.
• Company has created goodwill among the customers which will help them to recommend
car to friends and relatives.

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 SUGGESTIONS

After conducting the survey and knowing the market, I realized that:

• The company should keep in mind the need of young generation.

• Company should improve the promotion strategy of product.

• Company should improve the promotion strategy of Add-on services.

• It will be beneficial for the company to make the warehouse near to the showroom and
there should be roof facility, adequate security facility in the warehouse.
• The Company should know its customers satisfaction level throughout doing periodic
surveys. Periodic surveys can treat customer satisfaction directly.
• Company should improve/upgrades its employee’s product knowledge, market situation,
and its competitor’s knowledge by giving proper training to employee.
• Company should upgrade or innovate its new product.
• The Company should not only concentrate on the customer satisfaction but also the
company led to monitor their competitor’s performance in their areas of operations.
• The Company should make changes according to the other competitors & according to
the customer’s expectations.

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 CONCLUSION

It has been observed that most customers are satisfied with pre sales services similarly
most of these customers are dissatisfied with the post sales service which is the matter of concern
for the company. Maruti Suzuki needs to improve some parts of products specifically the
interiors. High customer satisfaction level helps the company to retain its existing customer as
well as generate new customer through word to mouth publicity.

Customer satisfaction index is a good tool to make improvements in the products and
services of the company. And therefore should utilize carefully & kept as confidential as
possible.

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 LIMITATIONS

Though the research was conducted properly, the probability of errors & biases
kept is minimum; still some errors occurred because of certain limitation.
These are----

as follows:-

a. This is time-consuming research method & the respondents did not have
sufficient time for giving information for such type of research.
b. People were reluctant to give responses for such type of research.
c. People also did not give proper response for Questionnaire & interview, because
of short time.
d. Study is restricted to only Vashi Navi Mumbai.
I have honestly and sincerely tried to present the facts and figures but some error still
might have cropped up.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS

• Gupta S.L. , "marketing management", educational Publication

• Kothari C.R. , "research methodology", Himalaya publication

WEBSITES

• http://www.marutisuzuki.com/csr.aspx

• http://www.gaadi.com/cars/Objective-of-maruti-suzuki

• http://www.marutisuzuki.com/Maruti-Suzuki-Ranks-Highest-in-Automotive-
CustomerSatisfaction-in-India-For-Ninth-Consecutive-Year.aspx

• http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/maruti-suzuki-witnesses-improved-
demandsreport/1/224040.html

NEWSPAPER

• Newspaper-business standards, Times of India, etc.

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