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CONTENTS

CHAPTER - 1

INTRODUCTION

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

INDUSTRY PROFILE

COMPANY PROFILE

CHAPTER - 2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

CHAPTER - 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER - 4

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

CHAPTER - 5

FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND CONCLUSION

BIBILIOGRAPHY

QUESTIONNAIRE
INTRODUCTION

Introduction
The research Project is on the topic of Brand Awareness of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

Now first let us look at the definition of a Brand:

The definition of brand:

A brand is an identifiable entity that makes specific promises of value. In its +value you or
your product makes. These promises can be implied or explicitly stated, but none-the-less,
value of some ++type is promised.

Now let us further define Brand Awareness:

Brand awareness is when people recognize your brand as yours. This does not necessarily
mean they prefer your brand (brand preference), attach a high value to, or associate any
superior attributes to your brand, it just means they recognize your brand and can identify it
under different conditions.

Brand awareness consists of both brand recognition, which is the ability of consumers to
confirm that they have previously been exposed to your brand, and brand recall, which
reflects the ability of consumers to name your brand when given the product category,
category need, or some other similar cue.

Aided awareness occurs when you show or read a list of brands and the person expresses
familiarity with your brand only after they hear or see it.

Top-of-mind awareness occurs when you ask a person to name brands within a product
category and your brand pops up first on the list.

When you think about facial tissue, gelatins, and adhesive bandages, do the brands
Kleenex, Jell-O, and Band-Aid come to mind? These brands enjoy strong top-of-mind
awareness in their respective categories.

Historical & Technical Background of Brands

Brands identify the source of market of a product and allow consumers-either individuals or
organizations-to assign responsibility to a particular manufacturer or distributor. Consumers
may evaluate the identical product differently depending on how it is branded. Consumers
learn about brands through past experiences with the product and its marketing program.
They find out which brands satisfy their needs and which ones do not. As consumers lives
become more complicated, rushed, and time-starved, the ability of a brand to simplify
decisions making and reduce risk is invaluable.

Brands also perform valuable functions for firms. First, they simplify product handling or
tracing. Brands help to organize inventory and accounting records. A brand also offers the
firm legal protection for unique features or aspects of the product. The brand name can be
protected through registered trademarks; manufacturing processes can be protected through
patents; and packaging can be protected through copyrights and designs. These intellectual
property rights ensure that the firm can safely invest in the brand and reap the benefits of a
valuable asset.

Brands can signal a certain level of quality so that satisfied buyers can easily choose the
product again. Brand loyalty provides predictability and security of demand for the firm and
creates barriers to entry that make it difficult for other firms to enter the market. Loyalty also
can translate into a willingness to pay a higher priceoften 20 to 25 percent more. Although
competitors may easily duplicate manufacturing processes and product designs, they cannot
easily match lasting impressions in the minds of individuals and organizations from years of
marketing activity and product experience. In this sense, branding can be seen as a powerful
means to secure a competitive advantage.

To firms, brands thus represent enormously valuable pieces of legal property that can
influence consumer behavior, be sought and sold, provide the security of sustained future
revenues to their owner. Large earning multiple have been paid for brands in mergers or
acquisitions, starting with the boom years of the mid-1980s. The price premium is often
justified on the basis of assumptions of the extra profits that could be extracted and sustained
from the brands, as well as the tremendous difficulty and expense of creating similar brands
from scratch. Wall Street believes that strong brands result in better earnings and profit
performance for firms, which, in turn, creates greater value for shareholders. Much of the
recent interest in brands by senior management has been result of these bottom-line financial
considerations. Marketing Memo: The brand Report card lists 10 key characteristics based
on a review of the worlds strongest brands.

Maruti Suzuki Limited was established in February 1981, though the actual production
commenced in 1983 with the Maruti 800, based on the Suzuki Swift car which at the time
was the only modern car available in India, its' only competitors- the Hindustan Ambassador
and Premier Padmini were both around 25 years out of date at that point. Through 2004,
Maruti has produced over 5 Million vehicles. Marutis are sold in India and various several
other countries, depending upon export orders. Models similar to Maruti (but not
manufactured by Maruti Suzuki) are sold by Suzuki and manufactured in Pakistan and other
South Asian countries.

Here the topic of the study is Customers Brand Awareness towards MARUTI SUZUKI
SWIFT, with special reference to C.A.R.S India pvt.ltd chennai. This study search for brand
awareness level of customers towards various aspects of the product.

As part of this study, survey is conducted in chennai district. Questionnaire is used to


collect data from customers. While the details regarding the company is obtained from
companies website, magazines etc Sample size of the study takes here is Fifty and
Samples selected from urban and rural areas of chennai district.
OBJECTIVES
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE

. A study on consumers brand awareness towards MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES

.To identify the consumers expectation about Maruti suzuki swift

.To analyze the factors effecting buying behaviour .

.To find out consumers attitude towards Maruti suzuki swift

.To suggest measures to improve brand awareness towards maruti suzuki swift.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
Scope of study

The overall scope of the present study considers all the variables
and factors that have major impact over the customers in considering
particular brands. This especially included how a customer regally
evaluate recognizes the brand and what position particular brand
occupies in the customer mind.

This includes how a customer gets attracted towards the brands and what
makes a brand highly significant over their competitive brand. The study
includes how brand awareness among potential customers can be
maintained and improves.

The project has been done in chennai city only. The survey was
confined only to Maruti customers to presently posses only swift. The
survey was especially focused on existing swift owners for finding how
they are influenced by the brand and what made them aware of the
brand. After the survey was done the data was analyzed and also relevant
suggestion were made in order to improve its brand awareness towards
swift as well as Maruti.
LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The data given by the respondents may limit to their own


knowledge, feelings and awareness

Because of the time constraints a detailed study is not possible.

There are chances of bias in the data collected from the respondents
INDUSTRY PROFILE

Automobile Industry

History :

In the year 1769, a French engineer by the name of Nicolas J. Cugnot invented the first
automobile to run on roads. This automobile, in fact, was a self-powered, three-wheeled,
military tractor that made the use of a steam engine. The range of the automobile, however,
was very brief and at the most, it could only run at a stretch for fifteen minutes. In addition,
these automobiles were not fit for the roads as the steam engines made them very heavy and
large, and required ample starting time. Oliver Evans was the first to design a steam engine
driven automobile in the U.S.

A Scotsman, Robert Anderson, was the first to invent an electric carriage between 1832 and
1839. However, Thomas Davenport of the U.S.A. and Scotsman Robert Davidson were
amongst the first to invent more applicable automobiles, making use of non-rechargeable
electric batteries in 1842. Development of roads made travelling comfortable and as a result,
the short ranged, electric battery driven automobiles were no more the best option for
travelling over longer distances.

The Automobile Industry finally came of age with Henry Ford in 1914 for the bulk
production of cars. This lead to the development of the industry and it first begun in the
assembly lines of his car factory. The several methods adopted by Ford, made the new
invention (that is, the car) popular amongst the rich as well as the masses.

According the History of Automobile Industry US, dominated the automobile markets
around the globe with no notable competitors. However, after the end of the Second World
War in 1945, the Automobile Industry of other technologically advanced nations such as
Japan and certain European nations gained momentum and within a very short period,
beginning in the early 1980s, the U.S Automobile Industry was flooded with foreign
automobile companies, especially those of Japan and Germany.

The current trends of the Global Automobile Industry reveal that in the developed countries
the Automobile Industries are stagnating as a result of the drooping car markets, whereas the
Automobile Industry in the developing nations, such as, India and Brazil, have been
consistently registering higher growth rates every passing year for their flourishing domestic
automobile markets.

The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells the world's
motor vehicles. In 2008, more than 70 million motor vehicles, including cars and
commercial vehicles were produced worldwide.
In 2007, a total of 71.9 million new automobiles were sold worldwide: 22.9 million in
Europe, 21.4 million in Asia-Pacific, 19.4 million in USA and Canada, 4.4 million in Latin
America, 2.4 million in the Middle East and 1.4 million in Africa. The markets in North
America and Japan were stagnant, while those in South America and other parts of Asia grew
strongly. Of the major markets, Russia, Brazil, India and China saw the most rapid growth.

About 250 million vehicles are in use in the United States. Around the world, there were
about 806 million cars and light trucks on the road in 2007; they burn over 260 billion
gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel yearly. The numbers are increasing rapidly, especially in
China and India. In the opinion of some, urban transport systems based around the car have
proved unsustainable, consuming excessive energy, affecting the health of populations, and
delivering a declining level of service despite increasing investments. Many of these
negative impacts fall disproportionately on those social groups who are also least likely to
own and drive cars. The sustainable transport movement focuses on solutions to these
problems.

In 2008, with rapidly rising oil prices, industries such as the automotive industry, are
experiencing a combination of pricing pressures from raw material costs and changes in
consumer buying habits. The industry is also facing increasing external competition from the
public transport sector, as consumers re-evaluate their private vehicle usage. Roughly half of
the US's fifty-one light vehicle plants are projected to permanently close in the coming years,
with the loss of another 200,000 jobs in the sector, on top of the 560,000 jobs lost this
decade. Combined with robust growth in China, in 2009, this resulted in China becoming the
largest automobile market in the world.

Indian Automobile History

The origin of automobile is not certain. In this section of automobile history, we will only
discuss about the phases of automobile in the development and modernisation process since
the first car was shipped to India. We will start automotive history from this point of time.

The automobile industry has changed the way people live and work. The earliest of
modern cars was manufactured in the year 1895. Shortly the first appearance of the car
followed in India. As the century truned, three cars were imported in Mumbai (India). Within
decade there were total of 1025 cars in the city.

The dawn of automobile actually goes back to 4000 years when the first wheel was used
for transportation in India. In the begining of 15th century Portuguese arrived in China and
the interaction of the two cultures led to a variety of new technologies, including the creation
of a wheel that turned under its own power. By 1600s small steam-powered engine models
was developed, but it took another century before a full-sized engine-powered vehicle was
created.

The actual horseless carriage was introduced in the year 1893 by brothers Charles and
Frank Duryea. It was the first internal-combustion motor car of America, and it was followed
by Henry Ford's first experimental car that same year.

One of the highest-rated early luxury automobiles was the 1909 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
that featured a quiet 6-cylinder engine, leather interior, folding windscreens and hood, and an
aluminum body. It was usually driven by chauffeurs and emphasis was on comfort and style
rather than speed.

During the 1920s, the cars exhibited design refinements such as balloon tires, pressed-
steel wheels, and four-wheel brakes. Graham Paige DC Phaeton of 1929 featured an 8-
cylinder engine and an aluminum body.

The 1937 Pontiac De Luxe sedan had roomy interior and rear-hinged back door that
suited more to the needs of families. In 1930s, vehicles were less boxy and more streamlined
than their predecessors. The 1940s saw features like automatic transmission, sealed-beam
headlights, and tubeless tires. The year 1957 brought powerful high-performance cars such
as Mercedes-Benz 300SL. It was built on compact and stylized lines, and was capable of 230
kmh (144 mph).

This was the Indian automobile history, and today modern cars are generally light,
aerodynamically shaped, and compact.

Emerging India Auto market


India auto market is a promising industrial sector that is growing immensely every passing
year. Passenger cars are referred to, through use of word "automobile." Whooping growth
experienced by Indian auto market in last financial year itself, that is financial year end in
February, 2007, was very close to a 18 percent over previous fiscal. This statistical fact is a
glittering example of potential of growing auto industry in India.

As per survey conducted by Society of Indian Auto Manufacturers, total number of


automobiles manufactured by auto industry in India, throughout financial year 2006-07, was
very close to 15.5 lakh (1.5 million) margin. Huge of number of automobiles manufactured
by auto industry in India was an enormous growth upon number of autos manufactured
during previous fiscal, that ended in 2006.

Total number of cars that were exported from India were very close to 2.0 lakh (2.0 hundred
thousand) margin, an encouraging sign for auto industry in India. Export of cars
manufactured in India comprised nearly 13 percent of total number of cars manufactured
domestically by auto industry in India.

India auto market looks set to prosper, largely due to growing market for automobiles that is
developing in India. In financial year that ended in February, 2004, Indian auto markets were
fastest growing in world, with registered growth rate touching nearly 20 percent.

Auto industry in India mainly comprises of small car section, which enjoys nearly a 2/3rd
market share of entire market for autos in India. In this respect, Indian markets are largest in
world for small cars, behind Japan.

Indian passenger car market which ranks amongst largest in world, is poised to become even
more larger and enter top five passenger car markets in world in next decade
COMPANY PROFILE
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 Suzuki.

Maruti Suzuki Limited (MSL) was established in February 1981, though the actual
production commenced in 1983 with the Maruti 800, based on the Suzuki Swift kei car
which at the time was the only modern car available in India, its' only competitors- the
Hindustan Ambassador and Premier Padmini were both around 25 years out of date at that
point. Through 2004, Maruti has produced over 5 Million vehicles. Marutis are sold in India
and various several other countries, depending upon export orders. Models similar to Marutis
(but not manufactured by Maruti Suzuki) are sold by Suzuki 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 SWIFT 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, was associated to the Maruti 800 model.

Maruti Suzuki India Limited, a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan, 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 New
Delhi. Marutis Gurgaon facility has an installed capacity of 350,000 units per annum. The
Manesar facilities, launched in February 2007 comprise a vehicle 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 cars. The company is a subsidiary of Suzuki
Motor Corporation, Japan, which owns 54.2 per cent of Maruti. The rest is owned by the
public and financial institutions. It is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National
Stock Exchange in India.

During 2007-08, Maruti Suzuki sold 764,842 cars, of which 53,024 were exported. In all,
over six million Maruti cars are on Indian roads since the first car was rolled out on 14
December 1983.

Maruti Suzuki offers 15 models, Maruti 800, Omni, Esteem, Baleno, Swift, Versa, Ritz,
Gypsy, A Star, Wagon R, Zen Estilo, Swift, Swift Dzire, SX4, and Grand Vitara. Swift, Swift
dzire, A star and SX4 are manufactured in Manesar, Grand Vitara is imported from Japan as a
completely built unit (CBU), remaining all models are manufactured in Maruti Suzuki's
Gurgaon Plant.

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.

Maruti is clearly an employer of choice for automotive engineers and young managers
from across the country. Nearly 75,000 people are employed directly by Maruti and its
partners.

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

Maruti Suzuki was born as a government company, with Suzuki as a minor partner to make a
people's car for middle class India. Over the years, the product range has widened, ownership
has changed hands and the customer has evolved. What remains unchanged, then and now, is
Marutis mission to motorise India.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Chairman- _ Mr. R. C. Bhargava

Managing Director and CEO Mr. Shinzo Nakanishi

Director _ Mr. Manvinder Singh Banga

Director _ Mr. Amal Ganguli

Director _ Mr. D. S. Brar

Director _ Mr. Keiichi Asai

Director _ Ms. Pallavi Shroff

Director _ Mr. Osamu Suzuki

Director _ Mr. Shuji Oishi

Director _ Mr. Kenichi Ayukawa

Director and Managing Executive Officer (Production)- Mr. Tsuneo Ohash


REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature shows the previous studies carried out by the researcher in this
field. Previous studies are reviewed in order to gain insight into extent of research. The
research problem can be more understood and made specific referring to theories, reports,
records and other information made in similar studies. This will provide the researcher with
the knowledge on what lines the study should proceed and serves to narrow the problem. The
main objective of the study is to measure Brand Awareness of TNPL products among the
people and the reviews are as follows:

Brand

A traditional definition of a brand was: the name associated with one or more items in the
product line, that is used to identify the source of character of the item(s) (Kotler, 2000).

The American Marketing Association (AMA) definition of a brand is a name, term, sign,
symbol, or design, or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of
one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors

Brand Equity

(Rooney, 1995) defines brand equity as a set of assets and liabilities linked to a brands name
and symbol that adds to or subtracts from the value provided by a product or service to a
customer. However, many factors can be attributed to the value of the brand for example
awareness, recall and recognition. Brand equity as a differentiating factor that can influence
consumers response to brands marketing activities. In an attempt to define the relationship
between customers and brands, the term brand equity in the marketing literature emerged

There have been different perspectives or considering brand equity; the customer-based
perspectives, the financial perspectives and combined perspectives. The first perspective of
brand equity is from a financial markets point of view where the asset value of a brand is
appraised (Farquhar, 1991). Customer-based brand equity is evaluating the consumers
response to a brand name (Keller, 1993). While this study focus on the customer based
perspectives.

A Framework for Measuring Customer-Based Brand Equity


Aaker (1991) defines Brand equity as the value that consumers associate
with a brand. It is the consumers perception of the overall superiority of a
product carrying that brand name when compared to other brands. Brand
equity refers to consumers perception rather than any objective
indicators. A conceptual framework for measuring customer-based brand
equity is developed by using the conceptualization of Aakers five
dimensions of brand equity

1. Brand Awareness

Aaker (1991) defines brand or name awareness as the ability of a potential buyer to
recognise or recall that a brand is a member of a certain product category. Therefore it is
important that a link between product class and brand is implicated because the scope of
brand awareness is very wide, ranging from an unsure sensation that the brand name is
recognised, to a conviction that it is the only one in the product class. Brand awareness refers
to the strength of a brands presence in the consumers mind.

It is a measure of the percentage of the target market that is aware of a brand name.
Marketers can create awareness among their target audience through repetitive advertising
and publicity. Brand awareness can provide a host of competitive advantages for the
marketer. These include the following:

Brand awareness renders the brand with a sense of familiarity.


Name awareness can be a sign of presence, commitment and substance.
The salience of a brand will decide if it is recalled at a key time in the purchasing
process.
Brand awareness is an asset that can be inordinately durable and thus sustainable.
It may be extremely difficult to dislodge a brand that had achieved a dominant
awareness level. Brand awareness is vitally important for all brands but high brand
awareness without an understanding of what sets one apart from the competition
does one virtually no good.
Brand awareness is measured according to the different ways in which consumers remember
a brand, which may include brand recognition, brand recall, top of the mind brand and
dominant brand.

Brand recognition: It related to consumers ability to confirm prior exposure to that


brand when given the brand a cue. It requires that consumers can correctly
discriminate the brand as having been previously seen or heard.
Brand recall: Brand recall relates to consumers aptitude to retrieve the brand from
memory given the product category, the needs fulfilled by the category or a purchase
or usage situation as a cue. It requires consumers to correctly generate the brand from
memory when given a relevant cue.
Top-of-mind brand: This is the brand name that first comes to mind when a
consumer is presented with the name of a product classification.
Dominant Brand: The ultimate awareness level is brand name dominance, where in
a recall task; most consumers can only provide the name of a single brand.

According to Aaker (1996), for new or niche brands, recognition can be


important. For well-known brands recall and top-of-mind are more
sensitive and meaningful. Brand knowledge and brand opinion can be
used in part to enhance the measurement of brand recall.

2. Brand Associations

A Brand association is the most accepted aspect of brand equity (Aaker


1992). Associations represent the basis for purchase decision and for
brand loyalty. Brand associations consist of all brand-related thoughts,
feelings, perceptions, images, experiences, beliefs, attitudes (Kotler and
Keller 2006) and is anything linked in memory to a brand. Chen A.C.H
(2001) categorized two types of brand associations - product associations
and organizational associations.

a. Product Associations
Product associations include functional attribute associations and non-
functional associations.

Functional attributes are the tangible features of a product (de


Chernatony and McWilliam, 1989). While evaluating a brand,
consumers link the performance of the functional attributes to the brand
(Pitta and Katsanis 1995). If a brand does not perform the functions for
which it is designed, the brand will has low level of brand equity.
Performance is defined as a consumers judgment about a brands fault-
free and long-lasting physical operation and flawlessness in the products
physical construction.

Non-functional attributes include symbolic attributes (Farquhar &


Herr 1993) which are the intangible features that meet consumers
needs for social approval, personal expression or self-esteem Consumers
linked social image of a brand, trustworthiness, perceived value,
differentiation and country of origin to a brand.

Social Image

Lassar (2010) limit the reference of the image dimension to the


social dimension, calling it social image as social image contributes more
to brand equity. Social image is defined as the consumers perception of
the esteem in which the consumers social group holds the brand. It
includes the attributions a consumer makes and a consumer thinks that
others make to the typical user of the brand.

Perceived Value

Value appeared in several brand equity models (Feldwick 2010)


define perceived value as the perceived brand utility relative to its costs,
assessed by the consumer and based on simultaneous considerations of
what is received and what is given up to receive it. Consumer choice of a
brand depends on a perceived balance between the price of a product
and all its utilities (Lassar 1995). A consumer is willing to pay premium
prices due to the higher brand equity.

Trustworthiness

Brand equity models (Lassar 2010) regard trustworthiness of a


product as an important attribute in assessing the strengths of a brand.
Also define trustworthiness as the confidence a consumer places in the
firm and the firms communications and as to whether the firms actions
would be in the consumers interest. Consumers place high value in the
brands that they trust.

Differentiation/Distinctiveness

The Marketing Science Institute (Leuthesser 2011) states that the


underlying determinants of consumer-based brand equity are that brands
provide benefits to consumers by differentiating products, as they
facilitate the processing and retrieval of information.

Other marketing literatures (Ries and Trout 2010) also stress the
importance of the distinctive character of brand positioning in
contributing to the success of a brand. Distinctiveness is defined as the
degree to which the consumer perceives that a brand is distinct from its
competitors. A brand can have a price premium if it is perceived as being
different from its competitors.

Country of origin

Thakor and Kohli (2012) argue that brand country of origin must
also be considered. He defines brand origin as the place, region or
country to which the brand is perceived to belong by its customers.
Country of origin is known to lead to associations in the minds of
consumers. The country of origin of a product is an extrinsic cue, which,
similar to brand name, is known to influence consumers perceptions.

Country of origin refers to the country of origin of a firm or a product


(Johansson 2012), or the country where the product is manufactured or
assembled. Also states that less concern should be given to the place
where brands manufacture their products, and more to the place where
people perceive the brands country of origin to be. Therefore, country of
origin in the proposed framework referred to the brands country of origin.

b. Organizational Associations

Organizational associations include corporate ability associations, which


are those associations related to the companys expertise in producing
and delivering its outputs and corporate social responsibility associations,
which include organizations activities with respect to its perceived
societal obligations

According to Aaker (2012), consumers consider the organization that


is the people, values, and programs that lies behind the brand. Brand-as-
organization can be particularly helpful when brands are similar with
respect to attributes, when the organization is visible (as in a durable
goods or service business), or when a corporate brand is involved.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) must be mentioned as another


concept that is influencing the development of brands nowadays,
especially corporate brands as the public wants to know what, where, and
how much brands are giving back to society. Both branding and CSR have
become crucially important now that the organizations have recognized
how these strategies can add or detract from their value (Blumenthal
and Bergstrom 2003). CSR can be defined in terms of legitimate ethics
or from an instrumentalist perspective where corporate image is the
prime concern.

3. Perceived quality

Perceived quality is the customers judgment about a products overall


excellence or superiority that is different from objective quality
(Zeithaml 2013). Objective quality refers to the technical, measurable
and verifiable nature of products/services, processes and quality controls.
He classified the concept of perceived quality in two groups of factors that
are intrinsic attributes and extrinsic attributes. The intrinsic attributes are
related to the physical aspects of a product (e.g. colour, flavour, form and
appearance); on the other hand, extrinsic attributes are related to the
product, but not in the physical part of this one (e.g. brand name, stamp
of quality, price, store, packaging and production information Its difficult
to generalize attributes as they are specific to product categories.

Zeithaml (2013) classify the concept of perceived quality in two


groups of factors that are intrinsic attributes and extrinsic attributes. The
intrinsic attributes are related to the physical aspects of a product (e.g.
colour, flavour, form and appearance); on the other hand, extrinsic
attributes are related to the product, but not in the physical part of this
one (e.g. brand name, stamp of quality, price, store, packaging and
production information. Its difficult to generalize attributes as they are
specific to product categories (Olson and Jacoby 2013)

4. Brand Loyalty

Loyalty is a core dimension of brand equity. Grembler and Brown


(1996) define brand loyalty as the attachment that a customer has to a
brand and describe different levels of loyalty. Behavioural loyalty is linked
to consumer behaviour in the marketplace that can be indicated by
number of repeated purchases or commitment to rebuy the brand as a
primary choice. Cognitive loyalty which means that a brand comes up
first in a consumers mind, when the need to make a purchase decision
arises, that is the consumers first choice. The cognitive loyalty is closely
linked to the highest level of awareness (top-of-mind), where the matter
of interest also is the brand, in a given category, which the consumers
recall first. Thus, a brand should be able to become the respondents first
choices (cognitive loyalty) and is therefore purchased repeatedly
(behavioural loyalty).

Chaudhuri & Holbrook (2001) mention that brand loyalty is directly


related to brand price. Identify price premium as the basic indicator of
loyalty. Price premium is defined as the amount a customer will pay for
the brand in comparison with another brand offering similar benefits and
it may be high or low and positive or negative depending on the two
brands involved in the comparison.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research methodology is a design or plan as a guide for conducting research and to systematically
solve the research problem. It includes research design, sampling procedures, data collection method and
analysis procedure. Following research methodology was adopted for the present study.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Research design is a blue print or framework which specifies the details of the procedures necessary
for obtaining the information needed to structure or solve research problems.

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH

Descriptive research is also called Statistical Research. The main goal of this type of research is to describe
the data and characteristics about what is being studied. The idea behind this type of research is to study
frequencies, averages, and other statistical calculations. Although this research is highly accurate, it does not
gather the causes behind a situation.

Descriptive research is mainly done when a researcher wants to gain a better understanding of a
topic for example, a frozen ready meals company learns that there is a growing demand for fresh ready
meals but doesnt know much about the area of fresh food and so has to carry out research in order to gain a
better understanding. It is quantitative and uses surveys and panels and also the use of probability sampling.

SAMPLE DESIGN

Sample means, Where only a small unit of population under study are considered for analysis. For
our research work, we have adopted methods. For this study adopted One Hundred and Eighty five samples
were taken under convenient sampling method.

DATA COLLECTION

While dealing about the method of data collection to be used for the study, we should keep in mind two type
of data. I.e. primary data and secondary data.

PRIMARY DATA
Primary Data are these which are collected for the first time and they are original in character. The
researcher himself to study a particular problem collects them. In this primary data has been collected for
supportive evidence and analytical study.

SECONDARY DATA

The Secondary Data are those, which are already collected by someone for some purpose and are
available for the present study. In this study secondary data has been collected for supportive evidence and
analytical study

DATA COLLECTION INSTRUMENT

In this project, the researcher has used questionnaire for collecting the primary data. The questionnaire
consists of a number of questions typed in a definite order on a form or set of forms relating to certain
specific aspects regarding which the researcher collects the data. The types of questions used in the
questionnaire for the project are

TYPES OF QUESTIONS

Open-ended questions
Open-ended questions are the type of questions used to get suggestion from the respondent in order to give
feed back to the organization.

Close-ended questions
Close-ended questions are the type of questions with a clear declined set of alternatives that
confine the respondent to choose one of them. It is of two types

a) Multiple-choice questions

In this type of questions, the respondents are given 4-5 choices in which the respondents has to select
one. For this type of questions, we can apply statistical tools like Chi-square and weighted average method.

b) Dichotomous questions

In this type of questions, the respondents are given two choices in which the respondents has to
select one. For this type of questions, we can apply statistical tools like internal estimate method.
c) Ranking

In ranking, questions will have the ranking skill, where the respondents are free to rank them
according to their preference.

SAMPLE SIZE

This refers to the number of items to be selected from the universe to a sample. The size of the sample
may neither be excessively large not too small. An optimum sample is one that fulfills the requirements of
efficiency, representativeness, reliability and flexibility. The size of the sample for the study is 120.

TOOLS USED FOR ANALYSIS

The Statistical tools are used for analyzing the data are:

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS
CHI-SQUARE

CORRELATION COEFFICIENT

ONE WAY ANOVA

1) PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

Percentage analysis shows the entire population in terms of percentages. It reveals the number of
belonging is a particular category or the number of people preferring a particular thing, etc., in terms of
percentage. In this study, the number of people who responded in a particulars manner is interpreted in the
form of percentages.

Each table has been calculated on the basis of percentage.

No of respondents

Percentage = ------------------------------ X 100


Total respondents

2) CHI SQUARE TEST ANALYSIS

The chi-square test a fairly, simple and definitely the most popular of all the other tools, the chi-square
test is most widely used non-parametric tests in statistical work. It makes no assumption about being
sampled. The quantity chi-square describes the magnitude of discrepancy between theory and observation.

2 = (Oi Ei) 2

i=1 Ei

3) KARL PEARSON CORRELATION COEFFICIENT:

Pearson's correlation coefficient between two variables is defined as the covariance of the two
variables divided by the product of their standard deviations. Pearsons r, and is typically denoted by r) is a
measure of the correlation (linear dependence) between two variables X and Y, giving a value between +1
and 1 inclusive. It is widely used in the sciences as a measure of the strength of linear dependence between
two variables.The correlation can also be written as

Karl Pearson r=

4) ONE WAY ANOVA (F-Test)

The analysis of variance (ANOVA or F-test) is used in such problem where a research wants to test
for the significances of the difference between more than two as sample mean. This is one of the most
powerful statistical techniques. The ANOVA is used in every type of experiment design concentrating both
natural and social sciences.
One Way Classifications

In one way classifications, data are collected according to one criterion. The null hypothesis takes the
form that is; arithmetic means of the population from which the K samples are randomly drawn are equal to
one another.

WORKING PROCEDURE

Step 1: H0: There is no significant different between column means as well as between row means

H1: There is significant difference between column means or row means

Step 2: Find the Total number of Observations (N)

Step 3: Find the Total of all Observations (T)

Step 4: Find Critical Factor (C.F)

Step 5: Find the Total sum of squares (TSS) = Xij2 CF

Step 6: Find the Column Sum of Squares (CSS)

Step 7: ESS = TSS CSS

Source of Sum of Degrees of Mean Sum of F-Ratio


Variance Squares Freedom Squares

Between CSS
Columns c-1 M1= CSS/ c-1

Fc =
ESS N-c M2 = ESS/N-c
Residual
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

AGE

TABLE- 1
NO. OF
Sl.No. AGE RESPONDENTS %
1 18-25 25 20
2 26-35 55 50
3 36-45 20 20
4 46 & above 20 10
Total 120 100

CHART- 1

INTERPRETATION

The above study shows that 50 % of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT customers are in the age of
26-35, 20 % in the age of 18-25, 20% in the age of 36-45, and 10 % in the age range of 46
and above.
EDUCATION QUALIFICATION

TABLE 2

Sl. EDUCATION NO. OF


No. QUALLIFICATION RESPONDENTS %
1 BELOW SSLC 25 20
2 SSLC 15 10
3 HSC 15 10
DEGREE &
4 ABOVE 65 60
TOTAL 120 100

CHART- 2

INTERPRETATION

The above study shows that 60% of customers are degree and above,20 % are below SSLC,
10 % are SSLC and 10 % are HSC.
INCOME GROUP

TABLE- 3

INCOME NO.OF
SL.NO GROUP RESPONDENT %
BELOW 1
1 LAKH 70 60
2 1-2 LAKH 20 20
3 2-3 LAKH 15 10
4 3-4 LAKH 15 10
4 LAKH &
5 ABOVE 0 0
TOTAL 120 100
CHART-3

INCOME GROUP

INTERPRETATION

The above chart shows that 60 % of the customers are in th income group of below 1 lakh
p.a, 20 % in 1-2 lakh,10 % in 2-3 lakh and 10 % in 3-4 lakh & above.
INFORMATION ABOUT MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT

TABLE- 4
INDORMATION
ABOUT
S. MARUTI NO. OF
NO SUZUKI SWIFT RESPONDENTS %
1 NEWS MEDIA 80 70
2 FRIENDS 40 30
COMPANY
3 SALESMAN 0 0
4 OTHERS 0 0
TOTAL 120 100

CHART-4

INTERPRETATION

The study shows that 70 % of the customers are got information about about MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT though News media and a 30 % though their friends.
INFORMATION ABOUT SAFETY MEASURES

TABLE- 5

SL INFORMATION NO. OF
NO ABOUT SAFETY RESPONDENTS %
1 NEWS MEDIA 38 32
2 FRIENDS 20 16
COMPANY
3 SALESMAN 62 52
4 OTHERS 0 0
TOTAL 120 100

CHART-5

INTERPRETATION

The research result shows that 52 % of customers got information about safety measures
from the company salesman, 32 % from News media and a 16 % from their friends.

MILEAGE OF THE CAR


TABLE- 6

SL NO. OF
NO MILEAGE RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 50 46
2 Satisfied 70 54
3 Neutral 0 0
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART -6

INTERPRETATION

The study showing that 54 % of the customers are Satisfied and 46 % of customers are High
satisfied with the Mileage of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

ROAD GRIP

TABLE- 7

SL ROAD GRIP NO. OF %


NO RESPONDENTS
1 High Satisfied 45 34

2 Satisfied 75 66
3 Neutral 0 0
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART- 7

INTERPRETATION

The study shows that 66 % of the customers are satisfied, and 34 % are high satisfied with
the road grip.

MAINTENANCE COST
TABLE- 8

SL MAINTENANCE NO. OF
NO COST RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 40 32
2 Satisfied 77 62
3 Neutral 3 6
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART- 8

MAINTENANCE COST

INTERPRETATION

The research shows that 62 % of customer are satisfied, 32 % are high satisfied, and 6 % are
Neutral with the maintenance cost.

SEATING CAPACITY

TABLE-9

SEATING NO. OF
SL NO CAPACITY RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 35 28
2 Satisfied 75 64
3 Neutral 10 8
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART- 9

INTERPRETATION

The graph shows that 64 % of customrs are satisfied , 28 % are high satisfied, and 8% are
neutral with the seating capacity.
QUALITY OF AC

TABLE- 10

SL QUALITY OF NO. OF
NO AC RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 30 20
2 Satisfied 85 78
3 Neutral 5 2
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART-10

INTERPRETATION

The chart shows that 78 % of customers are satisfied and 20 % are high satisfied and 2 % are
Neutral with the quality of AC.
ENGINE CAPACITY

TABLE- 11

SL ENGINE NO. OF
NO CAPACITY RESPONDENTS %
High
1 Satisfied 15 10
2 Satisfied 40 30
3 Neutral 65 60
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART- 11

ENGINE CAPACITY

INTERPRETATION

The study showing that 60 % of the customers are neutral, 30 % are satisfied and 10 % are
high satisfied with the engine capacity iofMARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

INFORMATION ABOUT MILEAGE

CHART -12
INFORMATION
SL ABOUT NO. OF
NO MELEAGE RESPONDENTS %
1 NEWS MEDIA 20 16
2 FRIENDS 75 66
COMPANY
3 SALESMAN 25 18
4 OTHERS 0 0
TOTAL 120 100

CHART-12

INTERPRETATION

The graph showing 66 % of customers got information about mileage from friends. 18 %
from company salesman and 16 % customers from news media.

DESIGN AND STYLE

TABLE -13

SL DESIGN AND NO. OF


NO STYLE RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 45 38
2 Satisfied 65 58
3 Neutral 10 4
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART 13

INTERPRETATION

The research shows that 58 % of customers are satisfied, 38 % are high satisfied and 4 % are
neutral with the design style of the car.
SIZE OF THE CAR

TABLE- 14

SIZE OF
NO. OF
THE CAR
SL NO RESPONDENTS %
High
1 Satisfied 45 36
2 Satisfied 55 52
3 Neutral 20 12
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART- 14

INTERPRETATION

The graph shows that 52 % of the customers are satisfied , 36 % are high satisfied,and 12 %
are neutral with the size of the car.

SATISFACTION FROM THE VALUE

TABLE-15
SATISFACTION
SL FROM THE NO. OF
NO VALUE RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 30 24
2 Satisfied 80 70
3 Neutral 10 6
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 120 100

CHART -15

SATISFACTION FROM THE VALUE

INTERPRETATION

The study shows that 70 % of the customers are satisfied,24 % are high satisfied and 6 % are
neutral with the satisfaction with the value.
SPACE FOR LUGGAGE

TABLE-16

SL SPACE FOR NO. OF


NO LUGGAGE RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 15 8
2 Satisfied 50 46
3 Neutral 45 40
4 Dis Satisfied 10 6
Total 120 100

CHART- 16

INTERPRETATION

The graph shows that 46 % of the respondents are satisfied, 40 % are neutral ,8% are high
satisfied and 6 % are dis satisfied with the space for luggage.
BUYING INDUCEMENT

TABLE-17

SL BUYING NO. OF
NO INDUCEMENT RESPONDENTS %
1 Self interest 34 68
Recommended by
2 friends 14 28
3 Advertisement 2 4
4 Others 0 0
Total 50 100

CHART- 17

BUYING INDUCEMENT

INTERPRETATION

The graph shows the inducement of customers to buy the car as 68 % by self interest, 28
% recomented by friends and 4 % by advertisement.

BRAND SELECTION

TABLE- 18
BRAND NO. OF
SL NO SELECTION RESPONDENTS %
1 High Satisfied 19 38
2 Satisfied 31 62
3 Neutral 0 0
4 Dis Satisfied 0 0
Total 50 100

CHART- 18

INTERPRETATION

The graph showing that 68 % of the customers are satisfied and 32 % are high satisfied with
the brand selection.

RANKING METHOD

Analyzing the attribute considered by the consumers while purchasing MARUTI SUZUKI
SWIFT.

RANK
ATTRIBUTE 1 2 3 4 TOTAL

STYLE 41 23 26 30 120
MILEAGE 10 41 43 26 120
PRICE 29 30 25 36 120

MAINTENANCE 31 10 22 56 120

Analyzing in weighted ranking method.

RANK

ATTRIBUTE 1 2 3 4 TOTAL
4 3 2 1
STYLE 84 39 12 10 145
MILEAGE 12 63 66 3 144
PRICE 76 54 22 2 154
MAINTENANCE 36 15 22 25 98

TOTAL 661

Style = (145/ 661) 100 = 21.94 %

Mileage = (144/661) 100 = 21.79 %

Price = (154/661) 100 = 23.3 %

Maintenance= (98/661)100=14.83 %
The test Showing that consumers considering style of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT by 21.94
% , Mileage 21.79 %, Price 23.3 % and maintanence 14.83%.

And the result of this test is that Price is the most considering attribute for the
Customers of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

CHI SQUARE TEST

4.18CHI- SQUARE TEST I (2)

Chi-square is the sum of the squared difference observed (o) and the expected (e) data (or the deviation, d),
divided by the expected data in all possible categories.

Null hypothesis (Ho):


There is no relationship betweenthe exporting marketsand Exportation Of Goods.

Alternate hypothesis (H1):

There is a relationship betweenthe exporting marketsand Exportation Of Goods.


FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND
CONCLUSION

FINDINGS
FINDINGS

1. The study shows that maximum of 50% of the respondents are from the age of 26-35.

2. The study shows that 60 % of the respondents are belongs to the income group of
below 1 lakh p.a

3. The study shows that 70 % of the respondents are got information about about
MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT though News media.

4. The study shows that 52 % of respondents got information about safety measures from
the company salesman,

5. The study shows that 66 % of respondents got information about mileage from friends.

6. The study shows that 66 % of the respondents are satisfied,with the road grip.

7. The study shows that 62 % of respondents are satisfied with the maintenance cost.
8. The study shows that 64 % of respondents are satisfied with the seating capacity.

9. The study shows that 78 % of respondents are satisfied with the quality of AC

10.The study showing that 60 % of the respondents are neutral with the engine capacity
of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.

11.The study shows that 54 % of the respondents are with the Mileage of MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT.

12.The study shows that 58% are satisfied with the design and style

13. The study shows that,52% are satisfied with the size of the car.

14.. The research shows that 70 % of the customers are satisfied, with the satisfaction
with the value.

15. The study shows that 46 % of the respondents are satisfied with the space available
for luggage.

16.The study shows that 68% are satisfied with the brand selection.

17.The study shows that 68% of the respondents shows self interest to buy the car

The research shows that the middle income people are accepting the Maruti Swift as
peoples car. They are much aware about the Brand. So the Maruti Swift possessing a well
brand image among the public. The customers are very satisfied with the style, price,
comfortness, mileage, maintenance cost etc. The customers who belong to below 1 lakh
p.a. income group are more interested with the price and after that they considering
comfortness of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT. In their view MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT is the
budgeted car.
SUGGESTION

SUGGESTION
Since 40 % of the respondents strongly argued for the improvement of the availability
of space for luggage. It is the major suggestion from the customers.

The customers are not getting much information about the engine details of MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT from outside. Majority of them are getting information from the
company salesman. So the advertisement should provide more details about the
engine.

The research reveals that only 4 % of the customers induced to buy MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT by the effect of advertisement. So it results that the advertisement is
not so effective. So the company should take some improvement in the advertisement.

Some portion of the customers are suggesting make some innovative change in the
design and style of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT without changing the price.

The size of the car should be increased.

A little more space needed for comfort seating facility.

In this study I found that Pick up of the car decreases if you use the AC. The driver
want to push the drivers seat completely behind to drive comfortably because the leg
room is small. I suggest the company to solve this problem.

Quality of Plastic is low. The customers suggesting that company should improve the
quality of plastic.

Some respondents opinion is that Engine Noise enters the Cabin and is very annoying

.Many respondents are not much satisfied with the space available for the luggage so
the company has to provide extra space for the luggage.
CONCLUSION

Conclusion
Since the brand awareness of consumers is the purpose of this study. Survey is
conducted in Chennai district through questionnaire taking 120 customers. From this survey
I got valuable suggestions, opinion and views of the customers. The ranking test showing
that Price is the most considering attribute for the Customers of MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT.
And the Chi square test shows that the size of the car is effecting on customers brand
selection.The customers have strong suggestion for improvement mainly in the availability
of space for luggage. The middle class peoples are considering the MARUTI SUZUKI
SWIFT as the budgeted car. From this study it is clear that MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT have
a good brand image among the public and the customers had been satisfied with the product
performance. The customers are well aware about the performance and features of MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Philip Kotler & Kevin Lane Keller- Marketing Management.
2. Kothari.C.R- Research Methodology.
3. A. Vinod Marketing Management.
4. www.wikipedia.com
5. www.C.A.R.Sindia.in
6. www.marutisuzuki.com
7. www.gaadi.com

QUESTIONNAIRE
A STUDY ON CONSUMERS BRAND AWARENESS TOWARDS
MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT
QUESTIONNAIRE
1. Name :

2. Age : 18-25 26-35 36-45 46 & above


3. Educational qualification :
Below SSLC SSLC HSC Degree & above
4. Which income group you belongs to?
Below 1 lakh 1-2 lakh 2-3 lakh 3-4lakh 4lakh & above
5. What are the attributes considered while purchasing MARUTI SUZUKI
SWIFT?
Rank them (1-4) Style Mileage Price Maintenance
6. Where did you got information about MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT?
News media Friends company salesman Others
7. Where did you got information about safety measures of MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT?
News media Friends company salesman Others
8. How satisfied are you with the mileage of the car?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied


9. Are you getting the expected road grip?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied


10. How is the maintainence cost relative to your expectation?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied


11. Are you satisfied with the seating capacity?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied


12. Are you satisfied with the quality of AC ?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied

13.How did you come to know about engine capacity?

News media Friends company salesman Others

14. From where did you got information about mileage of MARUTI SUZUKI
SWIFT?

News media Friends company salesman Others

15. Are you satisfied with the design and style?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied

16. Are you stisfied with the size of the car?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied

17. What is the degree of satisfaction derived from the product as per
value paid for MARUTI
SUZUKI SWIFT?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied

18. Mention your satisfaction regarding space available for luggage.

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied


19.What induced you to buy MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT?

Self interest By friends Advertisement Others

20.Are you satisfied with your brand selection?

High Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dis satisfied

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