Executive Summary.

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Executive Summary:In the month of February 1981 Maruti Udyog ltd. came into existence and later revolutionized the face of four wheeler automobile segment in India. Since then its motto has been to cater to the needs of the sensitive Indian market and provide value for money. In the late 1990s the company started facing stiff competition from the other major international companies. The companies had to find a cutting edge or USP (unique selling proposition) to win over the competition. Some companies focused on futuristic design, others gave emphasis to the performance of the car in terms of power, features etc. But Maruti Udyog (now Maruti Suzuki) was able to maintain its stand in the market. The reason behind the success of Marutis products can be a number of factors like its brand value, understanding of the Indian market or its established distribution and after sales service which has enabled them to achieve customer satisfaction. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and has increasingly become a key element of business strategy. Maruti has decentralized its customer satisfaction to its franchised outlets. This study is on how effectively has the store been able to keep up the reputation of Maruti Suzuki and their effective level of providing customer satisfaction. The following research was carried out on Sagar Automobiles, a leading Maruti Suzuki showroom in the city of Bangalore. Sagar Automobiles belong to the Sagar group which has the main aim of providing quality service to each of their customers. They group has other business activities in the field of education and healthcare. The research technique applied in this study is descriptive in nature. The sample size for the research was of a hundred people who walked into the store for the purpose of buying or enquiry of the product. The information was gathered with the help of questionnaire and personnel interview technique.

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The questionnaire consisted of questions such as the environment in the store and rating of the salesperson in field of his knowledge, communication along with the different departments of the store such as the finance and after sales counters. The data collected from the questionnaire has been thoroughly analyzed and interpreted in the later chapters. The research with the help of questionnaire led to a number of findings and recommendations for the store to help the customers achieve maximum customer satisfaction. The store has been able to provide satisfaction to maximum of the customer but has lacked to provide it to all of them. The research ends with the recommended steps required to provide satisfaction to each and every customer.

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Chapter 1:-

Introduction.

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INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING
The task of marketing is to identify consumers needs and wants accurately, then to develop products and services that will satisfy them. For marketing to be successful, it is not sufficient to merely discover what customers require, but to find out why it is required. Only by gaining a deep and comprehensive understanding of buyer behavior can marketings goals be realized. Such an understanding of buyer behavior works to the mutual advantage of the consumer and marketer, allowing the marketer to become better equipped to satisfy the consumers needs efficiently and establish a loyal group of customers with positive attitudes towards the companys products. Consumer behavior can be formally defined as: the acts of individuals directly involved in obtaining and using economic goods and services, including the decision processes that precede and determine these acts. The underlying concepts of this chapter form a system in which the individual consumer is the core, surrounded by an immediate and a wider environment that influences his or her goals. These goals are ultimately satisfied by passing through a number of problem-solving stages leading to purchase decisions. The study and practice of marketing draws on a great many sources that contribute theory, information, inspiration and advice. In the past, the main input to the theory of consumer behavior has come from psychology. More recently, the interdisciplinary importance of consumer behavior has increased such that sociology, anthropology, economics and mathematics also contribute to the science relating to this subject. Consumer Research is the systematic collection of & analysis of consumer information for the purpose of important decision making in marketing. It is an important tool to study buyer behavior, change in consumer life styles & consumption patterns, brand loyalty & also forecast market changes. It is also used to study competition & analyze the competitors product positioning & how to gain competitive advantage. Recently consumer research is being used to help create & enhance brand equity. This is a new role and decidedly different from the conventional one where it was used for just studying buyer behavior or for conducting feasibility studies etc.

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In fact because of this conventional role, consumer research till mid 1980s was considered a luxury, which only multinationals like Lever, Procter & gamble & there like could afford. However it is not so now. This is because competition in all sectors has increased manifold after 1985 especially after 1991. Due to liberalization & globalization the competition has intensified & survival of an organization is at stake. Their aim is now to gain & retain competitive advantage & consumer research plays an important role over here. Realizing this contribution more & more companies are turning towards consumer research. However there are still many who are skeptics of consumer research. There criticism is that consumer research conclusions are not dependable. There are various cases where the research has failed to deliver desired results or the product failed even though the research had shown that majority of customers preferred it. The classical example is that of Chevrolet, which failed to correctly understand customers expectations & went ahead to launch Spark. Its marketing research showed that customers in India did not like the model developed by the company. We all know that Chevrolet Spark failed & in less than six months of its launch in 2007, the Chevrolet management started promoting Aveo U-VA keeping the expectations of Indian consumers in mind. This example also brings before a major limitation of most researchers, & that is they often respond to the here and now situation rather than taking a long-term view of the market. In fact many times researchers over look the background of the problem & comes up with recommendations, which are at times not feasible. Besides consumer research has often been de-linked from the business strategy. When that happens, most research reports become academic in nature & are filed. Therefore to make consumer research more effective it is important that it has a linkage with business strategy & should respond to future or emerging scenarios in the market place. We have become a service economy. Yet few organization are truly delighting their customers, but todays customers are increasingly sophisticated, educated, confident and informed. They have high expectations of the Service they want to receive. They want greater choice and will not be sold to or manipulated.
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Present situation of the Four Wheeler Industry in India:The 4W industry in India has not quite matched up to the performance of its counterparts in other parts of the world. The primary reason for this has been the allpervasive regulatory atmosphere prevailing till the opening up of the industry in the mid-1990s. The various layers of legislative Acts sheltered the industry from external competition for a long time. Moreover, the industry was considered low-priority as cars were thought of as "unaffordable luxury". Initially in the post-liberalization period, the automotive sector, especially the passenger car segment, saw a boom. The buoyancy in the sector was derived primarily from economic vibrancy, changes in Government policies, increase in purchasing power (especially of the upper middle class), improvement in life styles, and availability of car finance. The passenger car industry was finally deregulated in 1993, and many companies, both Indian and foreign (like Daewoo, Ford, General Motors, and DaimlerChrysler), entered the market. However, the smooth sailing was suddenly disrupted in the last quarter of FY1996. The automobile industry, which contributed substantially to industrial growth in FY1996, failed to maintain the same momentum between FY1997 and FY1999. The overall slowdown in the economy and the resultant slowdown in industrial production, political uncertainty and inadequate infrastructure development were some of the factors responsible for the slowdown experienced by the automobile industry. In FY2000, the sector experienced a turnaround, posted positive growth rates and witnessed the launch of many new models. But the spectacular growth in FY2000 was followed by a decline in FY2001 and only a marginal growth of 0.5% in FY2002. However, since FY2003, industry sales have increased at a 3-year CAGR of 17.4% to 1.14 million in FY2006. Although there was a slowdown in FY2006, after the high growth in FY2004-05, the recent high growth has been on the strength of an increase in the disposable income of middle-income salaried people, release of pent-up demand, and easy availability of credit.

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The major car manufacturers worldwide consider India a good potential market and they foresee a large future demand here. As can be seen from the table below, India is now a major global producer of cars, with India's share in world production increasing from 1.6% in 2000 to 2.7% in 2005.

Two things that stunted growth of the Indian automobile industry in the past have been low demand and lack of vision on the part of the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). However, the demand has picked up after the liberalization of the regulatory environment, and global OEMs who enjoy scale economies both in terms of manufacturing and research and development (R&D) entered the Indian market. This has resulted in a significant shift in the way business is conducted by suppliers, assemblers and marketers.

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The companies involved in the automobile segment in India:The automobile revolutionary era in India started with the commencement of foreign collaborated establishments like Maruti Suzuki, Daewoo, Ford, Opel, Hyundai, etc. the old concept of Fiat and Ambassador which prevailed in India for about half a century is now virtually wiped off. The revolution of automobile industry backed by the liberalized banking system of loans made the common man opt for a luxurious mode of transportation The growth of the Indian middle class along with the growth of the economy over the past few years has attracted global auto majors to the Indian market. Moreover, India provides trained manpower at competitive costs making India a favored global manufacturing hub. The attractiveness of the Indian markets on one hand and the stagnation of the auto sector in markets such as Europe, US and Japan on the other have resulted in shifting of new capacities and flow of capital to the Indian automobile industry. Global auto majors such as Japanese auto majors Suzuki, Honda and Korean car giant Hyundai are increasingly banking on their Indian operations to add weight to their businesses, even as numbers stay uncertain in developed markets due to economic recession and slowdown. Moreover, according to a study released by global consultancy firm Deloitte, at least one Indian company will be among the top six carmakers that would dominate the global auto industry by 2020. According to the study, the car industry would see a massive capacity building in low-cost locations like India and China as manufacturers shift base from developed regions.

Production:Although the sector was hit by economic slowdown, overall production (passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, two wheelers and three wheelers) increased from 10.85
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million vehicles in 2007-08 to 11.17 million vehicles in 2008-09. Passenger vehicles increased marginally from 1.77 million to 1.83 million while two-wheelers increased from 8.02 million to 8.41 million. In recent times, India has emerged as one of the favorite investment destinations for automotive manufacturers. German car major Audi will start assembling its sports utility vehicle Audi Q5 from mid-2010. The company plans to assemble more cars locally at its Aurangabad plant instead of importing completely built units (CBUs). Ford India commenced commercial production of its compact car Figo, and diesel and petrol engines at a new factory in Chennai. The Figo will be built exclusively in India and exported to Asian countries and South Africa. Japanese major Nissan has decided to shift the entire production of its small car, Micra, from the UK to India. After production of the Micra begins here, Nissan plans to manufacture four more models in India, involving a total investment of over US$ 412.2 million. Suzuki Motorcycle India (SMIPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Japanese auto major Suzuki Motor Corporation, plans to double production capacity of its two-wheelers to 300,000 units by the end of the current fiscal year. The company will invest US$ 26.77 million. Volkswagen has set a target to localize production in India to about 80 per cent in 2-3 years from the current levels of almost 50 per cent as it seeks to offer cars at more competitive prices.

Road Ahead:The Indian auto industry is likely to see a growth of 10-12 per cent in sales in 2010, according to a report by the global rating firm, Fitch. According to its report, Indian Auto Sector Outlook, competition in the country's auto sector is likely to increase due to increasing penetration of global original equipment manufacturers (OEM).
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Who is a customer?
He is the most important person in any business. We are totally dependent on him. He is not an interruption but a sole purpose of any business. He is an essential part of our business and not an outsider. He is not just money in the cash book, but a human being with feelings that need to be treated respectfully. He is termed as the king.

Customer can also be defined as:

A person, company, or other entity, which buys goods and services, produced by another person, company, or other entity is known as a customer For a better customer care, many companies take a way of customer surveys. But whats the real purpose of customer surveys? The answer changes, depending on who you ask. Ask a company and they will tell you that they are seeking feedback and validation. Pose a same question to a customer and he will say that he invests time taking customer surveys because he seeks change and action. Welcome to another disparity between customers and vendors. Understanding the purpose of customer surveys is not just a matter of semantics. This is not an exercise in wordsmith. There is a fundamental difference between companies and customers in understanding the purpose of the dialogue. When approaching customers in understanding the purpose of the dialogue. When approaching customers with customer survey, companies often are seeking validation for their actions. They are trying to obtain affirmation for the legitimacy of their products and services. As a result, questions are designed with very few strategic intentions. The questions often
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reflect wishful thinking and hopeful answers. As a result, the survey results reflect the expected answers and provide very little execution guidance. If customer responses surprise the organization, most of the efforts are geared towards challenging the results and providing counteracting data to prove that the survey is inaccurate and does not portray reality. Functions in the organization that find the results challenging and threatening (a.k.a. requiring change and Improvement) will furiously fight to disprove the findings and validate their current actions and behaviors. Reality, of course, is not really what was presented by the customers. The problem with the survey was: (have your pick) that the sample size was not representative, the questions were misleading, and the timing completely wrong. These are only a few of the stock arguments threatened executives put forward to dispute the customer surveys.

8 things to retain the Customers:1. "I'll keep an eye out for other things that may interest you." A customer buying

a product or service is in a pure one-shot deal. Taking note of what they bought and letting them know that you're on the lookout for like items is a natural enticement for them to return. "When you do that, you're acting as a resource for them," says Maura Schreyer-Fleming, author of "Real World Selling for Out of This World Results." "Giving the customer a reason to come back is why they do come back." 2. If you know something is a particularly good value, share your insight.

Likewise, if something's going to be cheaper in a day or so, urge them to hold off until the sale takes hold. 3. It's a natural inclination to try to make a sale whenever possible, but don't

bypass the value of pointing someone elsewhere. Few actions craft a more effective image of trust, confidence, and an overriding interest in the client's needs attributes that will likely bring customers back to your business. 4. One of the most effective means of cementing a relationship with customers is

to be as specific as possible. Letting them know precisely what's in it for them will
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bring them back, if for no other reason that many appreciate a business which spells out exactly what it does and why it's worth what it charges. "Be overt about the benefits you offer," says Doug hall, author of "Meaningful Marketing." "But be sure to be as numeric as possible about those benefits." 5. "Let me give you a hand with that." This phrase personifies a business that

consistently goes above and beyond. Whether it's helping someone carry out packages to a minivan or simply getting the door for a client loaded down with papers, a clear message that you're willing to help out however possible sticks in others' minds. And that can often lead them right back to your door. 6. "Go ahead and try this out." If, for instance, your business sells pricey software

programs, give a prospective customer a free trial or a sample disk so he or she can get a sense of how the big boy functions. The same holds true for service-focused concerns. 7. If it's a question of a sale or some other time-sensitive arrangement, don't be shy

about making it clear that the bargain isn't permanent. 8. If yours is a relatively small operation, try to call your customers by name. If

there are too many faces coming and going to make that practical, at least single out a few key names. If they like what you do, that can certainly keep them coming back. And, like me, even if they're not your biggest fans, remembering someone's name can offset a fair degree of dissatisfaction.

Customer Relationship Management:What exactly is the definition of Customer Relationship Management? Here's a general overview: CRM is used to learn more about your key customers needs in order to develop

a stronger relationship with them. Customer Relationship Management can be defined as companies activities
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related to increasing the customer base by acquiring new customers and meeting the

needs of the existing customers. CRM is about building partnerships with your customers. It uses internal business processes from Sales, Customer Service and Marketing. CRM uses technology, strategic planning and personal marketing techniques to

build a relationship that increases profit margins and productivity. It uses a business strategy that puts the customer at the core of a companys processes and practices. CRM brings a change of a companys mindset to become more customer orientated. It requires this customer focused business philosophy to support effective sales, marketing, and customer service and order fulfillment. CRM entails understanding who your customer is and what his specific needs are. Examples of CRM initiatives: A database that specifically tracks Customer Service issues. A Webpage that allows customers to check inventory availability, order status, and place orders. Data warehousing to build an information database to better understand your customers. Capturing visitor data to your website. This includes their name, Email, location and their purchasing preferences. The types of data that CRM collects are:o Response to a campaign o Purchase history o Account data o Demographic data o Web Sales Data
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The philosophy of CRM is the recognition that your long-term relationships

with your customers can be one of the most important assets of an organization, providing competitive advantage and improved profitability. The most important part of CRM is the "customer-focus". How do you determine what CRM project to consider?

1- First, find out what your key customers want from you. There's no need in implementing a large scale, expensive project if it's really not needed. 2 - Rank the requests in order of importance to your customers. 3 - Analyze the feasibility of the projects. 4 - Review the costs and effort involved. 5 - This will hopefully lead you to a priority list of projects. A company can outperform rivals only if it can establish a difference that it can preserve. Customer service can be such a difference. It is very difficult to control, and therefore difficult to imitate. Its difficult to control because of its variability. The level of service may vary greatly between two providers in the same organization. It may also vary from one moment to another, even as delivered by the same provider. The difficulty is compounded in multi-unit operations; in addition to variability within units, there is also variability among units. That is both the challenge and the opportunity. The consistent delivery of superior service requires the careful design and execution of a whole system of activities that includes people, capital, technology and processes. The few companies that can

manage this system do stand out. This is the foundation of their sustainable competitive advantage.

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With good customer care as one of its objectives a number of beneficiaries have their benefits. They are as follows:Providers:o Higher income o Recognition o Personal satisfaction & fulfillment o Less stress o Higher self-awareness and self-control o Greater authenticity o Happier life at work o Stronger socials networks, family ties o Happier life outside work Organizations:o Quality sales o More repeat business o More referred business o Better reputations o Higher morale, happier employees o Higher caliber of job applicants o Fewer complaints o Higher productivity
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Society:o Higher income from individuals and firms o Higher productivity o Stronger social networks o Greater civility

Customer wants:They have been categorized and are described as follows:-

Good people:o Friendly, helpful, courteous o Empathetic o Knowledgeable, accurate and thorough o Resourceful and empowered o Able to recommend and solutions o Able to anticipate needs o Efficient o Trusty worthy, authentic o Reliable o Responsible o Appropriate appearance and demeanor

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Good offering:o Good selection o Good quality o In stock o Available demos o Clear description & pricing o Competitive pricing o Financing, deferred payments Convenience:o Convenient locations o Long hours o Available help, fast service o Signage that facilitates self service o Fast checkout o Shipping/ delivery o Installation o Phone/ web service o On-site repair o Hassle- free returns o Quick resolution of problems

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Total customer satisfaction:Whether the buyer is satisfied after purchase depends on the offers performance in relation to the buyers expectation. In general, satisfaction is a persons feelings of pleasure or disappointment resulting from comparing a products perceived performance (or outcome) in relation to his/her expectations. If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If the performance matches the expectations, the customer is satisfied. If the performance exceeds the expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or delighted.

Customer Expectations:How do buyers form their expectations? From past buying experience, friends & associates advice, and marketers & competitors information and promises. If marketers raise expectations to high, the buyer is likely to be disappointed. However, if the company sets expectations too low, it wont attract enough buyers (although it will satisfy those who do buy)

Attracting Customers:Todays customers are becoming harder to please. They are smarter, more price conscious, more demanding, less forgiving, and they are approached by many more competitors with equal or better offers. The challenge, according to Jeffrey Gitomer, is not to produce satisfied customers; several competitors can do this. This challenge is to produce delighted and loyal customers. And to generate leads the company develops ads, and places them in media that will reach new prospects; it sends direct mail and makes phone calls to possible new prospects; its sales people participate in trade shows where they might find new leads and so on. Now a day companies are spending more to attract new customers than they are worth. Unless the company can sign-up customers with fewer sales calls, spend less per sales call stimulate higher new
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customer annual spending, retain customers longer, or sell them higher-profit products, it is headed for bankruptcy.

Customer loyalty: Our key focus is to help our clients identify existing factors (beyond basic/hygiene offerings) that our client can leverage on to improve and enhance their product offering and communication strategy. Our customer loyalty studies seek to identify market gaps and unmet needs that can be met by unique characteristics provided by our client. Must-have/hygiene offerings are within customers expectations but do not excite them. We first measure the level of 'devotion' of customers to a brand, and identify what are the factors that can drive commitment. Using 'Fix-It Matrixes', we then recommend to our clients what are the areas that need fixing. So, in the entire above discussed paragraph we came to know about customer satisfaction, retention, loyalty and two wheeler industry in India and CRM and also about customers and their wants; so for all of this companies does research to know their customers much better. We will study this in further chapters.

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The Customer Loyalty Cycle:It is the business model used by Scuba Schools International, and forms the foundation for the SSI Education and Business Systems. Using one business model for both systems creates consistency in the implementation of our education and business philosophies. The concept is simple. Customer loyalty is created when a customer has satisfactory experiences with a business on a repeated basis. Customers trust the business to meet their needs, and are reluctant to shop with each another. The Customer Loyalty Cycle is achieved through a four-step process. Steps are achieved when a customer's needs are satisfied. All four steps are necessary to complete the cycle.

CUSTOMER SERVICE:Customer service is a trillion-dollar word. Customers are the backbone of organizations upon which they stand tall. They are the ones who solely possess in them the power to make or break any organization irrespective of its nature and size. So, it is necessary to
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take adequate care of them, nourish them and at the same time increase their number. You forget your customers and you are out of your business. Customer service is not at all a new word or concept in the business world. The new thing in it is the way customers are now treated by organizations. Gone are the days when there used to be a single supplier and a number of buyers. Now the scenario has reversed. Today, there are more suppliers and restricted number of buyers. So, the importance of serving your customers is of utmost importance in these ever-increasing, ever-changing and highly competitive business scenarios. It's a well-known fact that the needs and wants of customers do also change with the tides of the time. Therefore, organizations too should be updated of the latest likes and dislikes of their own ones so that they can match with them. In other words, we can define customer service as a firm's ability to satisfy its customers' unique needs and wants. An excellent customer survive can be summed as organization's ability to constantly and consistently first reach and then exceed its customers' expectations. Customers are the life-blood of any business so providing great customer service is critically important. Customers expect the same quality that you would expect to receive. Keeping the customer satisfied needs to be the goal of everyone in the organization.

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Providing service is an integral part of the whole process. It has been seen that in today's push-pull business environment everyone is providing one or the other service. The need here is not to repeat the services that are already being provided by others. Companies should try to jump a step ahead of their competitors in providing the pleasure to their customers in a more creative way. Organizations should never ever try to bluff customers at any point of time and at any stage of the customer life cycle. Even a slight suspicion that you are trying to bluff them, and it will be the last time you will see them at your place. One should promise to their customers only as much that can be delivered. Good customer service starts with good training of your employees. Employees play a crucial role in delivering the service to your customers. In fact, they are the ones who are actually interacting with them one on one. Tell them to be equally concerned of the customers as you are about them. Tell the importance of customers in today's business by conducting presentations/seminars. If you get everybody in the company involved in customer service, not only are they 'feeling the customer' but they're also getting a feeling for what's not working. That's the key listening to make sure that you understand the customers and that you make them feel that you understand. When a customer calls up with a complaint, we obviously can't change the past. But we have to deal with the problem. Penny Handscomb

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION:Customer satisfaction, a business term, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. It is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is part of the four perspectives 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.
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Measuring customer satisfaction:Organizations are increasingly interested in retaining existing customers while targeting non-customers; measuring customer satisfaction provides an indication of how successful the organization is at providing products and/or services to the marketplace. 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. Because satisfaction is basically a psychological state, care should be taken in the effort of quantitative measurement, although a large quantity of research in this area has recently been developed. Work done by Berry, Brodeur between 1990 and 1998 defined ten 'Quality Values' which influence satisfaction behavior, further expanded by Berry in 2002 and known as the ten domains of satisfaction. These ten domains of satisfaction include: Quality, Value, Timeliness, Efficiency, Ease of Access, Environment, Inter-departmental Teamwork, Front line Service Behaviors,

Commitment to the Customer and Innovation. These factors are emphasized for continuous improvement and organizational change measurement and are most often utilized to develop the architecture for satisfaction measurement as an integrated model. 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 (perception and expectation of performance) into a single measurement of performance according to
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expectation. According to Garbrand, customer satisfaction equals perception of performance divided by expectation of performance. The usual measures of customer satisfaction involve a survey. The customer is asked to evaluate each statement and in term of their perception and expectation the performance of the organization being measured.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR:Consumer Behaviour is comparatively a new field of study. It is the attempt to understand and predict human actions in the buying process. The consumer legislations since 1960 have created special interest in consumer behaviour and formulation of marketing mixes. Consumer Behaviour is defined as all psychological, social and physical behaviour of potential customers as they became aware of, evaluate, purchase, consume and tell others about the products and services each element of this definition is important Buyers behaviour involves both individual and group process. Buyers behaviour includes purchasing and consumption behaviour of the buyer. Therefore consumer behaviour should be studied by the researchers or

manufactures before producing the product. Consumer behaviour is influenced by various factors such as: Cultural Factor Social Factor Personal Factor Psychological Factor
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All these factors are external and uncontrollable factors which lie outside the firm , which basically cannot be controlled by the marketers .

Customer behavior analysis:Customer behavior analysis is based on consumer buying behaviour, with the customer playing the three distinct roles of user, payer and buyer. Relationship marketing is an influential asset for customer behaviour analysis as it has a keen interest in the rediscovery of the true meaning of marketing through the re-affirmation of the importance of the customer or buyer. A greater importance is also placed on consumer retention, customer relationship management, personalization, customization and oneto-one marketing. The concern of the majority of websites is no longer on the individual buyer but is now rather on collective or organizational buying behaviour. This helps in determining which customers are worth developing and managing by putting unique strategies in place in order to attract a certain type of visitor. And so through customer behavioral analysis accurate customer profiles can be generated by specifying needs and interests and allowing businesses to give customers what they want when they want it; leading to better customer satisfaction and hence keeping them coming back for more. Customers visit websites and leave behind valuable information about their behaviour. Customer behaviour analysis aims to ultimately improve business performance through an understanding of past and present customers so as to determine and identify future customers and their behaviour. It is therefore essential to mine large databases of customer behaviour information to understand historic behaviour and predict the likelihood of behaviour in the future in order to consequentially meet the needs and desires of potential customers. Furthermore, by carrying out an analysis in customer behaviour, a business can improve and revise their websites by increasing its returns on investment and potentially finding profit here through.

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Behavioral Segmentation:By segmenting the consumer markets according to their behavioral patterns, a company can target the acquisition and retention of highly profitable and potentially lucrative customers. The benefits of performing customer behavioral analysis can thus be listed as: 1. Gaining meaningful insight and actionable business intelligence at reasonable costs 2. It is now practical to develop extremely cost-effective and highly targeted marketing campaigns 3. Businesses now focus on knowing their customers as real people with real needs and preferences, leading to better customer satisfaction and hence attraction 4. Behaviour is a stable element on which to base a website as it evolves slowly over time. 5. Businesses stop throwing away money spent on marketing to the wrong customers as they can now know who their customers are and what they desire.

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Chapter 2:-

Research Design.

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Research Design:Research design simply means a search for facts answers to questions and solutions to problems. It is a prospective investigation. Research is a systematic and logical study of an issue on problems through scientific method. Research is a systematic and objective analysis and recording of controlled observation that may lead to development of generation, principles, resulting in predictions and possible ultimate control of events. A Research design is the arrangement of condition for the collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to research purpose with economy in procedure.

TITLE OF THE STUDY:-

Customer Satisfaction (A Study conducted for Sagar Automobiles)

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:The Indian automobile industry is undergoing a stiff competition, with a large number of domestic and international manufacturer are pushing each other to capture market, proof costly for the industry. And to avoid this, automobile manufacturers have to find out new segments and markets that are not yet explored or it has to work on the emotional aspect of the whole play to attract customers, of which most common aspect is customer satisfaction. With India being ranked 5th largest automobile manufacture in the world, yet the penetration level in the country is very low related to passenger cars.
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SCOPE OF STUDY:This study on customer satisfaction is limited to four wheeler vehicle segments of Sagar Automobiles, Karnataka, India. This study is conducted with the help of Maruti Suzuki dealer, taking in to consideration all of its branches and service centers placed all over Bangalore (Karnataka).

NEED FOR THE STUDY: This study is to understand the levels of satisfaction of customers with the Sagar Automobiles dealer. This study will provide information to the dealer regarding the areas where they need to work out to make the perfect. This study would also help the dealer to cut throat competition by better satisfying its customers.

OBJECTIVES OF STUDY: To identify the customer satisfaction with the customers.

Research technique:There are different types of research which are as follows:o Exploratory o Experimental o Descriptive

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Exploratory research:Exploratory data analysis (EDA) is an approach to analysing data for the purpose of formulating hypotheses worth testing, complementing the tools of

conventional statistics for testing hypotheses. It was so named by John Tukey to contrast with Confirmatory Data Analysis, the term used for the set of ideas about hypothesis testing, p-values, confidence intervals etc. which formed the key tools in the arsenal of practicing statisticians at the time.

Experimental research:Experimental research is commonly used in sciences such as sociology and psychology, physics, chemistry, biology and medicine etc. It is a collection of research designs which use manipulation and controlled testing to understand causal processes. Generally, one or more variables are manipulated to determine their effect on a dependent variable.

Descriptive research:This research is based on Descriptive research. Descriptive research, also known as statistical research, describes data and

characteristics about the population or phenomenon being studied. Descriptive research answers the questions who, what, where, when and how. Although the data description is factual, accurate and systematic, the research cannot describe what caused a situation. Thus, Descriptive research cannot be used to create a causal relationship, where one variable affects another. In other words, descriptive research can be said to have a low requirement for internal validity.

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The description is used for frequencies, averages and other statistical calculations. Often the best approach, prior to writing descriptive research, is to conduct a survey investigation. Qualitative research often has the aim of description and researchers may follow-up with examinations of why the observations exist and what the implications of the findings are. In short descriptive research deals with everything that can be counted and studied. But there are always restrictions to that. Your research must have an impact to the lives of the people around you.

Sample Design:-

Sample Technique:Simple random technique is used for the purpose of the study. A simple random sample is a subset of individuals (a sample) chosen from a larger set (a population). Each individual is chosen randomly and entirely by chance, such that each individual has the same probability of being chosen at any stage during the sampling process,

Sample size:The sample size for the research conducted was 100 people who walked into the showroom for enquire or purchase of a new car.

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Method of Data Collection:-

Primary Data:Primary data are those that are collected for the first time and they are original in character. The market survey method was the source of primary data for the study. The tool used for the collection of primary data under market survey is questionnaire method. The central guideline for conducting the research is the Questionnaire , which is used to record the responses of the each interviewee. The study was conducted in Sagar Automobiles which is located in Bangalore, Karnataka.

Questionnaire Method:It is the most widely used method of collection of primary data. In this process customers are given questionnaires to fill, with the help of which the data so collected are analyzed and a conclusion is drawn which proves to be the fruit of the analysis. Questionnaires were filled by respondents from different sectors of occupation, which helped in pooling the required data, for the data to be further examined and analyzed and draw conclusions pertaining to the required field.

Secondary Method:Secondary method includes second hand data. It refers to the data collected by some other source but included by other in the study to make the work simpler, these are the data already used by the source of the collection. The secondary data was obtained from: Company brochures Previous project reports Magazines Internet Books
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Tools Used For Data Collection:Tools refer to the instruments used in the completion and analysis of the project.

The tools used for data collection are as follows:

Structured questionnaire: The questionnaire contained both open ended and close ended questions. These are complete lists of questions on which information is elicited from the customer. This is the most common instrument of data collection. Data was collected by personally getting 100 questionnaires filled by respondents.

Interview: This is used for non-directive and depth issues. It aids in focusing attention on salient points relating to the study and in securing comparable data in different interviews by same or different interviewer. This allows in providing a personal touch to the project.

Tools Used For Data Analysis:Tools refer to the instruments used in the completion and analysis of the project. Analysis means a critical examination of the assembled and grouped data for the studying the characteristics of the object under study and determining the patterns of the relationships among the variables relating to it.

The tools used for data analyses are as follows:

Tables: The data so collected are grouped in a table so the analysis is made easy and the informations collected are represented in a specific form.

Graphs: It is a visual representation of data in the form of various types of chart. The data arranged in the tables are used for this purpose.
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LIMITATION OF THE PROJECT STUDY: -

The study is limited to only Bangalore city. The buyers behaviour changes from place to place. The consumers preference for the product keeps on fluctuating due to circumstances, which then invalidates the report. The information is subjective because the consumers taste, preferences, and opinion may change quite often. The information given by the respondents may or may not be true because

there might be cases where in the respondents may not be serious. However all possible care has been taken to collect as accurate information as possible.

AN OVERVIEW OF THE CHAPTER SCHEME:

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
An introduction chapter of the project study, which explains the different aspects of customer satisfaction. It also gives a theoretical background of the various aspects of the selected problem.

CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH DESIGN

This chapter reveals the methodology in the approach of the study. From Objectives framing to fieldwork and analysis, the chapter gives a detailed description of all aspects of research design.

CHAPTER 3: COMPANY PROFILE

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An outline of the company is given in this chapter. The profile of the company with detailed description is presented here.

CHAPTER 4: ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION.

This chapter is concerned with deducing results from the analysis and thereby drawing inferences.

CHAPTER 5: FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS.

This chapter is concerned with the singling out of the findings from the project study and the drawing of conclusions from the findings and making suggestions and recommendations in order to help the company in framing an appropriate customer satisfaction policy.

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Chapter 3:-

Company Profile

Profile of Maruti Suzuki and Sagar Group.

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PROFILE OF MARUTI SUZUKI

Maruti Suzuki is one of India's leading automobile manufacturers and the market leader in the car segment, both in terms of volume of vehicles sold and revenue earned. Until recently, 18.28% of the company was owned by the Indian government, and 54.2% by Suzuki of Japan. The Indian government held an initial public offering of 25% of the company in June 2003. As of 10 May 2007, Govt. of India sold its complete share to Indian financial institutions. With this, Govt. of India no longer has stake in Maruti Udyog and on 17 September 2007, Maruti Udyog Limited was renamed Maruti Suzuki India Limited. The company's headquarters are located in Delhi. Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL) was established in February 1981, though the actual production commenced in 1983 with the Maruti 800, based on the Suzuki Alto kei car which at the time was the only modern car available in India, its' only competitorsthe Hindustan Ambassador and Premier Padmini were both around 25 years out of date at that point. Through 2004, Maruti Suzuki has produced over 5 Million vehicles. Maruti Suzuki is sold in India and various several other countries, depending upon export orders. Models similar to Maruti Suzuki (but not manufactured by Maruti Udyog) are sold by Suzuki Motor Corporation and manufactured in Pakistan and other South Asian countries. The company annually exports more than 50,000 cars and has an extremely large domestic market in India selling over 730,000 cars annually. 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 Suzuki Alto tops the sales charts and Maruti Suzuki Swift is the largest selling in A2 segment. Due to the large number of Maruti 800s sold 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, in India Hindu lord Hanuman is known as "Maruti", was associated to the Maruti 800 model. Maruti Suzuki has been the leader of the Indian car market for over two decades. Its manufacturing facilities are located at two facilities Gurgaon and Manesar south of Delhi. Maruti Suzukis Gurgaon facility has an installed capacity of 350,000 units per annum. The Manesar facilities, launched in February 2007 comprise a vehicle
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assembly plant with a capacity of 100,000 units per year and a Diesel Engine plant with an annual capacity of 100,000 engines and transmissions. Manesar and Gurgaon facilities have a combined capability to produce over 700,000 units annually. More than half the cars sold in India are Maruti Suzuki cars. The company is a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan, which owns 54.2 per cent of Maruti Suzuki. The rest is owned by the public and financial institutions. It is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange in India. To reach the customers, the company has built a strong sales network of 600 outlets spread over 393 towns and cities. The company provides maintenance support to customers through 2628 workshops spread over 1200 towns and cities. Suzuki Motor Corporation, the parent company, is a global leader in mini and compact cars for three decades. Suzukis technical superiority lies in its ability to pack power and performance into a compact, lightweight engine that is clean and fuel efficient. Nearly 75,000 people are employed directly by Maruti Suzuki and its partners. It has been rated first in customer satisfaction among all car makers in India from 1999 to 2009 by J D Power Asia Pacific and in an independent survey conducted by Forbes.Com where they rated top 200 reputed companies on various parameters such as reputation within the customer and employee fraternity, they stood 91st. In the automobile section they finished 7th. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India Limited sold a total of 96,650 vehicles in February 2010. This includes 11,885 units of exports. This is the highest ever total monthly sales in the companys history (previous highest 95,649 units in January 2010). The company had sold a total of 79,190 vehicles in February 2009.

In February 2010, the company sold 84,765 units in the domestic market, up 20 per cent over corresponding month last year. This is the highest ever domestic sales in a month. The previous highest monthly domestic sale was 81,087 units, in January 2010.

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The sales figures for and till February 2010 are given below:
In February Segment Models 2010 A1 C M800 Omni, Eeco* Alto, A2 Estilo, Wagon-R, Swift, A- 60380 50331 20.0% 578427 455981 26.9% 511396 3178 10668 2009 4075 7641 % Change 2009-10 -22.0% 39.6% 30266 90450 2008-09 46953 71927 Till February April'08 % Change March'09 -35.5% 25.8% 49383 77948

Star, Ritz* A3 SX4, D'zire 10254 84480 Grand 285 8043 70090 535 27.5% 20.5% -46.7% 88862 788005 3255 67333 642194 6095 32.0% 22.7% -46.6% 75928 714655 7489

Total Passenger Cars MUV Gypsy, Vitara

Domestic Export Total Sales

84765 11885 96650

70625 8565 79190

20.0% 38.8% 22.0%

791260 131982 923242

648289 58209 706498

22.1% 126.7% 30.7%

722144 70023 792167

* Ritz launched in May09, Grand Vitara 2.4 launched in July09, Eeco launched in January10

Organisation Structure:Maruti Suzuki has a flat organization structure which is

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Board of Directors of Maruti Suzuki Limited:-

Position Chairman Managing Director Senior Joint Managing Director Joint Managing Director

Personnel Mr Shinzo Nakanishi Mr Jagdish Khattar Mr. Tsuneo Kobayashi Mr Hirofumi Nagao

Mr Shinichi Takeuchi Director (Marketing & Sales) Directors Mr. Shuji Oishi Mr Osamu Suzuki

Mr R C Bhargava Mr. D. S. Brar Mr. Amal Ganguli Ms Pallavi Shroff Mr Manvinder Singh Banga

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Marutis contribution to the total sales in India:-

Industrial relations:For most of its history, Maruti Udyog Limited had relatively few problems with its labour force. Its emphasis of a Japanese work culture and the modern manufacturing process, first instituted in Japan in the 1970s, was accepted by the workforce of the company without any difficulty. But with the change in management in 1997, when it became predominantly government controlled for a while, and the conflict between the United Front Government and Suzuki may have been the cause of unrest among employees. A major row broke out in September 2000 when employees of Maruti Udyog Ltd (MUL) went on an indefinite strike, demanding among other things, revision of the incentive scheme offered and implementation of a pension scheme. Employees struck work for six hours in October 2000, irked over the suspension of nine employees, going on a six-hour tools-down strike at its Gurgaon plant, demanding revision of the incentive-linked pay and threatened to fast to death if the suspended employees were not reinstated. About this time, the NDA government, following a disinvestments policy, proposed to sell part of its stake in Maruti Suzuki in a public
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offering. The Staff union opposed this sell-off plan on the grounds that the company will lose a major business advantage of being subsidised by the Government. The standoff with the management continued to December with a proposal by the management to end the two-month long agitation rejected with a demand for reinstatement of 92 dismissed workers, with four MUL employees going on a fast-untodeath. In December the company's shareholders met in New Delhi in an AGM that lasted 30 minutes. At the same time around 1500 plant workers from the MUL's Gurgaon facility were agitating outside the company's corporate office demanding commencement of production linked incentives, a better pension scheme and other benefits. The management has refused to pass on the benefits citing increased competition and lower margins

The companys core values consist of: Customer obsession Fast, Flexible and First mover Innovation and Creativity Networking and Partnership Openness and Learning

Maruti Suzukis Marketing Mix:The marketing mix consists of the 4 Ps of marketing which are: Product Price Place Promotion
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Product strategy:o The company has a portfolio of 13 products and the portfolio is divided into 5 product line A1 A2 A3 C MUV M800 Alto, Wagon R, Estilo, Swift, A-Star, Ritz SX4, Dzire Omni, Eeco Gypsy, Grand Vitara

Price strategy:The pricing strategy of the company is decided according to the product variant, quality and design. The pricing starts from two lakhs to eighteen lakhs.

Place strategy:The company has built a strong sales network of 600 outlets spread over 393 towns and cities. The company provides maintenance support to customers through 2628 workshops spread over 1200 towns and cities.

Promotion strategy:The company advertises itself with the tag-line:Ghar aa gaya Hindustaan India comes home in Maruti Suzuki

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The medium of promotion are as follows: Advertisement TV shows:- Indias Got Talent Product Warranties Trade Shows Premiums (gifts) Sponsorship

Maruti Suzukis share value over the past one year:-

BSE High Low

1740.00 741.50

NSE
1737.30 741.00

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SWOT ANALYSIS OF MARUTI SUZUKI:-

Strength Established Distribution and After Sales Service. Value for money. Understanding of the Indian Market. Ability to design products with differentiating features. Brand Image. Experience and know-how in technology. Low maintenance cost. High re-sale value. 24*7 service availability. Compact cars or small segment car

Weakness Lack of experience in foreign markets. New to diesel cars People are resistant to buy upper segment models Its low market penetration in the sedan segment. Heavy Import on fully built imported models Its incapability to match the design compared to other companies

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Opportunity Increased purchasing power of Indian Middleclass. New segments. Hybrid cars. Tapping markets outside South Asia. Tapping the upper class market. Foreign collaboration

Threats Threats from Chinese Manufactures. Global manufactures in India. Availability of cheaper variants of car. Leading competition from Tata, Hyundai and Fiat. Lack of innovation in diesel engine technology. Rapid change in customer preference.

Other business houses by Maruti Suzuki:Maruti Insurance:Launched in 2002 Maruti Suzuki provides vehicle insurance to its customers with the help of the National Insurance Company, Bajaj Allianz, New India Assurance and Royal Sundaram. The service was set up the company with the inception of two

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subsidiaries Maruti Insurance Distributors Services Pvt. Ltd and Maruti Insurance Brokers Pvt. Limited This service started as a benefit or value addition to customers and was able to ramp up easily. They were able to sell more than two million insurance policies since their inception.

Maruti Finance:To promote its bottom line growth, Maruti Suzuki launched Maruti Finance in January 2002. Prior to the start of this service Maruti Suzuki had started two joint ventures Citicorp Maruti and Maruti Countrywide with Citi Group and GE Countrywide respectively to assist its client in securing loan. Maruti Suzuki tied up with ABN Amro Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Limited, Kotak Mahindra, Standard Chartered Bank, and Sundaram to start this venture including its strategic partners in car finance. Again the company entered into a strategic partnership with SBI in March 2003. Since March 2003, Maruti has sold over 12,000 vehicles through SBI-Maruti Finance. SBI-Maruti Finance is currently available in 166 cities across India.

Maruti TrueValue:Maruti True service is offered by Maruti Suzuki to its customers. It is a market place for used Maruti Suzuki Vehicles. One can buy, sell or exchange used Maruti Suzuki vehicles with the help of this service in India. As of 2009 there are 315 Maruti True Value outlets.

N2N Fleet Management:N2N is the short form of End to End Fleet Management and provides lease and fleet management solution to corporate. Their impressive lists of clients who have signed up of this service include Gas Authority of India Ltd, DuPont, Reckitt Benckiser, Sona Steering, Doordarshan, Singer India, National Stock Exchange and Transworld. This fleet management service includes end-to-end solutions across the vehicle's life, which includes Leasing, Maintenance, Convenience services and Remarketing.
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Accessories:Many of the auto component companies other than Maruti Suzuki started to offer components and accessories that were compatible. This caused a serious threat and loss of revenue to Maruti Suzuki. Maruti Suzuki started a new initiative under the brand name Maruti Genuine Accessories to offer accessories like alloy wheels, body cover, carpets, door visors, fog lamps, stereo systems, seat covers and other car care products. These products are sold through dealer outlets and authorized service stations throughout India. Maruti Driving School:As part of its corporate social responsibility Maruti Suzuki launched the Maruti Driving School in Delhi. Later the services were extended to other cities of India as well. These schools are modelled on international standards, where learners go through classroom and practical sessions. Many international practices like road behaviour and attitudes are also taught in these schools. Before driving actual vehicles participants are trained on simulators.

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PROFILE OF SAGAR GROUP

The Sagar Group founded by Barrister Shri R Dayananda Sagar five decades ago, has established itself as a leader in medical services and education in Bangalore. The Sagar Group ventured into Education and Healthcare Services in 1960 under the leadership of Dr Chandramma Sagar. Her legacy of service and philanthropy is being carried forward through the visionary work of Dr D Hemachandra Sagar, Chairman, and Dr D Premachandra Sagar, Vice-Chairman, Sagar Group, both of whom are well-qualified doctors. Sagar Automobiles is managed by the dynamic Dr Hemachandra Sagar, 53. Dr Hemachandra Sagar is MBBS, MS and is also a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA), Government of Karnataka. Dr Hemachandra Sagar after his academic achievements in the field of medicine took over the reins of Dayananda Sagar Education Institutions. Twenty-two institutions starting from Nursery to Postgraduate studies in Engineering, Dental Science, Pharmacy, Law, Science and Commerce, Diploma in engineering, Nursing etc., have flourished under his able chairmanship. A renowned public figure, Dr Hemachandra Sagar is engaged in various business, social, educational and charitable activities, such as - Organising medical relief camps; Free treatment to poor and downtrodden patients in several slums and villages; Patron of several social organizations; General Secretary of the Karnataka State Private Educational Institutions, Bangalore; President of Karnataka State Private Pharmacy Colleges Association, Bangalore; General Secretary of the Karnataka State Un-aided Private Engineering Colleges Association; and President of the National Voter's Forum. Sagar Automobiles, Bangalore established in 1995 by the renowned Sagar Group is an integral part of the Group's diverse business and social activities. Sagar Automobiles located at 39/2, Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore is an exclusive Maruti Suzuki dealer engaged in the sale, service, repair, and genuine spares & accessories of Maruti Suzuki cars.
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For decades, the city of Bangalore, the fastest growing and the 'happening city' of Asia has been witnessing the quite happenings at the Sagar Group, the forerunner in path breaking ventures that has been touching the chords of the populace - and every segment of it. The Group is involved in diversified activities that touch the very pulse of people Education Automobile retail Service activity Hospitals and healthcare Sagar Automobiles also has a separate Maruti True Value outlet for sale of pre-owned cars. The dealership has two state-of-the-art workshops at Bannerghatta Road and Kanakapura Road, which are equipped with sophisticated machines, tools and gadgets for diagnosis, repair and servicing of cars in a systematic manner. Sagar Automobiles, an ISO 9001:2000 dealerships operates from modern, tastefully designed buildings equipped with all modern facilities for the customers. The fabulously designed spacious retail showrooms boast of various facilities, including customer lounge, spares & accessory departments as well as counters of various car finance companies, under one roof for the convenience of customers. Leading banks and NBFCs including Citicorp, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra, Sundaram Finance, Magma Leasing Ltd, M&M Financial, AXIS Bank, Reliance Consumer Finance, and Magma Shrachi Finance Ltd, have partnered with Sagar Automobiles in this initiative. Through this initiative, the dealership retail outlets serve as one-stop shops for customers. The car finance is offered at a transparent rate of interest, and saves customers the cost and inconvenience involved in searching for the "best deal" in the market. Offering convenient finance options even in upcountry areas where there is limited availability of organized finance has helped Sagar Automobiles reach a wider range of customer profiles. The dealership's philosophy of providing

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complete mobility-related solutions to its customers has been its USP in attracting and retaining customers.

AIMING AT ACHIEVING BETTER SATISFACTION

Providing products and services that exceed customer expectations. In order to exceed customer expectations, they try to be both bold and thoughtful in the actions they take. They continuously improve their performance in order to achieve better quality, while challenging them to be more innovative. They believe that the combination of these two approaches will lead to a safe and comfortable automobile society. Sagar Automobiles services begin with their effort to understand what their customers see and feel. They start by listening to what they say. They elicit customer feedback in a number of ways, such as investigating customer satisfaction and perceptions of quality. They aim to improve their customer service quality by providing quick and precise answers and information, ensuring that customers feel satisfied with their interaction with the Customer Support Center

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PRODUCT PROFILE
All these cars are available in Sagar Automobiles. The product range is as follows:

Eeco

Prices starts from 2.7 lakhs to 3.1 lakhs Available in 3 variants Launched on January 2010

SX4

Prices starts from 6.9 lakhs to 8.7 lakhs Available in 5 variants Launched on May 2007

Estilo Prices starts from 3.4 lakhs to 4.1 lakhs Available in 4 variants Launched on August 2009

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Ritz Prices starts from 3.9 lakhs to 5.2 lakhs Available in 7 variants Launched on May 2009

WagonR Prices starts from 3.2 lakhs to 4.5 lakhs Available in 7 variants Launched on February 2000

Swift Prices starts from 4.1 lakhs to 5.4 lakhs Available in 10 variants Launched on May 2005

Swift DZire

Prices starts from 4.6 lakhs to 6.9 lakhs Available in 9 variants Launched on March 2009

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Omni

Prices starts from 2 lakhs to 2.7 lakhs Available in 6 variants Launched on 2003(latest model)

Gypsy Prices starts from 5.1 lakhs to 5.5 lakhs Available in 3 variants Launched on 1985(1st model), March 2003(latest model)

Grand Vitara Prices starts from 17 lakhs to 18.5 lakhs Available in 2 variants Launched on October 2006

Alto

Prices start from 2.3 lakhs to 2.9 lakhs. Available in 4 variants Launched on September 2000

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A-star

Prices starts from 3.7 lakhs to 4.2 lakhs Available in 3 variants Launched on January 2009

800

Prices starts from 1.8 lakhs to 2.2 lakhs Available in 4 variants Launched on 1984(1st model), September 2009(latest)

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Chapter 4:-

AnalysiS & InterpretatioN.

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Introduction:Analysis is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle, though analysis as a formal concept is a relatively recent development. Data analysis involves working to uncover patterns and trends in data sets; data interpretation involves explaining those patterns and trends. Researchers interpret data based on their background knowledge and experience, thus different scientists can interpret the same data in different ways. Data analysis and interpretation is critical in analyzing the market. What does this information mean? Can one use the data in a constructive way to define the problem and then establish a plan? In quantitative research, this step most often involves statistics. In the marketplace one can find many statistical packages (computer-based) to analyze the data. It is impossible to collect data on every person in a select population; therefore samples are necessary. A sample population is a part of the relevant population. How well the sample reflects the relevant population dictates its validity. Results from a sample that is not representative will negatively impact your marketing. In addition to sampling and validity issues, marketing managers must make sure the data supports the conclusions drawn. This is the interpretation step. Despite use of the correct statistical tool and accurate calculations, the interpretation could be wrong. This research and interpretation was based on the sample size of 100 people to measure the satisfaction of the customer while was carried out with the help questionnaire and personnel interview technique. Descriptive research is used for this study as it is the best way to understand the to the lives of the people around us. Analysis and the interpretations have been carried out with the help of tables, charts and graphs, which helps to represent the data more successfully.

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The following analysis and interpretation are carried out from the survey conducted on Sagar automobiles, with the help of questionnaire method:

Age group:-

Age plays a very vital role in the decision making of an individual with the difference of age people look for different feature such as the security measures, speed etc. The younger people look for speed, style etc while as people older in age look for safety and precautions features.

Under 25 25-35

10 50

35-45 Above 45
Table 4.1

25 15

Analysis: According to the response received from the 100 questionnaire, the data received shows that the buying age group, which is 10 under the age of 25, 50 in the age group of 2535, 25 in the age group of 35-45 and 15 in the age group of above 45.

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Graph 4.1

Interpretation: The above data shows that the major buyer in the store are in the age group of 25 to 35 which can be inferred from the possibility that most of them are working people, the second major buying group is that of 35 to 45 which can again to related to the first point with the difference that they lacked buying capacity earlier, the other major buyer age group is above the age of 45 which can be related to the possibility that they are looking for a change and the last buying group is under the age group of under 25 which can be inferred that they use for personnel satisfaction or convenience.

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 Sources of information about Sagar automobiles:The sources of knowing about the store are important because it helps us to know the effective way of communicating with the customers. A store spends most of it revenue in communicating with the customer so its an important to know the most effective mode.

Advertisement Location

46 25

Recommended Past Experience

Table 4.2

26 3

Analysis: According to response received, 46 of them responded due to Advertisement, 26 of them responded it was recommended, 3 responded due to previous or past experience and 25 of them responded due to Location.

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Graph 4.2

Interpretation:According to the data received it can be interpreted that most of the customer arrived at the store by advertisements of Sagar automobiles, which can be because most of the ads were creative and had attractive offers in them, The other responded because it was recommended by others which can be inferred as that the store carries a good word of mouth. The third group which responded the most was because of the location of the store which can be inferred that is appropriately located and the absence of any other store in and around the area. The last group is of the ones who had past experience in the same store which is very low which can be inferred in two ways that the costumers arent looking for a change or that previous experience of customers hasnt been upto the mark.

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The environment in the store:-

A store environment is of great importance because it helps in making the customer comfortable. The environment of the store depends on its display, seating arrangements etc.

Excellent Good

49 37

Fair Poor
Table 4.3

14 0

Analysis: According to the responses received it shows us about the store environment, in which 49 people found the environment excellent, while 37 people found it good, the people who found the store environment fair is 14 while none found the environment poor.

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Graph 4.3

Interpretation: According to the filled in questionnaire it shows a positive result for the store owner as most of the people found the enviroment excellent which consist of the product display, seating arrangement etc. The second highest group is people who found it good and third which is fair for both the group it can be inferred that they might not have liked one or more arrangement of items in the store. The positive side is that none of the people found the enviroment bad.

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The salesperson in the showroom:-

A salesperson is of great value to the store because he is the personification to the store as the customers look up to the salesperson for their purchase decision.

Excellent Good

36 34

Fair Poor
Table 4.4

27 3

Analysis:According to the responses received from the filled in questionnaire shows that 36 out of the 100 found the salesperson excellent, 34 found it good, 27 found it fair and 3 of them found the qsalesperson poor.

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Graph 4.4

Interpretation:According to the graph it show that most of the salesperson make a good impression on the customers. The major salesperson fall under the excellent category while the rest with a very less difference in the good and fair category. The poor line is minimal but cannot be avoided.

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 Comfortably by the salesperson:As stated earlier the value of the salesperson in a store is equally important that the salesperson is able to make the customer comfortable so that the customer is able to clear the queries of the customer and make him speak about his requirements.

Excellent Good

57 29

Fair Poor
Table 4.5

14 0

Analysis:The above data is for how well did the sales manager make the customer comfortable in the store. 57 of the people felt excellent while 29 felt good and 14 of them felt fair. The best side is that none felt bad with the sales manager.

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Graph 4.5

Interpretation:The above chart shows how many people felt comfortable with the sales manager with the most people felt excellent which is a positive side which helps in incresing customer satisfaction. The rest of the people fell under the category good and fair with no people being uncomfortable with the sales manager.

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 The Sales Manager able to give you time:This is important because the more time the salesperson spends with the customer the chances of opening up of the customer is easy. This is preferable by both the customer and the store. The sales manager should be very good in its communication for this purpose.

Yes

93

No
Table 4.6

Analysis:The data collected shows that 93 out of the sample size 100 were given enough time by the sales manager and 7 people think did not get enough time by the manager

Graph 4.6

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Interpretation:The above data shows that the store manager give ample time to the costumers discussing about the product, price and features which a good thing in the view point for both the customers and the store as a whole.

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 The sales manager knowledge about the different models of the cars and was he able to provide you with the same:The sales manager, sales person or the executive on duty is the person who takes the customer through product catalog, features of the interested product desired by the customer.

Yes

87

No
Table 4.7

13

Analysis:The above data shows that 87 out of the 100 people felt that the sales manager had enough knowledge about the different products and 13 of them had this believe that they didnt posses the knowlede about all the products present in the store.

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Graph 4.7

Interpretation:The above graph shows that most of the sales manager have good detail about the product available in the store and their specifications but a very threating number of 13 sales person are not totally aware of the different products or about the product specification.

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 The Sales Managers influence your decision making:The influence of sales manager is was the managers able to get you buy the product you enquired about or a better version of the product. It is a very essential part as it is the top most priority of any store that they are able to make the customer buy the product.

Yes

79

No
Table 4.8

21

Analysis:According to the response received it shows that 79 people were influenced by the sales manager on their buying decision whereas 21 people were not.

Table 4.8

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Interpretation:The above data help us identify that a strong number of 79 people were convinced by the sales person present in the store and that they were able to make them buy the product as required by the customer. The other parts of the graph shows that sales manager were not able to convince 21 people in the store.

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 The executives at the showroom ability to clear all queries:These again is a vital point for any store that whenever the customer walks out of the store he has no questions left unanswered because any dissatisfied customer will spread a bad word of mouth for the store and a satisfied customer with all his queries solved will speak about it to others and will be better convinced of buying the product.

Yes

81

No
Table 4.9

19

Analysis:The above data shows that the executives have been able To solve 81 to queries of 100. While the rest 19 queries went unanswered.

Graph 4.9

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Interpretation:The above graph refers to that most of the customer queries were answered which is a positive sign for the store as more the queries being solved will lead to satisfied customers. The black side of the graph is that 19 customers queries went unanswered which can be brutal for the store reputation.

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 The finance manager at the showroom:The finance manager is the person who is incharge of collecting the payments and explaining the customers about the different modes of payment. It can be essential part because if the customer is ready to make the purchase but the finance manager is not able to help the customer in the mode of payment.

Excellent Good

17 46
Table 4.10

Fair Poor

30 7

Analysis:The respondents didnt show that good results for the finance manager, the number of people who rated the finance manager is 17, in the good category 46, for the fair category there were 30 and 7 people rated the finance manager as poor.

Graph 4.10

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Interpretation:The above data shows the rating of the finance manager, major people thought that the finance manager was good to them which can be interpreted as a positive sign, the second highest group was of the people who rated the manager in the category of fair which can occur due to some indifference or the not liking of some features, the third rating group was for excellent which are the customers who were able to understand and connect well with the manager, and last was a small but brutal figure of 7 people who might not have liked the manager for reason like interest rate or couldnt connect with the manager.

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 The various modes of payment:The job of explaining the different modes of payment is of the finance manager it can be of the following types: Onetime payment Installments Car loans

Yes

89

No
Table 4.11

11

Analysis:The data shows that 89 of the people were able to understand the modes or means of payment of purchase while 11 people were not able to understand the payment modes said by the finance manager.

Graph 4.11

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Interpretation:The chart shows the communication skill of the finance manager as in how well is he able to make the customers understand the modes of payment and the pros and cons of each of the mode the number of 89 is a satisfactory number and the remaining 11 people might have faced trouble which can be from either side.

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 Delivery of your vehicle:The delivery of the vehicle is done after the payment is carried out. The customers can attach an emotional aspect to the product so the delivery should be taken at proper time and some store even conduct a puja(offerings) for the well running of the car.

Yes

97

No
Table 4.12

Analysis:The above data was received from the filled in questionnaire which shows that 97 were happy with the delivery of their vehicle were as 3 people were not pleased by the delivery of their vehicle to them

Graph 4.12
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Interpretation:The above data helps us to identify the customer reaction to a new product bought, which saw a positive sign as most of the customer were happy with the new product bought which is a usual trend as people attach themselves to new product which is of high value still we got 3 people who were not happy with the delivery of the product.

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 Overall purchase experience:The overall purchase experience is from the time the customer walks in till the delivery of the car is done. The overall purchase experience depends on every single aspect from the salesperson to the delivery guy and it can be tampered with any one of the process going wrong. The aspects of overall purchase experience may also depend on the amount of time taken by the store, the stores should be cautious in taking as less time as possible.

Totally satisfied Satisfied

21 66

Dissatisfied Totally dissatisfied

Table 4.13

12 1

Analysis:The above table represents the customer total purchase experience on a whole the data collected shows that 21 people were totally satisfied, 66 people were just satisfied. the dark side of the data collected is that a total of 13 people were dissatisfied by the overall purchase experience which can be differentiated in two groups 12 people were just dissatisfied and 1 of the customer was totally dissatisfied.

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Graph 4.13

Interpretation:The data shows the reaction of the customer towards the whole purchase action, the store needs to work on the total satisfaction of the customer as a very high number of 13 people were dissatisfied with the purchase action which is relative high number in consideration to the achievement of customer satisfaction. The rest 87 fall under the satisfied category which is a fair number as considered to the number of dissatisfied customers.

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 The After Sales Service:It is that part of the store in which products are taken care of after the purchase. The product is usually brought to the store by the customer. The companies offer free after sales service for the first two times under a particular time frame. It depends on the customer to avail the services or not

Totally satisfied Satisfied

14 78

Dissatisfied Totally dissatisfied

Table 4.14

7 1

Analysis:The data was gathered by the customers who filled in the questionnaire which showed that 14 were totally satisfied, 78 were satisfied, 7 were dissatisfied and 1 people was dissatisfied. This is a good point for the store as after sales service is a vital area in customer satisfaction.

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Graph 4.14

Interpretation:The store has a good reputation for after sales for which Maruti Suzuki is well named as most of the customers were satisfied its can be inferred because the cars usually have very low maintenance cost. The others who were dissatisfied can be inferred due to late delivery of the cars or can be caused by some other mismanagement by the staff member.

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CHAPTER 5:-

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS & CONCLUSIONS .

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Summary of the findings.

These are the following findings which can be interpreted from the data collected: The major customers for the store are in the age group of 25- 35. Customers from the age group of below 25 are few in number. The effective mode of attracting the customer is by advertisements. People with past experience walk in again is very few. Most of the customers find the display and the sitting provisions excellent. None of the customers find the environment in the store poor. 36% percent found the salesperson excellent. 61% of the customers found the salesperson under the good and fair category. 3% of the customers found the salesperson poor. 57% of the customer found it comfortable with the salesperson. 43% of the customer felt good and fair with the salesperson. None of the customer got uncomfortable with the salesperson. 93% of the customers were satisfied with the time provided by the salesperson. 7% of the customers found that they were not given enough time by the customer. 87% of the salesperson had knowledge about the different products and were able to provide the same to the customer. 13% of the salesperson didnt have knowledge about all the products available in the store. 79% of the salesperson was able to convince the customer on their buying decision.
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 21% were not influenced by the salesperson to make their buying. 81% of the customers were able to clarify their queries with the salesperson. 19% failed to clear their queries with the salesperson. The finance manager was able to get 46% of the customer to get the good ranking 30% rated the finance manager fair. A minimal number of 17% rated the manager as excellent. 7% rated the finance manager as poor. 89% of the customers were able to understand the different modes of payment. 11% of the customers were not able to get the different modes of payment. 97% of the customers were happy with the delivery process. 3% of the customers were not happy with the delivery. The overall purchase experience was both on positive and negative side The overall satisfied customers ratio is high as compared to the dissatisfied customers. 66% were satisfied with the overall purchase 21% were totally satisfied. 13% were either dissatisfied or totally dissatisfied. 92% were satisfied or either totally satisfied with the after sales service. 8% were either dissatisfied or totally dissatisfied with the after sales service.

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Suggestions and Recommendations

The following suggestions and recommendations can be advised to the store:

The store should keep the target age group in mind. The store should keep the medium of communicating with the customer as advertisement as it has been successful. Advertisements in hoardings and state and local newspaper is an effective medium. The store should even look forward to re-serve the past customers because a few people with past experience walk into the store The reason for low turnout of past customers can be the resistance for change by the customer. The store has good ambience which is good attribute. The store should also keep changing the environment with the changing preferences of the customer. The salesperson has been just upto the mark because 27 were rated fair and 3 in poor category. To improvise on the salesperson area, the store can conducted training or try to improve the motivation levels of the salesperson. The comfortable levels with the salesperson have been satisfactory and can again be improved by training. The salesperson should spent abundant time with the customers To spend abundant time with the customers, the store can look forward to hire new salesperson.
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 The product knowledge of the customers has been a crucial area, as 13% of the customers didnt feel that the knowledge provided by the salesperson was upto the mark. To improvise on the above point the store owner can either keep salesperson according to the product or try to educate the salesperson about all the products available in the store. The store needs to train the salesperson on convincing skills as the salesperson failed to make an impact on 21% of the customers. The finance manager has been just upto the mark, so he should try to improve himself on making his statements easy and comfortable for the customer to understand. The finance manager should use easy and simple language to explain the modes of payment to the customer and training the manager can be an effective way. The delivery has been exceptional as the store conduct puja during the time of delivery which helps to touch the emotional cords of the customer. The ratio of overall satisfied customer to that of the dissatisfied customers is just at par, the store needs to work as a whole to increase the number of satisfied customers. The reasons for the above statement can justified under the reasons such as knowledge of the salesperson or finance manager or lack of understanding the emotional aspects at the delivery. The after sales service has been crucial part and the store has been able to take good care of that department.

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CONCLUSION

Most of the residents of Bangalore prefer mid segment cars. As the major population falls in middle income group, a purchase of the car is considered as an investment. Having a car for luxury purpose is not an important criteria there but is considered for useful purpose. Hence the buyers in the city make a deliberate choice and have a long investigation process of the features of the car. The residents of Bangalore want the best features in the car at a reasonable price so it is very difficult for the showroom owners to satisfy the needs of their customers. But in the recent years the mentality of the people has changed and the income levels of the people have also risen. Due to this reason the automobile sector in Bangalore is at a boom. The demand for luxury car has increased to a great extent. Sagar automobiles have existed for the last 15 years and have been a prime dealer in the city. It has been extremely successful in guiding their customers to choose the right car. It has a well qualified staff which helps the company attain its goal. The motto of Sagar automobiles is to satisfy the needs of their customers in the best possible way. Thus we can come to a conclusion that since this market is growing in the state, the company has huge opportunity to grow, so they can focus on inclusion of newer models of cars as well as they can expand their business to the other parts of the state by opening new showrooms as well as service centers.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Bibliography:www.marutisuzuki.com www.sagarauto.com www.google.com www.wikipedia.com Marketing Fundamentals- CIM Principals of Marketing- Philip Kotler

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ANNEURE

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