1. INTRODUCTION 2. NEED OF THE STUDY 3. SCOPE OF STUDY 4. OBJECTIVE OF STUDY 1
1.1 1.1
OVERV VERVIE IEW W OF OF IND INDUS UST TRY AS A WH WHOL OLE E
As India celebrates its 50 years of independence, the passenger car industry will celebrated a centenary of its existence in India in 1998. Despite this head start, the industry has never quite matched up to the performance of its counterparts in other pa rt s of th e wo rl d. Th e al l- pe rv as iv e at mo sp he re cr ea te d by th e go ve rn ment me nt 's license raj was primarily responsible for this situation. The various layers of Acts sheltered the industry from external competition and smothered the development of the Indian automobile industry. Moreover, the industry was considered low priority as cars were considered to be an "unaffordable luxury." With With the libera liberaliz lizati ation on of the Indian Indian econom economy, y, the passen passenger ger car indust industry ry was was fina finall lly y dere deregu gula late ted d in 19 1993 93 and and many many comp compan anie ies, s, bo both th Indi Indian an and and fore foreig ign, n, announced their plans to enter the market. The last four years have seen companies like like Daewoo Daewoo,, Ford, Ford, GM, and Merced Mercedeses-Ben Benzz launch launches es their their cars cars in India. India. Th Thee pa ss en ge r ca r in du st ry no tc he d im pr es si ve gr ow th ra te s be tw ee n 26 -3 0% du ri ng th e pe ri od FY 94 -9 6 ev en th ou gh th e ec on om ic sl owdo ow do wn ha s ad ve rs el y af fe ct ed th e industry in FY 98 with the growth rate tricking down to 1%. Nonetheless, times have have chan change ged d sign signif ific ican antl tly y - the the days days of the the cust custom omer er chas chasin ing g the the deal dealer er to pu rc ha se po or qu al ity it y ca rs ba ck ed by in ef fi ci en t se rv ic e ar e hi st or y. To da y, th e customer dictates the terms. The segmentation of the passenger car market in India is vastly different from that in the developed nations. In India, the economy segment accounts for the largest share of the cars sold, as compared to mid-range segment in the mature markets. The economy and the premium segment face the lowest competitive threats, while the premium segment will witness intense competition due to lower volumes.
1
1.2 1.2
PRO PROFILE FILE OF THE THE ORGA ORGANI NIZ ZATIO ATION N
Tata motors motors one of India's largest private sector sector companies with a turnover of over Rs 80 billions, is the country's leading commercial vehicle manufacturer and has significant presence in the multi-utility multi-u tility and passenger passenge r car segments. Tata motors was established on September 1, 1945, originally for the manufacture of Steam Locomotives at Jamshedpur. By 1954, the company had diversified into the manufacture of commer commercial cial vehicles vehicles in collabor collaboratio ation n with with Daimle Daimlerr Benz, Benz, Germany. Germany. By the time time their their collaboration ended in 1969, Tata motors had become an independent producer of Medium Comm Commerc ercial ial Vehic Vehicle less with with a great great degree degree of indige indigeni nizat zation ion.. It had also also develo developed ped the capability of designing, testing and manufacturing such vehicles. Thee widel Th widely y succe successf ssful ul Tata Tata Indic Indica, a, a Eu Euro ro 2 compl complia iant nt vehic vehicle le,, is the count country’ ry’ss first first indigenously designed, developed and manufactured passenger car. Tata Motors followed that up with the Tata Indigo, a sedan that was launched in December 2002. The company also makes several other passengers vehicles, including the Safari, Sumo and Sierra. The company’s products have received wide acceptance not only in India but also in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Australia, Latin America and Europe. Areas of business
The company company manufact manufactures ures medium medium,, heavy heavy and light light commer commercial cial vehicle vehicles, s, multi-u multi-util tility ity vehicles and passenger cars. In the year ending March 2001, the company’s revenues from its four manufacturing plants at three locations in India were Rs. 81.64 billion (US $ 1.73 billion). In 2000, they were Rs. 89.61 billion. (US $ 1.9 billion) {The average exchange rate has been taken as Rs 47.0 to one US dollar.} In the year ended 31 March 2001, the company’s total exports were worth about Rs 7.22 billion (US $ 153.6 million), against about Rs 6.09 billion (US $ 129.5 million) in the previous year. 2
Locations
The company’s manufacturing plants in India are at Jamshedpur, Pimpri and Chinchwad near Pune in Maharashtra, and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. Land has been acquired at Dharwad (Karnataka) to build a fifth plant. Collaborations
The company has technical tie-ups with: •
The Institute of Development in Automotive Engineering (IDEA), S.P.A., Italy, for assistance in small car body design and styling; and
•
Le Moteur Moderne, France, for the development of diesel and petrol engines for passenger cars.
Subsidiaries
•
Tata Construction Equipment Company Ltd. (TELCON): Its principal business is
manufacture and sale of construction, material handling and earthmoving equipment. •
Tata Technologies Ltd.: It oversees the IT requirements of Tata Motors and provides
servi services ces for SAP SAP impl implem ement entati ation, on, CAD/ CAD/CA CAMM-bas based ed desig design, n, and e-com e-comme merce rce facilities to customers in India and abroad. •
investment and finance company and a wholly-owned Sheba Properties Ltd: It is an investment subsidiary of Tata Motors since its inception. It is registered with RBI as a Non Banking Finance company.
•
investment and finance company and Telco Dadajee Dhakjee Ltd. (TDDL): It is an investment proposes to undertake activities pertaining to the sales and service of Tata Motors’s vehicles and spare parts.
3
•
Minicar (India) Ltd.: Formerly known as Mazda Industrial Chemicals Ltd., this
company was incorporated on January 18, 1972 and is currently engaged in the business of automobile sales and services. •
HV Transmissions Ltd.: It was incorporated on March 13, 2000 with the objective
of acquiring the Heavy-Duty Gear Box Division of Tata Motors at Jamshedpur as a going going conce concern. rn. It suppl supplies ies trans transmi missi ssions ons and and thei theirr parts parts to Tata Tata Motor Motorss again against st purchase orders raised ra ised by Tata Motors on HVTL. •
was incorp incorpora orate ted d on March March 13, 200 2000 0 with with the object objective ive of HV Axles Axles Ltd Ltd.: .: It was acquiring the Heavy-Duty Axle Division of Tata Motors at Jamshedpur as a going concern. It supplies axles and their parts to Tata Motors against purchase orders raised by Tata Motors on HVAL.
•
Telco Automation Ltd.: It was incorporated on March 13, 2000 with the objective of
acquiring the Machine Tool and Growth Divisions of Tata Motors as a going concern. As and when required, Tata Motors sources factory automation equipment from TAL. •
Tata Tech Technolo nologies gies,, USA: It was incorporated on August22, 1994 and became a
wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Technologies Limited on December 22, 2000. The company is engaged in the business of computer consultancy and related services. Strategic alliances
Tata Motors has several joint ventures and alliances. These include: •
Tata Cummins Ltd., a joint-venture with Cummins Engine Company Inc., USA;
makes fuel-efficient, low emission, environment-friendly diesel engines; •
Tata Holset Ltd., a joint-venture with Holset Engineering Company, UK, makes
turbocha turbocharge rgers rs for diesel diesel engines engines manufac manufacture tured d by Tata Tata Cummin Cumminss Ltd. Ltd. and other other OEMs;
4
•
Concorde Motors Ltd., a joint venture with Jardine International Motors (Mauritius)
for dealersh dealerships ips of passenge passengerr vehicle vehicles. s. Concord Concordee has dealersh dealerships ips for Tata Tata Motors Motors passenger vehicles in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ludhiana, Hyderabad, Chennai and an d Lucknow. •
Tata Precision Industries Pvt. Ltd., Singapore, for the manufacture and sale of high
precision toolings as well as electronic and plastic components for the computer industry; •
Tata Motors Services Ltd., Singapore, for the sale of spare parts for Tata vehicles;
and •
Nita Company Ltd., Bangladesh, for the assembly and sale of Tata commercial
vehicles.
5
1.3 1.3
PROB PROBLE LEMS MS OF TH THE E O OR R GANI GANIZA ZATI TION ON
Given the city conditions, the consumers needed a very good overall performance of cars, small cars taking less space has no parking problems, easy derivability in heavy traffic conditions, conditions, easy gear shifts and good fuel efficiency. The small car car owners being mostly the professional class or the upper middle class were very cost conscious and due to their busy life styles preferred low maintenance in their cars. Irrespective of these above aspects there is one more thing, which also needs attention is customer customer satisfaction. satisfaction. Customer satisfaction satisfaction is abroad term, which includes includes many things like post sale service servic e satisfaction, dealership dea lership locality towards customers, way of treatment at these the se dealerships and service stations, solving the customers problems and concerns to their full satisfaction and so on. The occurrence of single problem is a source of dissatisfaction for customers. Problem experience is not always something broken or loose. Many a times it is a function of customers’ customers’ expectation of how a feature or a vehicle system should look or perform and any performance short of o f this expectation is perceived per ceived as a problem.
6
1 .4 .4
C O M P ET ET I T IIO O N I N F OR OR M AT AT I ON ON
The main purpose of this section is to have an insight into TELCO’s external environment. Here, we shall be briefly looking at the factors influencing its external environment, its competitors and the kind of competition it faces. Competition leads to improvement on all fronts. If healthy, it brings the best out of an industry. Newer and better technology, innovative and much better products and processes, user-friendly and economical products providing maximum value to customers, and other such advantages, all arise out of competition. TELCO faces stiff competition in almost all its business segments but has emerged as the winner when it comes to market success. Out of its three business segments namely, the Passenger Car division, Utility vehicle division and the Commercial vehicle division, the Passenger Passenger Car division is the area, which is seeing a lot of activity in the current period. And this activity is all set to intensify with the launch of the all-new TATA Sedan in the later half of the current year. TELCO TELCO currently has two products in the passenger car segmentsegment- the Indica and the Safari . It faces direct competition from almost all the major automobile players in the passenger segment, namely Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Fiat, Daewoo and Toyota. (Society of Indian Indian Automobil Automobilee Manufactu Manufacturers) rers) has classified the Passenger Car S.I.A.M. (Society
segment in India into further sub segments on the basis of their length, 1. Smal Smalll Car Car segm segment ent
(B segm segment ent))
2. Entry-l Entry-level evel Mid Mid Size Size segme segment nt (lower (lower C segment) segment) 3. Premiu Premium m Mid Size Size segment segment 4. Lu Luxur xury y Segm Segmen entt
(upper (upper C segment segment)) (D segme segment nt))
7
TELCO currently has one offering in the Small Car segment- The Indica, and one offering in the Sports Utility Vehicle segment - The Safari. The proposed offering, christened the TATA Sedan shall compete in the entry-level Mid-Size Car segment.
TELCO also has plans to introduce another offering in the Luxury car segment code-named ‘Magna’. The Magna shall be launched some time during the later half of next year in 2003. TELCO currently is tight-lipped about the Magna and has divulged no details regarding the car but according to group Chairman Mr. Ratan Tata, the Magna shall be TELCO’s answer to the Luxury Segment in India, which shall force the competitors to revamp their strategies. And if the success of the Indica and the Safari is to be believed, these words are sure to see light in the near future. The Indica comes in both diesel and petrol variants. TELCO has redefined the rules of the game by launching the all-new Indica V2, which has met with huge success in the recent months. It has earned a lot of respect among all the small car manufacturers because of its quality and value delivered to the customer, truly fulfilling its promise of More Cars per per Car . TELCO, for the year 2002 had promised a product of great pedigree, and the Indica V2 has just delivered that. The Indica is directly pitted against the Zen, Alto and Wagon-R from Maruti Udyog, the Santro from Hyundai, the Palio and Uno from Fiat, and the Matiz from Daewoo. The segmentation of the passenger car market in India is vastly different from that in the developed nations. In India, the economy segment accounts for the largest share of the cars sold, as compared to mid-range segment in the mature markets. The economy and the premium segment face the lowest competitive threats, while the premium segment will witness intense competition due to lower volumes.
8
Range
Price ('000 Rs.)
Models
Econ Econom omy y Maru Maruti ti 800, 800, Maru Maruti ti Om Omni ni,, Premier, Ambassador, Hyundai Santro Mid-range
3 50 - 45 0
Uno, Zen, Ford Ikon, Fiat Palio
Premium
450 - 1,000
Esteem,
Opel
Astra,
Ford
Escort,
Mitsubishi Lancer, Hyundai Accent Luxury
> 1,000
Opel Vectra, Rover Montego, Mercedes benz
TABLE: 1.1 Traditionally, disposable income was perceived as the one critical factor that drove pa ss en ge r ca r de ma nd . Ho we ve r, ho us eh ol d in co me is no lo ng er th e si ng le mo st important factor in determining the demand for vehicles. Other critical factors are the mobility needs of people and the availability of cheap finance. The top three income groups - middle, upper middle, and high - have grown from 10% in 1986 to 17% of the population and covers over 52 million families. The number of highincome households is growing very rapidly, more so in the rural areas. These find findin ings gs have have revo revolu luti tion onar ary y impl implic icat atio ions ns for for the the pass passen enge gerr car car mark market et.. Th Thee development of the used car market will also play a major role, as the customers will be encouraged to trade in their old cars. The key to the growth of future markets is to make maintenance-free vehicles, to improve the road infrastructure, and to reformulate fuels and lubricants so as to reduce vehicle-operating costs.
9
2. NEED OF THE STUDY
(a) The study is mainly mainly focussing focussing on to get acquaint acquainted ed with the market market sentiments sentiments,, current trends and the alternatives options. (b) The study also also interprets interprets the need of automobile automobile for the people and what are the factors where they can influence. (c) This This study is also a need of the time time and also acts as a precurso precursorr of the further further future car market. (d) Automobile Automobile based industries is also facing nationwide nationwide arguments arguments on its policies. (e) So the car manufacturi manufacturing ng is also in a need to know know the market sentimen sentiments ts and the alternatives to these policies.
10
3. SCOPE OF THE STUDY The research aims at finding the attitude of people towards the different brands of cars, a conclusive research was conducted. The data collection form was designed in the form of a standard questionnaire because it is more reliable than unstructured format.
In this study an effort has been to several factors which need to be taken due consideration to adhere to the advertising, sales promotion and various sales influencing factors of the automobile market.
11
5. OBJECTIVE OBJECTIVE OF THE THE STUDY STUDY In the fast changing competitive as well as economic scenario all around the world and the domestic front, the main objective of the study are:(a) The main significance significance of the study to analyze the strategies strategies generally opted by de al er s an d to fo cu s on th e Ma rk et in g mix mi x of TATA TA TA Mo to rs . (b) This project is useful to know the buying behavior of car owners. owners. (c) Examine the psychographics of small size car car customers. (d) To probe the buying behavior behavior of car owners. owners. (e) To find people expectations or satisfaction regarding the small small cars. (f) To judge judge the awaren awareness ess level level of small small cars. cars. (g) To study the promotion promotional al policies policies of the automobile automobile companies. companies. (h) Study the comparati comparative ve adds promotion promotion by tata and its competit competitors. ors. (i)
Basic Basical ally ly survey survey on the type type of prom promoti otiona onall setba setback ck faced faced by their their produc productt not representing up to mark performance.
12
1. RESEAR RESEARCH CH METHOD METHODOLO OLOGY GY 2. LIMI LIMITA TATI TION ONS S
13
1. RESEAR RESEARCH CH METHO METHODOL DOLOG OGY Y A research design is the arrangement of condition for collection and analysis of data in a manner that to, combine combine relevance to research purpose with with economy in procedure.Res earc ea rc h Design is conceptual structure within which research is conducted. It constitutes the blue print of collection, measurement and analysis of date. Research Design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of various research operations, thereby making research as efficient as possible yielding maximum information with minimum time, effort and money. Research Design stands for advance pl an ni ng of me th od s to be us ed fo r co ll ec ti ng re le va nt da ta an d te ch ni qu es to be used in the analysis .The design helps researcher to organize his ideas whereby it will be possible for him to look for flaws and inadequacies.
Sources of Primary and Secondary data: The major aim of the project was to analyze the Strategies of TELCO and to study the consumer-buying behavior for small car customers.
For the first part secondary secondary data was collected from various sources that included website of TELCO and trade journal that were collected from TELCO’s Delhi Office. By reducing the chance or the sample to influence results through different questions and through different judgment of answers and what to record, the structured questionnaire produces more reliable results i.e. if the research project is repeated in the same manner, similar results will be obtained.
14
Most of the questions asked in the questionnaire were closed ended with a few open op en-en -ende ded d qu ques esti tion onss also also,, to kn know ow cons consum umer erss gene genera rall view views. s. Some Some ques qu esti tion onss are are desi design gned ed for for the the pu purp rpos osee of cros crosss chec checki king ng the the samp sample le genuineness in filling the questionnaire. For the purpos purposee of analys analysis, is, ranking ranking scale scale is used used to rank rank the preferen preferences ces of a tt tt ri ri bu bu te te s o f t he he c us us to to me me rs rs . ( Se Se ma ma nt nt ic ic d if if fe fe re re nt nt ia ia l s ca ca le le i s u se se d t o understand the images of brands of cars as perceived by the consumers. This scale is used because it permits the development of descriptive profiles that facilitates the comparison of competitive items.)
Universe : The universe is entire group of items the researchers wish to study and about which they plan to generalize. For this, the universe consists of people of Delh Delhii who who own own sm smal alll car. car. Sele Select ctin ing g the the samp sample le for for this this proj projec ect, t, a pr ob ab il it y sa mp li ng me th od is us ed . Prob Pr ob ab il it y s ampl am pl in g me th od is th os e in which every item in the universe universe has a known chance of being chosen chosen in the sample. Here the sample size consists of 60 residents of Delhi. The pr ob ab il it y sa mp li ng is pr ef er re d be ca us e: •
It is the only only sampli sampling ng method method that that provid provides es essent essential ially ly unb unbias iased ed estim estimate atess h av av in in g m ea ea su su ra ra bl bl e p re re ci ci si si on on . I f t he he i nv nv es es ti ti ga ga to to r r eq eq ui ui re re s t hi hi s l ev ev el el o f objectivity, then some variant of probability sampling is essential.
The probability sampling permits the researchers to evaluate in quantitative terms, the relati relative ve effici efficienc ency y of altern alternate ate sampli sampling ng techni technique quess in a given given situat situation ion.. Usually this is not poss ible in non-probability sampling. STEP IN SAMPLING PLAN :-
15
Sampling Frame: The list of sampling units from which sample is taken is called
sampling frame. Jaipur city map was studied thoroughly and samples were selected from the place in a scattered manner to get effective result. SAMPLING TECHNIQUE:
CONVIENIENT SAMPLING
Tota tall samp sample le size size is 10 100. 0. Th Thee foll follow owin ing g samp sample le size size SAMPLING SAMPLING SIZE: To according to area wise is as follows:
20 Raapark
20 Shodila
20 Gpo, M.I Road
20 Rambagh circle
20 Tonk Road
Source of data collection:Primary:
For my survey primary data have been used as a questionnaire to collect the data. Secondary:
The secondary data has been collected from the following modes:
Magazines
Ne ws pa pe r
Data through internet sources
16
Data collected from organization
INTERPRETATION
On the base of market research, 18-25 age customers satishfied is 2%, 26-35 age customers is satisfied 18%, 36-50 age customers is satisfied 365 & 50 above age customers is satisfied satisfied 165, That is total total no of satisfied satisfied customers is 725 725,, and uns unsati atisfi sfied ed custom customers ers is 55 (26-35 (26-35 age), age), 36-50 36-50 uns unsati atisfi sfied ed customers is 8% and 50 above unsatisfied customers is 6% that is total no of unsatisfie unsatisfied d customers customers is 19% and 18-25 age customers customers are not decided 1%, 26-35 age customers 2% are notdecided, 36-50 age customers are 6% are not decided, that is total 9% customers are not decided. Occupation wise:
Serviceman
Businessman
Student House
Total
Satisfied person (%)) (%
Unsatisfied person (%)) (%
Neither satisfied nor unsatisfied (%)
31
3
1
19
7
0
10
5
2
12
4
6
72
19
9
INTERPRETATION
On base of market research, I have find out serviceman customer are 31% satisfied 3% unsatisfied, businessman are 19% satisfied 7%unsatisfied,student are 10% satisfied & 5% students are unsatisfied, and 125 housewife housewife are satisfied,4% satisfied,4% housewife are unsatisfied & 6% housewife are not decided for satisfaction. 17
Facilities provided by Tata Motors Ltd.
18
Sample size
– 60
Respondents: Owners of Santro
– 14
Owners of Zen
- 14
Owners of Indica
– 14
O w n er s o f Ma r u t i 8 0 0
–9
Owners of other cars
–9 TABLE: 4.1
S T N E D N O P S E R
OTHER CAR OWNERS 800 OWNERS OWNERS ZEN OWNERS INDICA OWNERS SANTR SA NTRO O OWNERS 0
5
10
15
20
25
NO. OF OF RESPONDENTS RESP ONDENTS
Interpretation 19
30
Most of the respondents are in an income bracket of Rs.20001 to Rs.25000 and above Rs.25000.
This indicates indicates that most of the car owners belong belong to either either upper
of upper middle class segment. Performance of a car clearly outweighs its style and cost on the consumer’s list of pr io ri ti es to bu y a ca r. Pe rf or ma nc e be it en gi ne ma ke up , fu el ef fi ci en cy in ci ty conditions conditions,, smoothness smoothness,, pick up, derivabil derivability, ity, is consumer’ consumer’ss first preference preference in their their look out on attribut attributes es in makin making g a decisi decisions ons for buying buying a car. car. consumers consumers surveyed surveyed gave gave style style and cost cost as their their prioriti priorities es to buy a car. car.
Very Very few A mere mere
25% of respondents gave style and 30% gave cost as their reasons to buy a car. 85% of respondents i.e. 51 out of 60 respondents gave performance of a car as a factor for making a purchase decision. Out of a total of 60 respondents surveyed, 30 respondents gave performance, 7 pe rf or manc ma nc e an d s ty le , 11 pe rf or manc ma nc e an d co st , 2 st yl e, co s t an d pe rf or ma nc e, 4 gave style and 4 gave cost as the reasons for purchasing their car. When the consumers were asked to rank the factors, they consider being important in buying a car, ranking the factors from 1 to 7 where ‘1’ is the highest preference rank ‘7’, the lowest preference rank, performance of the car was ranked the highest on the preference scale. scale. Performance, on an average of 60 respondents was ranked ranked ‘1.4 ‘1.48’ 8’ show showin ing g that that the the cons consum umer erss soug sought ht perf perfor orma manc ncee in a car car as the the firs firstt important factor in making a purchase. The car owners as the second most important factors ranking them 2.9 and 2.7 respectively considered the cost and low maintenance of a car. After sales service and brand name were the third and fourth preferences of the respondents with 3.4 and 3.86 as their respective rankings. Safety was ranked ranked 4.35 on the the pref prefer eren ence ce scal scalee and and cred credit it faci facili lity ty stoo stood d at the the car car owne owners rs’’ lowe lowest st pr ef er en ce wi th a ra nk of 6. 43 .
20
Given the city conditions, the consumers needed a very good overall performance of cars, small cars taking less space has no parking problems, easy derivability in heavy traffic conditions, conditions, easy gear shifts and good fuel efficiency. The small car car owners being mostly the professional class or the upper middle class were very cost conscious and due to their busy life styles preferred low maintenance in their cars. The small car consumers are high search information seekers, most of them using at least 3 sources of seeking the information. information. They believe that extensive search is necessary necessary to make a good buy. Having Having owned fewest fewest carts previously, previously, they they had very less information about the cars. The survey showed that a highest number of consumers sought friends as a source of informa informatio tion. n.
Even Even as a majori majority ty of them them went for magazin magazines es and other car
owners as a source of seeking information, a good number of consumers went to dealers for getting the information. Television as a source source of information was was used by le ss nu mb er of co ns um er s an d a ve ry fe w of th em we nt to me ch an ic s in se ar ch of information. Most of these small small car buyers being first time purchasers purchasers usually go for friends, friends, automobile magazines or other car owners to get information about the various pr od uc ts an d br an ds in th e ma rk et to kn ow th e mo moss t fa vo ra bl e br an d or pr od uc ts and later they seek further information from dealers and other sources once they are through their choice process and have decided upon a particular brand or br an ds to bu y. Most of the small small car consumer consumerss are happy with with their purchases. purchases.
A probe into into
respondents’ satisfaction level, ranking from 1 to 5 where ‘1’ was full satisfaction and ‘5’ full dissatisfaction with theirs cars, gave ‘1.79’ as an average figure of satisfaction level.
21
Out of a total of 60 respondents, 26 ranked their satisfaction level as ‘1’, 20 ranked ‘2’, 9 ranked ‘3’, 2 ranked ‘4’ and only one respondent showed null satisfaction. The main reasons which were quoted for their satisfaction were driving comfort, good fuel efficiency, small is cute, easy parking, less maintenance, good pick-up and a perfect car for a small family. Again when the consumers were asked about their preference for any other car, the highest number of respondents chose small cars, that are 20 out of 56 respondents pr ef er re d sm al l ca rs , mi ds iz e ca rs , 16 la rg e si ze ca rs , 5 we nt fo r je ep mo de ls an d 8 consumers luxury cars like BMW, Mercedes, Ferrari, Ferrari, etc. The main reason again given for their preference was comfort of driving, performance, good looks and fuel efficiency.
22
TABLE: 4.2
FACTORS IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IN A CAR PURC HASE
COST 3% 3%
7% 7%
STYLE
18%
PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE AND STYLE PERFORMANCE AND
12%
COST STYLE STYLE AND A ND COST COS T
50%
STYLE STYLE COST COS T AND PERFOMANCE
23
FACTORS IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IN A CAR PURC HASE
90
80
70 S T N E D 60 N O P S E 50 R F O E 40 G A T N E 30 C R E P 20
PERFORMANCE STYLE COST
10
0 1 ATTRIBUTES
TABLE: 4.3
24
RESPONDENTS’ RANKING OF ATTRIBUTES P R E FE R EN C E R AN K
PREFERENCE POINTS
1
140
2
120
3
100
4
80
5
60
6
40
7
20
TABLE: 4.4 A tt r i b u te s
Pr e fe r en c e R a nk
P r ef e re n c e P o i n ts
Performance
1.5
130
Cost
2.9
102
Low Maintenance
2.7
106
After Sales Service
3.4
92
Brand Name
3.8
84
Safety
4.4
72
Credit Facility
6.4
32
TABLEL: 4.5
TABLE: 4.6
25
CREDIT FACILITY T SAFETY N I O BRAND NAME P E C AFTER SALES SERVICE N AFTER E R LOW MAINTENANCE E F E R COST P
PERFORMANCE 0
20
40
60
80
ATTRIBUTES
26
100
120
140
SOURCES SOURCES OF INFORMATION INFORMATION
40
35
30
S T N E D 25 N O P S E 20 R
TELEVISION MAGAZINE FRIENDS DEALERS
F O R E 15 B M U N
MECHANIC OTHER CAR OWNERS
10
5
0 1 SOURCE SOURC E OF INFORMATION INFORMATION
TABLE: 4.7
27
INFLUENCING INFLUENCING FACT ORS IN DECISION MAKIN M AKING G
80
70
60
50 PERCENTAGE OF RESPONDENTS
FRIENDS 40
FAMILY MEDIA
30
OTHERS
20
10
0 1 INFLUENCERS
TABEL: 4.8
28
SWOT ANALYSIS Strength
•
Technology and manufacturing know-how that lets Tata Motors make cars more profitably than most other ot her carmakers.
•
Flexible manufacturing system gives it an advantage over most of the carmakers.
•
It requires smaller number of platforms but multiple assembly lines for production that provides better, cheaper, more oriented management and production.
•
Research- Its R&D budget now exceeds that of Japan's No. 2, Nissan. Tata Motors spends 5% of revenues on R&D.
•
Tata Motors possesses Goodwill and Credibility in the Indian automobile market
Weaknesses-
•
It is a new concept to be launched in the market where majority of the consumers go for family cars. Also it has not been tested in the market, therefore there is risk involved with the launch.
•
It can't afford a wrong move on big-volume models. Tata Motors relies on Civic and Accord sedans for 55% of sales.
•
Tata Motors is unable to spread its fixed costs for engineering, technology, and marketing over a huge volume of vehicles.
29
Opportunity
•
It is first sports car to be launched in the Indian market; therefore it has no real competitor.
•
According to the facts India has emerged as one of the largest automobile market in the global community.
Threat
•
A new competitor in Indian market.
•
Price wars with competitors.
•
A competitor like Toyota has a new, innovative product or service.
•
Competitors may have superior access to channels of distribution.
•
Taxation is introduced on your product or service.
30
31
LIMITATIONS 1. Th Thee time time for which which the proj project ect was was conduc conducte ted d was very very short short.. Hence Hence the the sample size was restricted to 60 only. 2. Th Thee scope of study study was also restr restric icted ted to the study study of aware awarenes nesss about about the consumer preferences. It could be widened to cover various others aspects of product demand. 3. As there there are many many competi competitors tors of Tata Tata motors motors in the the pvt.sect pvt.sector. or. Only Only 3 of its competitor’s products were analyzed in detail. A detailed study of all the competitors of Tata motors would have given more reliable and accurate results. 4. Th Thee area area from where where the sample sample popula populati tion on was selecte selected d was was Delhi Delhi only. only. Other cities and moreover rural area was not covered under the study. 5. Th Thee prim primar ary y data data was was coll collec ecte ted d form form pres presen entt and and pote potent ntia iall cust custom omer erss of products to evaluate e valuate their preferences. pr eferences. But the th e preferences of o f marketing agents age nts were were not consider considered ed which which would would have helped helped to evaluat evaluatee the preferab preferable le commission sale which helps to boost product sale.
32
33
CONCLUSION In the end, I can conclude that most of the respondents who were questioned gave importance to performance of the car. Other factors like safety, brand name, style, performane performane cost were not not given much importance.Hereb importance.Hereby y I can say that performance matters the most.Other features are not important for the customers. Tata motors give much importance to the performance of the car and conducts surveys to know the changing needs of the customers .
34
35
RECOMMENDATIONS & SUGGESTION STRATEGIES To improve its market position, the company has a number of strategies at various levels. These are1. Corp Corpor orat atee Strat Strateg egie iess 2. Busi Busine ness ss Str Strat ateg egie iess 3.
Opera Operati tiona onall Stra Strate tegi gies es
4. Intern Internat ation ional al Strat Strateg egies ies
CORPORATE STRATEGIES Corporate Strategies are strategies that the company employs at the top level, these are not concerned with areas of operation, but are concerned with achieving the strategies of the company as a whole. These help in achieving the Strategic Objectives that the company has. Globalize: With economies opening up, Tata companies are aiming for global benchmarks to
compete. Be Skill – Intensive – Intensive: With manufacturing ceasing to be India’ s advantage, the thrust is on
knowledge – based industries. Build brands: Shift from selling commodities to marketing branded products and services
that not just differentiate but fetch a premium. interest, Tata companies must be among the top three in Leadership: To justify shareholder interest, their industries. Enhance Performance : Executives must pull their weight, and the best of them must get
opportunities across functions and group companies. 36
BUSINESS STRATEGIES Business Strategies Strategies are the strategies that Telco uses in the various areas of business that the company operates in. These strategies can be studied separately for all the segments: As we know that Telco is the leader in the commercial vehicle segment with 54% market share in Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) and 63% market share in Medium & Heavy Commercial (M & HCV). Telco has a market share of 22% in utility vehicle segment. The company has also garnered a 9% market share in the passenger car industry in a very short span. The decision of the government to ban diesel buses and give licenses to CNG buses has been a boon for TELCO TELCO as it is the major supplier of buses to all State Transport Corporations. Though only few state governments are stern in implementing this order but TELCO will remain one of the major suppliers of buses and hence can plan p lan expansion. Telco will use GOI policy towards its benefits as depreciation norms and excise duty etc will have a bearing demand for MUV’s and CV’s. The implementation of infrastructure projects will have a positive impact on demand of CV’s and MUV’s as they are extensively used in transportation transportation of material material and people requirement requirement of projects. projects. The freight rates determine the revenue component of fleet owners. The improvement in freight rates consistently over this period will add to business busines s of TELCO. Though oil o il prices have gone up but bu t the shift in the oil sector companies companies towards a positive pricing strategy strategy will not affect Telco’s business plans & performance. Though the metropolitans have become over-crowded and but Telco’s Indica V2 sales have picked up. The Company vigorously pursued a programme of product innovation in commercial commercial vehicles with a view to regaining and improving improving its market share. The company had already added to its range Euro 1 Compliant Cummins Engine Powered Vehicle with a view to regaining and improving its market share. Major innovation in the current year include •
A 25 Tonnes Truck and a 30 Tonne Tractor Trailer 37
•
Fuel Efficient M&HCV Truck and Busses Powered by Company’s Euro 1 Compliant 697 Engines
•
A Cost Effective 11 Tonnes Vehicle in both bus and truck version to meet the growing demand in this segment
•
A Fur Tonnes LCV fitted with an internally developed Turbo charged Engine.
OPERATIONAL STRATEGIES These strategies are employed at the operational level, it deals with the working of the organization once the Corporate Strategies have been decided. 1. QUAL QUALIT ITY Y CON CONTR TROL OL-- the company has adopted a new philosophy of Total Quality
Manage Manageme ment nt.. In the the future future it can exten extend d this this philos philosoph ophy y mo more re to the sup suppli plier erss and stockiest. stockiest. It should also train the employees employees towards TQM, and adopt various policies to improve quality. 2. HR POL POLICIES- the company operates in a number of areas where HR is the main
resour resource ce,, and it sho shoul uld d indulg indulgee into into mo more re team team build building ing exerci exercisi sing ng to impro improve ve the efficiency of its employees. 3. IMPR IMPROV OVE E HR HR BAS BASEE- just recently the company has been unable to attract fresh talent
to its new initiatives. The company should find attempt to lure fresh talent through initiatives such as Factory gate recruitment, more autonomy, better pay packages etc to lure fresh talent.
38
INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIES 1. INVE INVEST ST HEA HEAVI VILY LY IN IN R&DR&D- the main area where Telco can improve in its efforts to
make an impact in the global marketplace is by improving its R&D base and bringing it up to world standards. Also Telco can get into strategic alliance with a international car manufacturer for R&D support. 2. ST STRA RATE TEGI GIC C TIETIE-UP UPSS- the company should attempt to tie up with some Strategic
Partn Partners ers,, to help help it gain gain entry entry into into forei foreign gn marke markets. ts. Th These ese partn partners ers sho should uld have have competencies in the area of cost management or R&D, or these companies might be suppliers who provide inputs in the projects taken up by the company Consumers Consumers of small cars are seeking a very good overall performance in a car than any other attributes. Most of the consumers prefer Small cars and mid sized cars for their good mileage, good acceleration, easy derivability, requiring small rooms for parking. Good looks hardly count for the buyers of small cars. Again a good after sales service and low maintenance in a vehicle is a garnish on customer’s delight. Safety and credit facilities are almost ignored factors in purchasing a small car. Family wields the highest influencing power in making a purchase decision for an Indian consumer. Friends and media also have a good impact on decision-making. A very few consumers consumers take a self-purch self-purchase ase decision. decision.Usual Usually ly consumers consumers get detailed detailed informati information on through friends, magazines, other car owners and dealers whereas, they get the product information from the other sources like television, hoardings etc.The dream cars of the consum consumers ers are high high luxury luxury cars cars like like Merced Mercedes es S-clas S-class, s, BMW, BMW, Ferrar Ferrari, i, Pajero Pajero,, Rolls Rolls Royce, Jaguar, Porsche, the cars with a class apart when it comes to their brands images, cars which flaunt status, style, wealth and attitude of the people owning them, cars which are considered to the best on the globe.
39
LEARNING Learning is defined as “The gaining of knowledge or skill”. The environment around us is constantly evolving, it is important for anyone to constantly evolve and improve. This is no different for a company, who keeps on evolving, and attempting to learn faster than its competitors. The learning-ba learning-based sed route route forward forward believes believes that route route to success success is adopting adopting a flexible flexible,, emergent strategy that monitors events in the environment and reacts to them in the best possible way. Telco has adopted a learning route forward, it has showed that it reacts well to market changes and various events; its strategy has always evolved according to these changes. Seeing the opening up of the market, and the growth of the infrastructure, the company decided to look for alliance partners, to come up to world-standards. In the future Telco should continue to learn and evolve into a world-class company, and make changes that will help it achieve its goals in the best possible way.
40
41
QUESTIONNAIRE
A survey of consumer perception about small cars
Personal details: Na me : No . of memb me mb er s in fa mily mi ly : Monthly household income:
1. Do you own (Please Tick?) Car or a
2 wheeler
2. If you do own a car Na me Model Color
3. Are you satisfied with it?
4. How much do you spend on maintenance on a monthly basis?
5. Name some cars in the small car segment in India
6. Can you relate the following cars to their ads Zen
Indica
Santro
7. Rate the following (I to II) attributes according to you preferences while buying a new car Price
42
Looks
Safety features
Interiors
Value added accessories
Color
Stability while driving
Low maintenance costs
Fuel efficiency
Boot space
Gear box
8. Comment on the following statements according top the tables given below
1 strongly agree 2- Agree 3-neither agree nor disagree 4-disagree 5- Strongly disagree
Indica, being the only indigenously made car is preferred by me Santro has the most effective AC Zen has the jazziest and outgoing colors
9. Rate the following cars as per your perception on the basis of the attributes specified (5 excellent to 1 poor)
Indica
Santro
Zen -
Sales an and services 43
-
Price
-
Fuel ef efficiency
-
Smoot ooth an and st stable ri ride
-
Up market status
-
Luxury
-
Value fo for mo money
-
L oo k s
-
Financ ancing facility ity
-
Comfort
-
Safety
10. When are you planning to buy the next car? One month later Within six months 6 months later No such plans
11. Which one?
12. Why?
13. Comment on the following cars as to how can there be any improvements Indica Santro Zen
44
45
BIBLIOGRAPHY Reference books:
Mowen c. John Consumer Behavior Macmillian publication 6 th edition Tull & Hawkins Market Market Research Pearson publication publication 7th edition Internet:
http://www.tata.com/0_careers/our_people/20020214_suman1.htm http://www.tata.com/0_b_sectors/index.htm http://www.cybersteering.com/auto_makers/telco/tata.html http://www.tata.com/tata_engg/index.htm http://www.tatainternational.com/automob_products.asp http://www.tata.com/tata_engg/articles/index.htm http://www.telcoindia.com/home.htm http://www.tata.com/tata_engg/media/20020228.htm http://www.tata.com/tata_engg/articles/2000106051indica2.htm http://www.tata.com/tcs/articles/20011110_auto_engg_service(1).htm www.marutiudyog.com www.hyudaimotorindia.com www.autoweb.com
Magzines
Business today News Papers
Economic Times Business line 46
