CHAPTER - I

INTRODUCTION

As organizations become increasingly customer focused and driven by demand, the

need to gain customer loyalty and retain their loyalty is critical. Customer satisfaction
is the most effective way to achieve customer loyalty. Customer satisfaction and
customer loyalty share many similar traits. Customer value is the customer‘s
perception of the ratio of benefits to what he or she gives to obtain those benefits. The
customer Value Triad is a framework used to understand what it is that customers
want. The framework consists of three parts: (1) perceived product quality, (2) value-
based pricing, and (3) perceived service quality.

Customers are satisfied, when value meets or exceeds expectations. If their

expectations of value are not met, there is no chance of satisfying them. Figuring out
what the customers want, however, is a difficult and complex process. To be able to
create and deliver customer value is important to understand its components. On the
most basic level, value from a customer‘s perspective is the ratio of benefits to the
risks being taken while buying the product.

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AN INSIGHT

According to Harold E Edmondson ― Customer Satisfaction‖ seems to appear in print

more frequently than any other catch phrase used to describe a new found magic for
industrial success. Before we proceed in to the study of the dynamics of Customer
Satisfaction it is important to know about, who a customer is and what satisfaction
really means.

Who really is a Customer?

The question of defining who your customers are seems fairly easy particularly if you
have segmented your market properly and understand who you are trying to satisfy.
However subtlety that frequently goes undetected by many firms is that is that
customer set can be divided into two parts, the apparent customer and the user. The
apparent customer is the person or group of people who decide what product to buy
and basically have control over the purse strings. The user is a person or group who
physically uses the product or is the direct recipient of a service.

1
What does satisfaction really mean?

As in defining customer above, defining satisfaction also appears simple. However as

with customer there is a subtlety that needs addressing. Satisfaction by most
definitions simply means meeting the customer‘s requirement. Customer satisfaction
is a concept that more and more companies are putting at the heart of their strategy,
but for this to be successful they‘re needs to be clarity about, what customer
satisfaction means and what needs to happen to drive improvement.

Without this, there is a risk that customer satisfaction becomes little more than a good
intention, with confused objectives failing to address the real issues for customers,
one helpful way to look at the problem is to rephrase the objectives: set the sights on
helping the customers meet their goals.

Customer satisfaction can be defined in many different ways. Finding the right way
for a company depends on understanding your customer and on having a clear vision
of the role that customer satisfaction is to play in the strategy. For example, a focus on
customer satisfaction can work alongside existing segmentations to support revenue
generation from high value customers or it can be a company-wide objective rooted in
the brand values. For the former, it may be sufficient to focus on improving customer
service, but for the latter a broader definition of customer satisfaction is necessary,
closer akin to corporate reputation.

Whatever the strategy for customer satisfaction, it must at least include getting the
basics right. Failing to achieve this can destroy the reputation as well as losing
valuable customers. Every customer, regardless of their economic worth to the
business, has the power to influence – positively or negatively – a company‘s
reputation. Once the objectives for the customer satisfaction strategy are defined there
are a number of steps we can take to make sure the focus on customer satisfaction is
effective.

Building a company around Customer Satisfaction

With the increase in customer‘s demands and competition it has become a lot more
important to base the entire company on customer service. When doing this one must
first realize that every member of an organization plays an active role in customer

2
service. This includes both external customers and internal customers within a
company.

Customer focused organizations focus both on customer satisfaction and profit.

Achieving customer satisfaction generates the profit. In these organizations top
management has frequent contacts with external customers. The top management uses
consultative, participative, and supportive management styles to get through to the
customer. The staff focuses all of its attention on satisfying the customer‘s needs.
However, the management‘s job is to provide the staff with support necessary to
achieve these goals. The other department and staff in the organization that do not
have direct contact with the external customers deal exclusively with internal
customer satisfaction.

The Influence of the salesperson in Customer SatisfactionIn an article titled, ―The

influence of salesperson selling behavior on customer satisfaction with products,‖
Brent G.Goff and James S. Boles examine the effects of non-product related construct
on customer satisfaction with major retail purchases such as automobiles. The article
states that salesperson‘s selling orientation- customer orientation (SOCO) will affect
not only consumer satisfaction with the salesperson and dealer, but also indirectly,
satisfaction with the product or manufacturer.

In the perspectives of both the retailer and the manufacturer, customer satisfaction
represents an important issue because it relates to several desirable outcomes.
Customer satisfaction leads to future purchases, and repeated purchases of the same
product from the same source. In other words, it helps a firm retain its present
customers and build loyalty. By helping a buyer obtain product information and
providing guidelines about what should be expected during the buying process and
use of a product, a salesperson may influence customer expectations concerning the
product. Thereby this may reduce the likelihood of dissatisfaction (Grewal and
Sharma, 1991). A successful salesperson tailors to the needs of each individual
customer. By being customer-oriented, a salesperson is likely to identify with needs of
the customer, enabling the salesperson to match his or her presentation to those
requirements of the customer.

3
Internal Marketing – how it affects Customer Satisfaction

Successful companies make every effort to ensure satisfaction to their customer by

focusing all organizational efforts of the company on providing superior customer
service. By doing this these companies hope to retain their existing customers and
attract new ones. Only angle of customer satisfaction commonly overlooked is the
internal aspect.

The internal customer or employee plays a vital role in achieving customer

satisfaction and loyalty. Some firm‘s do not understand that the treatment of internal
customers becomes the external customers‘ perception of the company. A firm‘s
employees or other departments within the organization make up its internal
customers. Their job performance affects the firm‘s ability to deliver superior product
and customer service (Boone and Kurtz, 1999). When a firm‘s employees are happy
at work, their overall attitude and performance towards the customer enhances
tremendously. Internal marketing helps members or employees of an organization
understand and fulfill their roles in implementing its marketing strategy. Internal
marketing not only keeps employees happy, it also shows them how their actions
affect the firm‘s ability to achieve customer satisfaction.

Customer Satisfaction as part of Service Profit Chain:

A Harvard Business Review article outlines the internal process required to drive
growth and increase profitability. The article describes the ways in which service
quality contributes to success, outlining the steps in the ―Service-profit chain‖:

In this world of competition any organization cannot avoid Customers. It has

become a necessity for an organization for its survival in any industry so that
customer satisfaction plays important role in each an every product life cycle.

Customer satisfaction survey for Maruti Suzuki is the project conducted for
Maruti Suzuki Automotive pvt. Ltd in city of Amravati. Today Companies are
facing toughest competition ever. The intense competition makes the
companies to take the necessary steps.

4
To retain their existing customer as well as attract new once. In the
environment of advancement of the technology the companies are trying hard
to keep the pace with latest development.

This survey will help the company to know the customers satisfaction level
and feedback of customers at the product in Amravati. It will also help
company to know about the competitors. This will help company to know
about wants and expectation of customers.

The company can also know if there are any problems faced by the customers
in that region. This survey has conducted a geographical are in Amravati.

5
 CHAPTER - II

TITLE OF THE PROJECT

A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION TOWARDS MARUTI

SUZUKI CARS IN JORHAT TOWN.

OBJECTIVES

The main objectives of the study are:

 To study the level of customer satisfaction towards Maruti Suzuki Cars

 To study the factors those satisfy and delight the customer.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

There is a tremendous amount of scope for future research in this area, that is the
Automobile Industry, some possibilities can be:

 Comprehensive research on all the competitors in the market.

 Research on the buying behavior which would include brand performance,
brand attitudes, product satisfaction, purchase behavior, purchase intentions,
brand awareness, segmentation studies, etc.
 Study of perceptions among people regarding automobiles (Maruti) and their
preferences of the type of vehicles (cars).

METHODOLOGY

Descriptive study:

The research undertaken was a descriptive research as it was concerned with specific
predictions, with narration of facts and characteristics concerning Customer
satisfaction towards Maruti Suzuki in Jorhat town.

Sampling Design

The following factors have been decided within the scope of sample design:

6
Universe of Study

Universe of the study means all the persons who are the customers of Maruti Suzuki
Jorhat town..

Sample Size

A sample of minimum respondents will be selected from various areas of Lucknow

City. An effort was made to select respondents evenly. The survey was carried out on
100 respondents.

Sampling Technique

For the purpose of research convenient sampling technique was used.

Sources of Data:

The data has been collected from both primary and secondary sources, to get
information regarding the organization and products.

Primary Data: Primary data has been collected through questionnaires. The
questionnaire was mostly related to the brand awareness towards Maruti after sale
services.

Secondary Data: Secondary data has been taken from Reports, Pamphlets,
Advertisement, Customer database, News papers and Internet.

Sampling

Out of few lakes of Maruti Suzuki customers spread all over India, the customers
Jorhat town only are taken as target population for the study.

The sample size of 100 is selected from the database of the dealer. The study
requires on in depth survey and keen observation in a collecting data regarding the
brand awareness levels of Maruti customers.

Only simple random sampling technique is adopted in selection the sample. In

this technique, each and every unit of the population has on equal opportunity of
being selected in the sample.

7
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
Though it is tried to put out the best result from the questionnaire to prepare the
dissertation but it cannot be declined the limitations of data collection. The major
limitations of the dissertation are:

a) The responses given by the respondents may not be true

b) The respondents may be careless in responding to the questionnaire
c) Time is the major constraint of the study.
d) Since sample is only 100 which is not a true representative of the population
as a whole.
e) The study is confined only to Jorhat town.
f) Lack of professional approach since researcher is a student.

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 CHAPTER – III

LITERATURE REVIEW

Customer satisfaction, as a construct, has been fundamental to marketing for over

three decades. As early as 1960, Keith (1960) defined marketing as ―satisfying the
needs and desires of the consumer”. Hunt (1982) reported that by the 1970s, interest
in customer satisfaction had increase to such an extent that over 500 studies were
published. This trend continued and by 1992, Peterson and Wilson estimated the
amount of academic and trade articles on customer satisfaction to be over 15,000.

Several studies have shown that it costs about five times to gain a new customer as it
does to keep an existing customer (Naumann, 1995) and this results into more interest
in customer relationships. Thus, several companies are adopting customer satisfaction
as their operational goal with a carefully designed framework. Hill and Alexander
(2000) wrote in their book that ―companies now have big investment in database
marketing, relationship management and customer planning to move closer to their
customers”. Jones and Sasser (1995) wrote that ―achieving customer satisfaction is
the main goal for most service firms today‖.

Increasing customer satisfaction has been shown to directly affect companies‘ market
share, which leads to improved profits, positive recommendation, lower marketing
expenditures (Reichheld, 1996; Heskett et al., 1997), and greatly impact the corporate
image and survival (Pizam and Ellis, 1999).

Parker and Mathew (2001) expressed that there are two basic definitional approaches
of the concept of customer satisfaction. The first approach defines satisfaction as a
process and the second approach defines satisfaction as an outcome of a consumption
experience. These two approaches are complementary, as often one depends on the
other.

Customer satisfaction as a process is defined as an evaluation between what was

received and what was expected (Oliver, 1977, 1981; Olson and Dover, 1979; Tse and
Wilton, 1988), emphasizing the perceptual, evaluative and psychological processes
that contribute to customer satisfaction (Vavra, 1997, p. 4).

9
Parker and Mathews (2001) however noted that the process of satisfaction definitions
concentrates on the antecedents to satisfaction rather than satisfaction itself.
Satisfaction as a process is the most widely adopted description of customer
satisfaction and a lot of research efforts have been directed at understanding the
process approach of satisfaction evaluations (Parker and Mathews, 2001). This
approach has its origin in the discrepancy theory (Porter, 1961), which argued that
satisfaction is determined by the perception of a difference between some standard
and actual performance.

Cardozo (1965); and Howard and Sheth (1969) developed the contrast theory, which
showed that consumers would exaggerate any contrasts between expectations and
product evaluations.

Olshavsky and Miller (1972); and Olson and Dover (1979) developed the assimilation
theory, which means that perceived quality is directly increasing with expectations.
Assimilation effects occur when the difference between expectations and quality is
too small to be perceived.

Anderson (1973) further developed this theory into assimilation-contrast theory,

which means if the discrepancy is too large to be assimilated then the contrast effects
occur. The assimilation-contrast effects occur when the difference between
expectations and quality is too large to be perceived and this difference is exaggerated
by consumers.

According to Parker and Mathews (2001), the most popular descendant of the
discrepancy theories is the expectation disconfirmation theory (Oliver, 1977, 1981),
which stated that the result of customers‘ perceptions of the difference between their
perceptions of performance and their expectations of performance.

Positive disconfirmation leads to increased satisfaction, with negative disconfirmation

having the opposite effect. Yi (1990) expressed that customers buy products or
services with pre-purchase expectations about anticipated performance, once the
bought product or service has been used, outcomes are compared against
expectations. If the outcome matches expectations, the result is confirmation. When
there are differences between expectations and outcomes, disconfirmation occurs.
Positive disconfirmation occurs when product or service performance exceeds

10
expectations. Therefore, satisfaction is caused by positive 1disconfirmation or
confirmation of customer expectations, and dissatisfaction is the negative
disconfirmation of customer expectations (Yi, 1990). While several studies support
the disconfirmation paradigm, others do not. For instance, Churchill and Surprenant
(1982) found that neither disconfirmation nor expectations had any effect on customer
satisfaction with durable products.

Weiner (1980, and 1985); and Folkes (1984) proposed the attribution theory, which
stated that when a customer purchases a product or service, if the consumption is
below expectation, the customer is convinced that the supplier causes the
dissatisfaction. The complaining customer is focused on restoring justice and the
satisfaction outcome is driven by perceived fairness of the outcome of complaining.

Westbrook and Reilly (1983) proposed the value-percept theory, which defines
satisfaction as an emotional response caused by a cognitive-evaluative process, which
is the comparison of the product or service to one's values rather than an expectation.
So, satisfaction is a discrepancy between the observed and the desired.

Fisk and Young (1985); Swan and Oliver (1985) proposed the equity theory, which
stated that individuals compare their input and output ratios with those of others and
feel equitable treated. Equity judgement is based on two steps; first, the customer
compares the outcome to the input and secondly, performs a relative comparison of
the outcome to the other party.

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 CHAPTER – IV

COMPANY PROFILE

Maruti Suzuki India Limited, formerly known as Maruti Udyog Limited, is an

automobile manufacturer in India. It is a subsidiary of Japanese automobile and
motorcycle manufacturer Suzuki Motor Corporation.As of January 2017, it had a
market share of 51% of the Indian passenger car market. Maruti Suzuki manufactures
and sells popular cars such as the Ciaz, Ertiga, Alto, Swift, Celerio,

Swift Dzire and Omni.The company is headquartered at New Delhi.In February 2012,
the company sold its ten millionth (ten million = one crore) vehicle in India. Maruti
Udyog Limited (MUL) was established in Feb 1981 through an Act of Parliament, to
meet the growing demand of a personal mode of transport caused by the lack of an
efficient public transport system. Suzuki Motor Company was chosen from seven
prospective partners worldwide. This was not only due to their undisputed leadership
in small cars but also to their commitment to actively bring to MUL contemporary
technology and Japanese management practices (which had catapulted Japan over
USA to the status of the top auto manufacturing country in the world). A license and a
Joint Venture agreement were signed between Govt of India and Suzuki Motor
Company (now Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan) in Oct 1982. The objectives of
MUL then were: Modernization of the Indian Automobile Industry, Production of
fuel-efficient vehicles to conserve scarce resources, Production of large number of
motor vehicles which was necessary for economic growth.

Maruti Suzuki is the only Indian company to have crossed the 10 million sales mark
since its inception. The company has two manufacturing facilities located at Gurgaon
and Manesar, south of New Delhi, India. Both the facilities have a combined
capability to produce over a 1.5 million (1,500,000) vehicles annually.

Maruti Suzuki offers 16 brands and over 150 variants ranging from people’s car
Maruti 800 to the latest Life Utility Vehicles, Ertiga. Maruti Suzuki’s portfolio
includes Maruti 800, Alto, Alto K10, A-Star, Estilo, Wagon-R, Ritz, Swift, Swift
Dzire, SX4, Omni, Eeco, Kizashi, Grand Vitara, Gypsy and Ertiga. The company
employs over 9000 people (as on 31st March 2012). Maruti Suzuki’s sales and service

12
network is the largest among car manufacturers in India. The company has been rated
first in customer satisfaction in the JD Power survey for 12 consecutive years.

Over two and half decades, Maruti Suzuki has won the hearts of customers through
high quality products and services. The company is engaged in the business of
Manufacturing, Purchase and sale of motor vehicles and Spare parts. The other
activities of the company includes facilitation of pre-owned car sales, fleet
management and car financing.

The company has seven subsidiary companies, namely Maruti Insurance Business
Agency Ltd, Maruti Insurance Distribution Services Ltd, Maruti Insurance Agency
Solutions Ltd, Maruti Insurance Agency network Ltd, Maruti Insurance Agency
Services Ltd, Maruti Insurance Agency Logistics Ltd and True Value Solutions Ltd.

The first six subsidiaries are engaged in the business of selling motor insurance
policies to owners of Maruti Suzuki vehicles and seventh subsidiary, True Value
Solutions Ltd is engaged in the business of sale of certified pre-owned cars under the
brand ‘Maruti True Value’.

Maruti Suzuki believes in the simple concept of “smaller, fewer, lighter, shorter and
neater.” The work culture is unique where a common uniform and a common canteen
for everyone from the Managing Director to the worker.

 Maruti Suzuki strongly believes on following core values-

 Customer Obsession
 Fast, Flexible & First Mover
 Innovation & Creativity
 Networking & Partnership
 Openness & Learning

13
The following table depicts various models of Maruti Suzuki, categorized on the basis
of its segment.

Maruti’s Locally Manufactured Vehicles

Sr.No Model Type / Segment

1 Maruti 800 Mini

2 Alto 800 Mini

3 Alto K10 Compact

4 Omni Vans

5 Gypsy Utility Vehicle

6 Estilo Compact

7 Wagon R Mini

8 Eeco Vans

9 A-Star Mini

10 Ritz Compact

11 Swift Compact

12 SX4 Mid Size

13 Swift Dzire Super Compact

14 Ertiga Utility Vehicle

Maruti’s Imported Vehicles

Sr.No Model Type/Segment

1 Grand Vitara Utility Vehicle

2 Kizashi Passenger Executive

14
MANUFACTURING FACILITIES OF MARUTI SUZUKI

Maruti Suzuki has achieved its goal because of its unbelievable Manufacturing
excellence. With an object to fulfill the demand of market, today Maruti Suzuki’s
plants are comparable with the best in the world in terms of Quality, Productivity
and Operational efficiency.

Maruti Suzuki has two state-of-the art manufacturing facilities in India. Both
manufacturing facilities have a combined production capacity of 12,50,000
vehicles annually.

• Gurgaon Manufacturing Facility

The Gurgaon manufacturing plant is spread over 300 acres. This facility houses
three fully integrated plants. Together the three plants churn out around nine lakh
units annually. The recently launched Alto 800 is manufactured at this same plant.
According to the statement of Mr.R.C.Bhargava (Chairman-MSIL), Maruti
Suzuki India Limited finalized Rs.1700 crore investment for doubling the diesel
engine capacity at Gurgaon Manufacturing Facility to 6,00,000 units by 2020. Of
this, Rs.950 crore is being invested for the first phase of 1.5 lakhs diesel engines
by mid-2019-20

• K Series Plant

The Gurgaon premises also having the K-Series engine plant. Commissioned in
2008, the K-Series engine plant has an installed capacity of over 7.7 lakh units per
annum. Since inception of this plant, till date over 10 lakh K-Series engines have
been rolled out. In this plant K-Series engines are available in 1 litre, 1.2 litre, and
1.4 litre capacities. Presently, Alto-K10, A-Star, Estilo, Wagon-R, Swift, Swift
Dzire, Ritz and Ertiga are powered by the K-Series engines.

• Manesar Manufacturing Facility

In February 2007, the 600 acre Manesar facility located around 25 Kms south of
Gurgaon facility was inaugurated. This facility houses two fully integrated plants
with a capacity of 5.5 lakh units annually. Both manufacturing facilities are highly
automated with advanced robotics, contemporary paint, weld and machining
infrastructure. This plant produces the SX4 vehicles.
15
• Suzuki Power train

Suzuki Power train India limited is a joint venture of Maruti Suzuki with Suzuki
Motor Corporation, Japan at Manesar. This plant manufactures world class diesel
engines and transmissions for cars.15 Suzuki Power train India Limited (SPIL)
supplies about 3,00,000 diesel engines a year to Maruti, while petrol engines are
made in-house. Currently, Maruti has a 30 percent stake in SPIL, while the rest
lies with Japanese parent Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC)

SERVICES OFFERED BY MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA LIMITED

• Sales and Service Network (Stations)

Maruti Suzuki’s Sales and Service network is the largest among car manufacturers
in India. The company had 802 sales outlets in 555 cities and 2740 service
workshops in 1335 cities as on 31 March 2010. The service network of the
company includes Dealer Workshops, Maruti Authorized Service Stations
(MASSs), Maruti Service Masters (MSM) and Maruti Service Zones (MSZ). In
FY 2011-12, Maruti Suzuki had opened its 1000th Sales outlet, another landmark
achieved. The company with over 2950 service outlets reaches its customers
across 1400 cities.

• Maruti Insurance

Maruti launched Insurance service in the year 2002. Maruti provides vehicle
insurance to its customers with the help of the National Insurance Company, Bajaj
Allianz, New India Assurance and Royal Sundaram. This service was set up by
the company with the inception of two subsidiaries Maruti Insurance Distributors
Services Pvt Ltd and Maruti Insurance Brokers Pvt Limited.

• Maruti Finance

With an intention to promote the bottom line growth, Maruti launched Maruti
Finance in January 2002. Maruti had started two joint ventures Citicorp Maruti
and Maruti Countrywide with City Group and GE countrywide respectively to
assist its client in securing loan.

16
For this, Maruti tied up with ABN Amro bank, HDFC bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak
Mahindra, Standard Chartered bank and Sundaram Finance to start this venture
including its strategic partners in car finance. In March 2003, Maruti entered into
a strategic partnership with State Bank of India.

• Maruti True Value

With an intention to not only generate incomes for dealers but to also promote sale
of new Maruti cars by offering to buy old cars at reasonable prices and selling a
new car in exchange, Maruti Suzuki launched a subsidiary, True Value.19
Under True Value, the seller has the option to be paid in cash/cheque, or get a
True Value car in exchange or a brand new Maruti Suzuki car in exchange. As a
mark of confidence, and to promote reassurance to customers, every vehicle
bought under Maruti True Value is inspected and certified by Maruti Engineers
and the car carries a one year warranty and three free services.

• Maruti Driving School

Accidents and Road Safety has always been a key concern area for both the
government and people on the road. With an objective to improve road safety and
inculcate safe and systematic driving habits among people, Maruti Suzuki has
opened Maruti Driving Training School (MDS). These driving schools are
equipped with Practical Training and Attitude Training. World class driving
simulators are used to give a hands-on feel to learners before taking the vehicles
on the road. Having started in Bangalore in March 2005, Maruti Driving School
has spread its network throughout the country in collaboration with the dealers;
the company has set up over 200 Maruti Driving Schools across the country.21
One distinguishing feature of Maruti Driving School is lady instructor for training
females. According to the statement by Mr.R.C.Bhargava (Chairman-Maruti Suzuki),
Modernization of automobile industry was incomplete unless people
learnt to drive safely on the road.

• Institute of Driving & Traffic Research (IDTR)

Maruti Suzuki introduced world class driving training facilities to India by

launching Institute of Driving & Traffic Research. These include a specially
formulated multilingual theory curriculum, scientifically laid-out driving tracks

17
and advanced driving simulators that replicate Indian driving conditions. The first
IDTR was set up at Loni (on the outskirts of Delhi), in 2000 in collaboration with
the Delhi government. In 2010-11, the IDTR was set up at Gujrat, in collaboration
with the Tribal Development Department of Gujrat. The intention of this initiative
was to develop the driving skills of tribal youth. The IDTR is presently exist at
Haryana (two IDTR, each at Rohtak and Bahadurgarh), two in New Delhi (Loni
and Sarai Kale Khan), one in Gujrat (Vadodara), one in Uttarakhand (Dehradun).

• National Road Safety Mission

National Road Safety Mission is the flagship Road Safety initiative introduced by
the company in December 2008. Under this initiatives, the company took a
commitment of training over 5,00,000 people in safe driving practice in a span of
3 years. The main objective of this initiative was to make them employable in
driving profession.

THE REVOLUTION

Maruti created history by record production in 13 months. On 14 December 1983, the

then Prime Minister of India, Mrs. Indira Gandhi, handed over the keys of the first car
to Mr. Harpal Singh of Delhi. Volume targets were routinely exceeded, and in March
1994, it became the first Indian company to produce over one million vehicles, a
landmark yet to be achieved by any other car company in India. Maruti is the highest
volume car manufacturer in Asia, outside Japan and Korea, having produced over 3.5
million vehicles by December 2001. Maruti is one of the most successful automobile
joint ventures, and has made profits every year since inception till 2000-01. In 2000-
01, although we generated operating profits on an income of Rs 92.5 billion, high
depreciation on new model launches resulted in a book loss. We are again on track for
profits in 2001-02, with a profit of Rs 300 million in the first half. In this period, sales
were increased by 5.3%, against an industry decline of 6.1 %. We revolutionized the
wav Indians looked at cars. "No other car company so completely dominates its home
market" - (The Economist).

Despite there being 11 companies now in the passenger car market, Maruti holds
about 60 % of the total market share. MUL is also the first and only car company in
the world to lead its home market in terms of both market share and in the JD Power

18
Customer Satisfaction study (JD Power Asia Pacific 2000 India Customer Satisfaction
studies).

Transfer of Technology

Every minute two vehicles roll out of the Maruti Plant. It is therefore imperative that
the transfer of contemporary technology from our partner Suzuki is a smooth process.
Great stress is laid on training and motivating the people who maintain the equipment,
since the best equipment alone cannot guarantee high quality and productivity. From
the beginning it was a conscious decision to send people to Suzuki Motor Corporation
for on-the-job training for line technicians, supervisors and engineers. This helps them
to imbibe the culture in a way that merely transferring technology through documents
can never replicate. At present 20 % of our workforce is trained under this program.

Department

Heads. Other visible features of this philosophy are common uniforms (at all levels),
and a common canteen for all. This structure ensures better communication and
speedy decision making processes. It also creates an environment that builds trust,
transparency and a sense of belonging amongst employees.

PERFORMANCE

In more ways than one, the year 2004-05 was a watershed year for Maruti Udyog
Limited (MUL). The company has consolidated and initiated a new growth
momentum. There have been several developments, of which it is useful to begin with
three.

 First, driven by renewed vigor and aggression in the market, Maruti recorded
its highest ever sales of over 4.72 lack vehicles in the domestic & export
markets which resulted in gross sales revenue of Rs.112,840 million — a
growth of 25.8 per cent over 2003-04. It is the highest top-line growth in the
last seven years.
 Second, this high sales growth, coupled with significant improvements in
operational efficiencies, has translated into much higher returns on investment.
 Third, the Government of India divested a majority of its shares through an
initial public offer(IPO) and made way for greater participation from you —

19
 the shareholders – in the fortunes of India‘s leading passenger car
manufacturer.

In a nutshell, therefore, 2004-05 marks the beginning of a new journey for your
company, as it restructured itself in the face of stiff competition and entered a new
high growth phase.

SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths

 Bigger name in the market

 Trust of People
 Maruti suzuki India limited Ltd. is the market leader for more than a decade.
 Has a great dealership chain in the market.
 Better after sales service
 Low maintenance cost of vehicle

Weaknesses

 Exports are not that good.

 Lesser diesel models in the market compare to others
 Global image is not that big

Oppurtunities

 Great opportunities to go global with success of Swift and SX4 allover

 Introduction of more diesel models. The diesel car segment is growing
 Opportunity to grow bigger by entering into bigger car markets
 Already a market leader so great opportunity to be the king of market in every
stage of industry.

Threats

 Foreign companies entering market; so a bigger threat from MNCs.

 To the market share, as many big names are coming in the industry
 There is hardly any diesel models.

20
 CHAPTER - V

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

DATA ANALYSIS

Data analysis is a process of inspecting, cleaning, transforming and modeling of data

with the objective of highlighting the useful information, suggestion, conclusion and
supporting decision making. Data analysis has multiple facts and approaches,
encompassing diverse techniques under variety of names, in different business,
science and social science domains.

In this study, after the collection of data, the data analysis was done in which tables
were used.

DATA INTERPRETATION:

Interpretation refers to the task of drawing inferences from the collected facts and
after an analytical or experimental study. The factors that have been observed in the
course of study can be better understood through interpretation and also it provides a
theoretical conception which can serve as a guide for future studies.

21
Table No.-1: Table showing Occupation of Customer.

No. of Percentage of
Occupation
Respondent Respondent

Business 44 44%

Employee 32 32%

Agriculture 14 14%

Other 10 10%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-1: Table showing Occupation of Customer.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 44% customers are doing the Business and 32% customer are the
employee in private or government sector, 14% are farmer and 10% in other field.

22
Table No.2 Table showing Age of the Maruti Suzuki’s Customer.

No. of Percentage of
Age
Respondent Respondent

20 - 25 5 5%
26 – 34 40 40%

35 - 44 30 30%

45 & above 25 25%

Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.2 Table showing Age of the Maruti Suzuki’s Customer.

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

23
Table No.-3: Table showing Pre-Purchase satisfaction level of the customer.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Excellent 50 50%
Good 30 30%

Average 15 15%

Below average 5 5%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig No.-3: Table showing Pre-Purchase satisfaction level of the customer.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 50% of the customers are highly satisfied with the Pre-purchase
services and 5% are dissatisfied with the Pre purchase services.

24
Table No.-4: Table showing customers opinion about the Maruti’s vehicles for
Value for Money.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Above Expectation 38 38%

As per Expectation 42 42%

Below Expectation 20 20%

Total 100 100%

Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-4: Table showing customers opinion about the Maruti’s vehicles for
Value for Money.

Interpretation –

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

25
Table No.-5 Table showing Post-purchase satisfaction level of the respondents.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Excellent 30 30%
Good 45 45%

Average 20 20%

Below average 5 5%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-5 Table showing Post-purchase satisfaction level of the respondents.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 45% of the customers are highly satisfied with the Postpurchase
services And 5% are dissatisfied with the Post purchase services.

26
Table No.-6 Table showing customer priority with respect to characteristic.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Comfort 12 12%
Mileage 26 26%

Features 12 12%

Looks 20 20%
Price 24 24%
Safety 6 6%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-6 Table showing customer priority with respect to characteristic.

Interpretation –

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

27
Table No.-7 Table showing customer remark about services.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Excellent 32 32%
Good 50 50%

Average 15 15%

Below average 3 3%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Table No.-7 Table showing customer remark about services.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 55% of the customers are satisfied with the services, and 3% are
not satisfied.

28
Table No.-8 Table showing customer expectation for improvement in Maruti
Suzuki.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Price 16 16%
Quality 46 46%

Service 24 24%

Other 14 14%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-8 Table showing customer expectation for improvement in Maruti

Suzuki.

Interpretation –

46% of the customers opinion that Maruti should improve in quality, 24% said
service, 16% said price where 14% response others.

29
Table No.-9 Table showing customer’s repurchase intention.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Yes 74 74%

No 26 26%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig No.-9 Table showing customer’s repurchase intention.

Interpretation –

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

30
Table No.-10 Table showing customer’s recommendation intention.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Yes 72 72%

No 28 28%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-10 Table showing customer’s recommendation intention.

Interpretation –

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

31
Table No.-11 Table showing customer’s preference about Finance.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Yes 38 38%

No 62 62%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-11 Table showing customer’s preference about Finance.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 62% of the customers are ready to prefer Finance, 28% are not
ready to prefer Finance.

32
Table No.-12 Table showing customer’s preference about Insurance.

Percentage of
Respondent’s Remark No. of Respondent
Respondent

Yes 86 86%

No 14 14%
Total 100 100%
Source: Primary data

Fig. No.-12 Table showing customer’s preference about Insurance.

Interpretation –

It is observed that, 86% of the customers are ready to prefer Insurance, 14% are not
ready to prefer M-Insurance.

33
 CHAPTER - VI

FINDINGS

The major findings of the study are:

a) The prospective segment is from the business and self employed class.
b) The company should concentrate on the age group 26-34.
c) Maruti should continue to maintain the standard of the service.
d) It is observed that, 42% of the respondent are of opinion that vehicles are as
per expectation, and 20% are saying its below expectation.
e) Company should improve its post sales service.
f) The customer highest priority is for the mileage.
g) Maruti Suzuki needs to improve its awareness about Add-on-Services like any
time Maruti, MEW etc.
h) Customer are highly satisfied with the service which help in customer
retention
i) It is observed that, 46% of the customers are of opinion that Maruti should
improve in quality, and 16% of the opinion that Maruti should improve in
price.
j) Customers are highly satisfied which help in customer retention.
k) Company has created goodwill among the customers which will help them to
recommend car to friends and relatives.
l) Maruti Suzuki needs to educate the customers about the benefits of Finance.
They can motivate the cash customers to offer Finance.
m) It is observed that, 86% of the customers are ready to prefer Insurance, 14%
are not ready to prefer Insurance.

34
SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

After conducting the study and knowing the market the following suggestions have
been noted:

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

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

35
CONCLUSION

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

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

Customer satisfaction provides a leading indicator of consumer purchase intentions

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

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

36
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books:

 Hair, Joseph, F., Anderson, Rolph, E. and Tatham Ronald, L.

(1987),Multivariate Data Analysis, New 'fork: MacMillan Publishing
Company.
 Helen Woodniffe (1997), "Financial Sewices Marketing", Services Marketing,
Macmillion, Delhi.
 Hill, N., (1996), Hanbook of Customer Satisfaction Measurement, Gower
Press, Aldershot, UK.
 Jayaram, N. and Sandhog, R.S. (1998), Housing in India - Problems, Policy
andperspectives, B.R. Publishing Corporation, Delhi.
 Jeffrey Gitomer (1998), Customer satisfaction is worthless: Customer loyalty
is priceless: How to make customers love you, keep them coming back and tell
everyone they know, Austin TX: Board Press.
 Kotler, P (2002),‖Marketing Management‖, Millennium Edition, Tenth
Edition, Prentice Hall, Inc, A Pearson Education Company, Upper Saddle
River, New Jersey.

Websites

 http://www.carwale.com/marutisuzuki-cars/ (On 27th March 2019 at 6 p.m.)

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maruti_Suzuki (On 27th March 2019 at 8 p.m.)
 https://www.cardekho.com/cars/Maruti (On 28th March 2019 at 10 p.m.)
 https://www.zigwheels.com/newcars/Maruti-Suzuki (On 2nd April 2019 at 6
p.m.)

37
 ANNEXURE

QUESTIONNAIRE

1) Name: - __________________________________________________________

2) Gender:- Male [ ] Female [ ]

3) Address: -

4) Contact No:-

5) Occupation:- _______________________________________________________

6) Age of Respondent

a) <25 [ ] b) 25-34 [ ]

c) 35-44 [ ] d) 45 & above [ ]

7) Annual Income

a) 3-5 lack [ ] b) 5-8 lack [ ]

c) 8-12 lack [ ] d) 12 and above [ ]

8) Which Model of Maruti are you using?

Car:-……………………………………………………………………………..

9) From how many years you are using this model?

a) 0-2 years [ ] b) 2-4 years [ ]

c) 4-6 years [ ] d) 6-8 years [ ]

10) Preference for choosing particular car?

a) Comfort [ ] b) Mileage [ ]

c) Feature [ ] d) Performance

e) Looks [ ] f) Price

g) Others Please specify:-………

38
11) Are you satisfied with your car?

a) Yes [ ]

b) No [ ]

If No, give the reasons for the same

a) Comfort [ ] b) Mileage [ ]

c) Feature [ ] d) Performance [ ]

e) Looks [ ] f) Price [ ]

12) Do you prefer M-Insurance over any other insurance option?

a) Yes [ ]

b) No [ ]

If No, then why:-……………….

13) Do you prefer M-Finance over any other finance option?

a. Yes [ ]

b. No [ ]

If No, then why:-……………….

14) Do you prefer to get MGA fitted in your car or any local accessories?

a) MGA [ ] b) Local [ ]

15) What is your Pre-sales experience while purchasing the car?

a) Excellent [ ] b) Good [ ]

c) Average [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

16) What is your Post-sales experience after purchasing the car?

a) Excellent [ ] b) Good [ ]

c) Average [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

39
17) Are you satisfied with the features of Maruti?

a) Comfort……. [ ] b) Mileage……. [ ]

c) Feature ……. [ ] d) Safety……. [ ]

e) Looks ……. [ ] f) Price……. [ ]

18) How will you rate Maruti on the basis of Value for Money?

a) Above Expectation [ ]

b) Below Expectation [ ]

c) As per Expectation [ ]

19) Do you find easy availability of spare parts?

a) Yes [ ]

b) No [ ]

20) Would you like to re purchase the Maruti’s car?

a) Yes [ ]

b) No [ ]

21) Would you like to recommend the Maruti car to your friends/relatives?

a) Yes [ ]

b) No [ ]

22) In which sector do you think/feel Maruti should improve?

a) Price [ ] b) Quality [ ]

c) Service [ ] d) Others [ ]

23) Are you satisfied with the overall service of Maruti?

a) Excellent [ ] b) Good [ ]

c) Average [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

40