CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN MARUTI SUZUKI

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

MEANING Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in marketing, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. Customer satisfaction is defined as "the number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose reported experience with a firm, its products, or its services (ratings) exceeds specified satisfaction goals. !n a survey of nearly "## senior marketing managers, $% percent responded that they found a customer satisfaction metric very useful in managing and monitoring their businesses. !t is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is often part of a &alanced 'corecard. !n a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of business strategy. "(ithin organi)ations, customer satisfaction ratings can have powerful effects. *hey focus employees on the importance of fulfilling customers+ expectations. ,urthermore, when these ratings dip, they warn of problems that can affect sales and profitability. *hese metrics quantify an important dynamic. (hen a brand has loyal customers, it gains positive word-of-mouth marketing, which is both free and highly effective." *herefore, it is essential for businesses to effectively manage customer satisfaction. *o be able do this, firms need reliable and representative measures of satisfaction. "!n researching satisfaction, firms generally ask customers whether their product or service has met or exceeded expectations. *hus, expectations are a key factor behind satisfaction. (hen 1

customers have high expectations and the reality falls short, they will be disappointed and will likely rate their experience as less than satisfying. ,or this reason, a luxury resort, for example, might receive a lower satisfaction rating than a budget motel.even though its facilities and service would be deemed superior in /absolute/ terms. *he importance of customer satisfaction diminishes when a firm has increased bargaining power. ,or example, cell phone plan providers, such as 0*1* and 2eri)on, participate in an industry that is an oligopoly, where only a few suppliers of a certain product or service exist. 0s such, many cell phone plan contracts have a lot of fine print with provisions that they would never get away if there were, say, a hundred cell phone plan providers, because customer satisfaction would be way too low, and customers would easily have the option of leaving for a better contract offer. *here is a substantial body of empirical literature that establishes the benefits of customer satisfaction for firms.

PURPOSE OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Customer satisfaction provides a leading indicator of consumer purchase intentions and loyalty." "Customer satisfaction data are among the most frequently collected indicators of market perceptions. *heir principal use is twofold3" "(ithin organi)ations, 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." "0lthough sales or market share can indicate how well a firm is performing currently, satisfaction is perhaps the best indicator of how likely it is that the firm+s customers will make further purchases in the future. 4uch research has focused on the relationship between customer satisfaction and retention. 'tudies indicate that the ramifications of satisfaction are most strongly reali)ed at the extremes." 5n a five-point scale, "individuals who rate their satisfaction level as /6/ are likely to become return customers and might even evangeli)e for the firm. (0 second important metric related to satisfaction is willingness to recommend. *his metric is defined as "*he percentage of surveyed customers who indicate that they would recommend a brand to friends." (hen a customer is satisfied with a product, he or she might recommend it to friends, relatives and colleagues. *his can be a powerful marketing advantage.) "!ndividuals who rate their satisfaction level as /%,/ by contrast, are unlikely to return. ,urther, they can hurt the firm by making negative comments about it to prospective customers. (illingness to recommend is a key metric relating to customer satisfaction."

CONSTRUCTION OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

5rgani)ations need to retain existing customers while targeting non-

customers. 4easuring customer satisfaction provides an indication of how successful the organi)ation is at providing products and7or services to the marketplace. Customer satisfaction is measured at the individual level, but it is almost always reported at an aggregate level. !t can be, and often is, measured along various dimensions. 0 hotel, for example, might ask customers to rate their experience with its front desk and check-in service, with the room, with the amenities in the room, with the restaurants, and so on. 0dditionally, in a holistic sense, the hotel might ask about overall satisfaction /with your stay. 0s research on consumption experiences grows, evidence suggests that consumers purchase goods and services for a combination of two types of benefits3 hedonic and utilitarian. 8edonic benefits are associated with the sensory and experiential attributes of the product. 9tilitarian benefits of a product are associated with the more instrumental and functional attributes of the product (&atra and 0thola %::#). Customer satisfaction is an ambiguous and abstract concept and the actual manifestation of the state of satisfaction will vary from person to person and product7service to product7service. *he state of satisfaction depends on a number of both psychological and physical variables which correlate with satisfaction behaviors such as return and recommend rate. *he level of satisfaction can also vary depending on other options the customer may have and other products against which the customer can compare the organi)ation/s products. (ork done by ;arasuraman, <eithaml and &erry between %:=6 and %:== provides the basis for the measurement of customer satisfaction with a service by using the gap between the customer/s expectation of performance and their perceived experience of performance. *his provides the measurer with a satisfaction "gap" which is ob>ective and quantitative in nature. (ork done by Cronin and *aylor propose the "confirmation7disconfirmation" theory of combining the "gap" described by ;arasuraman, <eithaml and &erry as two different measures into a single measurement of performance according to expectation. *he usual measures of customer satisfaction involve a survey with a set of statements using a ?ikert *echnique or scale. *he customer is asked to evaluate each statement and in term of 4

their perception and expectation of performance of the organi)ation being measured. *heir satisfaction is generally measured on a five-point scale.

"Customer satisfaction data can also be collected on a %#-point scale." "@egardless of the scale used, the ob>ective is to measure customers+ perceived satisfaction with their experience of a firm+s offerings." !t is essential for firms to effectively manage customer satisfaction. *o be able do this, we need accurate measurement of satisfaction. Aood quality measures need to have high satisfaction loadings, good reliability, and low error variances. !n an empirical study comparing commonly used satisfaction measures it was found that two multi-item semantic differential scales performed best across both hedonic and utilitarian service consumption contexts. 0ccording to studies by (irt) 1 ?ee ("##B), they identified a six-item $-point semantic differential scale (e.g., 5liver and 'wan %:=B), which is a six-item $-point bipolar scale, that consistently performed best across both hedonic and utilitarian services. !t loaded most highly on satisfaction, had the highest item reliability, and had by far the lowest error variance across both studies. !n the study , the six items asked respondents+ evaluation of their most recent experience with 0*4 services and ice cream restaurant, along seven points within these six items3 Cplease me to displeased me , Ccontented with to disgusted with , Cvery satisfied with to very dissatisfied with , Cdid a good >ob for me to did a poor >ob for me , Cwise choice to poor choice and Chappy with to unhappy with . 0 semantic differential, which is a four-item $-point bipolar scale, was the second best performing measure, which was again consistent across both contexts. !n the study, respondents were asked to evaluate their experience with both products, along seven points within these four items3 Csatisfied to dissatisfied , Cfavorable to unfavorable , Cpleasant to unpleasant and C! like it very much to ! didn+t like it at all . *he third best scale was single-item percentage measure, a one-item $-point bipolar scale . 0gain, the respondents were asked to evaluate their experience on both 0*4 services and ice cream restaurants, along seven points within Cdelighted to terrible . 5

!t seems that dependent on a trade-off between length of the questionnaire and quality of satisfaction measure, these scales seem to be good options for measuring customer satisfaction in academic and applied studies research alike. 0ll other measures tested consistently performed worse than the top three measures, and7or their performance varied significantly across the two service contexts in their study. *hese results suggest that more careful pretesting would be prudent should these measures be used. ,inally, all measures captured both affective and cognitive aspects of satisfaction, independent of their scale anchors. 0ffective measures capture a consumer+s attitude (liking7disliking) towards a product, which can result from any product information or experience. 5n the other hand, cognitive element is defined as an appraisal or conclusion on how the product+s performance compared against expectations (or exceeded or fell short of expectations), was useful (or not useful), fit the situation (or did not fit), exceeded the requirements of the situation (or did not exceed)

AWARDS FOR COMPAN A!ar"s for #$%$ Rit& 'ot fo((o!in' a!ar"s

A!ar"s for #$$) Rit& 'ot fo((o!in' a!ar"s

D.E. 0'8!0 ;0'0,!C @F;5@* 4aruti 'u)uki @anks 8ighest in 0utomotive Customer 'atisfaction in !ndia for a %Bth Consecutive Gear. SINGAPORE* +% Octo,er #$%# . ,or a %Bth consecutive year, 4aruti 'u)uki ranks highest in customer satisfaction with authori)ed dealer service in !ndia, according to the D.E. ;ower 0sia ;acific "#%" !ndia Customer 'ervice !ndex (C'!) 'tudies released on B% 5ctober "#%".

*he study, now in its %Hth year, measures satisfaction among vehicle owners who visited their authori)ed dealership service center for maintenance or repair work during the first %" to "I months of ownership, which typically represents the warranty period. 5verall satisfaction is determined by examining seven measures (listed in order of importance)3 problems experiencedJ service qualityJ user-friendly serviceJ service advisorJ service initiationJ service deliveryJ and inservice experience. *he study finds that vehicle owners increasingly consider faster turnaround in service, door-step service and alternate transportation arrangements post vehicle drop-off as essential to satisfaction. 'atisfaction is significantly higher among vehicle owners whose dealership provides an alternate form of transportation while their vehicle is being serviced than among those who do not receive this service. Correspondingly, during the past three years, the gap in satisfaction between these two groups of customers has increased by I% points. *he expectation for this service continues to outpace the delivery of it from dealerships by nearly ": percent. Eoor-step service for vehicle owners also contributes to higher satisfaction scores. 5verall satisfaction is IB points higher among owners whose vehicle is picked up from and dropped off at their home or work by the dealership than among those who take their vehicle to the dealership service center themselves. "2ehicle owners view the service process as an essential errand that needs to be completed," said 4ohit 0rora, executive director D.E.;ower 0sia ;acific. "(ith increasing stress of the daily commute, time commitments and other complexities in their daily life, owners highly appreciate the actions that dealers take to mitigate the effort required for service." 5verall customer satisfaction with the dealership service experience has increased by %# points from "#%% to =BI in "#%", demonstrating that operational improvements continue to remain a focus for the industry. 'atisfaction has improved in all five factors, with the largest increase in the service quality factor. 8

*he study also finds that during the past three years, there has been a significant reduction in the cost of maintaining and repairing vehicles, which correlates to the improvement in the overall quality of vehicles being produced. !n "#%", vehicle owners have experienced significantly fewer problems, compared with "#%#. *his year, %# percent of owners have experienced a problem with their petrol-fueled vehicle during the initial %" to "I months of ownership, down from %$ percent in "#%#. 'imilarly, the percentage of owners who have experienced a problem with their diesel-powered vehicle has declined to %I percent in "#%" from "I percent in "#%#. "(hile reduction in the number of problems experienced during ownership has contributed to the reduction in the cost of vehicle maintenance and repairs for owners, the overall cost of running vehicles has gone up," said 0rora. ",uel price increases are the primary reason for the rising costs, especially for petrol models, for which a %B percent reduction in the cost of maintenance has been offset by a B% percent increase in the cost spent on fuel between "#%# and "#%"." 4aruti 'u)uki ranks highest in customer satisfaction with dealer service for a %Bth consecutive year, with a score of =$: points. 4aruti 'u)uki performs particularly well across all factors. 4ahindra is the most improved make in "#%", significantly improving across all five factors of service operations. 2ehicle owners who are highly satisfied with dealer service tend to have higher levels of advocacy and loyalty to the dealership and the brand. 0mong owners who are highly satisfied with their service experience at the dealership (service satisfaction scores averaging :B# and above), :B percent indicate they "definitely would" revisit their service dealer for post-warranty service. !n contrast, only B= percent of less-satisfied owners (service satisfaction scores averaging $H= and below) say the same. 'imilarly, =6 percent of highly satisfied owners indicate they "definitely would" purchase their next vehicle from the service dealer, compared with >ust B% percent of those who are less satisfied.

*he "#%" !ndia Customer 'ervice !ndex 'tudy is based on evaluations from $,6:I vehicle owners. *he study was fielded from 4ay to 0ugust "#%" and includes owners who purchased their vehicle between 4ay "#%# and 0ugust "#%%.*he Company takes great pride in sharing that customers have rated 4aruti 'u)uki first o in Customer 'atisfaction 'urvey conducted by independent body, D.E.;ower 0sia ;acific. !t is %Bth time in a row. *he award mirrors the company/s commitment towards "Customer O,session".

T-e com.an/ 0ouc-es for customer satisfaction1 For its sincere efforts it -as ,een rate" 2,/ customers3 first in customer satisfaction amon' a(( car ma4ers in In"ia for nine /ears in a ro! in annua( sur0e/ ,/ 5 D Po!er Asia Pacific1

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5D POWER ASIA PACIFIC CSI INDE6

4aruti 'u)uki ranks highest in customer satisfaction with dealer service for a %Bth consecutive year, with a score of =$: points. 4aruti 'u)uki performs particularly well across all factors. 4ahindra is the most improved make in "#%", significantly improving across all five factors of service operations.

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AWARENESS OF CUSTOMERS
KE INITIATI7ES FOR SATISF ING CUSTOMERS Car .ic4u. 8 "e(i0er/ faci(it/ for !omen car o!ners Kuote 9nquote3 "*he study finds that vehicle pickup and delivery before and after service has a strong impact on customer satisfaction. !n particular, customers who say that their vehicle was picked up from their doorstep before service and delivered to the same point after service are notably more delighted with their after-sales service experience, compared with customers who do not receive this service...." Car Safet/ "e0ice* Immo,i(i&er *he company used technology to meet customer needs and even delight them. ,ollowing feedback that the company/s cars were more prone to theft owing to their resale value, the company worked on an anti-theft immobili)er or "!-CatsJ" system for all its new cars. Settin' u. 9E:.ress Ser0ice ;a/s9 8 9# < Tec-nician ;a/s9 0s the name suggests the company set out to delight its customers by offering them faster car service by introducing new concepts such as Fxpress 'ervice &ays 1 "- *echnicians &ays. *hese are done for customers who are hard pressed for time. &oth the initiatives undertaken in this direction have helped improve customer interface and also helped increase the productivity and capacity of existing workshops.

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Me'a Cam.s

*he company aggressively conducts /4ega Camps/ throughout the country round the year. 0ctivities undertaken during a mega camp include complimentary car wash, 0C 1 ;ollution check up, oil and fuel top ups, wheel alignments etc. 0part from mega camps workshop camps like 07C checkup camps, ;9C and general check-up camps, ?ocality camps , ;re monsoon camps etc are also regularly conducted as part of customer connect initiatives. Ser0ice at /our Door Ste. t-rou'- Maruti Mo,i(e Su..ort

0nother unique initiative is the door step service facility through 4aruti 4obile 'upport. 4aruti 4obile 'upport is a first of it/s kind initiative and is expected not only to help the company reach out customers in metro cities but also as a mean to reach semi urban 7rural areas where setting up of new workshop may not be viable. Com.(ete Car Nee"s

*he company/s effort of providing all car-related needs -- from learning to drive a car at 4aruti Eriving 'chools to car insurance, extended warranty and eventually exchanging the existing car for a new one -- under one roof at dealerships also enhances customer satisfaction.

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DATA ANA= SIS AND INTERPRETATION

Ta,(e %1 S-o!in' Occu.ation of Customer<

Occu.ation &usinessman ;rivate Fmployee Aovt Fmployee ;rofessional

No1of Res.on"ent 44 32 14 10

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, IIL customers are doing the &usiness and B"L customer are the employee in private sector, %IL are Aovernment employee and %#L are professionals.

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?UES1 # Ta,(e s-o!in' A'e of t-e Maruti Su&u4i@s Customer Age 20-25 26-34 35-44 45&above No. of respondents 5 40 30 25

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, 6L customer+s age is between the "#-"6 years, I#L in "H-BI years, B#L in B6-II years and "L customers above I6 years.

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?UES1 + Ta,(e s-o!in' Pre<Sa(es satisfaction (e0e( of t-e customer1 Customer Remark Excellent Good Average Below average No. of respondents 35 55 17 3

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, B6L of the customers are highly satisfied with the ;re-sales services and BL are dissatisfied with the ;re sales services.

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?UES1 A Ta,(e s-o!in' customers o.inion a,out t-e Maruti@s 0e-ic(es for 7a(ue for Mone/

Remark Above Expectation A! per Expectation Below Expectation

No. of respondents 3 42 20

Inter.retation > I"L of the respondents are of opinion that vehicles are as per expectation 1 "#L are of the opinion that the vehicle are below expectation.

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?UES1 B Ta,(e s-o!in' Post<Sa(es satisfaction (e0e( of t-e customer1

Res.on"ent Remar4 Excellent Good Average Below average

No. of respondents 30 45 20 5

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, I6L of the customers are highly satisfied with the ;ost-sales services and 6L are dissatisfied with the ;ost sales services.

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?UES1 C Ta,(e s-o!in' customer .riorit/ !it- res.ect to c-aracteristic1

As.ect "o#$ort %eat&re! 'oo(! )ileage *rice +a$et,

No. of respondents 26 24 20 12 12 6

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, "HL of the customers preferred 4ileages as first preference and HL preferred safety.

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?UES1 D Ta,(e s-o!in' customer remar4 a,out ser0ices1 Res.on"ent Remar4 Excellent Good Average Below Average No. of respondents 50 22 15 13

Inter.retation !t is observed that, 6#L of the customers are higly satisfied with the services, and %BL are not satisfied.

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?UES1 E Ta,(e s-o!in' customer e:.ectation for im.ro0ement in Maruti Su&u4i1 Res.on"ent Remar4 price -&alit, !ervice ot.er No. of respondents 16 46 24 14

Inter.retation > IHL of the customers are of opinion that 4aruti should improve in quality.

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?UES1 ) Ta,(e s-o!in' customer@s re.urc-ase intention1

Res.on"ent Remar4 Ges No

No. of respondents $I "H

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, $IL of the customers are ready to repurchase the 4aruti+s car, "HL are not ready to purchase the car.

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?UES1 %% Ta,(e s-o!in' customer@s recommen"ation intention1

Res.on"ent Remar4 /e! 0o

No. of respondents 72 2

Inter.retation > !t is observed that, $"L of the customers are ready to recommend the car to the friends and relative, "=L are not ready to recommend the car to the friends and relatives.

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FINDINGS

!t is observed that 4aruti should continue to maintain the standard of the service. !t is observed that, I"L of the respondent are of opinion that vehicles are as per expectation, and "#L are saying its below expectation. Company should improve its post sales service. *he customer highest priority is for the mileage. Customer are highly satisfied with the service which help in customer retention !t is observed that, IHL of the customers are of opinion that 4aruti should improve in quality, and %HL of the opinion that 4aruti should improve in price. Customers are highly satisfied which help in customer retention. Company has created goodwill among the customers which will help them to recommend car to friends and relatives. *he prospective segment is from the business and self employed class. *he company should concentrate on the age group "H-BI.

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SUGGESTIONS
0fter conducting the survey and knowing the market, ! reali)ed that3 *he company should keep in mind the need of young generation.

Company should improve the promotion strategy of product.

Company should improve the promotion strategy of 0dd-on services. !t 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. *he Company should know its customers satisfaction level throughout doing periodic surveys. ;eriodic surveys can treat customer satisfaction directly. Company should improve7upgrades its employee+s product knowledge, market situation, and its competitor+s knowledge by giving proper training to employee. Company should upgrade or innovate its new product. *he 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. *he Company should make changes according to the other competitors 1 according to the customer+s expectations.

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CONC=USION
!t 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. 4aruti 'u)uki needs to improve some parts of products specifically the interiors. 8igh 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. 0nd therefore should utili)e carefully 1 kept as confidential as possible.

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=IMITATIONS
*hough the research was conducted properly, the probability of errors 1 biases kept is minimumJ still some errors occurred because of certain limitation. T-ese are as fo((o!s*< a. *his is time-consuming research method 1 the respondents did not have sufficient time for giving information for such type of research. b. time. d. 'tudy is restricted to only 2ashi Navi 4umbai. ! have honestly and sincerely tried to present the facts and figures but some error still might have cropped up. ;eople were reluctant to give responses for such type of research. c. ;eople also did not give proper response for Kuestionnaire 1 interview, because of short

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;I;=IOGRAPF
;OOKS Aupta '.?. , "marketing management", educational ;ublication Oothari C.@. , "research methodology", 8imalaya publication

WE;SITES http377www.marutisu)uki.com7csr.aspx http377www.gaadi.com7cars75b>ective-of-maruti-su)uki http377www.marutisu)uki.com74aruti-'u)uki-@anks-8ighest-in-0utomotive-Customer'atisfaction-in-!ndia-,or-Ninth-Consecutive-Gear.aspx http377indiatoday.intoday.in7story7maruti-su)uki-witnesses-improved-demandsreport7%7""I#I#.html NEWSPAPER Newspaper-business standards, *imes of !ndia, etc.

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APPENDI6
?UESTIONNAIRE Gen"er A'e Occu.ation * ( ) 4ale * GGGGGGGGGGGGGG * ( ) ;rivate Fmployee ( ) ;rofessional ( ) Aovt Fmployee ( ) &usinessman ( ) ,emale

Mont-(/ Income* ( ) &elow 6### ( ) &etween %6### to "6###

( ) &etween 6### to %#### ( ) 0bove "6###

%. (hich 4odel of 4aruti are you usingP Car3-QQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ ". ,rom how many years you are using this modelP a) #-" years b) "-I years c) I-H years d) H-= years

B. ;reference for choosing particular carP a) Comfort e) ?ooks b) 4ileage f) ;rice c) ,eature d) ;erformance

g) 5thers ;lease specify3-QQQ

I. 0re you satisfied with your carP a) Ges b)No

!f No, give the reasons for the same a)Comfort d) ;erformance b) 4ileage e) ?ooks c) ,eature f) ;rice

6. Eo you prefer to get 4A0 fitted in your car or any local accessoriesP a) 4A0 b) ?ocal

H. (hat is your ;re-sales experience while purchasing the carP 30

a) Fxcellent $.

b) Aood

c) 0verage

d) &elow 0verage

(hat is your ;ost-sales experience after purchasing the carP b) Aood c) 0verage d) &elow 0verage

a) Fxcellent =.

0re you satisfied with the features of 4arutiP (%Rpoor "Raverage BRgood IRvery good 6RFxcellent) b) 4ileageQQ. 76 e) ?ooksQQ. 76 c) ,eature QQ. 76 f) ;riceQQ. 76

a) ComfortQQ. 76 d) 'afetyQQ. 76

:.

8ow will you rate 4aruti on the basis of 2alue for 4oneyP b)&elow Fxpectation c)0s per Fxpectation

a) 0bove Fxpectation

%#. Eo you find easy availability of spare partsP a) Ges b)No

%%. (ould you like to re purchase the 4aruti+s carP a) Ges b)No

%". (ould you like to recommend the 4aruti car to your friends7relativesP a) Ges b)No

%B. !n which sector do you think7feel 4aruti should improveP a) ;rice b) Kuality c) 'ervice d) 5thers

%I. 0re you satisfied with the overall service of 4arutiP a) Fxcellent b) Aood c) 0verage d) &elow 0verage

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